Get your tilt under control!
Ok so you decide to take the brave step of playing more than one table at a time. Again you need to temper this bravery with caution. If you are indeed truly a winning player you have the ‘potential’ to multiply your winnings but things can also go badly wrong. Tilt control becomes vital for multi-tabling. You go on tilt or become otherwise emotionally imbalanced when you are playing across 4 tables or more and it’s not difficult to see what damage you could wreak. At least if you are playing just on 1 table you have less hands to get through where you have to overcome your tiltedness and the damage it can do. So if you have an issue with tilt or any other non-productive emotions, get them under control before you begin multi-tabling.
Ok so you decide to take the brave step of playing more than one table at a time. Again you need to temper this bravery with caution. If you are indeed truly a winning player you have the ‘potential’ to multiply your winnings but things can also go badly wrong. Tilt control becomes vital for multi-tabling. You go on tilt or become otherwise emotionally imbalanced when you are playing across 4 tables or more and it’s not difficult to see what damage you could wreak. At least if you are playing just on 1 table you have less hands to get through where you have to overcome your tiltedness and the damage it can do. So if you have an issue with tilt or any other non-productive emotions, get them under control before you begin multi-tabling.
Multi-table and see your winnings multiply!
Another factor with multi-tabling is discovering what your threshold is for the amount of tables you can comfortably manage at any one time. Multi-tabling does offer the ‘potential’ to multiply your earnings but it doesn’t necessarily follow that if you play 2 tables you will make twice the amount that you make on 1 table. Although there is the case for some players that playing 2 tables can make them concentrate more and play less thrash hands, in this case their win rates may very well more than double, but because of the extra level of difficulty introduced typically a win-rate of something along the lines of 1.8 to 1.9 times what you earn for just one table.
Another factor with multi-tabling is discovering what your threshold is for the amount of tables you can comfortably manage at any one time. Multi-tabling does offer the ‘potential’ to multiply your earnings but it doesn’t necessarily follow that if you play 2 tables you will make twice the amount that you make on 1 table. Although there is the case for some players that playing 2 tables can make them concentrate more and play less thrash hands, in this case their win rates may very well more than double, but because of the extra level of difficulty introduced typically a win-rate of something along the lines of 1.8 to 1.9 times what you earn for just one table.
How many tables can you comfortably play?
When adding yet more tables. It’s not difficult to see that eventually a player is going to come to the point where adding yet more tables is actually going to decrease their hourly win rate. Say a player has gradually increased his level of multi-tabling, say at 3 tables his win-rate was 2.5 times that of his one-tabling days; and at 4 tables his win-rate was at 3 times his one-tabling. Now let’s say this player has moved on to playing 5 tables and his win-rate has just increased to 3.2 times his one-tabling rate. Look closely at what’s happening here, the pattern clearly suggests that a further increase in this poker player’s multi-tabling is unlikely to bring any increase in hourly rate, in fact it might see a decline.
When adding yet more tables. It’s not difficult to see that eventually a player is going to come to the point where adding yet more tables is actually going to decrease their hourly win rate. Say a player has gradually increased his level of multi-tabling, say at 3 tables his win-rate was 2.5 times that of his one-tabling days; and at 4 tables his win-rate was at 3 times his one-tabling. Now let’s say this player has moved on to playing 5 tables and his win-rate has just increased to 3.2 times his one-tabling rate. Look closely at what’s happening here, the pattern clearly suggests that a further increase in this poker player’s multi-tabling is unlikely to bring any increase in hourly rate, in fact it might see a decline.
Decline slight edge for sustainability
Furthermore it could be argued that the player is better off passing up the slight increase in overall earnings gained by playing 5 tables and reverting to playing 4 tables as it might be less stressful and therefore more sustainable in the long run than playing 5 tables. It can be difficult for a player to objectively determine what amount of multi-tabling suits him/her best, such decision can only be determined by experience and the player being honest with himself.
Furthermore it could be argued that the player is better off passing up the slight increase in overall earnings gained by playing 5 tables and reverting to playing 4 tables as it might be less stressful and therefore more sustainable in the long run than playing 5 tables. It can be difficult for a player to objectively determine what amount of multi-tabling suits him/her best, such decision can only be determined by experience and the player being honest with himself.
Hardware for multi-tabling
The hardware you use, is another consideration for those who multi-tabling seriously. Which computer monitor(s) you buy will have a major impact on the quality of your multi-tabling experience. I’d recommend at least one monitor capable of supporting at least 1600×1200 resolution. That way you can fit more tables comfortably on your screen without having them overlapping. It’s better again of course if you can afford to buy a second monitor giving you the option to either open up more easily viewable tables or perhaps keep tables on one screen while your other applications could be displayed on the second screen. Also if you really want a great visual experience for your poker and you can afford it, you could splash out on a couple of 30” monitors which support a massive 2560×1600 resolution.
The hardware you use, is another consideration for those who multi-tabling seriously. Which computer monitor(s) you buy will have a major impact on the quality of your multi-tabling experience. I’d recommend at least one monitor capable of supporting at least 1600×1200 resolution. That way you can fit more tables comfortably on your screen without having them overlapping. It’s better again of course if you can afford to buy a second monitor giving you the option to either open up more easily viewable tables or perhaps keep tables on one screen while your other applications could be displayed on the second screen. Also if you really want a great visual experience for your poker and you can afford it, you could splash out on a couple of 30” monitors which support a massive 2560×1600 resolution.
Get a reliable internet connection
A further important consideration for multi-tabling poker is your internet connectivity and how reliable it is. If your internet connection is slow or unreliable then unfortunately you may be subject to lags and/or disconnections which at times might prove very costly. If you can’t remedy this by either changing your broadband provider, your broadband tariff or perhaps trying out other forms of internet connections such as 3G then multi-tabling might not be a realistic option for you. Note even if you do have a good quality broadband connection it might be worthwhile, especially for medium and high stake players, to have a backup 3G connection just in case you do get disconnected during your game play.
A further important consideration for multi-tabling poker is your internet connectivity and how reliable it is. If your internet connection is slow or unreliable then unfortunately you may be subject to lags and/or disconnections which at times might prove very costly. If you can’t remedy this by either changing your broadband provider, your broadband tariff or perhaps trying out other forms of internet connections such as 3G then multi-tabling might not be a realistic option for you. Note even if you do have a good quality broadband connection it might be worthwhile, especially for medium and high stake players, to have a backup 3G connection just in case you do get disconnected during your game play.
Hopefully after reading our 3 articles have suitably prepared you for the exciting prospect of multi-tabling, good luck multiplying your winnings!
