Firstly, many thanks for all the great posts on this site that have helped me progress from total idiot to beginner. I have been bitten by the poker bug well and truly in the last few months and I am desperate to climb the ladder of competence as quickly as I am able.

I have been playing $5 SnG tables at party poker for the last month, my results using PT are as follows:

Place Total Percentage
1-------13-----14.3
2-------11-----12.1
3-------15-----16.5
4-------13-----14.3
5-------15-----16.5
6-------9-------9.9
7-------9-------9.9
8-------2-------2.2
9-------4-------4.4
10------0-------0.0
Total----91

I am 43% in the money and ROI of 17%

My style of play is very tight in the early stages only raising with top 5 hands pre-flop, only playing 10-15% of hands in the first 3 levels, but betting hard at flops when I hit a good hand when I am in. I then loosen up and try to steal at levels 4/5 if I am short stacked, hopefully picking on someone who won't call. I tend to play semi loose, aggressive, aggressive in the latter stages depending on the nature of the other players.

PT has helped me identify one big leak - I have a habit of calling people who reraise me when I have made a pot size bet on the flop and I have a hand, believing that they are bluffing me. Sometimes they are not and my game ends there!

If anyone would like to provide me with further tips I would be very grateful. My questions are as follows:

1. Do the above results tell you anything that I should watch out for?

2. If you were me would you move up to $10 tables, or wait for the ROI to improve?

3. Can anyone recommend a good book on post-flop play where I feel less confident?

4. How do people play the level 4/5 stages when you haven't hit any good cards/flops and have 500 chips left and need to make things happen? it seems fairly random at the moment whether I make it through from this. Perhaps I need to work harder on my blind stealing techniques. Should I keep waiting for the great hand, or should I start to bluff steal blinds while my stack is still big enough to hurt people. If you can direct me to a source of knowledge and advice on this that would be great.

Many thanks for your help and thanks again for all the great posts on this site.

The Don

With those sort of stats would say definitely move up to $10 tables. The play is just the same as on $5 tables IMHO.

Just use the same strategy as you've quoted and you won't go wrong.

I have a habit of doing the same as you. After a couple of wins I start to get over confident and overplay or downright bluff hands early on and end up paying for it.

There's just no need in these things. Sit tight, wait for half the field to knock themselves out, and then start playing.

However, if you come up against ilblancovino always fold to his raises in the later stages.

Welcome, Don Quixote. (There is a sentence I never thought I would write.)

Where is Pancho?!

Looks like you are doing pretty well on these stats although it is a small sample. Your ITM is on the low side, but this brings me on to my next point- the 10% rake at the $5 SnGs is tough to beat. The play at the $10s isn't much different to the $5s, so I say go for it. So moving up should improve your ROI, which will be nice! Over 40% ITM is good.

On your 4th question- this is the toughest and most interesting stage of the tourney. When the blinds are up to 50 and 100 or more and you have around 5 BBs left I think, as do some others, you should be looking to get your money in preflop with many hands. Others think you should wait for a bigger hand. See the thread 'When is it time to move in?' started by Cipherj.

Personally, I think these later stages come down to experience of these situations, any reads you have on the others, and the image you have. I tend to have a v tight image by their standards by this stage, which can make steals easier.

Telemachus - Pancho is out getting the pizzas at the moment. It takes a while because his donkey isn't very fast.

I'm aware that the 20% rake is hurting my ROI. I guess I haven't been too bothered about that yet as I am just beginning and want to learn the game rather than maximise returns. I love using PT so that limits the sites you can play on a little. Thanks for pointing me to that thread, I hadn't noticed that one.

Bluestu, thanks for the advice to fold to ilblancovino. Is that your alias on Party??

The Don

Yes I'm afraid it is.

I'd just like to agree with the earlier posts about the rake at the $5 tables.

The play on the $10 tables is so similar to the $5 tables that I would expect you to get similar results on both.

Good luck.

Thanks for the advice.

So far so good. I haven't noticed a huge difference in standard, I think there are slightly more good players around at the $10 level and slightly fewer idiots.

Of my first 10 games I was in the money only once and was worried I was out of my depth but have turned that around to in the money 44% on 34 games . Statistically a small number (yes I know Telemachus), but enough to give me a bit of confidence to carry on at $10.