What Poker Variant Should You Play?
A common question banded around poker forums and magazines comes in the form of poker players who are new to the game asking for advice on what game or variant of poker they should play. Of course the answer to that question, like most questions in poker, is "it depends."
They say that one man's meat is another man's poison - whoever they are - and this is true for poker. Just because Chris Moorman can decimate tournament fields seemingly at will doesn't mean that you should jump straight into the world of multi-table tournaments. Likewise with cash games.
In my opinion, you need to try and balance three key areas: (1) What format you are profitable at (2) what you actually enjoy playing (3) what format fits into your current circumstances.
There is no point me telling you to go and play six-handed turbo sit 'n' go tournament if you, frankly, completely suck at them. That is unless you love playing them and losing while you do so. Oh, and you have a massive bankroll that can sustain your losses!
But if you want to make some money from this game you have to strike a balance between the three elements mentioned previously. On a personal level, my own skillset is more suited to multi-table tournaments. I have made most of my profit from poker from MTTs (box number one checked) and I really enjoy playing them (number two, check). The only downside is that some of the MTTs I like to play don't really fit into my life schedule so I have to mix in a few turbo structured tournaments or only play every other day as a compromise.
What I would suggest you do if you are having trouble deciding what area, format or variant of poker to specialise in is sit down and think about each game (NL Hold'em, Pot Limit Omaha, Seven Card Stud etc) and each format (cash games, sit 'n' go and MTT) individually. Make an actual list of the positive and negative points of each and then do that for your own strengths and weaknesses; you have to be brutally honest in that second part otherwise it is a pointless exercise.
By the time your lists are completed you should be able to marry up your own strengths and weaknesses to the positive and negative of each game and format. For example, there is little point in playing six-max Pot Limit Omaha cash games if you are prone to tilting when you lose a big pot or coinflip, because you'll be doing that a lot in PLO! Again, don't specialise in MTTs if you have the concentration span of an elderly goldfish.
If you can find a game that suits your personality then you are likely to enjoy it more, and when you enjoy a game it becomes less of a grind and you can endure the negative aspects of it much easier and your chances of being profitable in that particular area also increase.
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