Small Stakes No-Limit Hold'em Journaling: Taking Notes on Poker Players

When you play with many of the same players regularly, you will be able to observe their playing style, habits and if you pay close attention, you may be able to pick-up on any tells they have.  This is a good thing about playing with regulars.  You can take notes and really study your opponents.
 
Taking notes on regular players is a task that will increase your win rate significantly. When you are alert, and pay close attention to these players, day after day or week after week, you will realize that your regulars, even though they put in a lot of hours playing, do not have the discipline to be good players.  What has always surprised me was the undisciplined nature of poker players who seemed to put in a lot of playing hours, yet have never learned the game or how to play it to win. 
 
It is easier than ever to take notes on players.  All you need is a smart phone to begin journaling. You can journal between hands. Writing about players habits and tells you might have detected.  And if you do not have a phone are or do not like using it for this purpose, you can do it the old fashioned way with a pen and a little black writing book.
 
What do you write down?

• bets and bet sizing patterns
• loose, tight or solid ranges
• never checkraises or frequently chekraises
• frequently checkraises with drawing hands (flush, straights)
• bets weak hands, checks strong hands--likes to trap frequently
• check calling
• limps with any pair
• never raises
• calling station
• steams easily
• gets up fast with loose play and then burns it off  (never slows down)
• Deep pockets
• Check call more often
• Draws to inside straights every chance
• sports bettor
• compulsive gambler
• constantly fools around with phone--distracted.  Check calls frequently with anything on the flop.
• Donk bets with second and third pair on the flop
• Donk bets small (quarter pot) with flush draw on the flop

 
Get the idea?  This list can be extensive.  Nearly anything your opposition does is a clue to the strength or weakness of their hand.
 
To learn more about winning poker get your copy of The Small Stakes Poker Hustle.  To learn more about studying poker reserve your copy of How to Become an A+ Student at Poker (coming soon) at www.MitchFreeland.com.