Tracking Software
If you were to type “poker tracking software” into the search bar of your favorite search engine, you would get a massive list of sites that offer some type of tracking software. I’ve looked at a few of them before I stumbled onto a wonderful site that offers a great product. I’ve used “Poker Tracker” for over 2 years and it has helped me find some HUGE holes in my game. I personally play a lot more cash games as compared to tournaments. This product isn’t the greatest for tournaments on FTP, seeing as you have to manually insert all of the finishing information. For cash games this is one of the best pieces of tracking software I’ve used.
They are currently offering Poker Tracker V3, I use V2, that I haven’t fully checked out. The screen is really tough to figure out at first, but if you play 100 or so hands and have them imported into the software it makes it easier to figure stuff out. To get an idea of what it displays, check out the tab labeled “Poker Stats” on my blog. That is one of the reports the software generates. Seeing as I have no shame I will point out a flaw in my game. If you look at the AKo listing you will see that I’ve been dealt AKo 158 times in over 10,000 hands. With those 158 hands I’ve won 53.7% of those hands. On the flip side, I’ve lost $95.80 with those 158 hands. That shows me a glaring problem. How is it I can win almost 54% of the time, but still lose almost $96. The software saves EVERY hand you import, meaning you can have the hand replayed for you showing who bet when and how much. You can go back and recheck pot odds, implied odds, and many other things. As well as checking odds you can develop betting habits for your opponents. The report also shows that when I saw a flop I only won about 43% of the time.
Lets look at a different report.
This one is from my new copy of version 2, so it only has a few hundred hands. Currently I’ve played 4 sessions on a $0.25NL table. I’ve made profit in all 4. Over the 4 sessions I’ve voluntarily put money into the pot only 16.95% of the time. Pretty tight. That stat doesn’t include money’s placed in the BB. I’m currently up $25.85 over 400 plus hands. I’ve made approximately 18.5 BB/ Hour and 24 per 100 hands. This tells me that this is currently a profitable table level for me.
On top of tracking myself it tracks everyone I play against. Let’s take a look at Pokerplasms leader after his short stay at the table.
He played 8 hands at a $0.25NL table. He lost his deposit, voluntarily put money in the pot 50% of the time (really loose), and lost when he went to a show down. He raised preflop 25% of the time. Based on the definitions provided, he would fall some where in the loose aggressive area. Mind you 8 hands isn’t enough to provide any guidance against him.
Lets look at a second case study.
I played against a player named Street 3 on FTP. Let’s take a look at his numbers and see what we can learn about his play. I played 118 hands with Street 3 this evening. During those hands he put money in the pot voluntarily around 32% of the time. When he saw the flop he won money 42% of the time. Of the hands he saw the flop with, he went to a show down 12% of the time and won 60% of those show downs. He turned almost 46 BB/100 hands, for a nice profit over those 118 hands. His total aggression factor is just over 2, which is moderately aggressive. The aggression factor is figured by a complex math problem that looks at every chance for action. He raised preflop around 2.5% of the time. The system rates him as Loose - Passive / Aggressive. Now, what does all of that information tell us. His hand selection is wide and he doesn’t push hard pre-flop. A raise is definitely a cause for concern. He is willing to bet hard post flop with top pair or a good draw. He takes a lot of pots before show down and usually takes a strong hand there. You need to be concerned if there is a possible flush or straight and Street is still in the hand. However, you can use a smooth call as a slow play method against him. He might slow down on the turn if he doesn’t improve drastically.
There are two examples of what kind of information is provided by the software. If you would like to see more, flip over to the tab labeled “Poker Stats” and take a look. Those are my REAL stats from before my computer crashed. Unfortunately, all of that data was lost.
I will post another review of Poker Tracker 3 after I’ve had a chance to play with it. I just downloaded it today and have barely scratched the surface of what it can do. If you would like to try Poker Tracker 2 before you buy it, they offer a 30 day free trial. I’m not sure if you are limited to a number of hands or tournaments. Check out the software and see what it does. I’ll be more than happy to answer any questions you have.
On a side note, I have no financial gain by promoting this product. This information is being place here for you to improve your game.
Filed under: FFcowboy | 2 Comments »
