We always hear and read that Table Selection is one of the most important aspects of playing winning poker. If you want to win money there are certain times of the day and week when it is much easier to find a profitable table.
Finding these tables basically means finding the bad players. These are the players just starting out their poker career or those simply online to have a good time. Believe it or not, it is not unusual to find a sucker if you know when and where to look. I would consider the perfect sucker to be someone who is online to have a good time, not worried about losing their bankroll, and who thinks playing wild is good strategy.
You first consideration for finding these players has to be the time of day. To know when to play you have to know where the players come from and what time of day they are playing. The vast majority of poker players come from Europe and the United States. This means Prime poker time is between 7 PM and Midnight Eastern Standard Time (New York City). At the start of this time, the late night European players are still on, and at the end the West Coast (California) of the United States is in full swing. These times apply to weekdays. On the weekend the Prime playing time starts earlier (at around 4 PM EST) and ends later (3 AM EST).
You can also bet there will be a lot of bad players online whenever there is a televised poker event. I love to get on when ESPN is showing the WSoP or the Travel Channel is broadcasting a WPT event. These players watch the pros (instead of paying attention to the players at their table) and think they can bluff just as well. The sharks are out in force during these shows (watch out for them, they are easy to spot too) and wait patiently for a good chance to take advantage of the fish.
When there are more players, there are more bad players. I bet you can figure out “when not to play” if you ask yourself this question: Who in the world is awake at 8 AM thinking about playing poker? The answer: only very hardcore poker players. The rest of the players have jobs, families, yard work, and other responsibilities. You do not want to be playing in the morning on a weekday. First of all, unless you go to one of the largest sites, such as EmpirePoker, it is hard to even find a steady game. Second, the players online at this time are very good. It is hard to find a sucker. Occasionally you will get lucky and find a poker junkie who has played all night and is barely conscious enough to find their mouse (you know who you are). These are about the only bad players you will find in the mornings.
Playing when the games are the softest is one of the most important considerations if you expect to win money playing poker. I hope this guide helps you find the easy games you are looking for.
