Why Am I Stuck on Low Stakes Poker? If you keep asking yourself this question over and over again, you’ve come to the right place to finally get some answers.
What does it take to move up stakes in poker?
If you’ve been playing NL Hold’em for a while and feel like your potential isn’t fully realized at $1/$2 cash games or in low buy-in tournaments, you might wonder why you haven’t moved up to higher levels. The answer is simple – you’re doing something wrong. But don’t be discouraged; we’ll outline a few things you can improve on to finally say goodbye to low stakes poker.
Learn basic poker strategies: fundamentals are crucial
One reason people get stuck in low stakes poker games is that they lack structured learning habits. You should know well concepts like what is the actual purpose of a bet, what “one minus alpha” mean, or how to calculate ‘minimum defense frequency’. It will help you understand well GTO-concepts. Make sure you spend some time studying starting hand ranges, which are crucial for understanding future advanced poker strategies and tactics. If you haven’t done that yet, try Poker Academy’s Preflop Charts tool, which can help you systemize your preflop decisions.
Often, an unknown concept for players at low stakes comes from basic poker math – pot odds. Against a 50% pot bet on the river, we need to win 1/4 at showdown to break even and defend 66% of our range. If we defend less than 66%, our opponent’s bluffs become more profitable, and we are being exploited. BUT that’s theory against GTO strategy. In exploitative poker, if our opponents rarely bluff with this sizing on the river, defending 66% will be a big mistake..
Mindset is important, even at low stakes poker
First of all, don’t be too results-oriented. When you’re at the beginning of your journey, winning a lot of money isn’t the most important thing. If you focus too much on prizes, the internal pressure and desire to win can cause you to make poor poker decisions. Another common problem is that many low stakes players can’t handle painful and unlucky situations during poker sessions. Your job is to rationalize every frustrating situation and develop a healthy approach to playing poker. You can find plenty of mindset webinars on our Youtube channel.
Be your own best critic
You can’t say goodbye to low stakes if you don’t analyze your own game. Compare your preflop plays to charts, look up postflop solutions, and try to identify recurring mistakes. Prioritize your spots and draw general conclusions. It’s very common for low stakes players to focus too much on details. Trust us – at low stakes, your biggest problems are usually hidden behind general and regular mistakes, not in rare situations with five players involved on the river and seven big blinds in the pot. You should master your game in positions where you play the most, such as Button, Small Blind, and Big Blind. A lot of players at low stakes in the situation BB vs BTN, 30bb vs 2x open, defend about 50% range.
Extra tip: If someone defend about 50% in this situation, they do not meet the ‘minimum defense frequency’ requirement, so you can exploit them by opening 100% range, even if Small Blind defends a proper frequency.
Stop the chaos and move up stakes
Low stakes poker players often feel confused. One poker guru tells you about the importance of 3-bets, another pro advises you to focus on position or flops with one broadway card, and suddenly you don’t know where to focus your efforts. Stop the chaos right now! Pick one topic and study it thoroughly until you have a strong grasp of it. For example, you could choose to focus on your strategy from the Big Blind. Start with Poker Academy’s article titled “Big Blind Basics Explained: Useful Tips for Poker Players,” and then continue learning until you feel confident enough to move on to another topic.
Low stakes poker players are nits
Another reason you might be stuck in low stakes games is a lack of aggression. You’re probably too scared to put chips into the pot, which means you’re not opening, 3-betting, or calling enough. But don’t worry—take things step by step. Studying ranges, as we recommended earlier, will significantly improve your preflop aggression and help you take advantage of players who still haven’t learned the poker fundamentals.
General rule to exploit nits postflop is to wider attack players with low “Went-to-showdown frequency’ (>26) or high “Won $ at Showdown” (<53). Those numbers say that a player goes to showdown only with too strong hands and is probably not calling the river enough. On the opposite side, do not bluff against calling stations, but it also means that you can bet more frequently with low-value hands for value and protection.