Table Selection - The Icehawk System

I've seen a lot of advice on online table selection, both on the 2+2 forums and in training videos. They all pretty much bluntly state the same thing. Just choose the tables that have high average pot sizes and a high player per flop percentage. Now, I've given this subject a bit more thought and have come to a different conclusion.

I never used to be particularly disiplined when it came to game selection. The first time I went on a heater and amassed a bankroll (back in the fall of '06) I would routinely sit in high stakes NLHE games with the likes of Allen Cunningham and John Juanda. The tougher the competition, the better. After busting my roll a couple of times I came to my senses. But the first thing I adjusted, was my bankroll management, which is actually way more important. I still chose tables completely at random and never used a HUD. In fact, I still do that, to some extent. I'm just a bit lazy, I guess.

On to the system. The avg. pot and plr/flp statistics that most sites feature can really give some useful information. I've divided the table types into four groups (remember, all of this concerns 6-max NLHE cash only). There are 'in-between' tables that will not fall into any of these categories, but these are the extremes:

• Loose Aggressive (LAG) tables Avg. pot >20 BBs Plr/Flp >35%

These are the tables normally recommended. I will generally stay away from them, unless both numbers are extremely high and there is utter craziness going on. Although many of the players might be terrible, they will still put you in tough spots. Sure, you might have bigger paydays here if you're on your A-game and catch some cards, but chances are you'll have lots of headaches on the way and tilt city is not far away. Besides, these tables attract regulars.

• Tight Aggressive (TAG) tables Avg. pot >20 BBs Plr/Flp <30%

These are the absolutely worst tables in my opinion. You might win a lot of small pots by stealing the blinds, but once you face resistance it becomes hard to play. When all the money goes in, the players here will generally have a strong hand, so it's hard to stack someone unless you cooler them.

• Loose Passive (LP) tables Avg. pot <10bbs Plr/Flp >35%
  

Here is my favorite kind of table! Don't let the small pot sizes fool you. You can really take these players to valuetown big time. The players at these tables are generally calling stations. And it's common knowledge that such loose passive players are the ones you will be making the most money from.

• Weak Tight (WT) tables Avg. pot <10>BBs Plr/Flp <30%
  

These tables are generally hard to make money from, but they can be very profitable if you go in with a clear game plan. Start out playing a ultra-LAGgy 35/30 style. In the beginning you will be allowed to steal a lot. After a while, the table should become fed up with your constant betting and eventually you might see them do silly things like stack off with AJ preflop against you. You just need to be careful about changing gears at the right time.


So this is my table selecting system. I always try to find the LP tables. If the stack sizes are smaller than 100 BBs, that's also a good sign. The good regs will always buy in full and there are no good shortstackers at small stakes.

If you divide the player per flop percentage with the average pot size in BBs you get a number that I call the 'icehawk number'. In my system, this number should ideally be high. A good LP table might have an 'icehawk number' of 4 or more. WT tables will also generally have quite high numbers. LAG tables will have icehawk numbers around 2 and TAG tables can have numbers close to 1 or even lower than 1 in extreme cases. Remember if you play tables with very high icehawk numbers (7 or higher) that these can be quite tricky to play, because so many of the pots will be multiway. Anyway, I hope someone finds these thoughts helpful. I'm sure table preferences vary with playing style. If you're a TAG like me, I'm sure you like to be on tables with a lot of loose passive fish.