Why should you evaluate a game? Why not just jump in with both feet and play? Well there are more issues here than what guy will take the last piece of pizza and who takes too many potty breaks. When evaluating a game, whether it is a casino somewhere in Vegas, California, New Jersey, or in the garage of some guy named Dale, you want to determine a couple of things.

First of all, is the game worth playing? When the pros consider whether a table is worth their time, they figure out what sort of hourly rate they can expect and decide whether or not it is in their best financial interest to put their butt in a chair. Just because you may not be a pro doesn’t mean you shouldn’t evaluate a game in the same manner. Even when deciding if you want to become a regular in Larry’s Basement or Vickie’s game room, choosing like a pro can never hurt. Is the play at a skill level where you will get a monetary wedgie every time you sit down? Let’s face it, if you’re a novice playing in a regular game with people who are intermediates, you will be like a wounded halibut in the middle of a sharks feeding frenzy.

Another consideration is the level of financial commitment. How are the stakes? If you need to mortgage your home or sell your kids to gypsy’s to play in a game, the stakes are probably too high for you. Conversely, you don’t want to play in a game where the money is not big enough to hold your interest. In the words of Goldilocks, you want a game that is “Jusssst Right”.

The last of the basic observations you want to make is how to play in a particular game. How is it structured? When we talk about the structure of a game we are referring mainly to the ante, the betting limits, and the rules of betting. Good players, like good chameleons, can adjust, adapt, and take on the color of any structure they come across. Some games are structured in a way, though, that will make even an excellent player think twice staying. A good example of this is a game with a very high ante. Inexperienced players generally are the ones who play loose and aggressive, but a game where the ante is high is almost tailor made for this style. In essence it turns a fair player in the real world into a good player at this particular table. Avoid games where the structure artificially upgrades the skill level of lower players. These are the basics, we will expand on these guidelines in our