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The Ultimate Guide to Multi-Tabling Poker: Techniques for Success

Home » Guides » The Ultimate Guide to Multi-Tabling Poker: Techniques for Success

The Ultimate Guide to Multi-Tabling Poker: Techniques for Success

Guide to Multi-Tabling Poker

Multi-tabling is one of the many benefits of playing poker online. Not only can you play many more hands per hour online, you can play more than one cash game table at once or multiple tournaments at the same time.

In short, poker plus technology equals money-making opportunities.

Most new poker players start with one table and eventually move to two tables or tournaments at once. Some players can do well with three or four tables going at one time. But there are extremes. During the poker boom in the 2000s, there were even world records set for online poker multi-tabling.

  • In April 2009, Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier played online poker Sit-n-Gos at 62 tables at the same time. He set a Guinness world record.
  • In January 2012, Randy “Nanonoko” Lew played between 25 and 40 tables at the same time, ultimately playing 14,548 hands over the course of eight hours to set a Guinness world record.

These are not normal incidences of multi-tabling. At that level of play, there is little chance that the player is competing at the highest level and making optimal decisions. However, it can be done on a lesser scale but with greater profit and success.

Poker Multi-Tabling Strategy: How to Play Smart Across Multiple Tables

Before you begin using multiple tables to play online poker, it is important for you to feel confident in your game at the most basic level. Know that you are a profitable player in the long run, that you have a strategy – or series of strategies – that helps you play your best at tournaments or cash games. When you’re comfortable, you should try two-tabling.

Be honest with yourself while playing two tables. Are you confident in your decisions at both tables, at least as confident as when you played one table? Track your results, and make sure the patterns and win rates match up to your trends when playing one table. When you’re comfortable with those results, you can try three or four tables. 

Along the way, keep in mind these tips for multi-tabling in poker:

  • Four-color deck: In your account settings, choose a four-color deck to avoid mistaking hearts for diamonds or spades for clubs.
  • Pick a game: Avoid mixing both multi-table tournaments and cash games. Play the same games at the same (or similar) stakes, and don’t alter variations. For example, if playing Pot Limit Omaha at one table, don’t try PLO Hi-Lo at another table simultaneously.
  • Same seat: When playing cash games, try to sit in the same seat at all tables. This will help your eyes focus quickly.
  • Take notes: Jot down brief notes while playing. This will help pinpoint poker hands to review at particular points in the hand histories later.

Top Tips for Analyzing Opponents While Poker Multi-Tabling

Whether you want to try poker multi-tabling for the first time or expand the number of tables you use, you want to stay focused at all times. Don’t try to answer texts or calls, post on social media, or watch television or a movie. Focusing on multi-tabling profitability is the most important task at hand!

Just as when playing a single table, it is imperative to analyze opponents. This will not only assure yourself that you are focused, it will help in future games. When taking notes – either in a physical notebook or on a virtual notepad – jot down the name of all players at your tables when you first take a seat. Add short notes by their names when you notice something, and fill in some blanks during table breaks or when sitting out a round.

Choosing the Best Monitor Setup for Multi-Tabling Success

When playing two tables, it can be done on a mobile device or tablet, as well as any laptop or desktop computer. However, when increasing the number of tables to three or four, it’s best to use a laptop or desktop. You want to be able to see all of the tables at once or easily toggle from one to another without delay.

If you find that you are a successful multi-table player, you might want to consider a large desktop monitor at home. It might even be beneficial to use two monitors, depending upon the frequency and profitability of your play. 

Register with BetMGM Poker to Play Online

BetMGM Poker not only provides legal, licensed, secure online poker, it allows you to multi-table. And you can do so at very small stakes to make sure it is the right style of play for you.

Register to play online with BetMGM Poker to start your multi-table journey. And by using a poker welcome offer and any of the numerous promotions offered by BetMGM, you can maximize your winnings further.