Why I Like Playing The Smaller Sites
 

couple things i like about playing at an established site with an average of 300 people online. i think it is much easier to establish yourself as a player on the site, as you are generally playing with the same player base. i don't see those drastic suckouts like i see on other sites where i can be sitting with a table full of unknowns. it is much easier to form a reputation and get other players to lay down hands where at other sites you may be getting called down and beat with trash. don't get me wrong, i like the big sites and enjoy playing there, but have found my profit is more consistent on a smaller site. just my 2 cents. if you want to know what sites i am talking about, see my thread in the SPAM section of this site.

Interesting point
 

Especially in the context of my earlier post about notes on players not being very effective when they are 50k online at once. But you are giving up game selection, which I think is really important. Do you find the smaller sites have better players than the big boys, or about the same?

I've seen this EXACT SAME post about a thousand times now. Give it up man. No body wants to play at your crappy site, but I do appreciate you at least saying "visit the spam". It kinds of makes it not AS greasy.

I agree. It's getting old fast, and he has been warned.

For what it's worth, I think game selection is far more important than playing with the same players over and over. If anything, I think that can work against you. I can get a solid read on my opponents in very little time. Unless they can get a read on me even faster, it's smarter for me to play with strangers than known opponents.

I think it goes both ways. If you can find a game where you are the best player, and can consistently take home the money, why ever leave it? That's what it's all about right, winning. So if on a small site you find yourself always with the same players, and you are better than most, that's a good situation.

But of course game selection is the biggest factor in consistently winning. Like the old saying goes, you may be the 8th best player in the world, but if you are sitting with the top seven, you are gonna come out a loser in the long run.

I guess i'm just saying that weak players are just that, weak players. Doesnt matter if you find them on a huge site or a small one...as long as you can find em.

I think the safety of funds/accounts is an important factor in selecting a site as well and thats why I stay at the larger places.

more fish to prey on with the larger sites :p

Larger sites offer the worst set of players you'll find anywhere. It is the equivalent of playing with a bunch of tourists at a B&M. Why play at a small site, stick with Party, Pacific, UB. These sites have people that are basically just learning how to play (or enjoy losing money).

Is Pacific Poker considered small?
 

Is pac poker one of the smaller sites. I play there.

I've never played on Party or Poker stars so I can't compare but at Pac Poker, you have a bunch of idiots playing 1/2. If you move up to 2/4, the competition improves but I'm still winning. There's still enough players who will feed you.

For instance, there are 9 tables of 2/4 going on at 9:25 AM EST. How does that compare to other sites? Only 2 are full to the max, one has 8, the rest have 5 or less.

my only problem with the smaller sites is that there are so few games going on, especially of anything but holdem. i prefer playing o8b, and can almost never find enough games of that going on the smaller sites.

the big sites never have this problem, so for the time being i am just going to stick with them. the whole security issue is important as well.

The problem I have with small sites is there does not seem to be enough people playing at any given time to make it a profitable venture. I find it easier to take money from the fishes at larger sites who always seem more than willing to throw money into pots.

Not enough crappy players on site=less profit overall.

I don't like playing on the small sites. It usually the more expert players trying to cash in on a bonus, and the game is usually tight unless they have an amazing 50-100$ deposit bonus or free $ sign up.