Hello and welcome to My Poker Thoughts – a blog that discusses poker news, [[Poker_strategy|strategy]], laws, and pretty much anything that relates to the game of [[Poker|poker]]. And the first thing that I’d like to discuss is something I was talking to a friend about a few weeks ago.

Now this guy makes a living playing [[Texas_hold_em|Texas Hold’em]] online and he was telling me about how he plays five tables at once. Five tables!!?? I began wondering how in the world he could concentrate on five tables at one time. His answer was that he gradually worked his way up to that number by taking it table by table. Plus he kept track of his hourly rate to make sure that he could find out what amount of tables was right for him.

Now, as I found out, it’s very possible for anyone to do this if they follow the right steps. Obviously, moving from one table to two tables is the first logical step. And just about anyone should be able to handle playing two tables at once. It may even be an advantage over playing one table as it forces one to concentrate more on the poker rather than surfing the web in between plays, clicking through songs, etc.

One’s hourly rate should definitely go up upon making the switch from playing one table to two (provided you’re not losing money in the first place). Even if you’re playing No-Limit Hold’em where it is very advantageous to study opponents’ tendencies you should have ample time to get a profile of your opponents in both games.

If you find yourself being able to consistently handle two games and make a decent hourly rate, the next move is definitely three tables. This is where things get a lot trickier as three games seems like a huge jump from two. But, even if play drops off initially, it is a move that can definitely be accomplished. I personally found that three tables at once is about optimal for me.

However, there are definitely many people out there that can handle even more tables and not have a significant drop-off in their play such as my friend who can play five at once. This amount is not for me but I’m sure there’s others who can make this kind of jump and I’d definitely encourage them to do so if their play is up to the challenge. You should also check out this Gambling Library for excellent tips on online gambling.