If you want to beat anonymous poker tables consistently the focus needs to be on player tendencies. What I mean is that you really need to pay attention to the little details going on in each hand and not just wing it.
Since no one has a screen name, tracking someone’s playing style is nonexistent. But that doesn’t mean this style of playing online poker is bad, you just must make some adjustments. Which is exactly what I’m going to go over.
What Are Anonymous Poker Tables?
Instead of having a screen name you are given a number when you sit down. This might sound weird at first, but it makes it less likely that players can cheat or collude in a cash game or tournament.
There is also no long-term player tracking overall which keeps your own style of play up in the air when you sit down. It’s a bit of a double-edged sword because it’s the same for everyone else, you’re playing against. But basically, anonymous tables give you a number and not a screen name.
Anonymous Tables Change Strategy
Let me give you an example from a previous session I played. I open raised from first to act with AQ suited and was 3 bet from the player sitting in the button. In this situation I must figure out if re raising or going all in is the prudent thing to do, or I can just call.
When you get into these situations you must pay attention to how that player has been playing up until this situation. Was he playing tight or maybe a loose aggressive style. Since you can’t track his playing style you have to really pay attention to what’s going on at the table. Then you make your next move based on that.
Sometimes sticking to the fundamentals is the best thing to do when you’re unsure of what to do. But I’ve found that staying aggressive with premium hands and exploiting weaker opponents at your table will give you the best ROI in these types of games.
3 Winning Strategies for Anonymous Games
Value Bet More Often
You can’t expect to check back the turn or river hoping your opponent is going to blast off on you all the time. Going for value when you know your ahead is a much better long-term play, especially if you can only get thin value. Squeezing that extra juice out of someone you know probably can’t fold when you have the nuts is how pros do it. So do the same.
Exploit Weak Players
If you are sitting at a table for 20-30 minutes in one of these games, you will be able to spot the super tight ABC style opponents who only wait for big hands. When you raise and get 3 bet or call a raise from them in early position with a hand like 89 suited, that’s your moment to pounce. You can often outplay these types of players post flop when little to no face cards show up. Since they are playing so basic you can exploit them and bluff them off a lot of hands as well post flop. Sometimes when a flop bet doesn’t work I would double barrel heavy if you feel they are weak with a couple of over cards. This type of situation comes up a lot more than you would think.
Stay Tight Aggressive Preflop
You don’t need to get too fancy in these games and playing tight in early position, meaning first or second to act is usually best. You want to avoid marginal hands like J8 suited from early position and only raise with those hands later if everyone else is folding. I might sound like a nit saying that, but it can honestly save you a lot of money down the road keeping things a bit basic with strong fundamentals in play. Stay disciplined in these games, most of the time getting fancy loses money.
Where To Play Anonymous Tables?
I’m not going to give you a bunch of recommendations on this one. I would just stick with Ignition Poker. This is a site I’ve used for the long term and regularly cleared 10k hands per month playing mid stakes. The competition is very soft at most stakes, but the software is one of the main reasons I use it so much. It’s intuitive, smooth, and always works without any issues. I usually play a few tables at a time max when I do play as well. You can learn more about Edward Pao is an online poker and casino affiliate marketer with over 10 years of experience in the industry. He has referred over 30,000 players to major poker platforms and specializes in reviewing the best online poker sites and casino bonuses.
