Taking Notes on players

[sportbike33]

What type of notes do u take on players when you are sittng at a table? I have tried many ways but I am still unaware of what is most effective. Obviously it is going to vary from player to player but I would still like to know what notes people are putting on certain players.
I have copy and pasted hands that I thought were of value. Hands that stuck out in my mind as a general example of how a certain player plays. Also I have tried putting in my own quick little gibberish... ie. loose player, never reraises, tight ass, Hate this MO Fo bc he keeps sucking out on m, ect ect... What do you type in specifically that helps you with other players?

[WeaselT]

i usually write stuff like "wont fold flush draws" or "calls any suited garbage to a PFR". Or ya same stuff Tight/Loose/Passive/Aggro. Whatever I think might help if i get into a tough spot with the guy later on or in some other tourney. Or just lines they took with thier big hands, like "check raised vs 2 on XXX board". I usually like to note the Multi tablers too. They tend to be a bit tighter and dont pay as much attention depending on how many tables they playing.
I got plenty of the "what a fuckin retard" notes too.

[Fielmann]

I have three main opposite-pairs I try to position my opponents on.

1) LOOSE/TIGHT
This I use mostly to describe their behaviour preflop. If my opponent is marked as TIGHT, I know I'm usually against a better hand as compared to if he's LOOSE.

2) FOLD-/FOLD+
This describes whether the opponent is able to let go of a hand post flop. Against FOLD+ people a cbet light, while against FOLD- I bet for value.

3) STRAIGHTFORWARD/TRAPPY
In case of STRAIGHTFORWARD people bet means strength and check or call means weakness. Against TRAPPY people I need to be more careful.

That's like a basic 3d coordinate system to start from. If I notice an opponent doing something weird (most often that seems to be an idiotic all-in) or otherwise noteworthy (e.g. cbets a lot) I make a separate note describing it in more detail.
One could argue that using a HUD would spare me from this work. I have found, though, that "real" reads are often better than HUD's abstract statistics. In any case, working hard on observing my opponents should improve my skills a great deal.

[jennizzen]

Lately I've been using a lot of "dumb" "really stupid" "luckbox" and "tiltable"

I also post hands that I think have relevance and if they overplay draws etc. I also take notes if they make it to the final table and then x2 if I see them twice, etc.

[Qminator]

U make notes in combination with my HUD. Things like ' chases flushdraws with air after bet hero 3/4 pot on turn' are what i write down on players. Before i start a tournament i go trough the sharkscope database and see who's hot and who's not.

[linaker]

I try to make notes factual and exclude any emotion, because venting your feelings can lead you to play non-optimally against that person if you do run into them again.

limps and calls PFR with low suited cards. Calls flush draw w/o odds on flop and turn. Bets AI with low flush on river.

is better than

Total donk. Busted my aces when he rivered a flush.

[sportbike33]

Excellent, that def helps. Ill begin some note taking taoday. On a side note I have seen a few of the players that I wrote down Die DIE DIE for sucking out on me and have played shitty against them again. So i might quit writing about how much i hat this person or the are my arch enemy.

[taipan168]

The most common words in my notes are:
- DONK
- D O N K E Y
- HEE HAW
- H E E H A W
- H E E H A W D O N K E Y
- calltard
- limptard
- -40% ROI, -$18k over 2000 games

...and the list goes on because you can pretty quickly figure out who the good players are.

[Roller]

Two lines can say it all.

I play mainly tournaments.
I have all my notes in abbreviations:

T (Tight)
L (Loose)
TAG (Tight Aggressive)
LAG (Loose Aggressive)
BS (Bluffer player)
TARD (Plays with no rhyme or apparent reason at the time of my observations)
GOD (Player can Play > Careful)
LB (LuckBox)
FT (Final Table > This player can play)
FT2 FT3 FT4 (number of times I have played him on a Final Table)
ITM (In The Money > I have played him in a tournament that he has made the money)
ITM2 ITM3 ITM4 (number of times I have played him in the money)
WF (Will Fold)
WNF (Will Not Fold)
LAK (Likes AK)
LAKs (Likes AK Suited)
Ls (Likes Suited)
Lsc (Likes suited connectors)
LTP (Likes to push)
LTPW-AK (Likes To Push With AK)
The L's go on and on as far as your observations can take it.
STR8C (Stragiht Chaser)
FDC (Flush Draw Chaser)
HNC (Has Nuts Checks)
HNCR (Has Nuts Check Raise)
HNMB (Has Nuts Min Bets)
HNBB (Has Nuts Big Bets)
1 - 10 (number I rate this player at this time. 10= Best)
7^10 (has improved his Skills from a 7 to a 10)

This is the Base.
There are more but I think this should get you started and in the right direction.

The notes that seem most important at times are:

I always include a note if I have been on a Final Table or in the Cash with a player.
These notes can be the most important just by the fact the player has Game.
FT > FT2 > FT3 > (number of times at a Final Table and this also tells me he has seen my style at that level of play)

ITM 2 ITM3 ITM4 (number of times in the money and he has played me that many times and no doubt has notes on my play)

God (play your A game when you are in with this player)


Example of a player you may want to avoid:

10 > FT3 > ITM7 > God > LAG > LB > LAKs
6-12-09

Two Lines say it all.
Fast to read and Fast to Focus on.
Date shows last time I have played them.
I keep it straight forward with out emotions or bias.

Good Luck and Keep some Notes.

[baudib]

The things I like to note are:
1. How they play strong hands IP (are they 3-betting with AK on the button, or merely calling).
2. What range of hands they play out of the blinds, and what kind of hand they are donking out with (are they betting pot-size on the flop with top pair, or a gutshot).
3. How strong are the hands that they check-raise oop?

[lNormajean]

very helpful roller thanks.

[Trons]

I usually only note what I see as strange plays or plays that I may be able to make a note of in the future...IE:

r/c pre with mid sc's during early stages.

The biggest thing I've started noting is what stage the tourney is or the players stack size because a lot of players can and will switch as the tourney progresses or their stack sizes change.

People who 3bet light from the BB later in the tourneys is something I always note.

I also note anything that's not included in my hud (things like folds BB to steal attempt is not something I would note). If somebody shows a bluff I'll note it but not put to much credit behind it in the future. If somebody seems very positionally aware, I'll note it. The biggest other thing I note is somebody who will call a PFR OOP and lead bet on the flop. If they are doing this a high percentage of the time, you can bet they are not doing it for value.

I think the biggest value to my notes was adding the stage of the tourney though.

[RockyMoose]

I like fielmann's and roller's posts. I won't go into detail on my note-taking habits, but one thing I do like on FullTilt is the color-coding. I only use three colors, for donk (yellow), nit (green), and shark (blue). I'll only color-code when I have a solid read, and it makes a difference when picking a SNG table: if I see a few yellows already registered, I'll pick that table over one without all the dead money.

[Raoni_Poker]

I like to describe actions, like "bet strong with middle pair" or "bluffed with air on the flop", "min bet the flop with a strong hand", "limped UTG with J4o...idiot", "check raised river", "slowplayed a set on the flop".

Since I also use a HUD and try to observe the game, I can also tell whose loose/tight, low-PFR, aggressive.

[sportbike33]

I am printing off rollers advice that is golden. Thanks. I needed an abbrevaition system or something to take notes with and that is it. Thanks

[RoundThemUPjoe]

At the start of tourny I put played 7-17-09
then sharkscope the players that stand out
ex: LA players that are pushing everyone around to see if they have won any money.
If they are down big I can adjust my range of calling hands when they get pushy with me. TY roller for your post I am going to start using the ITM and FT