The Perfect Session: How many hours do you ideally like to play?
For me, around 3 hours is probably the sweet spot. I can stay focused, enjoy the game, and still feel like I’m making good decisions. After that, I start getting tired and I notice that my concentration isn’t the same. I know some people can play for 6, 8 or even 10 hours, but I don’t think that works for me. I’d rather play a shorter session and actually pay attention to what’s happening at the table than keep playing just because I’ve already spent a few hours there. I also think it depends a lot on the type of game. A long tournament can be different because you don’t always have the option to stop when you want, especially if you’re deep in the tournament. But for a normal session, 3–4 hours is probably enough for me
For me, the ideal poker session is around 3 to 5 hours. That's usually long enough to stay focused, make good decisions, and capitalize on profitable situations without mental fatigue affecting my game. If I notice my concentration slipping or emotions taking over, I'd rather end the session early than force more volume.
I play between 6/7 hours a day. I start in the morning, take a break for lunch and return later. At night I rarely play, only in some specific cases. At night I like to rest and do other things in my personal routine. Rest is too important!
I agree with you. 3-4 hours seems like a great time limit. It's long enough for someone to give their best effort, but short enough to keep their brain from frying at the same time. 😄 I'd rather have a shorter game of me playing my best than have a 10 hour game of me being fried 😂fzap1983 said:
The perfect session for me would start out with some hypers while I am waiting for MTTs to start.
Then when the MTTs are winding down, add some more hypers to fill the screens.
After the session is over -eat, exercise, then review the hands for icm errors, and then its time to start the next session.
That is how I used to do it, now I just try to find as many good games as possible and fill in the rest with freerolls.
Then when the MTTs are winding down, add some more hypers to fill the screens.
After the session is over -eat, exercise, then review the hands for icm errors, and then its time to start the next session.
That is how I used to do it, now I just try to find as many good games as possible and fill in the rest with freerolls.
For me, the sweet spot is around 4-6 hours. Three hours can feel a little too short, especially if I’m playing tournaments and just getting into the rhythm when the session ends. Six hours is usually enough to get a decent amount of volume without completely draining my concentration. I can play longer occasionally, but 10+ hour sessions are not something I enjoy regularly. At that point, even if I’m still sitting at the tables, my decision-making usually isn’t as sharp as it was earlier. I’d rather finish a session while I’m still focused than keep playing just to hit some arbitrary number of hours. For me, quality of decisions matters more than the length of the session.
For around 2 years, I've switched from grinding cash games to mtts, so it's tough to say how long the poker session will last... Personally, as I'm getting older, I feel like the standard 6 hours/session is the best for me, but depending how I run in the games I usually play (I prefer slower structure mtts), the session can become a quick one (I'm not someone to chase losses, so I usually just end it after a certain number of mtts), but also a marathon in which case I have to go for a few extra coffees - winning money is great, still I don't like the extra time 😆
For cash games, around 2 to 3 hours is ideal for me. I can stay focused and usually recognize when my decision making starts to slip. Tournaments are different because once I register, I am prepared to play for 6 hours or longer. The perfect session is less about a fixed number of hours and more about whether I am still playing well. If I am tired, frustrated, or just clicking buttons, the session has already gone on too long.
john_entony said:
10 hours??? If it’s online poker, I can probably play for 5–6 hours since I’ll be at home in a comfortable chair. But if it’s live poker, I can probably play for about 3 hours straight before my body starts hurting.
