Online poker training sites have exploded over the last few years. What was once a cottage industry featuring a few small sites with a handful of videos has expanded into a highly competitive arena, with dozens of sites battling it out for subscribers. With so many sites to choose from, the process can be overwhelming, especially for newer players. To help simplify things, here’s a simple list of questions you’ll want to ask yourself when comparing training sites. Taking just a few minutes to answer these questions can result in not only saving hundreds of dollars, but also in ensuring that you get the most out of your investment when you do subscribe to a site.

Do I Need a Training Site?

If you’re reading this article, you probably think you have the answer to this question already. 99% of people don’t, and you’re among the minority. That means that as a subscriber, you’ll want to be sure that your chosen training site offers the training you want. In addition to the learning content, you should be able to view tutorials on how to use the software, if you want to jump right in. Most sites include a tutorial or two before subscribers start getting their hands on the training.

Do I Have to Learn It?

If you’re still reading, and you think you’re ready to have your MTT installed, then go ahead and learn the strategy. You’ll spend a lot of time in the process, but by the time you’re finished, you’ll have a few friends to show you a hot tip.

This is a strategy that can be learned in a few minutes, but you’ll need a little bit of the strategy instinct in order to make it work. Whether you develop your own strategy, or you take the company’s advice, is entirely up to you. What’s important is that you follow the company’s advice to make it work, while making some friends in the process.

Are My Downloadsual Training Tools Safe?

By now, most training tools nowadays arecutting edge and designed to be used with extreme caution. You can’t just drop them in and expect them to work. The file sizes are small, and the strategies employed very specific to the file types. Tools such as these are definitely worth the investment, because if you don’t like the strategy, you can easily drop the tool and jump to another.

What Company Does the Training originate from?

You only really need to know the name of the company that you trust to have quality training. If you’re opening an account with one of the online poker training sites mentioned above, make sure you check the website and PDF files to make sure they match what you want. Also, make sure that the training was created by a team of professionals who have spent a great deal of time dealing with poker players themselves.

What is the fee for training?

The price you’ll have to pay depends on the quality of the training. Very low end programs are generally free, but training sites often charge a small fee for the authors to create the training. Look around to see what other people are paying, and note any perks or bonuses that the authors are offering. A free training option might be as low as $9.95, but a more advanced tool might cost as much as $55.

What aspect of poker training am I improving?

This is a common question for beginners. Most of the time it’s answered with a question about the author, and often a cut and paste reply. However, at the end of the day your poker training is benefiting YOU, so if you want to improve it, improve on your own. Read question submitted, and consider the information provided. Seek out the comment sections of the various posts to accumulate clues on what training sites the authors recommend. Remember that the more you participate in the various poker training sites, the better you will become.

Is the Training Reliable?

The most reliable training sites often have a membership website, and influx of users. The quality of the information provided will generally be high, and membership is often highly suggested.

What are the Continuing Learning Opportunities?

Good poker training sites will constantly be offering new topics and strategies. These sites will want to keep you in their forums and lead you to the latest strategies and training articles.

Are the Talks Exciting?

Many poker training sites will have Talks sections. These sections will generally have several Talks plus videos divided into a number of Lessons. Magazines and books are also a good source of continuing learning.

There’s plenty of live training video and articles available on start poker training sites. Magazines such as BLUFF, Poker Player, Poker Now, All In Poker, and Poker Mega88 magazines have excellent content on the current status of No-Limit Holdem and Texas Holdem.