$10/20
I won back about 2/3 of my $15/30 losses on Saturday night at a $10/20 table at Poker Stars. Nothing fancy happened, I just took advantage of the poor play I saw around me when I had good cards - and I was getting decent cards. No monster hands, just some basic TPTK and two pairs stuff. I flopped a set of sevens, but didn't get much action.
My recent forays into higher limits are just experimental. I do not intend to become a regular at those tables. Not at this time, anyways. I was just curious and seeking information. What I discovered was that the play at $10/20 - $30/60 is generally much worse than at $1/2 - $5/10 at Poker Stars. My observations are purely anecdotal and not scientific. I only have a few hundred hands at those higher limits. However, each of the three times I decided to look at the higher limit tables I was able to easily find available tables with view flop percentages >36%. Those loose tables are rare at $5/10 and below at Poker Stars. I was able to play ABC TAG style poker and be a winner at any of those tables (even though I lost at $15/30, I am certain my play would be profitable on that type table in the long run).
The risk here would be that a few very good players using notes and/or software would eventually get a good read on me and beat me out of some chips. Of course, I would be somewhat protected by my own notes and observations, and know when I was tangling with a pro. I would also be hampered by my inability to disassociate chips from money. A bad string of cards and a -200 BB run would not be dealt with very well in my bulbous melon. My frugal upbringing continues to be the 300 lb gorilla in my mental room. The fact that I have an absurdly large bankroll for $10/20 (or higher) does not overcome the hesitation I have in making small +EV bets with $20 chips. I know enough to know that's how you earn over time, but I still can't do it.
Not surprisingly, the Poker Stars FPPs accumulate rapidly at the higher limits. My bonus cleared very quickly once I shifted over to the higher limit tables.
Its been a fun experiment. I will be back at the low limit tables later this week.