Lately at the poker table among math oriented players, you may have heard some new talk regarding how to evaluate in-game situations. Perhaps a player said that a particular hand was not in his opponent’s range, or that he had good equity against this or that range of hands. What is this talk all about?
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13 comments February 21st, 2009
Bankroll management: it ain’t sexy. But, it’s how you live and die on the poker table. If your eyes are glazing over, grab a cup of coffee. This is critical to your survival as a poker player. When you ask a rookie about their bankroll, they’ll look at you and say something like, “Well, I have $400 to lose.”
That’s not bankroll management. That’s just how much money they pulled from their bank account before hitting the casino.
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11 comments December 31st, 2008
All of us like to think we’re the Master Of The Universe on the table. We have the skills and the strategy to outplay our opponents. But, there are times when you’ll sit at a table and instantly realize that you’re the underdog. You’re a minnow in an ocean of sharks. When that happens, how do you survive? Should you lurk in the shadows and strike when the other players aren’t expecting it? Or, are you better off making them think you’re the player they’ve been afraid to confront. Here’s how to survive as the table underdog. (more…)
6 comments August 3rd, 2008
Bluffing is a key part of playing good poker. But, there’s an art to it. Do it too often under the same circumstances and other players will pick up the scent. You’ll go from predator to prey in a heartbeat. Do it too seldom and you’re leaving opportunities for quick kills on the table. Anyone can bluff. Few have the skills to do it well. So, let’s talk about the art of bluffing. (more…)
13 comments July 21st, 2008
Anyone who has played poker in a casino and played it online knows there’s a huge chasm that separates the two. Some prefer to play live cash games where you can stare down your opponents and look for tells. Others like playing online. It’s easier and more comfortable. Plus, you’ll be stunned at how many horrible players there are online that you can take advantage of (I’ll get to this below). If you’ve never played online or never been at a live cash table, you’re going to be surprised by what you read in this post. Here’s a crash course on the difference between the two. (more…)
10 comments June 30th, 2008
We’ve all seen enough poker movies to know what “tells” are. If you’re new to the game, you’re probably giving things away without even realizing it. Don’t worry. I’m going to help you fix the problem right now. I actually wrote this to help players recognize tells in their opponents. But, if you’re reading and saying to yourself, “Geez, I do that.” you’re in trouble. Fix it or prepare to get eaten alive. (more…)
2 comments June 15th, 2008
New day, new blog post. Today, I’m going to give you a quick crash course on an important piece of No-Limit Hold’em. You may already play the game. Or, you may be too intimidated to dive in. Whichever the case, what you’re about to read is going to be valuable to you. I’m going to take you through a critical part of the game. This is the stuff that cause rookies to self-destruct at the table.
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13 comments June 7th, 2008
Poker is not a science. It can’t be boiled down to a series of events and reactions. It’s an art. The best players learn to roll with the punches and come back swinging. Things go wrong. Cards land badly. Bankrolls dip desperately low. But, each time, a veteran poker player will consider his odds, keep his cool and sometimes, come back to fight another day. On the other hand, novice poker players make a ton of rookie mistakes. And when they do, the veterans on the table move in for the kill. Below, you’ll find 4 of the most lethal (and common) mistakes that novice players make.
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14 comments May 18th, 2008
A type of poker tournament that is growing in popularity in recent years is the deepstack poker tournament. When poker tournaments first came into existence, they were simply freezeout poker games. They were mostly $5,000-$10,000 events, so all the participants got $5,000-$10,000 in chips.
Read on to find out what are Deep Stack tournament and where they came from … (more…)
44 comments April 24th, 2008
Advanced poker is much more about playing one’s opponents than the cards. The psychological aspect of the game gets front seat, and subtle things (like all sorts of poker tells) become much more important. These are the circumstances under which bluffing inevitably rears its head. Whether it’s a blind-stealing semi-bluff, or a full one, bluffing is going to be present in the game, one way or another. Knowing how to read your opponents, the board and the betting patterns can come in extremely handy in this situation. (more…)
5 comments April 3rd, 2008
Playing in the opening stages of STTs requires tight and aggressive play, in its purest form. Everyone knows that and as a player, I have never had any problems dealing with this issue. Short handed play, or heads up was always something I was naturally good at, too. When I have to be crazy aggressive, and play on the edge, for some reason I feel good about the game and manage to make all the right calls time and time again. I know not all online poker players are like that so I’ll devote a different article to the short handed and heads up stage in the future. (more…)
11 comments March 26th, 2008
When talking about the best hand in poker, people immediately think about the Royal Flush. While that is indeed the best possible five-card hand in poker, it is so rare, it can hardly be considered a hand that one shall win a lot of money on. A truly good poker hand is always the one that you win big on, regardless of its value. (more…)
Add comment March 25th, 2008
5 Easy Ways To Improve Your Texas Holdem Game Through Practice
Doyle Brunson has said that the best way to get better at Texas hold’em is to play a lot of Texas Holdem hands, and most poker players would probably agree.
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6 comments January 24th, 2008
While there are many things you can do to improve your play before ever sitting down at a Texas hold’em poker game, there are also things you can do as the game progresses to get better. Poker is a game of observation and of using those observations to your advantage. Since all players should get the same amount of winning and losing hands over time, being more skilled at reading your opponents than others are can make all the difference. Here are five Texas holdem tips you can use to improve your results at the poker table.
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Add comment November 30th, 2007
For a new player playing poker can be overwhelming, there are many factors to consider before betting and most newbies will rely too much on luck… Luck is part of the game but there are ways to calculate odds which over time will make you a winner !
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5 comments October 8th, 2007
Looking for an edge while playing online ? Pay attention to this
Intro
Alot of online poker players giveout tells and most of them dont even know it. Are you one of those players ?
My goal with this blog is to help people become the best poker player they can be, and thus you need to be aware of online tells that you might give away to others that are very well aware of these tells.
Your online behaviour, how you play, when you play, how fast you play and what you say in the chat rooms, even your name can all give away some free “information” about your game, the secret to being a good bluffer is to not let others know when you are bluffing.
Take this information and use it, when you see someone not following these rules, there is a good chance that he is a below average player, and thus you should take advantage of that.
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6 comments April 15th, 2007
You receive your first two cards, you look at them and now you ask yourself, should you play them ? Should you raise on the preflop ? You look around you, and try to find some tells, but still can’t quite decide what to do. Well You’re reading the right article. See I’m going to tell you what to do, it’s easy huh!
Add comment March 30th, 2007
To bluff or not to bluff ?
That is the real question and honestly, I have a long and complicated answer, but just stick around, it might help. Oh and the success of any bluff lies in your capabilitie to observe others. Because when you bluff, you don’t bluff with your cards, you bluff with the cards everyone else think you have.
Bluffing, it is quite complicated to master, yet so simple to use. You simply raise your opponent with confidence, and hope that he will chicken out. This process is entirely psychological, everything you do, every movement, every word you’ll be saying will have a direct impact on someone’s decision. (more…)
3 comments March 19th, 2007
There is no computer that can beat a world class poker player because poker is a people game. A game of poker is a game where “you play the man not the cards”. You must have heard this expression many times before, and I can’t stress enough of how important it is. Of course the cards have a huge impact on the game, but a world class poker player could win against a beginner every time.
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3 comments March 18th, 2007
What distinguishes best poker players? Their courage. It’s one of the characteristics you need to be the best. Doyle Brunson once said: “Timid players don’t win in high-stakes Poker”. Courage means: everything you’ve put in the pot belongs to the pot. It’s not yours. Forget about that money. But never dare to make a bit bet if you feel that it’s the best action at that time.
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Add comment March 18th, 2007
