Posts Tagged ‘Holdem’

Poker Fun Attracts Poker Fish

Monday, March 28th, 2011

Nothing keeps a poker amateur away from the table so much as the types regularly seen on TV’s World of Poker. You know the types, they wear big shades, big hats, or big hooded sweatshirts completely shutting out all humanity. They appear arrogant and intimidating and they are. They keep anyone but players like them away from the table.

Generally speaking, the amateur is looking for a game among people as gregarious as he is. For him, the game is not a way to make real money but a means to a few hours of fun in a social setting. It may be someone escaping from the routine of the office, or a player tired of online poker and seeking that human touch. They are looking for a table with a relaxed, congenial atmosphere and don’t care so much about winning or losing. They are attracted to tables where people are enjoying each other.

To the players who want to constantly earn an actual income at the table, these guys are a godsend. An individual player will probably not lose a lot, but will do so consistently. If the pro wants some dough he has come to the right place. These good ol’ boys seeking fun will stay longer, place riskier bets and lose more when they are having fun.

The table where no one looks at anyone else, where no conversation is going on, and everyone is pretty much disguised so no faces can be seen, is keeping the amateurs away in droves.

On the other hand, a good conversation and a sense of humor combined with a slightly flattering play which keeps the amateur trusting he has a chance will increase the chances of that player coming back for more next time, perhaps even specifically seeking out your table. Since they do not play for the money or the excitement of high stakes, they will not regret as much having lost to an entertaining player.

By keeping the weaker opponents in a fun loving mood, you will keep up their poker hopes. They must be good, they are having such a good time. Luck, being the fickle lady that she is, is sure to fall on them some times. The relaxed ambience of this table will attract more amateurs, making it a golden opportunity for the player looking for serious money.

Top professionals carefully invent their poker persona. Their key to success lies not only in superior technique but often in the ability to create, through persona and ability to manipulate the game cleverly, situations which project a positive experience for their unsuspecting prey. They make sure that those who are about to loose salute them.

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Limit Hold’em: Plusses and Minuses

Saturday, March 26th, 2011

Following is an analysis of the pros and cons of one of the variations of poker that may be helpful to you. Once upon a time, Limit Hold’em was the most played online poker game. There remain on the net many low and medium limit games in the poker rooms, and a few with a $100/$200 limit. It continues to be the easiest game to find and is a sure bet to continue on that path as only a few players are able to rise to the $20/$40 level.

There is a plethora of literature available devoted entirely to the game of Limit Hold’em poker. This is a major advantage as even the novice player can avail himself of these books while experiencing actual play and if he is a good student will gain much knowledge of the game. This abounding literature allows decisions to be made more easily and most of those decisions can be explained with basic mathematics and become a tool for instantaneous in-game mental calculations.

The mathematical phenomenon of dispersion becomes less of a factor in limit games. Thus enabling even the rookiest of rookies with the worst cards at the table to occasionally be saved by dumb luck. For a dramatic reference to the particulars of dispersion, read Terry Pratchett’s Rincewind novels.

As a rule, any and all poker games are subject to the mathematical phenomenon of statistical dispersion, i.e. major losses are part of even the most expert player’s game, and it is this fact that stops folks from indulging in any game of poker. Limit poker is not as mentally intense as no-limit and tournament games, which involve high dispersion. You don’t need a lot of funding to play Limit Hold’em and like the large quantity of literature on the subject , there are computer programs specifically designed for limit poker – Poker Tracker and Poker Office will help low limit players especially. These programs can be used both during the game and after whenever an analysis of any part of the game is called for or to make statistical calculations.

The above advantages lead to one of the few disadvantages of limit poker. There is an ever enlarging pool of experienced, knowledgeable opponents. So while the game is highly accessible, it is becoming less profitable. Non-virtual poker venues make their money chiefly from the rather small rake reducing the pot during every round. These rooms depend on their profits not from the number of players they attract. What keeps them running is at the end of a series of games, the percentage from the total hands played may make their income rise to amazing sums. The limit games that include expert players may be not only less profitable but may actually result in a loss.

Finally, limit holdem is not widespread offline, offers little exposure to the nonvirtual outside world, and lacks the aspects which make casino and club games so rich in important and memorable experience. Certainly, those who love the game find most memorable that which is the essence of poker – the combinations of cards; but just like talking face to face to a company of people is more memorable than chanting to a hundred “friends” in ICQ, so playing poker at an actual table of wood (rather than of 1024768 pixels) you can actually knock on (makes a nice bluff) makes for a more intense and exciting experience.

The author is a successful limit cash game player. He plays poker online and receives Victory Rakeback and Poker Heaven Rakeback.

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A Definition of The Good and The Bad Qualities of Poker Players

Sunday, February 27th, 2011

A very clever Soviet satire is written about a con artist set out to win a bunch of money from a small town chess club. He convinces the avid members that he is a traveling master of the game and wishes to organize a tournament for the assembled group. He, of course, charges an entrance fee from all the players and proceeds to play “twelve identical matches” without a clue as to what he is doing. This is the second chess match he has ever played, but he manages to place the pieces somewhat correctly and makes his moves to the awe of those surrounding the board. Like lots of folks when in the presence of greatness, they read a lot into the moves and pay close attention. Soon after beginning the games, he loses all of them but still keeps his sense of humor. The town is utterly amazed, but by then he has had the required time to run off with the entry fees. So, our traveling maestro may be a lousy player, but he is a winning one.

The novel is The Twelve Chairs of which there are both English translations and film adaptation DVDs actually available from Amazon.com. The first film adaptation of the book was actually a Mel Brooks comedy, which is a loose adaptation, recommended only for Brooks fans. The best Russian adaptation is the 1976 mini-series by Mark Zaharov, one of the greatest Russian directors of all time, though he may not sound as familiar as Tarkovsky.

The point is that the definition of a good player, in poker or otherwise, depends on what that player’s purpose is. As far the fictional con artist was concerned, he was an effective player since his strategy precisely achieved his goals – quick money. It is a subtler point, however, that he was a good player also because he knew he couldn’t play solid chess for more than the first five or so moves and because he prepared an escape route.

Now, a surprisingly large amount of poker players are reluctant to admit their less than average abilities. Ego is often central with poker players, it seems, perhaps because of the peculiar aura around the game. How they fail to realize that poker is a complex game one spends a lifetime learning is something of a marvel, but these pros-in-denial are exactly what makes poker a profitable game for the serious and talented players.

Some players play the game by rote and come out winners in the long run. They do not see the game as an ever-enlightening process of learning and growing. But they do win and if that is their purpose for playing the game, then they are good poker players.

For those players to whom poker is an art, the above types are not true poker players, not really bad, just not real. They are in the clubs but are not the stars. The good player is looking for growth and more and more insight to improve his already good game. He or she understands that the game is a complicated mix of skill, theater, and perception. They know their weaknesses and work hard on improving their good points while lessening their bad ones.

If you enjoyed this article you may also like to read the poker articles at Random Poker Thoughts or Poker Pro Blog

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Reading Opponents: Texas Holdem Poker Tells

Monday, September 6th, 2010

Being able to read your opponent is crucial in poker. It is what differentiates a game of skill such as poker from other games of chance such as roulette. Everybody has poker tells at the table and the more you observe, the better you will be able to read what a player is thinking and what cards they hold. Poker tells include any source of information that you can gather from an opponent including physical movement, changing and patterns of talking as well as how they move the chips around the table.

The Eyes Reading a player starts with their eyes. Watch how they view the world and you will gain insight into their thoughts. An opponent who glances at their chips immediately after seeing the flop is thinking about betting and likely has a monster. Some players will stare at their hole cards longer than normal when they have a big hand. When the flop comes down and the player stares at the flop as if staring straight through it, they have often missed.

The Hole Cards Double checking the hole cards usually means a weak hand. People don’t often double check big pairs because they remember what it was the first time. Looking away and uninterested after seeing the hole cards is a dead give away for strength. Squeezing out the second hole card sometimes means the first card seen is an ace. Checking the hole cards on a flop that is all the same suited usually implies someone doesn’t have the flush.

Patterns in Betting In poker, one thing that is often true is that strong means weak and weak means strong. Any player that forcefully shove chips into the middle looking aggressive is on a bluff. The reverse is also true.

Chip Stacks If you ever notice a player winning a large pot and stacking their chips from the last hand, they will not play the hand unless they have good cards. Tight conservative players keep neat stacks and loose aggressive players usually have unkempt stacks.

Speaking at the table If an opponent is having a conversation during a poker hand and his talk is all of the place, as if his mind is on something else, it usually means he is not too confident in his hand. This correlates to a weak poker hand. Conversely, if a player is talking smoothly while in a hand, it means he is not overly concerned about the hand he is playing. This is because he feels comfortable and usually means a big hand.

There are many poker tells. If you keep your eyes open and always watch the table, you’ll be on the right track to becoming a great player.

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Holdem Poker Hand Nicknames

Saturday, September 4th, 2010

Poker is a beautiful and unique game played by a great number of wonderful characters across the globe. Over the years, numerous nicknames for poker hands have developed, some in humour, some out of tragedy, but all as fascinating as the game itself.

The biggest hand before the flop in Holdem Poker is two Aces and subsquently this hand generates the most excitement and colourful names. Common names for two Aces are Pocket Rockets and Bullets (for obvious reasons due to their shape). They are named after several famous entities with initials starting with the letter “A” including Alan Alda, Albert Anastasia, and American Airlines. They are also known as numerous sharp objects such as the Rocky Mountains, Sticks, Teepees and Two Pips. More comical and obscure references include Squirrel (the nuts) and Batteries (Double A). Names for a single Ace include Bull, Bullet, Death Card (spades), Mastercard, One Spot, Puppy Foot (clubs), SEed, Sharp Top, Spike and Tax Card (spades).

Two kings are the second best hand preflop in holdem and are commonly known as Cowboys. Variations on this include Butchers of Baghdad (so named in reference to Saddam Hussein on the infamous Iraqi most wanted playing cards). Combinations of alliterations of KK include Krispy Kreme and King Kong (and by extension Gorillas, Gorillas in the Mist). They are referred to as Ace Magnets because an Ace always comes on the flop. A single King is also known as K-Boy, Monarch, Sergeant, Alexander (clubs), Charlemagne or Charles (hearts), David (spades), Julius Caesar or One eyed king (diamonds).

Queens often cop the short end of nicknames, partly because of the number of times they are beaten by Aces and Kings, but also through reference to homosexuality. Common polite terms include Ladies, Lovely Ladies, Calamity Jane (likely extensive of Cowboys for KK) and Snowshoes (owing to their resemblance to the original shape of snowshoes). More crude nicknames include Four T*ts, Jail-house Rock, Siegfried and Roy and B***hes.

Smaller pairs such as Jacks to Twos all have a few nicknames. Jacks are known as Hooks or Fish-hooks. Less known names include Kid Dyne-o-mite (TV show reference), Brothers, Jay Birds, John Juanda (Poker Player) and finally Colostomy Bag (Jack is slang for toilet). Two Tens are Two Dimes, TNT, Dynamite and Binary (In Binary 1010 is the equivalent of 10). Nines are known as Barbara Feldon (Get Smart- Agent 99), Phil Helmuth, Popeye and Wayne Gretzky (Hockey Player). Eights are snowmen, Piano Keys, Little Oldsmobile, Racetracks, Two Fat Ladies, Lacey, Pretzels, and Wurlitzer. A couple of Sevens are known as axes, mullets, hockey sticks or walking sticks. Two sixes are known as Boots, Cherries, or Kicks (On Route 66). A pair of Fives are Presto, Snakes or Speed Limit, while a pair of Fours are Canadian Presto, Dark Force, Darth Vader, Magnum and Sail boats. A Pair of three is either known as crabs (claw shaped like the number 3) or treys and a pair of Twos is usually Deuces, Ducks, or Quack Quack (shaped like a duck).

Other non pairing hands of notable fame include the infamous Ace and King combination known as Big Slick. Names include backronyms such as Korean Airlines and King Arthur as well as normally acronyms such as Anna Kournikova (also named because it looks good but seldom wins). Another common reference is Kalashnikov (who designed the AK47). An Ace and a Queen is known as Big Chick or Mrs Slick. Other non pairing notable hands include Jack-Four (Flat Tire – what’s a Jack for?), J6 (Rail Road – phonetics of Jacks n Sixes, Jacks n Sixes, Jacks n Sixes – Woo Woo). Ten-Deuce is known as the Doyle Brunson after he successful made two full houses and won two World Series of Poker bracelets.

The complete list of starting hand nicknames is by far more extensive than this article. Additionly there are alot of names not appropriate for everyday reading. If you have an interest in other poker starting hand nicknames I recommended search Wikipedia for an extensive list of common names and some of the stories about how they came about.

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The Origins Of Online Poker

Tuesday, August 31st, 2010

Poker is a family of various card games played by two or more player who bet on the value of their hands. Numerous versions exist with each version differing based on the number of cards dealt, specific nuances and rules, betting limitations and hand rankings.

The history of poker is the subject of debate. Around 969 AD, the Chinese emperor Mu-Tsung is reported to have played ‘domino cards’ with his wife. Egyptians in the 12th and 13th centuries had a version of playing cards. The Persians in the 16th century had a 96-card game “Ganjifa” and a 25-card version “As Nas”. An early known card game incorporating betting, hand rankings and bluffing was a German game entitled ‘Pochspiel’ popular in the 15th century. The French played a game called ‘Poque’. Both games derived from the German ‘pochen’ (‘to brag as a bluff’, ‘to knock’). Other early versions include the Renaissance game of ‘Primero’, the French game ‘Brelan’ and the English game ‘Brag’.

Irrespective of the early origins of poker, the modern day game differs significantly with focus upon unique features such as betting that do not appear in any older version. The modern origin of Poker is believe to have occurred in the mid 1700s spreading through the paddle steamers of the Mississippi River by 1800. Most likely introduced by French colonials arriving in Canada.

Initially poker was played with a reduced deck of only 20 cards including the aces, kings, queens, jacks and tens. The hand rankings were as follows: one pair, two pair, triplets, full and four of a kind. There was no concept of flushes or straights. Around the middle of the 1830s, the 52-card version of poker became gradually introduced to accommodate more than four players and to increase the potential of the newly introduced concept of the ‘flush’. In the late 1840s, ‘drawing’ a card became a popular variation as it allowed greater scope for gambling with a second round of betting. It also allowed initially poor hands to greatly improve. After the middle of the 19th century, poker spread quickly and numerous variations on the game begin to evolve into the modern forms we know today.

The modern history of poker can be attributed to a few key events over the last decades that catapulted poker into the mainstream. The first event to publicise poker is the release of the 1998 film ‘Rounders’ starring John Malkovich, Edward Norton and Matt Damon. The next key step in the history of poker is the modernisation of poker including easily accessible televised tournaments with hole card cameras including the likes of the World Series of Poker and the World Poker Tour. The final event that changed the history of poker forever is the victory of Chris Moneymaker, an unknown amateur player, in the 2003 World Series of Poker.

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No-Limit Tournaments and Cash Games – The Growth in Popularity

Monday, December 14th, 2009

Generally, cash games and limit games are far less popular than no-limit tournament poker.  At any point in time, there may be 75% of online players indulging in some variation of tournament holdem poker.  Those who have played many tournaments can more easily make the trade to the world of no-limit poker.  Of all cash games, no-limit is the most-played variation of poker.

Tournaments, due the media hype, are where the inexperienced novices go to play and where they are taken advantage of by the more knowing players.  Free-roll tournament poker is readily available at every venue day or night making them easy to find for the cautious rookie.  They can then make an attempt at a few hands with no ante and even luck into a win or two.  This can be a most addictive beginning to poker mania.

In a sit-and-go tournament game, the player enters with a fixed deposit and then only plays for chips, not money.  This makes for a much less stressful game than the cash game.  This relaxing nature accounts for its popularity as well as media coverage, and one may even gain his 15 minutes of fame as a celebrity poker player..

The importance of distinguishing between the oft-played and fast paced SnG tournaments and the less readily available MTT where the games go on stressfully forever, cannot be overstated.  A player taking part in an MTT will not be able to leave the table without losing his investment..  This requires that the player must have the endurance for endless hours of complicated play.  These games require tenacity and a marathon-like endurance to avoid lapsing into a depression, becoming too inert to get up and leave, and yet too unfocused to play one’s A game.  Add to this high dispersion, even though the final three remaining at the table stand to gain a lot.

Also, you can’t expect to walk into a poker club and find an MTT going on.  Even in online poker rooms, you may find yourself only able to play very late at night, depending on your country of play.  The literature available on tournaments and no-limit games tends to be scarce and dwells on the psychological and subjective aspects of the game rather than any precise techniques and strategies.

The transition between cash and MTT is not particularly difficult.  No-limit and cash games do have a lot of similarities, but there are more drawbacks to the MTT.  No-limit cash games are thought to be the most prospective of all online games by the majority of players.  Among all the cash games no-limit is by far the most available and can be found at all places and at all times with no lack of gung-ho players.  You can be sure that not all of those eager beavers are experts.  Because the game is not well documented in literature, the talented  players have an excellent opportunity to practice some psychological manipulations.  Those less talented need to be aware of this and proceed with caution.

With cash games, the literature is more available and growing, but even if it does have merit, it is not precise, lacks substantial guidelines and weighs heavily on the potential of the assorted individuals gathered around the table.  The only way to become expert then at no-limit cash games is through the experience of playing and closely observing your opponents, thereby piling up a memory of observations to carefully draw upon when involved in future, and just as unpredictable games.

No limit games offer the fiercest dispersion for even good players.  Experts have been known to lose five or six buy-ins in one round of play.  This is not a cheap game or one for the faint of heart..

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Limit Hold’em: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Friday, December 11th, 2009

To help you understand the advantages and disadvantages of particular poker games, I offer the following brief analysis.  Those who have ever played poker online are aware that limit poker was once the most avidly played game on the net.  The internet still offers quite a few low and medium limit games, and a few in the $100 to $200 range.  The limit game is still easily found online and will continue to be in the future, particularly since only a few players are of the $20 to $40 level of expertise.

There is a plethora of literature available devoted entirely to the game of Limit Hold’em poker.  This is a major advantage as even the novice player can avail himself of these books while experiencing actual play and if he is a good student will gain much knowledge of the game.  This abounding literature allows decisions to be made more easily and most of those decisions can be explained with basic mathematics and become a tool for instantaneous in-game mental calculations.

To add to this, dispersion is not the factor in limit games as it is in others.  Dispersion is a coldly calculating entity that determines who is lucky and who is not.  With limit poker, even the lousy player with lousy cards can be the lucky winner sometimes.  To understand more about how dispersion affects the game of poker and the game of life, read any of Terry Pratchett’s Rincewind novels.

As a rule, any and all poker games are subject to the mathematical phenomenon of statistical dispersion, i.e. major losses are part of even the most expert player’s game, and it is this fact that stops folks from indulging in any game of poker.  Limit poker is not as mentally intense as no-limit and tournament games, which involve high dispersion.  You don’t need a lot of funding to play Limit Hold’em and like the large quantity of literature on the subject , there are computer programs specifically designed for limit poker – Poker Tracker and Poker Office will help low limit players especially.  These programs can be used both during the game and after whenever an analysis of any part of the game is called for or to make statistical calculations.

Now for the bad and the ugly.  Because of the quantity of information available on the game, there is a large and ever-growing number of knowledgeable, skilled players.  So the game while it is easy to find, is not very profitable.  Poker rooms make their money from the small amount taken out of the pot for each hand.  So, poker rooms earn money not from the number of players, but from the percentage of the total number of hands played at the end of a long series of poker hands.  This sum more often than not turns out to be quite a tidy one.  Limit games which include good players can wind up with minimal profitability or even a loss.

While the availability of limit poker is not a problem online, off line is another story.  There is little exposure in the non-virtual world because limit poker does not include the features that make a poker game attractive to casinos and card clubs.  It is the camaraderie around the table, the laughter and chatter, that makes the game rewarding and memorable to most people.  This cannot be found online but requires a group around a table.  The limit player gets his thrills from the true essence of poker – the combination of cards.

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Limit Hold’em: Plusses and Minuses

Wednesday, December 9th, 2009

A brief analysis of the pluses and minuses of certain poker games may help. Limit Holdem was once the single most popular game on the net. There are still many low and medium limit games being played and some $100/$200 games. So that the game remains one of the most accessible and prospective, and is likely to remain so for some time to come, especially since not many players rise to the levels of $20/$40.

What may be considered a significant plus of the game is the amount of literature devoted to it: many of the contemporary books on poker are devoted to limit games. It is a well studied game and it is possible that a thorough student may learn much from the experience of others. As a result decisions are simpler to make in limit hold’em and most of them are easily supportable by basic mathematic tools for quick mental in-game calculations.

Moreover, dispersion is less of a threat in limit games. That coldly calculating deity determines the chances of every player involved at a given moment and even the worst and unluckiest rookie may luck out (if you don’t want to go into actual statistics, just read any of Terry Pratchett’s hapless-Rincewind novels for a dramatization of this point of games and life).

Generally speaking, all poker is necessarily subject to statistical dispersion: big losses inevitably happen even to the best of players (even when they play ideally with what they have in their hands) and are what turns many off the game in the first place. No-limit and tournaments have higher dispersion than limit games, which means that limit poker is not as psychologically intense. Relatively low bank rolls suffice for limit holdem and there are many specially designed computer programs for limit poker: Poker Tracker and Poker Office offer help which is not to be sneezed at, particularly so for low limit players. These programs are useful both during the game and after, when you want to make an analysis of any part of it or calculate general statistics.

About the only minus of limit holdem is the constantly growing number of well-trained, well-informed opponents. But that is the direct result of the pluses just listed and makes the game, though accessible, not as easily profitable as one might hope it to be. The chief source of income for poker rooms is the seemingly small rake deducted from the pot during each hand. Rooms therefore rely heavily not on the number of players in their rooms. But at the conclusion of a series of long games, the percentage of all hands played may reach surprisingly high sums and limit games against good players may result in near-zero or even negative gain.

Finally, limit holdem is not widespread offline, offers little exposure to the nonvirtual outside world, and lacks the aspects which make casino and club games so rich in important and memorable experience. Certainly, those who love the game find most memorable that which is the essence of poker – the combinations of cards; but just like talking face to face to a company of people is more memorable than chanting to a hundred “friends” in ICQ, so playing poker at an actual table of wood (rather than of 1024×768 pixels) you can actually knock on (makes a nice bluff) makes for a more intense and exciting experience.

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