Beware! some important tips…
Posted on February 7, 2008
Filed Under poker tips, game table, poker players, casino games, poker game | Leave a Comment
1. Don’t throw your cards away if you think you have won a pot until the pot is pushed into your stack pile area by the dealer.
2. Beware table talk by opponents trying to get you to reveal your hand or your intentions. If you check beware someone saying something like “I have two pair”. They have yet to say they are calling, raising or folding. They are trying to get you to reveal your hand before they make their intention known.
3. Hide your cards from left, right and behind you. If dealer may have revealed your card by dealing it into the wind or tilting it, tell dealer.
4. Beware someone behind you looking like they are stacking chips to raise. They may or may not be intentionally trying to affect your play.
5. Do not assume that a dealer knows what they are doing. You may have a rookie or mistaken dealer. Ask around the table, if the consensus is that a dealer is wrong in a ruling, then ask for a floor manager to check the call.
Moving from table to table
Posted on January 23, 2008
Filed Under game table, sizing up other players, types of poker players, poker players, poker game, winning at poker, poker | Leave a Comment
1. Who is sitting at tables in many cases is more important than the type of poker you are playing. Finding a table where players are easily tossing money into the pot can be a bonanza. Look for it if you feel comfortable in this type of game. Look for the table that best fits your game and comfort level.
2. Before playing, take your free round by waiting until the dealer button is to your immediate round. When it comes time for your blind, sit out 2 rounds and observe players for several rounds while you drink a cup of coffee. Type cast as many players as you can. If the action is not to your liking, sign up for another table or another game. Do not stay at that table. Your initial reaction is more oft than not, the correct one.
3. Choosing which tables are to your liking depends upon your choice of type of poker game, level of expertise, your style or styles of play, your risk factors and comfort zone.
a. If you are player that does not like a lot of raising going on or one that does, watch a few rounds to see how many raises there are per round. If you want a lot of action, like raises, look for that. Generally, several players at the table with a lot of money in front of them means some action has been taking place. Most players prefer a game with loose players that think nothing of tossing money into the pot, calling or raising on marginal hands or bluffing a lot.
b. If you are a player that likes a lot of action the higher stake tables generally have more action. At lower stake tables, Watch and count how many raises there are per round and how large the raises are.
c. If you prefer a quiet game, players and women are generally, but not always, more conservative. Watching several rounds can give some indication. Look for your type of game.
4. In some clubs you can sign up to move to another table, or you may have to just walk away and re-sign up.
Playing Limit Razz tournaments
Posted on January 11, 2008
Filed Under low ball, limit razz tournament, Razz Low Ball, 7 Card Stud | 1 Comment
I recommend playing the following hands in 9 player tables;
Any 3 starting cards, not duplicated that are 7 or lower, any two cards 6 or lower. If you have 3 starting cards all low, call the bet, not raise, to encourage others to stay in. Do your raising later, after the fourth card unless the players are very loose. Bluff very seldom, late in the pot if the opportunity presents itself and it is the only way to win. Go by what is showing on top. If someone has showing any 4 cards 7 or under without a pair, it is a very good chance they will wind up with a very good hand. If they have KKJ3 showing the best they can wind up with is a jack high. Look at the stats (statistics) see what % of the hands you play and what % of the showdowns you win. If you are playing 20% of the pots and are winning anywhere close to 50% of the hands at showdown, you are doing very well. In a recent Razz tournament I was playing about 21% of the pots through to showdown, winning 66% of the showdown pots I was in. Pots won without showdown, about half the amount I won at showdown. I was running #3 – 30 out of 800-1500 left in an original 4500 players for most of two hours. At that point I went on a zero for 50 hand stretch and dropped back to 70th out of 579 and continued on, not winning a hand, playing very few hands until I hit 200th out of 500 players left. Making things worse was I kept getting a King up forcing me to play at least the first card at 400 each. Finally I won a few hands and stood at 263 out of 324 and was down to 6,000. When the deck goes cold on you and the bets are 750/1500, it doesn’t take long to lose chips. I finished the tournament in 282nd place out of 4500.
Types of Poker Players
Posted on January 4, 2008
Filed Under poker tournament, poker income, types of poker players, poker players, types of poker games, poker game, world championship tournament, poker | Leave a Comment
Types of Poker Players
1. Amateur - Relatively New player Internet/New Player Cash Games - exploring games, styles, little experience.
2. Amateur - Medium experience Internet and/or live cash player.
3. Amateur Very experienced Internet player Cash Games, Very Experienced Live Cash Games, still an amateur, wins more than loses overall.
4. Amateur -Very experienced Internet player Tournament Games, Very Experienced Live Cash Games, still an amateur, wins more than loses overall.
5. Semi-Professional Internet cash game player. Could make a living playing full time, for various reasons prefers to supplement income with other activities. Income per year 20k – 50k net.
6. Semi-Professional Internet tournament game player. Could make a living playing full time, for various reasons prefers to supplement income with other activities. Poker Income per year 20k – 50k net.
7. Semi-Professional Live cash game player. Could make a living playing full time, for various reasons prefers to supplement income with other activities. Income per year 20k – 50k net.
8. Semi-Professional Live tournament game player. Could make a living playing full time, for various reasons prefers to supplement income with other activities. Poker Income per year 20k – 50k net.
9. Professional Internet cash or tournament game player. Makes a living playing full time, Income per year
50k-100k- level 1, 100-300k - level 2, 300k-1mm+ level 3.
10. Professional all around player. Makes a living playing full time, Income per year
50k-100k- level 1, 100-300k - level 2, 300k-1mm+ level 3.
11. Superstar - Professional all around player, in top 100 players in the world. Makes a living playing full time, Income per year greater than 1 million per year, recognized internationally.
12. Top 25 Superstars - Professional all around player, in top 25 players in the world. Makes a living playing full time, Income per year greater than 2 million per year, recognized internationally.
Forms of Poker - types of poker games
Posted on November 4, 2007
Filed Under Pineapple, Razz Low Ball, HORSE, HOSE, 6 Card Stud, 5 Card Stud, 7 Card Stud, Limit Omaha High Low, casino games, poker game, types of poker games, Limit Texas Holdem, Texas Holdem, poker | Leave a Comment
There are more than a dozen forms of poker played throughout the United States and around the World either live or on the internet.
Some of the more popular forms are;
1. Limit Texas Holdem/Holdem - traditional 2/4, 3/6, 4/8, 6/12, 20/40, 30/60, 40/80, 80/160, other limits, 2 cards down, bet, flop 3 up, 1 more up, then the last one up. These 5 cards, turned up are referred to as community cards and are shared by all players at the table. In terms of popularity of actually playing the game, this is the most popular poker game played in card rooms in the United States due to the limit of loss that can be incurred in any one hand compared to no-limit holdem. The standard limit of a max of four raises per turn card usually holds true as a house rule. Except for tournaments, the average player player prefers to not potentially loose it all on one turn of the card as is the case potentially in a no limit game.
This game, at its higher limits can actually have more profit/loss per game than any single game in the average poker club, except for special, high roller games or tournaments. It is not unusual to see $ 2,000 – 10,000 in front of players at the 30/60, 40/80, 80/160 limit games. The lowest limit games are low key while the highest limit games are very intense, potentially very rewarding and certainly not for the faint of heart. A 2/4 game needs about $ 40-100 to sit down, in a 40/80 you need roughly $ 1,000 or 10 times the maximum bet. There is some bluffing but not near what there is in 5/150 or no limit.
2. Limit Texas Holdem - with a wide spread – new 5/150, 10/150, other limits. This game has grown in popularity in Vegas and in other states in the United States because it most resembles no-limit holdem. Many states have a 150 limit on poker game single bets, except for tournaments.
With this game you need about $ 150-350 to sit down for 5/150 and 350-1,000 for the 10/150 and the game fits those looking to win or lose quickly. There is a lot of bluffing in this game, especially from or near the dealer position (last to act after the flop) or from the two blind positions to the left of the dealer. (last to act before the flop) This is a high action game.
3. No Limit Texas Holdem – Normally in Tournaments only in most states or on the internet. The most popular poker game watched in the U.S. and around the World. This is due to the large no limit pots and the excitement generated by the large pots and by the large payouts at the big tournaments. Who doesn’t think about what it would be like to win 5-15 million dollars U.S. This poker game has the highest risk and the highest Potential rewards. This is the game the best pro’s and those who really want to gamble prefer to play, against those with the most money to win/lose.
4. Pot Limit Texas Holdem – Normally in Tournaments only, in most states, or on the internet. Not quite the excitement of no limit, but less risk since
the limit is a growing amount as the pot gets larger and you can only bet a maximum of what is in the pot.
5. Limit Omaha High Low (eight or better lowball with 1-5 best low hand, if 3 low cards 1-8, not counting pairs are not in the 5 card flop there is no low hand. Cards are dealt 4 down, betting begins, first flop is 3 cards up, betting, 1 card up, betting, then last card up.
6. No limit Omaha High-Low eight or better low ) 2/4, 3/6, 6/12, other limits, pot limit or no-limit in tournaments or on the internet
Omaha High hands only. This game is more stable than high-low and easier to learn. It is preferred by those that do not like the unknown of whether or not a low hand will be possible on any given hand. Three cards 1-8, not counting pairs, must be in the 5 community cards turned up for a low to be possible.
7. 7 card stud high only - with 2 down, 1 up, begin betting, turn 1 at time up, last card goes down. This game is favored by those who prefer less unknowns than most other forms of poker but more unknowns than 5 or 6 card and more chances to make a straight, flush, full house…
8. 7 card stud high-low (eight or better lowball with 1-5 best low hand)
9. Razz/Low Ball ( opposite of regular 5 card draw poker, with no community cards turned up in the middle, like holdem. Ignoring flushes, straights, the best hand is 1,2,3,4,5, pairs are worse than king high no pair. This game was “the” game for years in parts of California, including no limit at regular tables. To learn this game, most would have to play on the internet. There are very few of these games left in live casinos.
10. Pineapple/Crazy Pineapple, similar to holdem/Texas holdem except everyone gets three cards down, after betting, and seeing the flop, discard 1 of 3 down cards and continue playing like regular holdem/Texas holdem. Played in small card clubs, private games, occasionally at a larger club.
This game is considered fun, exciting due to having more choices and more chances for good hands.
11. H.O.R.S.E ( alternate games, say 15 minutes of holdem, followed by 15 min of Omaha, Razz, 7 card Stud-High, 7 card stud high-low Eight or Better Low Ball) Because this alternating of poker games, has become a great test of the overall skills of a player and it is highly coveted by pro’s and better players as a game or tournament to win that will prove how well rounded the winner is. This game is normally played as a tournament.
12. H.O.S.E. ( Same as H.O.R.S.E without Razz/Low Ball) This game is normally played as a tournament.
13. 5 card stud 1 card down, 1 up, begin betting, turn 1 at a time up, betting each time. A favorite game in backwater towns because it is faster for a good pro or good player to win money from less experienced players than any other form of poker, due to the percent of exposed cards, less of the unknown, more of a sure fire thing.
14. 6 card stud, 2 cards down, 1 up, begin betting, turn 1 at a time up, betting each time. For many years during the 60’s, 70’s… this was a very popular poker game in Vegas and throughout Nevada.
The poker player - learning to win
Posted on October 29, 2007
Filed Under winning at poker, world championship tournament, casino games, poker game, poker | 1 Comment
I am a Professional Poker Player. I have been playing poker for many years. I have played all over the world. My Grandfather was a great player who had a very high winning percentage his entire career. He taught me how to play winning poker no matter the type poker and no matter who was sitting at the table. He taught me the basics on how to win at life.
As I continued to win in casinos I was charted for win/loss percentage by individuals and management teams, called in and made offers to play in big games, where the interested party would put up the money, would take the losses and split the profit I generated. You must have a very high win-loss percentage and do it consistently over a long period of time in order to receive offers of this nature.
In 1997 I put down 30 dollars, won three tournaments in a row that paid me a free, all expenses paid entry to the World Championship tournament 10,000 buy in, where I finished in the top 50. I have won many different types of tournaments in different places. I have beaten many pros, young and old. In Vegas, I have had young pro’s offer me money to teach them how I was able to consistently win the money they were taking from tourists.
I have had Casino managers tell their relatives that if I sit down at their table to immediately leave. I have had tables of players offer me good sums of money to leave, figuring it would save them money to do so.
Over the long run I win 70 to 80+ % of the time. You cannot win much higher percentages unless you cheat, which I do not, although I can recognize cheating. I play all forms of poker and can play the style necessary to match up with the players at the table. Who knows, I may have been or may be one of the people playing at your table.
Poker is a great game, where over the long run, skill wins out. To become a master poker player, learn all you can from as many pro’s as you can. Some are better teachers than others, some are better players than others. Some can do it but not teach it. None can teach it well without playing well themselves. The best players and teachers are not necessarily the players you have heard of. Some of the best players in the world are not household names. All the best players, in spite of what you may have heard, eventually pay their dues, in the learning process.
Besides being a consistent winning poker player I have taught thousands how win in their personal lives, how to be happy and how to be a winner at everything they do. Learning this lesson is at least as important, if not more so than learning to become a consistent winner at poker. Learning to win in your personal as well as poker life is part of what I teach.
Some basic rules we will be discussing in detail for online or live games, things to learn and improve on to be a consistent winner and/or improving your results :
1. Everyone is their own worst enemy and best friend. Conquering yourself is the toughest thing for most to learn. Most players start off losing and improve to lose less, then win more and more, if they can conquer self and stick to the rules set by self as you learn to improve. Learning patience is a critical part of conquering self. Developing a balanced life, controlling stress, learning how to be happy are all part of conquering self. Learning to control or channel your emotions is part of this.
2. Learning to Read other players and yourself and continuing to improve this ability is number two.
3. Understanding, managing/tracking resources, including position/situation your cards, time, money and results is number three. Knowing when to sit down at a table and when to leave a table if you are not in a tournament is part of number three. Knowing how to play at any table in a tournament is part of this. Setting limits for winning, losing and sticking to them and charting/tracking results is part of managing/tracking resources. Having backup jobs and or other sources of income for losing or spending streaks is part of number three.
4. Learning to win.
I am providing this blog site to discuss poker and the things above. For those that wish to know my intimate secret strategies I have programs available to increase your winning percentages as well. The cost for the basic program is one thousand dollars for 12 sessions, payable in one lump sum or equal payments of 100 dollars per session for the 12 sessions. Private lessons are also available on winning in poker or winning in life or both.
Stay tuned for information on how you can soon purchase this “must have” program.
Welcome to the new blog on everything poker
Posted on October 29, 2007
Filed Under winning at poker, world championship tournament, casino games, poker game, poker | 1 Comment
It’s finally here, the ultimate blog for everything poker. Stay tuned as the mysterious “Poker Man” reveals the techinques of his world champion play as well as sharing his world of playing cards, both personally and professionally.