There are many useful resources to improve your poker play. Full Tilt has a Poker Academy for example. The related challenges tie into your live play. By accepting a challenge you have goals to reach, this pretty much forces you to play based on the goals. There are a lot of challenges, so it would be hard for someone to know you are working on one of them, if anyone else you are playing against has even looked at them.
Sites like pocketfives.com and cardplayer.com have great content. There are many online articles, lessons and forums full of resources. Since online play is so fast paced, having some type of guideline in place can help you avoid getting into bad situations. Changing your strategy, to improve your game, is critical to surviving. It allows you to keep your opponents confused, as if you are like me you face the same people over and over. Eventually your arsenal of offensive and defensive weapons will become more and more instinctive. Money saved is money earned. Money exploited is more money earned.
I advise you to avoid any scheme that claims it is based on a sites card generation. Or anything that has to do with pushing all-in as your main means of winning. The best advice always has to do with position, then your cards.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
The All-In Shuffle
In general, be it early in a tournament or playing cash tables, there are a lot of players online that feel shoving all their chips in the pot pre flop is a good strategy. Can even be a post flop shove, though in some cases that makes more sense. The way I see it, these players can't really play poker so they eliminate their need to think a hand out. Their money is all in, now watch the cards fall and see what happens, like the lottery numbers or bingo balls.
The math here is that eventually, no matter how strong ones hold cards are when employing this method, the odds will go against you. This means the odds are that the all-in player is eventually going to lose most, if not all, of their chip stack (money) using this strategy. They may build some chips up, but the good players will chip away at them. The all-in player is easier to read, they will not limp or even 3-bet when they have a monster hand. They will not call or raise aggressive bets based on position or value to call, only based on their hold card strength.
Post flop play is not their strength, so when they wait to attack post flop they are easy to trap plus also easy to get away from. They think their play is brilliant, not realizing how much money they are actually losing or leaving on the table this way. In their mind, anyone that calls them is a bad player. Every time they win they are mad at whom ever called them. And when they lose, they seethe in-side and can not believe how bad other players are that call them.
This is not to be confused with calling an all-in shove when you know you have the current best hand. Unfortunately the same results apply at this point. Regardless of the quality of the hold cards one chooses to play, when you are all-in then the odds are what you are up against. Unless you have the absolute nuts already, consider protecting a good flop versus finding a way to induce a bet which the other player feels pot commits them afterwords. I just made this error, hit my straight on the turn but the other player had 2 pair and would not muck to my over bet. There was so much in the pot, that when the board paired on the river, I was pot committed so called their all-in river bet with the last of my chips and saw they caught a full house. Had I bet enough to put them all-in on the turn they would have called me anyways. I will just update my notes and make sure I eventually get them to commit when they do not have a way out.
The math here is that eventually, no matter how strong ones hold cards are when employing this method, the odds will go against you. This means the odds are that the all-in player is eventually going to lose most, if not all, of their chip stack (money) using this strategy. They may build some chips up, but the good players will chip away at them. The all-in player is easier to read, they will not limp or even 3-bet when they have a monster hand. They will not call or raise aggressive bets based on position or value to call, only based on their hold card strength.
Post flop play is not their strength, so when they wait to attack post flop they are easy to trap plus also easy to get away from. They think their play is brilliant, not realizing how much money they are actually losing or leaving on the table this way. In their mind, anyone that calls them is a bad player. Every time they win they are mad at whom ever called them. And when they lose, they seethe in-side and can not believe how bad other players are that call them.
This is not to be confused with calling an all-in shove when you know you have the current best hand. Unfortunately the same results apply at this point. Regardless of the quality of the hold cards one chooses to play, when you are all-in then the odds are what you are up against. Unless you have the absolute nuts already, consider protecting a good flop versus finding a way to induce a bet which the other player feels pot commits them afterwords. I just made this error, hit my straight on the turn but the other player had 2 pair and would not muck to my over bet. There was so much in the pot, that when the board paired on the river, I was pot committed so called their all-in river bet with the last of my chips and saw they caught a full house. Had I bet enough to put them all-in on the turn they would have called me anyways. I will just update my notes and make sure I eventually get them to commit when they do not have a way out.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
A Bullet or Bullets - firing and dodging them on the tables
If you like action, then you have to usually generate it yourself. Next thing you know it is like a magnet, action comes to you. If you can not generate it, or stimulate it, then move on to another table as it is there somewhere.
When the action is going strong, never forget your purpose. You are playing poker to win, to win as much as the other players are willing to lose to you. Sometimes you have to loose a little to win a lot. Never lose a lot to win a little. Sometimes you just lay down your monsters after the flop, or in the right context preflop. Let people think you over played a weak hand and that they out played you, that is always to your advantage.
My reference to "bullets" here is to action at the tables. Know when you can buy a pot, know when someone is too stupid to lay down against a bluff. Using a bullet to test the waters is fine, just save most of your ammo for generating big payoffs. Regardless, never leave money behind. If someone is going to call their weak connection, then shoot a rubber band at them if that is all they can call.
Sometimes you have to induce the other player(s) to come out firing first. They have to feel they have the best hand. You want them to get caught up in their false read(s). Let them think they are slow playing you or that they can get you to call their shove. Let them think they can bluff you off your hand.
Make sure though that you are not walking into a better hand yourself, that you are the one with the false sense of security. Odds are that your best laid plans will sometimes backfire on you. If you can walk away a winner most of the time, your bank roll will keep growing. Whatever your average winnings are, try and keep the maximum you can lose at a table under that.
Here is a decent plan. Play at a table to triple up. Lets say you buy in for $10 and leave with $30. If you lose your buy-in on another table, you are still doubled up for the session. Avoid things like tripling up at a table then losing everything to someone else that also tripled up. Move to another table if you can not control your betting when you are ahead but otherwise play well when you are still working on your goal.
When the action is going strong, never forget your purpose. You are playing poker to win, to win as much as the other players are willing to lose to you. Sometimes you have to loose a little to win a lot. Never lose a lot to win a little. Sometimes you just lay down your monsters after the flop, or in the right context preflop. Let people think you over played a weak hand and that they out played you, that is always to your advantage.
My reference to "bullets" here is to action at the tables. Know when you can buy a pot, know when someone is too stupid to lay down against a bluff. Using a bullet to test the waters is fine, just save most of your ammo for generating big payoffs. Regardless, never leave money behind. If someone is going to call their weak connection, then shoot a rubber band at them if that is all they can call.
Sometimes you have to induce the other player(s) to come out firing first. They have to feel they have the best hand. You want them to get caught up in their false read(s). Let them think they are slow playing you or that they can get you to call their shove. Let them think they can bluff you off your hand.
Make sure though that you are not walking into a better hand yourself, that you are the one with the false sense of security. Odds are that your best laid plans will sometimes backfire on you. If you can walk away a winner most of the time, your bank roll will keep growing. Whatever your average winnings are, try and keep the maximum you can lose at a table under that.
Here is a decent plan. Play at a table to triple up. Lets say you buy in for $10 and leave with $30. If you lose your buy-in on another table, you are still doubled up for the session. Avoid things like tripling up at a table then losing everything to someone else that also tripled up. Move to another table if you can not control your betting when you are ahead but otherwise play well when you are still working on your goal.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Full Tilt Poker
The number of players on Carbonpoker.com, part of the mere network, had been weak lately. This can be a good thing, but not when there are only a couple of NLHE cash tables running in the $10 to $50 buy-ins. This forces one to either move down in stakes with the lottery style players or up in stakes outside of ones bankroll parameters. The SNG tables are filling slowly. The regular tournaments are ok, just not that many so if you miss a time slot you are again forced to play below or above your preferences.
Full Tilt is a site I chose to avoid a few years ago. Mostly because of all the bad advice out there that poor players follow. The advice tells you to find someone that is Tight Agressive and call their raises with any connected cards (like 6 7 for example) or small pairs or any 2 suited cards even. Then see it to the river and you will win. You get several callers every time you raise and you will go broke. You can not isolate against a table full of lottery players so big hands get broken a lot.
Things changed over the years so it is much easier to play on Full Tilt now. Not easier for just anyone to win, but easier to play sound poker. Lots of action and tables to choose from. It can actually be hard to get into a SNG as the tables fill fast. Lots of tournaments starting up constantly. And with 45, 90 and even 180-player SNG's constantly staging you can pretty much pick something that works with the time frame you want to play in.
Full Tilt is a site I chose to avoid a few years ago. Mostly because of all the bad advice out there that poor players follow. The advice tells you to find someone that is Tight Agressive and call their raises with any connected cards (like 6 7 for example) or small pairs or any 2 suited cards even. Then see it to the river and you will win. You get several callers every time you raise and you will go broke. You can not isolate against a table full of lottery players so big hands get broken a lot.
Things changed over the years so it is much easier to play on Full Tilt now. Not easier for just anyone to win, but easier to play sound poker. Lots of action and tables to choose from. It can actually be hard to get into a SNG as the tables fill fast. Lots of tournaments starting up constantly. And with 45, 90 and even 180-player SNG's constantly staging you can pretty much pick something that works with the time frame you want to play in.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Low Chip Stack: Priced In
To be successful in tournament play, one has to make certain moves when their chips are running low. Once you are chip dead, even lucking out and doubling up once is not going to do much for you.
Think of the number of times you would have trippled up or better if you had taken a risk preflop with any late position ranked hand, regardless of your position. Better to take your shot while you have enough chips to make a difference, than seeing your monsters cracked because your chip dead.
I just won a SNG using this strategy. I was forced to make a loose push with K 10 off because I was down to 5 BB. I cracked Aces that someone with 3x my chips min raised with, I pushed back and lucked out. Shortly after that a good player pushed all in preflop with Aces. I called because I had the big stack by then and their bullets went down to my KJ. I was able to take full control and won the tournament, after being in 5th postion with 5 left to play.
By the way, being agressive from early position on a table full of passive players is also worth doing when your chips are dwindling. The same objective is in play here, buliding up enough chips to make a run to the real money. In most cases this means a top 3 finish, or at least making the top 10 of any large tournament, where the real money starts to be paid out.
Play to win. Never play just to make it in the money or mentally you may make some bad choices when the big stacks take advantage of the bubble drawing near.
Think of the number of times you would have trippled up or better if you had taken a risk preflop with any late position ranked hand, regardless of your position. Better to take your shot while you have enough chips to make a difference, than seeing your monsters cracked because your chip dead.
I just won a SNG using this strategy. I was forced to make a loose push with K 10 off because I was down to 5 BB. I cracked Aces that someone with 3x my chips min raised with, I pushed back and lucked out. Shortly after that a good player pushed all in preflop with Aces. I called because I had the big stack by then and their bullets went down to my KJ. I was able to take full control and won the tournament, after being in 5th postion with 5 left to play.
By the way, being agressive from early position on a table full of passive players is also worth doing when your chips are dwindling. The same objective is in play here, buliding up enough chips to make a run to the real money. In most cases this means a top 3 finish, or at least making the top 10 of any large tournament, where the real money starts to be paid out.
Play to win. Never play just to make it in the money or mentally you may make some bad choices when the big stacks take advantage of the bubble drawing near.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
You're in Trouble!
As soon as you become comfortable with your game you are in trouble!
Think about this. Being uncomfortable is what keeps you alert, paying proper attention, seeking out information. If you catch yourself being comfortable, then equate that to being predictable.
Try some changes to spice up the atmosphere and improve your game play. You can play a turbo tournament at lower stakes if you never tried one before. Or try a "bounty" tournament, also at lower stakes. This forces you to be more aggressive with your game. I find this pays off back on the regular tables. Same with cash games, maybe try a limit table if you have trouble getting caught up chasing hands. You may find you do better in these tables. This is better strategy than moving up in stakes too early.
Depending on what games you play, make your adjustments accordingly. Never be afraid to take steps backwards if you are on a bad down streak. Better to find safe ground than force yourself to stay somewhere you are struggling.
Think about this. Being uncomfortable is what keeps you alert, paying proper attention, seeking out information. If you catch yourself being comfortable, then equate that to being predictable.
Try some changes to spice up the atmosphere and improve your game play. You can play a turbo tournament at lower stakes if you never tried one before. Or try a "bounty" tournament, also at lower stakes. This forces you to be more aggressive with your game. I find this pays off back on the regular tables. Same with cash games, maybe try a limit table if you have trouble getting caught up chasing hands. You may find you do better in these tables. This is better strategy than moving up in stakes too early.
Depending on what games you play, make your adjustments accordingly. Never be afraid to take steps backwards if you are on a bad down streak. Better to find safe ground than force yourself to stay somewhere you are struggling.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Playing Bonuses
One of the benefits of playing online poker is that most sites offer bonuses of one type or another. These can range from deposit bonuses to various ways to earn (comp) points that can be redeemed. Nothing can replace winning on the tables. These bonuses need to be considered icing on the cake.
A deposit bonus is easy to manipulate, if you play often. I have a 3rd party e-wallet that does not charge me anything. All I have to do is transfer money back to the wallet from the poker site. A few days later I make a deposit using a reload bonus code, then go back to playing. As I earn points for playing I slowly release the deposit bonus.
The site I play on also allows the bonus points to be used towards merchandise and to buy into freerolls. The overall accumulation of points will also earn credit towards other perks. Most sites make it very hard to release points, plus they have limited ways to use them. I have found that the Merge network has one of the best overall point programs out there. I have links on the right to Carbon Poker and Poker Nordica, both are part of the Merge Network.
One of the things, about playing on a site where members are working on releasing bonuses and/or earning points for any reason, is you have to generate rake to earn those points. This means cash table players tend to play as many hands as they can, so they can earn those points. Many of my blogs here discuss strategy related to playing on these types of tables.
I will end where I started - Nothing can replace winning on the tables!! Base all of your strategy, plans, actions, and research with winning as your main goal. Finding nice bonuses that work into your play is always a good thing though.
A deposit bonus is easy to manipulate, if you play often. I have a 3rd party e-wallet that does not charge me anything. All I have to do is transfer money back to the wallet from the poker site. A few days later I make a deposit using a reload bonus code, then go back to playing. As I earn points for playing I slowly release the deposit bonus.
The site I play on also allows the bonus points to be used towards merchandise and to buy into freerolls. The overall accumulation of points will also earn credit towards other perks. Most sites make it very hard to release points, plus they have limited ways to use them. I have found that the Merge network has one of the best overall point programs out there. I have links on the right to Carbon Poker and Poker Nordica, both are part of the Merge Network.
One of the things, about playing on a site where members are working on releasing bonuses and/or earning points for any reason, is you have to generate rake to earn those points. This means cash table players tend to play as many hands as they can, so they can earn those points. Many of my blogs here discuss strategy related to playing on these types of tables.
I will end where I started - Nothing can replace winning on the tables!! Base all of your strategy, plans, actions, and research with winning as your main goal. Finding nice bonuses that work into your play is always a good thing though.
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