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.
Monday, January 26, 2009
CarbonPoker.com Bad Beat Jackpot Breaks $1mil Mark to Become Biggest Ever
I blog a lot about playing on CarbonPoker.com, the most popular portal to the Merge Network. If you decide to join, please use my link to the right. Carbon started their own Bad Beat Jackpot last year and it has reached a record payout. There are many table formats available, from limit to the most popular and heavily played No Limit.
Please read their rules, but I will explain them. On a qualifying table, easy to identify, there must be at least 5 players that are dealt cards preflop. Someone must lose with quad 7's or better. Both the losing and winning hands must use both of their hold cards. The hand must go to the river. Everyone dealt cards wins something, with the losing hand winning the most from the jackpot.
If you are already a member, but just playing freerolls, this is the time to become a real money player by making a deposit and finding a table that works for you under their structure. The limit tables are a great way to participate with smaller bankrolls so everyone can play.
Good luck!
Please read their rules, but I will explain them. On a qualifying table, easy to identify, there must be at least 5 players that are dealt cards preflop. Someone must lose with quad 7's or better. Both the losing and winning hands must use both of their hold cards. The hand must go to the river. Everyone dealt cards wins something, with the losing hand winning the most from the jackpot.
If you are already a member, but just playing freerolls, this is the time to become a real money player by making a deposit and finding a table that works for you under their structure. The limit tables are a great way to participate with smaller bankrolls so everyone can play.
Good luck!
Monday, November 24, 2008
Avoid being complacent.
It is so easy to be complacent. A good way to avoid this is to find different ways to measure and ultimately stick to your rules and goals.
For example, some days you need to just set a goal of placing in the money if you play tournaments, or doubling up if you are playing cash tables. Then adjust that goal to how much you want to win per day or per week. Next forecast what that would mean monthly.
What you will discover is that your gut instincts are going to be working for you. Your general approach to the game will not change. What will change is your focus on why you are playing.
The idea here is to improve your game by finding additional ways to stimulate your mind. The game can become boring at times. In those cases players tend to try and make things happen. Unfortunately this tends to end up as a negative impact on your chipstack as well as your mental condition. Better to find new ways to measure your goals than to discover a new bad habit.
For example, some days you need to just set a goal of placing in the money if you play tournaments, or doubling up if you are playing cash tables. Then adjust that goal to how much you want to win per day or per week. Next forecast what that would mean monthly.
What you will discover is that your gut instincts are going to be working for you. Your general approach to the game will not change. What will change is your focus on why you are playing.
The idea here is to improve your game by finding additional ways to stimulate your mind. The game can become boring at times. In those cases players tend to try and make things happen. Unfortunately this tends to end up as a negative impact on your chipstack as well as your mental condition. Better to find new ways to measure your goals than to discover a new bad habit.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Time Management
Unless you play poker online full time, or do not have any responsibility, you will often be forced to choose tables based on things going on in your life. For example, you can not start a Multi Table Tournament, which will take several or more hours, if you have a commitment to take care of before the tournament would potentially be over.
Maybe you have an hour to play. Do you play some cash games? If so, to make the time worth it, do you find a loose or tight table and what stakes do you play? Maybe you play a few Heads Up Sit-N-Go's?
I do not have the answers. It all depends on your style, and what is currently working for you. With just a hour or so to play I prefer an aggressive table, with no more than one very good TAG or LAG player already building a stack. Possibly one of each will work. I will also keep my buy-in something toward the lower end of my current playing range. Right now my minimum is $25 buy-in on NLHE 10-player tables, up to $100. I learned to not play $100 tables for short sessions so $25 or $50 works for me here. Also $5 to $20 HU SNG's work for me for short sessions.
Two other areas to make sure you are working on is the amount of time you play, as well as the number of tables you play (multi-tabling). Do not push your limits. If you are making bad decisions, time to adjust.
Maybe you have an hour to play. Do you play some cash games? If so, to make the time worth it, do you find a loose or tight table and what stakes do you play? Maybe you play a few Heads Up Sit-N-Go's?
I do not have the answers. It all depends on your style, and what is currently working for you. With just a hour or so to play I prefer an aggressive table, with no more than one very good TAG or LAG player already building a stack. Possibly one of each will work. I will also keep my buy-in something toward the lower end of my current playing range. Right now my minimum is $25 buy-in on NLHE 10-player tables, up to $100. I learned to not play $100 tables for short sessions so $25 or $50 works for me here. Also $5 to $20 HU SNG's work for me for short sessions.
Two other areas to make sure you are working on is the amount of time you play, as well as the number of tables you play (multi-tabling). Do not push your limits. If you are making bad decisions, time to adjust.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Chasing your game.
I recently found my comfort zone in small tournaments and sit-n-go's. At first I kept grinding at my cash game, limiting the number of small tournaments I played. I was not playing into my strength, at the time. I made the adjustment and comiited more time to small tournaments, while still working on my cash game. Over 3 days I won over $300 playing small tournaments and about $50 on the cash tables.
Do not force yourself to play good, instead recognize your current strengths and work with them. Chase your game, do not chase cards.
Do not force yourself to play good, instead recognize your current strengths and work with them. Chase your game, do not chase cards.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Leaving Money on the Table
Prefessional poker players know how to make the most money possible every hand. They bet based on their opponent, not their cards. This is why with strong hands you will see them value bet against the best players to induce calls, while they may overbet the pot against bad players that can't help calling.
Online, I often see bad players assume everyone else is a bad player and bet accordingly. They overbet regardless of the other players in the hand when they flop/turn/river a great hand. They rely on the few callng stations paying them off. They can not read other players, so they mix it up some and maybe show a few bluffs early, otherwise they only overbet when they consider themselves to have the best hand at the time.
Our objective should be to take as much money as we can from our opponents, while also protecting our money as well as possible. Overbetting is a skill. For example lets say you flopped a FH and know a calling station at the table just showed a pattern that thay have a draw they like. If you know they will call anything to chase their draw, then bet away. If you know they will only call small bets, bet small. Do not bet big and hope they call, bet what you have determined they are likely to call and nothing more.
Do not confuse this with protecting your hand. This is also an art. Again, if a calling station will call any bet you make then you mave have to bet small amounts, then based on the river extract a little more or admit they hit their draw. I chase a lot sometimes, which in a case like this makes it worse for someone betting small amounts - because when the flush hits on the river I act like I hit it even when I was not chasing a flush. That is I represented a flush chase versus really having one. So bet based on your hand strength and the read you have on your opponent(s).
Online, I often see bad players assume everyone else is a bad player and bet accordingly. They overbet regardless of the other players in the hand when they flop/turn/river a great hand. They rely on the few callng stations paying them off. They can not read other players, so they mix it up some and maybe show a few bluffs early, otherwise they only overbet when they consider themselves to have the best hand at the time.
Our objective should be to take as much money as we can from our opponents, while also protecting our money as well as possible. Overbetting is a skill. For example lets say you flopped a FH and know a calling station at the table just showed a pattern that thay have a draw they like. If you know they will call anything to chase their draw, then bet away. If you know they will only call small bets, bet small. Do not bet big and hope they call, bet what you have determined they are likely to call and nothing more.
Do not confuse this with protecting your hand. This is also an art. Again, if a calling station will call any bet you make then you mave have to bet small amounts, then based on the river extract a little more or admit they hit their draw. I chase a lot sometimes, which in a case like this makes it worse for someone betting small amounts - because when the flush hits on the river I act like I hit it even when I was not chasing a flush. That is I represented a flush chase versus really having one. So bet based on your hand strength and the read you have on your opponent(s).
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Betting to maximize profit.
You have to be at a table for a while to maximize profit. Notes are helpful, but not always reliable. That fish you tagged a few days before may have just been on tilt, having a bad day, or sharing an account. Today they may be the most agressive tight player you have ever faced. Give the table a few orbits to get some good reads.
Next, play at a table you can afford to be playing it. The worst thing you can do is move up in stakes for example and sit there afraid to bet the usual increments that work for you just because they are 2x the amount you are used to betting.
Play your game. For example, if you checked to induce a bet then be ready to call or rerasie. I'll call when I feel someone is continuation betting because they tend to bet again on the turn. If i think someone is betting a weak connection or a chase then I bet/raise agressively back at them. I also bet out of position to protect my hand very agressively. Do not get cute and then get a scare card.
Also know your opponents well enough as to when to bet or when to check to induce them to bet. It is nice to get paid off when you flop a big hand. If you flop a FH but the board has a flush or straight draw, make someone pay to hit their draw if you feel a fish is on one. Then when they hit they can not lay it down. On the other hand, slow play your big hand against tight players that will not chase into certain boards. For example, I do not chase a straight into a flush draw in most cases.
I also do not see the value of chasing a flush into a paired board. On the other hand, someone with 2 pair or a set may not have enough discipline to muck if you are protecting your flush. if they are going to call any bet you make then you have to decide will they also call any river bet. If they will, value bet till the river hits and you are sure you are still ahead (ie board has not paired for example). Then find out how much they still value their hand. What is amazing is if you have the right read you can sometimes value bet and they push all-in where there times they will just call so you have to push as they will not muck either. And if it is a good player, they will still find it hard to not call a value bet.
KNOW YOUR OPPONENTS if you expect to maximize profit!
Next, play at a table you can afford to be playing it. The worst thing you can do is move up in stakes for example and sit there afraid to bet the usual increments that work for you just because they are 2x the amount you are used to betting.
Play your game. For example, if you checked to induce a bet then be ready to call or rerasie. I'll call when I feel someone is continuation betting because they tend to bet again on the turn. If i think someone is betting a weak connection or a chase then I bet/raise agressively back at them. I also bet out of position to protect my hand very agressively. Do not get cute and then get a scare card.
Also know your opponents well enough as to when to bet or when to check to induce them to bet. It is nice to get paid off when you flop a big hand. If you flop a FH but the board has a flush or straight draw, make someone pay to hit their draw if you feel a fish is on one. Then when they hit they can not lay it down. On the other hand, slow play your big hand against tight players that will not chase into certain boards. For example, I do not chase a straight into a flush draw in most cases.
I also do not see the value of chasing a flush into a paired board. On the other hand, someone with 2 pair or a set may not have enough discipline to muck if you are protecting your flush. if they are going to call any bet you make then you have to decide will they also call any river bet. If they will, value bet till the river hits and you are sure you are still ahead (ie board has not paired for example). Then find out how much they still value their hand. What is amazing is if you have the right read you can sometimes value bet and they push all-in where there times they will just call so you have to push as they will not muck either. And if it is a good player, they will still find it hard to not call a value bet.
KNOW YOUR OPPONENTS if you expect to maximize profit!
Monday, July 7, 2008
FEAR II
Over and over again I see players pushing all-in pre-flop because they know they lack discipline. They may not admit this, but that is the main reason. It can be because they know they will not muck pocket Aces so they might as well get it over with. In this case, better to get your money in up front then to be a calling station later.
Many others will shove all in pre-flop with almost any 2 suited cards I have noticed. For some reason they want to see the river so they pay in advance. This also applies to playing any pair for a group of players, as well as any combination of Ace through 10, plus any Ace/paint suited for the tighter suited lovers.
The next level of playing these hands in fear is waiting to make a move post flop. These players may just min bet, call, min raise, and/or raise call agressively pre-flop. Then they attack the flop consistently regardless of the flop. Many times they hit a great flop and overbet right away, but most of the time they are an underdog to the flop but go ahead and continuation bet or become a calling station. Finally, some wait until the river to make thier move even though they are a big underdog to the table cards.
In previous posts I have discussed passive tight players. They also play in fear, min betting TIER I hands and losing more then they win over time because they refuse to either value bet when they hit big or bet properly to protect their hand(s).
Many others will shove all in pre-flop with almost any 2 suited cards I have noticed. For some reason they want to see the river so they pay in advance. This also applies to playing any pair for a group of players, as well as any combination of Ace through 10, plus any Ace/paint suited for the tighter suited lovers.
The next level of playing these hands in fear is waiting to make a move post flop. These players may just min bet, call, min raise, and/or raise call agressively pre-flop. Then they attack the flop consistently regardless of the flop. Many times they hit a great flop and overbet right away, but most of the time they are an underdog to the flop but go ahead and continuation bet or become a calling station. Finally, some wait until the river to make thier move even though they are a big underdog to the table cards.
In previous posts I have discussed passive tight players. They also play in fear, min betting TIER I hands and losing more then they win over time because they refuse to either value bet when they hit big or bet properly to protect their hand(s).
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Fear
Deep down there is a good fear, related to respect. Fear of fire for example and knowing to not just stick your hand in it is fine. As we move up in stakes we can find our mind focusing on the wrong things. That 5x BB $1.25 raise on a 25 cent table is not any different then a $2.50 raise on the next table up or a $5 raise on a $1 table.
If you can not afford to lose your buy-in, for example when calling an all-in pre-flop bet while holding pocket Aces, then you should not be playing those stakes. You will eventually find yourself under attack when your opponents smell your fear. You will not protect your hands properly and also start second guessing your play. Do not allow the stakes to affect your game.
By the way, lack of fear is also not a great thing. Calling someone's big bet just because they have a small stack can cost more over the long run than is obvious at the time. You still need quality hands in these situations. When someone shoves their $5 on a 25 cent BB table, consider would you make the same call if the player had another $20 to continue with? I know the betting is capped with the short stack, some hands make sense to call here, stick to those hands based on your knowledge of the player.
Same thing goes for moving down in stakes. It can help you work on being more agressive, as long as you play with respect. Showing no fear will lead to a break down of discipline.
Find a comfort zone where you are playing winning poker and have goals to work towards.
If you can not afford to lose your buy-in, for example when calling an all-in pre-flop bet while holding pocket Aces, then you should not be playing those stakes. You will eventually find yourself under attack when your opponents smell your fear. You will not protect your hands properly and also start second guessing your play. Do not allow the stakes to affect your game.
By the way, lack of fear is also not a great thing. Calling someone's big bet just because they have a small stack can cost more over the long run than is obvious at the time. You still need quality hands in these situations. When someone shoves their $5 on a 25 cent BB table, consider would you make the same call if the player had another $20 to continue with? I know the betting is capped with the short stack, some hands make sense to call here, stick to those hands based on your knowledge of the player.
Same thing goes for moving down in stakes. It can help you work on being more agressive, as long as you play with respect. Showing no fear will lead to a break down of discipline.
Find a comfort zone where you are playing winning poker and have goals to work towards.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Playing Styles, they can all help you.
My favorite site, carbonpoker.com, has been running a series of bounty tournaments with related promotions. The basic concept is 1/2 the buy-in is a bounty, the other 1/2 goes to the prize pool. This covers both SNG's and occasional MTT's.
For example: A $20 10-player SNG would allocate $10 towards ones individual bounty and the other $10 to the prize pool. Bounites are paid as someone is taken out, to the player responsible for taking them out. If you win, you get your bounty back.
These games require a different approach then most players apply to SNG or MTT play. The final prize pool is cut in 1/2, it makes no sense to play these games just for the final prize(s). Loose Agressive (LAG) play dominates here. A good TAG player can capitalize if they catch premium hold cards early and they hold up. Players here can attack with any Ace, sometimes any pair or any two paint cards. With bounties the prize, no short stack is allowed to die quietly. Better the short stacks win and stay in to be available later, then too allow someone else to take thier their bounty by checking to the river.
These games are helping, dare I say forcing, me to become a good LAG player. My proof is on sharkscope. I went from being down almost $200 about a month ago to being down just about $70. And sharkscope is not even accounting for the bounties the tournaments pay, just the final prizes. I recently placed well in some traditional games, a large freeroll as well as a 50 plus player MTT. I also won a weekly small private game I rarely made it past the bubble on before.
So go out and experiment, within reason, to find what works for you. The experience helps no matter what.
For example: A $20 10-player SNG would allocate $10 towards ones individual bounty and the other $10 to the prize pool. Bounites are paid as someone is taken out, to the player responsible for taking them out. If you win, you get your bounty back.
These games require a different approach then most players apply to SNG or MTT play. The final prize pool is cut in 1/2, it makes no sense to play these games just for the final prize(s). Loose Agressive (LAG) play dominates here. A good TAG player can capitalize if they catch premium hold cards early and they hold up. Players here can attack with any Ace, sometimes any pair or any two paint cards. With bounties the prize, no short stack is allowed to die quietly. Better the short stacks win and stay in to be available later, then too allow someone else to take thier their bounty by checking to the river.
These games are helping, dare I say forcing, me to become a good LAG player. My proof is on sharkscope. I went from being down almost $200 about a month ago to being down just about $70. And sharkscope is not even accounting for the bounties the tournaments pay, just the final prizes. I recently placed well in some traditional games, a large freeroll as well as a 50 plus player MTT. I also won a weekly small private game I rarely made it past the bubble on before.
So go out and experiment, within reason, to find what works for you. The experience helps no matter what.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Swimming with the fishies
Winning a big pot is very exciting. Chasing to win a big pot is even more exciting. Having someone chase to take a big pot from you is also exciting. It is where you are mentally after a hand though that is very important. Win or lose, do not get chip happy. It makes no sense on a cash table to be patient for 2 hours, triple your stack, to just donk off all of your winnings (if not your entire stack) playing superman.
Same if you take a bad beat. It took someone a while to crack a big hand (unfortunatly it was your hand) and it will take you a while to get your money back. Do not become a big fish trying to win back your money the way someone took it from you. Control is always important. As I have said many times, if you lost so much that you lose control then you are playing over your head. If you buy-in for $100 and on a $1 NL BB table and lose your $100, then you are done. But if you lost $10 on a 10 cent table, you can buy back in and keep playing in control.
BTW, check my new link on the right hand side for the upcoming Monday Night Poker Leage - Summer Classic. Low buy MTT which will have nice overlay prizes.
Same if you take a bad beat. It took someone a while to crack a big hand (unfortunatly it was your hand) and it will take you a while to get your money back. Do not become a big fish trying to win back your money the way someone took it from you. Control is always important. As I have said many times, if you lost so much that you lose control then you are playing over your head. If you buy-in for $100 and on a $1 NL BB table and lose your $100, then you are done. But if you lost $10 on a 10 cent table, you can buy back in and keep playing in control.
BTW, check my new link on the right hand side for the upcoming Monday Night Poker Leage - Summer Classic. Low buy MTT which will have nice overlay prizes.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Personalizing Bank Roll Management
I have always tried to find a way to personalize bank roll management. Since I play lower stakes tables, online, I finally found a good way to work this out. This may not work for you, if it doesn't then keep wating for whatever makes sense to you to happen.
I will focuse on the hardest hand to play, which I think is pocket Aces. If you have pocket Aces, are in the big blind, and every player at the table shoves all-in, would you muck? Ok, lets make this a little easier. You have pocket Aces and one other player has gone all in pre-flop, you are the only player left to act, you are going to call. At this point, about 15% of the time you are heads up you will loose the hand. And since many times at lower stakes you will end up with more then one other player in the hand, your odds of losing your money keep going up.
So, ask yourself, are you prepared to lose all the money you have on the table and still have enough left in your bank roll to keep playing your game confidently? If not, you are playing over your head, that is outside your bank roll.
Thus, my version of bank roll management is simple. If I were to lose my entire buy-in, plus potentially any winnings I had built up, will that cause me to freak out? Will it put me on tilt? Will it force me to have to move down in stakes? Will it basicly be more of a negative experience then is acceptable? If so, then I am not using good bank roll management.
I will focuse on the hardest hand to play, which I think is pocket Aces. If you have pocket Aces, are in the big blind, and every player at the table shoves all-in, would you muck? Ok, lets make this a little easier. You have pocket Aces and one other player has gone all in pre-flop, you are the only player left to act, you are going to call. At this point, about 15% of the time you are heads up you will loose the hand. And since many times at lower stakes you will end up with more then one other player in the hand, your odds of losing your money keep going up.
So, ask yourself, are you prepared to lose all the money you have on the table and still have enough left in your bank roll to keep playing your game confidently? If not, you are playing over your head, that is outside your bank roll.
Thus, my version of bank roll management is simple. If I were to lose my entire buy-in, plus potentially any winnings I had built up, will that cause me to freak out? Will it put me on tilt? Will it force me to have to move down in stakes? Will it basicly be more of a negative experience then is acceptable? If so, then I am not using good bank roll management.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Refresher Course.
Getting back to basics can be a good thing. As we move up in stakes, sometimes we need to take a step back to maintain discipline. Pride is not a good thing when playing poker. You do not have to prove yourself to anyone. What you do have to do is maintain control.
One way to refocus is to drop back down a level or two. On cash tables, I also recommend restricting your buy-in as well. Force yourself to stick to your game plan. This should help you admit and/or discover what was going wrong with your game.
Sometimes the only problem is the fear of losing. Stepping up from a $5 buy-in to $10 is not a big step. But the next level of $20 or $25 is going to have a mental impact. When you get to a $100 game, well you better be prepared. It is very easy to play $5 games with a $200 or less BR and show no fear. You will be playing $50 and $100 games with a $500 BR, or maybe just risking your $200 or less you have. Now the pressure is on, even if you won't admit it. One big hand and you lose 25%, 50%, or most of your BR.
Lets put this into perspective. At the lower levels, you took risks and enough paid off. For a lot of players, the risks do not pay off enough and they are forced to play better poker. But for you, they are paying off. So up you go in stakes, you think you are playing good poker. Then you hit a level where those risks are not paying off. You realize that the style you are playing is against the odds many times, so now you have to make some changes. Step down a level or two and learn to play better.
As weird as it seems, you will actually win more at the lower levels as you improve your game. I feel that buying in short at this point forces you to make better decisions. If you can learn to play your large pile of chips, as if you are short stacked, you will force yourself to play better poker. Yuor chip stack will not stop someone from calling you with what they think (or know) is a better hand. When your pocket Kings miss the flop, betting into a Ace on the board would be not make sense if you are a short stack, so why would it make sense if you have a large stack? If you will not chase when short stacked, learn to stop doing it when you have a big stack.
One more train of thought here. Since we play poker to win, never assume higher stakes mean larger winnings. You can move up to a $100 table and after several hours walk away with $125. But back on the $25 table you may have been walking away with $75 after a few hours. I'd rather make $50 on the lower table then $25 on the higher one. And if you run into a cooler, the lower stakes still have an advantage when it comes to protecting your BR. Eventually you want to tripple up on the $100 table, if you can do that on a $25 table. Move up in stakes to make more money. if that is not working, find where you make the most money and work on your game there.
One way to refocus is to drop back down a level or two. On cash tables, I also recommend restricting your buy-in as well. Force yourself to stick to your game plan. This should help you admit and/or discover what was going wrong with your game.
Sometimes the only problem is the fear of losing. Stepping up from a $5 buy-in to $10 is not a big step. But the next level of $20 or $25 is going to have a mental impact. When you get to a $100 game, well you better be prepared. It is very easy to play $5 games with a $200 or less BR and show no fear. You will be playing $50 and $100 games with a $500 BR, or maybe just risking your $200 or less you have. Now the pressure is on, even if you won't admit it. One big hand and you lose 25%, 50%, or most of your BR.
Lets put this into perspective. At the lower levels, you took risks and enough paid off. For a lot of players, the risks do not pay off enough and they are forced to play better poker. But for you, they are paying off. So up you go in stakes, you think you are playing good poker. Then you hit a level where those risks are not paying off. You realize that the style you are playing is against the odds many times, so now you have to make some changes. Step down a level or two and learn to play better.
As weird as it seems, you will actually win more at the lower levels as you improve your game. I feel that buying in short at this point forces you to make better decisions. If you can learn to play your large pile of chips, as if you are short stacked, you will force yourself to play better poker. Yuor chip stack will not stop someone from calling you with what they think (or know) is a better hand. When your pocket Kings miss the flop, betting into a Ace on the board would be not make sense if you are a short stack, so why would it make sense if you have a large stack? If you will not chase when short stacked, learn to stop doing it when you have a big stack.
One more train of thought here. Since we play poker to win, never assume higher stakes mean larger winnings. You can move up to a $100 table and after several hours walk away with $125. But back on the $25 table you may have been walking away with $75 after a few hours. I'd rather make $50 on the lower table then $25 on the higher one. And if you run into a cooler, the lower stakes still have an advantage when it comes to protecting your BR. Eventually you want to tripple up on the $100 table, if you can do that on a $25 table. Move up in stakes to make more money. if that is not working, find where you make the most money and work on your game there.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Self Accountability (Your to Blaim)
DONKEY! CALLING STATION! FISH!
Online poker is a very hard game to play. In NL live poker you see about 20 hands an hour. To sit at a $1/$2 live table your max buy-in is from $200 - $300. Online, you can see 60 to 100 hands a hour. Depending on the stakes you play, I'll assume you play $1 BB or less if you are reading this, then yu are buying in from $5 to $100 max. A live Tournament at a casino will cost you somewhere close to $100 to play. Online you can play for about $2, some sites for pennies, all day long.
On top of this, the majority bad of online players do not risk losing a lot at any one time, thus their tendancy to take huge risks. This constant barrage of low quality players are quite a challenge to protect your money from. There are players that win playing online. It is not the software that makes someone a losing player, it is not the bad players either. The bad players may take down some big pots playing bad cards, but they give it all away, plus some, playing those same bad cards against the winning players.
Argue as much as you want about this. The winning players will suffer their bad beats against the bad players, but the winning players learn to also control their loses. They adjust constantly to those bad players. Losing players have trouble adjusting. Winning players know when to muck over pairs, 2 pairs, and wait to risk all their money. Losing players keep putting money in the pot, even though thy played good cards.
The more you refuse to admit you may not have the best hand, the more you will lose. The more you put all your money in the pot, agianst small pots specially, the more you will lose big pots. Drawing hands sometimes are atually the odds on favorites to win, learn that. Stop losing $10 when you called a $9 bet into a $1 pot, jjst because you have TPTK at the time. Or if you make the call, have the better outs.
IMHO, if you can win consistently online then you should do even better live. Unless you have some uncontrollable twitches or noises you make. If you can not win online, do not expect to do any better live. A losing player online will lose just as much live, proportional to the amount of hands they play. Since playing live they will probably have more money on the line at any on time, they will just end up losing more money then they would have online anyways, and in less time.
Online poker is a very hard game to play. In NL live poker you see about 20 hands an hour. To sit at a $1/$2 live table your max buy-in is from $200 - $300. Online, you can see 60 to 100 hands a hour. Depending on the stakes you play, I'll assume you play $1 BB or less if you are reading this, then yu are buying in from $5 to $100 max. A live Tournament at a casino will cost you somewhere close to $100 to play. Online you can play for about $2, some sites for pennies, all day long.
On top of this, the majority bad of online players do not risk losing a lot at any one time, thus their tendancy to take huge risks. This constant barrage of low quality players are quite a challenge to protect your money from. There are players that win playing online. It is not the software that makes someone a losing player, it is not the bad players either. The bad players may take down some big pots playing bad cards, but they give it all away, plus some, playing those same bad cards against the winning players.
Argue as much as you want about this. The winning players will suffer their bad beats against the bad players, but the winning players learn to also control their loses. They adjust constantly to those bad players. Losing players have trouble adjusting. Winning players know when to muck over pairs, 2 pairs, and wait to risk all their money. Losing players keep putting money in the pot, even though thy played good cards.
The more you refuse to admit you may not have the best hand, the more you will lose. The more you put all your money in the pot, agianst small pots specially, the more you will lose big pots. Drawing hands sometimes are atually the odds on favorites to win, learn that. Stop losing $10 when you called a $9 bet into a $1 pot, jjst because you have TPTK at the time. Or if you make the call, have the better outs.
IMHO, if you can win consistently online then you should do even better live. Unless you have some uncontrollable twitches or noises you make. If you can not win online, do not expect to do any better live. A losing player online will lose just as much live, proportional to the amount of hands they play. Since playing live they will probably have more money on the line at any on time, they will just end up losing more money then they would have online anyways, and in less time.
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