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.
Monday, April 6, 2009
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!
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