Ahhhh the Big Slick.  We all like getting it, and it looks so good…especially when suited.  Starting a hand with AK is a lot like sitting at the very start of a tournament with a large, shiny, untouched chip stack…a veritable monument which brims with the potential for untold glory and riches.  However, much like a full tournament, this gem of a hand holds all the potential for triumph and tragedy, being just as likely to see us across the line and dragging in a huge pot as it is to see us take up permanent residence in felt city.  It all really depends on how we decide to play it…like chumps…or champions.

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Following on from an earlier video, this is another example of Daniel Negreanu’s ability to analyse a hand, read his opponents, and make plays accordingly. His ability to reconstruct a hand is something of an artform. If you haven’t already, check out his blog. You’ll see him discussing hands he played days ago, and will be able to tell you exactly the amount of the pot, the cards, how the play went, and why it was interesting. It’s a brilliant insight into the mind of such a kick ass player. This is another example of Negreanu ‘doing his thing’ at the WSOP.

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Daniel Negreanu is something of a freak when it comes to reading poker.  In fact, some of the time we’d be forgiven for thinking that we the public trust Daniel’s reads better than Daniel does, given his tendency to tell opponents the exact cards they have, confirm that they have him beat, and then call anyway.  This video isn’t an example of that, but it is just one of many examples of Negreanu’s uncanny ability to know exactly where he is in a hand. 

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In acknowledging the importance of selecting appropriate poker starting hands depending upon our position, there is still a tendency among less advanced players to treat middle pairs in early position exactly the same way we’re trained to treat low pairs.  However, limping with 99 or 10 10 and looking to catch a set on the flop may not be the most profitable way to make the most of the opportunity a middle pair creates, and can be apt to get us into trouble spots if the hand goes south of cheese.  So what’s one alternative to passively entering a pot with middle pair in early position?

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In the 2005 Monte Carlo Millions a hand developed during final table heads up play between Phil Ivey and Paul Jackson.  We all know Ivey’s reputation at the table but Jackson’s no slouch, and you can’t help but marvel as the pair play a game of what can only be described as poker ‘chicken’.  If you haven’t seen it before, I won’t tell you who blinks.

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Written By…some random donkey.

I woke up this morning and decided to play some poker.  I really like poker.  Brad, my neighbour, he is really good at poker and says he has been crushing .15/.30 playing online poker at PokerRoom, so I decided to make a deposit to see if I could do ok.  I’m not as good as Brad, but I’ve taken a few trips around the felt, so I was really looking forward to it.

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A poker continuation bet is basically what it sounds like, a subsequent bet made by a player who bet or raised in the previous round of betting.  Continuation betting, or c-bet as it is also known, is used to represent and reinforce a strong pre-flop hand.  There is some argument that continuation betting has seen its hey-day.  Gone are the times when following up a pre-flop bet with a second barrell were enough to convince our opponents that our hole cards were actually worth something.  But can continuation betting still form an integral part of a poker players betting strategy?

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Yep, most of us who know our way around youtube’s treasure trove of poker clippings have watched this puppy at least a couple of times, but it’s an unlikely hand that unfolded in a ‘penny for porn’ storyline fashion.   It’s not just the fact that three players wake up with the top three pairs.  Nope, whilst that’s interesting, it’s not of itself the most intriguing part of this tale. 

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When learning Texas Holdem how to play poker position proves to be one of the most critical elements of game development.  Many new players place primary emphasis on their hole cards when deciding whether to become involved in a pot.  However, most of us soon come to appreciate that if there is one factor which deserves consideration before entering a hand, it’s our poker position at the table relative to the button. 

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This Real Poker Training review focuses on a relatively new online poker training site which provides poker lessons through the use of video and audio feeds of pro players literally ‘doing their thing’.  Relying heavily on the allure and credentials of pro players David Williams and Todd Arnold, the site boasts a revolutionary way to improve our game at break-neck speeds.  Real Poker Training sounds good so far right?   Is it the best poker training site?  Let’s take a look in more detail.

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Having already had a look at the basic texas holdem poker rules, let’s delve into the more specific rules of poker which always seem the be the subject of heated dispute around and over the felt.  To illustrate the benefit of knowing these rules, I’d like to share with you a little story…

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Developing the correct Sit N Go strategy is a crucial part of learning how to win Sit N Go tournaments.  Adapting to an ever diminishing number of players across a tournament or our own table is critical if we want to reach the cash, and employing the wrong Sit N Go strategy at the wrong time can be terminal to our chances. At the end of this article I’ll refer you to some of the best online strategy resources and publications specifically designed to ensure you’re crushing your Sit N Go Tables. For now, let’s get started on the essentials to a winning strategy.

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Playing positional poker means the range of hands best played from the 7th to cut-off seat (at a 9 handed table) is much broader than the selection of hands we might decide to play in early or middle position.  Let’s say we’re sitting at an 8 handed table, lounging in the cut-off, and look down at our hole cards of Kc9c.  Whereas this might be a foldable hand in early position, and a calling hand in middle position, with all the benefits construed upon us being in late position this can often be an easy call, or even a betting opportunity in an unraised pot.

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Texas Holdem Rules Poker now has a new public forum, a great place for you to share your thoughts, strategies, bad beats or questions with fellow poker enthusiasts.  We’ll be running regular competitions through the forum so keep an eye out once member levels get going.  Be the first to post in your chosen area of expertise!

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So we’re sitting at a table during the late stages of a multi-table tournament, are getting slammed by blinds the size of Seattle, and look down at our hole cards to see two beautiful queens.  We happily raise the blinds, and are distraught as the cut-off re-raises all in for his (and if we call…our) entire stack.  When considering whether our opponent has us beat, it’s also worthwhile knowing just how badly we’re in shape if we call in this spot and the villain tables an overpair.  To do this, it helps enormously to be aware of the poker hand percentages involved in hand situations which regularly arise in poker.  For example, just what are the odds of winning when facing off with queens vs aces?  Let’s take a look at some of the common examples.

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Well, I promised I’d post some video’s of Antonius getting his own back, so rather than wait I’ve dug out a couple of videos of his run at a cash game during the 2007 Aussie Millions, held at Crown Casino.  During the tournament they televise these cash games from the main t.v. table, and Antonius had a sweet run during one of them.  Check it out.

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This is an interesting hand which developed between Ivey and Antonius during Season 2 of the Million Dollar Cash Game.  It’s the second video I’ve posted of our man Antonius getting flamed at the felt, but there’s plenty of solid footage of him pounding on the poker community at large so I’ll be sure to even the tally soon.  There’s some great footage of him playing at the 2007 Aussie Millions in a side cash game.  Here you can watch him drop an 807k cash pot to Ivey. 

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In keeping with the theme in holdem that ’duplicity is king’ it’s important to be able to play a wide range of hands to avoid our opponents being able to accurately guess our hole cards based solely on our play.  Whether to play a holdem starting hand like AA, or KK barely need consideration.   However limiting ourselves to the ‘top 10% holdem hands’ can often restrict our chances of getting paid off for our big hands.  To mix things up a bit, we need to open up our range of hands whilst still being able to make correct decisions once the hand is under way.  The question of what makes the best poker starting hands can seem obvious when looking at extremes, such as pocket aces, or 72off.  However, when the correct play is less clear, whether to play our starting hand requires consideration of one other important factor…our poker table position. 

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Now that we understand what is meant by pot odds, we can now start to factor in the concept of poker implied odds to our decision making. It adds another important and dynamic layer into our poker playing strategy. Implied odds can literally make the difference between a call and a fold. 

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All serious poker players are interested in learning the skill required to make poker and winning and profitable passtime, or career.  However, many new players aren’t sure where to start building their skill set.  The recent boom in the popularity of poker has had one dramatic but undeniable side effect.  Whereas previously, successful poker players had been at some effort to conceal their playing styles and the strategies they use to win, there is now a far greater communal knowledge of poker available to new players.  The consequence has been an unprecedented rise in the ability of the ‘average poker player’.  But how do we, as the average player, take the next step to becoming a winning player?  Poker training sites are providing the answer.

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Probability and odds are huge factors in Texas hold ‘em. They are an integral part of determining how we will act at any given stage in any particular hand. The chances of finishing a flush or a straight, the probability of hitting an over card, the percentage of times we’re going to flop a set to match our pocket pair…these are all typical situations we’re bound to face at the felt.   How we react to them demands an understanding of how to calculate poker odds.

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People consistently get stuck on the concept of understanding pot odds. Irrespective of whether we ‘play the player or the cards’ there invariably come times in poker where we get put to a tough decision, and will be forced to consider pot odds when making our call…or fold, as the case may be. So how can we go about calculating pot odds and using those odds to make the right decision… without getting too caught up in poker mathematics?

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So we all understand that a bet in holdem is supposed to be indicative of strength, that your hand is a good one, and that your oponent is in trouble.  But since any poker player worth his or her salt understands that manipulating your bets to disguise your hand is an integral part of poker, just how far does this maxim on holdem betting strategy take us?

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It appears the problems are continuing for a site already besieged by claims of faulty software, superuser accounts and cheating. Absolute poker once again finds itself under public scrutiny following recent reports that other ‘superuser’ accounts have been in action on it and it’s sister site, UltimateBet.

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