Texas Holdem Poker

In my last blog, I touched on the importance of manipulating your table in a manner that makes the poker game profitable for you. In today’s game the importance of table image can not be over looked. Long gone are the day’s of six years ago, when you could sit at a table as still as a rock and still expect to get paid off when you open for the first time with AA. The modern, average poker players have grown and flourished so much through the resources available in books, on TV, and on the web. Simply playing super-tight poker is not enough to be a big winner.

Don’t get me wrong, you can definitely still grind out a profit, especially in the micro-stakes games by playing tight, smart poker. However, at the higher levels the average player has realized if you don’t raise or call any bets for 30 minutes, then fire out a raise that you have the goods. Granted this can set you up for some good steal opportunities, but let’s look at the difference between two images and you can choose for yourself which one is more effective.

Player X sits down at the $1/$2 No Limit Hold’em tables on Virgin Poker. He buys in for $400 and waits to get in the game till the big blind comes around. During the few rounds he is sitting out he notices a few things about his competitors: The player to his immediate left has over $1,000 in chips and has raised consecutive hands in position. Since the maximum buy-in is $400, Player X believes this opponent to be a winning, aggressive player. Player X also noticed that two other players have over $600 in chips as well, so they are winning also. The dealer button orbits around the table 3 times before Player X plays a hand, other than from the blinds. After 30 hands and about 20 minutes, Player X raises from Early Position to 4xBB. The table folds around to the Big Blind, who defends. The flop hits the felt and the Big Blind checks, Player X fires out a continuation bet and takes down the pot. Another 30 hands and 15 minutes later, Player X opens with a bet again. This time everyone folds to the bet. Now let’s look at Player Y in a similar scenario.

Imagine Player Y sits down at the exact same $1/$2 No Limit Hold’em tables on Ultimate Bet and buys in for $400 as well. This player makes the same observations of his opponents that Player X made. Instead of waiting for the Big Blind, Player Y immediately posts from the cutoff position. The action comes to him with one limper and he fires out a bet, making it 4xBB to play. The Big Blind and the limper both call, the flop hits the felt and two checks later the action is on Player Y. Y fires out a continuation bet and gets two folds, he shows a bluff to take down the pot. Two hands later, Player Y opens again for 4xBB. The big stack to his left and the Big Blind both call. The Big Blind checks the flop and Y fires out another continuation bet and the big stack to the left re-raises. Player Y shows another bluff with rags and mucks his cards. Now, 10 minutes later when Player Y picks up the same premium hand that Player X opened with, you can bet he’s going to get some action?

Which player do you think is going to make more in this session if they were to receive the same exact cards? Would Player X more conservative style be more efficient? What about Player Y decision to mix up his play a bit?

Quickly let’s look at the numbers; granted this is a fabricated set-up, but this near exact scenario happens everyday online. Player X lost $3 per orbit, assuming he didn’t complete the small blind. After 3 orbits, Player X was down $9 before winning $9 total from the first hand he played. Now even overall, Player X loses $9 again from the orbits before winning $3 from his next raise. After 60 hands and 2 premium hands, Player X is down -$6.

Using the same numbers, let’s look at Player Y. On his first hand played he picks up $17 in profit. The second hand he plays he loses $8. So after these two hands and the blinds for the 3 orbits till our premium hand we are exactly even, before we open with the premium hand. Therefore, even if Player Y only gets the same action as Player X, which is most likely not going to be the case, Player Y is still up $9 from where Player X was in the same spot. Through the use of some advertising, Player Y is able to pick up a free pot, as well as much more importantly mold his image into someone who is willing to raise and continuation bet with any two cards. This image will help Player Y to get paid off big when he finally receives the nuts.

My suggestion is to find a balance between these two players. However, if you feel much more comfortable playing either an aggressive, loose style or an aggressive, tight style than spend the time doing a little advertising to get your opponents thinking that your image is the reverse. After convincing them you are a maniac and they call you down with middle pair, continue to enhance your image with a comment such as, “I got so lucky there to catch those cards. My luck is hot today.” Whatever you do, DO NOT LET YOUR OPPONENTS REALIZE YOU ARE OUTSMARTING THEM!

By implementing this image into your game you are on your way to becoming a more successful player. Until next time, keep trying to get your money in with the best of it!

Is there a great divide amongst poker players today? Are we subconsciously or consciously dividing our opponents into two distinct categories? This is the debate that took place last night through a war of words and chips.

On a whim I decided to head to the Seminole Indian Casino last night. As I signed up for the .50/1.00 No Limit Hold’em, I mentally prepared myself and switched on the ‘Maniac’ act. I was basically going to spend the first ten minutes at the table convincing everyone that I was an absolute lunatic with no regard for winning or money.

Within minutes I was seated with $100 in front of me and I made sure everyone knew I was there. I went with a blend of a rich, drunk, gambler who just came to have fun. After I broke the ice with back to back jokes aimed at my expense, I picked up my first hand in the big blind, 8h 4d. With two limpers and the small blind completing, I made it 4 times more the big blind. Everyone folded and I quickly flipped over the 8-4 offsuit with a huge laugh.

Sure enough the next hand I picked up two rags again, Js 3d. I made it 4 times the big blind and got only one caller, I guess they weren’t convinced of my act yet. The board fell Kh 9d 2s. I bet out six dollars into the pot of about nine. My opponent quickly mucked and almost before his cards hit the muck, I slapped over the J-3 offsuit exclaiming “I love GAMBLING!”

As I looked around the table I could see a mix of disbelief, anger, and one particular player who looked like he really wanted to hit me. As the cards hit the felt for the next hand, I noticed that the player who I had just bluffed, who ironically was the player who looked like he wanted to hit me, sat up in his seat and was ready for his turn to act. Thinking he must have a big pair, I peeked down to find the 7h 8s. After taking a second to think, I figured this was a great spot to put in my last maniac play before switching gears. I fired out a bet of four times the big blind, knowing if I hit the flop hard I could probably double through him and if I missed, I could still show my maniac play for advertisement.

When the action came to our opponent, he immediately raised it the minimum to 8 dollars. The rest of the table folded to me; I am calling with any hand I have here, as it’s only costing me 4 to win 13.50, that means the pots laying me about 3.37 to 1. I am only about a 2.7 to 1 underdog to AK offsuit and even if he has AA or KK I am only about a 5 to 1 underdog. Figuring the implied odds of the times I hit my hand, I can easily call here. One smooth call later and luck strikes the felt in the form of a board reading, 3d 7s 8c.

I paused and finally decide to bet out like I had the previous hand. I fired out a bet of 12 into the pot of about 17.50. Leaving me with about $80 behind, give or take a bit. My opponent took the bait and ran with it, instantly re-raising to $30. There’s now about $60 in the pot, my opponent has about $60 left and I have about $80, facing a call of $18. I decided my opponent wouldn’t be able to get away from his big hand and exclaimed, “All-In BABY!” He insta-called and I flipped over my cards after he showed his Ad Ac. The turn and river brought two blanks and I doubled my stack. My opponent was visibly furious and yelled, “I HATE gamblers, don’t they know this is a skill game.” I thought about putting him in his place with the statistics he laid me by raising the minimum, including the implied odds, but for the sake of my session I held off.

This session and encounter has had me thinking all night about the prospect of two separate players, gamblers and skill players. Is there a divide? Are gamblers players that chase draws against all the odds and call gutshot straight draws over and over? Do skill players always make the ‘smart’ decision? Are they the type of player that can lay down the big pair when the gambler sucks out on them?

I spent my early years as a poker player believing I was a skill player. I made the calculated decision at every opportunity, I was able to make big lay-downs and stay alive till I was in a better spot. I was killing micro-stakes games and steadily moving up the ladder of poker. Then I ran into players who were able to play all sorts of hands ranging from Q-3suited to AA in the same manner. They always seemed to get paid off when they had the nuts and were able to pick spots when to make moves with the 7-8 offsuit. Weren’t these in fact the players that are more skillful then myself?

This is an interesting debate that takes place on the tables through action at all levels, from the ‘bullies’ at the .5/.10 No Limit holdem Poker tables, to the Sammy Farha’s and the Dan Harrington’s of the elite levels. In my eyes the ultimate player and the player we should all strive to become is a mix of the two players. We have to be able to make other players believe that we are loose, wild players, therefore paying us off when we switch gears and tighten up.

I am not suggesting you should start re-raising and raising Under The Gun with any rags, I am simply giving you a glimpse into the game plan of some of the elite players. If you can achieve some “cheap” advertising, too go along with a wild table image, you will be paid off much more handsomely. I was able to walk away from the .50/1.00 table up over $300 because of advertising my image, luck, and intelligent play. The three key ingredients to combining the gambler and skill player. I hope you can gradually add these moves into your game.

Men need to be careful when playing women. Before some of you give me the “Yeah, we know this” look, let me convey a story. I was playing in a Pot Limit holdem tournament in 2007 in Las Vegas. There was a very well endowed middle aged woman that a lot of men liked to flirt with. This woman was not drop dead gorgeous or anything like that, but she had a certain feisty way about her that men were drawn to.

This woman was sitting to my right for a good portion of the second half of the tournament. A lot of her raises went unchallenged preflop. If they were challenged past the flop, she almost always won the pot on the river. There were a couple of times that she literally flirted her way out of a guy betting into her. One time a guy was reaching for Poker chips, she looked at the guy, reached down and squeezed her breast together and gave the guy a sly look. The guy laughed so hard that he decided to check. Of course, the river card completed her draw and she won the hand.

Well later on, this woman and I were in a hand together. I happened to flop a straight, but there was a potential flush draw on the board. She bet out and I went to raise. She touched my arm and went, “You would raise little old me would you?” My reply, “Pot.” She just gave me a look as to say, “I can’t believe you did this?” She called the bet. The turn fell a blank and the bet was checked to me. I potted again and the woman folded.

Shortly afterwards we all went on break. The woman and I got back early and she started talking to me and was trying to flirt with me. Now, this woman was a good 10 to 12 years older than me at the time so it really wasn’t phasing me any. I happened to mention that I liked the breast squeeze move that she did against another opponent. She looks at me and said, “It didn’t work on your huh?” By this point most of the players at our table were taking their seats. My reply to her was, “Nope. You stopped being a woman the moment you sat down at the table.”

The other guys at the table looked at me like I was a fool. The woman knew exactly what I meant however. She looked at me and said, “I understand.” I had been paying close attention and knew that she was a local and played regularly at a different casino. A lot of the players here did not know her. I didn’t know her either but I know her type. She is the type who can actually play poker, but also likes playing the men at the table.

Unfortunately for the men, she has worked her routine so well that they fall for it. The men at the table commented for a few minutes that “We know she is a woman” etc. That was fine by me. The guys didn’t notice the boyfriend that was sitting on the rail constantly watching her progress. I did. One thing that the other guys didn’t notice afterwards is that she didn’t play in a hand with me at all unless she had a really strong hand. She had lost her edge and knew she had to play to beat me. She was a very competent player and actually finished 3rd in the tournament.

What is the point of my little story above? Women in Online Poker today have not only learned how to play the game, but some have begun to play the player by using men’s own hormones against them. Women even recommend that other women use this as a tactic. Annie Duke mentioned in her biography that other women should use this tactic.

I actually agree with Annie. If you are capable of competently playing the ditzy, flirty poker player that is just there to have fun, feel free.

When you see a fairly attractive woman sit down at your table, watch a few things about her if she is overly flirty or chatty with the other men. Pay attention to when she talks to them and whether she changes the way she acts while she is in a hand. I have seen women do everything from start somewhat distracting conversations to give puppy dog eyes to their male opponents. The puppy dog eyes were actually quite cute, as was the face when I bet into her. (Of course, it was a limit game so she called.)

Older women will actually try certain “friendly” techniques to try and distract their male opponents or younger opponents. I have heard the “you wouldn’t bet your grandmother” or “you wouldn’t bet an old lady would you” more times than you would believe. I actually know this older woman player in Atlantic City that is the master of “playing friendly.” She is actually a very nice lady away from the table, but I have seen her draw more free cards by smiling and talking polite than any other person I know. She even has a little “friendly check” that she does. Of course, when she wants to bet she goes from friendly to the “you better not call me” face. I enjoy playing with her and when I want free cards, I give her the “friendly check” right back.

Of course not all women are going to use these types of tactics. Some will try and hold their own with the men at the table because of either ego or because they want to earn your respect. As with all things poker, every situation is different. These examples were given to help you look out for some potential pitfalls when playing against female opponents. Women can be just as tricky as us guys. The difference is that women usually have more self control and have a few more tricks that their male opponents.

If you are having success playing online poker there is no doubt you will eventually want to give a live action game a try. Beyond the obvious there are a lot of subtle differences between the games. You need to look beyond just betting patterns and look for physical tells your opponents are giving you. As a live poker player you also need be aware of tells that you may be giving your playing competitors to use. Things are not given to you easily in live games as they are online, you will have to calculate your own pots and bet amounts. There is specific amount of time for which you have to make your decision, and there are  rules that you have to follow. I am going to explain a few things that will help you in your transition from online games to live action poker.

The biggest difference in playing live poker versus online poker is that you have physical chips in front of you. Before you start to play you to make yourself comfortable with amounts that each chip represents. The chip amounts/colours will vary from home game to home game and casino to casino. When playing in live action it is important to remember that verbal bets are always binding. By this I mean if you say that you $5, but only put $4 in the pot, you owe another $1. The verbal declaration of $5 is the bet that will count.

Pet Peeve – Your in a pot and you make a bet of $10, your opponent announces that he “calls your $10 and raises you $20″. You cannot call and raise at the same time you have to do one or the other. You should say, “raise to $30″ or “raise $20″.

String betting is another rule you will not run across when playing on an online table. When playing live poker its important to note that you can only make one motion at the pot with your chips unless a verbal declaration is made. An example is if you want to bet $100, you cannot place $50 into the pot and then go back to your stack and put in $50 more, the original $50 would be binding. There are multiple ways to avoid this problem, one is to always count your bet amount out before you motion at the pot, if are going to bet $100 count it out behind the line and then place it into the pot in one motion. I would also suggest making verbal bets, by saying the amount you wish to bet out loud it becomes binding and you can’t make a string bet. By making verbal bets you will also eliminate the chances of you making a mistake adding up your chips because the dealer will insure the fact you put the right amount in the pot. The over sized chip rule is one that a lot of players don’t know. If you place one over sized chip into a pot, it is a call, if you want to raise with an over sized chip you have to announce raise. An example is if your opponent bets $1 and you put a $5 chip into the pot without saying anything, you are only calling.

Control your emotions, when playing in front of your opponents they will see the emotions you let them see. When playing online you can kind of hide the fact that you may be on tilt, but when playing live games you may have your emotions on your sleeve. If you feel the onset of tilt, I suggest get up and take a walk, go to the washroom, get a drink whatever just get away from the table and collect your thoughts. Drinking alcohol while playing poker is also not suggested, just like anything else drinking impairs your judgment. Unless your just in for fun and the money doesn’t matter, getting drunk will not turn you into a winner.

Pet Peeve – Your playing in a casino, you get into a heads up pot with a guy who is loud and obviously drunk. You raise pre flop with pocket aces and the “Drunk Guy” calls quick as if the cards didn’t matter. The flop comes with Ace – 4 – 10, you bet he calls and the turn comes Jack, there is no flush draw and you make a big bet. The “Drunk Guy” without thought says, “GAMBLE” and shoves all he’s chips in the pot. You call and you have him where you want him and he flips up 2 – 3, guess what the river comes a 5, he made a wheel. The “Drunk Guy” wins, and lets you know about it with a lot of happy yells and maybe a little dance.

The Clock is when players think another is taking to long to make a decision and ask the director/dealer to put a clock on the player. Unlike online there is no specific amount of time you have to make a decision and you will find some players who take along period of time to make easy decisions. Calling the clock on someone will no doubt upset your opponent and I don’t suggest doing it. If an opponent takes way to much time and you feel its been to long (it happens), just call for the clock and depending on where you are playing your opponent will have to make a decision.

If you have learned how to play the game online, you already know how to play, but knowing these simple rules can make you transition to the live casino easier. I suggest that when playing home games you follow these rules as well, it will make it easier to remember them when you play in more structured games at casinos. I hope you enjoy playing live poker, it is a different game and you will have lots of fun. Have fun and good luck at the tables.