Posts Tagged ‘Playing Poker’

When Playing Poker, Set Limits

February 2nd, 2011

You must decide just what your poker playing limit is.

The term of playing limit has nothing to do with the term of bankroll. Your playing limit is simply the amount of money you would feel comfortable playing. No one can be indifferent when playing his own money and therefore they cannot remain calm when it comes to losing them. Therefore, dont use all your saving or paycheck to play online poker. This is not good for two reasons:

1. If you lose, you will have a bad memory of the game that left you with no money at all, when it is in fact your fault for not being responsible and for not thinking through your actions.

2. You will lose! Think about this one for a while. You will most certainly lose because your game will be affected by the constant frustration that arises from your worries for your money.

So, avoid these situations by playing an amount you wouldnt care about. Just think of it as if it was an expense to buy a game, and now you are playing that game you paid for. This way the worries can be ignored and your playing style can really become what it needs to.

If you have a normal profession or one more basis of profits, then the above strategy should suit your case. But when you plan to play poker for an income, then stuff gets difficult. A professional poker player has no source but his bankroll. The bankroll has at all times to remain intact so it can generate income.

When you play poker your income will fluctuate. If you are a wealthy person and dont care about money because you already have too many, then fluctuation dont mean a thing. But if poker is your only source of income, then keep the bankroll intact only as long as you dont need it. When you have to pay the bills, you will remove that amount from your bankroll. It is a bad thing and it means you didnt know your limits. Your initial bankroll will become smaller and smaller not because of poker, but because you wanted to rely on an amount of money you did not actually had to spend.

A professional poker player has learned his limits by now. He knows exactly how much he is playing, and he knows how much he should leave at the online casino and how much to put in a bank or invest in the stock market after a win. There is no need to increase a good playing limit that has been tested. Every time we go above it, we can redraw the exceeding money and leave this way the bankroll intact while making an income.

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Three Card Poker

November 10th, 2010

Ok – so you like to try Three Card Poker? Good choice!

According to the Wizard of odds the house edge for the casino is as low as 2.32% on the pair plus bet. So even if you have no idea about the game you can still play for a long while before you run out of money with good chances of hitting a good hand (3 of a kind or straight flush).
When playing Three card Poker – play this strategy:

Always play the Ante and the Pair Plus bet
Always play the hand when you have Queen64 or higher

That’s it!
On my last trip to Vegas I have won a couple of hundred bucks in just a couple of minutes by hitting 2 good hands – and this can happen to you. I highly recommend downloading Kiwi Casino and playing “Poker Three” for fun for a while. It is a nice and fun poker variation.

What a Taxi driver in Vegas told me:
First he told me that he worked for a casino before – well probably not one of the best employees as he now drives a taxi – but never mind.
He has heard of players who go to the Bellagio or any other classy place – get a Players card to get their game rated – put 500 on the Three card Poker Table and play 25 bets. They choose a crowded table so the game is slow. Just playing 2-3 hours with 25 bets can bring them a free hotel room at the Bellagio – chances are very good that they don’t lose their 500 – chances are that they walk away with 700 – 1,000 if they are just a bit lucky. So if you are looking for some good comps in Vegas – play Three Card Poker.

Marco – aka The Poker Guy is a professional poker player and earns his living playing poker online. More information about online poker at his site : http:www.pokerscrubs.com

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Stu Unger: Rise and Fall of a Poker Genius

July 28th, 2010

Stu Unger is one of the biggest superstars to have immerged from the professional poker world. Besides being a true poker genius and a three time World Series of Poker champion, Stu Unger had a fascinating life story. It was not surprising that after his death Stu was the subject of a biography and a biopic.

Stu Unger lived the life of a rock star including the quick rise to fame, the drugs, the comeback and the unavoidable death at an early age. Here you can read about the life story of the legendary poker player Stu Unger.

The Beginning

Stuart Errol Ungar was born in 1953 to a Jewish family who lived in Manhattan on the Lower East Side. Stus father was a well known bookmaker and his mother was too ill to fight against her sons fascination with gambling. After the death of his father, 13 years old Stu had found a father figure at his neighbor Victor Romano, one of the infamous Genovese family soldiers.

Stu and Romano had at least one thing in common: they both had an incredibly sharp memory, which was mainly used in poker and gin games. By that time, Stu was already an accomplished gin player who had gained vast experience in winning gin tournaments. Stu dropped out of school to become a full time gin rummy player. The Genovese family had benefited from Stus talent. In return, they provided him protection from other gamblers who found themselves offended by his harsh and arrogant playing style.

The Rise

As a professional gin player, Stu had managed to beat all the professional gin poker players around. According to the rumors, Stu caused Harry Yonkie Stein, one of the best players around to stop playing gin completely after beating him in a gin match. Since he was out of proper competition, Stu decided to focus on playing poker professionally. In 1976, he and his girlfriend relocated to Las Vegas where they got married and had a girl, Stephanie.

In 1980, Stu won the World Series of Poker Main Event after beating experienced poker pros such as Doyle Bronson. Stu was the youngest WSOP champion in history and was nicknamed The Kid. Even though Stu won the 1981 WSOP Main Event, he still considered himself more a gin and rummy player than a poker player. After winning his first WSOP championship title, he was quoted saying that the poker world would meet better no limit players than him, but no one will ever be able to play gin rummy better than he does.

At the same time, Stu had tried to use his skill to grab money at the blackjack table. Nevertheless, the casinos were not happy with Stus presence around the blackjack tables and he was constantly barred. In 1982, he was fined by the New Jersey Gaming Commission for cheating, although Stu has not done anything illegal but using his natural skill and phenomenal memory.

The Fall

In 1990, Stu made another appearance to the WSOP. This time, he was heavily into drugs. He was a chip leader for the first three days of the event and then disappeared. He was found lying at his hotel room, unconscious from a drug overdose. However, it did not stop him from finishing ninth and earning enough money for his future cocaine supply.

The Comeback

After seven years of disappearing from the professional poker circle, Stu had returned to the WSOP. In 1997, he was broke, with damaged nostrils from cocaine abuse, addicted to horseracing and sports gambling, but still in shape to beat all the new contestants and gain back his WSOP Championship title. The local media was happy to embrace The Comeback Kid, but his success did not last long.

The Death

Stu Unger did not attend the 1998 World Series of Poker since he could not get the money to pay the entry fee. Seven months after Scotty Nguyen won the 1998 WSOP, Stu Ungar was found dead at his motel room in Las Vegas with 800 pounds in his pocket. Apparently, he died of a heart condition caused by years of drug abuse.

The Biography

Read: One of a Kind: The Rise and Fall of Stuey The Kid Ungar, The Worlds Greatest Poker Player written by Nolan Dalla, Peter Alson, Mike Sexton.

Watch: High Roller: The Stu Ungar Story directed by A. W. Vidmer and starring Michael Imperioli, Christopher Moltisanti of The Sopranos, as Stu Unger

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Speaking Poker

July 21st, 2010

When I first started playing poker it wasn’t the rules that freaked me out; I’m pretty smart, how hard can they be, I figured. Neither was it the strategy; I reckoned that I’d loose a bit, and before I knew it I’d be up to speed and on the ball. No, it was the terminology that got me; I had images of coming to the table and everyone immediately knowing that I didn’t have a clue what I was doing, and feeling like an absolute idiot. For that reason, I want to briefly explain some of the most common terminology used in the game; so that no-one else will have to feel the way I did and won’t be held back by it.

Antes: An ante is used in all table games and is the money that each player must put into the pot in order to buy into the game. The ante is a set amount for the table and this will not change. The money is paid before the first cards are dealt; anyone who does not pay the ante will not be dealt in.

Big blinds and little blinds: Tournaments don’t have antes per se because everyone has already bought into the hand, so to speak, by buying into the tournament. The buy in of a tournament negates the need for an ante as the pot is already set. The big blind and little blind therefore is an alternative to the ante and involves one player on the table paying a sum equal to the minimum bet and another paying a smaller sum equal to half the minimum bet. The big blind is paid by the person in the second seats to the left of the dealer and the little blind is paid by the person sat directly to the left of the dealer. When there are 2 players left the dealer is the little blind.

Board: This refers to the community cards, the cards that all can see and use. There will not be a board in all games, only in Hold’em games such as

Flop: This is the name given to the first three community cards. These cards are turned all at one go.

Turn: This is the fourth community card. The Turn is flipped by itself and is followed by a betting round. This card is sometimes also referred to as the ‘fourth street’.

River: The River is the fifth, and final of the community cards to be flipped over. Once the River is flipped there is only one more betting round.

Showdown: This is the show and tell of the Caribbean Hold’em game. Following the final betting round after the River, all active players must show their hands; the best hand out of the 5 community cards and the 2 personal cards takes the pot.

These are just the very basics of Caribbean Hold’em terminology; you will find that once you are familiar with a few terms you will see them cropping up in other games too. One step at a time and you will be speaking the lingo before you know it.

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Seven Card Stud Poker Playing Rules

July 7th, 2010

Seven card stud poker is a very popular form of poker played at both the card table and in online poker rooms. Anywhere poker is being played, either online or off, youll always find a game of stud poker in progress. Stud poker is one of the poker games where players are dealt some of their cards facing up on the poker table, while other cards are dealt face down.

In the game of seven card stud, the dealer deals out seven cards to each player. The dealer deals two cards in the hole, then one card face up. After an opening bet is made, three cards are dealt face up, with a round of bets after each card is dealt out. The final card is dealt in the hole, and final bets are made. The players then create a hand from five of the seven they were dealt.

The following is how a typical game of Seven Card Stud should ideally play out:

Each player places up their ante.

The designated dealer then deals out three cards to each player. Two of these cards are dealt face down on the table, with the third being placed face up on the table. The cards dealt face down are referred to as hole cards, while the card placed face up is called the door card.

Players place their first bets, or they can now fold on their hand.
All remaining players are dealt one card face-up on the poker table.
More bets are placed, any players who wish may now fold.
All remaining players are dealt one card face-up on the table.
Betting round, bets are placed, any players who wish may now fold.
All remaining players are dealt one card face-up on the poker table.
4th betting round, any players who wish may now fold.
All remaining players are dealt a last card face-down on the poker table.
Final round of bets are made.

Its time for the showdown, the players who have remained in the game will now show their hands.
Players are allowed to use any 5 of their 7 cards to make the best hand possible.

Seven card stud poker is played with a standard regulation deck of 52 playing cards. This game does not make use of the Joker card. The maximum number of players allowed in a game of Seven Card Stud Poker should never exceed eight players, to avoid running out of playing cards.

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Live Poker: Pros and Cons of Participating in a Tournament

April 14th, 2010

Live Poker: Pros and Cons of Participating in a Tournament

If you have had enough of playing poker with friends or with playing it online and winning some money and then losing some money to only win that money back again, then you have reached the stage in your poker playing experience where you need to start entering live tournaments. That is the real deal. No more long hours in front of the computer, no more feeling guilty for taking your friends’ money: you are now ready to turn pro.

But, before you do, here are a few things you must consider:
1) One of the big differences of playing in a tournament is that you need to pick you hands carefully. Spend most of your time throwing your cards away at the right beginning. If you see that your cards won’t amount to much, fight the urge to exchange most of them, and just hand them all in. This is what most tournament players do anyway. If you don’t believe me, watch the others play.

2) Money you take with you to tournaments lasts for a much lengthier period than when playing with friends or online. This is one of the advantages of not playing every hand you are dealt. (Hint: You should do the same thing when playing with friends even though that then becomes boring.)

3) Do not sit to the left of the dealer. Ensure that there are at least two players between the dealer and the players to the left. Why? Only the first 2 players seated on the left of the dealer have to place the ante. Since, most of the tournaments involve ten players on each table, you save this much each time you play. This also means that each hand that you fold will mean that you have spent only half that of the lower limit. This amounts to three pounds in a two to four pound rake tournament.

4) Take into consideration that the mere fact that you are away from home means that you will spend money on food and drinks. Try and get your own, but in any case keep it light.

5) Tournament dealers are not paid much, and so it’ general practice to give them about three percent of whatever you win. Consider that all gambling halls and poker rooms also take a certain percentage but at least this comes from the money you win and so you don’t feel it.

6) One of the other advantages of playing in a tournament is that you can use more money than you had. For instance, for a hundred pound sit-in, many www.gambling-portal.comonline-gambling-casino-reviews.htmlcasinos and poker rooms will give you about five hundred in tournament chips to bet with.

7) If high odds and high risk is not what you are looking for you can take advantage of the late night satellite tournaments. These generally begin at one in the morning and since the number of players won’t be high, you stand a bigger chance of winning.

Conclusion:
Playing poker requires tremendous skill as well as come luck. While you cannot depend on luck, improve your skills and your online casino or other kind of betting account will show a profit.

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Dream Job – Earning Your Daily Bread from Online Poker

March 17th, 2010

Dream Job – Earning Your Daily Bread from Online Poker

If you spend most of your work day daydreaming behind a desk of getting home to play a few rounds of online poker, how would you feel to know it is possible to cut out that boring day job interference and play poker full time, while paying your bills? It is possible; many people support themselves and their families by heading to off to a hard days work at the online poker table. Going from poker amateur to full time poker player who brings home the bacon through their card playing is not for everyone, though. Making a living from poker requires skill, commitment, and patience.

Before you consider making a living at online poker, be realistic with yourself about your abilities. How well do you really know the game? Can you play all varieties of poker? Can you play well enough to play multiple games at once? Many full time poker players are playing up to four hands at any given moment. Do you have the ability to know when to walk away from a hand? Poker professionals only play an average of 50% of the hands that they are dealt; do you have the self control to make responsible and calculated decisions about the financial risks involved in poker and not get caught up in the excitement/emotion of the moment and blow the bank?

If you think you have the knowledge and the self-control needed to play effectively, then it is time to be realistic with yourself about the realities of life as a full time online poker player. Most poker pros will tell you this is not a get rich quick scheme. Your commitment to poker will have to take up more of your time than a normal, 9 to 5 kind of job to make the kind of money needed to support yourself, and even with a lengthy time commitment, the rewards of playing poker for a living are more about personal satisfaction than personal wealth. The financial rewards of playing poker are also up and down. Sometimes, youll be riding high and cashing in left and right. Other times, you wont be able to catch a break. Youll need to be careful during the good times to put aside some money to see you through the bad. You should also be sure you are emotionally prepared to go to work every day and lose over and over and over again without giving up.

If youre ready to deal with all of this, then the only thing you need to get started is a bank roll and a computer. The size of your initial investment doesnt have to be huge, but remember that the more money you have to play with, the more money you can win. If you start out with a small bank roll, make sure to reinvest some of the winnings into your career until you have a comfortable balance to work with. When youre just getting started, playing lots of small stakes games, instead of a few high stakes one, is the best way to go to protect your investment and keep the cash flow manageable. When your career is more stable, you can wade into the higher stakes games.

One important thing to keep in mind when you start your online poker career: like any self-employment opportunity, playing poker for a living can become all-consuming. Make an effort to keep a balance in your life with plenty of time away from the poker table. Keeping that balance in your life will keep your stress in check and make your game better.

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