Vegas Poker Blog

Play Your Own Cards

It is rare to be seated at an on line table anymore, even the higher stake ring games, without someone else sitting there that thinks they can play your cards better than you can. They are constantly spitting out comments about the way someone played a hand. Things such as ” you bet 100 on that” ,”you raised with that #$%$”, and one of my favorites “you lucky *&%$, you dont know how to play”. The last one is my favorite because it is usually form the loser of a hand to the winner of a hand and he is telling them that they dont know how to play. I always want to say to that person that if they are such bad players and dont know how to play poker, how did they beat you?
It is very important in the game of poker to play your own cards. The only concern you could have as to the way someone else is playing their cards is to learn their style of play and any habits they have. There is no, let me repeat this for you NO need to voice your opinion about how someone else plays their hole cards. If you think it is a stupid move or you think they dont know how to play, fine, then they should be easy for you to clean out. Why would you want to discourage anyone form making what you believe is a stupid play? The object is for you to win. If you are going to say anything about it, then encourage them in a serious manner to keep up the stupidity.
If anyone has ever watched Gus Hansen play for more than 10 minutes, you would realize 2 things. First, he is one of the best players in the world at Texas Holdem. Second, he does not play by the little cheat cards that most people do. He plays by feel. If he likes his hole cards, he plays them. Take a lesson form Gus, play poker by feel not by guidelines set by someone else. It has been repeatedly proven that having cards like J spades and 8 hearts can win a hand. One more note on Gus for those that call him a fluke. Gus Hansen is one of only two pro poker players in the Poker Hall of Fame. The other is Doyle Brunson. Thats pretty good company no matter where you are.
Now, do not get me wrong, I am in no way saying play any and everything. I am saying if you are hitting flushes like crazy and you get dealt 10 and 5 hearts, why not call the blind. If it feels right, if it fits into the way the cards are flowing for you then play it. Folding Ace King pre flop is excepted if you dont feel right about it so why no play a lesser set of hole cards if you feel it will work.
It is not necessary to explain to anyone seated at your table why they should have folded a set of cards that you would not have played. You have 2 cards dealt to you, play those and not the ones across the table. Poker is a game and there is a certain amount of skill and a certain amount of “how the cards fall” involved in the outcome. Neither is more important than the other. It will take both to make your sitting a good one or a bad one. You can get dealt pocket Aces every hand but it certainly doesnt mean you are going to win every hand. Play your won cards and play them the best way you can. Leave everyone elses cards alone.

Playing the emotion card is not a new strategy to poker. Putting your opponent off balance is a basic part of any poker game. The psychology used in the game is often a bigger part of the hand than the cards themselves. Making another player bet or call on bad cards can kill a chip stack faster than pocket aces. Most people have certain amount of pride and when called out or insulted , they will play with a high card or chase a flush or straight without thinking of the repercussions. In some circles this is considered bad manners and by using this method, you can easily make enemies at a table. Rarely have I seen a player use this strategy and make it all the way. Somewhere down the road a better hand lays in wait and strikes when you have gotten too cocky for the cards.

The similar attack of table chat works as well. Striking up conversations and drawing other players into them also catches some off guard. Simple distractions that take an opponents mind off the board for just a moment can be very expensive. And no one can over look the sex factor. A pretty face or a carefree flirt from the opposite sex is death to a card game. Not only does it make players lose there focus but also incline s some players to œtake it easy� on nice smile. Be aware, more times than not that smile will turn to a vampires grin when the opportunity presents itself.

At real table games, it is more controlled, insults are not permitted and talk between players is limited but in on line poker, it is a free for all. Most sites block cursing, to a degree, and many do not allow any language other than English to be spoken. It is here in the on line rooms that you find the loud mouths that talk trash to everyone. Chat abuse can be reported on poker sites to support but having the problem solved and solved quickly is not normally seen. However, some players do lose their chat privileges for a period of time, wow that helps. The easiest method to stop this is do not use the chat options. What real purpose do they serve anyway? The constant œNH�, thats nice hand to those they play in caves, is out of control. Almost every hand some one feels obligated to say it even if ace high wins. Someone tell me please what is so nice about winning ace high? OK, I admit any win is a good win but not every hand is a NH. Sometimes it is just a hand that happen to win the pot.

There are many different ways to put a player on tilt or get them emotional and sharks and season vets alike know you to do it. If you can get another player thinking of anything but the cards in front of him, you have the advantage. Its ok to be polite and even hold conversations during games but remember, you are playing cards for your money and everyone at that table wants it. That is, after all, why they are there. Poker is more than the cards youre dealt, it has been for some time a psychological chess match, especially in heads up competition. If youre new to the game, site, or table and dont know the players youre sitting with, keep the table chat to a minimum, and dont take anything said to you or about personally. Even if it is a good thing. Play your best game with the cards you are dealt and folding is not bad thing.

Even if youve played in a friendly neighborhood or home game for years, entering the world of online poker takes a bit of extra knowledge.

If youre new to online poker, the most important thing is to pick a table you can afford. Stay away from no-limit tables because if theres one all in game, you may well have blown your whole budget for the session. As a rule of thumb, you want to sit down at a table with at least 5 times the upper bet limit. This will give you some game insurance on even getting into the game. If its a $5-10 table, sit down with no less than $50.

Watch a table for a bit before sitting down if its possible. You can get a pretty good idea who the aggressive players are and who the more timid ones might be. This is a great thing to get in the habit of because you can then choose your seat based on this knowledge. Always try to have the more aggressive players on your right because you can fold quicker if your hand isnt great. Lesser players on your left play to your advantage because theyll fold quicker on your bluffs.

Dont be afraid to lose! Theres nothing worse than sitting down and just feeding into blinds at the minimum amount and watching your budget slowly slip away into losses.

Take a chance on the good hand. Go for it! There are plenty of times you can fold lousy cards.

Online play allows you to keep notes too. Not only on your own strategies �what works and what doesnt, but on players you might meet time and time again. These are great things to be able to refer to if a player looks a little familiar. It saves a lot of time in working out how they play too.

Most importantly, dont just pop into an online room for a quick game. Set aside an hour, or even better two. You cant get a feel for the other players and what kind of game is going on unless you do, and in playing poker you always to try to win �not just contribute to the pot for a few hands!!!

If you know good poker basics, transferring that knowledge online isnt hard and if you watch, youll learn that there are advantages to it too. Happy poker!

If you are like me and like to play fix limit poker, sometimes you need the betting controlled, when you jump back to no limit table , the bets can throw your game off. It is easy to get used to small bets on big cards so when you see a large number of chips being tossed around and all you have is maybe a face card, it can unnerve you. Remember where you are. For instance, you have been playing limit holdem and the average bets have been $1 a card with pots around $6, do not be surprised at $5 preflop bets when you move to a no limit table. Do not be so quick to fold that K-10. The bettor maybe holding Q-8. On the no limit table that bet is not big.

Take a few hands to get readjusted to the game. While the rules are the same, the way it is played is different. Bluffing is like flirting with death on a no limit table. A large chip stack can make that sort of a play , but on a good table anyone that is scraping the bottom or hanging out with a medium stake is not going to be so quick to make a foolish play. Watch the players and adjust your game to the table. If after a few hands, about 4 or 5, you still are not comfortable, leave. At a table, as apposed to tournaments, you can always get up and walk away at any time.

At on line rooms, a lot of times, you will sit down and someone with a good stack has to test you early. Remember your cards and think of what the board can be giving the other player. To help with this, I watch a table for a few hands before I put my chips on it. Doing this lets me see how the players bet and what kind of cards they are betting on. Any pro will tell you that the more information you have about players and their styles will help you play them better.

For most beginners, the thrill of the œall in œ play in a no limit game draws them to poker but they quickly learn that to sharpen there game and learn, fixed limit tables are a lot safer. This is even truer for those with very limited funds. Nothing hurts more than to have a good hand and have a large stake raise you out of it. That is a strategy some players use and it works. Even with middle of the road cards are all they are holding, a semi bluff bet of good size will win it for them. Its more of a transition period for beginners going from fixed limit tables. The next step, as outlined in the book œ3 9 Off Suit�, is pot limit. There you get a feel for bigger bets and raises and eventually graduate to a no limit table. After that it is higher and higher stakes.

When choosing the NL table, you may want to make sure it has a limit buy in and that no one seated has a stack very far above that. If the maximum buy in is $10 and you have a couple of stacks there with $20 or more, you may want to skip it and find another table. The two most important things to remember are know where you are and be comfortable. The rest is just poker.

When you first started playing poker, did you just jump right in and learn as you went along, or did someone teach you the basics. As more and more people are making the leap into poker, there are a lot of places available for learning. So, if youre a novice, where do you go first?

The Dummies series of books have long been a popular resource for first-timers in any field. Ill admit to buying œInternet for Dummies� many years ago and it was good! So, I got œPoker for Dummies� just to see what the beginner was likely to get from it.

This one was written by Richard Harroch, who, if one does a bit of research, turns out to be an attorney specializing in start-up companies, but who also plays a bit of poker and has won a few smaller tournaments. The book covers fundamentals, rules, and basic strategies primarily for HoldEm games with other forms of poker getting a short shift at the back.

The Dummies book will give you in-depth rule analysis, great tips on etiquette in a casino, online or home games, and more importantly, how to bet and keep a strategy going. I particularly appreciated the sections on poker lingo and slang along with how to keep a poker face! Even for the intermediate or advanced player, theres something to be learned, and this book provides plenty. It provides a needed overview for the beginner and tips for improving your game if youre already a player. There are great pointers on how to use online poker to improve your game, bluffing and how to keep good records for your winnings. Now, thats a positive thought, right?

Also available is a Poker for Dummies dvd, which is hosted by Chris Moneymaker. This is one you definitely want to rent rather than buy though. While the book is a good thing to keep on the shelf as a good reference tool, the video is pretty lackluster with Chris being pretty monotonous and offering up little in the way of guidance. Its like he got paid to make the video but not quite enough to make it interesting. So, skip this one or get ready for some fast forwarding.

So the long and the short of this review is that Poker for Dummies, the book, is well worth owning, but dont bother with the dvd unless you just adore Chris Moneymaker!

Texas Holdem is by far the most popular poker game these days, and theres good reason. Its fast, its fun and it encourages all different styles of players.

For most of us, we tend to play a loose game and wait for a strong hand to come along. But as your game skills improve, the ability to know what hands to play out and whether to play loose or tighter becomes apparent. With a good foundation, you will quickly sort these options and put them to good use.

The blind is one of the most difficult aspects of Holdem. Mediocre players lose more in blinds because they either give up too quickly or chase stupid ideas. If youve learned your basics well and pay attention to the styles of others, you will know what players are going to make mistakes and youll seize on those times for your own benefit.

First, you want to think logically with style and attitude. If you have an opponent who is aggressive, play tighter but maintain your own aggression. Its all about learning which hands to play and creating edges for yourself. Remember �as long as you get more out of the pot than you put in, youre ahead and the tiny edges you create can mount up to profiting more than you put in.

With blinds, you want to take the position of defending what youve put into the pot because that money is gone unless you can get it back. If youre forced to put in, also remember that your opponent is forced to put in twice that much, and when thats the case, the odds are already on your side. It only costs you one bet to call, and its costing the guy who is raising twice that. So, keep the word ˜discount in your head. Force your opponent to play badly and make mistakes. Even if you lose, you will have lost less than the other guy �and thats coming away from the table doing well.

Playing the blind well is one of the most important nuts and bolts of your Holdem game. If youve got good basics, you know big blinds are usually big losers so you just want to cut the amount youre going to lose to as low an amount as you can. What you can do is learn how to encourage the other players inabilities with good offense and defense.

Remember poker is a battle game. Whenever theres a big bet on the turn, you better have a very strong hand to stay in. Anything else is sending good money after bad and we all want to walk away a winner when we can! Theres luck and theres blind luck �we all need both!