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Wednesday, June 29, 2005
The Couch Slouch: Televised poker nurtures one's inner schemer
By NORMAN CHAD
LAS VEGAS -- It's often been said that they turned the country on its side and everything loose fell into California. To look around the Rio Hotel and Casino, it would appear that everything -- and everyone -- fell into a poker room. Folks once came West to stake their claim in covered wagons; now they come in Range Rovers.
For the past month, poker pros, local heroes, wannabes and dead-money drifters have gathered for the World Series of Poker. Next week, "The Main Event" -- in which anyone can buy in for $10,000 -- will attract a field of up to 6,600 players and a $60 million-plus prize pool, with first place paying an expected $10 million.
Poker has its downside, but as someone who has played the game since college, gone into card rooms twice a week for years and never understood the strategy of why those who did it for a living were scorned, I can't tell you how satisfying it is to see honest, skillful people risking their own money get their due.
The twin evils of modern culture -- TV and the Internet -- are fueling this poker boom.
(Two-and-a-half years ago, an ESPN producer asked me if I had ever considered doing poker commentary on TV. I told him that every boy's dream, from the time he is 5, is to do poker commentary on TV. What was he, nuts? Who would ever consider TV poker commentary? It didn't exist. So now I've taken my stellar University of Maryland education and become John Madden on green felt.)
Like any other recreational vice, poker is best when not consumed in excess, and, indeed, we've reached critical mass in a hurry.
Still, how can you not want to be around fascinating people like Doyle Brunson, T.J. Cloutier, Barry Greenstein, Jennifer Harman, Daniel Negreanu, Phil Ivey and Miami John Cernuto?
But poker also draws you in because of the everyday stories. Chris Moneymaker, an accountant from Tennessee, turned a $40 entry fee into $2.5 million at the 2003 World Series, and Greg "Fossilman" Raymer went from patent attorney to $5 million in 2004.
The other day I came across Shane Schleger, 28, an engaging, fledgling semi-pro player from Brooklyn, N.Y., who finished fifth in a recent $1,500 buy-in, no-limit Texas holdem World Series Poker tournament and won $132,110.
After high school, he roamed the country.
"I saw 'Easy Rider' and thought it was the greatest movie ever," Schleger said. Just before he turned 21, he went to Amsterdam "and lost my mind." He was arrested for trespassing in what he terms a "drug-induced psychotic episode" and spent six months in and out of asylums.
Back home, he worked various dead-end jobs and was "kind of lost for several years." But after finding poker online, a year ago "a light bulb went off. ... Guys like me just want to make money, travel and eat well. Poker gives you that chance."
Schleger enjoys "elements of life on the fringe" and, he said, "poker is a fringe microcosm that's legitimized now. It's a legal drug."
So he's standing here in a 40,000-square-foot poker biosphere in the middle of the desert, with a chance at millions starting July 7. He knows in order to win, he'll have to play aggressively -- a trait he picked up in one of his first jobs.
"Bike messengers are at war with New York City cabbies all the time," he said. "Cabbies and bike messengers hate each other. One time, this cabbie tried to kill me, so I just pulled the side-view mirror off of his taxi."
I like this guy's chances at a poker table.
Ask The Slouch
Q: Any chance you'll be conducting a Couch Slouch fantasy camp? With seminars on "Proper Couch Posture," "Rolling Rock Thermodynamics," "Advanced TiVo Technique," "Chips: From Poker to Nacho" and "Women: Know When to Hold 'Em, Know When to Fold 'Em," I think it would be a big hit. (Ryan Dappen; Pittsburgh)
A: Pay the man, Shirley.
posted by texas holdem poker strategy at 6:19 AM  
Monday, June 20, 2005
Column: Keeping online poker real (article)
Flop. Turn. River. Check. Bet. Call. Raise. Fold. All the strategy terms used in the Texas Holdem Poker Universe that even the average person can comprehend. You can play Limit, No Limit, Pot Limit, and even those addicting tournaments that you play with your buds on a Friday night, that's right, you'll find those all online. If you were to go to top 20 popular poker sites and count the number of players currently, there would be at least 300,000 players online worldwide and probably a million more that just have accounts.
So, when I talk to the average player about online poker and find out they've never heard of online play, it intrigues me and almost instantaneously, I stereotype them. Any Texas Hold'em player that does not play online is not that good of a player. Only a few poker geniuses can sit down at a table and win consistently without ever having to click a mouse; I would say that 99 percent of players aren't of this variety.
So, when I tell people I quit my summer internship to play poker online I get many reactions (not to mention my boss's). Playing poker professionally usually brings two such reactions to mind, jealousy and pity. Those that are jealous wish they didn't have to sit behind their desk 40 hours a week getting exploited to make "Bill Lumberg's stock go up a quarter-point." The pity reaction is a little hard to defend. Considering most would never consider playing poker professionally as a wise career choice, I can't do anything but agree.
Only those TV stars like Daniel Negreanu can make it in most people's mind. In reality, thousands of poker players are professionals; they just don't necessarily like it becoming public. Of all the poker players in the world, general rule states that only 10 percent of the players have actually won more than they have lost and less than 1 percent are self-proclaimed professionals.
In all seriousness, playing poker is fun. Why would you not want to play it as a living? The poker profession is not socially acceptable, that's why. Most people consider it gambling and to tell you the truth, I'm OK with that. I risk money to make money and if that's all society can comprehend then nothing I say will change their mind.
It is just as much if not more of a risk to start your own business. Sure, take out $50,000 in loans and then go bankrupt; if that doesn't sound like gambling then I would like to know what is. But, wait, that is socially acceptable, because everyone has heard that the only way you are ever going to get rich in this world is to work for yourself. I implore you to find a difference in the professional poker player and the entrepreneur. Wait, I know of one, the professional poker player doesn't risk anything he can't lose. He doesn't take out thousands in loans to start up a business; he doesn't go bankrupt when he loses.
In reality, the poker profession will never be socially acceptable, partly because the poker player brings no real service to this world. He's not out there saving people's lives or inventing products that can make people's lives easier. No, the poker player just takes other people's money by use of his skill, experience, and knowledge of the game.
Again, the difference between the poker player and the day trader on Wall Street is negligible. Both the poker player and the day trader push small edges to make gains off of other people with less knowledge. The poker player should be more socially acceptable than the day trader should. The day trader gambles with his life savings in order to completely take advantage of other people's life savings. Every instance on Wall Street where a trader makes one dollar, someone else loses that dollar; poker is just as cut and dry. However, I can name one significant difference, professional poker players win money from those able to lose it; day traders win money from people who can't.
posted by texas holdem poker strategy at 1:45 PM
Tuesday, June 14, 2005
Doherty takes on the Internet - Play Poker with the 1997 World Snooker Champion Tonight!
If Ken Doherty isn't holding a cue he's most likely got a mouse in his hand. The Former World Snooker Champion has become a regular at online poker rooms over the past year. Although he's not short of money, when the international snooker scene goes quiet Ken loves nothing more than winning a few quid in a game of Texas Holdem Poker.
“Last year I started playing poker seriously” adds the Ranelagh bred sharp shooter. “I won a poker tournament with a friend. It was quite small with only 40 or so people playing in it but when it came to the end, my friend and I were the last men standing so we spilt the prize money. It was a great buzz, beginners luck. And I haven’t looked back since!”
It comes as no surprise as there are lots of similarities between the two games, they compliment each other well with both requiring practice and patience, “it's all about making it through the bad patches and then making the most of your opportunities – just like snooker, just like life…” says the philosophical Irishman.
When asked about the biggest game he’s played in, he recalls a €250 tournament in City West last May. “We started off with 8000 in chips each… at one stage I was down to just 600 and I had a 400 chip bounty on my head! But I managed to get back up to 90,000 and win my bounty. That was a great feeling, I finished 28th. Despite not winning that was a real confidence booster – beating people who have been playing for years”
All this tournament experience will come in handy when Ken takes on the players of the Internet tonight in his favorite online poker room. He’ll be hosting a $10 tournament that starts at 9pm where members of the public can play for cash prizes and a signed snooker cue.
When asked on his strategy for tonight’s game he pulls out a safety shot: “I'm going to be patient but aggressive, when I go all in, don't call me!”
If you don’t feel ready to beat Ken just yet, he has this advice for newcomers to the game “Play in lots of competitions, especially the free-roll ones at the beginning to learn how it all works. Also, read about it, I am reading a great poker book called Poker Nation and there are loads of great magazines and articles about poker.”
posted by texas holdem poker strategy at 4:26 PM
Wednesday, June 08, 2005
All About The World Poker Tour's Strategy
All About The World Poker Tour's StrategyThe World Poker Tour (WPT) is a collection of poker tournaments featuring most of the world's professional players.
The tour had its debut season in the latter part of 2002 and early part of 2003, climaxing with the WPT Championship in April 2003 at the Bellagio Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The first season aired on the Travel Channel on American cable television in the spring of 2003. The show made its network debut on February 1, 2004 on NBC with a special "Battle Of Champions" tournament, which aired against CBS coverage of Super Bowl XXXVIII.
The World Poker Tour is a collection of international Texas Holdem poker tournaments held internationally and on board cruise ships, but mainly in the United States. The television show has led to a boom in the table game across American homes, local casinos and poker rooms, and online. It is perhaps not surprising, therefore, that the key sponsors of the tour are casinos and online poker sites. The show, co-hosted by Mike Sexton, Vince Van Patten, and Shana Hiatt, is also syndicated internationally.
First exemplified by the long-running World Series of Poker main event, a poker tournament gives each player an equal amount of chips to start, with colors representing different values. Play continues, typically over several days until one player has acquired all of the chips. When that occurs, that player has won the game and captures the grand prize, approximately 30-35% of the total prize pool. The resulting winner's check can exceed one million dollars. All other competitors finish with no chips, but win a portion of the prize pool according to the order in which they left the tournament. The last player to lose all of his chip-stack finishes in 2nd position, typically worth approximately 20% of the prize pool.
The drawing power of the WPT, like any poker tournament, is that anyone who can pay the "buy-in" (an entry fee usually worth a few thousand dollars) or win a "satellite" tournament is able to compete against the top professional players, such as Phil Hellmuth, Doyle Brunson, or the top 2004 tournament money and multi-WPT tournament winner, Daniel Negreanu.
Fans of the show find it interesting due to technical innovations such as the ability to see the players hole cards through a small camera in front of them on the poker table (an innovation first seen on the UK programme Late Night Poker). Due to the success of the show, special programs, such as the "Hollywood Home Game", featuring celebrities playing for charity, and "Ladies Night", where six of the top women played against each other, were developed.
In 2004 the World Poker Tour created a Walk of Fame, inducting poker legends Doyle Brunson and Gus Hansen as well as actor James Garner.
posted by texas holdem poker strategy at 7:24 AM
Monday, May 30, 2005
Inside The Tour, Vol 8
There are a lot of bad to poor poker books flooding the market right now and this compels me to mention a few poker authors that I can recommend to all readers.
In order to have a grasp of the basics strategy (including math) the beginner through intermediate player must read David Sklansky.
The intermediate through advanced player will get insights into what passes through the professional's mind by reading the columns of Roy Cooke, and the books of Bob Ciaffone (Bob is an expert/master at backgammon, bridge, and chess. I believe that this background is great training for a poker player and will talk at length about why this is so in the future.).
The advanced player should read Barry Greenstein's book, which has yet to released, as it walks you through some hands and has also some entertaining stories. He showed it to Tuan Le before Foxwoods, and me before the Los Angeles PPT, so it must have the magic insights, no?
Most essential of all will be Dan Harrington's book[s] in a professional player's library. I am comfortable with recommending his books because of discussions that I have had with him over the past few years. Of course we are both chess masters and backgammon players so perhaps it is not surprise that we speak a similar language. Nonetheless the depth of analysis that he goes into and the insights he offers are unparalleled in all of the poker writings I have seen, and will likely ever see.
I hope to have my first book out this summer (perhaps it is 60% done as this is written) and expect to cover material that will be important to all poker players. In particular the importance of it will be my suggested approach to no limit Texas holdem poker tournaments. It will explain why many cash players do not comprehend the success certain tournament players have--which then tends to lead the tournament players to think they can play in the cash games. By and large, they cannot. There are many cross-over possibilities within holdem but you have to read, study, practice, and play what makes a lot of sense for you in particular. I accept a student now and then and will not allow them to learn on the scatter plan. They have to choose pot-limit, or no-limit, or limit if their interest is holdem. Even with this restriction the differences can be great depending on the limits chosen, on the locale, and on the type and style of the competition.
In terms of reporting the mysteries and spinning atmosphere of high stakes poker and everyday gambling was there ever a better writer than David Spanier? I hope so, but if true, I have yet to see their work. This material is for the voyeur, for the person that enjoys imagining the stress of such an improbable way of making an 'easy' living.
All of the above is a preface for me to talk about an author that I think was gifted beyond description, Andrew Glazer. I have read and reread numerous reports from major events that he covered and every time I look at them I am impressed, no, more like astonished, that he can bring in every-day parts of our lives and renaissance themes from, well, out there somewhere, and still give us a taste of the moment, give us the excitement of being in the front row, waiting for the result as each card comes off the deck. There was only one Andy Glazer and I am at least as sad as many others that he is no longer with us, that his perspective and insight and wit and reporting skills will no longer travel from major poker event to major poker event as so many of us do.
I met Andy during an event at the Commerce Club some years ago in the infamous Cabana which hosted many events, and has since been torn down, not long after his famous meeting with Phil Helmuth in a hot tub at Esalen. We were seated next to each other as we approached the money and then were in the money in one of their enormous-field-300-with-rebuys limit holdem tournaments and so had plenty of time to talk (he was very socially open and approachable) about life, ethics, poker, games (he was especially interested in my backgammon history, and we agreed to play), and life. He talked about a book that he had in the pipeline about gambling, and another that he was writing with Phil tentatively called 'Poker Brat'. Now there is a title that is a natural!
During the following years the area of particular interest to him was ethics in poker. Roy Cooke has been writing about it, and the crusading Casey Kastle has also been very interested in this topic. Events occurred at the World Series of Poker in 2004 that Andy felt deserved more attention, as well as my long term knowledge and takes of what happens inside the tour, and so we agreed to write some articles together (at least two, and likely more) in May of 2004. As the World Series wound down we were both exhausted and agreed to get together in Los Angeles in June and write the articles for July publication. They did not happen and never will.
Not long after Andy's sudden death, which was hard for me to digest, Marlon Brando died and Larry King reran an interview with Marlon that inspired me to write a piece on how temporary it all is. I have also written about memories that I have of meetings with Henry Fonda and Ray Charles, among others that are no longer with us. Those events were not large if viewed from the eyes of the world, but what they make you think about is not easy to capture, nor to measure in common terminology.
The deaths of those we know can be inspiring, or at the very least, motivating. A hero's death, and our first heroes were usually our parents, can cause us to reflect on our own raison d'etre. The point here is that it has to be brought home to us, it has to confront us where we live, or else it is just another number in another headline that has been presented in the local newspaper, like "28 marines died in Iraq" today. Is that the whole story? Of course not. They have mothers and fathers and families whose lives are forever altered after the event.
We all have a bad case of temporary-itis. We can put our head in the sand and hope it goes away...or we can use it as a base which will enrich our lives. Interesting choice, don't you think?
So play good...and get lucky!
posted by texas holdem poker strategy at 8:25 AM
Tuesday, May 24, 2005
Longhand Limit Texas Hold'em Poker Strategy
This information will give you the basic strategy at winning at longhand limit Texas Holdem Poker (8 or more players). This section is intended for the beginner, so he or she can win at the lower limits ($2-4 or less).
Preflop Starting Hands:
This is where most beginners make mistakes. Simply, they play too many hands. What beginners fail to recognize is that longhand limit Hold'em is a game of patience. As sad as it sounds, you literally can just wait to be dealt the quality hands, and just win with those.
So what are the good hands? David Sklansky, a poker expert, groups hands into 8 categories. I'm going to simplify his method a little bit for you. The main difference between my ratings and his ratings is that I don't give preference to suited cards. The only reason I do this is because beginners tend to play suited cards too much. Being suited is nice, but it's just a bonus, it doesn't change the actual value of the cards that much.
Category I
AA, KK, QQ, JJ, AK
These are the best hands, bar none. You should raise or reraise with them preflop. If you hold AA, you especially want to jam as much money into the pot as possible.
Category II
TT, 99, AQ, KQ
These are good hands, but they aren't amazing. You generally need help from the board. Almost always in low-limit, you will need to hit a set with TT or 99 to win.
Category III
88, AJ, AT, KJ, QJ, JT, QT
These are good hands. However, be careful playing AJ, AT, KJ as these hands are vulnerable to losing to a higher kicker (i.e. if an Ace is on the board, but someone else has AK, you would lose because he has a higher 'kicker').
Category IV
Ax suited (x means any small card), Kx suited (x should be 7 or higher preferably) 77, 66, T9, 98, 87, 76 (only play the connecting cards if they are suited and you can play hands with a one card gap, like T8, as well)
These hands are okay, but generally don't win. They need a lot of help from the board.
Category V
Small pocket pairs (55, 44, 33, 22)
Category I hands should almost always be played. The only exception is if you hold AK or say JJ and you are positive that someone has AA or KK by the way they are raising (in other words, the person is a very tight player but is acting like a maniac preflop). These hands in general should be raised from any position and you want to get a lot of money in preflop. However, remember, for AK you need to hit an Ace or a King. So do not get in a raising war with one person because that person likely has a pocket pair already.
Category II hands should generally be played. These hands do best with less people, so you should raise to knock people out. Do not jam the pot though (i.e. reraise) because these hands have little value before you see the board. Do not call 3 bets cold with these hands (if you raise, then someone reraises, call, but do not call if someone raised, then reraised, and then it's your turn.) The reason you do not call 3 bets cold is because you clearly do not have an advantage going into the flop. The one thing to remember in Limit Hold'em is you want to have an advantage going into the flop. Go ahead and call one raise in late position, unless the raiser was in early position and is a very good player (he probably has you beat with a category I hand).
Category III: Treat these hands with caution. They are often dominated by cateogry I or II hands. Basically, with the exception of 88, these hands are vulnerable because they are generally high cards but their kickers are somewhat low.
You should play these hands more often when they are suited and/or you are in late position. When they are suited, they have a higher chance of winning, especially among a multi-way pot. When you are in later position, you will have a better idea where you stand among other players. If there has been heavy action before you, you should consider folding because someone might have a hand that dominates yours. However, if everyone has folded to you or there is just a limper or two, a raise is probably in order.
Category IV/V: these hands are very different. You want a large, multiway pot. The reason being is that these hands miss the flop most often. However, sometimes these hands are amazing (i.e. if you hit a straight, flush, or trips). Therefore, you want to be paid of big when you actually hit something with these hands, which is why you want a lot of people in the pot.
Flop Play
Once you hit the flop, you will be in one of four situations:
1. You are winning but have a beatable hand. For example, you have top pair, top kicker or an overpair (e.g., you hold Q Q and the board is J 10 5). You want to jam the pot and knock people out. Thus, you want someone to bet to you and then to raise if you are in early position. If you are in late position and no one has bet, you must bet to knock people out.
2. You have a boss hand. You have three-of-a-kind or maybe even a full house on the flop. There is no reason to knock people out, because you will probably win (unless you have trips and there's a flush draw out there; then you need to make them pay). In these situations, it's generally best to wait until the turn to really jam the pot, but jam the pot on the flop if you think a scary draw is out there that will beat you.
3. You have the second-best hand. If you follow my preflop strategy, this is unlikely, but it could happen. Example: you hold A Q and the flop comes K Q 4. In this case, treat the hand as a drawing hand or simply fold, unless you really believe that you may have the best hand at the moment (this is unlikely in a larger, multi-way pot because someone is bound to have a King).
4. You have a drawing hand. Example: you have two spades in the hole and there are two on the board. For these hands, you must use outs and pot odds. There is a detailed explanation of this in the shorthand article under 'Flop Tips.'
5. You have nothing. Example: you hold 6 6 and flop is A K 7. You clearly are beat, just fold at the first bet.
This is the basic way to win at longhand limit. There really aren't that many tricky situations you will encounter. Just remember, the more people that are in the pot, the higher the likelihood that someone has the boss hand that is out there on the board, so be careful of that. Don't get attached to AK if AQQ is on the board because someone probably has the Queen.
posted by texas holdem poker strategy at 3:13 PM
Tuesday, May 17, 2005
Poker Traps!
Texas Holdem Poker Strategy - Here are some common useful hints to think about when playing poker:
- Never play online poker drunk. In fact, even 1 single beer may affect your play. When you play poker your mind must be in top shape.
- Don't play online poker because you are bored. If you are bored it is likely you will not be paying enough attention to the action at the poker table and will play below your normal skills.
- Don't play online unless you are in a good shape of mind. Don't play tired and don't play when you are sick.
- Don't play for money you can not afford to lose. Look at the money as "lost" when depositing; you have not won anything until you cash them out.
- Play at tables with stakes that matches your poker budget. Don't try to catch up a loss by playing a higher stakes table. If you lost at the lower stakes table, why would you "win it back" at the higher stakes table, where it is more likely the players are more skilled.
- Don't bluff to much. And if you are going to bluff, do it credible. If you strongly believe your opponent will fold if you do a big bet, do it. If he can afford a loss to call you, he probably will.
- If you have "the nuts" and think your opponent might have a big hand as well - don't hesitate to go all-in. An example: Imagine you have 10,10 offsuit (not diamonds) and your opponent has AKs diamonds. On the table there are 3d, 7d, 7(hearts), 10d, Qd. Your opponent has a flush but you have a full house. Your full house is very hard for the opponent to spot, but you strongly think he might have the flush because of the 4 diamonds at the table. GO ALL-IN! If he has the flush, he will call! The trap situation is the opposite, don't play a flush hand too aggressive if there is a pair on the table. Especially not if another player has been aggressive in the same hand.
- At a 6-10 players table, don't play a "highest-pair" hand too aggressive. The risk is that you get committed to the pot and your opponent, with a two-pair or higher, traps you into it. At least have a two-pair hand to make your aggressive move.
- Don't think you will win money by getting lucky. This will not work in the long run. You might hit a nice pot from time to time, but this will not make you money. Play with your head, and use your knowledge of poker strategies.
- If you have lost, take a break, don't try a revenge. You will likely play below your skills so have a break and clear your mind. Think about why you lost, and what you could have done differently. Each time you lose, try to learn something from it.
- If you feel your opponents are more skilled or are on a winning run, leave the table and find another one! You should not have too much respect for your opponents, this will be bad for your play.
- If you raised the pot in a middle position with a descent hand, like AQs or something, and a player in a later position goes all-in, DON'T join it. At least not unless he is short-stacked and you suspect a bluff. It is very likely that he has a AA, KK, QQ or even a 22 that is an odds favourite to win against you.
- Don't slow-play AA and KK on a table with more than 2-4 players.
posted by texas holdem poker strategy at 7:29 PM
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