Vincent’s Poker Blog

To a very large extent, poker is a game of logic. The professional players you see winning time and time again do so because they are able to keep things in perspective, even when the game gets fierce, even when the hand they are playing is particularly the nuts.

People are by and large drawn to poker because it is one of only several betting based games wherein winning is actually a possibility. With casino betting, whether you are at a bricks casino or playing online, the odds are generally stacked against you, no matter what you may think. Roulette, craps — there are no guarantees, even in Blackjack, unless you know how to count cards.

A lot of people never play poker because of the money — they play for fun, enjoyment, and entertainment. However, just as many players are in it for the money — and that is where things can get dangerous. You may not necessarily develop a gambling problem, but you don’t have to be addicted to lose a butt load of money.

Never, ever start playing because you think you can get rich quick. By the same token, take every loss with a grain of salt. When you start thing you have to win your losses back immediately, you’re in trouble.

Here’s some good news for gamblers and poker lovers in Minnesota, not to mention for eleven of the biggest internet service providers in the world. A mere four days following the statewide victory of the Poker Players Alliance, the Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division of Minnesota’s Public Safety division set word to the aforementioned ISPs. The purpose of the letters sent? To let the ISPs know that the state was officially rescinding the notices it sent out announcing that it would be blocking two hundred web sites devoted to gambling on the internet.

Verizon, Qwest, Charter, Sprint, and Comcast were but a few of the internet service providers served with this notice. The Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division was calling for a block of more than just poker sites. There were a veritable bevy of bingo sites included in their list of the sites they wanted blocked as well. They even included web sites which actually do not accept any actions from within the United States.

iMEGA filed a suit against the director of the division soon after the list was publicized. And they ultimately won, leading the division to rescind its demands.

The latest in online poker news is revolving heavily around Harrah’s Entertainment.  Just this Friday, the company made the annoucement detailing plans to expand internationally.  Specifically, a spokesperson for Harrah’s announced plans to expand in both gaming and the technologies, beginning on the European continent.

This was actually a very smart move on Harrah’s part.  This past week, a lot of companies in the United States have been making a very big to do about legalizing online poker.  The ensuing uproar has, of course, garnered a lot of attention.  And yet, there you have Harrah’s, releasing a rather subtle, understated press release, because they are essentially one upping every single one of their competitors.

To be sure, this announcement is sure to have an enormous effect on the World Series of Poker, especially if the game gets legalized in the United States.  The World Series is already huge, but experts anticipate that with the legalization of the game coupled with Harrah’s new EuroPoker venture — which is certain to do better than EuroDisney, since it involves gambling and money — will make the World Series of Poker an internationally huge phenomenon.

Whether you are an amateur or a professional player of Razz poker, you must have experienced that the game of razz poker is very different from the other variants of poker. This article houses some of the most crucial tips which can help you make large fortunes on your table. The game of Razz poker requires a combination of luck and skill. Some of the skills to excel in this game are mentioned below.

One should be patient and calculative from the beginning itself. In the game of Razz poker it is very easy to make out after the deal if your hand is a winner or not. When dealing two cards are dealt face downwards and one card is open to all the co players. If the open card is nine or a face card a player will probably fold while if the opened card is between an ace to five the game is worth playing.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you prefer poker online to actual socializing, than try the texas holdem tables here.

This is a great play most advanced players use on a regular basis against players who C-bet close to any board after they’ve raised — but we also know NOT to make this play in a check-call way out of position. Gavin Smith doesn’t stress this enough imo, so make sure you call in position, knowing that you’ll have the information of the player acting BEFORE you on the turn. This is VITAL.

Aah beautiful position

3 Players go to the flop, all hitting the board hard…

Eli Elezra pushes the turn in a strange play — Patrik Antonius close to HAVING to call, pushing the pot so high that Phil Ivey has no choice but to call either…

Cash game poker at its best.

Added value is not a concept that you will necessarily encounter early in your poker career but it is one that it is very important that you become familiar with as that career progresses. Added value is a way to enhance your winning potential when you play poker. As soon as you’ve learned how to cash out your pokerstars bonus, you should start searching for added value poker tournaments.

How Does Added Value Work, Exactly?

Added value refers to a situation where your poker investment is worth more than you paid for it. The best example of this comes when you look at tournaments with guaranteed prize pools. If you pay $100 to get into a tournament with a guaranteed prize pool of $50,000, the tournament will need 500 entrants to have enough to pay everyone out. This is fair value for you, since the pool is paying $500 for every $1 invested and you have about a 500-to-1 chance to win all things being equal (although obviously, being a superior player, you would expect to have a greater than average chance). However, if the tournament only gets 400 players, you have found yourself in a great position. You are now 400-to-1 to win on average, while the tournament is still paying out 500-to-1. This is added value – nowhere near as complicated as having to understand card removal theories.

Where Can I Find Added Value?

The potential for added value occurs anytime a poker tournament is offering a guarantee. However, many times the tournament will make their guarantee, which means no added value. You do not lose value, since the prize pool is not cut off when the guarantee is reached; it will continue to grow as more players sign up, but you don’t have any particular edge. It is only when the tournament fails to make its guarantee that you have an advantage.

How Do I Find Added Value?

This is tricky. Big, well-publicized tournaments with large guaranteed prize pools almost always make their guarantee. Don’t be fooled if a tournament needs 1000 players to make their guarantee and they only have 500 with five minutes before the tournament begins. Others are out for added value just like you are and there will be a mad dash to sign up and get in on the action in those last five minutes. Furthermore, registration will not close when the tournament starts and may go on for another hour. Your best bet to find added value is to look for low buy-in, less well publicized tournaments during off hours with games other than no limit hold’em.

I’m a huge fan of this champagne — and the only reason I am is because this Armand De Brignac bottle has the beautiful Ace of Spades on it!

GOTTA LOVE A POKER ADDICT!

I’ve decided to enter the next European Poker Tour event to hit the calendar. Why? Well, I got extremely lucky, and I’ve decided it’s time for my first big tournament.

How did I get lucky? Well, I was playing a 5/10 live game (No Limit Texas Hold’em), when the game started to die. My $1000 starting stack grew to about $7000, and we ended up 3-handed. Two guys both had about $3k, when I picked up KK UTG. I raised it, and saw a re-raise and another re-raise ahead of me. I kind of knew one of them had Aces, thought about it, but decided to push none the less. I can’t fold KK pre-flop in a cash game. I just can’t. To my surprise, both players called and when the cards were flipped over, I kind of got it. Both players had pocket Aces.

The flop came J4T, not looking good. The turn was way better, an off-suit Q, giving me a straight draw, giving me an extra two outs (now I didn’t want a King, I wanted a 9).

Well, you guessed it. I hit the nine on the river, scooping the $9k+ pot.

Sick beat, but hey, I can’t fold KK pre-flop in a cash game.

I’m investing part of that money into a try-out-buy-in for the EPT, and hope to do as good as Belgian semi-pro Jonathan Abdellatif, who cashed in his first EPT (this year’s Deauville). Fingers crossed!

I’m not a regular anymore at Pokerstars after I cashed out on their Sharkscope debacle, but now that I’ve seen the Pokerstars Leather Jacket up close in real live I’m convinced — I want one!

I’ve taken $2000 back from my Full Tilt account and shipped it onto Stars for some high stakes heads-up action hoping I can make those 10.000 points in no time…

I’ll keep you posted when I get it!