Wow. It has been a long friggin' time since I actually wrote a blog. In fact, the last time I posted results it was for October of 2009 - a whole fucking year! I'm going to try and take it up again, I guess.
What is really sad is that in looking back over some of my older entries I realize that I STILL suck at poker. Well, I wouldn't say I suck, entirely. I will give my credit for having a solid fundamental understanding of the game. Unfortunately, with the wealth of poker information out there, that is only good enough to make a player a "meh", break-even player. I need to step up my game. And really, to step up my game I need to play less tables. As easy and simple as that would seem to be, part of the "fun" part of online poker for me is the "grind" which is what a lot of these young poker players dread -- actually having to sit down and just grind away. But I digress; since I love to grind and just get hands in, I enjoy multi-tabling to build up hands and stats. That is great and all, but the bottom line is I am not going to improve my game much by doing that.
I have literally just thought of a plan as I write this: I will split my time grinding 4 tables of Rush and playing just 2 tables of Rush. This will allow me to get the best of both worlds. The next step is figuring out what that mix will be. I've been doing 30-40 minute sessions with a 10-15 minute break in-between (work permitting). Perhaps a good mix would be to alternate 4 tables of Rush with 2 tables of Rush each session. Hmm... that just might work.
So, here are my "results" for October, 2010:
I played 66K hands and with rakeback and bonus I was up $457. I did really well playing 25NL fullring rush winning at a 8.19 bb/100 (4.09 BB/100) clip. But alas, I sucked at 50NL fullring rush, losing at 2.04 bb/100 (1.02 BB/100). I guess that isn't a hugely bad winning rate.
November 2010 Goals:
I need to come up with some goals, so here goes:
[ ] Play at least 60,000 hands
[ ] Watch at least 1 CR video per week
[ ] Improve Double Barreling. I'm not sure how to measure this exactly, though. But want I want to do is to dub when a) I turned more equity (or still have good equity); or b) a scared card hit (scare card based on my opponents range of holdings).
[ ] Do not look at HEM results or cashier more than 2 times per week.
[ ] Get to, and stay at NL50 (I almost have enough roll to play there now, but I will prolly start at 25NL mixing in some 50NL.
[ ] Read Tommy Angelo's book again.
[ ] Study for a minimum of 15 minutes per day -- generally in form of HH review; do at least 1 equity calculation.
[ ] Edit: Whenever I play 50NL+, I will play a maximum of 2 tables. If I feel like "grinding", I will play 25NL or lower only.
Random crap.
I read Tommy Angelo's book (title is alluding me atm) and I read the Poker Mindset. Both fantastic books for helping with the mental side of poker. I have come to the conclusion that a my winrate is taking a HUGE hit from me tilting. I hope that reading these books (and re-reading them) will help with that. I need to remember that poker is a long-term game and I must quickly let go of past hands. If I feel I screwed up or played it wrong it is ok to briefly acknowledge that and make a mental note to review the hand, but then I need to move on.
I have rambled a shit-ton, so ima gunna wrap it up.
Chow peoples! (and by peoples, I mean me, since I am the only person that will read this!)
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Blind Defense
In my last article, I discussed stealing the blinds. This week I wanted to talk about how to defend your blinds from those blind-stealing maniacs.
The quick and dirty answer is: don't worry too much about it. If you are stealing like you should be from the hijack, cutoff, and button, then you will more than make up for the times your blinds get stolen. In other words, it is far more profitable to steal blinds than it is to defend them. The reason is simple: blind defense is difficult because you will be playing out of position and as we all know, playing out of position sucks.
But for those of you who just can’t stand the idea of some mofo trying to steal blinds, I’ve got some tips and tricks for you.
The Blinds Are Not Your Money
As soon as you post your blinds that money belongs to the pot. It does not belong to you anymore. Lose that attachment and that feeling that that money is yours. In so doing, you will be able to detach yourself from the emotion of defending “your” money and be able to make a logical decision as to whether you should fight for the money in the pot or not.
Stop and Look Both Ways
I always tell my kids to stop and look both ways before they cross the street. When stealing the blinds you need to look “both ways” also. You look to your right to determine if the “stealer” is likely stealing or if he likely has a hand. When defending the small blind, you need to look to your left at the big blind and understand if this person is going to go and get tricky on you.
There are number of helpful stats when dealing with the folks to your right (the button, cutoff, and to a lesser extent the hijack positions). The first is your opponent’s attempt to steal percentage. If it is high (I consider 30% + to be high) than it is more likely that this person is making a steal attempt. If it is low, then it is more likely the opponent simply just has a hand. The next thing I look at when looking to my right is the fold to 3 bet stat. If this person folds to a 3 bet a lot, then your blind defense (which is usually going to be in the form of a 3 bet) is more likely to be successful. The last thing I look at when looking right is the opponent’s cbet stats. Look for a high fold to cbet when you are looking to 3 bet as a blind defense and look for a high cbet percentage when looking to flat as blind defense.
How to Defend
There are only two ways to defend your blinds. You can 3-bet or you can call. When you are 3-betting, the idea is that you either have a hand that that you want to build a big pot with or a hand that you are re-stealing with (i.e. you are 3-betting light). When you have a hand that you are re-stealing with, the ideal candidate is an opponent who (a) steals a lot; (b) folds to a 3-bet a lot, or (c) folds to c-bets a lot.
When 3-betting light vs. a likely steal attempt, its ok to fold if the stealer 4-bets you (people don’t 4-bet as a bluff that much and if they do, kudos to them –you don’t want to play a huge pot out of position). There are too many nuances to go into what to do post-flop, but generally when you are 3-betting light vs. a likely steal attempt, this is usually a 2 street play (i.e. raise flop, make a cbet, and shut-down if you get resistance and your hand does not get improved).
If you choose to defend your blinds by calling a likely steal attempt, it is imperative that you have a solid post-flop plan for how you plan on winning the hand unimproved. Do not fall into the trap of calling and trying to “hit a flop”. That is the fishy play and just lighting money on fire (in fact, you may get more value from lighting money on fire – the flame will look pretty, and it will generate a little heat in this cold weather). When I say you should have a plan, it should be something like: “I’m flatting this steal with the intention of check/raising any A,K, or Q high flop”; or “I’m flatting this steal with the intention of calling any flop c-bet and leading any turn”, or “I’m flatting this steal with the intention of leading any turn card if he checks back to me on the flop”.
What To Defend With
I’m going to have to give the standard poker answer of “it depends.” It depends on the opponent who is stealing, your image, your history with the particular opponent, etc. However, I will give you a general tip: 3-bet the top and the bottom of your range, call with the middle of your range, and fold everything else ("range" being the hands that you consider to be playable – my steal defense range is similar to my cutoff range). The basic idea is that you want to 3-bet with your big hands (to build a pot) and you want to 3-bet with the bottom of your range for balancing purposes (i.e. so people don’t get a read that you ONLY 3-bet from the b
linds with monsters). With middle of your range hands, you are flatting because these hands have too much equity against a likely steal so you don’t want to fold them but they are not strong enough to call a 4-bet, so you flat with them and play some poker. You fold your junk hands because playing crappy hands out of position sucks.
Note on small pocket pairs: I will either 3 bet or fold all of my small pocket pairs. Unlike other situations where you are getting good IO (Implied Odds) to call a raise with a small pocket pair and set-mine, you usually do not have the IO in a steal situation. This is because a typical steal range is very wide so on the rare occasions where you hit your set on the flop, you aren’t going to get paid off nearly as much as you would against a tight range. In other words, a tight range hits most flops and is less likely to fold, whereas a wide range misses most flops and is mostly likely to give up.
Small Blind Considerations
When defending your small blind, do not lose sight of the big blind because it gets to have position on you both pre-flop and post flop. Be especially aware of the big blind’s likelihood to squeeze (3-betting after a raise and a call). If you’ve got a tricky squeeze-happy person in your big blind, it is going to make it very difficult for you to call a likely steal attempt. The implications are that you should tighten up your calling range.
Big Blind Considerations
As mentioned earlier, the big blind is unique in that it always has position on the small blind (both pre-flop and post-flop). This means that you can defend your big blind from a small blind steal attempt quite a bit wider than a blind vs. a late position steal attempt. If a small blind attempts to open limp (complete) when it is down to blind vs. blind, raise him every single time with any two cards. This is a very profitable move.
I hope this article helps you in defending the blinds against a steal. Until next time, good luck at the tables! If you have any questions about this article, or anything online poker related, please free to shoot an email to: dougfieselman@ymail.com. For great rakeback and bonus deals, please visit PokerNewsPage.com.
The quick and dirty answer is: don't worry too much about it. If you are stealing like you should be from the hijack, cutoff, and button, then you will more than make up for the times your blinds get stolen. In other words, it is far more profitable to steal blinds than it is to defend them. The reason is simple: blind defense is difficult because you will be playing out of position and as we all know, playing out of position sucks.
But for those of you who just can’t stand the idea of some mofo trying to steal blinds, I’ve got some tips and tricks for you.
The Blinds Are Not Your Money
As soon as you post your blinds that money belongs to the pot. It does not belong to you anymore. Lose that attachment and that feeling that that money is yours. In so doing, you will be able to detach yourself from the emotion of defending “your” money and be able to make a logical decision as to whether you should fight for the money in the pot or not.
Stop and Look Both Ways
I always tell my kids to stop and look both ways before they cross the street. When stealing the blinds you need to look “both ways” also. You look to your right to determine if the “stealer” is likely stealing or if he likely has a hand. When defending the small blind, you need to look to your left at the big blind and understand if this person is going to go and get tricky on you.
There are number of helpful stats when dealing with the folks to your right (the button, cutoff, and to a lesser extent the hijack positions). The first is your opponent’s attempt to steal percentage. If it is high (I consider 30% + to be high) than it is more likely that this person is making a steal attempt. If it is low, then it is more likely the opponent simply just has a hand. The next thing I look at when looking to my right is the fold to 3 bet stat. If this person folds to a 3 bet a lot, then your blind defense (which is usually going to be in the form of a 3 bet) is more likely to be successful. The last thing I look at when looking right is the opponent’s cbet stats. Look for a high fold to cbet when you are looking to 3 bet as a blind defense and look for a high cbet percentage when looking to flat as blind defense.
How to Defend
There are only two ways to defend your blinds. You can 3-bet or you can call. When you are 3-betting, the idea is that you either have a hand that that you want to build a big pot with or a hand that you are re-stealing with (i.e. you are 3-betting light). When you have a hand that you are re-stealing with, the ideal candidate is an opponent who (a) steals a lot; (b) folds to a 3-bet a lot, or (c) folds to c-bets a lot.
When 3-betting light vs. a likely steal attempt, its ok to fold if the stealer 4-bets you (people don’t 4-bet as a bluff that much and if they do, kudos to them –you don’t want to play a huge pot out of position). There are too many nuances to go into what to do post-flop, but generally when you are 3-betting light vs. a likely steal attempt, this is usually a 2 street play (i.e. raise flop, make a cbet, and shut-down if you get resistance and your hand does not get improved). If you choose to defend your blinds by calling a likely steal attempt, it is imperative that you have a solid post-flop plan for how you plan on winning the hand unimproved. Do not fall into the trap of calling and trying to “hit a flop”. That is the fishy play and just lighting money on fire (in fact, you may get more value from lighting money on fire – the flame will look pretty, and it will generate a little heat in this cold weather). When I say you should have a plan, it should be something like: “I’m flatting this steal with the intention of check/raising any A,K, or Q high flop”; or “I’m flatting this steal with the intention of calling any flop c-bet and leading any turn”, or “I’m flatting this steal with the intention of leading any turn card if he checks back to me on the flop”.
What To Defend With
I’m going to have to give the standard poker answer of “it depends.” It depends on the opponent who is stealing, your image, your history with the particular opponent, etc. However, I will give you a general tip: 3-bet the top and the bottom of your range, call with the middle of your range, and fold everything else ("range" being the hands that you consider to be playable – my steal defense range is similar to my cutoff range). The basic idea is that you want to 3-bet with your big hands (to build a pot) and you want to 3-bet with the bottom of your range for balancing purposes (i.e. so people don’t get a read that you ONLY 3-bet from the b
linds with monsters). With middle of your range hands, you are flatting because these hands have too much equity against a likely steal so you don’t want to fold them but they are not strong enough to call a 4-bet, so you flat with them and play some poker. You fold your junk hands because playing crappy hands out of position sucks. Note on small pocket pairs: I will either 3 bet or fold all of my small pocket pairs. Unlike other situations where you are getting good IO (Implied Odds) to call a raise with a small pocket pair and set-mine, you usually do not have the IO in a steal situation. This is because a typical steal range is very wide so on the rare occasions where you hit your set on the flop, you aren’t going to get paid off nearly as much as you would against a tight range. In other words, a tight range hits most flops and is less likely to fold, whereas a wide range misses most flops and is mostly likely to give up.
Small Blind Considerations
When defending your small blind, do not lose sight of the big blind because it gets to have position on you both pre-flop and post flop. Be especially aware of the big blind’s likelihood to squeeze (3-betting after a raise and a call). If you’ve got a tricky squeeze-happy person in your big blind, it is going to make it very difficult for you to call a likely steal attempt. The implications are that you should tighten up your calling range.
Big Blind Considerations
As mentioned earlier, the big blind is unique in that it always has position on the small blind (both pre-flop and post-flop). This means that you can defend your big blind from a small blind steal attempt quite a bit wider than a blind vs. a late position steal attempt. If a small blind attempts to open limp (complete) when it is down to blind vs. blind, raise him every single time with any two cards. This is a very profitable move.
I hope this article helps you in defending the blinds against a steal. Until next time, good luck at the tables! If you have any questions about this article, or anything online poker related, please free to shoot an email to: dougfieselman@ymail.com. For great rakeback and bonus deals, please visit PokerNewsPage.com.
Blind Stealing Primer
Where else but in poker is stealing legal, acceptable, and expected? It is also incredibly profitable. In this column I'm going to provide a primer on how to steal the blinds, well... blind.
To help get you in the proper stealing mood, check out this video.
What is a steal?
Stealing is making a pre-flop raise in an unopened pot from late position (Button, Cut-off and sometimes hi-jack positions) or the small blind with the intention of winning the blinds, usually with relatively weak holdings.
Why steal?
As I mentioned earlier, stealing is hugely profitable. Hugely profitable? Come on! We are only talking 1.5 big blinds (bb), that is like $1.50 at NL100. That doesn't sound "hugely profitable" does it? Well, let us put that in context, shall we? A solid winrate is around 6-10 bb/100. A successful steal will yield you a winrate of 150bb/100! Obviously you aren't always going to be successful, but it should be clear how profitable stealing can be.
Even if you get called you stand to win even more if because you will be playing post-flop 1) in position; and 2) with initiative and that makes poker a lot easier to play. Well, that and the fact that people tend to auto-fold to continuation bets at a sick high rate.
There are also indirect benefits to stealing the blinds. For instance, you may get an image of being a "loose" player because it will appear as if you are playing a lot of hands (and a lot of crappy ones if you happen to show down a steal attempt). When you get that image you'll find it easier to get paid off with your big hands (note that if you show down a really weak hand you'll need to tighten up on the stealing for a bit because your image will be crap).
Look to your left
Whenever you have an opportunity to steal, the first thing you want to do is to look to the people on your left and assess your opponents. Once that is done, THEN look at your cards. When looking for ideal opponents to steal from look for:
* Low VPIP (i.e. a tight player)
* Low 3bet percentage (for obvious reasons, you don't want to steal on a guy who is likely to 3 bet you)
* High fold to steal percentage. If you have a HUD, have this stat on there. The higher the percentage, the more often you should be stealing.
* High folds to a cbet. These guys are even better than the folks who habitually fold to steal attempts because they practically hand you their pre-flop call money to you. Bet sizing hint: against opponents with low fold to steals and high fold to cbets, you should make your steal amount higher to take advantage of this huge leak.
* Look at the stack size. From really tight (and bad) shortstackers you can steal from them all day long because they play like nits. However, be aware that if you steal with a normal 3-4bb raise, you are going to find yourself being committed to the pot with a pretty wide range (ie. pretty much anything but complete trash). For that reason, I recommend using a min-raise steal against the shorties, even if you don't otherwise adjust your open raise size.
Ideal Hands for Stealing
As with most anything in poker, it depends. It depends on the players left to act, your image, the table dynamics, and your skill/comfort in playing post-flop. Here are some things to think about though:
* Be very loose from the button, tighten up a bit from the cutoff, and tighten up even more the hijack.
* Generally, look for hands that have at least a little post flop value: suited aces, suited kings, suited connectors, suited one gappers, any two broadway cards, any pocket pair. If you aren't comfortable playing post-flop you can tighten up and play the tops of the these ranges.
* If you have tight people to your left, you can steal with any two cards. Keep stealing until they adjust.
* If you have loose players to your left, you need to tighten up, but it doesn't mean you can't steal. In this situation, I personally prefer hands that have the ability to flop good top pair hands (like two broadways, Ax hands and Kx hands) as opposed to hands that flop good draws (like suited connectors and gappers). The reason is that loose players tend to call you down with 2nd and 3rd pairs so you can get an unusual amount of value from weak-ish top pair hands.
* If you have a loose player on the button or the cutoff you'll need to tighten up considerably because if you get called you will be playing out of position.
Note on Betsizing
Generally speaking, I like to lower my open raise from steal spots. I do this for a number of reasons. One is that because my range is going to be wider, my average hand strength is going to be weaker. A smaller bet size means that I risk less when I get caught stealing. Also, a smaller bet size means your steal has to work less frequently to be profitable. For example, if you steal by raising to 4bb, it has to work 73% of the time (we are risking 4 units to win 1.5 units). If you min-raise to 2bb, it only has to work 57% of the time (risk 2 units to win 1.5 units).
Getting Caught
It is simply going to happen. You raise with your 7,5 offsuit on the button and the big blind 3 bets you. There is no shame in folding a busted steal attempt. Do not waste money getting stubborn and 4 bet him with crap (or worse, flat-call the 3 bet).
Just let it go and steal again the next time you get the chance. If he starts to 3 bet you frequently, then you may want to think about...
Adjusting
If you steal as often as you should be, even an unobservant fish will start to catch on. Fortunately for us, many of our opponents adjust by calling us instead of 3 betting us. We love when our opponents adjust this way because they are often still playing fit or fold poker on the flop and you'll be taking the pot down a ton with a cbet. When our opponents adjust by 3 betting or calling and playing tricky post-flop more frequently than normal, you need to start cutting down on the stealing for a bit. After you've tightened up for a round or two and showed-down some strong hands, you can recommence your frequent stealing until your opponents adjust again. Rinse and repeat.
I hope this article helps you in your attempts to steal. Until next time, good luck at the tables! If you have any questions about this article, or anything online poker related, please free to shoot an email to: dougfieselman@ymail.com. For great rakeback and bonus deals, please visit PokerNewsPage.com.
To help get you in the proper stealing mood, check out this video.
What is a steal?
Stealing is making a pre-flop raise in an unopened pot from late position (Button, Cut-off and sometimes hi-jack positions) or the small blind with the intention of winning the blinds, usually with relatively weak holdings.
Why steal?
As I mentioned earlier, stealing is hugely profitable. Hugely profitable? Come on! We are only talking 1.5 big blinds (bb), that is like $1.50 at NL100. That doesn't sound "hugely profitable" does it? Well, let us put that in context, shall we? A solid winrate is around 6-10 bb/100. A successful steal will yield you a winrate of 150bb/100! Obviously you aren't always going to be successful, but it should be clear how profitable stealing can be.
Even if you get called you stand to win even more if because you will be playing post-flop 1) in position; and 2) with initiative and that makes poker a lot easier to play. Well, that and the fact that people tend to auto-fold to continuation bets at a sick high rate.
There are also indirect benefits to stealing the blinds. For instance, you may get an image of being a "loose" player because it will appear as if you are playing a lot of hands (and a lot of crappy ones if you happen to show down a steal attempt). When you get that image you'll find it easier to get paid off with your big hands (note that if you show down a really weak hand you'll need to tighten up on the stealing for a bit because your image will be crap).
Look to your left
Whenever you have an opportunity to steal, the first thing you want to do is to look to the people on your left and assess your opponents. Once that is done, THEN look at your cards. When looking for ideal opponents to steal from look for:
* Low VPIP (i.e. a tight player)
* Low 3bet percentage (for obvious reasons, you don't want to steal on a guy who is likely to 3 bet you)
* High fold to steal percentage. If you have a HUD, have this stat on there. The higher the percentage, the more often you should be stealing.
* High folds to a cbet. These guys are even better than the folks who habitually fold to steal attempts because they practically hand you their pre-flop call money to you. Bet sizing hint: against opponents with low fold to steals and high fold to cbets, you should make your steal amount higher to take advantage of this huge leak.
* Look at the stack size. From really tight (and bad) shortstackers you can steal from them all day long because they play like nits. However, be aware that if you steal with a normal 3-4bb raise, you are going to find yourself being committed to the pot with a pretty wide range (ie. pretty much anything but complete trash). For that reason, I recommend using a min-raise steal against the shorties, even if you don't otherwise adjust your open raise size.
Ideal Hands for Stealing
As with most anything in poker, it depends. It depends on the players left to act, your image, the table dynamics, and your skill/comfort in playing post-flop. Here are some things to think about though:
* Be very loose from the button, tighten up a bit from the cutoff, and tighten up even more the hijack.
* Generally, look for hands that have at least a little post flop value: suited aces, suited kings, suited connectors, suited one gappers, any two broadway cards, any pocket pair. If you aren't comfortable playing post-flop you can tighten up and play the tops of the these ranges.
* If you have tight people to your left, you can steal with any two cards. Keep stealing until they adjust.
* If you have loose players to your left, you need to tighten up, but it doesn't mean you can't steal. In this situation, I personally prefer hands that have the ability to flop good top pair hands (like two broadways, Ax hands and Kx hands) as opposed to hands that flop good draws (like suited connectors and gappers). The reason is that loose players tend to call you down with 2nd and 3rd pairs so you can get an unusual amount of value from weak-ish top pair hands.
* If you have a loose player on the button or the cutoff you'll need to tighten up considerably because if you get called you will be playing out of position.
Note on Betsizing
Generally speaking, I like to lower my open raise from steal spots. I do this for a number of reasons. One is that because my range is going to be wider, my average hand strength is going to be weaker. A smaller bet size means that I risk less when I get caught stealing. Also, a smaller bet size means your steal has to work less frequently to be profitable. For example, if you steal by raising to 4bb, it has to work 73% of the time (we are risking 4 units to win 1.5 units). If you min-raise to 2bb, it only has to work 57% of the time (risk 2 units to win 1.5 units).
Getting Caught
It is simply going to happen. You raise with your 7,5 offsuit on the button and the big blind 3 bets you. There is no shame in folding a busted steal attempt. Do not waste money getting stubborn and 4 bet him with crap (or worse, flat-call the 3 bet).
Just let it go and steal again the next time you get the chance. If he starts to 3 bet you frequently, then you may want to think about...Adjusting
If you steal as often as you should be, even an unobservant fish will start to catch on. Fortunately for us, many of our opponents adjust by calling us instead of 3 betting us. We love when our opponents adjust this way because they are often still playing fit or fold poker on the flop and you'll be taking the pot down a ton with a cbet. When our opponents adjust by 3 betting or calling and playing tricky post-flop more frequently than normal, you need to start cutting down on the stealing for a bit. After you've tightened up for a round or two and showed-down some strong hands, you can recommence your frequent stealing until your opponents adjust again. Rinse and repeat.
I hope this article helps you in your attempts to steal. Until next time, good luck at the tables! If you have any questions about this article, or anything online poker related, please free to shoot an email to: dougfieselman@ymail.com. For great rakeback and bonus deals, please visit PokerNewsPage.com.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Is Online Poker Safe?
| This is a legitimate question for those of us who play online poker and for those of you who are interested in it but have not yet hit the online poker tables. While I’m sure some cheating does happen (it happens in live poker, too), I believe that it is generally safe to play online poker. Here are some the safety concerns people have when it comes to playing poker online and some tips for staying safe: Cheating Scandals Since most people have heard about the Absolute Poker and Ultimate Bet scandals, I won’t go into  great detail here. What basically happened was that someone connected to the companies set up a way to see other player’s hole cards (super users) and ended up winning thousands of dollars before finally getting caught (by fellow online poker players). So if one of the largest and most popular online poker rooms (at the time) got busted for having super users, how can I be sure there aren’t still super users out there who can see my hole cards? Frankly, you can’t be entirely sure that it won’t happen again. However, online poker rooms have a huge incentive to ensure this does not happen on their site: millions and millions of dollars of money. Should another scandal like this happen, the online poker room would lose most of its player base and with it, millions of dollars in rake. Is online poker rigged? People are constantly complaining that online poker is rigged. The most often used argument for poker being rigged are things like: “there are too many bad beats in online poker” or “I always get set-up hands (i.e. set-over-set or AA vs KK preflop) in online poker” usually followed by the statement “that never happens in live poker.” I’ve certainly had runs of bad cards where these thoughts start to creep in my mind. But guess what? Bad beats happen in poker. Set-up hands happen in poker. It’s a mathematical certainty. And, I’m willing to wager that it happens at the same frequency in online poker as it does in live poker. Collusion Collusion is the act of more than one player working together in a hand. Online, this typically  consists of players telling each other their hole cards in a hand via an instant messenger. This is probably the easiest way to cheat playing online poker. Fortunately, the online poker rooms have installed software designed to recognize collusion. Online poker rooms are serious about cracking down on collusion because they will lose players if the online poker room becomes known for not dealing with collusion. Poker Bots A poker bot is a program designed to play poker with little or no input from a human. If you search the inter-webs you can find all kinds of supposed poker bots for sale. While I’m sure there are some poker bots that can eke out small wins and crank out tons of hands to get rakeback, I’m not aware of a poker bot that is out there (yet) that consistently beats no limit hold ‘em. Like with collusion, online poker rooms have software in place to detect the use of poker bots because they can’t afford to lose players if they get a reputation of allowing bots to play on their site. Tips for Staying Safe Here are some basic tips for staying safe when playing online poker: * Play only on a large, reputable online poker rooms because they have the most to lose if they get caught in a scandal, are lax on cheating, etc. * If you feel that someone is cheating, report it to the poker room. Be sure to include the hand history and be as detailed as possible as to why you believe there was cheating going on. An email that simply says “that guy had to see my cards” isn’t likely to get much of a response. * Make sure you have proper virus and firewalls up to date and running. \Do not allow someone else to play poker on the same online site you play from your computer or play on someone else’s computer. Online poker rooms will often flag this as a  security issue. Usually things get worked out and rarely do your funds get confiscated by the online poker room, but it can be a pain in the ass to resolve and sometimes it ends with you no longer being welcome to play at that particular site. * Practice good password policies (i.e. sophisticated passwords, regularly changing your password, etc). * Create a “poker only” email address. This reduces the chance of your email being hacked and hackers getting a hold of your password for your online poker account. * Keep only the amount of money you need for the level you are playing and your current bankroll strategy. * Follow the rules of the online site and don’t cheat. If you get caught cheating, the online poker room will likely confiscate your funds. And frankly, you’d deserve it because well, cheaters suck. For great rakeback deals, go to: http://rakeback.pokernewspage.com/ | ||
Saturday, October 31, 2009
October 2009 Results
October was a pretty decent month for me. Overall, I ended up +1,172 for the month -- my first +1k month since January (eeks!). I am about 15.6K behind my monetary goal for the year which is going to make it impossible to reach. I'm behind last year's total by $4K so even beating that is extremely unlikely, although that is my new, short term goal.
Here is specific results:
NL50
Hands: 38,047
bb/100: 4.23
Profit: $804.30
NL100:
Hands: 14,586
bb/100: 0.07
Profit: $9.90
PLO:
Hands: 3,063
Profit: - 71.74
Next month I hope to put most of my volume in at NL100. In talking to my coach at the end of September, it would appear I've sealed a major leak (lack of cbetting). I have noticed that since my move to NL100 that I've been playing a little more timid than I would like so I'd like to open up a bit more -- especially from the C/O. I need to make sure I cbet when I steal nearly every time and I need to find more spots to double barrel.
Here is specific results:
NL50
Hands: 38,047
bb/100: 4.23
Profit: $804.30
NL100:
Hands: 14,586
bb/100: 0.07
Profit: $9.90
PLO:
Hands: 3,063
Profit: - 71.74
Next month I hope to put most of my volume in at NL100. In talking to my coach at the end of September, it would appear I've sealed a major leak (lack of cbetting). I have noticed that since my move to NL100 that I've been playing a little more timid than I would like so I'd like to open up a bit more -- especially from the C/O. I need to make sure I cbet when I steal nearly every time and I need to find more spots to double barrel.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
September 2009 Results
Another "meh" month for me. It started off well and then just kind of leveled off. Poker + Rakeback + bonuses I made a whopping $401.55.
Here is a breakdown:
50NLFR:
Hands: 37,129
WR: 1.24ptBB/100
10PLO:
Hands: 5,107
WR: - 15.49 (lol! imma PLO fish, but its fun to play)
Here is a breakdown:
50NLFR:
Hands: 37,129
WR: 1.24ptBB/100
10PLO:
Hands: 5,107
WR: - 15.49 (lol! imma PLO fish, but its fun to play)
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Advantages of Playing Online Poker
There are many reasons why people play online poker, but for me there are several key advantages to playing online poker vs. playing live poker:
* You get to play poker without having to interact with people in real life. For those of you who have played poker live, doesn’t it suck when you have to sit next to that homeless looking guy who smells like he hasn’t showered in days?
* No physical tells. People aren’t going to get any physical tells from you like seeing you sweat, seeing your eyes dilate, or seeing your hands shake as you put the chips in the pot. The counter to that of course, is that you don’t get to see any physical tells from your online opponents, either. In a future column I’ll write about some of the online tells that are available to you.
* And my favorite advantage to playing online poker: you can play in your skivvies or your birthday suit if you are so inclined. While the dress code for playing live is fairly lax, I’m fairly certain that you wouldn’t get too far showing up to a casino in nothing but your tighty whities.
Until next time, good luck at the tables!
* You get to play poker without having to interact with people in real life. For those of you who have played poker live, doesn’t it suck when you have to sit next to that homeless looking guy who smells like he hasn’t showered in days?
* No physical tells. People aren’t going to get any physical tells from you like seeing you sweat, seeing your eyes dilate, or seeing your hands shake as you put the chips in the pot. The counter to that of course, is that you don’t get to see any physical tells from your online opponents, either. In a future column I’ll write about some of the online tells that are available to you.
* No waiting for tables. In live poker, there are a limited number of tables at the stakes you want to play and you usually have to put your name on a list and wait for a seat. In online poker you can usually sit down and play right away and the times where you have to get on a waiting list, you don’t have to wait long for a seat. Additionally, you have a lot more flexibility to table select online vs. live poker where you have to play at the table they put you on.
* There are a larger variety of stakes you can play online. You can play with blinds as small as 1c/2c all the way up to high stakes games. With live play, the smallest no limit Texas Hold ‘em stakes you are likely to see is $1/$2 blinds and there may not be many high-stakes tables running. It is a great advantage to be able to start learning the game playing for pennies rather than playing for dollars.
* Hand histories/note taking. In live poker, you only have your memory of how a hand went down unless you are that nerdy guy who brings a pencil and pad of paper with you and writes down hands. Most online poker rooms write hand histories to your hard drive or keep them available for you to access online. Additionally, most online poker rooms have a note taking function so you can quickly jot down notes on how your opponent played a hand.
* Not having to do that pesky simple math. Math is a big part of poker. As simple as it sounds, when playing live it is sometimes difficult to remember the size of the pot, who raised what amount, etc, while at the same time trying to figure out what you are going to do when the action gets to you. With online poker, it is right there on your screen.
* Rakeback/bonuses. Rakeback is money you get back from the rake from certain online poker rooms. Additionally, poker rooms offer potentially lucrative bonuses for playing on their site. While a live poker room may give free drinks or comps for playing, the rakeback/bonuses online poker rooms provide greatly outweigh those.
* You don't have to tip the dealer when you win a pot. If you are winning your fair share of the pots, this can have a significant impact on your hourly rate.
* There are a larger variety of stakes you can play online. You can play with blinds as small as 1c/2c all the way up to high stakes games. With live play, the smallest no limit Texas Hold ‘em stakes you are likely to see is $1/$2 blinds and there may not be many high-stakes tables running. It is a great advantage to be able to start learning the game playing for pennies rather than playing for dollars.
* Multi-tabling. You can only play one table at a time in live poker. In online poker, you can play up to 24 tables at once. I will write a future column about how to multi-table effectively in the future, but the main advantages to multi-tabling are that it increases your hourly rate and reduces variance.
* Hand histories/note taking. In live poker, you only have your memory of how a hand went down unless you are that nerdy guy who brings a pencil and pad of paper with you and writes down hands. Most online poker rooms write hand histories to your hard drive or keep them available for you to access online. Additionally, most online poker rooms have a note taking function so you can quickly jot down notes on how your opponent played a hand.
* Not having to do that pesky simple math. Math is a big part of poker. As simple as it sounds, when playing live it is sometimes difficult to remember the size of the pot, who raised what amount, etc, while at the same time trying to figure out what you are going to do when the action gets to you. With online poker, it is right there on your screen.
* Rakeback/bonuses. Rakeback is money you get back from the rake from certain online poker rooms. Additionally, poker rooms offer potentially lucrative bonuses for playing on their site. While a live poker room may give free drinks or comps for playing, the rakeback/bonuses online poker rooms provide greatly outweigh those.
* You don't have to tip the dealer when you win a pot. If you are winning your fair share of the pots, this can have a significant impact on your hourly rate.
If you already play online poker and were bored with the first installment of this column, I’ve accompanied this column with a little eye candy – Tiffany Michelle. She’s a poker professional who also happens to be fairly hot.
Until next time, good luck at the tables!
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