Absolute Poker Beats the Bad Beat

Written by Nigel

Every poker player knows how it is like to have a bad beat.  As much as any poker player would do almost anything to avoid one, it is also a known fact that there are just times when you do get a bad beat – there is no escaping it, at least once.  So how do you behave and react when you get a bad beat?  Some just ride the tide and let it blow over.  Others get sucked in and lose even more.

Absolute Poker has come up with something new for players who get a bad beat – something to turn the tables around somehow for them.  The new Bad Beat Jackpot from Absolute Poker adds a very interesting twist to their already popular Texas Hold ‘em version.  With the Bad Beat Jackpot, players who are losing immensely just might feel Lady Luck blowing her kisses upon them.  “We’re taking away the pain delivered by bad beats by throwing money at the victims,” stated David Clainer, senior vice president for Absolute Poker.  So how does it work?

Remember, if you are having a bad beat, your hand is supposedly favored to win but you still lose.  At the Bad Beat Jackpot table, if this happens to you, you can take home a piece of the Jackpot.  To start things off for the Bad Beat Jackpot, Absolute Poker is putting $100,000 into the jackpot.  If someone hits a qualifying bad beat (four twos or better), he gets a large part of the jackpot together with the other players at the table.  Interesting, I must say.

Poker DIY

Written by Nigel

I can’t remember exactly when the idea of DIY became popular but there is no doubt that all over the world, people are relishing the idea of doing things themselves.  It is thus no surprise that even Poker would have its own DIY.  What is this about really?

Ok imagine you setting up your own poker league.  You and your friends thought that it would be a great way to meet people and have nights full of poker fun.  Maybe there is some money involved and that makes your league all the more exciting.  In the beginning, it is just small and you have no problems monitoring everything.  Yet as time passes by, it seems that more and more people are getting into poker and your league just seems to expand at such a rapid pace.  You are now finding it hard to manage your league.  What do you do?

Get Poker DIY, a poker league management software.  According to Rodney Joyce, the founder of Poker DIY, “PokerDIY solves the problem by offering a complete online poker league management solution with poker game scheduling, league scoreboards and all the ingredients you would expect from a social network dedicated to poker players. Today we upped the ante by allowing poker league hosts to publish their tourney results directly from the well-known desktop poker game management software, The Tournament Director”.

If you are already using the Tournament Director, then chances are you have a clear idea of what I am talking about – this is merely taking things one step further.  For those who are still unclear, go to PokerDIY and see for yourselves.

Biggest Mistakes Tournament Newbies Make

Written by Nigel

Alright, we all make mistakes. We are but human after all. Yet if you are aware of certain mistakes that you just might commit, wouldn’t it be better for you? That way, you can take measures to avoid making those mistakes. These statements could actually apply both in real life and at the poker table. Read on to know which mistakes to avoid when you are a beginner.

Not Understanding When Someone Else is Pot-Committed
So what does this mean? Andrew Glazer says it best: “If you have a hand with which your raise commits you to the pot, you might as well go ahead and move all in with it. If you’re winning, you’ll win more, and if you’re losing, there’s a bigger chance that your opponent will fold.”

Underbetting the Pot
This is pretty simple, if you are trying to win the pot even though your hand isn’t that good (or in other words you have a bad hand) then do it with a bang. Don’t bet cheap – others will just call your bet to find out what you had. That way they will gain information on you. Make it expensive enough so that they won’t gain anything.

Calling with Draws
I have to admit, I did this a lot when I first started playing. Hoping that the next card would complete my hand was just irresistible. However, statistically speaking, the chances of completing, say, a flush draw is very nil. You don’t bet big on such situations. More often than not, you will just lose this way.

Back to the basics - Getting Started

Written by Nigel

We’ve been through quite a lot in these past few months and I thought it would be nice to go back to the basics. There are so many new poker players out there, thanks to the publicity it gets from the different celebrity tours. These people need a solid foundation on poker. For the oldies, it is always a good thing to be reminded of the bare essentials. So how do we get started in a poker game?

The first thing that has to be determined is how much everyone around the table is willing to pay. This is what we call the stakes. Three things to be considered when setting the stakes are:

What is the standard ante going to be?
What is the minimum bet?
What is the maximum bet?

How low or how high the stakes is depends on the minimum and maximum bet, respectively. They are the outer limits and any player can bet any amount within those limits.

Once these figures have been determined by the players around the table, they are ready to move on to the next step which is determining who will get the first hand. This is really variable depending on the players. One way we do it is to have someone deal cards one at a time and the first one to get an Ace gets the first hand. Others wait for the Jack instead of the Ace – it does not really matter how you do it as long as you determine who gets first hand.

The Poker Players Alliance

Written by Nigel

I am sure you have heard of this group – they are on our side!  In the past months, they have been actively fighting for the rights of poker players, in the light of the internet gambling ban in the U.S.  Just to give you more ideas on what they are doing:

“The major lobbying force for the online poker world, several major milestones have been reached. First, the PPA surpassed the half million member total and is rapidly approaching 550,000. The free memberships along with the addition of former three-time Republican Senator Alfonse D’Amato (pictured) to its ranks have spurred tremendous growth and visibility. Now, John Pappas, a former executive with Dittus Communications, was brought on board to spearhead the government relations efforts of the PPA. The unique expertise that he brings to the organization is a testament to the proactive nature of online poker’s leading political voice.”

Some specific activities are geared towards the betterment of the poker world:

“They include Write Your Congressman Day, a grassroots campaign to show online poker players’ discontent with the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act. As a direct result of this campaign, 5,000 e-mails were sent to Congressmen nationwide on a single day last May. Several months later, when the Senate was to debate the same measure, Pappas was once again on the move, coordinating the Phone March on Washington on September 12. His success in these two movements combined with his vast public relations experience means the PPA has added another key piece to the puzzle.”

If we are about to experience some change, I am sure the PPA will be part of it.  Interested in joining them?  Just visit their website.

Change Gears – Negreanu

Written by Nigel

Definitely one of the hottest and most respected names in poker today, Daniel Negreanu should be an example for us to follow.  That is why when I read an article he published last week, I thought, why not share the idea with others who might not have read his post?  It was all about changing tactics in the middle of a game – when necessary, of course.

He says “Whenever you jump into a game, you should have an idea as to what your plan will be for the day. But you also must be willing to switch gears quickly if the speed of the game changes.”  It makes sense, doesn’t it?  Have a definite idea of what you are going to do in specific circumstances.  However, when circumstances change and your tactics do not apply, have a back up plan that will give you some measure of success.

“The speed of the game is defined by how loose or aggressive your opponents are playing. The more aggressive the game, the faster the speed is. Games where play is very conservative, with few pre-flop raises, are considered slow games.”  Your course of action should be: be more aggressive when the speed of the game is slow.  On the other hand, when the game speed picks up, try to sit back and watch how you play – be more careful.

I’ve always believed that poker is all about the players, sometimes more than the cards.  As Negreanu said in his article: “It’s your job to figure out which player is in what gear. Knowing how someone plays when he’s winning or losing is even more important than the cards themselves.”

Kids Down Under Getting Hooked On Poker

Written by Nigel

Here’s the latest bit of news from Australia – one in five high school kids is playing card games.  A large number of these kids favor Texas Hold ‘Em Poker.  This can be attributed largely to media exposure such as Casino Royale and the World Series of Poker.  So what is the issue here?

For some concerned people, there is the fear that the youngster might fall into the trap of unregulated gambling and find themselves in financial trouble.  “They play poker with a mate over a six pack and say ‘This is easy, I’m good at this’,” Uniting Care’s Mark Henley said. “Then they see celebrity poker and the next thing you know they’re on dodgycasino@vanuatu.com and they’re in a bit of financial strife.”

It seems that people are getting stirred up in Australia about this potential problem.  What do I think about this?  I say it is a good thing that poker is getting more popular, whichever country it is.  I do have to agree, however, that unregulated gambling might do more damage than good.  I love poker – with or without money.  Then again, I am at least a decade older than those high school kids and I have my own means of income.  Those kids need to learn that poker does not have to be all about money. That is, at least until they gain some measure of control.  I suppose this would fall under the parents’ area of responsibility.  It is up to instill values in their kids.

Some Common Poker Tells

Written by Nigel

Here are some common poker tells that you would probably encounter during a game.  Though of course, generalizing might not always be a good thing, having an idea of what to expect will be of help.  Still, interpretation is always up to you.

Shaking hands.  One very common poker tell that is exhibited when players make bets.  This normally happens when the poker player sets his chips on the table.  What it means?  Almost always that he is excited because of a very good hand.

Checking out chips.  This would normally happen after the flop.  The player who has connected would take a quick look at his chips.  This might be quite subtle so acute observation skills are needed in order to catch this tell.  On the other hand, if a player merely stares at the flop intensely, it would mean that he is looking for something to make up a good hand.

Hole card peeking.  When the flop comes out and all are of the same suit, players who keep looking at their hole cards would mean that they do not have a suited hand.  They are checking their hold cards to check if one of the cards matches the suit of the flop.

What does rudeness tell you?  Most probably the player has a strong hand and he is trying to goad you into calling him.  On the other hand, an overly polite player may be bluffing with a not so good hand.

Of course, each person has his own tell so do not take all these at face value.

Poker Tells

Written by Nigel

You have probably heard this phrase so many times before.  A tell, in poker, is any habit or behavior – either physical or verbal – of a poker player at the table that gives away information regarding his cards.  Whether you are playing with a beginner or an advanced player, you just might catch a tell or two which can help you play better against that player.  Of course, tells are not sure fire indications. Sometimes, pros even make up tells to confuse their opponents.  Each and ever person is different and there is no one tell that matches everyone.  The idea is to be very observant and see if a person exhibits certain behaviors in certain situations.

One thing you should always pay attention to are the eyes.  The eyes are the windows to one’s soul, or so they say.  You can get a lot of information from the eyes of a poker player.  Of course, again, it is not the case for everyone but you have pretty good chances of reading someone based on his eyes.  More than the eyes, another good indication of a person’s hands is the facial expression as a whole.  Of course, a seasoned player may have perfected his “poker face” but there are always those who cannot help but give away their position with their facial expression.

There are countless other tells that may be specific to a person.  It is up to you as a “person reader” to be able to detect and interpret them.  Again, your success lies in acute observation skills.

Epassporte

Written by Nigel

With all the hassle that an avid online poker player has to go through to play for real money, people have been continuously looking for viable options to be able to do so.  One such option that has come up is Epassporte, a debit Visa account that can be obtained instantly online.  According to the company itself, their personal services include:

•    Shop online safely and securely where ePassporte Visa Cards are accepted
•    Send and receive funds between ePassporte Account Holders instantly
•    Make purchases at millions of retail locations where Visa is accepted
•    Withdraw funds at over 1 million ATM locations worldwide

It all sounds good to me.  However, reports have been coming in which undermine the feasibility of this system.  According to one user, “Since the 22th of January I have been trying to receive a ‘physical’ Visa card from Epassporte. I had already the Visa electron, but I paid the $40 dollar or so extra to get the real thing.

I’m not going to tell the whole story again, but I didn’t receive it. At the end of March I called Epassporte for the 3rd time or so and then got to speak to a lady, who told me that according to them I should have received the card, because it had been sent a couple of weeks ago already. Since I had not, they blocked the old card and sent me a new one.”

There are some good comments too, though.  I suppose this has not been tried and tested yet.  I will wait till it stabilizes, I think.

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