Poker Psychology Strategy for Elite and Beginner Poker Players

Poker Psychology Strategy for Elite and Beginner Poker Players

Many years ago, in fact, back in 2010 to 2011 I started blogging a series on poker psychology. What were my qualifications to do such a thing? I expressed experience and observation, side equipped with a lot of reading and research. Why did I do this? I did this as there was only a small amount of literature available that I, myself, for myself, could find. When I looked, I saw only advanced poker psychology strategy information. I was wrong, I didnt look hard enough. I now find a vast array of books, articles and strategy by players and authors such as Mike Caro and my new favorite Psychologist when it comes to the world of Poker, Dr Alan N. Schoonmaker, Ph.D. Psychologist & poker player whos experience beyond destroys mine or any other man or womans I have seen when it comes to poker psychology, mindset and strategy. If there are others I overlook as better, please advise me otherwise.

As I sit writing this blog post I have with me four of Alans books to read, a second time, more thoroughly than the first. Alan not only has books specifically on psychology but a tonne of books he has published relating to poker and business, game play and more. Alan Schoonmaker has co-written with one of pokers other elites, David Sklansky & is widely discussed as an author on 2+2. None of this chit chat, or throwing around titles can compare to talking with Dr Schoonmaker who humbly discussed his life, his knowledge and his legacy to the world of poker via his written genius with me.

Its not often I do long interviews, in fact, I have done around ten of them in what can only be classed as a veteran career. In the last four years, the number of interviews conducted at length is but one. The man of the hour, the man with the knowledge and the man I would choose to set me straight via written text or consultation o my poker mindset and game (if this were available) any day! I took an entire hour out of my busy schedule at the World Series of Poker to sit and talk with Alan about all of his brilliance wrapped into around fourty book titles and the outcome was a very impressed lady, with a great understanding of what separates the great from the good. It was an hour I appreciate.

Quite a few of Alan Schoonmakers book subjects are so very different from what we can find available in general. I currently have in my position one of a kind books such as how to beat killed hold'em games, beating small poker games (which I recommend to all players who are not elitists) and in particular a book suited to those that want to keep that brain power functioning, Stay Young Play Poker (aka - use it or lose it!). These are but small amounts of examples of the variance of knowledge on offer from this brilliant man. In particular, in my current grasp is a book titled "Competitive Edged Strategies For Poker and Business Winners". This book is exceptional for those that want a comparison or, competitive edge on both a business and poker level. That's not what we are here to discuss though.

Some people in the poker industry, alike me, as an example, focus their lives within poker to report it, concentrate on poker life and tabloids or lifestyle as a whole, all while counting the odd chip stack. Others just play poker, they play hard, long and daily and learn via study along the way. Some are executives that we, the poker community, need to keep this little world of poker running well. Then,  there are the Alan Schoonmakers, the authors, writers, teachers, the humble beings that take a back stance behind the crowd to observe and bring an elite skill set to the table, in writing, to help perfect our games, if we are smart enough to use the information they table for us.

What most mesmerizes me about Dr Alan Schoonmaker is his most humble ways yet bright, sharp mind. Its quite clear that Alan is no poker star, no Daniel Negreanu, rather a poker playing genius that would rather focus on the academics, skills knowledge, writing ability and of course the psychology relating to poker and its cross overs that so many of us are in need of educating on. Alan has taught

all around the world in his field of expertise and this my friends (education) does not come cheap. Or, didn't, until now! In this new day and age of technological wisdom we can all self teach and self teach quite cheaply via e-books, kindles and taking on board the lessons of some of the poker worlds greatest professors from the comfort of our own beds. From $2 - and an instant download!

I have been foolish in the past, I have sought knowledge from the incorrect people, I have tried to pass on my own knowledge in somewhat untouched fields to the beginners on the poker scene and although I was correct in doing this on certain levels, I went about it entirely the wrong way on others. I have fallen, I have risen, I have learned and now I want to pass on what I know in a smart way! When it comes to niche areas of poker, do not look to anyone for the information other than those that or high class professionals. Doctors, professors, experts in fields that have passed on knowledge just like Alan Schoonmaker has, via writings assembled specifically to suit your needs.

Of course, one should already know the summary of my blog! If you are after in depth psychology or strategy or even just a beginners taste, when it comes to the teachings of a great poker psychologist, you really should go to Amazon and download Alan N Schoonmakers books. At the very low cost (again, some as low as $2) these digital book copies are - and the fact that they are in various languages, there is simply no further excuses to tap into your own conscious, subconscious, the conscious of others and lift your psychological edge at the poker table from this day forward. Click links within articles to do just that!

I wouldn't be me if I didn't end with a super yet strange positive and acknowledgement! My greatest thanks to Alan for sharing his knowledge and wisdom with me, and all of his book titles so that I can go on a squirmy little book worm adventure into the unknown. Heres to getting into your heads a little more in the near future :)

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Rich Poker Players Poor Poker Players

Rich Poker Players Poor Poker Players

I have always watched the top poker players in the world online and offline and realize while doing this that poker usually (I say usually for a reason) is like anything you invest in on the earth. You have to have money to make money. Sure the poorer poker players can still make money but not nearly as much as those already rich.

There are the poker players who have made the way up the food chain from pretty much nothing dollar wise (or were rich in life already). These are the exception and why I say "usually". But lets face it, on any given day where you might make $50, $300 or there about which is withdrawn for those little extras or for paying your bills if you are semi pro, the richer poker players are making up to $20,000 sometimes more. Evident-ally it is easier for a rich poker player to make that kind of money, how can you (if you are a poor poker player) possibly make 20k in 1 day, unless from a massive MTT cash of course!

Pretty much when it comes down to the line between rich players and poor players this is what is required to dive above that line and be a rich player - a big MTT win will get you there, a few big MTT wins will definitely get you there. Its either this, win the lottery or grind almost every day until you can not grind anymore. The issue is with this kind of grinding are you really going to suddenly become a rich poker player? I think you can make a lot of money but certainly not enough to safely place $10,000 on a table any time soon.

To become a rich poker player is going to take a game plan. It is going to take the big bankroll boosters in the form of MTT cashes. It is also going to take a lot of study and patience and persistence. Not almost as much however as grinding cash tables from a micro level for the next 5 years, or I would think not anyway!

So, putting that plan in place is the big step for most of "us". I am far from a rich player obviously. How does one make a plan to combat the micros?

Firstly you can read my last post on free coaching, strategy etc - this is a good start. Hit the books! Study up on your MTT play, SNG play, hand ranges, Cash Games, whatever you may need to study and include in this your own game play! Betting patterns, unnecessary risk taking behavior, playing your hands correctly and also reading your fellow players. Remember to keep your games separately cash is not tournament and tournament is not cash. But you do need to keep in mind that you will have to play both. Cash pays for tournaments!

Set up your schedule, play your cash games, grind them to enable you to play the next thing you should as part of your rising.... Satellites or small guaranteed buy ins. The satellites will see you make your way cheaply into the large tournaments. The large tournaments if you play your cards correctly; again; are where you are going to make the bulk of your money. You can not be taking money from your pocket non stop - this is another unnecessary risk and bad for you in my opinion. Work on a certain deposit and stick to it, work your way into the larger payers.

Step by step by step is the way to go in my opinion. Study, play cash games to fund satellites or small GTD buy ins and hit the big money from here. I have been grinding cash tables for too long now to make ends meet and would certainly prefer to win a cool $1k in hours from an MTT that I paid $3 entry for. Of course, once my roll is a little more built up that 1k is easy on cash tables whilst grinding.

There are many ways that poker players have become richer players. But this is one pattern I have noticed which seems to work for the majority and is also the way I am "attempting" to do it. The only thing I personally have to do is be careful at the micro cash tables. Currently as i write this blog post I am playing a 25c/50c table and being smacked :-| Smacked with hands such as AKc vs K3os when they hit K3 on the flop. Makes playing higher stakes seem like the thing to do, I am sure there will be an availability to read players easier when they are not calling 4 x the BB raises with absolute junk! Hopefully in the weeks to come I shall be able to let you know!

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Free Poker Strategy Coaching Lessons

Free Poker Strategy Coaching Lessons

There is debate after debate after debate over the game of poker every day. We all think differently about the game and play differently too! No 2 players play the same and no 2 hands are the same, this make the game so hard to make a mark in. As it gets more and more competitive players are turning to coaches and books. Here is my thought on that! Get free coaching, free strategy and free poker lessons!

Think back to the days when you were learning the most basic aspects of the game. What did you do? You asked people and they told you what you wanted to hear. They told you how the game was played, what the best hands were, how to know when you have to put blinds out and what community cards are. You may have gone a little further and read the basic rules of poker on the internet.

From this point, you may have gone on to watch some players play some big pots and win some big tournaments such as the WSOP. You may have watched poker on TV for hours on end as you fell in love with the game. Furthermore, there may have been some additional things you wondered about in which case you jumped onto the internet and did a little search. You may have been curious of how much money people win or what the best sites to play on were.

Each time you have a poker question or want to know about your game you turn to someone or something. Usually that someone or something is a free source, even if that free source is simply to complain about a bad beat you copped or ask- what would you have done? In poker we are all each others free source. The issue is you ask 5 people for advice and they all give a different answer. Let's keep in mind unless it is an answer that does not contain variables this will happen every time.

There are so many people out there providing coaching and writing books. This can all add up to a fair amount of money for a new player. It can add up to a fair amount of money for a more advanced player as well. The books on poker mathematics as an example, these are far from "cheap".

I have a suggestion for you all - go for free advice, free lessons, free coaching and free strategy! Anything you find in a book you will find on the internet when it comes to strategy from the most basic to advanced levels. All opinions will differ that you read, but so do all poker books. There is no difference; ok there is a difference!!!! The internet costs you $0.

When it comes to coaching, are you better off with 1 coach or 20 coaches? Partaking in discussions in forums, asking your questions will get some quality answers. Its really as easy as typing to someone on the other side of the world as to type on a forum "sorry I dont understand what you mean!" Everyone who plays poker talks poker is the point, most of them type poker too. Get discussing, make yourself in the position where you have multiple sources for personalized information; free.

There are also many free coaches around, free until you win big! Lets face it though, if you do win big you can then smile as you hand over 10k! So what!?! You still have 90k! Get a Pro Bono coach to help you on your way, or rather - give you lessons. Many people will analyse your game before taking you on, a student must suit the lesson giver as much as the lesson giver must suit the student.

Its really easy to find what you want. Type a question and press enter or search for free strategy, free poker lessons, free coaching. If you would rather pay or are after a certain book then sure go ahead and buy them, but know that this is one persons opinion and you; again; can have 20!

What are you waiting for???? Get out there and start studying - poker study should be as important as playing the game itself for you and you have no time to waste! Get those graphs going up now! Be sure to make your own plan of what poker curriculum you plan to learn and study before you get started though otherwise you will be going around in circles. Structure it for yourself to work in perfectly for each study session!

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Benefits Tips Playing Suited Connectors

Benefits Tips Playing Suited Connectors

The big debate! Playing premium poker hands, waiting for premium poker hands, having patience, raking everyone's bucks up each time those pocket aces are in your hand. Do we sit and wait for these hands or mix and match it around a little? As Gus Hansen always says "A little bit of this, a little bit of that". Do we play all hands when we are in position to do so - ANY TWO CARDS or wait?

I answered a question on facebook not so long ago - "What is the best starting hand?". It doesn't take a genius to determine this right? AA without a doubt in my mind! AA was of course my answer. This does not mean that it is the best hand after the flop though, it also doesn't mean its the best hand if you are seen as a Gus Hansen and are deadly when it comes to those suited connectors and small pairs. Any good player post flop if they are smart enough will fold pocket aces if they suspect it must be done. Pocket aces are the best starting hand and premium hands are the best hands to start with, in most cases.

There are times when not sitting waiting for premium poker hands is a must. When must we mix and match our game about?

When you are being blinded out and need to protect your blinds, you must play in a tournament. Folding and busting with minimal chips just isn't going to work. Pick your spots and play your cards. Before you do however, be sure to have a plan in your head, if you miss the flop - you need to be representing a hand you do not have and be willing to back off.

When you are on a table full of tight bums playing suited connectors and small pairs its a must in my opinion to play suited connectors and small pairs, even 69suited is sexy to me! You know they are all waiting for their pocket aces and AK /AQ/ AJ/ JJ and so on and so forth so if you hit the flop nicely they are doomed. Be sure to get a nice price on these cards though. You wouldn't call an all in - that would be stupid. Get nice pot odds for your cards. As per above, be sure to have a plan in your head, if you miss the flop - you need to be representing a hand you do not have and be willing to back off.

Play them around the blinds on cash tables, specifically short handed. I have found this to be an optimal way of keeping the cash in your kitty for the premium hands that you will eventually get. You can not just sit there waiting for AA KK QQ - If you do, you are going broke. Raise, if you are re-raised again, back off. The amount of cash you can make stealing, stealing stealing is amazing. If you hit the flop with 2 pair or a set and your opponent hits their ace, again its bliss for you.

Play them occasionally to take away the "rock solid player" title you may have been given, it will ensure you will be paid off when your big hands hit. Show the cards if you need to fold (not always just once or twice) and the other players may be thinking this guy plays anything therefore when you hit a nice big premium hand they will throw their cash your way, believing you have crap (I must specify not all players just some).

Lets consider the attributes of a player that plays premium hands and pocket pairs only. They fold, fold, fold, fold and then call. What have they got? It doesnt take a genius to work out 22,33,44,55,66,77,88,99 is sitting in their hands right? Maybe A 10 off suit? We know they dont have 78, 9 10, 56 etc - they only play premium hands and small pockets. A 10 is likely the worse of the Ax combinations and 99 the worst of the lower pockets - why? They are rock solid and tight and flat called.....

Next your in a hand with them and they raise! ummm Dude, I know you have AA, KK, QQ, JJ, 10 10, Ak, AQ, AJ and possibly A10 suited. Do you really want to be as readable as that? Stop, think and smile as you play your mix and match hands as you know that they cant read you and if they do what are they reading?

Playing suited connectors and small pairs equates to the following attributes (compared to the rock solid premium card player):

Little me the mix and match player that has shown a few connected suited starting hands and small pairs and even a 69 suited has flat called - lets look at the difference of what my hand ranges are and how much harder I am to read. I flat call I could have 22,33,44,55,66,77,88,99, A10, 23s, 34s, 45s, 56s, 67s, 78s, 89s, 9 10s. also add 10 Jos, J Qos, KQos. Much wider range yeah? Not predictable! Very Scarey!

So, now I raise! AA, KK, QQ, JJ, 10 10, AK, AQ, AJ, A 10 suited or otherwise, KQs, QJ suited or possibly an of the lower pairs such as 99,88,77,66 depending on the table I play at - again, a much larger hand range right?

Let's place me in a fictional hand with the rocks - those only playing premium starting hands. I am in the BB and the rock raises 3 times the BB. I am getting not so bad odds with my 9 10s. The flop is QJ8 - The opponent is all but shipping every last cent into the pot with QQ, JJ right? Bring it on! I have a straight and a flush draw! Would they even suspect this if i had not previously shown I was a rock? I think not. The flop could be very different though, in this case I know i am beaten and its time to back off!

Playing suited connectors isn't a good idea from first position in my experience, there are so many more people to act so don't do it, you will waste you money pre flop. There is a time, there is a place too. In your blind areas and on a table when there are no more LAGS (loose aggressive players) left to act. A lot must be considered and studied before playing them. Don't lose your shirt attempting to hit a flop and know when and when not to chase.

Chase with your suited connectors post flop if you have a straight draw and a flush draw. No point taking a chance on a possible 6 outs right? Be a little aggressive if you are against a rock that you are positive have AK AQ AJ and see if they back off, if they don't its time for you to. Again do not lose your shirt! It can be a good trap or a very expensive outcome!

Before attempting to play suited connectors at any table with cash you really should study the odds and when and when not to play them a little more. Half of what I have written in this blog post is from my experience and I am not Gus Hansen or Daniel Negreanu. I don't claim to be an expert, just a person who wants to help players at a newbie level play the game a little more to its and their potential. I have been playing low limits of late and tonight I got my ass kicked playing premium hands only except for a miss click thanks to my little darling kids with an all in bet with me holding 74s lol. 2 days ago I smashed heads at the same limits as I threw in a "Little bit of this and a little bit of that". I certainly know what I prefer. Screw being read by other players bring on my suited connectors and some beautiful flops and tight players!

My favorite hand is today's blog pic! 78 is the year I was born, diamonds a girls best friend and suited connectors!

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Poker Tell Detection Scientifically and Psychologically

Poker Tell Detection Scientifically and Psychologically

My last post was all about reading people eyes for lies. It explained which way the eyes moved when a person was thinking a certain way. It explained how to tell, through the eyes if someone was fabricating a story. Over the years I have done extensive research on how to spot a liar through their body movements. So really I should have started with that as a post for anyone out there who is switching from online to live poker play.

Why, you ask; did I ever study to become somewhat a human lie detector? My foremost "job" before poker is an analyst. My first position held was with the Australian Defense force working with a civil company called Communications Design and Management. I was thrown into deep water at the age of 18 to get in depth information on the Armies current communications support systems before implementing a new one and watching all the current workers get sacked. My tell detection and study started here.

The communications support team that was in place before we were thrown in to take over knew what was happening. They knew the longer that it took for me personally to get the information, the longer they were in a job. They also knew if I couldnt get the information they were home free. In addition they knew that there were un-notated government assets all over the base that they could take with them. My job was to get a grip on what they were doing and how their systems worked, where the data and physical assets were kept and how the systems were monitored ....and how to use the current system before I shut it down and put the new one in place as they walked out the door.

As you can imagine this was one tough job. There as little effort to give assistance and stand over tactics certainly were out of the question. The only was I was getting my information was to be more deceptive then they were and to detect every lie I possibly could as i interrogated them day after day on the happenings of the current system and flipped through paper work and buildings for hard evidence and knowledge.

One of the first things I remember reading about as I tried with frustration at the highest level possible to extract the necessary information was how the brain worked when they were telling lies to me. I learned from my reading that 1 part of the brain is used when you are telling the truth where as 3 parts are used when you lie. I also learned that one who lies covers with another lie and another lie and another lie until they can't lie anymore and they trap themselves at a dead end. A person who is telling the truth is straight to the point and has little to say. There is also telling tales by omission, telling the truth but not all of the truth, simply not giving the full story. In this case the brain works the same as when one doesn't lie at all. That's when you really need to weed out the info.

There are always the people around that are brilliant at telling tales, or rather hiding the truth. Poker players are obviously good at hiding the truth especially when they batten down the hatches, close their mouth, have on their sunglasses and hats / hoodies to cover their face and stay as still as they can. Weeding out info can be very dangerous when it comes to this situation in poker, but at the same time very profitable - dependable on how skilled the other player your against is and also how good your reading skills are when it comes to picking up tells on them and placing them in a memory bank.

Body Movement Tells Defined Scientifically

When a poker player is on a big bluff, unless a genius, he will have more movements then if he has a monster hand. Let's look at an example and we can see why I say this:

If he is on a monster hand and has gone all in he is telling the truth and therefore only 1 part of his "lie section" of his brain is working - he is saying to himself "I have the hand, please call". This is the truth, he will likely be as still as a statue.

If the player is completely bluffing out his arse, he has 3 parts of his brain working, its been shown on MRI's. He will be fidgety, or move more even if he is staying as still as he can. There are very few brains that can avoid these movements. He simply can not concentrate on staying still as he is thinking far too much as he uses 3 parts of his brain. The movements occur as 3 parts of the brain are working to fabricate his hand strength (or tell a lie). He is saying to himself "I hope this bluff works, I am screwed if he calls me, am I giving away any information, shit I better stay still, what is he thinking? This could make or break me". As you can see the bluffer is thinking a lot! These thoughts make uncontrollable movements happen, moving in his seat, moving his head, nerves ticking, movement of the hands. He is thinking sit still, don't give away tells but he is thinking a lot of other things also.

Of course one can be highly skilled in bluffing and lying and not move at all - possibly they are zoning out of the situation and thinking of another hand they won with the nuts. This is a good hint for your own psychological control and a reason many players meditate and spend hours relaxing and zoning out of their thoughts into a state of almost unconsciousness. For some it comes naturally, for some it doesn't. Live poker is not all about skill of card play but psychological control also.

Reading Tells or Lies Through Seating Position of a Player

These are probably the most easiest tells to read. One wouldn't think so as the person is moving all around the place in a casual manner. The player is moving around, chilling out, having a beer - He sure as hell isn't in the make or break hand thats going to cost him masses of dollars.

Simply, if a player is bluffing he will move and sit the following ways:

He may lean back in his chair (move away from you)
Sit to the side of his chair
Keep his arms crossed
Keep his hands tightly folded in his lap.

Reading Tells Through the Voice

By the time we are in the all crucial hand with another player, we have usually spent some amount of time listening to their voice. If the voice suddenly changes pitch and speed, one can assume something is triggering this. Usually liars change their voice patterns suddenly when a lie cuts in. You need to remember that if someone has the nuts and is playing for a lot of money they will be nervous and their voice will change then to. There are also the players that will remain silent. Voice tells must be equipped with other tells. As noted above.

Combination tells are always the best method of read. For the record, the voice alike other body parts that give away tells are effected by whats called the autonomic nervous system. This is where the science comes into it for those wondering why I am making such remarks. When it comes to voice, if you ask a person a question and they are telling tales their body movements work in opposition to their answer. An example:

Q:"Do you have the nuts?"
A:"No" as they nod their head indicates they do
Q:"Do you have the nuts?"
A:"Yes why else would i go all in?" As they shake their head in a no gesture side to side.

Try it yourself, answer someone falsely (in good taste of course) and as you are speaking to them your head movements will indicate your voice is spitting out lies! I did this to my partner just the other night lol. I asked if he liked the lasagne - He said "It was delicious" as he shook his head in a no gesture so casually, calmly and unknowingly that he was telling me no as his head shook left to right.

Reading Tells Through Smaller Movements & Self Reaction to The Person

These are gestures commonly associated with liars and bluffers:

They cover their mouth
They rub their eyes
They touch their nose
They scratch their neck
They touch their ears

If our gut tells us they are lying or bluffing yet they are perfectly still and not making any of these movements nor showing any of the other signs, the automated process of our autonomic nervous system does something very strange. We start what they should be doing. You will find that YOU do this when you have a very strong hand and your instinct tells you that you have them beaten. You will be the one touching your nose, neck, ear - whatever your system has you automatically do. Sometimes this can result in a liar being tricked into you being the liar or bluffer, whichever you may wish to call it.

A scenario - the bluffer is doing nothing to set of warning bells, there are no visual tells but you think he is bluffing, you are going to touch these notated areas of your body without realizing. If he is tuned into bluffs and tells and what to look for and you re-raise him, he may push all in thinking your also bluffing. This is obviously great for you and something to consider when analyzing a situation.

In short, any small change in a persons behavior indicates lies, bluffs and deceit.

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Reading Eyes for Poker Tells

Reading Eyes for Poker Tells

With many online players now switching to live play since Black Friday, I figured that they may need a little hand with a few things to prep them for live play.


My son triggered this post last night when I swore he was telling me tales. I looked deep into his eyes and asked him to tell me the truth. His eyes veered to the left as he replied "Tyrone said I could". Now that was one hellava lie! I knew Tyrone (his step dad) would never say he could. It made me think of the left eye movement and what it meant.



Usually I can tell when my kids are telling tales. I didn't need eye movement to tell me this kid was full of shit. I thought about poker (of course) during all of this, I came to the realization that many people alike me would know if their loved ones lied. What about players at the poker table though? Could people get tells from eye movements? Only one way to know. Get everyone who reads my blog to test it this theory.


Ok, so let me start with that left movement my son made, also called AC (Auditory Constructed).

I asked my son " Tell me who said you could do that, who gave you permission?", His eyes moved to the left (according to scientific facts) as this is the direction the eyes move as a person thinks about the question they have been asked as they "Auditory Construct" a sound that they have never heard. Of course Tyrone never would tell him "he could". He was at that very moment thinking of Tyrone actually saying it. This look is definitely a look of deception and make believe (remember that to YOU they will be looking the opposite direction - this is their face looking straight on:


I told my son he was grounded for telling me tales. Which brings me to AI (Internal Dialog). The next eye indicator.



He sat there talking to himself (kind of so I would hear but to himself non the less). He was cussing under his breath and whining how bad his life was. As he did this he looked down and to the right. This is the direction someones eyes move as they talk to themselves.

I suddenly found myself into this subject and went looking for my eye tell tale signs. Not because anyone was doing them, simply because I wanted to to educate myself on eye movement and lie detection. I knew it would certainly help me in the future at one time in my life, likely with the kids but also with poker!

The next eye movement tell would be (If I was continue what has become alphabetical) AR (Auditory Remembering).



If i asked (or you ask) your child to remember what his dads voice sounds like. The eyes will automatically move to the right as they think about the question and Auditory Remember the sound of the voice. Alike little AR below:


The next eye movement tell would be F (Feeling / Kinesthetic). Or in my words FAWK! I do F a lot since my house burnt down!



If you asked me "Can you remember the smell of your house when it was burning? ", my eyes would move down and to the left while thinking about the question as I used recalled that smell. F also applies to feeling, or taste. Remembering a feeling or taste my eyes would move the same way. Here is Mr Fawk:



Eye movements up and to the left, also known as VC (Visually Constructed Images) are next on the eye mapping agenda!



If you asked someone to "Imagine a green road with a pink lizard on it", this would be the direction their eyes moved in while thinking about the question as they "Visually Constructed" a green road with a pink lizard on it in their mind.

Lastly we have VR (Visually remembered) eye movements on the list. It is the last of the eye movements i could find.



If you asked anyone "What color was the first car that they owned?" or a child "What did the first pet they have look like?" the eyes would move up and to the right while they were thinking about the question as they "Visually Remembered" the color of the car or in the case of the child, remembered what the first pet looked like.



Lastly, other things to consider are:



Left-handed players would have the opposite meanings for their eye-directions, they would look the opposite way (typically). Make sure you know if a person is left handed otherwise you will confuse yourself!



If the a person is trying to remember something that was recent then his eyes may not go to any direction and just stay in the middle



Some people tend to remember by focusing and refocusing without having their eye move into any direction, you cant read anything in this case (ultimate poker eyes!)



The mind has hundreds of thoughts happening within at most times, many thoughts could run into the mind in one second and so the eye may move into any direction depending on one of these thoughts. This will give you false clues, and since you cant read the other person's thoughts you can get false results

As with other signs of lying, you should first establish and understand a persons behavior before concluding they are lying by the direction of their eyes.

Last thoughts, get sunglasses to avoid having your eyes read at a poker table.

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Separating Poker From Social Life

Separating Poker From Social Life

Poker is a game of socialization. Whether you play online or live or even both, you are socializing and having fun. The game is far from boring, its something which entertains us all. This is what makes playing poker for a living an awesome job! The job has its ups and downs like any, mostly to do with bad swings and long hours. When using the word job in the previous sentence it is important to remember that those that play poker for a living or to supplement income must remember that this is far from a party, far from socialization. Playing poker is real work and must be separated from normal every day social life.

When we all first start playing poker we all do it for entertainment. I can not think of one person who walked into their first game of poker thinking “What a great job I have, shuffle up and deal and lets get this wage earned!” Simply it doesn’t seem to work like this. Every persons story I have heard on how they started playing poker starts differently but never that way. This means even the best and richest poker players in the world that have succumb poker as a hobby or fun time started the same as all of us. They played for fun and entertainment originally.

It isn’t always the case that any player should stop making poker a social game. Doing that is impossible regardless. Any poker player who is planning on making poker their main source of income or supplementary income needs to consider this article. They need to somewhat separate this new part time or full time job from their social life as much as possible.

How does one do this? How do we separate poker from our social life? I myself am only beginning to find out! In studying a lot of poker players lifestyles though it really is simple and something I must take my own advice on.

• Set your times that you plan on playing and make sure they are uninterrupted alike you were working an office job. Make your part time hours or full time hours 100% dedicated to your game and nothing else.
• Don't take social habits such as drinking and smoking to your live or online table. Don't take chit chat with friends unless it is about the game to your “job” with you.
• Manage your poker bankroll completely separately. This includes the separation of “partying funds” at live tournaments. In saying that, there is always the case that a man may find a fling night at a strip club (lol) a way to ease tensions before a big game.
• If you are to play a game of poker socially with friends and or family, make it that way. Don't make it serious - have your drinks and your snack food all sorted for the time of your life. Make it as if it were a day at the pool.
• Turn off ALL social networks! No facebooking, yahooing, orkuting, msning or anything UNLESS it is in regard to the game at the time – in saying that unless you are whining about a bad beat or your current status rank wise, I can not think WHY you would have them on. (says she who always does – again I must follow my own advice.)

All in all unless poker is a social aspect of your life these things need considering and not for one second am I saying there is not more things to do such as open specific bank accounts, keep running tally’s and associated expenses etc separate. Again, I am just separating myself!

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Poker Time Clock Strategies Bomb!

Poker Time Clock Strategies Bomb!

Many people look beyond the obvious use of a time clock and strategy for using time in their play online. Poker time clocks, what are they for? Can they be used as a bomb, a lethal weapon? You all know what they are for, no question! That's not what this post is about. This is about effectively using time clocks and not just the time clocks that we have for our personal use in a tournament, not just the clocks that we push the TIMECLOCK button for. Turning the timeclock (or timebank) into a bomb!

I know we wish we had more time up our sleeves when making some serious decisions in online poker. Certainly we wish we had more time up our hands come the end of a major tournament. Time clocks (ones used when we push TIMECLOCK) have an obvious use, time clocks are used when critical decisions need making and we need time for our heads to run back over what has just happened in a hand and also what things like what we know about a player before we ship those chips into a pot or fold our hand. Saving your time clock is something you really should do for the final stages of a tournament or that make or break decision - the big one. (That's what i do anyway).

I wanted to go off the subject of using time clocks for this reason though. Every hand you play in online poker you have a certain amount of time to make your decision. You will notice as you play in tournaments some people take a heck of a lot longer to act and play their turn then others. There are 7 reasons for this:

• They are Multi-tabling and it took them a while to get back to that tournament and that hand
• They are using all the time they have on their hands to carefully calculate every single hand and decision without auto folding.
• They are trying to piss you off (this happens in heads-up a lot I have found - bloody turtles)
• They are calculating a nasty move against you
• They are deliberately wasting time so the blinds rise higher and more people are knocked out.
• Their telephone rang, or they were distracted by a child (excuse me for all those delays everyone!)
• They have connection issues - this normally shows up however.

So, in saying all of those reasons - that come to mind (they are the ones I can think of) we can now look at the reasons and use time clocks and time effectively, for strategy purposes.

Poker should have been called patience. This I am sure of! Slowing down your play and laying off the auto fold if you are not playing a ton of tables is a good strategy move to start with. I really watch what players at my tables do time wise. A player may sit there and you can tell they have selected autofold 10 times in a row. Their hand folds as quick as it is there turn to act. Suddenly this player who has obviously clicked autofold pauses.........

Yep! They have a hand and it isn't 78 of diamonds! The longer they go on trying to make the decision, the more you can actually place them on particular hands - a lot of the time anyway and also in my experience. Think of looking down at AA - Straight away you are betting out big, same applies to KK, QQ, AK suited right? So your opponent who auto folds - they make a quick pause, then suddenly make a big bet - what does this tell you? They usually have a premium hand! They paused and didnt think for long - again TIME "they paused and didnt think for long" Thats not a situation where they have KQ right? You can usually place them on other hands such as mid sized pocket pairs too as they push 1/2 pot bet auto buttons, 2/3, 3/4 and so on. YES you can work out they have such hands even if they do not usually auto fold. I am using them as an example for your strategy use of the time clock. Do not auto fold every hand. You are giving away tells when you do have a hand, believe me, you are. think hard about it...............

Strategy tip 1 for using time - USE IT! Pretty simple tip. Multi-tabling auto fold is much easier obviously, if you can avoid it though. Every single hadn you have a lot of time up your sleeve. You have time pre and post flop, on the turn and on the river and between bets. Use your time - think carefully!

Now, now that you are not just autofolding everything and check fold everything (I left that part out - same applies for auto select check fold and I should state that i am not in any means saying everyone should play like this) you have further online poker time weapons up your sleeve. You can now pull what i call hollywood stunts (refer to article on this blog - just search holly wood - search blog at the left near the top). In summary, you can use time as a trapping mechanism. The article summaries (by memory) Gus Hansen playing a hand online. Durr (by memory) had hit his Ace on the flop. Gus used time before the hand and time after the flop. Durr bet out on the flop AQ? (Gus does this a lot so keep in mind I could be talking a different hand). Gus sat and used as much time as he could before calling. Turn Durr bets again, again Gus uses all the time again before reluctantly calling. The river was blank and Durr pushed all in. Gus snap called (as he does). Gus had hit trip Q's on the flop. Durr held AK

Strategy tip 2 for using time: Use the time you have as a weapon to trap and trick. ..................................THE TIME BOMB.....................................

It obviously appeared to Durr that Gus was hesitating, wondering. I am guessing that Durr placed Gus on A rag or A 10. He obviously assumed that Gus was wondering about that kicker - that kicker that he didnt have. Gus effectively used time to trap and trick. i have done this myself many a time, usually when i have the nut flush. It's a great way to have others commit their chips, Glenn Franco (hunt the man down) has witnessed me do this during at an online poker table times of abuse and mentally stress thrown by other players at me. He was very pleased he could give them a mouthful when i time trapped their arse! Useless woman huh? :D

Now to using all the time you can in tight situations. Tight situations such as the bubble! I received some strategy advice only today from Michael Pickard, a primarily live poker player whom also is having a tough time with his game at the moment. (Sorry if you didnt want your name mentioned Michael). He told me to slow down the table. I was so close to the bubble, so close I could smell the money but I was one of the lower stacks - not the lowest by any means but quite low. he said - "Stop folding so quickly, waste time". Now this is something i had forgotten, I left this strategy behind! So simple - slow down, use all the time you can.

Strategy tip 3 for using time: Slowing down your table so you are more likely to make the money.

Its a pretty obvious thing to do. There are 20 stacks smaller then you. There are 7 players until the bubble pops. Use all the time you can even if you have 72os before you fold when in hand for hand mode. You have AA do the same, use all the time you can before jamming out that great big bet. this makes small stacks suffer. it puts pressure on them, they are blinding out, they have to make a move. They may not be on your table, they may be right next to you. You certainly keep the upper hand on them by holding each hand up 20 seconds though right? You are obviously not on all their tables and their table may be folding very fast! That's not good for them when they have limited blinds. You can almost fold your way to the bubble without premium hands, without playing any hands.

This method can go against you if suddenly the 20 stacks that are lower then you are doubling up - but its unlikely. It sure as hell worked for me today! Try not to make it obvious like I did though. If you do make it obvious, the other players will get so annoyed! That brings me to my next tip.

Strategy tip 4 for using time: Piss Players off with Turtle Style Poker

You have an impatient aggressive player that drives his mouse like a Ferrari? Piss him off! Play turtle poker - it works especially super heads up. Slow down so slow you have them sitting waiting, waiting, waiting every hand they may just say "Screw this!!!!!!!" and play crazier :) I can positively advise that this does occur as i am one of those players that have gotten the shits with turtle man play and just wanted to get the hell out of the SNG. I.e - I had better things to do then sit there waiting for the slow coach opponent to hurry his butt up all for a $5 HU prize. The slow coach turtle won the game, I just wanted out - needless to say, his use of time PISSED ME OFF! (I wouldn't fall for it now though). I wouldn't throw a game like that now.

Please note that playing live play you can always call time on someone which also pisses them off big time hehe

A lot of players do not and will not use these methods, there is no doubt. A lot will though, I am one of them. I hope in one way or another that these little tips will help you.

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How to Get Poker Luck

How to Get Poker Luck

Most people will agree that poker is mostly a game of skill. Obviously there is a percentage of luck though. Both online and live poker players rely on some good cards, flops and seating arrangements and not just the skills they possess to help them get through to a victorious win.

It seems some players have a natural skill AND luck factor about them. We can all develop skill, there is no doubt about that. The more effort we put into study and playing, the more our poker skills increase. Some players just have the worst luck ever though. It seems no matter what they do they can not get good cards, they run badly, the flops are against them and these spurts can run for what seems eternity. Other players on the opposite scale of the luck factor have nothing but premium hands and perfect flops. How can this be? Do they bring luck on themselves or are they actually naturally lucky?

Many people try different things at poker tables to induce luck. Some people have their lucky card protectors, lucky charms and try to get their lucky seat. Other players have rituals they perform at tables such a bending cards a certain way, moving seats at certain times and praying to the poker gods.

When it comes to pre game luck inducing, again rituals come into practice for some people. They eat certain foods, prepare themselves mentally by doing certain things at certain places and bring along their lucky songs on their trusted ipods and mp3 players. Others go that little bit further though when it comes to bringing themselves luck. Few do it, but - I was told just the other day there are some! I went and further looked and asked, and surprisingly there are actually more people that do the following things than I anticipated. Call it crazy, I don't know? I have decided to try some of this myself and see the outcome. It can not hurt right?

Power of positive thought: This i one thing used commonly amongst poker players. It is used at the tables and before hand. It is used mostly for mental conditioning but also used for luck factor in poker. People use the power of positive thought to try and push some sort of holding luck when their flops, turns and rivers hit the board. They also positively think about how much luck they will have in the game that's coming up.

Manifestation: Players manifest their dream, goal and wins. They manifest the glory, the start, the end, the money. They try to use their mind to make it happen. They believe in sending it out into the atmosphere - sending their thoughts of the win. The mediate on this, focus on this and block everything out. They use posters, songs, videos, words such as "I will have nothing but good luck, I will get good cards, I will win the tournament, I will be victorious." During this process of manifestation they also use vision and make the visions a big part of it. They "see" in their minds the cards, the win, the cash. By visions, I mean they PUT the pictures in their head and focus on them.

Spells: Players (i am guessing not many) have the option if taking this spiritual thing a little further and trying some luck spells. Not something I ave done, but may be worth a try - its all hocus pocus to most but; who knows - it may work? I looked around and there are many luck spells. I couldn't believe it! If your zany enough i guess you could give it a try if your luck factor is dead. Here are a few i found!

1. Just say these words when the moon is full:

"Lady of luck come out of your hidden course

bless your light upon me as the light of the moon shines above

and in the light of luck will be blessed I, when the moon is next to be full "

2. Wondering magic bring to me, in this life the luck I need,

so all my angles can be seen, and thus fulfill my every dream,

combined earth and fire, bring forth my hearts desire,

guardians of the sea, keep all harm from me.

This should be done while lighting 4 candles 1 at each side of u repeat the

above words 3 times to bring good luck and obtain your hearts desire.

3. Gather 7 mall pieces or turquoise.

Place the stones under a full moon, to soak up the light for seven hours.

Take the stones into your hands, and say:

Luck be quick, luck be kind,

By lucky seven, good luck be mine.

Place stones into green bag, & carry with you wherever you go.

Throw a stone into a moving body of water, stating your desire, anytime you feel the

need for a little good fortune.

These are obviously just 3 of the many out there, written by goodness knows who!

Crystals and Stones: Evident-ally it seems that with spells comes lucky charms. Stones and other kinds of luck materials and objects. It is written, if you need luck in gambling that Aventurine and Tourmaline are what you are looking for! seems like I need some new jewelry if this is true!

So the last thing i am going to mention for luck I just came across whilst reading. Its luck potions. Again possibly worth a try! The way my lucks running, I am going to be whackily trying it all (or sensibly if it actually works).

Luck Potion for Beginners: Lemon juice and sugar, one table spoon of each in a small glass of water, add a quartz crystal to catalyze and activate in sunshine for about ten minutes. For beginners it helps to put a piece of paper under the glass with "Luck Potion for (your name)!!" written on it. You need to drink it all in one go (don't drink the crystal, obviously!). Depending on the person, it lasts for about a week. Top up if you need to. And wearing something yellow helps as well.

Thats all for investigative little me! Best of luck on the poker tables and with your luck enhancing ways! Good luck with d luck potion :-)

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The Worst Poker Players Ever!

The Worst Poker Players Ever!

Negativity is always something I try to fend off but it keeps biting at my heels. Today i am in a negative mood and decided to write a post about the worst poker players ever and what makes them so bad. I can think of a few really bad poker players and for multiple reasons. I guess I have to look at what makes a bad poker player to determine the worst ones ever!

Bad poker players again can be bad for multiple reasons. They can represent the game and the industry poorly, they can be simply degenerate gamblers that just play to gamble, they can be players that invest money non stop into live or even online play and lose, they can be players that are one hit wonders that really have no take or idea on the game, simply got lucky and of course there are cheats which would in my mind make them the worst player ever simply by being one! I am sure there are more reasons for someone being the worst poker players ever but that's enough for now!

If i were to analytically go through each of these categories that make the worst poker players EVER, I could i guess number it down to a few hundred thousand players. I am sure some have cheated, some have just played for the hell of gambling, some are colossal losers (I know I am sometimes - not all the time thank goodness) and some just represent poker and the poker industry poorly.

Making my list into a few hundred thousand players simply isn't going to give me the nuts on the worst players ever. Sorry mum but you would be in that list as you do not even know what 2 pair is lol. To be fair on our well known players i can't be naming them either, most of them are good representatives of the game and are far from cheats or losers and naming any of them would be just plain wrong, especially when they are better players then I am!

I guess that leaves a riddle, who are the worst poker players ever? Is it even possible to name them? I think not! People play poker for fun, enjoyment, as children, at all levels. Poker players have the ability to learn and will learn the game for the rest of their lives.

There is no such thing as a worst poker player ever is what I think, I REPEAT "THINK"! They can cheat and it doesn't make them the worst, it just makes them down right horrible! They can be a colossal loser but there is always going to be someone who is a more colossal loser, they can represent the game badly but be champions, they can have a bad recorded day, month or year and come back to win a million dollars or they could be a casual drunk at pub poker. It doesn't make them the worst ever.

In summary of my thoughts today on the worst poker players ever, I can't name them, wouldn't name them and are not going to try. Of course you could disagree with me on any of the above and say there definitely is a group of worst players ever. I guess someone MUST fall under every category there is to make them bad! I sure have seen some shitty players that are rude, abrupt, smelly, stupid, drunk, and non stop losers. If you are one of them, I guess YOU are one of the worst players ever lol. I know I don't stink, which makes me not the worst of the worst for starters, I don't think i am stupid either nor always drunk when I play so I can safely say I am not one of them.

P.s. on the naming players, I do not need a lawsuit would be another reason why I simply wont! hehe

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Poker Manifestation Positive Thought and Determination

Poker Manifestation Positive Thought and Determination

"Come to momma chippies!"

A few days before the new year set in I wrote about the year that had been. I decided that ultimate focus on my regime was a must for 2011 and also a few great poker wins. 2010 really sucked for me win wise, and although I had a fabulous 2011 in focus, I decided to hit out 2010 with a bang! I was so down with a huge downswing in my game and terrible choices when it came to making decisions at the table that I made it a must to WIN an MTT before 2010 ended. This would see me step into 2011 a happy and focused poker player on an upswing with the thought in my head

"Come to momma chippies!"

Instead of "here we go again with another loss!"

This decision is what made me realize I could do it! If i set my mind to it I could do anything! That's something that I had always believed in but somehow lost in 2010. I told my good friend Michael and my partner Tyrone - I am going to win this! Tyrone seemed pessimistic (and for good reason based on my results) and Michael said you can do it! Although negativity is something no-one needs, tyrones blasphemous comment made me more determined. i love to prove him wrong!

I made an effort to keep in the top 10 for the most part of the tournament and brought myself to a level of "zone" over and over i kept declaring that "I was taking it down." Unfortunately part way through I copped a bad, bad beat leaving me 2nd last with only 900 chips. Tyrone was sure that he was right and that i was going to be moody after this. I refused to give up. There were less then 20 players to go. A few double ups was all it was going to take and I was back! A lot of double ups actually! The leader was on 40,000 chips!

I sat, I faught back, hand after hand after hand. With 4 players to go, I knocked 2 out in one hand and found myself heads up in an awkward position. I had a 5.5:1 chip deficit headsup. The leader was on 110,000 chips by memory, I had 19,000. I refused to give up, I had come this far! I had made my mind up and i was NOT going to lose!

The ball was in my court to play the best headsup game I ever had to take this tourney down. Lucky for me I had focused on headsup play for the last few months of 2010! A few traps and a lot of agression afterwards and the tourney was mine! I had never cheered so much in my entire poker life. It was now December 31st 2010 and I had won an MTT! The last for the year as manifested and planned. The win wasnt big and the field far from enormous, regardless I did what i had planned to!

At the same time I won a $50 double up and a $20 bounty tourney where I knocked out 7 bounties. I could not have asked for a better start for 2011 when it came to my lower stakes poker game!

So, to summarise, there is the meaning of my blog title I now have my mind set on Poker New year Happiness. I know that we can all set out to do something and DO IT! Manifest it and make it happen! That is my plan, just do it, zone myself and DO IT! 2011 is going to be a fabulous year for me in poker, I can feel it!

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What's A Poker Teleseminar?

What's A Poker Teleseminar?

Recently pokerteleseminars.com opened their online doors for business. This has left many people wondering what a poker teleseminar is. I thought seeing as though I was the next guest speaker I would put an explanation in my blog about what the benefits of poker teleseminars are as well as the main features of a poker teleseminar.


There are countless; thousands of teleseminars on the internet daily on various subjects and topics covering all walks of life. Seminars can be found on metaphysical subjects, fishing, camping, hunting, technology, internet and computer use, gardening, grief, you name it! You can find a teleseminar on any topic you like and this now includes poker!

A teleseminar is 100% LIVE training in the topic of choice. The seminars have guest speaker (trainers, teachers and educators) that are specialists in their areas of topic. For gardening you may find Don Burke a famous Aussie gardener talking about the art of keeping bugs out of your garden as an example. Pokerteleseminars.com have used the same concept but for poker.

Basically participants (in my words students) of the topic go to the seminar hosting site, enter their details and prepare for the live training which is held at a certain time and a certain day. They can participate as a student via the internet (web) or via telephone by ringing in. The trainer / guest speaker or teacher will be available at the organized time to cover curriculum and educate the participants on the chosen topic. In the case of my up and coming seminar, I will be discussing "The Art of Getting Sponsored" or gaining sponsorship in the many ways and forms it can be achieved by poker players.

Being 100% live training the students in the seminar have the ability to ask questions during question time. If they have participated in the seminar via telephone they simply push a button and it indicates to the host and co-coordinator they have placed their hand in the air to ask a question to the guest speaker / teacher. They then ask the question directly to the educator / trainer / teacher (whatever you would like to call them) and the question is answered for everyone to hear. There is also the option of submitting a question prior to the seminar on the topic via an "ask a question box" or during it; by typing the question in.

Seminars are held in halls and costs sometimes thousands of dollars to be trained in your particular field or topic of interest. Making an online seminar your choice of training gives you all the same benefits with the only difference being you are not face to face. There is no travel involved and no need to organize the pets, kids or motel room. What's more you can attend a seminar every week by various speakers on your subject of choice rather then once a year. This makes a teleseminar perfect for high level and quantity education purposes at a limited cost to you or me the students!

When I first looked at pokerteleseminars; to be honest i thought I could learn nothing from it. After attending seminars on other topics across the net and the pokerteleseminar held last week with guest speaker Tony Hachem on the "The Art of Consistency" I realized it is more then sure to work for everyone involved, particularly the students! My thoughts have indeed changed.

Anyway; this should explain a poker teleseminar I hope! It is something that even some pro's have added into their training schedule, after all - poker takes a life time to master even if it only takes a day to learn. With each and every pro in the world having awesome skills in very different areas; pokerteleseimnars will deliver more then any strategy book or video available anywhere. You have the best of the best teaching the best aspect of their game. From the smallest of Pro's through to our world champions! best of luck with your game and happy learning if you happen to participate in a poker teleseminar.

The official home of pokerteleseminars can be found by clicking this: POKERTELESEMINARS 100% LIVE TRAINING

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Strategy To Make Your Poker Solid Or Use When You Have Lost Your Game

Strategy To Make Your Poker Solid Or Use When You Have Lost Your Game

Of recent times due to lack of playing I seemed to have lost part of my poker game. I determined that it had a lot to do with my betting patterns, folding, checking and re-raising at the appropriate times. I compiled " Strategy To Make Your Poker Solid Or Use When You Have Lost Your Game" for myself and decided to share it on my blog to help others.

For many this list is a very basic list. To other poker players this list can help you implement new betting techniques or understand the reasoning behind making certain betting, checking or folding moves.

I hope it helps with your game regardless of what level of player you are, even the best can forget basic moves at times.

In the case that no other player has made a raise / bet - you perform the following actions for the following reasons:

CHECK

You Check if:

1) You have nothing
2) You have a marginal hand such as; an open ended straight or a flush draw and will call a raise by another player that is not too large.
3) You have a great hand and when someone bets you will raise. Using the check raise technique to extract chips and trick your opponent.
4) You have a weak hand and you intend to bluff by raising, being sure you can place your opponent on a hand so as not to trap yourself.

RAISE

You Raise if:

1) You have the best hand and want to make pot bigger
2) You have the best hand and want to eliminate competition that may be chasing better hands
3) You wish to bluff with a lousy hand
4) You wish to get respect from players on turn to continuation bet for reasons 2) and 3).

In the case that a player has made a raise / bet before it is your turn to act - you perform the following actions for the following reasons:

FOLD

You Fold If:

1) You do not have a good hand
2) You do not have the right pot odds and have a marginal hand (open ended straight as an example and the raise was too big)
3) If bluff will not work

CALL

You Call If:

1) You have a marginal hand and can make it a better hand if in the case the raise is reasonably small
2) You have a great hand and want the other players to call to build the pot

RE-RAISE

You re-raise if:

1) You have an awesome hand and consider it the nuts or thereabouts
2) You can bluff your opponent out of the hand as they appear weak

Again, this may not be suitable for all players - I do however hope it has somewhat helped you. Test it out!

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Poker Forums for Personal Poker Advice Tips and Coaching

Poker Forums for Personal Poker Advice Tips and Coaching

Whether you are a novice or pro you can benefit in many ways from inputting, being an avid user of or simply reading what is in poker forums. Poker forums are the perfect place for every poker player to obtain strategy, tips, hints and advice. So many people say “I am not into blogging”. Poker Forums are not about blogging. They have useful poker strategy information, poker tournament

information and can be the best poker coach you can possibly get!

Some poker forums are poker communities not just forums, members stick by each other and are always there to give a helping hand whenever your poker game has trouble. These include those such as the WOmanSome poker forums such as Dr Check Raise; that protect their poker forum community members by: exposing risky online poker sites and the ugly and grey areas of poker. These forums also have players with poker knowledge ready for the eating and are there for YOU 24/7!

Others have the best poker pros around to hand over information on how, when and what to do. This is much better then reading a book. Books don’t answer individual questions.

Then there are the likes of Poker Network Australia’s biggest forum offering up to date advice on tournaments and players throughout varied countries. (Dependable on where the forum is based). There are also close community type forums such as the newly releasing ThePokerHunter.com where players can get well known from the start and nicely knit together in friendship.

Every day a new forum is born and grows. There are forums by the thousands! I even have an unused one at http://www.wtfpokerradio.com which I will get to building eventually. Don’t turn your nose down at them, the reading is great and so are the community members you could meet. Get your nose stuck into some forums and see how much of an improvement your game has after a while. As always, take care with the advice you use and move on if the forum isn’t up to scratch when it comes to politeness.

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How to Make Money From Poker For a Living

How to Make Money From Poker For a Living

I hear these song words intruding on my brain as I write this blog “Love the One Your With, Love the One Your With!” Obviously this song has nothing to with poker but this is my writing here and when I write EVERYTHING has to do with NL Texas Hold’em, Omaha, Stud or online poker! In this case loving poker and how to make money from it, the obvious is of course win!

“Love the one your with” is something every single one of us should do both on and off the poker tables. I went through an online poker “fad” of playing only heads up. I was really, really worried. I was thinking over and over that this could affect my other games such as poker tournaments and cash play. I was however making money.

Poker is like riding a bike; we never forget how to play. Once we learn certain skills they may need a touch up now and again, but they are there forever! Mastering skills is the issue. We can play poker for a life time and will never actually master the game. Back to the point >

For weeks I am playing only heads up poker and had the thought this would affect my other games. I consulted friends and associates with great knowledge on the game whom I have the utter most respect for. They told me it would make no difference to my other games, while you are having fun, making money and loving it – stick with it!

I did just that, I loved heads up and continued loving the game (one) I was with at the time. This actually improved my other games. When I am heads up at the end of a tournament, I rarely lose. When I am playing against only one other opponent in a Texas Hold’em cash game (as everyone else has folded), I usually take down the pot.

Many people that play poker overlook the fact that they are there to make money. It is a job that so many of us enjoy but it can also be monotonous. Let me ask you something, would you rather play poker and make money or work a monotonous factory job? Some players grind $3.30 Sng’s all day. These players play poker for a living and make a truck load of cash.

Playing poker can be a very boring task when you do it as a daily grind. Gotta love it though; love it a lot more then stacking boxes or magazines or watching tins go past in a dead end job right? Again love the one your with. Playing poker to make money isn’t all about the thrill of winning a big tourney. It isn’t all about playing deep stacks and gloating that you took it down. Poker as a career means playing a lot of boring stuff. Again though if you are making money, say $100 an hour. Why would you choose anything else? Yes you CAN do it!

If you sit and play double ups (I suggest 10 seater) all day long you are going to make a mint. Have 5 of these running at once (Do not need much attention paid in double ups) and at $10 a hit and you are making at least $100 and hour. Not many people make that much. Again, it is not about the gloating and rubbing big wins in peoples faces, its about making money from poker as a living. May the grind begin and time it like a job and LOVE the work you do!

“Love the one your with” and stick with it for as long as you love it. That’s my motto anyway!

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