Online Poker In The U.S.: Time To Do The Right Thing

Cover of Do the Right Thing [Blu-ray]Online Poker In The U.S.: Time To Do The Right Thing

Given the Full Tilt Poker disaster, I believe it will be more difficult than ever before to get the U.S. Congress to approve legalization. Never the less, I would love to see online poker be legal so millions of U.S. citizens can play poker anywhere and anytime via the internet.

I believe that the online poker companies should be aggressive in putting together a plan of what they will do to make sure that online poker is good for the U.S. economy, good for its citizens, is a fair game, prohibits underage gambling, and addresses problem gamblers.

Here are 11 areas that I would like online poker companies to promise to the U.S. Congress and poker players:

1. All companies must be headquartered in the U.S. to operate a legal online poker site in the U.S.

2. Jobs to operate online poker companies must include U.S. citizens in a similar percentage to the revenue anticipated from the U.S. poker players. If 70% of revenue is from U.S. poker players, then the online site must hire 70% of their total employees from the U.S.

3. No top executives, directors or major shareholders in online poker sites can have a criminal record.

4. Online poker companies must pay a U.S. tax rate that is similar to brick and mortar casinos.

5. Online poker companies must issue 1099's for all players that cash over $5,000.

6. The online poker industry must fund and create an independent agency to monitor their sites. This agency will have the power to penalize or shut down sites that do not adhere to the rules. The funding for the agency will come from an annual fee per online site based on total revenues.

7. The online poker sites must take adequate steps to prevent gambling by U.S. citizens under the age of 21.

8. There must be one universal poker dealing program that all sites use. This poker dealing program must be developed, tested and proven to replicate the randomness of live poker dealing. While each site will have its own design, format, promotions, etc., the dealing of poker hands must be fair and true to the game.

9. Online poker sites must identify the types of cheating that is possible by online players and agree to the best practices to try to prevent and stop these practices. Each poker site must have an internal group to audit the poker tables, investigate player complaints of cheating, and to act promptly.

Money lost by players due to cheating will be returned to players. The players caught cheating will be banned for life at all online poker sites. The names of these cheaters will be made public.

10. Online poker sites will not allow players to use online poker tools that provide data as to the betting habits and trends of individual poker players. This type of information is not available in a live poker game and will not be allowed online. Players caught using these online poker tools will be banned for life at all online poker sites.

11. Online poker sites must provide information to their players about responsible gambling and where to go if there is a problem. An online poker site can prohibit a player from continuing to participate on their site, if they perceive a player as a problem gambler.

I believe it is time for the online poker sites to take the initiative and go above and beyond what has been done in the past in order to get online poker legal in the U.S.

What do you think?

At The World Series of Poker: The Rest Of The Story

Image by ama_lia via FlickrAt The World Series of Poker: The Rest Of The Story

I thought I would share some interesting notes and observations from the WSOP.

1. How players were selected for the featured tables.
I am not sure what was done the first few days, but everything was random for the Day 5 and Day 6 seats. At the end of the day, each table would high card for the button and the floorman would deal out table assignments for the next day.

It may be that when someone got knocked out at one of these featured tables, the floor would pick a poker celebrity or a big stack to move to the feature table. I was never selected--which was fine by me.

2. Women poker players.
It was funny how many women wore tops that revealed cleavage. It was even funnier when one of these ladies would wear sunglasses--like any guy at the table was checking out the color of their eyes.

Frankly, women poker players should have a big edge at the WSOP since they are such a rarity at the main event. I believe only 5%. But I guess they don't fully understand the mind of poker males. A friend of mine told me to start a school for women poker players.

3. Behind the scenes with ESPN.
It is interesting what happens at the WSOP to accommodate TV. When two or more players are all-in, the dealer stops dealing and he shouts "all-in at table number ..." One of the ESPN staff quickly decides if he wants this all-in recorded.

If not, the dealer continues the hand. If he does, the ESPN guy calls one of the camera crews to come to the table. The crew includes guys with a mike and two cameras.

After the crew is ready, the ESPN guy taps the dealer on the shoulder to deal the flop. The flop is done and the cameras focus on any player reaction. When ready, the ESPN guy gives the okay to the dealer for the turn, etc.

ESPN does a super job to make sure the crew arrives quickly so it does not slow the game down. Although, the reality is that there is more drama when the cards are dealt so deliberately.

4. ESPN and me.
I may appear on the Day 6 showing of the Main Event. Since I did not curse or go nuts when that Ace on the turn knocked me out, it is a long shot.

5. Mega satellite into the Main Event.
I went to Vegas with enough money to enter the three $550 mega satellites--one on each day. Frankly, I had a feeling that I was going to win a seat and get to the final table.

Day 1: I was very unlucky and got knocked out of the first satellite.
Day 2: I was very unlucky and got knocked out of the second satellite.
Day 3: This was my last shot at winning a seat. When we went to the first break, I was very unlucky and as a result, I only had enough chips to cover the small blind and 2 antes.

The first hand after the break, I was UTG+3. I was dealt 8-6 offsuit and folded. The flop was 8-8-6! Damn! I thought I blew my one chance.

The second hand UTG+2, I was dealt J-5 offsuit and went all-in. Enough to cover the small blind. I won when a 5 hit the flop and the other two players had Ace high.

After this hand, I got hot. It was incredible! "Never give up, never surrender!"

6. I was in Vegas for 14 Days!
I have never been in Vegas that long before. After the three days of satellite play, I played the next day in the WSOP Main Event. After I survived that day, I had to wait 3 days to play again.
And there was a wait after Day 2, and a day off after another day of play.

I made about three trips to a nearby laundromat. I went to see the Rat Pack at the Rio (don't waste your time). And, I went to a forgettable movie at the Palms.

Since I am very superstitious, I ate the same things every day. I am not going to have another Western omelette at the Rio or Ultimate Salad at TGIF again! Oh, well not until next year :-0

7. The competition in the Main Event.
Frankly, there was a very wide range of poker talent. The table composition was the most important factor in my performance.

The first days I was fortunate in that the competition at my tables were typical; meaning, the styles were consistent with what I've experienced in the Bay Area.

A lot of the players in the early days, though, seem to implode by Day 3 or Day 4. Perhaps it was the pressure. Perhaps it was the level of the competition, as the later days had a higher percentage of strong players.

Frankly, I felt the pressure the first two hours on Day 5, and frankly, all of Day 6.

8. What surprised me the most.
I was most surprised by the fact that the pros and internet kids were so bad at reading hands. It got to be so bad, I was laughing inside.

On Day 6, players who had to make a big decision would sometimes take one minute or more contemplating what to do. And after all that time, these players would make the wrong decision. It was funny, until...

My opponent made a terrible decision after studying my 3 bet pre-flop for a long time. He went all-in with A-T, thinking, I guess, that I would fold. But, I held pocket Kings and I was committed to the pot with almost 33% of my chips invested.

9. Can you win at the WSOP?
Yes. I believe anyone can win a WSOP bracelet. The thing is that most players continue to play in their comfort zone--without experimenting in order to get better. Get out of your comfort zone. Learn how the poker pros play. Learn how the internet kids play. Try these styles, and how to play against them.

Admittedly, I was not ready for the internet poker players who liked to 3 bet pre-flop with a wide range of hands. It took me until the dinner break to figure out how to play against them.

You can win it all. And, if you fail like me, you can still walk away with over $100,000.

Greg Raymer is No Longer a PokerStar

Greg Raymer is No Longer a PokerStar

I ran across an article that Greg Raymer and PokerStars split company. The speculation is that PokerStars is cutting back its support of World Series of Poker winners as they focus more on non-US pros and online winners.

First, I've never played against Greg Raymer. Second, from watching him play on TV, Greg appears to be an excellent player who enjoys putting pressure on his opponents whether he has the goods or not. Of course, the best evidence of his skill is his winning the 2004 World Series of Poker. Third, he seems like a really nice guy and I am sure he will end up getting his support from another online poker site.

And, that's my problem. Online poker sites should not be paying star players to play at their sites. If they want poker stars to appear in their ads or promotions, that is fine. But, to give them money to play at their site is just cheating the game, and the players at the site.

I don't blame the players for taking the money. Heck, no matter how good a poker player you are, you are going to have long stretches of losing your money. But, giving players an edge like this, especially the "pros," is just wrong IMHO.

Personal Experience Being Sponsored, sort of.

I would like to come up with an analogy that helps illustrate my point, but I don't have one. Poker is gambling. It is skill and luck. And, the combination of these two ingredients weighs heavier on the "luck" factor than any other sporting competition I can think of.

Players who don't care about the money are going to play different than if the money was coming out of their own pocket. At least that is what I have found in my own play.

For example, I was visiting a friend and he said that he wanted to see me play a poker tournament at a local casino. I guess he gave me grief because I had a book on tournament poker, and he wanted to get a good laugh when some young kid knocked me out. I told him I wasn't interested in playing.

To convince me to play, though, he made me an offer I couldn't refuse. He would give me the buy-in for the event and I could keep whatever I won. I didn't realize it at the time, but that is the kind of deal these poker stars get from the online poker sites.

Of course, I took him up on his offer, and entered the event. I guess it was a psychological thing or something, because I took more chances than I normally would do in a poker tournament. I'd like to say I won the event, but I didn't win. I finished second.

This was not some major poker tournament. It was a local game with maybe 100 players. And, my friend thought some of my all-in moves were too risky. Maybe, probably, actually, yes for sure! Why? I wasn't gambling at all. I had no risk. I wasn't using my money.

Oh yeah, let me share with you how I got knocked out at the end...I am ashamed to say that I tried to bluff out my opponent pre-flop when he was holding pocket Kings. Now you know why I'm not sponsored by a poker site :-)

My point to all of this is that online poker sites should not be influencing the results of any poker event. But, by paying poker pros to play at their sites, they are doing precisely that. Pay these stars to promote your site in all the other traditional marketing ways--from PR to advertising to promotion. Just not in a way that effects the outcome of the actual events where everyone else is risking their hard earned money.

If you agree, please let me know. If you disagree, I am sure I will read your comments.

To Win at Poker Take Off Your Handcuffs!

What you can do to win more often at poker.

Image by mskogly via Flickr

I have been playing mostly limit poker cash games and a few no limit poker tournament the past two weeks. The one thing I've learned is that my opponents seem to limit their pre-flop raises and re-raises to big premium starting hands like AA, KK, QQ, AK, AQ. If this is the way you play, my advice is take off your handcuffs!

Let me explain it this way: Raise and Re-raise preflop with a much wider range of starting hands.

1. Limit Poker:
When I am playing online poker at a nine-handed table, I find that players are tighter than at a poker club. When a late position player raises pre-flop, I will re-raise with dicey hands like K-J or J-10. What happens when I make this re-raise is that I tend to have position and the lead. On the flop, I hold my nose and I make that continuation bet. It works a lot more than you'd think.

Example:
A late position player raises with pocket Jacks. I re-raise with K-J. He calls.

The flop comes A-8-4. I bet and he calls or folds.

Let's say he calls. I don't like the call, but if he doesn't have an Ace, he will have to fold to my bet on the turn.

Let me make this clearer. You are on the cutoff and raise with pocket Jacks. I re-raise from the button. You call. The flop is A-8-4. You check. I bet and you call. The turn is a 2. I bet...now what are you going to do? Let's say the turn is a Q. I bet...now what?

Another example is when I do hit the flop; let's say it is J-4-2. My opponent calls me down with those pocket 10's. Now, any opponent paying attention is going to think I'm a poor player to re-raise with K-J or J-10.

And my table image results in my good hands getting paid off with bigger pots. The other advantage is that tend to have control of the hand, so I can even check the turn and see the river for free.

Give it a shot if you play limit cash poker online.

By the way, a lot of players like to make this re-raise with small and middle pairs. Frankly, I am not a fan of this play. I mean if you re-raise with pocket 6's and end up heads-up what are you going to do when your opponent calls your flop bet, and the flop has cards like 10-J-4. If the turn is a 9, now what? Are you really going to keep firing away hoping to hit a two-outer. A lot of players do just that.

2. Poker Tournaments:

In poker tournaments, players are not raising often enough to accumulate chips. You can't just sit there hoping to move all-in with AA against KK.

My suggestion is to widen the hands you raise with pre-flop. First, widen it a little and then keep widening the hands. Learn from these situations. Personally, I like to randomize between a 2 and 3x raise pre-flop. And, I try to find situations to steal with little risk with my raises.

In addition, just like in limit poker, widen the hands you will re-raise with pre-flop. The re-raise pre-flop will get your opponent to fold. If not, make that continuation bet on the flop and it will work more than you'd expect.

Yes, you may end up being trapped. But, that's okay, because you are going to improve your game. You will find that your ability to read your opponents will get better.

When you play aggressively like this, you will find that when you get deep in a tournament you won't worry about the bubble because you will have enough chips to have a shot at winning!

The fact is that Daniel Negreanu's small ball is all about making a lot of those small pre-flop raises. And, if you watch the new breed of poker tournament winner, you will see these guys making a lot of pre-flop re-raises.

Learn from them and try it yourself. It will improve your play and eventually, your results.

5 Things I Learned From Watching Phil Hellmuth Play Poker at the Bay 101 WPT

5 Things I Learned From Watching Phil Hellmuth Play Poker at the Bay 101 WPT

Image via Wikipedia

The Bay 101 Shooting Stars event had a webcast where you could watch the action live. The camera was fixed and you got to see play at only one table. Overall, it was excellent! If you are a poker club and want to attract more players to your tournaments, this is a great way to do it.

Daniel was the at the featured table on Day 1a, while Phil was at the featured table for the last three days.

I spent a lot of time watching Phil play poker and spotted a few trends in his play. One caveat: you don't get to see hole cards or the community cards. Yesterday, they added a second shot that tried to show the viewer the community cards, but frankly, it was difficult to see.

Giving these limitations, here is my learning from watching the action.

5 Things I Learned From Watching Phil Hellmuth:

1. Players willingly revealed their hole cards to Phil way too often.

At the start of the event, Phil would ask a player what they had. Almost all of the players would not reply.

So Phil started to show his cards to loosen things up. And it worked. I have never witnessed so much sharing at a poker table. I am convinced Phil was getting more information on his opponents than they were getting on him.

A similar thing happened on Day 1a with Daniel Negreanu. But since the players like Daniel, he would just have to ask a player what they had, and often, the player would just tell him! Were all these players lying? Maybe. But, I don't think so.

Hey...it's tough to lie when you actually show your hand! It was amazing to me. Do these players think Daniel and Phil are going to be their new best friends?

2. Phil often says he has a "good" or a "stronger" hand than the other players.

It was funny how often Phil would say "I had a hand" after the hand had ended. He would sometimes even say what it was to his opponent (or show one or both cards.)

By doing this table talk, my impression is the following:

• Phil added the perception of strength to every hand he got from the dealer.
• Phil loosened up his opponents to make it acceptable to share information/hole cards.
• Phil got his opponents to like him more.

At one point Phil even mentioned how his opponents always tell him how likable he is in person, unlike the way he is shown on TV.

3. Phil was the more aggressive and intimidating player at his table.

Phil raised pre-flop more often than his opponents. His opponents did not want to tangle with Phil, so he would steadily build his stack.

4. Phil played his opponents rather than his own cards.

Clearly, almost every time an opponent checked, Phil would take it as a sign of weakness and bet. Phil was great at playing his opponents whether in position or out of position.

Here is a typical sequence when Phil was in position:

Player A raises pre-flop. Phil calls. It goes heads-up to the flop.
Player A make a c-bet. Phil calls.
Player A checks the turn. Phil bets. Player A takes longer time than usual to decide his play before he mucks.

Here is a typical sequence when Phil was out of position:

Player A raises pre-flop. Phil calls on the big blind. It goes heads-up to the flop.
Phil checks. Player A make a c-bet. Phil calls.
Phil checks the turn. Player A checks the turn.
Phil bets on the river. Player A takes longer time than usual to decide his play before he mucks.

Was Phil floating all these times? I don't know if he had a big hand or not. But, if he had a big hand every time he said he did, than he was playing with a different deck of cards than everyone else:-)

It was like Phil was playing at a higher level of poker--and frankly, I think he was doing just that!

5. Phil was more cautious against the professional players.

When the tables got down to 6 players, Phil was playing against better opponents and a few pros. He was more cautious in his play. And, of course, the pots were going to be a lot bigger with the bigger blinds.

The one additional move he used more often was the pre-flop re-raise against an aggressive player. Phil would identify his aggressive opponent and allow him to win a few hands heads-up with pre-flop folds. However, eventually Phil would re-raise the aggressive players pre-flop, and take down a nice sized pot.

Conclusion:

Phil has been playing great against his weaker opponents. He has also gotten lucky a few times where he found pocket Q's vrs pocket 10's, and a boat against a straight. Fact: You gotta be lucky to win a poker tournament.

It will be interesting to see how things go for Phil at the final table. Right now he is in second place in chips.

Since I play in the Bay Area, I think the local players were at a disadvantage in that we do not have much experience in tournaments with this kind of structure or this level of competition.
I believe that the longer rounds and more starting chips gave the local players a false sense of security; that is, you can just wait a lot longer for big cards. Watching Phil and Daniel play poker I can tell you that is not the case if you want to win.

Sponsored Post: All About Razz Poker

Sponsored Post: All About Razz Poker

Watch the stopwatch I am dangling in front of your eyes. I am moving the watch back and forth, left to right, back and forth, left to right....
You are getting sleepy. You are getting sleeping. You are now asleep. When I snap my fingers you will wake up, read this article and buy Play Razz Poker to Win....three, two, one...Snap!

Razz Poker Rules

Razz is basically 7-Card Stud played for low, which means that instead of making the highest possible poker hand, the goal in Razz is to make the worst possible conventional poker hand. Straights and flushes do not count in Razz, which leaves the wheel (A,2,3,4,5) the best possible Razz hand.

Before we jot down any strategy considerations, let’s take a look at the rules differences between Razz and Stud.

The Bring-In is the first difference between Razz and Stud. While in Stud, the player with the lowest upcard has to bring it in, in Razz, the player with the worst Razz hand is the one who has to make the move, which means that the player in possession of the highest cards has to bring it in.

The Ace counts as low in Razz, so the highest (and worst) card is the King. In case there’s a tie, suit is used as a tie-breaker, just like in Stud. In Razz though, the worst suit is the club, then comes the diamond, heart and finally the spade.

In the betting rounds, the action is started by the player with the best Razz hand. Again, Razz hands are low, it doesn’t matter whether it’s a 2-card or a 4-card hand we’re talking about. This means the player who has the lowest 2-card hand starts the betting. Two unpaired cards are always better than two paired ones. The rank of a 2-card hand is always determined by the higher card.

At showdown, no qualifier for the winning low hand exists. Regardless of its makeup, the lowest hand at the table wins even if it happens to contain paired cards and such. The 5-card showdown hands are always evaluated starting with the highest card.

Razz Poker Strategy

That about wraps up the differences between the two games, so assuming that you know your 7-Card Stud rules, I’ll move on to strategy. There are several things you can do to maximize your odds even before you sit down to the table. First of all: sign up for a rakeback or a poker prop deal. That’s correct: you can’t go wrong with that, regardless of the poker variant you play. It’ll keep delivering that 30-120% edge on every single real money hand you log.

Exercise proper table selection. Unlike Holdem, Razz (much like 7-card Stud) is not a suitable game for beginners. The edges here can be enormous and skill relegates the luck factor to a mere extra in Razz.

If you have your sights set on Stud though, you may as well begin with Razz. Razz is easier to learn than Stud and beginners will find it easier to cope with the rules in the beginning. Razz boards are easier to read. Keep your eye on your opponents’ upcards and act according to the reads you make. If you see a player needing one more card to make a better Razz hand than yours, you probably wouldn’t be correct going up against him. A made hand in Razz is a hand which doesn’t need a draw to further improve. Such made hands should be no-go zones for beginners, that is, they shouldn’t attempt to draw against such made hands.

Starting hand selection – though simple – is also important in Razz: only play starting hands which consist of 3 cards below 8. Start with only 2 cards below 8 and you’ll have to hit 3 of the 4 cards that will come, to make a competitive Razz hand.

Bluffing in Razz is done based on one’s upcards. If you have a A,2,3 in the window, fire away: it’s the perfect hand for a bluff, regardless of your hole-cards.

One more thing: you cannot play Razz with more than 8 players.

Now, go buy the book Play Razz Poker to Win. Oh, one very important fact about Razz. If you only play Razz online, you will find it is very different than playing in a poker club. The reason is simply the challenge of recalling your cards and opponents card are much more difficult when you've been trained on Razz using only online poker sites.

10 Reasons NOT To Play Online Poker

10 Reasons NOT To Play Online Poker

The previous post reviewed my 10 Reason To Play Online Poker. Now, here is my list of 10 Reasons NOT To Play Online Poker. You may not like my list, but that's poker.

1. Online Poker Sites Are Not Regulated or Licensed in the US.

Without some type of oversight, poker players can not be sure if the sites are cheating them. Some argue that it is not in a poker site's best interest to cheat, since so much money is coming in anyway. Unfortunately, greed can corrupt. And unregulated companies have proven time and time again, where there is a will (to dupe the people to make more money), there is a way.

2. The Online Poker Sites RNG (Random Number Generator) Ain't So Random.

RNG's are complex computer programs. However, software can be altered to create subtle changes that effect play and results. Are there more bad beats online? Are there more big hands, like quads and straight flushes that occur online? Does it seem that there are too many heads-up situations where one premium hand loses to another premium hand to create more excitement? Yes, yes and yes.

3. Online Poker Sites Support Their Integrity Claims by "Independent" Audits--Are They Really Unbiased?

The sites audits may be independent, but they have to be biased. Why? The firms who audit a poker site get paid by that site. In recent history, a top ten accounting firm closed down to their "independent" audits. And major US corporations have also been forced into bankruptcy due to fake accounting; e.g. Enron.

4. There Have Been Major Cheating Scandals Online That The Online Poker Sites Never Caught.

There have been a handful of major, public cases where poker players have been cheated by outsiders. Did the online poker site catch this cheating? No. The only reason that these cases became public is because other poker players did their own analysis of what had happened and reported it.

5. Other Cases of Cheating Are Happening Online, But No One Gets Caught.

There is so much money being gambled every minute, it is too juicy for unscrupulous people to take advantage of other players. For example, do you think collusion has ever occurred at an online poker site? What about other forms of cheating, like playing in the same event under different user names? Or, a top player who plays under a friend's user name to help increase his bankroll? It happens. It is usually transparent.

6. What About The Frequency of Stories Regarding New Players Getting An Edge or A Player Losing After Withdrawing Money From A Site?

It would make business sense to help new players have an edge. If a new player wins, s/he is more likely to keep playing--even if s/he loses it all a few weeks later. There are also complaints on how a player who withdraws money after winning at a poker site, seems to forget how to play and now loses.

7. The Sponsoring of Poker Players Results In An Uneven Playing Field.

Do sponsored players risk their own money? Reports are that sponsored players get 100% rakeback and get paid hourly at an online poker site. Is it fair that you risk your own money, while a sponsored player takes no risk?

8. If the New UIGEA Regulation Goes Into Effect, Will Your Bank Cash Your Poker Site's Check?

Now you have to worry about what will happen if you do win money at an online site. Assuming you play at a legitimate site and win, the site will pay you. It won't be able to transfer money into your bank account. It will have to use another method, which is most likely going to be mailing you a check. Will your bank cash that check if the new law goes into effect?

9. Are Online Poker Sites Causing A Brain Drain in Teens and College Students?

Joe Cada admitting to playing online poker before he was 21 and even dropping out of school to play poker. It worked out for Joe, but what about the majority of teens and college students who won't be winners at poker? The seduction of winning millions playing poker is strong for everyone. It is no doubt strongest in teenagers and college students, given the millions won in poker by 20-somethings. Online poker sites should not allow underage players.

10. You Play Online Poker Naked And You Are Not A Beautiful Woman.

You know who you are...so stop it!

I realize this list will eliminate my chance of ever being sponsored by an online poker site. And I also realize that whenever I say anything negative about online poker, a few readers write how I am an idiot or worse.

Whether you do or do not play online poker, there is one thing I strongly believe. That is, that every adult in the US should have the freedom to play online poker and win or lose as much money as s/he wants.

The politicians who strive to stop this freedom will be voted out of office, as many were in the last election.

After all, there are only 40 million Americans who play poker. And while most of them don't play online, the thought that their Congress won't let them play poker, even if they wanted to play, is simply un-American.

10 Reasons To Play Online Poker

10 Reasons To Play Online Poker

Since almost all poker players compete online, I thought I would write one column on 10 Reasons To Play Online Poker and another column on 10 Reasons NOT To Play Online Poker. My bias is that I enjoy playing at a club more, probably because my results are much better.

Here are my 10 reasons why you should play online poker:

1. Online Poker is the Most Convenient Way to Play Poker

You can play poker 24/7 right from your desktop. And you can even watch TV, read a book, or multitask while playing.

2. Online Poker is Fun

It's fun to play poker, and online poker is fun since it's poker with some interesting additions like avatars, faster action, the ability to play multiple tables, and chatting with players, and being anonymous at the same time.

3. It Provides the Widest Choice of Poker Games

Online poker lets you play the widest range of poker games possible. And most of these games aren't even available in a casino or card room. Only at online poker can you can be almost guaranteed to find Razz poker, Omaha or a mixed game.

4. There are at Least 100 Online Poker Sites To Choose From

If you don't like one poker site, there are plenty to test out. While you may run into the top players at Full Tilt and Poker Stars, you may find that smaller sites like Bodog and Doyle's Room have less skilled players.

5. You Can Learn How to Play Better, Much Faster

You can play for free online or for money. The more you play poker, the more your game can improve. The non-stop action at online poker allows you to get better. You can even play multiple tables at the same time.

6. It's Less Intimidating than Going to Play at a Casino.

Going to a card room can be risky. There is the trip to and from the card room. The location of the card room and the unknown characters you may run across. And, then, there is the intimidation of playing in person with a lot of strangers. With online poker, you don't have to worry about any of these things.

7. There are Advantages to Online Poker to Help Your Bank Roll.

Online poker has deposit bonuses, jackpots and rakeback. You don't have to tip the dealer. And you will find a lot more people playing poorly.

8. You Can Win Big Money Playing Online Poker.

Since there are more players entering events, the prize pools are bigger. The dream of a big win at the biggest sites is very alluring. In addition, many poker sites now have bad beat jackpots that can be worth $100,000+.

9. Online Poker Eliminates Your Poker Tells

Most players have poker tells that give away the strength of their hand. No one is going to pick up on your tells online.

10. You Can Play Online Poker Naked.

Or you can imagine that the women at your poker table are naked and beautiful.

I am not recommending you play online poker. In fact, I rarely play online poker for the reasons on my next post 10 Reasons Not To Play Online Poker. I know a lot of players will not agree with me, but that's poker.

Letter From My Bank Regarding UIGEA--Oh NO!

Letter From My Bank Regarding UIGEA--Oh NO!

My bank wrote to tell me that they will no longer process these transactions:

"any wager which involves the use of the Internet, where such bet is unlawful under any applicable Federal or State law in the State or Tribal lands in which the bet or wager is initiated, received or otherwise made."

The bank even updated their Deposit Agreement and Disclosure to include the UIGEA.

What does this mean?

It means that now I have to launder money to get my poker winnings--lol.

Actually what it really means is that there are way too many stupid people in government. But you already knew that.

Hey, are they playing poker while in session..

Wanna Win More Money Playing Poker? Forget About The Money!

Poker Reality: Sure It's Money You Are Risking But...

While there is information about bankroll starting requirements and bankroll management, I think another important issue is the meaning you put into the money you are risking.

Image via Wikipedia

What is your emotional state given the amount of money that you are putting in play at a specific game and/or in a specific hand?

You will be a much better player if the money you are gambling with is TOTALLY inconsequential to you. If the money has meaning to you, you will not play nearly as well. It is true in cash games and it comes into play even with tournament chips that have no face value.

Example:

A couple of years ago, I took a vacation and the flight had a 2 hour layover in Las Vegas (what a nice coincidence). I was not going to wait at the airport. I went outside, hopped on the first van and when the driver asked, "Where you going?" I replied, "Your first stop."

The first stop was the Monte Carlo casino. I walked in, found the poker room, and asked for a seat at any table. The seat was a $2-$4 limit hold'em game. I hate $2-$4 limit since everyone in the Bay Area plays no fold'em hold'em.

I took my seat, bought a rack and emotionally the money meant absolutely nothing to me. I was ready to lose the $100 rack.

To my surprise, players folded to my raises in this low level limit game. I could only stay one hour, but almost every play I made worked. If I had nothing at the river, opponents folded. If I had the nuts, I would get called. Without any great run of premium starting hands I won almost $200.

When I got back on the van to the airport, I asked myself, "Why did I do so well?"

Another example:

I read an article by Daniel Negreanu about Nutbar--his name for an exercise to improve your hand reading. In every hand you play, you raise pre-flop and try to outplay your opponents from that point. He warned that the money you were going to play with, would most likely be lost. But the idea was to learn how you could take control of a table, and the importance of reading your opponents in order to bet in a way to win pots.

I bought into a $6-$12 limit game and got a $200 rack. In the first 10 hands I was up about $150, but eventually I went broke .

Daniel was right in learning about Nutbar. But when I left that table, I realized that something else was going on. When I put that money into play, it was lost. I had no emotional connection. I could play better poker because of it. But I believe my game changed once I was winning. Now the chips became money. I actually started to think the money since I was ahead so much in such a little amount of time.

One more example in tournament play:

I see the same thing happen in tournament poker even though the buy-in of $20 or $200 is long gone. At a certain level of blinds, players get hesitant with their chips. It's like they think they can cash in the 10,000 in tournament chips for $10,000. There is an emotional connection to the chips that was not there before. "I'm getting close to cashing, so I better be more careful now." I am at fault as well, in thinking about the payouts as I get close to the bubble. That's why there has been so much written to bubble play.

Your Emotional Connection to Money

My point to all of these examples are this:

1. If you are playing poker and the amount of money you have in play has any consequence to you emotionally, then you should not be in the game. You just won't play at your best.

2. If you are playing in a poker tournament forget about the chips as something you should protect to survive and cash. They are chips and have no value. As you get deeper in the tournament, don't get emotionally involved with potential payour because it will effect your play.

Suggestion

Forget about having any emotional connection to the cash or chips you have in play. You will play better if you think of these things as, well, maybe just things. Heck, chips are suppose to make you forget about the cash backing them in the first place.

Do you think the top pros are linked to their money in the game like you or me? Of course not. I just watched Gus Hansen lose over $200,000 in an online game of Omaha, which maybe took 30 seconds. How would you feel? My guess is that Gus was bummed for a moment. You or I would be sick...a lot more than sick, really.

That $200,000 is going to buy as much stuff in Gus' pocket as it would in yours. But Gus is not linking that money to his emotions in the same way you would. You think and feel different. To Gus, they are just chips to be wagered. To you (and me), it's $200,000 freaking dollars just lost.

While bankroll management is important, maybe you need to think about your emotional connection to the money you put into play. If it has any consequence to you emotionally, then you will not play optimum poker. It doesn't matter that the $20 or $200 has no real meaning to you financially. It is the emotional connection that is underlying your decisions.

There is that expression "don't gamble with money you can't afford to lose." That's fine. But, maybe you shouldn't gamble at a level where your emotions are getting in the way of your poker decisions. You will never be a great player until the money you risk is TOTALLY inconsequential.

What do you think?

Most Popular Poker Posts

Image by chasingthegambler via Flickr

Top 5 Most Popular Poker Posts--These Are Hot

Thank you for reading my poker blog! 6 months ago I was getting about 1,100 visitors per month. Now, I am getting over 3,500 visitors per month to my blog--more than triple! My blog is hot--not even close to being as hot as Lacey Jones, of course.

I hope to continue to provide useful information for you, and interesting ways of presenting it. While my recent post about Phil Ivey's 35 hands to the final table of the WSOP main event took me many hours to assemble--it has been viewed over 420 times in just a few days.

If you missed any of these top 5 posts, you may want to check them out. As always, you never know if it can get you to a final table or maybe spot Lacey Jones at a major event.

Thanks again,
Mitchell


1. The Hands Phil Ivey Played at the Main Event of the WSOP to Get to The Final Table

2. 10 Key Actions to Use in a Poker Tournament: Learning from the Rio

3. This May Be My Most Important Post About Winning Tournament Poker Strategy

4. The Simple Secret to Winning at Online Poker

5. Poker Quiz: Early Rounds of Tournaments