Poker Blog and Poker Gossip

OMG!!! OMG!!! OMG!!!!

As someone that used to love watching the show, I noticed tonight that PKR Poker.com had Deal or No Deal for REAL MONEY online!  You can wager from $0.50 to $100 and the max you can win is $1000 (so the odds aren’t the greatest) but man is it fun!  As you can see from the image below, I opted for the $10 version of the game.

To start the game off, you pick one box (which is your box – just like on the show) then start selecting boxes (again just like the TV show).  You want to try and eliminate the lower number boxes first (obv) then the offers from the banker will go up.  The offers aren’t the greatest, but the risk is pretty low too so I guess you can’t expect huge payoffs from the game.

I played 6 games total and only lost on one of them:

Anyway, just thought I would mention that there are other fun games to degen away at online and as a big Deal or No Deal fan, I know this will probably be trouble for me.

If you want to check it out visit PKR.com and look under the GAMES section.

Graham

Persistent and recurrent maladaptive gambling behavior as indicated by at least five of the following:

1. is preoccupied with gambling (e.g., preoccupied with reliving past gambling experiences, handicapping or planning the next venture, or thinking of ways to get money with which to gamble)
2. needs to gamble with increasing amounts of money in order to achieve the desired excitement
3. has repeated unsuccessful efforts to control, cut back, or stop gambling
4. is restless or irritable when attempting to cut down or stop gambling
5. gambles as a way of escaping from problems or of relieving a dysphoric mood (e.g., feelings of helplessness, guilt, anxiety, depression.
6. after losing money gambling, often returns another day in order to get even (“chasing” one’s losses)
7. lies to family members, therapist, or others to conceal the extent of involvement with gambling
8. has committed illegal acts, such as forgery, fraud, theft, or embezzlement, in order to finance gambling
9. has jeopardized or lost a significant relationship, job, or educational or career opportunity because of gambling
10. relies on others to provide money to relieve a desperate financial situation caused by gambling

I figure this is a better description than you get on the back of some pamphlet, and also knowing exactly how these things are determined could give everyone a better understanding of how serious things may or may not be for them individually.  I know I’m a little disturbed that I fit some of those criteria…

Mark

Hey all

Crazy work week means I don’t write, sorry.  So, I saw one of those commercials on late night television, talking about gambling addiction.  I’m sure you’ve seen the one where people are ordering food in a Japanese restaurant, and their friend doesn’t arrive because he’s off playing online poker.  Anyways, we’ve all seen something similar, regardless of the vice, but I figured many people don’t really know how to determine if someone is an addict.

When it comes to mental health, there’s a book that is referred to called the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual”, or DSM, and the most current one (I believe) is the DSM-IVR (fourth edition, revised).  Basically, when addressing mental health issues, professionals consult the DSM, find the appropriate section they believe the person is suffering from, and then basically (well, it’s more complicated, but to simplify) compare the symptoms being presented and checking them off on the DSM’s checklist.  If the person meets enough of the criteria, – presto you have <insert mental illness here>.

When it comes to pathological gambling, the DSM “checklist” is as follows”

That's right poker culture, here I come

Okay okay.. maybe not KILL per se… but this dude could spell bad things for poker!!

Word on the interweb is that Leonardo DiCaprio is planning on teaming up with Brian Koppelman and David Levien, who brought us that oh-so-quoteable “Rounders” a few years back.  This time around, they’re delving into the poker scene again, this time discussing the “world of Costa-Rica based online casinos”.  Now I know some of you just got a bit excited, maybe because you’re a poker movie fan, maybe because you love Leo, and maybe because you just can’t wait to tear it apart, well, I think this movie’s going to be bad for the poker scene in general, or at the very least, do no good.

The problem I see with this movie is threefold, first, this movie isn’t going to do anything to help re-spark people’s interest in poker.  The swell of popularity (and therefore easy money) came after Moneymaker’s win at the WSOP.  This was lightning in a bottle, and will never be replicated by a movie, no matter how cute the lead is.  Secondly, I have a bad feeling about the fact that this movie might just downright be bad.  I have no problem with Leo himself, nor with the writers, the problem I see is that the story will be pretty, well…. boring  – unless.  Unless they go the route of my third problem with this film.  When I first read about this upcoming project, I believe (I can’t find the link anymore), it said something like “explore the shady world of online poker”.  Now, I’m not one for tin-foil origami hats, but considering the USofA is currently still banning people from depositing into these “shady” sites, this movie could do harm to ever removing that stupid law.  If this movie shows how corrupt / underhanded / sketchy / addicting / dangerous these sites are to poor old Joe Americana, well, it doesn’t take much to recognize the power of media over popular opinion.

I hope I’m wrong.  Clearly, these writers know poker, and have a great respect for the game.  DiCaprio himself is a part-time player.  These guys (should) know that the game of poker is a skill game;  that it isn’t luck or gambling in the true sense of the world.  Online poker sites are legitimate games, and aren’t trying to rig big pots or always reward the bad players to stay online.  Here’s hoping we get a Rounders-esque story that does the game justice.

Mark

Hello again all!

I hinted in my last article that I was going to discuss this topic, namely how you can improve your No Limit Hold’em game (NLHE) by playing some of the other poker formats that are accessible.  NLHE has often been called the “Cadillac of poker”, and considered one of the most difficult to play well, let alone master.  I think that the reason for the game’s difficulty, allure, and popularity is the fact that it takes the best aspects of several otehr formats of poker, and blends them together in perfect harmony.

Let’s look at some of the most popular alternatives; Omaha, Stud, Draw, and Razz.  Each of these games are popular enough in their own right, but none have really taken off like NLHE.  I think the reason is that each game has a major selling point to the players – Omaha you see big pots with big hands, Stud (much like Razz) is a game of draws and value betting, knowing when you’re ahead or what your opponent will pay you with, Draw is a  game where you get almost no information about the person’s hand other than their tells and how they played their hand.  Each of these are a mystery that people like to solve, and each of them can be challenging on their own, but none of these games really put them together like NLHE.

To explain the title, then, since NLHE takes aspects from each of these games, if you were to play these other games, and approach your understanding of these aspects in a different manner, you would better apply it to Hold ‘em!  Think of it from a physical point of view.  When you want to be a good hockey player, you need to skate, stick handle, and shoot well.  A good coach or trainer will take each of these aspects, study them independantly, break them down, and learn how to do each better.  Well, that’s what I think you’re doing by playing various games.  Find your reads aren’t good?  Play draw and try to really understand what they’re doing.  Not getting enough value out of your hands?  Play a stud game where you can get a better gauge as to what people will pay off (careful there about what you may be paying people off with too!).  Are you new and not great at discerning what the nut hand would be?  Get yourself on an Omaha table (LOW LIMITS though).  Once you’ve taken all these things, and revamped your understanding of them, go back to NLHE and take what you’ve learned to improve your game!

Mark

Hello again all

So, I got to thinking, that profit in poker is made by making the right decisions over and over and over again.  The concept of EV (expected value) basically says that anytime you make a decision that (in the long run) will make money, you are playing properly.  If you take the time, you can work out how much that particular decision is worth.  For example, if you know that AA will win against any random hand 85% of the time (no, not the actual percentage, but close enough and will allow me to do the math easier), then for every dollar you bet on that, you’re making 85 cents.  If you make these large +EV moves over and over, you’re going to watch the profit come rolling in.  So clearly, any poker player worth their salt would prefer a move that is say +85EV than +25EV.

I was considering this concept, and decided to take it to a broader level.  If any given hand can be +EV given a situation, that’s all fine and good.  But what about the game you’re playing?  Without a doubt, the most popular game online and in casinos is No Limit Hold ‘Em.  The draw of easy money, and the deceptively “easy” game, there are PLENTY of people willing to give away their money.  However, there are other games that people are playing online, literally thousands of people, who haven’t even a base knowledge of how to play it!

Even the most inept NLHE player knows that 72 is the worst hand in poker, and that AA is the best.  They know what hands usually are good enough to win, and possibly most importantly, they may even know when they’re outmatched.  Take that same guy, and put him into a game of Omaha?  Dead, dead money.  The thing is, with Omaha, this guy will make more mistakes, for more money, more often.  This is the guy that will mary his AA on a board with a straight possibility.  This is a guy that will call for his straight draws on paired boards, or “value bet” his bottom two pair.  In short, this is the guy that is going to make the game HUGELY +EV.

A friend of mine said it best, “Omaha is today what Hold em was before anyone knew what they were doing”.  I personally think it’s the most profitable game online.  However, if you’re diverse enough, there’s tonnes of money to be made playing Stud, Razz, and the various other games.  So my suggestion to you is, go out there and try some bigger EV games.  My next entry will discuss how I think diversity in your game selection will improve your skills in ALL games.

Mark

Hello again

So, I’m writing this just after the end of game 6 between the Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Penguins.  Undoubtedly, this has been one of the most exciting NHL playoffs in recent memory – it’s almost to the point where some tinfoil hat afficionados are up in arms but that’s another story.  Anyways, this got me to thinking about the equivalent in poker:  the WSOP.

Now, I’ve never played in the WSOP, but would like to some day (who wouldn’t?), however, I have to admit that some of the shine has really come off of the event.  In 2003, Chris Moneymaker helped usher in a new era of poker.  Here was the “everyman” winning the greatest poker prize of them all.  Players flocked in droves with dreams of money and prestige.  Sure, there’s still plenty of money to be made, but prestige?

When I first started getting interested in poker, I heard about the titans of the game:  Brunson, Hellmuth, Baldwin, Chan.  These were guys that went out there and played for a living before it was widespread and commonplace.  The thought of winning nine bracelets, not to mention back-to-back wins of the main event was incredible!  Surely these were gods among men!  Their talent for the game was so dominant over us, that we had no choice but to concede to their dominance.

Now however, the winner of the main event is usually a nobody.  Someone who caught fire at the right time, and rode that through an admittedly hellacious tourney.  I don’t think we’ll ever see a main event final table filled with names we know and could believe had a place there.  I don’t think we’ll get Ivey versus Hansen heads up for the bracelet.  The main event has topped out at over 8500 participants.  And anyone that is familiar with tournament poker knows that it is completely unreasonable to expect someone to go deep in consequtive years, let alone final-table or win the damned thing!  As poker players, we know this, and accept that the variance in this one game is ridiculous.  However, to the common person on the street, they may see the game as nothing more than most of us try to disprove – a game of luck.

Mark