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Last Things First

Monday, September 15, 2008, John Darr

It was Monday and it was raining. I woke up around 4 p.m., not really from a deep sleep but more of a long, focused period of eyes-closed time. I was too excited to do any real resting. When my alarm clock on my cell phone chirped, I popped...Read more...

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*Text		<p>It was Monday and it was raining. I woke up around 4 p.m., not really from a deep sleep but more of a long, focused period of eyes-closed time. I was too excited to do any real resting. When my alarm clock on my cell phone chirped, I popped up, turned it off, and within three big steps I was in my bathroom brushing my teeth. Shirt, check. Pants, check. Sweater, in case it gets cold, check. I-Pod fully charged, check. Two buy-ins, check. I grabbed a banana from atop the fridge, kissed my lady goodbye and began the drive.</p> <p>After losing nearly 75 percent of my bankroll in four days, I took a two week break from the game. Now I was heading back to the office and it had all the feel of my first day at a new job. I was nervous as hell. I kept thinking things like: 'Am I good enough to do this?' 'I hope I don't screw up too bad.' 'What happens if I go bust?'</p> <p>THAT. I had to consider THAT because THAT meant a 'real' first day at a new job, probably waiting tables until I found something in public relations, the field I left to pursue THIS. THIS was better, the hours were better, the pay better (most often), the freedom was better. THIS was a nice lifestyle. THAT, busting and then finding a real job, scares the hell out of me. "You know John in communications? He USED to be a professional poker player. Now look at him."</p> <p>So these thoughts are menacing my conscience when the writer in me kicks in. I begin crafting my final article as a poker pro, the "I went bust and here's why" article. I could see it on Parttimepoker.com in my mind. Big blue headline, a succinct summation from Chris - sadly a solemn but well written column of advice for anyone wanting to play for a living.</p> <p>I immediately stopped myself.</p> <p>Back in grad school we discussed the power and realness of the 'self-fulfilling prophecy,' a concept that says if a person believes something in their life will happen, subconsciously they promote and enable the thought until it comes to fruition or they stop believing it. Well I don't want to write that 'I went bust' article. I don't even want to think about it. I'm going to use the power of the prophecy to my advantage.</p> <p>So, here's the 'I went the opposite of bust article.' It's what I want to run on Parttimepoker.com when I win so much money playing poker, I become more than a millionaire. The article's called the 'Real-ionaire.' I think I'm the first one to ever use the term Real-ionaire, so you may be witnessing a Balzac-ian moment of literary creation.</p> <p>———-</p> <p>Parttimepoker.com</p> <p>Johnny writes his final column for Parttimepoker.com and gives his goodbyes to the poker world in Real-ionaire. We're gonna miss ya.</p> <p>Real-ionaire<br />It all started during the 2006 Midwest Poker Classic when I borrowed a $300 buy-in from my banker at the time, my good friend Aaron Clark, and put it into a 1-2NL game. From there, I've seen ups and downs, some losing months and some poker friends bust. I've had some good meals and great laughs, seen some crazy things too. Thankfully, I had the conviction to right the ship when the seas got rough, most notably after moving to Louisville when I had a bad start to rebuilding my roll playing 1-2NL. I thought I wasn't going to make it, that I wasn't good enough to beat this game. How was I wrong!</p> <p>I rebuilt my poker mansion one big bet brick at a time.</p> <p>Now I'm a real-ionaire, a term I've coined and patented for the really really really rich, the kind of rich that really really makes one a millionaire. This money wasn't inherited; it wasn't given to me because of an injury settlement or a lottery ticket. I'm no 'Will-ionaire,' a person who received a comfortable living when a family member died. Nope, I earned my wealth one big bet at a time. That's real.</p> <p>I'm a fucking real-ionaire. Funny thing to hear? Well it's a funny thing to say. Want details, I'll give you details. Just kidding, I'm no Ben Affleck in Boiler Room. I'm just a poker player who almost busted several times. All poker pros should reread that. Almost busted SEVERAL times. Ben also did a great job in the movie about my life called 'Real-ionaire.' It's available on DVD. The Farley Bros exaggerated a bit with the final scene and I want to give Danny some respect. We all know about his 'open bet' to play anyone for any amount of money at the Wynn. And it's true that I challenged Kid Poker to a heads-up game of five-card stud for 100% of his bankroll, which at that time was nearly $11 million. The movie made it seem like he put it all on the line, when he actually put only $8 million in play. I did call a $3 million bet with Ten high, it was the best hand, and yes he did walk away. We're still friends to this day but I have the honor of ALWAYS buying dinner. Danny's good, but as long as I'm around he's only second best.</p> <p>In a few moments, consider you can consider him "the Man."</p> <p>I'm leaving the game after an incredible week playing 1,000-2,000 NL at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. I can't imagine any game being worth my time anymore. After winning my fifth WSOP bracelet, the one I call the 'one that gets hung' (double entendre intended), and several PS4 poker games featuring yours truly, I've accomplished all a man can in this game. Anything more would be excessive.</p> <p>So, I'm off to parts unknown with my beautiful wife Savannah and my seven wonderful children. You can reach me at realionaire@hotmail.com and my assistant's assistant will pass your message along.</p> <p>Caio!</p> <p>Sir John Darr</p> <p>————-</p> <p>I sent this article to Chris, nearly 'as is' and he sent it back. He said it didn't end well and I left the reader hanging. So here's the best ending I got. It's best because it's true.</p> <p>Sincerely, the idea for this article did come to me on my way to play for the first time since I'd lost an ass-load of my roll. On that drive I was focused, I was pumped, and I was ready to get back to work.</p> <p>I lost $1,300 that night and left confused, upset and ready to look for another job. Several steps closer to 'almost busting.' Several steps closer to becoming the Real-ionaire.</p> <p>In the two weeks since then, I lost a bunch more, felt more confused, then recovered some and felt relieved, lost again and felt desolate, then recovered a bunch and felt like a pro. A fortnight and I'm back to where I started, neither up nor down since my return to the game and you know what? Even never felt so good.</p> <p>Real-ionaire. Use it, give me credit. Together we can create a new word.</p>

Using the Tools to Stay Focused in Online Poker

Monday, September 8, 2008, Andrew Kasch

Winning at online poker is all about staying focused on profitable activity and avoiding unprofitable activity, just like in business. That really is the secret to success in either venture - staying focused and using your time wisely. Fort...Read more...

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*Text		<p>Winning at online poker is all about staying focused on profitable activity and avoiding unprofitable activity, just like in business. That really is the secret to success in either venture - staying focused and using your time wisely. Fortunately, online poker rooms provide you with all the tools you need to do just that.</p> <p>Yes, I said that ALL the tools you need for success at online poker are provided by the poker room. You don't need any extra, off-site tools or programs. I know that many players love these things, but I would strictly advise new students of the game to stay away from them. The most popular of these is Poker Tracker. It's one heck of a program. Don't use it. Why? Because it is a great distraction and can easily be the cause of losing your focus on what really matters.</p> <p>In No Limit Hold'em, the game offering the best opportunity to make a living in by far, there are only two things that are really important. They are: 1. Playing against somebody who is willing to put all their chips in with only one pair after the flop, and 2. Not playing a losing game the rest of the time. This is of course assuming that you are a good player (and therefore would never put all your chips in with just one pair after the flop) - and it is further assuming that "all your chips' constitutes a large stack, much bigger than the pot.</p> <p>The number one tool to help stay focused on these two objectives is the buddy list. When you run across someone who is willing to put their large stack of chips in the pot with one pair after the flop you need to buddy-list that player immediately (before they vanish). Your primary objective in this game is to find these players and play against them. If you are in a game where nobody would do that, you are wasting your time because that is where the profits come from and there are always other tables going with an opponent or two who are willing to do that. So every single time you see someone put all their chips in the middle with one pair, buddy list them! Make it a habit so you don't even have to remind yourself to do it.</p> <p>Now, it does no good to compile a large buddy list if you are not going to use it! Every time you log in, go to your buddy list and try to get in a game with one of those players. This is the most important thing you can do to start your session.</p> <p>Let's talk about number two now, not playing a losing game the rest of the time. To help in this pursuit, you should use the other great tool provided by the poker room, player notes. Take good player notes that will actually help you make quality, information-based decisions later. Don't waste your time making player notes that won't help. 'Fish" or "maniac" or "call this guy!" are not going to do much for you two weeks from now when that person may be in a different mood. Contrast that kind of note with "called a large preflop raise with AJ" or "called a large all-in bet on the turn with a flush draw." Do you see how those types of notes are much more likely to help you in a future situation? You need to be specific, because with a general note you probably won't be able to recall the context in which you were making it.</p> <p>All Poker Tracker really does is help you categorize types of opponents and give you good data to study your own game by. Now those can be good things. But if you get caught up in that instead of taking actual useful notes and concentrating on building a list of easy-to-find customers, your efforts will likely become derailed and your results will suffer accordingly.</p> <p>Andrew Kasch is the author of the popular ebook "How to Shake the Online Poker Money Tree."</p> <p><img src="http://www.pokerspace.com/uploaded-images-3/1220906624-28600.jpg" style="width:64px;height:33px;" alt="" /></p>

The Pitfalls of Poker as a Profession

Saturday, September 6, 2008, Aaron K

Well, I've been an official poker "pro" (and I use that term loosely) for the last 5 months now, and it has not been working out as well as I had hoped. When I started out playing full time this March, I had about $10,000 to work with in my...Read more...

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*Text		<p>Well, I've been an official poker "pro" (and I use that term loosely) for the last 5 months now, and it has not been working out as well as I had hoped. When I started out playing full time this March, I had about $10,000 to work with in my bankroll, and I told myself if it dipped below $4000, then I needed to get back into the corporate world again. So here I am today with a bankroll less than $4000 looking for a job. So what went wrong over the last 5 months? I'll try and break it down for you and describe the things I did poorly as a poker professional, and I attribute it to four things that I did poorly:</p> <p>1. Poor Bankroll management<br />2. Avoiding Table Games<br />3. Handling the Road<br />4. Make it supplemental income</p> <p>1. Poor Bankroll Management</p> <p>I would always talk to my poker friends about my bankroll and the games in which I was partaking, and they would tell me I was playing in too big of games for the amount of cash I had. I, being a young and cocky and confident young man, told them that I was fine and that I could beat this game. I knew I had the "game" to beat these games, but the reality was, I needed to grind in lower games to get my bankroll going on a slow but steady upswing.</p> <p>Instead of playing in $2-5 NL games, I should have played the smaller $1-2 NL games and the 10-20 limit game that I know I can beat on a consistent basis, At least until I had my BR to higher that $20k. I did not adjust to the fact that I was now playing poker professionally and had no other source of income on which to rely. I know these games can sometimes be as boring as paint dry, but they usually have weaker players who a good player can beat on a consistent basis. Take advantage of this and put your pride aside.</p> <p>2. Avoiding Table Games</p> <p>As smart as I am (or at least I think I am), I am pretty dumb when it comes to falling into the casino's trap of table games. I know they are games that cannot be beat on a consistent basis, but I would not hesitate to put $200-$500 of my bankroll at risk at any given time to play some table games. I'd hit up Blackjack every once in awhile, Caribbean Stud (I still need to hit the progressive on this before I die, regardless if the odds are true or not—it's just on my list of lifelong things to cross off), Let It Ride, or any other Carnival game the casino had to offer when I felt like being "in action" while not playing in a poker game.</p> <p>Bottom Line is this: if you are truly trying to make a living at poker, table games should be avoided at all costs, regardless if you are running good in the poker room and think you are on a hot streak. The only problem is that every poker player, myself included, has a sick, addictive gambler in them that likes to makes bets, regardless if they have the best of it or not. This bizarre character that exists in every poker player needs to be controlled at all cost, because if he or she gets out, you can lose money that is needed to live like and keep your poker bankroll healthy.</p> <p>3. Handling the Road</p> <p>I took two big poker road trips this summer, one to the true armpit of America, Tunica, MS and another to Las Vegas during the WSOP. Neither one of these trips were profitable trips for me. In Tunica, there was not much I could do. I played in all the games I thought I could beat, but it was just not meant to be. I played well despite the everyday threat of receiving the West Nile virus from one of the 1 billion larger- than-life mosquitoes that were hanging around the outside and sometimes inside the casino. Vegas was a different story.</p> <p>In Vegas this year, I lost focus of the true reason I went out there as a poker pro and that was to make some money playing poker. The 4 previous times that I went to Vegas, I was out there as a tourist with a job to fall back on if the gambling did not go well. This time, I was entering the city as a poker pro, but I never adjusted well internally to my new situation. I treated the damn trip like I still had a job with a steady income when that was not the case.</p> <p>I was playing a little poker, playing some blackjack, flirting, dining at fine restaurants with people I had just met out there, and hanging by the pool. I guess my point of all this is, I was in Vegas this time to make money as a card player, and that is NOT what I put all of my efforts into while I was there. The town just overpowers individuals like me that have "addictive" personalities and who cannot stay disciplined to play the games they have an edge in (poker) for the entire time that they are there.</p> <p>That being said, I did have a blast while I was in Vegas for my 6-day stint, but I of course lost money on the trip because I was not focused on my true goal for the trip: making some money at poker.</p> <p>4. Make poker a supplemental income</p> <p>Poker was a lot of fun when the statistics were holding up for me and the cards were running good, but you sure cannot beat the feeling of a steady income. I know I took it to an extreme and let my solid engineering job get way from me in order to tackle poker full time. Yeah, corporate America sucks at times but its all part of the business, and hell, poker was a lot more relaxing when I knew the money I was playing with was my gambling money that I could afford to lose. It's a lot of pressure for even a single guy like me to take on a mortgage and various other bills with only a low level poker player income, so my advice to everyone else would be to play the game as a way to supplement your income, not as your main source.</p> <p>Hope this article opened some eyes for you up and coming poker players out there, and you can learn from the mistakes I made over the last 5 months. I gotta go back to the classifieds to find my next engineering job, but I'll be back in the action soon.</p> <p>——————————————————————————————————-<br />This article is dedicated to an old high school English teacher of mine, Brother James Kelly.</p> <p>Brother Kelly was a great teacher on the subject of writing critical essays, and I hope that teaching is reflected in my writing. Brother James is also battling cancer right now, a disease that is formidable but beatable. Hell, if Lance Armstrong beat it, then I know a stubborn Grammar School teacher with Irish/English roots can beat it too.</p>

Parlaying Online Experience into Live Results

Saturday, September 6, 2008, James "Krazy Kanuck" Worth

Recently at the WPT North American Championships in Niagara Falls, Ontario, I had the chance to apply what I've learned in 6&43; years of playing online poker. I have long preached about the valuable lessons learned from online poker; but i...Read more...

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*Text		<p>Recently at the WPT North American Championships in Niagara Falls, Ontario, I had the chance to apply what I've learned in 6&43; years of playing online poker. I have long preached about the valuable lessons learned from online poker; but it is rare to go deep into a massive tournament like this one by using everything that was learned. In Niagara Falls, it was my chance to parlay my thousands of hours of online big field tournament experience into a great result. At the end of four days of marathon play resulting in my first WPT final table appearance, I finished in fourth place for a score of just over $289,000.</p> <p>Day 1 was all about surviving the landmines and trying to pick a good spot to gain some chips. I struggled throughout the day, picking my spots, staying out of big pot coin tosses and slowly and steadily picking up chips. I didn't over-commit to pots against players who I knew would be willing to gamble for large pots; instead I tried to win the pots either pre-flop or on the flop, with strategic betting and plays. It was working amazing well for the better part of the day, considering I wasn't getting very many big hands to play with. I was hitting my suited connectors and low pairs for decent-sized pots, but not doubling up. We started with 20,000 in chips and within about four hours, I was up to about 28,000, through good play. I took a hit about an hour before the dinner break when I lost set over set in a 25,000 pot. That knocked me down, but I wasn't out.</p> <p>Just before the dinner break on Day 1, I limped in fairly early position with an A-7 of hearts, if I remember correctly, and was raised approximately three times the big blind. I decided to take a flyer and call the raise to see the flop. The flop came down with two hearts on it and I had the ace as an overcard. The big blind checked, as did I, and the original raiser followed through with a bet on the flop. I don't remember the exact amounts of the bets so I can only give an overview of the action. The bet he made wasn't a substantial bet and the big blind called, giving me slightly better odds to try and chase the flush, so I called as well.</p> <p>The turn brought a heart and I had the second nut flush based on the straight flush possibility that was out there. I discounted either player having a straight flush, so I was not too scared of the hand. The big blind came out betting pretty heavily, and after what looked like a hard decision for me, I flat called, trying to induce a call or raise from the original raiser left to act behind me. He folded, so I was heads up with the big blind, holding what I thought was the nuts. I was just praying that the board didn't pair on the river. The river card brought a brick. The big blind came out swinging pretty big. I thought about it for quite a while, posturing before I announced all in. The big blind almost fell off his chair. He turned white and went into the tank for what seemed like ten minutes. He finally called, flipping over the king-high flush, and was sick when I rolled over the ace-high flush, busting him. That hand propelled me up to 49,000 in chips just before the dinner break. I left for dinner feeling energized, positive, and in great spirits.</p> <p>After the dinner break, things slowly disintegrated. I don't remember if we played three or four more rounds after dinner, but those hours were the worst card-dead experience I've had in ages. When I did finally get bigger pairs like Q-Q or JJ, after I'd raise, I'd get one to three callers; the flop would have one or two overcards and I'd be facing large bets. My stack dwindled down to 13,000 before the final two hands of the day. I had no intention of paying the blinds again just before the end of the day.</p> <p>I was stalling on the final three hands before the big blind was going to hit me. On the second hand I got dealt 8-8; I raised and the blind called me. The flop came with all unders, he checked, and I moved all in. He folded, giving me a few chips. On the very next hand, with about three minutes left to play, I stalled for as long as I could before a player actually called a clock on me. When the time was starting to run out on my clock, I looked down at pocket aces.</p> <p>It was the first time I had been dealt pocket aces in six live event tournaments. With five seconds to go before they called my hand dead, I raised the minimum amount and was called by a middle-position aggressive young player. The flop came down with nothing scary and I bet weakly into the flop, trying to induce a raise from this player. He did as I thought he would and put in a good-sized raise. I waited quite a while before saying something like, well, I'd rather double for tomorrow, or bust and not have to drive here; then I moved all in. He folded fast... maybe I shouldn't have said anything. I ended day one at a disappointing 26,600 chip stack</p> <p>I drove the hour back to my house and arrived home at about 3am. I was exhausted, frustrated, and depressed. I didn't sleep well that night,and on my drive back to Niagara Falls in the morning, I made the decision that I wasn't going to pull any punches: I was going to have a great day of cards, or go down swinging.</p> <p>I started off day two with a KILL, KILL, KILL attitude. I wasn't going to be bullied and I was determined to scare the snot out of the players at my table if they dared raise me or enter a pot with me. The strategy worked and I was the only player getting walked in my big blind. I started to take some risks and played some hands aggressively, slowly starting to build my stack. After busting two players, I was into the zone and on a roll. I raised pre-flop with J-J, another player moved all in on a 9- high flop; I called and the player rolled over A-Q; he didn't improve and I gained some much needed chips.</p> <p>The other player I busted was amazed I made the call on him, but something just didn't seem right to me and that induced me to make the call. The cutoff had raised about 3 times the big blind, I was on the button with 6-6, and I called. The small blind instantly moved all in for a fair-sized bet, and the original raiser folded. I thought about my hand for a very long time. I studied the player and, quite frankly, he looked like he was going to have a heart attack. I made the call and was delighted to see him roll over 4-4. He didn't improve and the hand propelled me to over 70,000 in chips.</p> <p>After taking a 4-1 favorite all-in beat a little while later, I was sitting at about 53,000 in chips when Freddie Deeb was moved to my table. I have all the respect in the world for Freddie's game, but I know that he is capable of making moves in position with a wide variety of hands. One hand that was very interesting came up and to this day I don't know whether I made the right decision or not in terms of chips, the pot, etc. I just had a very bad feeling and ended up folding. Freddie was sitting one seat to my right and raised the pot on the cutoff. I looked down on the button at Q-Q and reraised his 4,500 bet to 12,000 to go. The small blind beat me into the pot for an additional 23,000 over and above my bet. Freddie folded and I was left with a big decision. Calling him would leave me with only 18,000 in chips after I had been playing so hard and well to finally start moving in the right direction; and I could only put the guy on one of three hands. He was a tight player and wasn't making many moves at all. I could reasonably only put him on A-A, K-K, or A-K. Two of the hands completely dominated me, and I was racing against A-K. The pot had approximately 53,000 in dead money for a 23,000 call.</p> <p>I just couldn't get past my bad gut feeling, and I ended up folding. I was a little sick when he rolled over A-K, but I still could have lost the hand. The problem was that the decision I made rattled me. My instant gut feeling when he moved all in was to call if Freddie folded. But, after counting down the chips and outthinking myself, I changed my mind and folded. Regardless, because of my finish in the tournament, I was happy I made the decision I did; as I could have lost the hand crippling myself - but I still don't know if it was the right decision or not.</p> <p>For the next three hours I played terribly and got my chip count into trouble. Things finally started to swing my way after I was moved to John D'Agostino's table, and I started chatting with him that I was going to double on him. We had some friendly competitive banter back and forth for quite a while, as I was sitting there short-stacked at this point, under 19,000 again, and no threat to anyone at the table. I went on an aggressive little heater, raising and betting the flops and built my stack back up to about 41,000.</p> <p>I was finally dealt A-A when J-Dags limped into the pot in front of me. I did about a four times big blind raise and J-Dags called me. The flop came something like 9-8-2, with 2 clubs. J Dags checked and I bet about three-quarters of the pot. J-Dags called me fast. The turn brought the 4s; he checked and I then moved all in, grossly overbetting the pot. I was worried that he was trapping with a set, but I thought that he had a piece of the flop and maybe a flush draw. He thought about it forever, trying to talk to me, doing his best to gain some information. I tried to look as nervous as I could and didn't talk back to him at all, instead, trying to look away to induce his call. Once he hesitated I knew I was ahead. He finally made the call, rolling over the 7h 8h. The river was a blank, and it doubled me up and rolled me over 100,000 for the first time in the tournament.</p> <p>After that hand, I really got into the groove and started playing my Agame again. I got into a hand a while later with Steve Paul-Ambrose who was playing very aggressively to my left at the new table I was moved to. I started chatting at him to see if I could get under his skin a bit, as he was by far the most aggressive player at the table. I think it worked because a hand came up that I raised with Q-10 off in middle position when it was folded to me. Steve called on the button and the board came down 3-K-J. I was first to act, and after a little pause I checked, with Steve checking behind me. The turn card was a nothing card for me - an off suit six - but I took a swing at the pot anyway. My heart sank when he flat called my bet. I had already decided that I wasn't going to invest another dime into the pot if I missed the river. The river was my dream card, an off-suit ace, giving me the nut straight. I hesitated a bit and checked again, figuring that Steve would take a good swing at the pot, as he was playing aggressively and he obviously had a piece of that board. He did what I wanted him to do, and after a delay I moved all in on him with a massive overbet. He had me easily covered at this point and I was praying he was going to put me on a steal and call me. After about five minutes, without moving any chips into the pot, he quietly said, "Call."</p> <p>No one really heard him; I know I heard something, but had no clue what he said. I asked him out loud, "Did you say 'Call'?" He confirmed his call and I was tickled to roll over my Q-10 for the nut straight. That pot propelled me to over 180,000 in chips, and gave me a real boost in confidence. I was extremely happy with the way I played the hand and had maximized my return with my check-raise on the river.</p> <p>After that pot I yo-yoed a bit on my stack and took a few hits. I got into a pot again holding Q-Q, and it played out similarly to how the hand that Freddie had raised earlier in the day played out. But this time I made the call and busted the player, getting back up to about 150,000 in chips. We ended the day at 45 players and I had built my stack up to a respectable 202,000 to finish the night. I was exhausted again and really didn't feel like driving home. The floor managers arranged a room for me at the hotel and I decided to stay in Niagara for the night and try to get some extra sleep. It worked well - I slept in until my alarm went off at 11am, giving me a great night's sleep.</p> <p>The first hour of Day 3 three started off fairly slowly for me. I didn't get any hands at all. Didn't even get good position for steals, so I just had to ride it out and wait. I got moved off my starting table to another table and was put into the big blind at that table. My big blind was noneventful; someone raised and I folded junk. On my small blind, however, a player under the gun moved all in for 85,000 in chips. It was folded to me and I looked down at K-K and moved all in over the top of him, isolating him by inducing the big blind to fold. The player turned over Q-Q and was busted when he didn't get any help. I was on my way. I won a few more pots through aggressive play and found myself sitting at about 350,000 in chips a couple of hours into day 3.</p> <p>A little while later, Allen Cunningham moved all in on my big blind from early position; again I looked down at K-K and made the call. I believe he had 8-8 and ended up busting out. I was over 500,000 in chips now and really playing well. I continued to build my stack over the course of the day, making some great reads, folds, and calls. Sometimes it seems like you're making all the right decisions and day three was one of those days for me. I wasn't really getting lucky; I just wasn't getting unlucky on my biggest hands.</p> <p>At the dinner break on Day 3, I was at about 860,000 in chips and sitting pretty with only 16 players remaining. It was getting exciting! I went card dead for a few hours after dinner, so I just played tight and maintained my stack. I actually even increased it a bit through steals with position. They made a single table when we got down to ten players. I was still card dead but had a healthy stack. When we got down to the final seven players, needing to bust one player for the final table of six, I was still card dead and hovering around 800,000 in chips. John Juanda and Adam Dunkle were both the shorties, with about 450,000 in chips. Right after a break, I had the small blind, with a very aggressive Marc Karem to my left in the big blind and he had about 1,290,000 in chips. It was folded to Adam Dunkle on the button and he moved all in for 400,000. I looked down in the small blind at 9-9 and was sick because I didn't know what to do and, honestly, I didn't know if I had the guts to call him for more than half my stack.</p> <p>On top of that I was scared that Marc would wake up to a big hand and clobber my 9-9. I thought about it for nearly ten minutes, agonizing over what to do. I decided to make the call, but not reraise all in, just in case Marc woke up to a hand. If he reraised me, I was prepared to fold and make the final table and fight it out tomorrow, even though I would be short. I called, Marc ended up folding, and Adam rolled over 5-5. The board came J-8-4, then a 10. And after a drama delay by the dealer, he rolled over a 3, busting Adam in seventh place and soaring me to the final table with 1.3 million in chips. I jumped about 20 feet in the air and probably have never been so excited about any hand I've played in my entire career as I was about that one. My girlfriend Monica jumped into my arms and the room went wild. It was a pretty exciting moment. My first WPT final table and it was me making the call to bust the seventh place player. It was truly the scariest call I've ever made since I started playing tournament poker.</p> <p>Day 4 was filled with interviews and prepping for the final table. Monica and I relaxed and watched movies in the room for the rest of the day and just tried to remain calm and focused. The final table started with a bang. On the very first hand of the day, it was folded to me on the button, where I made a standard three times big blind raise. I was raising into Marc Karem's small blind and Jason Sagle's big blind. I had already decided what I was going to do if either player reraised me. I knew that Marc was playing aggressively and decided that if he reraised me pre-flop I was going to push all in on him. If Jason reraised me, I was going to flat call and see the flop. Jason seemed to be playing tighter and better starting hands. I'm not taking anything away from Marc's game, as he had played three days of dominating cards. It's just that his game was more open than Jason's seemed to be. Anyways, Marc reraised my 90,000 bet to 290,000 and I stood up and said something like, well, this could be my fastest final table ever, and announced that I was all in.</p> <p>I think my family and friends in the audience all suffered strokes when I said that because I looked back at the 14 people who were my guests and they were all as white as ghosts. Marc thought about it for a while and mucked his hand. You'll have to wait for the program to see what we had. I reraised Jason when he raised my big blind and he mucked. I reraised all in a few more times and wasn't called pre-flop.</p> <p>We had gotten down to four-handed when Jason Sagle raised my big blind and I looked down at Ah Qh. I had 1.1 million in chips with monster blinds. He had raised it to 250,000ish on 40,000/80,000 blinds and I didn't think it was wise to flat call and have to lay down that hand. I took a swing at the pot all in and Jason, after thinking for a while, made the call.</p> <p>To my horror, he had A-K of clubs and I didn't get any help. I busted in forth place for a payday of just over $289,000. It was a great result, but as a competitive poker player, it is hard not to get the win I so badly wanted.</p> <p>The final table day and play were a lot of fun. It was my third TV table and I was very relaxed and enjoying the moment. The players at the table were fun to compete with and enjoyable to have there. It was a memorable day that I will look back on with both fondness and regret. I regret two decisions I made at that table, but because there was no flop, who knows whether they would have worked out had I acted differently on those hands. I was happy with my final table play for the most part, but still agonize over the two decisions that might have been mistakes. Mistakes happen in this game; you just have to try to minimize them and reduce the damage done by them.</p> <p>All of my experience playing thousands of online tournaments did more to help me be successful in this tournament than I ever could have imagined. My instincts were honed and right on, and my situational awareness was sharp. Don't discount what you can learn from playing the maniacs online; you just may be pleasantly surprised one day in a live event when things seem to come together for you, with you making all the right reads and plays because of your online experience.</p>

Handling the inevitable online swings

Sunday, August 31, 2008, James "Krazy Kanuck" Worth

One of the most frustrating aspects of playing online poker is the swings. Regardless of how good a player you are, swings are inevitable. They can be mind boggling, they can be harsh, and they can wreak havoc on your sanity. After playing ...Read more...

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*Text		<p>One of the most frustrating aspects of playing online poker is the swings. Regardless of how good a player you are, swings are inevitable. They can be mind boggling, they can be harsh, and they can wreak havoc on your sanity. After playing online for nearly seven years, I've seen it all, but to this day I have trouble handling the swings, both emotionally and financially. The secret to success in the long run is to understand the reasons behind these swings and minimize their contributing factors.</p> <p>There is luck in poker; if there were no luck involved, very few players would continue playing the game. Bad players (i.e., poker's bottom line) would lose every pot and quit. The reality is that it's the luck factor that keeps many players liquid in this game and allows them to play on. But that luck factor, or variance, can kill your bankroll when you take a bad swing in results. You could conceivably play 100 tournaments online, play them all very well and not cash much overall because you keep taking devastating all-in beats at critical moments. It seems like the sites have it in for you, the poker gods hate you, and your karma is all messed up. My laptop has been in jeopardy many times after being launched across the room following a string of really bad beats in major online tournaments. Some days, no matter what you do, everything goes wrong. On other days, even the wrong plays turn out right. The difference between the good player and the amateur is how he capitalizes on the good runs and minimizes the losses on the bad runs. The truly great player recognizes the mistakes he's making that compound his bad run and he takes steps to correct them.</p> <p>Compounding factors can be anything from tilting to external factors that can affect a player's judgment. It is very hard not to get angry and emotional over a bad run or a bad string of beats. But as hard as it is, you cannot let that bad run bother you. It should be water off a duck's back. Keeping a positive attitude throughout a bad run is critical to helping you overcome and correct it. I keep hearing players cursing their luck, complaining about how many bad beats they are taking even though they're playing great, and how they just can't get out of their rut. I've watched them play and I see them chasing bad draws, making bad calls, going all in when they don't need to —basically pushing the envelope and not getting lucky, making mistakes because they're trying so desperately to get out of their tailspin.</p> <p>So stay upbeat, and try not to get mad. Your positive attitude will help you keep a clear head and help you make better decisions during play.</p> <p> </p> <p>Stepping down rather than up</p> <p>Many players make the mistake of climbing up in limits, rather than stepping down, when they are in a bad run. They try to get their money back faster at higher limits, when most of the time that backfires and they dig themselves into a deeper hole. If you want to learn how to stop your tailspin, you have to force yourself not to make this mistake. Stepping down in limits will have a couple of positive effects. First of all, it will build your confidence. Secondly, you can build up your bankroll, albeit slower at lower levels, but with much less risk. By moving up, you may blow your entire bankroll if you aren't playing sharp and on top of your game, nullifying your ability to recover. Get rid of your ego while in a bad run.</p> <p>You can take an extreme step by lowering the limits dramatically and practicing the aspects of your game that may not be as sharp. You can do this in low limits with virtually no risk to your bankroll, but the upside to your game could be dramatic.</p> <p>When you're in the midst of a bad run or swing, relax, breathe, and do everything in your power to stop the bad run. But take the right steps and don't panic. Baby steps will help you much more than chasing that one big lucky score. Your bankroll and your sanity will thank you!</p> <p>Knock 'em dead Jim "KrazyKanuck" Worth</p>

Lessons Learned from WSOP

Friday, August 29, 2008, James "Krazy Kanuck" Worth

VARIANCE This year's WSOP was a lesson on the dramatic impact of variance on your tournament success or failure. Variance, in simple terms, means that you will win a certain number of hands based on your holdings versus your opponent's h...Read more...

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*Text		<p> </p> <p>VARIANCE</p> <p>This year's WSOP was a lesson on the dramatic impact of variance on your tournament success or failure. Variance, in simple terms, means that you will win a certain number of hands based on your holdings versus your opponent's holdings over time. An example would be A-K versus Q-Q, which is basically a coin-toss situation. Math dictates that you will win with either hand roughly half the time, Q-Q being the slight favorite. Variance, however, could mean that you win with the A-K 20 times in a row, but over time, the Q-Q will slightly overtake the A-K in the number of times it wins. Variance also means that you could lose with the Q-Q versus A-K a seemingly impossible and mathematically improbable number of times. And the bigger the fields, the more variance you will see in each individual tournament.</p> <p>Over time, it will even out, but it will always seem like you lose more times than you should in bigger field tournaments. The problem is that you have to survive many more coin-toss situations and survive against more draws than you would face in turnouts with fewer players.</p> <p>In this year's WSOP, you had to negotiate recordbreaking attendance and what seemed at times to be insurmountable odds. The number of coin flips and dramatic situations you faced increased over previous years. The luck factor also increased over previous years, simply because of the number of players in each event.</p> <p> </p> <p>COMBATING THE FIELDS</p> <p>A few years ago, pros talked about small pot poker in their approach to the WSOP Main Event. Although it's a sound theory, the problem with it in these enormous tournaments is that you will simply face too many situations where your chips will be in jeopardy. This means that different tactics are necessary, unless you're intent on leaving everything to chance, hoping to pick up huge hands when it matters.</p> <p>Odds say, however, that you will not pick up those hands exactly when you need them. That means you have to change your tactics and practice new things to combat the changing dynamics of these tournaments. Players are generally more aggressive now and aren't afraid to gamble with you. They are overplaying their hands and overvaluing their holdings, forcing you into confrontation more and more. I can't even tell you how many times players moved me all in during the WSOP tournaments when I was sitting there with top set on a safe-looking board, only to beat me with some obscure draw. In a case like that, there is really nothing you can do but pray that your hand holds.</p> <p>To combat those inevitable situations, I feel you need to take risks early in a tournament, with the objective of getting chipped up to absorb the inevitable beats and drawing situations that players will force you into. This affords you the opportunity to make plays that your opponents cannot reasonably make. It also gives you the necessary cushion you will need to survive those situations where you are forced to go all in to protect your hand, or when an aggressive player puts you all in while he is on a play or draw. The only way to practice against big fields is to play online.</p> <p>This year's WSOP had the all the big-name professionals that we all have seen on TV. What was different, though, was that in the massive 8733-player Main Event, there were probably hundreds, if not thousands, of "professional" online players with a wealth of experience from their play online. You may be sitting with nine unknown faces at your table, and to underestimate their skill levels can prove to be a tournament-ending experience for you. My bust-out hand was against an unknown internet player who played the nut hand about as well as it could possibly have been played. And he got me to put all of my chips into the middle with my secondnut hand. It was no fluke. He had won his seat online and was a student of the game. His play was something that I would expect from Phil Hellmuth or Phil Ivey, not from an unknown young kid sitting at my table. I had seen, over seven weeks of play, such aggressive yet weak play that I underestimated the kid's hand and it ended my day.</p> <p>You need to be aware that, despite not sitting with recognized players, you could still be sitting with players who have literally played thousands of tournaments and have a wealth of experience from online poker. If you want to compete with this seriously, you need to be mixing it up online against the big field tournaments, or else you will be at a distinct advantage against players at your table.</p> <p>Every week, online has tournaments with fields of up to 8,000 players. Expect play and learn how to overcome it. We all will take horrible beats and wonder at times why we love tournament play, but once you hone your game and get used to these big variance tournaments, it will make any success you have that much sweeter. Practice playing aggressively early and take more risks to get chipped up. Yes, you will bust faster in many tournaments, but when you do manage to get chipped up, you may find yourself in a position to actually win one of these giant tournaments. Good luck!</p>

Your Psychological Bankroll and Managing Risk

Monday, August 25, 2008, Gregg Williams

You'll hear the term bankroll thrown around in poker circles and it usually pertains to the amount of money that you have available strictly for poker playing. This is what the term is meant to describe in a perfect world. However, a majori...Read more...

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*Text		<p>You'll hear the term bankroll thrown around in poker circles and it usually pertains to the amount of money that you have available strictly for poker playing. This is what the term is meant to describe in a perfect world. However, a majority of poker players do not have a "bankroll" per se. They have some extra cash that they like to gamble with and poker is the gambling activity that is en vogue right now. This is a great thing if you are a poker player who takes the game seriously and wins. This article is not about strategy, odds, or whether to value bet the river. Its about your lifeline, your bankroll. In particular your psychological bankroll. Allow me to explain.</p><p>The poker bankroll to a serious player is everything. Its what you should be most attentive to when deciding what limits to sit in, how many tables to play, and what type of game whether it be shorthanded or full ring. It is like your financial report to your business on a daily basis and it should be treated as importantly. In addition to the monetary bankroll, your psychological bankroll must be determined and used as appropriately.</p><p>The number that you may hear from a lot of poker books regarding a playing bankroll that have been written is around 300 big bets for limit games. Now, for live play 5 years ago that may have been the case. With the booming expansion of Internet play, that number seems to be outdated. The playing bankroll should be in tune with your psychological bankroll and not looked at as a fixed monetary number.</p><p>Your psychological bankroll in essence is the amount of money you need to feel comfortable about riding out swings within the game of poker. I use it in terms of % of monetary bankroll and in terms of Big Bets in limit and max buy ins in No Limit Hold 'em. Some players have a higher stress tolerance for losses and some have very little. The higher your stress tolerance is the fewer buy ins or Big Bets you need for a particular game.</p><p>An example of this would be a person who doesn't use their bankroll for living expenses and wouldn't have a problem losing a large chunk of bankroll in one session would be adequate with 10 buy ins for No limit Hold 'em or 300 Big Bets for limit. On a bad day they may lose around a third of their entire bankroll.</p><p>The other extreme is the quintessential poker pro who makes his living playing the game. The psychological bankroll required for this particular player may very well be 25 buy ins for no limit or 1000 Big Bets and higher in limit if they need to withdrawal their monthly "nut" for their living expenses. They need to have some cushion built into their bankroll to ride out some swings and not affect their play. Some pro's risk tolerance is for even higher amounts of Big bet ratios to virtually eliminate their risk of ruin. That way on a very bad day they may lose 10% of their bankroll or less.</p><p>The idea behind bankroll and managing risk is that the fewer Big bets (or Big blinds for No limit) is that the greater chance you have of going broke. It doesn't matter how good of a player you are, huge downswings are inevitable and by not managing that risk you can wind up sitting on the rail waiting to scrape up your next buy in. I don't want that to happen to you.</p><p>For a high risk, take a shot player, he or she may sit down with some disposable income and have 50 Big bets and decides to put it all in play. They may win or they may lose and if they lose will just have to either wait for more money to play with to refinance their obviously inadequate poker bankroll. These players are the type that usually either lose quickly or win and move up to a higher limit quickly and run high risk plays with their money.</p><p>You need to figure out as a player what your risk tolerance is and adjust your bankroll accordingly. If you are a true gambler and want to either win big or lose quickly then put it all in play and take a shot. If you are more conservative, then adjust that Big bet number higher according to your risk tolerance. I personally like to keep 500 Big bets for limit games and 20 buy-ins for no limit games handy to keep my risk where I feel comfortable. I can comfortable drop in a downswing 200-300 Big bets and really not have to start to worry. I also do not play poker for my sole source of income either. If I were, I'd probably prefer 1000-1500 Big bets and 50 buy-ins for no limit games. In terms of money that would be to play the 2-4 No limit games full time for income I would want 20,000 dollars if it were my sole source of income. That gives you enough money to ride out any downswings and allows you to keep your head focused that you are not "running short".</p><p>Figure out your own risk tolerance and your psychological bankroll. Keep it in your head at all times and use it as an important guide to your poker career. You'll be glad you did. Best of luck and see you at the tables.</p><p>Cheers,</p><p>Bunky</p><p><img src="http://www.pokerspace.com/uploaded-images-3/1219695254-07219.jpg" style="width:63px;height:33px;" alt="" /></p>

Playing the Big Fields

Monday, August 25, 2008, James "Krazy Kanuck" Worth

It seems that every year, the number of players in each live event keeps on growing, and none more so than at the World Series of Poker, where thousands of players throw their money into the mix to try and get their little slice of poker hi...Read more...

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*Text		<p>It seems that every year, the number of players in each live event keeps on growing, and none more so than at the World Series of Poker, where thousands of players throw their money into the mix to try and get their little slice of poker history. You can play all the live tournaments you want to gain valuable experience, but where can you get the quickest training in negotiating these huge field tournaments?</p><p>The best place happens to be online.</p><p>Playing online tournaments, especially the big Sunday tournaments, is your best training tool for getting ready to tackle such overwhelming fields. Sure, there are live events across the country daily, but none of them have the number of players to come close to a World Series of Poker event. So, if you want to be ready to play in the World Series of Poker, get online and get your game strategy worked on before you head to Vegas to play.</p><p>You can play tournaments from freerolls to larger buy in tournaments online almost every day. Don't dismiss a 5,000-person freeroll event as a waste of time, because the reality is, with the number of players that will play this years' WSOP, you will run into every type and style of player imaginable. You have to learn how to dodge as many landmines as you possibly can to survive and flourish in a WSOP tournament. Playing in these large field events online, whether it's a buy in or a freeroll, can give you this valuable experience, and teach you how to pick good spots to get your money into pots. Hopefully, with some luck, you will be able to get yourself chipped up and, in doing so, give yourself added flexibility in the way you can approach your tournament.</p><p>Sure, in bigger-buy in online tournaments, like many of the big Sunday events at various online sites, the quality of play will be much higher than in the freeroll events. The problem for many players, though, is forking out the $200 to $500 buyins each Sunday. This is a good opportunity to refer to my article in last month's Bluff Magazine, in which I talk about playing the sit-n-gos/single-table satellites at the WSOP for both cheap entry into bigger tournaments and for the extra earning potential they offer. Likewise, you can use the sit-n-gos online to satellite into the big Sunday tournaments. And not only will you gain valuable experience as you maneuver through the big fields, you also can get a shot at taking home up to a quarter of a million dollars.</p><p>In these big field tournaments, whether it's online or the WSOP Main Event, you will have to come up with a reasonable strategy to survive and prosper. You can't win the WSOP Main Event on the first day of play, nor can you win an online tournament within the first few hours. Therefore, you need a good plan of attack. Again, the only place you can practice this sort of tournament regularly is online. By playing as many large-field tournaments online as you can before you set foot in the RIO, the betterprepared you will be to survive the marathon of poker you will face. Even the smaller buy-in tournaments at this year's WSOP are three day marathons, so it's obvious that the organizers are expecting huge turnouts. So make sure you tinker with your strategy online and find out what works for you. You have an opportunity that you normally don't get in live play. And you can play multiple tournaments a day online, whereas you can only reasonably play one live event a day.</p><p>So get online and give these tournaments a try. Not only could they give you one hell of a nice payday, but they will also sharpen your game.</p><p>Knock 'em dead, Jim "KrazyKanuck" Worth</p>

Single-tabling your way to the World Series

Friday, August 22, 2008, James "Krazy Kanuck" Worth

The atmosphere of the WSOP is magical. Just being there, amongst the hundreds of poker tables and thousands of poker players all vying for their place in poker history, is a real buzz. I'm sure it must be a very intimidating experience for ...Read more...

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