How to beat 1-2 NL games(Alex, Gary, Alec Blog comments)

The last blog I wrote received a lot of interesting feedback, it also provided me some insight into what some of my opponents are thinking about at the table. After reading many of these comments I wanted to reply but felt like a blog response would allow me to elaborate in better detail. I think everyone’s comments were insightful and I am sure that every player believes that their line of thinking is the most productive. However want to play Devil's Advocate to see if we can look from a different P.O.V
　

Just the facts please - The definition of opinion is (wikipedia) - a belief about matters commonly considered to be subjective, and is the result of emotion or interpretation of facts.
 The definition of fact is  (wikipedia)- something that has really occurred or is actually the case. The usual test for a statement of fact is verifiability, that is whether it can be proven

I like to make sure I put up these definitions because many times people get these two confused. A good example of this is when people say that “bluffing a weak player won’t work” or as Gary put it “is like trying to train a coyote to be a dog” Bluffing like many things that go on at the table is situational. Some games it’s profitable to bluff some games it’s not. Some spots you may need to bluff in some spots waiving the white flag is the correct play. Bluffing like many other things in the game is also relative and based on perception. How many times has a guys shown you his hand after you have folded thinking he bluffed you when in actuality he was bluffing with the best? In my opinion the belief that bad players can’t be bluffed is incorrect but I will talk about that in another blog. Another opinion stated as fact that I read was “your image means nothing to bad players“. How do we prove that? I’m sure that everyone has a story about the fish in the game who got lucky on them and then donked off all their chips. But does that really prove that your image means nothing? Or is it simply a matter of looking at only the results of a small sample size. One could argue that winning players craft their image at the table so thoroughly that it is almost impossible for the other players at the table not to recognize. In this day in age with all the public information about poker isn’t it unreasonable to believe that a good majority of your opponents are trying to get some sort of read on you. In fact if you asked most poker players what their strongest ability was I bet they would mention their reading ability. (I smell a poll question). How can you have a accurate read on a player without having a image for them? The point being that many times opinions are stated as fact, when reality they are not. This can be a determent not only to our psyche but also our bankroll.

All players are not created equally - In the comments to my last blog their were two hand history re-caps, in both the hero’s took what they would call a bad beat and while I agree %100 with the bad beat portion, I think that there are other aspects that both Alex and Gary are ignoring. It’s not their fault however. Poker players by nature of the game tend to be a more narcissistic group then most. The game is an individual sport, in fact one of the most common expression is “No friends at the poker table” Because of this I think many times we fail to look at the other guy’s P.O.V. For instance in Alex’s comments he mentions his opponents reasoning behind making the call was. His opponent believed he had two over’s and a straight draw for the win. My first impression upon hearing this is that …… I could understand how he could think that. In fact Alex did a good job of letting him think that with his line of betting. The way the hand was played I would expect you to turn over AK suited more than A-6 It wasn’t really unreasonable for him to think what he thought he just happened to be wrong. We have all been wrong on our reads before. I think it’s important to remember that when you sit down at the poker table many of your opponents are going through the same emotions as you. Despite what you believe or what they say no one enjoys loosing. Your opponents our not sitting down at the table to try to give you an edge, in fact they are deciphering ways to out maneuver and manipulate you just as your are them. In Alex’s hand he got unlucky, but I don’t think we can always dismiss our opponents line of thinking as nonsense simply because they outdraw us.

What’s the 411? - In Alex’s story he forgot to let us know the stack size of our opponent. Information like this is crucial in NL poker how can I judge someone’s decision when I don’t know the stakes? Time and time again I will hear players Bitch about a bad beat that they took and they will leave out the fact that Mathematically the guy would be a fool not to call. Have you ever heard a tournament player talking about getting busted from a tournament?

Player 1 “ I had AK guy called me with 10-5 off and spiked".

Player 2 “How deep were you?”

Player 1 “Uh I don’t know I had about 5k”

Player 2 “ What were the blinds?“

Player 1 “ 2000 -4000 with a $100 ante".

Poker is a situational game and certain situations call for certain decisions without knowing the specifics of a situation how can we accurately critique? Now in fairness to Alex he does explain that he’s all - in, but I still would like to know the size of his opponents stack.

The final thing that I would like to touch on in regards to the comments on the last blog is this notion that the way to win at 1-2 NL is to sit back and wait for only AA and KK and then get max value. It is my belief that the game of poker is constantly evolving and to me the tight is right strategy has gone the way the dodo bird. First off it’s hard enough to pick up enough premium hands per session to play. I have gone sometimes weeks without seeing JJ or better as starting cards, if my strategy is to wait for these hands, what do I do now? I used to be a student of the tight is right school. I once thought that the best way to win at poker is to sit and wait and only play your top tier starting hands. Much of this is because my background is in Stud and Limit poker. In Limit poker especially this can be a very profitable strategy as many of the pots will be bloated from all the pre-flop action. However NL is different, there are going to be so many times that your opponents are going to simply fold to you not only because they themselves don’t have playable starting cards but also because of the ultra tight image you have created for yourself. It is my hypothesis that to consistently beat any NL hold em games a player must have the ability to play a loose aggressive style which incorporates skills like, bluffing, pot building and Over -betting. In Low limit Vegas hold em games these skill become even more important as many of your opponents as we see will be incorporating a tight aggressive style. In my humble opinion you ability to exploit that style is a major key in building your bankroll and booking winning sessions

 

Bruce Williams is a Las Vegas poker pro who is know around the city as Ak...No Good. 



How to beat 1-2 NL games (Playing against bad players Part II)

This Blog is in response to a hand history conversation I recently had. Playing 1-2 NL @ Harrah's I limp into a multi - way pot from the cut -off with K5 off. 7 players see the flop of K-5-6 rainbow It's checked to me I bet $14 get 1 called by the SB. I have about $400 left and he has about $150. The turn is a 7 It's checked I bet $42 and get called. The river is an 8 and the SB bets $27. What do you do in that spot? Well a player asked me why I called with K-5. That’s a very good question and the answer is just as good. For Value. I’m sure your shaking your head right now but the fact of the matter is almost any two cards that you can see for the minimum in position in a multi - way pot is for value in the long run. That assuming your better than you opponents. Let’s break down some of the reasons

1. The price is right - In the k-5 hand there were about 4 limpers in front of me, so it only cost me $2 to try to win a pot of $11. Not to mention I have position on everyone else if the button doesn’t call.

2. Play your position - Many players in these Vegas low limit games are going to play their hands pretty straight forward. They will be checking weak hands and betting strong hands. You should have a pretty good indication of the strength of your opponents hand after the flop. In fact, if you’re having a hard time reading your opponents your in the wrong game. There are several flops that are going to completely miss your opponents or be two weak for them to continue on, because you have position you should be able to ascertain the information needed to make the most profitable plays over the long run.

3. No shame in folding - The easy rebuttal to this Loose aggressive style is: What if you get raised? However that’s an easy answer, fold. There is no shame in Limp folding in these games in fact your ideal goal when in position is to get in for the minimum, then profitably out play your opponent. You will have to sometimes call these raises or even 3bet in some spots just to keep you opponents off balance.

4. Pre flop Champions - Poker is not new to the mainstream anymore. Even the most novice player has some understanding of the game. They have been told by the W.S.O.P and WPT broadcast that aggression is the key. The problem for many of them is that this aggression is limited to the flop and usually limited to one raise. Pre flop everyone is a champion. If you pick up Kings or Aces all you have to do is raise and don’t back down. If you pick up JJ or QQ raise and just call a re-raise. All the other hands are pretty much calling hands including AK (which in my opinion is the most misplayed hand). After the flop however many players are lost. It is there where you can take full advantage of them. Their either checking big hands or over betting marginal ones, calling with two many draws or not bluff into weakness. This mistakes add up and over time as long as your opponent isn’t running like God you should be able to win.

5. Luck be a Lady tonight - You know? There is the chance that you could get lucky, I mean it is allowed to happen right? Every now and then your going to cooler AK in this spot or just flop the nuts. I know it might not be the best reason to make a call but you have to factor that in.

It’s important to remember that these tips are for when you are playing low limit cash games in Vegas. If your sitting in a game with 8 other guys that are professional grinders my first suggestion to you would be to find another game. If you don’t have a choice then you are going to have to tweak your style. For these games however playing loose aggressive is the way the go. If all is going right you should be able to take down a few pots bluffing, show them the best hand every now and then and every once in a while cooler the shit out of somebody. Add that in with the times you will win with strong starting hands and you can see how your profit starts to add up.

　

　

　

　

　

　

　

Middle Pair Strategy for NLHold 'em tournaments

For the purpose of this post middle pairs will be broken up into two categories Low middle and high middle.

22 - 77 Typically you are looking for spots that you can get in for cheap. In the early stages of tournaments many players “set mine” with these hands looking to trap their opponents and win a big pot. From early positions limping can be profitable, from late position a small raise can sometimes freeze your opponents allowing you to buy a 4^th card for free if they all check the flop to you. After the flop these hands should be played straight forward, meaning no set no bet from early position. No set no over pair no bet from late position. I like playing the flop passively with these hands because I believe more information is gained on the turn.

88 - JJ I think these hands should always be opened for a raise from any position, and 3bet against opponents you think are aggressive. From early position I want to play this hand for value. Open for a raise if you only get calls then I am going to C bet any flop that doesn’t have me crushed… I.e no A- K -9 board, no all suited connected boards. I will be betting all boards that have only one over card. One of the main reasons is to get information right there. I also like to vary my bet size here depending on if I think I have the best hand or not. If I receive any resistance then I must re - evaluate the situation. I think many times novice players give up to easily on these hands simply because they don’t improve on the flop. One of the most important thing to check for is if there are any draws on the board. This is crucial for two reasons.

1. Your opponent might be and that draw

2. You might be able to represent that draw on later streets.

From Late position I am betting any board that my opponents check to me, and will probably be double barreling most turns that are checked to me. Any donk lead should be raised for example blinds 100 -200 you raise to 500 get a caller and they lead for 400. Put pressure on these hands simply to regain control of the pot.

 

Bruce Williams is a Las vegas poker pro who goes by the name of AK No good.

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I busted a braclet winner, beat a field of 400 and chopped 25k Guarantee 5 ways.

What a life we lead I just chopped the Golden Nuggets 25k Guarantee tournament. It was a long grind but I was able to fade a few cards in the right spot and get to the final table. Feels good to be the last one standing after a field of 400 people. I know it’s easy to say I played well, but I thought I had close to my A game. There is really only one hand that I wish I would have played differently and even that one turned into a chop. Along the way I got to bust a Bracelet winner sell some T-shirts and make friends. I was only in the tournament because I survived a weird all in very early when I called off with K-6 of diamonds on a As -5d 7d- 6h board. I hit the diamond on the river cause I’m a G like that and I was on my way.

You could say I’m kinda a reg at the Nugget, I like playing against their fields because they are usually soft, both in cash games and tournaments. This was not their usual field however as the 25k Guarantee bought some decent talent and many players that I had battled against for years.

Pro’s: Loved the location of the tournament, I’m a bit biased I know but the room was big and spacious.

Con’s: If your going to hold this on Football Saturday can I please get some T.V action. I’m guessing a few people have more than $125 on the games.

Structure: Not the greatest tournament structure, tournaments like the Orleans weekly still have way deeper structures. The 30 min round levels are pretty standard but they do start the ante’s correctly and place a well timed dinner break in.

Dealers: For the most part the dealers were good both the regular dealers and the temp dealers brought into the tournament, however I did see one massive dealer meltdown when he did not know how to add correctly to see if a the 3bet shove was enough to open back up a raise. The problem was compounded by the fact that it was when we were down to 3 tables, and it was in the later stages of the round. It easily sucked up half the round. He finally had to call the floor over, it was a mess.

Tom Mcevoy: He was the bracelet winner I was talking about early we battled both early in the tournament, and late. He moved to my table when the blinds were only about 400 - 800. He was on my right and I had him out chipped so he didn’t really mix it up with me except verbally to let me know that I only play for “fun” When we got down to two tables he was on my left and had a top 3 stack. I had to play tight as I figured he would play aggressive and try to use his stack to bully the others. He didn't though. When we got down to the final table I was on Tom’s left I was still a bit short stacked but he had been whittled down himself. We final got down to 6 players and by now the tables had turned. I was battling for the chip lead and Tom had let himself get dwindle under 5 BB’s. We finally got in all - in when he shipped from the button with Ad -6d and re-shipped from the SB with AQ off. I faded the 6 and busted the 4 time bracelet winner.

Best Fold: I don’t remember having to make any Hero folds the best one was when I had to fold A-J on a K- 7- 3-8 rainbow board after I put in %70 of my stack

Best Call: With the blinds about 1000 -2000 people begin to get aggressive and play intensified. A new group of players had joined my table younger and more seasoned they begin to raise the overall levels that you needed to play at. After an older guy limped from UTG +1 I raised to 4400 with 66. I had nearly 60k I was called by a LAG directly to my left. It was folded around to the BB who shipped for about 30k. The limper folded and it was back to me Taking into account both the demographic of my opponent. (Young - Asian - American from California) and the situation (Over 12k in the middle with only 1 raise) I ranged my opponent to have most likely two face cards or Ace anything. I re-shipped the guy behind folded. The kid turned over K-J the flop comes 10- Q -2, Pairs the board with 10 on the turn, so he is now officially drawing to the deck but blanks with 8h on the river.

Overall: Don’t get it twisted luck plays a huge role in winning or losing a tournament. I won not one but two races with 66’s. I was dealt aces in a span of 5 hands to buts a total of 3 players. But no one is ever winning or in my case chopping a live tournament with a field size of 400 people without displaying some skill. This was a good spring board and will hopefully propel me on my way to larger tournament wins in the future. For now I’m gonna take my newly won riches and head back to the cash games an

SIn city Poker Blog: How to beat 1-2 NL games (Playing against bad play...

SIn city Poker Blog: How to beat 1-2 NL games (Playing against bad play...:   It’s ironic but to me one of hardest things to do in NL poker is beat a field of bad players. It sounds like it should be easy, but ba...

How to beat 1-2 NL games (Playing against bad players)

 

It’s ironic but to me one of hardest things to do in NL poker is beat a field of bad players. It sounds like it should be easy, but bad players can actually be more frustrating to play than more talented ones. Many bad players don’t understand the intricacies of the game. They don’t see the value in building a pot or folding a draw. All they know is “ALL IN” or fold. A while back I was having difficulties beating a local 1-2 NL game. It was so annoying because I knew that about 8 out of 10 of the players were terrible. The most frustrating thing is that they were terrible in a knitty way They could never bet their hand but they could always call. Many times these players would limp for $2 get raised to $15 and still make the call. It drove me nuts trying to figure out if I was value betting or bluffing. I tinkered with a few different strategies to try to get the most value from the game. Finally after some trial and error I think I have come up with a sound strategy for beating your typical Vegas tourist low limit NL game. I started following these simple rules a couple months ago and have started seeing longer winning streaks and bigger winning sessions.

Rule #1
See as many flops as possible for as cheap as possible - It was once said about the great Stu Unger that he played every hand at the table but the pots he won were bigger. In this day in age almost every player that sits down at a 1-2 NL game has some idea about pre-flop play. A lot of them are of the “I never win with this hand” mindset. They don’t know about isolating and protecting pre flop. What they are trying to do Pre flop is either see a flop for the minimum or go all in. Let me know if this sounds familiar, a player limps for $2 the pot gets raised to $10 and they ship for $100. If you haven’t then consider yourself lucky. Many solid players will sit down and try to bully these guys by making large pre flop raises, but what I have learned is that it’s almost futile to do this because they are intent on seeing the flop they can care less about the price pre. I have found many times that it is much more effective to play smaller pots pre flop with them, knowing full well that they are not experienced enough to play post flop. especially if your in position. If you do this you have to understand that this doesn’t mean that you don’t raise your big hands your simply opening up your pre flop range. Be prepared to raise and fold as well because many of these players will only raise with big pocket pairs. A lot of times I will limp from early with hands like A-10 A-J K-Q Q-J suited. To add deception and keep out of position pots small. In position I will open raise with these hands. This leads me to lesson #2

Rule #2.
C bet selectively - This could almost be number 1 because it is so important. They way poker has evolved evening the most novice player now understands the concept of Continuation betting. They expect that the raiser is going to bet the flop most times. Because of this I want to keep these guys guessing, a lot of times you will be playing with calling stations who are more then happy to check call you with top pair on the flop. It’s very situational dependent. If I’m heads up with a guy I’m going to C bet much more than if there are 4 people in the hand. The one certainty is that I will C bet almost every semi bluff. For two reasons.

1.To build a pot in case I get there

2.To make one bet that might get me all the way to the river. If you are playing correctly your opponents should never know quite know when your going to C bet. A lot of times because of this your Pre flop raise will allow you to get control of the pot at least until the turn.

Rule #3
Make Hero folds - it’s funny because this used to be one of the hardest things for me to do in NL. All of us who cut our teeth playing limit have been there before. We flop a strong hand but a flush draw is on the board. We bet the flop get called the turn is a blank we bet get called the river is the flush card and our opponent comes out betting. It seems so hard to lay down our top 2. I can think of so many times that I would agonize and level myself into making the call knowing full well that I was beat. In these type of games many of the players play with their cards face up. In fact the mere bet size is a clear indication that the player has made their hand. For example they will go all in for $100 but there is only $40 in the pot. I decided to start using it to my advantage. These type of opponents have been told over and over that the way to win at NL hold em is to wait patiently for a good hand and play it strong. Many times they are only playing the strength of their hand and they can’t wait to show it off. Occasionally you will have to throw away some winners see my (Straight hand)but that’s okay in the long run you will irate and frustrate your opponent who are constantly looking to get action when they make a hand.
Rule # 4
Keep control of pot sizes - If you want to have a good laugh try this some times in one of these games. Make the minimum bet into the pot every now and then. Watch how many people just call. To me the reason why position is so important is because you have a better chance of controlling the size of the pot. This is why I won’t raise with some hands from early position that I would raise with from late position. If you are playing your best your should have no problem controlling pot sizes in these games, in fact many times your opponents are so happy to win a pot they can care less about the size of it. Try to keep your winning pots bigger than your losers. This means avoiding expensive draws even after you called a raise pre flop. While you might miss out on some action you should be more than able to make up the difference by manipulating your opponents. Because so many of your opponents will be taking passive aggressive lines, you will have a great chance to build you winning pots while at the same time minimizing your loosing pots. Think about it if your opponents are constantly checking to you, you have the power to decide when money goes into the pot and when it doesn’t.

Let's Be Honest

The thing I hate most in this world is a liar, im talking about the type of person that is a complete stranger to the truth. Some people would say that it is pretty ironic that I play poker for a living. However it’s my general belief that to be a successful poker player one must be honest with themselves. Constantly lying to yourself about how unlucky you are is a very poor way to improve your game. A great example of this is a session I was in a few weeks back at Monte Carlo. It was a lively Vegas Friday night and I was in a pretty loose 1-2 game. There was a young kid in the game who seemed to be a novice to the game. His dad who was playing in another 1-2 game behind us kept giving him instructions about how his son should play. “Tight, Tight, Stay Tight” His dad would say. The Irony in that being that pops seemed to be a loose cannon, you could hear him at the other table drinking and laughing it up, in fact it seemed like there weren’t many hands that Pops missed playing. The kid must have inherited his dads confidence because for a little over an hour he had a good run, but he certainly wasn’t playing tight. He won some small pots and built his stack. Then he doubled up after baiting a euro into calling an All - in bet on the river with a paired board and 3 spades. The kid won nearly $200 on that hand and it looked like it was going to be a good night for him. During his run we got mixed up in small pot and I folded post flop. The kid brimming with confidence looked at me and started talking a little smack, nothing disrespectful just the kind of cocky bravado you would expect from a young novice. I told him he could have all the small ones I would keep the big ones. He chuckled until a few hands later we got mixed up in a big one. I had about $350 to start the hand and the kid was down to around $125. As I always do I straddled on the button for $4 the kid limped in along with 5 other players. I looked down @ KK. I decided to raise it to $28 to thin the field. The blinds folded, the kid called and everyone behind him folded. The flop comes down 8s-7d-4d. Not the greatest flop for kings but I’m probably still ahead. To my surprise the kid led out for $10. This seemed like a funny bet so I decided to raise for value and I made to $30 to go. The kid called and the turn is 3c. The kid checks and I decide to ship to shut any draw out. The kid tank calls and the river brings an Ad a Pretty bad card for my hand unless your opponent is a complete fish that called a preflop raise and two streets on this board holding no Ace or no Diamonds but this is Vegas and as sure as I’m writing this the Kid turns over J-8 off for top pair I show my Kings and scoop the money effectively ending his night. As he makes the walk of shame back to his dad’s table his dad starts asking him about how he went bust. “ I got my money in with top pair” He said. “What the other guy have?” asked dad “ I don’t remember” “TWO KINGS” I shouted across the room making sure pops heard me loud and clear”. “He didn’t raise with two Kings? Asked Pop “DID” I shouted back. “It was a small raise” Said the kid “7X THE BLIND” I hollered back. After a little more father son talk about poker the dad came over to me and said “Thanks for letting me know about that I had a suspicion he wasn’t being honest about all his losses”.  

Lederer discusses post UGIA act decisions

Howard Lederer speaks

I hit the Royal Flush jackpot at Bally's !

I leave out of the house to play some poker this past Tuesday, I headed to Monte Carlo with the hopes of playing in one of their super soft 1-2 games, however when I got there they didn’t have a game going. Feeling adventurous I decided to drive down to the M and play over there. Sure enough when I get to the M they don’t have a game. Now I decide that the Luxor will be a good place to play so I race back North hoping to finally find a 1-2 game in this town. While on the 15 I saw a sign for Bally’s casino, I figured what the hell I play at Bally’s on a regular, I know they will have a game going. I drive over to Bally’s to look for a seat, on their board under interest list instead of having a list of players names they had a list of their royal flush payouts. Jokingly I tell the floor man “I’m interested in the spades royal flush” we both shared a laugh and he showed me to my seat. I played for about 10 min when I was dealt K-10 of spades from UTG. I opened for $7 and got called in a few spots. The flop came Js - Jd 9h I lead out with the gut shot and get called in one spot. The turn is the Qd and I make the straight. My opponent leads out for about a 1/3 of his stack and I put him all in. He shows 10 - 8 for the low end of the straight. Elated to have him drawing dead I wait for the meaningless river card. It is the As the gin card of all gin cards. Initially I didn’t even realize I made a royal I was just happy to take down an all in pot. The dealer quickly brought it to my attention and it suddenly dawned on me that I was about to get $3692. After providing my I.D and signing a few forms the floor man came over and paid me in chips. I got up cashed out tipped the dealers and headed home cause that’s as good as it gets.

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Got two Kings but I'm Wayyyyy behind.

I’m playing 1 - 2 NL at the Golden Nugget in a wild cash game during Labor day weekend. The kind of game that we dream about. Where 3 bet and 4 bet action pre had become common place. I bought in for $200 and after a few hours in the game I had run my stack up to about $500. I looked down at my cards UTG and saw that I was holding KK. I decided to just limp because I was positive there would be a re-raise a few others limped in and the HJ made it $17. The cutoff and the button were two drunks who called everything and that didn’t change on this hand. The SB also called. When it got back around to me I made it $54 to go in an attempt to thin the field. The original raiser then went into the tank, speech, shove act for a total of $186. During this time I started realizing that I might have been dealt the ultimate set up. I thought for a second then decided to stick with my gut and show the two kings and fold. The table sat in shocked silence, as if I had just shown them pornographic material. After the hand was over came a ton of speculation. The 4 bet shover played it up for the crowd saying things like “ Well I had one over” and “Can’t believe I get this much respect” I felt good about the lay down though. My new table buddy “Green Shirt Bob” begin a dialogue about the hand. Bob was convinced that the villian had A -Q. Bob also left Vegas down just a little under 6k in three days playing 1-2NL so consider the source. I tried to explain to him that I don’t think that was possible and that I made the only play that I could make and here are the reasons why.

1. Table Image - While the table had been very loose this particular player was a calling station. Up until this time he had only raised into un opened pots and had yet to put in any type of 3bet let alone a 4bet. So when he decides to 4 bet in this spot I figure that he has to have a huge hand.

2. The action - Because I limped from UTG the strength of my hand is disguised pretty well, but when I 3bet from out of position, I am beginning to turn my hand face up. Even a seasoned rec player will start to realize that my hand is probably pretty strong, also the rec player is less likely to want to put more money into the pot unless he really has a strong hand. So when he 4bets after the way the action goes he is essentially turning his hand face up.

3. The speech - I’m not Mike Caro but I do know that in all the years that I have played poker I can count on one hand the times I have seen a player give a long drawn out speech and then shove without holding it. To be honest if that guy would have just put his money in and said nothing I would have probably just snapped and taken my medicine. But his speech made me leery. With the way the action was going and because of our stack sizes it felt like a Hollywood speech.

When you stop and add these reasons up it is a pretty simple decision. While I was completely happy with my decision I must say that it did feel good to have the guy come over to me after he cashed out and say “ Hey man I had AA on that hand good laydown, I don’t know how you did it” Well sir the answer is right in front of you.

Bruce Williams is a Vegas grinder that is a regular in poker communities all over the city. Visit pokersteamroom.com to find the best tournaments and cash games throughout the Vegas. The Sin City poker blog brings insight about the everyday grind.

SIn city Poker Blog: True definition of running bad.

SIn city Poker Blog: True definition of running bad.: How do you know that your running bad? What does that even mean, for as long I have been playing poker I have heard people talking about how...

True definition of running bad.

How do you know that your running bad? What does that even mean, for as long I have been playing poker I have heard people talking about how bad they run. Which I find hilarious because I feel as if no one in the world of poker runs half as bad as I run, but obviously I’m bias. After many frustrating years of bad beats and bricked draws I have become an expert at running bad. When analyzing a bad run I like to look at what makes it difficult. Obviously Poker is a frustrating game. Texas Hold ‘em especially no Limit is probably the most frustrating (That’s why it’s so popular) but running bad is different than a couple a tough beats here in there. To truly understand running bad you have to understand the situations.

1. Never Picking up a hand - This is the most common run bad that people suffer. Simply sitting at the table for hours but never picking up quality starting hands. I once went on a stretch where I never picked up a pair of eights or better for nearly 400 straight hands. While this is the most common form of running bad it is the easiest to handle. Any player has the option to simply tighten up their game and wait for big hands.

2. Never Catch someone else with 2^nd best - This is one running bad that few people ever look at. This can be extremely frustrating especially when you are always getting stuck with 2^nd best. It is even more frustrating in a game like NL hold ‘em where one big hand can make your night. Really there is no way to correct this because it is purely situational. The best thing to do is to simply continue to play your style in the hopes that you will finally be on the right side of a second best situation.

3. Always end up getting Coolered - This is the one that for me is the most difficult to handle. Everyone who plays poker has been coolered before. I look at a cooler a little different than a bad beat. To me a bad beat is a straight forward beat that is common in poker. For instance AA vs. KK all in pre flop is a bad beat no matter what happens. Kings are unlucky because they ran into the only starting hand that can beat them, or Aces or unlucky because the best starting hand got cracked. A cooler takes into count many circumstances. One of the best example of this is in a limit game when a small pair calls all the way down on a board with over cards and then finally connects on the river. Another of my favorite coolers is when you make a flush only to be beat by a bigger flush. This beat is also one of the more frustrating ones for me because you can never get that money back.

4. People always seem to have you pegged - This is a term I picked up from playing NL online. It is so frustrating when your opponent seems to make the perfect size bet every time. Let’s say your in the early stages of a tournament and you limp from late with a suited Ace. The blinds are 10 - 20 and you flop four to a flush. The pot is maybe $100 and some idiot just shoves for $3000. Obviously you have to fold and some people might even want to give credit to the Suicide King who shoves on the flop. If this has never happened to you then consider yourself lucky because you have never really run bad. So much has to be in play for this to take place.

1. You have to be able to limp from late with a suited Ace

2. You have to flop 4 to the flush

3. Someone has to grossly over bet the pot

This is a controversial running bad facet because many will argue that your play lead to this situation That by limping into the pot put you put yourself in that spot. There is some validity to that but still it is a difficult spot to be in.

5. Irony - This covers a wide range of things at the poker table. I was playing poker one day in Downtown Las Vegas. It was a particularly difficult session and I tried all kinds of things to keep my head focused and my mind mentally stimulated in the game. I tightened up, then I loosened up. I tried to be LAG then TAG and nothing seemed to work. Finally I decided to take a walk and clear my head. As I took in the sights and sounds on Freemont, I started to feel better and told myself that my time would come just wait for a good spot to get my money in. Finally I came back to the table and set down. I could see that the table had become wild and aggressive and I believed that I would need some patients to have a chance. I waited for my big blind and looked down to see KJ off. To my surprise it was not raised preflop and I got a free look. The flop came perfect A-Q-10 with 2 clubs. I slow played the flop and got action on the turn when a off suit 5 hit. Long story short all the money goes in and before I can even blink another 5 has hit the board and my opponent shows me 10 - 5 off for the full house.

6. There is no point in having a big pair - This is another one of the common run bad situations no matter what Large pair you have the flop instantly kills it. If it’s AA it’s a flop that has 3 flush cards on it, if it’s KK then and Ace comes, if it’s QQ then a King comes and if an over card does not come someone flops a set. It almost becomes meaningless to get dealt a big pair.

7. Tournament hand but no cash game hands - This is by far the number one reason why I hate playing tournaments. When I go into long funks of running bad in cash games it seems that I never win a pot. So I get into a tournament and what happens in the first few rounds I run like a house on fire and build a nice stack, only to inevitably get busted out short of the money. These pots won in a cash game would get my on the right track however in a tournament they are simply a reminder to how unlucky I truly am.

Going through long stretches of these things individually can be difficult enough when you go through them all at once like I do then you are truly running bad.

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