Channel your inner Uncle Bob

Living in Vegas is a lot like Groundhog day every day you see the same thing over and over. A group flies into town all with various strategies about how make their Vega trip profitable. There is the intellectual, who studies the numbers and determines the games that give him the best edge. There is the disciplined money manager, who has set his budget and knows just how much he has to loose. He is followed closely by the Veteran. The guy who has been to this town many times and knows all the tricks about how to beat the games. And then you have Uncle Bob, Uncle Bob doesn’t know any of this shit. All he knows is that he has some money in his pocket and the courage that goes along with hours of comped drinks He’s not thinking about strategy, discipline or secret tactics he just wants action. Out of this quartet you know who comes out the winner time after time? Uncle Bob, he puts $10 in the machine and hits at 500 to 1.

About a month ago a friend of mine told me this analogy and it got us thinking about how this relates to poker, and we realized that sometimes Uncle Bob sits down at the poker table too. We all have seen the drunk at the table who gets his chips in the middle whenever he feels like it, often times in terrible situations. He has A-3 his opponent has Aces and Uncle Bob just solves that problem by flopping the wheel with the nut flush redraw. After hours of sitting and watching Uncle Bob pound the game it’s natural to feel frustrated and upset that such and inferior opponent can get so lucky. But before we can hate Bob we must first understand the reason’s why he seems to win so much. Those other guys that came to town spent so much time analyzing and figuring out ways to win that they lost site of why we play the game in the first place. Before we ever read a book about 4betting or semi bluffing most off us sat down at the table for one reason and one reason only…. To have fun. The game was all about kicking back having a few beers and playing some cards with friends of family. No one was sitting there criticizing our every decision, there weren’t a million house rules, and dealers? Hell we just dealt ourselves. The game was fun and as a result of this we played more loose and relaxed.

Maybe instead of being frustrated with Uncle Bob we need to learn how to embrace our inner Uncle Bob, I’m not saying we need to start shipping it with A-3 but we need to learn how to enjoy the game even if we aren’t winning. We all play poker for different reasons but the one thing that is certain is that it is a game of choice. No one has ever been forced to play poker, even tournament players who are in makeup with their backers have input about when they want to play. Sometimes the game beats us up so much that we forget about why we are really playing. The next time your stuck in a game and are going through a bad run of cards, instead of beating yourself up and becoming more and more frustrated by the fish to your left. Step back take a deep breath and ask yourself a simple question… What would Uncle Bob do?

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T.I has a great promotions Stratopshere sucks and I’m pretty sure the Orleans tournament is rigged. (Live Tournament Challenge day 4.5.and 6)

I took Wednesday off from my tournament grind, but got back in full swing on Thursday playing a total of four tournaments that day combine that with the Orleans Friday Night and the Golden Nugget Sunday Morning and that's 6 tournaments in 4 days.

Facebook feeding frenzy -  T.I has one of the most under rated promotions in town. If you check in on Facebook and cash in the tournament they will give you a free buffet voucher. It doesn’t sound like much but in case you didn’t know buffets in this town can be expensive. It’s like getting an extra $30 value.

10:00 Pm Guaranteed - T.I also runs a 10pm $1000 guaranteed tournament that is starting to get popular their were 36 players when I played on Thursday the buy in was $55 and first place was $560.

We have a winner - Right now if I would have to rank the worst run tournaments in town, the Stratosphere would be the winner. Here are some examples of why.

          1. They started at 7:20 for a 7pm tournament.

          2. In level 2 it took nearly 8min for anyone on the staff to notice that the blinds had gone up.

           3. Way to chatty if I was a tourist playing there for the first time I would never come back even if I was staying at the hotel. The dealers spend way to much time engaging in conversation with regulars. It feels like it's you against the city when your playing.

They do have one positive they serve free pizza to all the players. For this reason alone I'm willing to give the place another shot and try to see if I catch them on a better day.

Where the magic happens - I am %90 sure the Orleans Friday Night tournament is rigged, I just can’t prove it. I play this thing on a regular and I have never seen more ……. (insert your own word). It’s not just what happens in my hands but also what I see going on around me. The beats are weird. (How can a guy call off his stack with A-2 in level 2 of the tournament and get there?) Also there seems to be a ton of setup hands and just strange plays. Maybe it’s the re-entry structure, maybe it’s Friday night, maybe it’s just rigged I don’t know, but to borrow the NBA’s slogan this is where amazing happens.

Google me -
Heard a great argument at the Orleans the other night two guys are going back and forth. The guy that goes bust is taking his walk of shame but makes sure to let his opponent know he is a fish. After a few minuets of this the opponent finally shouts back “Oh yea Google me” It got me to thinking what a brilliant comeback, for me personally I have a very common name so I figure if you do Google me something good is bound to come up. The funny part is the guy comes back about 15 minuets later to tell him that he had indeed googled him and he was not impressed with his 31k lifetime earnings.

Easy Money - The Golden Nugget 5k guaranteed tournament is by far the softest in town. The early start brings out one of two kind of players.

             1. Old

             2. Hung over or carrying over from the night before.

Whatever the reason any competent player should have a good shot to go deep.When I say it is soft I mean level 1 thinkers all around. This is the same tournament where in the past my opponents continued to let me steal blind on blind with less then 5bb's. On this day I finished in 7^th place out of 34 players however it wasn’t good enough to get in the money as they only played 5 spots. The hand that crippled me actually took place when we were down to 11 players. I raised 2x from the button with AK off. The bb defended with J-8 of spades. The flop came K-7-3 with two spades. He checked, I fired the flop, he called, the turn was 9h he checked, I shipped, he called, the river brought the flush. Oh well better luck next week.



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Rookie Mistakes at the Poker table (Showing hands for free)

 



It is often said, there are no friends in Poker and I am a strong believer in that theory. I don’t care if my mom sits down at the table next to me if mom is she is an opponent then she’s getting pounded, I know my mom feels the same way. Often times when I go play I will see players voluntarily show their hand to the table, even if no one calls. I never understand this, in any competition the goal is to give up as few advantages as possible, in Football you don’t decline penalties even ones that were wrongly called, just to be friendly to your opponent. Dictionary.com defines the word call as it relates to poker as….

A. to demand a card.

B. to demand a showing of hands.

C. to equal a bet

Essentially if someone doesn’t call your bet you can assume that they don’t want to see your cards. Many people watch the pros on T.V and they see them playing the old show one card game. Well, that is a completely different dynamic. Many of these players have played cash games together for years. Seeing the card of their opponents is a strategic ploy designed to gather information. They also understand which card to show. In many of the 1 -2 NL games I play in I see this being done time and time again by 1^st level thinkers or players who only understand the strength or their hands. They do this because.
1. They want the other players to think they only play solid hands.

2. They want to let other players know they don’t bluff

3. They are excited to show a big hand

These are all valid points but lets examine the pro’s and con’s to see if they are valuable points.

Point #1 Whenever level 1 thinkers tell me this, my response is always the same. “must be nice.” Essentially what you are telling me is that when you come to the table you expect to get a number of solid hands. And at your discretion you are going to show some of those hands to your opponents for free just so they think you only play solid hands. Do I have that correct? Unfortunately the game doesn’t quite work like that. I don’t know about you but the majority of my poker sessions are filled with mucking trash and looking for spots to 3bet. The idea that I will receive a number of “solid hands is foreign to me” When I do get these solid hands and they hold up I want people to pay me, I certainly don’t want to let them off the hook by giving them a free look during the hand, it would be considered a mistake and considering that the game is constantly in motion it is also a mistake after the hand. The last thing I want them to do is find out for free that I only play solid hands this is only going to provide me with less action over time.

Point #2 This statement is so contradictory, in the same breathe that they make this statement players will say “Everyone at the table is terrible” It can’t be both if the players are terrible they certainly won’t be able to recognize the significance of you showing your hand. In your average 1-2 game many of the players are not paying attention to what is going on when they are out of the hand. Some times they are even oblivious to what your hand means. For instance when you bet the river on a As - 4s Js 2h 10s board with Ks - Kh in your hand your opponent folds on the river and then you show the table your hand. Many at the table will only glance and see that you were betting Kings with and Ace on board, in their mind you are a bluffer. If you consider the players at the table to be above multi level thinkers than you shouldn’t be showing them anything for free for fear of giving away information. So either way it is a bad idea.
 
Point 3 This is the one point that I can empathize with, it is hard to make a big hand in poker and when you do make one you start to feel a little rush of adrenaline. Your so disappointed that no one called you that you feel like you have to share your enjoyment. If this is your feeling let me let you in on a little secret. No one at the table cares about your enjoyment. The players are there to take your money, so unless you have to turn over you hand to collect a jackpot just keep em to yourself. You might not recognize it right away but in the long run it will pay off. Remember your cards have value to you make em pay to see them.

Crucial keys to Crushing Limit Poker games.

Limit Poker? The name alone sounds foreign to many of today’s players. In today’s fast action poker world limit poker often takes a back seat to NL games. Many players frown upon the game complaining that it’s silly and filled with stations. While I won’t argue with that It’s a lot more profitable than your average 1-3 game. To those who say they can’t win at Limit my response is that they probably can’t win at poker period. Every game whether it’s football or poker has a strategy to it, the key is to identify and employ a winning one. So that’s exactly what I’ll do

In my opinion the key to winning at Limit is more intangibles than tangibles. Like knowing when your running good and knowing when to cut your losses. As for the tangible there are some things you can do.

Pre - Flop aggression - It is key in Limit poker to get the last raise in Pre-Flop even more so than in NL. The main reason is because you can’t be raised off your hand. In No Limit when you 3bet someone you open up the possibility of them re-raising you off your hand. In limit the best they can do is give you better pot odds. Increase your 4betting range in these games to build pre-flop pots. Because many people will check to the last raiser regardless of their hand, You will be assured of at least one street of control. Finally by building that pre flop pot you provide yourself with correct pot odds should you have to make a tough call on latter streets.

Saving bets - In Limit poker it’s not so much the bets you win as it is the bets you save. Many people play a calling station type of game just check calling on every street hoping to turn over a winner. The most obvious example are the players that call down all three streets with one pair hands. This is a common mistake that limit players make thinking “I flopped a pair so I should go to the river with it“. You should be trying to use the post flop street to get significant information on where you stand in the hand. Wasting two small bets is much cheaper than wasting two big bets speculating. So many players never make a profit in Limit because they waste so many bets calling down with weak holdings.

Keep your pots big and their pots small - You no how you can check to see if you are having a winning day at Limit poker? Count the number of times their pots go check - check vs. the number of times your pots go bet call. This is one of the main reasons I like raising Pre to get the field to heads up as quickly as possible. Heads up play in Limit is much simpler than NL because now there is a cap on what you can lose. The quicker you get the hand to heads up the quicker you can decide if you want to play for max value or not. You should be trying to play passive and get to cheap showdowns with marginal holdings, but conversely pressuring and raising big made hands or draws. Let’s say you have AK spades and the board comes 5-9-2 with two spades. You opponent leads into you for $20 and gets called in one spot. You raise to $40 and both your opponents just call. The turn is a blank and they check to you. If you decide to check behind it has only cost you $40 to see two cards as opposed to $60 also you have taken control of the pot and if you do bet the turn and make your hand on the river you have built a big pot for yourself if you miss your hand they win a check - check pot. The point being you want to let the size of the pots be dictated by your holdings. Strong hands big pots marginal hands small pots.

Enough’s enough - NL is a game of swings limit is a game of runs, In a No Limit game your money is at risk every minute your in the game. Nothing is more frustrating then to build a big stack and have a fish sit down and wipe you out because he got there. Limit is not like this In Limit there is only so much they can take from you each hand. When I’m in a limit session I am trying to get to a winning day a number so much that I can’t loose it all unless I sat through an awful run (which I won’t do) In $20 - $40 that number is usually about $800 If I get up that much in the game then it is unlikely that I will give all my profit back if after a short time I’m down to only $500 profit then I will start making decisions about when to leave, usually I make some sort of goal for myself, I will say if I don’t win a hand by the next dealer, or the next blind or in the next $100 I’ll leave. I know it sounds suppositious but I have found that the gut knows. When your playing NL hold em there are so many wild card factors that it’s hard to predict what the next hand will bring. Limit is a true grind and to win consistently you must recognize that. There is no glory in beating Limit only profit.

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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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