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If you are in a poker game for money and are taking it easy on one of your buddies, you are cheating yourself, your friend, and every other player in the game.
In poker, you've got to start at the bottom level and work your way up. This advice applies to the limits that you play and the sizing of the bets that you make.
For five days, I had no sleep. None. I did not sleep. And the last day, the reason I lasted, I drank 20 Red Bulls, about 20 cups of coffee. I could not function.
Missing even one night of shuteye will impact your ability to concentrate the next day. And it only gets worse if you deprive yourself of sleep night after night.
Picking up a tell - a hint that a player unknowingly gives that reveals the strength of his hand - often means the difference between winning and losing a big pot.
When I started playing, I saw a lot of people who were 45 and unhappy. I told myself I'd never be in a position where I had to play all the time. And I haven't been.
Don't try to make a big bluff on the turn with a drawing hand. With only one card to come, even a big draw is an underdog against a made hand. Keep the betting small.
The secret behind playing small ball poker isn't so much in the hands you choose to play. It's more about the amount you choose to bet with the hands you end up playing.
The most important reason why it's dangerous to risk all your chips pre-flop is that you simply can't be certain that you are even in a coin flip situation at that time.
Playing people and position post-flop are definitely my strengths. When I get into a hand, I'm aggressive but I'm also paying attention to my opponent's betting patterns.
Look, I never enjoy risking my tournament life with a marginal hand, but if you want to be a poker champion, that's exactly what needs to be done. Just don't do it too often!
In No Limit hold'em tournaments, size your bets based on your opponent's skill level. You can cut corners by betting wisely - save a little here and make a little extra there.
It's imperative to save a few chips whenever possible when playing small-ball poker. You never want to risk a high percentage of your chips unless you're dealt a monster hand.
When you're playing cards you can't constantly think about what the money costs you in the real world. You can't be constantly concerned about that if you want to be successful.
I guess I'm the happiest when I'm picking up my kids from school. The most important things on my list are my wife and kids and my health. Happiness is having a family you love.
If you want to make money playing poker, find a game with a few suckers, fish, donkeys, live ones, or whatever you choose to call a bad player. Just don't let that sucker be you.
Every poker player has ups and downs because luck is also involved. When a great poker player smashes, he's making the right moves and making the right reads and he's getting lucky.
I typically don't bet out on the flop because I've been in the business of trapping my ultra-aggressive opponents so much that I've simply forgotten the benefits of a simple flop bet!
Beating a tight game requires focus. You'll need to seek out every opportunity where you can steal a big pot. One way is by representing a hand that your opponents probably can't beat.
For five or six years, I didn't play in some of the good games leading up to the World Series of Poker, because with so many below-average players there, I reasoned it messed up my game.
If I haven't played with a player before and I don't know anything about them, the more they tell me about themselves, the better I will be able to judge how they think and how they play.
The value of small pocket pairs comes from the possibility of flopping three of kind and winning a sizable pot. To that extent, playing this type of hand is a low risk/high reward proposition.
Players too often bet too much money when they hit a strong hand. That only serves to drive opponents out of the pot, and that means a lost opportunity to maximize the value of a powerful hand.
Playing fast and aggressive poker can help manufacture chips out of thin air and is one element of the game that separates the great players from the merely very good. But beware; it can be risky.
We have hillbillies with third grade educations and 8th grade educations who have conquered the poker world. There is no telling why someone is great at reading other people. Some people just are.
The most obvious difference between a cash game and a tournament is that in tournament play, once your chips are gone, so are you. In a cash game, you can always dig into your pocket for more money.
No matter how much you may want to think of Holdém as a card game played by people, in many respects it is even more valid to think of it as a game about people that happens to be played with cards.
As a general rule, the more precious the chips you'd consider betting, the more you should lean toward playing it safe. Check it down; cautious play is usually the recipe for long-term success in poker.
Poker is really about reading people. What happens when you bluff? What does it look like when the other guy bluffs? Does he look right, does he look left? Under what circumstances does he fold or call?
Deep-stack games like High Stakes Poker are the favorites among both poker pros and avid fans of televised poker. In these games, the most talented players shine and the most exciting action takes place.
In tournament play, it's generally advisable to avoid risking large sums of chips in coin flip situations, like pocket sixes versus A-K. After all, the pocket pair is only a very slight heads-up favorite.
There's no doubt that position is a very important aspect of the game. But some players take this concept to the extreme and consequently miss opportunities when they refuse to play hands out of position.
The debate on climate change and global warming has been intensely polarized. A great deal of this 'noise' has clouded the very real and emerging issues that we as an industry and society need to address.
I seldom reraise before the flop no matter what my hand is. By so doing, I'm able to disguise the strength of my hand and can trap unsuspecting opponents who interpret my smooth call as a sign of weakness.
Consistently playing suited connectors like 8c-7c for raises and reraises will cause big chip swings. If that's what you want, well, strap on your seatbelt, because you've got a turbulent ride ahead of you!
Some day, I suppose it's possible for someone to be a better No Limit Hold'em player than me. I doubt it, but it could happen. But, I swear to you, I don't see how anyone could ever play gin better than me.
Trump is loose and obvious with his facial expressions. You could watch Donald Trump in a debate and not hear any of the words and you'll still get a sense for when he's pleased, when he's angry and when he's not.
I normally raise pre-flop with K-K or A-A but occasionally I'll limp in, especially if it appears that the others at the table are playing tight. I don't want anyone to fold too soon when I've got such a big hand.
Poker is not a team sport. It's every man for himself. It's perfectly okay to root for your buddies and hope they do well, but when it's time to play the game, you have to give it your all. All by yourself, that is.
The biggest differences between Omaha and Hold'em is that you get four hole cards in Omaha as opposed to two in Hold'em, and in Omaha, you can only use two of your hole cards and must play three cards from the board.
What you see on a lot of televised poker is highlight-reel poker. That's why I used to like 'Poker After Dark' so much. It used to catch us playing almost every single hand... It is more of a grind than people think.
Playing tricky poker doesn't have to mean making bizarre moves or playing way out of character. Rather, it's simply about taking advantage of what you know about your opponents and how they perceive your style of play.
High flops like K-Q-9, K-J-10 or Q-J-8 are dangerous to pocket aces. That's because these flops will more likely to connect with the range of hands that your opponents will typically play, like 10-J, K-Q, 10-10, or 9-10.
To be sure, playing it safe isn't a flashy style of poker. Some even claim that it's too weak and passive. That being said, playing safe poker is still a proven recipe for success in the world's biggest poker tournaments.
I started out as a teenager I was a snooker player, or pool player. Through that I met some other teenagers that were gamblers, if you will, who started basement games. I was just sort of learning on the go, losing my $10.
Playing chess can make you a better poker player because it forces you to think several moves ahead. That kind of intense mental exercise develops a deeper level of thinking than is typically encountered when playing poker.
Before you decide to play with live straddles in your home game, remember that this twist essentially doubles the size of the game. It's often used by players who have been losing and are trying to get lucky and win a big pot.
In golf, no one learns to hit a draw, a fade, or a cut shot until they've been taught how to hit the ball straight. Similarly, novice poker players need to learn how to 'hit it straight' before taking on more difficult concepts.
Check-raising with a drawing hand on the turn is simply a kamikaze gamble. It might work once in a while, but if you consistently attempt it, too often you'll find yourself watching the rest of the tournament from behind the rail.
Very few players want to go home wondering if they've folded the best hand. They feel humiliated when they're bluffed out of a pot. As a result, these players make calls with marginal hands that put their entire tournament at risk.