Entries Tagged 'General' ↓

So I got another book which I felt would help me think more deeply about my game. It is called The Poker Puzzle and is written by a fellow DeucesCracked member called Improva, his real name is Oliver Marx and he’s from Denmark. Before I bought the book I chatted with him on Skype for awhile and he was very friendly and answered all my questions, he also said that if the book wasn’t to my liking I would get my money back.

I had pretty much decided to buy it anyway because this book is all about making you think about the game, hence the name Poker Puzzle. It really does teach you to think for yourself about situations and solve them. The book is not cheap, it costs $400, but it comes with 2 hours of coaching from Oliver so that made it an instabuy for me.

I’ve spent the last two days reading, re-reading and doing the exercises pretty much non-stop. When I first got the book I read it cover to cover and did all the questions (not the same as exercises) in 6-7 hours, I then got some sleep and when I woke up I started re-reading the book and it made a lot more sense on the second read. Maybe you’ve noticed that I have a bit of an obsessive personality, it’s awesome, especially when I have time to read books and study for several days straight!

I know most of my readers can’t afford Oliver’s stuff and he says it is recommended for 200NL+ players so if you’re playing 100NL and below you probably shouldn’t get it yet. For you guys I recommend Bill ‘billyjex’ Vosti’s book – How to Beat No-Limit 6-max Cash Games.

I just made some adjustments to my newsletter over at texasholdempoker101.com and instead of sending out a weekly newsletter, I made all my tips into an ebook that you can get for free if you sign-up.

It’s 70-pages of awesome poker stuff, go get it now.

That’s right, I just reviewed it and I liked it. In short, it’s worth getting if you don’t know what equity is or how you can use meta-game to manipulate your opponent to clean your bathroom

Read my whole review on my website: How to Beat No-Limit Hold’em 6-max Cash Games Review

It’s been a long time, haven’t had the urge to blog lately. I haven’t been doing much, going to aikido and jujutsu. Basically doing the same old stuff, I’ve also been working on a website of mine, I don’t know why but I really like playing with websites.

It’s almost like The Sims but in real life where the website is the theme park, wee. I am not entirely satisfied with my poker website (texasholdempoker101.com). It’s about 1½ years since I first put it up and my lack of writing skills really shine through. Live and learn I guess.

I started trying the Sedona Method and having some interesting results so far with it. It’s basically a “method” of releasing emotions which comes in handy at the poker table for me. I’ve been able to stay tiltless longer, so the results so far are promising. I’ll let you guys know if I still like it after a month.

A quick guest post on implied odds.

Introduction to Implied Odds

Part of the skill in poker is about understanding the odds. The great poker players know all the math required to calculate whether someone is getting an edge.

Pot odds are crucial for this calculation, but it is not the end of the story. There are also implied odds that players must consider.

Pot Odds vs. Implied Odds

Pot odds are the most basic calculation in poker. They represent your payout odds. If there is $50 in the pot and you need to call $5 to get to a showdown, you are risking $5 to win $50, or $10 for every $1 you bet, or 10-to-1.

If your odds of winning are shorter than 10-to-1, this bet has positive expected value over the long term. If they are longer, it has negative expected value. Implied odds enhance this equation by including money not yet in the pot.

True Odds in Poker

When you use pot odds, you are comparing them to your real odds of winning the hand – something that any basic online poker pot odds calculator can do for you. The real odds calculate by determining the number of cards that can come to make you the winner vs. the number of cards that will give the pot to your opponent. In order to continue, these odds need to be better than the pot odds, plus the implied odds.

Implied Odds in Practice

Players on a draw frequently consider online Texas holdem odds. For example, if you hold Kc 9c and the board is 6c Ac 4d Js, you will probably need to hit your flush to win.

If there is $200 in the pot and your opponent bets $100, you have 3-to-1 pot odds. His bet makes it a $300 pot and it costs you $100 to call. You have nine outs to win the pot and 37 cards that don’t help you. 37-to-9 is about 4-to-1, which makes this a fold, unless considering implied odds.

Implied odds take into account money you might win on later streets. Let’s say you should call and a club comes on the river. Your opponent, afraid of the flush, checks, and you bet $150 into the $400 pot. Your opponent is getting 550-to-150, or about 3.7-to-1.

This means that if your opponent thinks you would bluff in this situation 22 percent of the time or more, he should call. When he calls and loses, you win an additional $150. If you go back and add this to your original calculation, you are risking $100 to win not $300, but $450. The implied odds are 4.5-to-1, making this a correct call.