Back to the Drawing Board
by Perry Friedman
You are in the big blind with Ts-8s against a player who smooth-called pre-flop. The flop comes K-X-X with two spades. What do you do?
You would like to make your flush, and you don’t want to pay too much to get there. Instinctively, you think checking is the best way to get a free card, and you’re right.
What I learned at the WSOP
by Jay Greenspan
This past summer, I had the good fortune to cover the World Series of Poker for PokerWire.com and Full Tilt Poker. For six weeks, I watched world-class players ply their trade and, in that time, I learned a ton about poker. What follows are three lessons I learned from watching Full Tilt Poker’s pros during their long days of play.
Never Rush a Big Decision
Even in the top ranks of poker, there’s a tendency among players to act rashly and blurt out an action – “All in!” or “I call!” – without having taken nearly enough time to carefully consider the situation. Of course, a player shouldn’t delay while holding the nuts. But I was often surprised to see the time the pros took to mull over situations that seemed to have only one clear-cut action.
Taking on a Short-Handed No-Limit Game
by John D’Agostino
Let’s face it; nobody takes up poker because they love the idea of sitting idly at a table while folding for hours on end. But, in a full ring game with eight or nine other players holding cards, it’s proper to spend most of your time folding because there’s too great a chance that one of your opponents holds a powerful hand.
Strategies for Short-Handed Limit Hold ’em
by John D’Agostino
In last week’s tip, I shared some strategies for playing short-handed no-limit cash games. This week, I’m following up with some more short-handed advice, this time concentrating on Limit Hold ‘em.
If you read last week’s tip, you’ll know that hand values change in short-handed play and that it’s proper to play a greater percentage of hands than would be wise at a full ring game. In these games, I play a lot of hands. So many, in fact, I’ve gotten the reputation of being something of a maniac. But there is a method to my madness. By the end of this article, I think you’ll agree.
Bad Cards or Bad Plays?
by Team Full Tilt
Losing is part of poker and all serious players, including the world’s best, can recount losing streaks that lasted for months. Often, the downswing starts with a particularly unlucky run of cards. A series of bad beats or impossibly tough hands eat away at the bankroll. As the bad run continues, and money continues to disappear, players are forced to confront one of the toughest questions in poker: Am I a victim of lousy luck or am I playing poorly?
Big Slick: A Slippery Hand
by Rafe Furst
I often tell people that short-term results are not a reason to change how they play, but I likewise encourage them to use any excuse to study and analyze their game.
Recently, a player on Full Tilt Poker lamented that he’d gone broke with A-K in his last several tourneys, and he suspected that he was doing something wrong. A few questions revealed that he was getting knocked out fairly early in these tournaments when he put his A-K up against pocket pairs for all his chips. It’s a familiar lament.
What’s Your Starting Hand Really Worth?
by Steve Brecher
Most players know that pre-flop position is important in hold ’em. The earlier your position, the more players there are behind you and, unless you hold pocket Aces, the bigger the chance that one of them will have a hand better than yours.
There is another aspect to position: It’s better to act after your opponent(s) rather than before. But for this tip, I’m going to investigate the chances that a player behind you will have a better hand.
Getting Started in Stud-8
by Jennifer Harman
Stud-8 or Better is a great game. The rules are nearly identical to regular 7-Card Stud, but there’s one key difference. At showdown, the pot is split; half is given to the player with the best high, and half to the player with the best low. In order to take a portion of the pot, a low hand must have no card higher than an 8. If there is no qualifying low, the high hand takes the entire pot.
Know Your (Table) Limits
by Paul Wolfe
In the 18 months that I’ve been playing poker at Full Tilt Poker, the one question I am asked most often is a variation on the following:
“Hey Paul? What are you doing in this $10-$20 No-Limit game? Ivey, J-dags, and Matusow are at the $25-$50 No-Limit table, and E-dog is playing in the $50-$100 Limit game. Why don’t you join them?”
Playing a Big Draw in Limit Hold ’em
by Chris “Jesus” Ferguson
In Limit Hold ’em, it is not uncommon to see pots that are contested by four, five, or even six players. This happens with some frequency at lower limits, especially when playing with those who haven’t learned the virtues of a tight-aggressive style of play.