December 2009

Why playing live can be more profitable

Marcus Bateman / 31 December 2009 / Leave a comment

One of the key things to remember about live poker is that it is much easier to win than it is online. This is for a few key reasons, but the most important is by far the amount of information...Read more »

The Cincinnati Kid and bluffing

Marcus Bateman / 30 December 2009 / Leave a comment

'That's what it's all about isn't it? Making the wrong move at the right time.' This is one of the final lines of the great poker movie 'The Cincinnati Kid'. Edward G Robinso raises in a position where he is...Read more »

Leading into raisers

Marcus Bateman / 28 December 2009 / Leave a comment

One of the most useful plays at the low and mid stakes is making the odd well timed lead into a pre flop raiser. Weak players - particularly weak loose players - often really struggle to deal with players leading...Read more »

Mike Kosowski wins Million Dollar Challenge

Matthew Pitt / 23 December 2009 / 1 Comments

Mike Kosowski, a 53-year old from Staten Island, New York defied the odds to eventually defeat Daniel Negreanu heads-up to win a cool $1,000,000....Read more »

Poker goals for 2010

Matthew Pitt / 23 December 2009 / 2 Comments

I've not played much poker over the past week, instead I've been busy watching films on our new Blue-Ray player and playing on my beloved Xbox 360....Read more »

The fog of war and luck

Marcus Bateman / 23 December 2009 / Leave a comment

Poker is a game where the successful player is effectively just making fewer mistakes than their opponent. People often think of the big, fancy moves in poker as the route to success, but in reality the cutting out of mistakes...Read more »

Playing against total unknowns

Marcus Bateman / 18 December 2009 / Leave a comment

A lot of poker strategy focuses on the adjustments you need to make to various playing styles - such as the differences in plays you should be making against wild maniacs compared to very tight passive players - but how...Read more »

Poker Podcasts, Past and Present

Short-Stacked Shamus / 18 December 2009 / Leave a comment

Poker podcasts have never been more popular. It is hard to estimate with any real certainty, but there are at the very least a few dozen, and perhaps over a hundred ongoing poker shows being regularly produced and distributed for...Read more »

Poker blog round-up: Cory Albertson, Andr3w321, Vizer02 and others!

Matthew Pitt / 18 December 2009 / 2 Comments

Once again Friday is upon us which means it is time for the poker blog round-up. This week, the last before Christmas may I add, contains some poker, some views, rants and funny stories. Here we go....Read more »

Poker and bicycles

Marcus Bateman / 17 December 2009 / Leave a comment

One of the key points about poker is that, just like a bicycle, you have to keep moving in order to stop from falling. The minute you allow your game to become stale and unmoving, you become easy to read...Read more »

Four cards are better than two

Matthew Pitt / 16 December 2009 / Leave a comment

I'm feeling pretty good at the moment thanks to a combination of my meds and the fact I've cut down on boozing and I am seeing plenty of things in a positive light for a change. I don't want to...Read more »

Has Isildur1 gone bust?

Matthew Pitt / 16 December 2009 / Leave a comment

Some may say it was inevitable but it appears that everyone's favourite hyper-aggressive Swede, "Isildur1" has finally busted one of his online accounts....Read more »

Trusting your gut instinct

Marcus Bateman / 16 December 2009 / Leave a comment

Sometimes in poker, situations arise where your instincts really take over from your rational mind. Especially against good, thinking players; or against people you have long histories against, occasionally hands crop up where your head is saying something while your...Read more »

Solved games

Marcus Bateman / 15 December 2009 / Leave a comment

One of the interesting features of poker is that certain games come into fashion, get studied by astute players for long periods, and then slowly go out of fashion as they become solved. The first game like this was arguably...Read more »

Cooler frequency and variance

Marcus Bateman / 11 December 2009 / Leave a comment

The term 'cooler' simply refers to a situation where two hands run into each other that are both so powerful that neither can fold. Running kings into aces, getting shown oversets, or getting beaten by higher flushes are all good...Read more »

Do You Think Poker Is a Puzzle or a Mystery?

Short-Stacked Shamus / 11 December 2009 / Leave a comment

Those who play and/or follow poker might have had reason to pick up one or more of Malcolm Gladwell's best-selling books before. Born in the U.K., raised in Canada, and now residing in New York City, the award-winning journalist has...Read more »

Poker blog round-up: Brian Hastings, Soap, James Atkin and Chknpotpie

Matthew Pitt / 11 December 2009 / Leave a comment

It's a frosty Friday morning, I have my thermal socks on, a mug of coffee in front of me so it must be time to write this week's poker blog round-up. Here goes:...Read more »

Playing middle pairs in Hold 'Em

Marcus Bateman / 10 December 2009 / Leave a comment

Middle pairs are usually defined as the pairs between sevens and jacks. With pairs below sevens, you typically have to hit a set to be able to play a big pot; which stands in stark contrast to the pairs above...Read more »

Marcel Luske - More Than Just A Game

Matthew Pitt / 09 December 2009 / Leave a comment

Last week we mentioned Sorel Mizzi's previously undiscovered talent for singing Euro-pop and anyone who tunes into these pages knows Annette Obresad's obsession with SingStar. Well now another poker player is moving away from the felt and onto the stage,...Read more »

The tragedy of the commons

Marcus Bateman / 09 December 2009 / Leave a comment

The tragedy of the commons is a dilemma formulated by Garrett Hardin in an article first published in the journal Science in 1968. It refers to a situation where numerous individuals who share a resource, all make rational economic choices...Read more »

The expectation of winning

Marcus Bateman / 08 December 2009 / Leave a comment

This phenomenon has led to more bad calls than any other in poker - the simple expectation of winning a hand. When we look down at aces or kings, or when we flop a set, our brain immediately starts behaving...Read more »

On the wagon

Matthew Pitt / 08 December 2009 / Leave a comment

Over the past week or so I have been helping recategorise the poker articles on this site so that they are easier to search through. As a result I have been able to read over a ton of old entries...Read more »

Bet sizing and table conditions

Marcus Bateman / 08 December 2009 / Leave a comment

Opening bet sizes have a huge amount to do with the table dynamic that you are currently dealing with, and thinking about how the table is playing is crucial to making the best play in terms of bet sizing. Poker...Read more »

James Akenhead wins Poker Million

Matthew Pitt / 07 December 2009 / Leave a comment

James Akenhead can seemingly do no wrong right now and has capped off a fantastic year by taking down his first major tournament of 2009, the Poker Million....Read more »

Poker blog round-up: Poker Animal, UK Gatsby, Tolekim and Daleroxxu

Matthew Pitt / 04 December 2009 / Leave a comment

How quickly are the weeks flying by at the moment? Once again Friday is upon us and that can only mean one thing, it is poker blog round-up time. I have another four very good blogs for you to feast...Read more »

Poker Book Review: 'The Godfather of Poker' by Doyle Brunson

Short-Stacked Shamus / 04 December 2009 / Leave a comment

About a third of the way into Doyle Brunson's newly-released autobiography, The Godfather of Poker, the 76-year-old grand statesman of the game shares an old gambling friend's comment regarding the relative authenticity of gamblers' tales. According to Brunson's friend, "normal...Read more »

Sorel Mizzi: Poker player and potential pop star!

Matthew Pitt / 03 December 2009 / Leave a comment

If Betfair sponsored pro, Sorel Mizzi ever decides to quit striking fear into his opponents at the poker table, he could possibly take up a career on stage as a pop singer!...Read more »

Two pair in Omaha

Marcus Bateman / 03 December 2009 / Leave a comment

This hand - particularly bottom two pair - seems to get weak players in more trouble than any other hand in Pot Limit Omaha, except perhaps overplaying aces. Like many situations in Omaha, players used to hold'em tend to drastically...Read more »

Pairs in seven card stud

Marcus Bateman / 03 December 2009 / Leave a comment

Seven card stud is one of the most interesting forms of poker, as a typical hand contains vast amounts of information by the end, allowing a skilled player to really hammer home their advantage. However, due to the limit nature...Read more »

No limit vs limit - art vs science

Marcus Bateman / 02 December 2009 / Leave a comment

It is often strange how well poker fits into great analogies with the real world, and perhaps nowhere is this more true than in comparing no limit games with limit ones. These two forms of game occupy opposites so far...Read more »

TV's, Persians and stomach bugs

Matthew Pitt / 02 December 2009 / Leave a comment

It's been a busy time in the Pudding household overt the past few weeks and as a result I have hardly played any poker. Moving into the new house, combined with work commitments have confined me to the sidelines....Read more »

Historic Binion's Casino to close hotel

Matthew Pitt / 02 December 2009 / Leave a comment

Binion's, formerly known as Binion's Horseshoe, located in Downtown, Las Vegas will be closing its hotel down on December 14, citing a poor economy for the decision....Read more »

Acting out of character

Marcus Bateman / 01 December 2009 / Leave a comment

If you start to become involved in medium to long terms heads up matches, you will start to build a very in depth picture of your opponent's tendencies, typical behavior, and views on what constitute 'correct' moves in certain situations,...Read more »