Marcus Bateman : HID Poker

Over betting

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:08:36 +0000

With 'Isildur1' still taking on and beating all comers, it seems a good time to look at one of the aspects of his game that makes him relatively unique amongst the high stakes players - his tendency to over bet the pot frequently, particularly on the river

When to push edges in tournaments

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:51:00 +0000

Most weak multi table tournament players make two key areas of mistakes when they play in tournaments in terms of when they try and push their perceived edges, and recognising them and taking advantage of them is crucial in taking your tournament game to the next level

Poker hierarchy and islands of ability

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:34:57 +0000

One of the greatest features of high stakes poker (and one of the things that makes it such an exciting world to play in or observe) is that you have constantly changing hierarchies. Much like how empire's rise and fall, poker is full of players who arrived and beat everyone on offer, only to be slowly or suddenly ground down by a new generation of players.

Sizing players up

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 13:13:02 +0000

Poker is a game where it is important that you have as many options as possible, not only in your arsenal, but also being used at a frequency that balances your game and makes you hard to read.

Exploiting edges

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 11:40:24 +0000

In his excellent book "Amarillo Slim in a world full of fat people" Amarillo Slim makes the excellent observation that: 'You can shear a sheep many times, but only skin him once'.

Bluffing weak players

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:33:36 +0000

There is an old poker saying that states that you 'cannot bluff an idiot'. Although this statement has its points, it is not completely true, and learning how to bluff very weak players is critical to maximising your win rate.

Arms races

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:54:57 +0000

Nearly all competitive areas of life fundamentally come down to an 'arms race' between the participants. This is simply because as each individual improves, the others have to catch up, advance further, or die.

Being table captain

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:35:06 +0000

Table presence is one of the most important features of poker, and establishing yourself as the 'table captain' can pay massive dividends if done correctly.

Dealing with new players

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:15:04 +0000

When playing online, most of the players you will ever encounter will be completely unknown. This is because most players only play short sessions online, often play different stakes and games depending on their mood, and generally do not become regulars in a certain game. Although at the mid and high stakes this starts to change (where you have a lot more regulars), thinking about how to deal with anonymous players is crucial to online success.

Balancing ranges from early positions

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:43:23 +0000

One of the most important aspects of poker is thinking about how your actions affect your opponent's decision making processes. A great example of this is in balancing your range from early position, and here I want to look at a situation which shows why this point is true, and how it does affect your opponents.

Loose aggressive style and variance

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 10:41:21 +0000

Many more players are now playing a loose aggressive style than when I first started playing poker. The combination of lots of the very top players in the game exhibiting master classes in this style on TV, and the general excitement and diversity of situation that playing loose brings, have led a lot more players to adopt this as their chosen style.

Playing the mid stack in MTTs

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:30:27 +0000

One of the hardest stack sizes to play in no limit hold'em is one between ten and twenty big blinds. Below ten big blinds and your life is pretty simple - the only move you have is to go all in. Above twenty, you have a decent amount of chips to maneuver with, and can simply play regular poker. The basic problem with the mid stack is that you have too many chips to just go all in with, but too few to avoid committing yourself to the pot if you just make a standard raise - so what is the best course of action?

Grinding down tight players

Sat, 24 Oct 2009 17:10:30 +0000

A large percentage of the poker players you will ever meet are very tight. They have either been taught - or discovered by themselves - that sticking to only playing premium hands enables them to make money off of weak players, and as a result they sit back and patiently wait for big hands, refusing to play anything but monsters.

Being results orientated

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 09:57:15 +0000

One of the key mistakes weak players make (and a very easy one to spot at that, as players nearly always talk about hands in ways which clearly show this concept), is to be results orientated about a play they made.

Calling players out

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 09:34:23 +0000

One of the most subtle, yet important feature, of all great poker players is the ability to create a positive and easy going atmosphere at the tables. Although their play might be wild, aggressive, and dominating in the game itself, their mannerisms and comments nearly always stay in check, and they do this for a very good reason.