Wednesday, October 31, 2007

The stratagem with strategy of poker game

It's important to know when to call a pre-flop raise and when not to. There is a big potential to lose a lot of money by becoming involved in a hand that you should not even be playing. When there is a pre-flop raise and you don't have any money in the pot, you need to evaluate your hand in a totally different way. You need a strategy for this situation. This is what you should consider:

Who Raised?

You have to know your players. Is the raise from a conservative, no-nonsense player? Or is it from the drunk who raises every hand? Is he an average player who just won a big pot? If so, he's probably playing a little too loose this time.

What Position is the Raiser In?

Is he in early position where a raise is clearly intended to drive you out of the hand? Or is he in late position where he knows you'll call since you already have one bet in the pot? Does he mind your call? A pre-flop raiser who makes you call two bets cold wants you out of the pot while the raiser who lets you call one bet and then another usually wants you to stay in the pot. Is there enough money in the pot to give you the correct odds to call? Did good players call from early positions, thereby indicating they have very good hands?

How Many Players Are Behind You?

The greater the number of players behind you yet to call, the better the pot odds will be to draw to your hand, and the more likely it is that you'll be reprised after you call. Take the time to look at the players on your left before you call. If one of them is thinking about raising, he'll often have enough chips in his hand to raise and you'll know that the betting will probably be capped before the flop. Remember that the raiser could have anything, but the callers really do have a hand. Can you beat both the raiser and the caller in this hand?

Who Might Reraise Behind You?

A reraise behind you cuts down on your pot odds, elimi¬nates players, and reduces the size of the final pot.

How Big is the Pre-Flop Pot?

Once the pot gets so big in limit Hold'em, it becomes "protected." That means that no matter what the flop, turn and river cards are, or how the betting goes, the final bettor on the end will be called by someone, just because of the size of the pot. This means that you will have to have the best hand at the showdown. This rules out the possibility of bluffing on the end except on those rare occasions where everybody misses every straight and flush draw.

Are You on a Draw?

If you are, then you obviously need to improve your hand to win. If you have a big pair in the pocket, you are protected somewhat because you will still have at least a pair after the flop. Is your flush draw Ace-high? If not, this hand is going to cost a lot of money and you don't want to find out at the end that your Kh. 8h. flush is beat by Ah. 5h. Are you drawing dead? Are you holding As. Jc. against a possible Ah. Kd.? You're a big underdog if you are.

Thursday, October 18, 2007

THE STRATEGY OF POKER GAME


From a statistical standpoint, Caribbean Stud is a negative expectation game. Unlike blackjack, there is no strategy that will overcome the house edge and make the game profitable for the player. Sure, you can simply wait until the progressive meter gets very, very high, but in most Poker Casino Ratings the jackpot will have to exceed half a million dollars for the overall player expectation to become positive. So far this has never happened, but when and if it does, you will find it very difficult to get a seat at a Caribbean Stud table. You must use some reasonable strategy when playing this game or you will deplete your bankroll very quickly. The Caribbean Stud poker player has three basic decisions to make: (1) How much money to ante, (2) whether or not to place the $1 progressive bet, and (3) whether to call (bet double the ante) or fold (lose the ante). Each of these three choices will have a major effect on how fast you will lose your money. THE ANTE The best approach in Caribbean Stud is to risk as little money as possible. Try to find a $5 table and only place the minimum bet. There is more than one reason for this strong recommendation. Being a negative expectation game, the heavier you bet, the more you will lose (barring a lucky streak). If this isn’t enough to convince you, there is a second reason. The big draw for most people who play Caribbean Stud is the progressive jackpot. And I agree that when the jackpot gets into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, it is a good time to invest in the $1 progressive bet. There is, however, an important point to keep in mind: The pro grassier bonus and jackpot payoffs are exactly the same whether you placed a $5 ante or a $25 ante. Why risk more money than you need to when the chance of making a good hand and the payoff for that hand have no bearing on the amount that you bet? You also have to keep in mind when you ante, that you can’t win anything unless you also place the call bet. That means a $5 ante turns into a $15 investment and a $25 ante turns into a $75 investment—per hand. You will fold your hand about half of the time, and each time you fold, you will lose your ante. It is better to lose $5 than to lose $25. Finally, by placing a minimum ante bet, there is no chance that you will run up against the bonus payout limit. You wouldn’t want to place a large bet, get a hot hand, and then be shortchanged on the payout. That would be a cruel blow. THE PROGRESSIVE JACKPOT One of the lures in Caribbean Stud is the possibility of getting a royal flush and winning the progressive jackpot, or winning lesser amounts for certain other hands. Entering the progressive jackpot pool is entirely optional; however, if you do not put up the dollar, you will have no chance of winning the progressive jackpot or one of the progressive bonuses. The progressive bonuses and the progressive jackpot pay off whether or not the dealer’s hand is qualified, so long as you placed $1 in the progressive slot at the start of the hand and you don’t fold. If your hand is a flush, full house, or four-of-a-kind, you are paid a progressive bonus even if the dealer has a better hand. The same is true for a royal flush or a straight flush. Investing in the progressive pool is only worthwhile when the progressive meter gets quite high. Following are examples of paytables showing the minimum jackpot needed for a positive expectation of winning. This positive expectation only applies to the progressive bonus or jackpot, not to the entire game. To overcome the house edge on the basic game, the progressive jackpot would have to reach levels that have never before been attained. Columns I to 3: Found in most Las Vegas casinos. Column 4: Found in Atlantic City and Mississippi. The calculations for the progressive break-even points were based on a $1 side bet. When you visit the casinos, you will see that the Caribbean Stud progressive meters don’t get anywhere near the break-even points. The exact house edge for the progressive side bet (alone) depends on the amount of the jackpot, but it typically falls in the range of 25% to 30%.

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

THE STRATEGY AND TACTICS OF HOLD'EM

With a Pre-Flop Raise Only Semi-BluffDo not attempt to bluff if there was a pre-flop raise unless you are semi-bluffing at the nuts or there are very few players in the hand. There are two good reasons for this: A. The pre-flop raiser could have anything and have you beat (you're drawing dead). B. The pre-flop raise created a "protected" pot. Everyone knows that the raiser probably (statistically speaking) does not have a pair in the pocket and anyone who flopped a pair will call him down to the river. In that case, you don't have to beat just the raiser; you also have to beat the other caller. Against Many Flop Callers Don’t attempt to bluff if there are many callers to see the flop and you have only $2 in the hand. Learn to let it go and get on to the next hand. Let’s say you decide to bluff about 10% of the time. If every other player decides to bluff with the same frequency, then you might be facing a bluff from someone every other hand or so. I how do you decide if the other player is bluffing when he bets? You can never know for sure, but there are a few indicators that might help you figure out where you stand. Here they are, in no particular order :

Indications That Your Opponent Is Bluffing1. When There Is No Straight or Flush Draw on the Flop If there is a bettor all through the hand in this situation, he is probably not bluffing. He most likely has top pair on the flop with a good kicker, or an over pair. This is especially true if there was a pre-flop raise and another caller beside you. The bettor could have anything, but the caller has to have something. In these cases, it's the caller you should be more fearful of than the bettor, especially if the bettor checked on the turn. It most likely means that he tried a bluff on the flop but since he got called in two spots, he decided to give up the bluff. The bettor could have anything since he could be bluffing, but the caller has to have something to call with.2. When They Are Few poker Players in the HandThe fewer the number of players that there are in the hand, especially on the river, the more likely the bettor is to be bluffing. He won't always be bluffing just because there is only the two of you in the hand, but it is more likely than usual. This is particularly true if the river card did not fit in with the flop in any way. It means that anyone who had a draw on the flop missed and would have to bet to have a chance to win the hand.3. If There Is Just You and One Other player if there is just you and one other player on the river, and he bets, and then as you start to call he tells you that you can "save your money" or he tells you that he has the nuts, he's usually bluffing. If he really did, why would he bet into you?All he would have to do is say, "Check," and then show you his cards. Usually, he will have bet because he could not check and win and when it started to look like he was going to be called, he had to do something to keep that from happening.Like I said, if he really wanted you to "save your money," he'd check and/or show you his hand to save you that bet.If you suspect that the player who just bet is bluffing, here's a few tips to help you decide what to do. He could be bluffing on the river if:A. It only cost him one bet to try to steal the pot.B. The pot is big.C.He has to bluff only one player.D.The river card did not help the possible draws that were presented on the flop.E. The bettor raised before the flop and no Aces or face cards came on the board.F. Everyone checked on any round in the hand.G. You just lost a big pot or two to the player who just now bet.