Pretty great deal if you ask me. The videos are superb, the quality is great, and the videomaker also replies to queries and comments. A++

Stuff you need to get started? A set of plastic poker cards, a poker table or a piece of felt, and a laptop on which you can watch the YouTube videos. That’s it, pretty much…

While one way to detect a bluff is by looking for tells that may give out the deception but you cannot take out the equation the signs o weakness and stress of your opponents.

Spotting the strengths

How do you explore the poker game and find out if your opponent is really holding a strong hand. If he is acting to be weak, most likely he is strong. Players who tend to be weak during the game often act as if they are disinterested in joining the pot.

He may not be trying to act as weak but it is the natural tendency to get ahead of the other players. Check if a player does not look at the table and avoids to have any eye contact with you. If that is the case, be wary that player may be bluffing and is really strong. Someone who stares you down might actually be bluffing.

Also observe when someone who is very talkative on the table suddenly holds his breath and goes quiet like a lion waiting to pounce on his prey.

Spotting the weakness

When a poker player acts strong, there is a big tendency that he is really weak. When you think another player is putting up a face to look strong, most likely he is bluffing. A lot of players really do not intend to act as if they are strong but somehow it comes out naturally and over time you will develop the second nature to sense it.

Your body will give out signs that you are worried no matter how you try to act strong. You will be sounding a bit confident, sit up with a nice posture, and keep your hands from trembling. These are noticeable signs even though you try to hide them, they often come out.

So what do you do if you have a top pair on a heads up and you form a scary hand on the river?

What you need to do will really depend on your position. In case you have a better position that your opponent like you are at the button and the other player is in mid-position. When your opponent checks and you are considering of making a value bet but you are worried of a check-raise. If the other player will always raise when you are beat and will call in case you get a better position then you will have a 2 of 3 chance of winning to make a bet. You have one chance of winning if you have a better hand and two chances of losing to bet if he has better cards.

The situation will be different if your opponent just calls and not raise even if he has a better hand. And there will be instances where you will be raised even when he has a better hand. These requires your judgment call since it differs in every situation.

If you have an early position and reach the river, you must be willing to bet since even if your opponent has a good hand, he will bet or will raise you. This way you will only lose one more bet by initiating the betting.

If your opponent has a semi strong cards, he will not raise you. Show some strength when you bet. He will hesitate to raise in fear of a re-raise. When you check, he will feel your weakness and grab the opportunity to make the bet. In this scenario your initial bet does not matter since you will be losing one bet whether you check or bet.

Playing this cards right even before seeing the flop is crucial if you want to win. You need to factor in your position, the aggression of the other players, and how deep your stack is. For this article, we will focus on playing the mid pocket pairs, pre flop in different positions.

Early position

When you play a mid pocket pair in early position, go for a raise if you have a TT or even better. For the lower mid pocket pairs, you need to think of several factors. There will be times that you need to fold these middle pairs but there will instances when you need to raise. Do not limp into the pot when you have a middle pair.

If you are playing on a tight table, go strong and raise to give them the impression that you have some strong cards. Most likely the other players will play tight and consider giving in after the flop. Against aggressive players, fold cards 7-7 through 9-9 unless you are sure that you can outmaneuver the competition.

Middle position

Playing middle cards in middle position needs more cautious steps. This will pretty much depend on what is happening during the pre-flop.  Again remember that to limp is weak with a middle pair. If you will are the first player in the pot, then raise. If you have several players limping in, then you can limp to follow them into the pot. If you are only against one person then raise to kick him out of the pot.

Fold 7-7 thru 9-9 if you encounter a raise. See if you can call or re-raise when you have T-T and J-J.

Late position

You can always go play your mid pocket pairs in the late position. Watchout for the actions during pre-flop though. Limp behind other players if you want and try to get a set. Try to outplay weaker limpers by raising and also try to limit the competition to one or two.

Numbers game

If you want to measure your success in poker tournaments then you must have to play in a lot of poker tournaments. You need a bigger picture so your analysis will be reflective of what you are doing. So what is a good number? If you are talking about sit ‘n go’s then you might need around 1,000 tournaments. For the multi-table kind of tournament, 500 is a good size.

Knowing your ROI

When you know you already have enough tournaments then you can measure your ROI or return of investment.  You can compute for the ROI by dividing your tournament profits by the amount of money you spend for buy-ins.

For example, you have gained $2,000 in profits with buy-ins totaling around $11,000. Then you should do 2000/11000 to get .18. This means that you have an 18% ROI which is pretty good. This means that you bring home $1.18 for every dollar you spend for a tournament.

2- When people play drunk, they tend to play recklessly and loosely. It’s different when you are playing with your friends as it is not about the game but more about the fun, but if you’re playing in a casino and the stakes are high, it is recommended that you control you alcohol intake.

3- Majority of beginners know that bluffing is a technique that is a large part of poker but they do not know how to go about it in the exact manner. One must understand that it is not imperative in a game of poker that one HAS to bluff even a little or at all during the course of the game. However, many players do not feel as though the game is complete unless they have gone ahead with a bluff. Keeping this mind, it must be understood that one should not bluff at all instead of bluffing just for the sake of it.

4- Many beginners also make the mistake of thinking that just because they have put in a large amount in the pot, they have to continue and stay in. However, they must remember that they cannot win the game, that is, the pot just because they have put in money. One must fold when they know there is no other way out and keep in mind that “your” money in the pot doesn’t belong to you anymore and that it is impossible to get it back merely by playing a hand till the game ends.

5- Many beginners also make the mistake of examining the other player’s last bet and looking at the hand, all the while throwing in the final call. This makes sense only if the player actually has the hand and it helps you extract information which might help you with your game afterwards. However, if the player actually has the hand and there is no way you can win, there is absolutely no need for you to put in more money and increase his loot.

6- It is important to not play poker when one is feeling depressed or is going through a bad time because if one is not playing with a sharp mind, that is, if one is playing emotionally rather than rationally, it is natural that you will not be giving it your best. If during the game, you feel as though you’re going on a tilt, it is advised to take a break before continuing with the game.

7- Beginners should keep in mind that they should just stick to the rules and give full attention to their own hand. Once you have gotten a hold on the game, you should pay very close attention to the cards on the table.

Seriously, if Eli Elezra and Masaaki Kagawa don’t both play this hand redonkulously bad I don’t know what we CAN call redonkulous.

Good valuebet on the river, I suppose. :s

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Mike Matusow likes it.

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A new trend that can be noticed is Omaha hold-em gaining popularity and fast. Don’t be surprised when you find more and more respectable poker rooms and live dealers offer this version of poker. Experts feel that this version of poker could be a threat to the most played Texas version. Going in accordance with the professional players it is also said that the mathematical probabilities that pro player look for computing is more obvious and apparent than the Texas version. Thus it becomes a game that depends on your skill rather than your luck.

Like any other game Omaha too has certain restriction. For example, in the Hi-Lo version of Omaha, to consider the lowest hand as a winner his highest card should be below the value 8. Don’t go broke with a nine low! In addition to that the 5 cards that make up the lowest hand should all be un-paired. Apart from these 2 restrictions omaha also requires the player to make up the lowest and highest using exactly 2 of his four hole cards and 3 of his community cards. Sounds complicated? Well it’s going to be a breeze once you go about playing the game and learn with it.

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Tiffany Michelle is a hot cookie.