Poker Sunday: Week 1 - Win Money
The first week has gone well. My “investors” staked me $200 to play poker and they will split the winnings with me 50/50. I played more then I thought I would to try and become more familiar with Interpoker.com. This resulted in some sketchy play on my part and I saw my bank roll go up a little and down a little, then up a lot and down a lot, and finally up a lot.
Once I was able to make some money I played a little more conservative, picking my spots for raises.I’ve been playing mainly $3/$6 limit texas hold’em tables. This means that for the pre-flop and flop the minimum bet and the maximum raise is $3. On the turn and river the minimum bet and maximum raise is $6. As a general rule you should play tables where your bankroll is 100 times the minimum bet. This allows you to play through some of the bad beats and keeps you in the game for some big hands. In this case I was a little over my head with just $200, but I was aware of my situation and played accordingly.
Tip of the Week - Know what you want
I compare this rule to keeping your eye on the ball in sports. Before you call or make a bet pre-flop ask yourself what cards do I want to get on the flop. This is very important because it helps you focus on the style in which you will play the hand and sets the boundaries for your decisions as you play the hand. If you have a 7 and 8 of clubs you are going to want to just call other players so that you don’t scare anyone off and you are going to want to see clubs or anything that can make you a straight. If those cards don’t show up on the flop you are going to want to fold. If you have and Ace and King you want to raise to eliminate any players with weaker cards. When the Ace or King shows up on the flop you should bet at it to increase the pot size and eliminate your opponents.
Hand of the Week
This one I would love to have back. I got the card I wanted on the flop, but put my blinders were on and lost a bunch.
I was on the button, meaning I was last to play, and had a pair of 10’s in my hand. There were six people at the table and the 4th player made a raise. I re-raised him showing strength and hoping to make him question his original raise. He called. The flop came out 6, 10, 3, no chance of a flush. This was a perfect flop for me, I had the best hand and decided to play it strong hoping that the other player thought I had Ace King or something like that. So he checked, I bet, he raised trying to scare me out of the pot. I re-raised and he re-raised me. It was capped at four bets. The next card was a 4. Again nothing scary so I bet and he called. The final card was a 7, I didn’t see a flush, full house, or a three of a kind that could beat me. So I bet and then the raising began. We went back an forth until I finally called and saw him turn over an Ace Five off suite which gave him a straight and beat my three of a kind. I ended up losing 40% of my stack and spent the rest of my time just trying to get back to even.
Current Status
Beginning Balance: $200
Ending Balance: $951
Profit/Loss: +$751
I was just wondering how long have you played poker and how you learn to play it? I have played myself a little bit, but there is no way I could play with that high tables.
I’ve been playing Texas Hold’em, in particular, for about 5yrs. Really ever since it was popular on TV with the World Poker Tour. I started playing with friends, read some books, and watched a lot of tournaments. I’ve read a number of poker forums, which are a big help, but nothing beats experience. Which is too bad because it usually costs money to gain experience. I’m at a point now where I know my style and how I should proceed with each hand. It makes a world of difference knowing how to play a hand rather then hoping you catch the right cards.
I wish that I felt like everyday was the weekend in my life.
Well done, wish I could play poker like that
Excellent that you saw (or remembered ) the bad beats. Will definitely improve your play…
I have played a lot of online poker. Love it, but have not got the mentality to handle the bad beats so I have been known to go a bit crazy and lose a bunch of cash on occassions. Nice post.
That is major wicked, man! If I had $750 I would totally go buy the new Command & Conquer 3 for my XBOX 360. Then I’d be all calling Gary and Jim telling them I got it - but that I was too busy playing it for them to come over. They’d be so ticked, but whatever, man - I’ve got tons of cash and the new game!!
Ha Ha Ha. I laughed very hard after reading through your good story. It means very much to Africans to be able to see how our American brothers are doing while spending time. In my village we have a saying: “The last person falling asleep must lock the goats in the house.” Without funny games like poker how will I make the money that can feed my village for 3 years. This internet is liked very much.
yeah, internet is something which binds so many things, so many people, so many cultures together to help us in our way.
——————
Getting back to the article, poker is a game which is very interesting compared to the other forms of cards..
Nice piece of shared info
Cheers!