Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Carlota Gonzalez is a rock radio personality with a deep background in poker. She believes all serious poker players should experience dealing as well and has dealt herself at the WSOP. We talk to her about her own poker experiences, what
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Dim the lights! Jeff Platt is on the show to talk poker and broadcasting with Carlos and Andrew. Why broadcasting? Why poker? What makes for a great poker broadcast? A great interview?
Is Jeff Platt the nicest guy in poker?
Support the
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
WSOP/WPT/PokerGo presenter Kara Scott shares the person behind the famous face, from her youth living out of a camper in rural Alberta to her experiences as a Muay Thai competitor to her current life as a fiercely compassionate voice in poker media.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Shelby Wells is a long-time poker fan who got the chance of a lifetime when she won a Twitter contest for a seat in the 2022 Main Event. She made Day 6, ultimately winning $73K and a lot of clout at the
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Dayanna Ciabaton finished second in the recent Women’s Event at the Seminole Hard Rock. The first place winner was a man. Dayanna, Caitlyn Cobb, and Gloria Jackson join Andrew and Carlos to discuss the need for women’s events and the problem of
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
From PC gaming to pool to competitive skydiving to poker, Lara Eisenberg has always crushed the competition. And she does it all while still working as a radiologist! Carlos and Andrew pry from her a few of the secrets to her success,
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Jamie Kerstetter joins Carlos and Andrew to talk WPT, WSOP, commentating, and the politics of high stakes cash game streams. Plus Andrew offers an overview of turn strategy.
Support the podcast, get daily strategy discussions, *and* be eligible to win a
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Original hosts Andrew Brokos and Nate Meyvis and frequent guest turned current host Carlos Welch look back on ten years of the Thinking Poker Podcast. How has poker changed? How has the podcast changed? How has the podcast changed poker? Plus, we
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Angela Jordison and Jacki Burkhart have one of the sweetest friendships in poker. Fresh off deep runs in the WSOP Main Event, they join Carlos and Andrew to talk about how friendship helps you navigate the pressures of high stakes poker tournaments.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Carlos catches Andrew and the audience up on all he’s been up to: living in Vegas, not playing the WSOP, researching how to erect a headstone on your own, and more. In the strategy segment, they discuss conservative play and big folds
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Matt Matros is a professional poker player and writer whose works include both fiction and poker books. With Carlos and Andrew, he discusses concepts from his new book, The Poker Brain, in the context of a hand he and Andrew played
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Writer, poker player, and former sex crimes prosecutor Dan Schorr joins Carlos and Andrew to discuss preparing for his first WSOP Main Event, game theory in the criminal justice system, and his new novel The Final Table.
Support the podcast and
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Carlos Welch is the latest player to win a WSOP bracelet, thanks to a late-night victory in the “Crazy Eights” event on WSOP.com. Just hours after the victory, he shares his excitement and reflects on the path that led him here.
Carlos
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Carlos celebrates the ten-year anniversary of his first WSOP, reflecting on his career and fondly recalling his former fishiness.
Links
Use discount code “Carlos” to get 25% off Exploiting Small Stakes Tournaments, in which Carlos teaches Andrew his best tricks for
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Professional poker player and best-selling author Maria Konnikova returns to the show to discuss focus, multitasking, the progress of her career, and her new book The Biggest Bluff. Maria’s first appearance on Episode 247 is one of our all-time favorite shows!
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Andrew and Nate break down hands that were submitted from the audience. One is a cash game hand from an underground joint in New York, and the other comes from a tournament.
Nate and Andrew also discuss a hand they played against
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Travel back to 2014 with the Thinking Poker archives. Nate’s left Las Vegas, but Andrew and Leo Wolpert sit down during Day 6 of the Main Event to talk about their own deep runs in the WSOP as well as some key
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Jacki Burkhart, mother, dental hygienist, and “serious recreational” poker player, joins Andrew to discuss her life, her career, and her attempts to keep a low profile while high rolling. In the strategy segment, the two review a hand Jacki played in a
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
This interview first aired in 2014 on the Poker News podcast stream. It was never available on the Thinking Poker stream, which is why we’re re-releasing it now.
Leo Wolpert joins Nate and Andrew from Las Vegas to discuss safety precautions for
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Andrew and Nate discuss Andrew’s 125th place finish in the WSOP Main Event.
Timestamps
0:30 – hello and welcome5:36 – bustout hand
71:32 – pocket fours
Strategy
Hand 1
30K/60K HJ (9M) opens to 120K, Hero (5.5M) calls from BB.
Flop
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Matt Matros is a professional poker player and writer whose works include both fiction and poker books. He and Andrew discuss poker, writing, and writing about poker. In the strategy segment, Andrew discusses floating a flop check-raise deep in a WSOP event.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Danny Sprung, whom you may recall from Episode 194, joins us from the World Bridge Federation Championships. We compare this event to the World Series of Poker and discuss some key hands from Danny’s very deep run in the Monster Stack … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Andy Bloch is a long-time professional poker player and computer programmer who was one of the pioneers at the intersection of these fields. He was also a member of the MIT Blackjack team that was the subject of Bringing Down the House… Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Ashley Adams is the host of the House of Cards podcast/radio show (Andrew was a guest in 2010!) and the author of Winning No-Limit Hold ‘Em and Winning Seven Card Stud. We talk to him about his (now complete) … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Nate, in a special solo episode, dissects Phil Ivey’s bustout hand from the 2018 WSOP Main Event.… Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Comedian and professional poker player Clayton Fletcher earned himself a fourth podcast appearance with his 28th place finish in the 2018 WSOP Main Event! I think they gave him some cash for that as well. He and Andrew meet in his hotel … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Barny Boatman was a professional poker player in London before the poker boom. As a member of the Hendon Mob, he played in “spielers” and in tournaments across Europe. Andrew talks to him about England’s pre-boom poker scene, living in Madrid, and … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Nate and Andrew discuss key hands from Andrew’s 13th place finish in the $2500 no-limit hold ’em WSOP event.
Timestamps
0:30 hello
10:56 strat
Strategy Hand 1
On the bubble, CO (16K) opens to 5k. Hero calls T9dd in the BB.
Flop … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Nate got barely 72 hours in Las Vegas this summer, but he was kind enough to spend a few of them recording with Andrew and Carlos in his Gold Coast hotel room. The three talk about their summer plans, the dealer’s choice … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Christian Holden is a professional musician and poker player who lives in an anarchist collective in Worcester, Massachusetts. In this in-person interview, he and Andrew discuss his music, his poker, his politics, and the staking deal he almost had with Martin Shkreli. … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Sameer Singh grew up playing chess and teen patti, and he quickly became one of the sharpest rounders at the National Law School of India. This wide-ranging conversation covers everything from cuisine and literature to the Irish Open to overlimping the button … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Dick Carson is an old-school gambler, pool hustler, bookie, and poker player. He’s also a hulluva storyteller and a helluva nice guy. Nate, Andrew, and John the Lawyer sit down with him to talk about the best poker players you never heard … Read full post
Counting down my favorite Thinking Poker Podcast episodes of 2017. Details/retrospective here. In third place is Episode 220: Tommy’s Room.
Tommy Angelo and Carlos Welch are among my all-time favorite guests, so getting them together on one show would have already had the makings of greatness. But what made … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Nipun Java made history when, along with Aditya Sushant, he won India’s first ever WSOP bracelet, in the $1500 NLHE Tag Team event. He capped off his summer with a second bracelet in the $1000 Online event. Nipun and Andrew talk about … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
KL Cleeton was born with Spinal Muscular Atrophy, but that hasn’t kept him from playing poker both live and online. In 2017, he won a contest sponsored by Daniel Negreanu and lived his dream of playing in the WSOP Main Event, ultimately … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Esther Taylor, better known as E-Tay, is a mixed game player who also knows how to kick ass in no-limit hold ’em tournaments. Andrew talks to her about learning new games, being a poker-playing mom, and more. Plus Carlos Welch and … Read full post
My latest poker strategy article, Head Hunting, is now appearing in 2+2 Magazine. It’s an attempt to, not solve, but build some intuition around how to value bounties in knock-out tournaments.
… Read full postThe trickiest problem of all is that you can only collect bounties if you have more chips than
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Benny Glaser is a mixed games specialist from the United Kingdom. With three WSOP bracelets to his name, he is finally getting some recognition as a world-class mixed games expert. We talk to him about why he chose to focus on games … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Tommy Angelo invites Andrew and Carlos into his suite at the Rio while Nate joins by Skype to discuss Tommy’s history at the WSOP (dating back to 1987!) and some rare card-playing strategy with a man known primarily for his “mental game” … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Carlos Welch and Andrew are rooming together in Las Vegas, and Nate joins by Skype to discuss the WSOP and Carlos’ $600 phone bill.
Timestamps
0:30 – hello and welcome
34:43 – strategy… Read full post
Edit: Sold out.
I’m selling action in the WSOP Main Event, in increments of 1% or 5%. Mark-up is 2.0 for increments of 1% ($200 each), or 1.8 for increments of 5% ($900 each). These prices are based on what my action sold at in last year’s auction. My goal … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Andrew and Dara O’Kearney are roommates for the WSOP this summer. They talk with Nate about the start of their series, their plans for the summer, and Andrew’s hopes for Day 2 of the Colossus and the Tag Team event with Carlos … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Matt Glassman and Nate Meyvis discuss spectating the World Series of Poker, executive privilege, the political consequences of impeachment, and how to exploit recreational players. Andrew makes a brief cameo to discuss his WSOP so far and how to have fun while … Read full post
This is my twelfth World Series of Poker, and the first for which I will be in Las Vegas for the duration of the Series (actually, I was a day late due to illness, but I’m going to count it!).
For the first time in a while, my girlfriend is … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Clayton Fletcher fills in for Nate Meyvis this week, and he and Andrew discuss plans and preparation for the World Series of Poker.
Clayton previously discussed his deep run in the WSOP Main Event on this show. Follow Clayton on Twitter@claytoncomic… Read full post
Edit: Sold out! Thanks everyone!
Cliff’s Notes: Selling action in a full slate of Las Vegas summer tournaments. Increments as small as 1% are available, with discounts for larger pieces. I run my packages a bit differently than most, so if you’re interested, please read carefully:
This Google spreadsheet lists … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Patrick Leonard (pads1161 on PokerStars, plenopads on Twitter) is one of the most respected MTT players in the world and one of the head coaches at bitB staking. It’s too bad we lost some of the audio from our interview with … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Chase Bianchi’s career as a professional poker player came in fits and starts, as we went back and forth between playing for a living and working as a dealer and supervisor. That all changed when he won a bracelet in a $1000 … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Danny Sprung is a trader and a long-time games player. He was a serious poker player even before the boom, and he’s also a world class bridge player. In this interview, we discuss how he relates poker to bridge and to trading, … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Ryan LaPlante, who joined us on Episode 95, won his first WSOP bracelet this summer in the $565 Pot-Limit Omaha event. In this interview, he talks about his emotional victory speech, why winning matters so much to him, and the … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Tommy Angelo is back to talk about “speech play”, stalling, and other ways your opponents can annoy you at the table, if you let them. Plus we’ll get an update on his latest book, Painless Poker, and his meeting with Carlos Welch… Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
William Kassouf will be familiar to you if you’ve been watching the World Series of Poker on ESPN. His constant chatter attracted plenty of attention and controversy during the final days of the Main Event. In this interview, we discuss his background … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Chris Moorman, with over $10 million in cashes, is widely regarded as the winningest player in online tournament poker. This wide-ranging interview covers his beginnings as a competitive bridge and pool player, his struggles with staking, his role as 888Poker Ambassador, and … Read full post
Sorry for the recent, worse-than-usual silence. Immediately after the WSOP, Emily and I moved out of our apartment (big job!) and then took a two-week vacation. There were also some technical difficulties with the latest podcast, though we hope to have resolved them and to be able to bring you … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Ian Simpson is a former (and future) teacher in the United Kingdom. His fourth place finish in the 2012 Paddy Power Irish Poker Open proved literally life-changing, not only because of the money but because it presented the opportunity to spend a … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Andrew, Nate, and THE Carlos Welch gather in a hotel room at the Gold Coast to discuss their first day in the WSOP Main Event. There’s loads of strategy talk, as Nate bet-folds the river, Carlos gets full value from a set, … Read full post
Nate and I played this together, what a great event. Nate said, and I agree, that this was one of the most fun tournaments he’s ever played.
There was such a great mix of types of teams! Of course in some cases it was just a few great players who … Read full post
This was a fun tournament and a great value. My starting table was amazing, and I managed to nearly double up with a set in the first few orbits. I was particularly proud of myself for not making a mistake I’ve been guilty of in the past, which is getting … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
The WSOP is obviously a busy time, so we just recorded a quick conversation this week, covering some general stuff about the World Series of Poker and a few of the first events/hands Andrew played. Please note that this was recorded before … Read full post
My plan for Sunday was to play the $1500 NLHE and, if I busted early, to register the $1500 PLO8. I ended up busting the no-limit shortly after the dinner break around 8PM, and I wasn’t in the mood to play another 8 hours or whatever of poker, so I … Read full post
After busting Flight A of the Crazy 8s WSOP event on Friday yesterday, I took another shot at Flight C yesterday. I ended up with a shallow cash and there were one or two moderately interesting hands, but I’ll cut to the chase: about halfway through the day, Chris Ferguson … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Ed Miller is back to talk about Daily Fantasy Sports, his writing, and finding edges not just on the felt but in life. All that plus a strategy segment from Nate!
This episode is sponsored by Shark Clock and Tournament Poker Edge… Read full post
I got off to a good start in this tournament, doubling through (but not quite stacking, and therefore not winning a bounty from, a tough player on my right). I tanked a bit on the river decision, even though I was pretty sure I was calling, and that seemed to … Read full post
My second event of the 2016 World Series of Poker was the $1000 No-Limit Hold ‘Em. With just 100 big blinds to start, this tournament goes quick, which makes it great for the hourly rate but not particularly interesting, poker-wise anyway (the people watching can be extraordinary).
Still, I got … Read full post
I’m in Las Vegas! I arrived Thursday night and played my first event, the Monster Stack, on Friday morning. It was great starting with 300BBs and the value was clear to see, but unfortunately I took a big hit early that really hindered my ability to take advantage of the … Read full post
I guess this is kind of old news now, but the World Series Of Poker is off to an exciting start for Nate and me! Two of our (somewhat) recent guests have already won gold bracelets, and even more excitingly, both bracelets were firsts for their recipients! Congratulations to Ryan … Read full post