Happy Thanksgiving! I know I’m a few days late, but I do want to thank all of my readers, especially those of you who read and comment regularly. I generally enjoy blogging and am pretty sure that reviewing my thought processes publicly is helpful to my bottom line as well. … Read full post
As “The Poker Philosopher”, and in honor of one of my favorite non-poker blogs, I occasionally consider the ethical dimensions of a high-profile controversy in the poker community. In September, I discussed Joe Sebok’s decision to join Team Ultimate Bet. This month, I examine a $50,000 deal gone … Read full post
I feel like it’s been happening a lot recently (though sometimes it’s ended well.)
PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, $20.00 BB (6 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
CO ($2000)
Button ($1189.50)
SB ($2014)
Hero (BB) ($2030)
UTG ($2429.50)
MP ($5521.95)
Preflop: Hero is BB with A
, A… Read full post
This time on FTP, and there were only 110 runners. I busted in 7th on a kinda dumb shove:
Full Tilt Pot-Limit Omaha Tournament, 800/1600 Blinds (7 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
BB (t145518)
UTG (t15658)
MP1 (t38832)
MP2 (t32782)
CO (t31976)
Hero (Button) (t31765)
SB (t33469)
Hero’s … Read full post
There’s a $600 cap at this table, which is why there’s not betting after the flop.
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $20.00 BB (5 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
Button ($1591)
SB ($1561)
BB ($3733)
UTG ($5231.95)
Hero (MP) ($4163)
Preflop: Hero is MP with K
, A… Read full post
I played a pretty long session at 40/80 over the weekend, definitely one of the longest I’ve played at such high stakes. It was a surprisingly tight game, with one guy who was not a fish but was noticeably weaker than the rest of us. But there really wasn’t a … Read full post
Edit: Fixed the title. Was thinking this was 3/6, not 4/8.
First, the appetizer:
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $8.00 BB (2 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
SB ($780)
Hero (BB) ($2215.50)
Preflop: Hero is BB with 10, 9
SB bets $24, Hero calls $16
Flop… Read full post
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $10.00 BB (3 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
Hero (Button) ($1082)
SB ($1982.50)
BB ($1084.25)
Preflop: Hero is Button with 7, 7
Hero bets $25, SB raises to $90, 1 fold, Hero calls $65
Flop: ($190) K, … Read full post
So I kind of have a second blog, though so far it’s mostly been my girlfriend posting to it so I haven’t really been promoting it as much as I should have. It’s nothing to do with poker but about our road trip/nomadic existence we’ve been living since August. Anyway, … Read full post
Unfortunately, they were both in PLO8 events with fewer than 200 runners. But I was 5/135 in the $100 and 2/180 in the $200, so not too shabby, and it was fun. The heads up was interesting in the $200, the guy was playing $10/$20 PLO8 cash at the same … Read full post
My tournaments results have been pretty good the last few months, culminating most recently in two PCA seats and a win in the FTP $300 Saturday 6-Max. I attribute this improvement to a disciplined effort to avoid bringing the aggressive play needed to win in high-stakes cash games over to … Read full post
Cardplayer recently published a strategy interview with me that they titled “Folding Out Draws”. I think that title is actually a bit misleading, because it’s more about hand reading and going for thin value with a turn check-raise. But I think it’s a neat hand and I encourage you to … Read full post
The whole idea of betting for protection is one that I feel I am really only now starting to understand. Most people, when they first start playing, are way too concerned about protecting their hands. You see them overbetting and moving all in with one pair hands in spots where … Read full post
I’ve been spending most of my time these last few weeks camping, most recently at an amazing site in Arches National Park, and emerging only occasionally to play poker and catch up with the outside world. Annoyingly, this means I’m often at the mercy of either a hotel internet connection … Read full post
What is it with me losing three-way pre-flop all ins with Aces on the bubble of the final table of big Full Tilt tournaments? This is with 20 people left in the $300 6-max Saturday tournament.
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em Tournament, 1000/2000 Blinds 250 Ante (5 handed) – Full-Tilt… Read full post
PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, $6.00 BB (3 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
Hero (Button) ($618)
SB ($1774.20)
BB ($690)
Preflop: Hero is Button with 6, K
Hero bets $15, SB calls $12, 1 fold
Flop: ($36) 2, A, 9 (2 players)
SB checks, … Read full post
The final part of my WSOP trip report is now appearing in the November issue of 2+2 Magazine. It perhaps goes without saying that one’s bust-out day from the WSOP main event is usually a frustrating one, and mine was no exception:
“Since he did call, does that mean … Read full post
… Read full post“Super Satellite
Buy-In: $665.00/$35.00 USD
585 players
Total Prize Pool: $389025.00 USD
Target Tournament #201001051 Buy-In: $14130.00 USD
25 tickets to the target tournamentTournament started 2009/11/01 18:00:00 ET
Dear foucault82,
Congratulations – You have won a package for the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) 2010 Main Event. The PCA is
A comment on a recent post about the squeeze play observed that a pretty intense dynamic can arise in situations where more than one player recognizes a good squeezing opportunity. I think this is a good example:
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $10.00 BB (9 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from … Read full post
I overheard a pretty funny conversation today that reminded me of another funny Halloween incident from some years ago.
A Critical Difference
The child in this story is roughly 9 years old.
Father: How was your Halloween party today at school.
Son: Ummm, this girl Matilda, it looked like she … Read full post
I like old poker books. It’s fun to see how people played, and talked about, the game decades ago. In “The Old School”, I share the best and worst from these antiquated tomes. Sometimes the strategy is laughable, sometimes it is surprisingly astute, but it always provides a unique insight … Read full post
…because sometimes, you aren’t bluffing:
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $20.00 BB (2 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
BB ($14268.50)
Hero (SB) ($4179.50)
Preflop: Hero is SB with 7, Q
Hero bets $60, BB calls $40
Flop: ($120) K, J, J (2 players)… Read full post
Driving through Topeka this morning, we stopped at the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Landmark. Unlike the iconic Central High School in Little Rock, which we visited on a previous road trip, the physical location of the Brown landmark was not particularly significant. It was simply on the … Read full post
This isn’t going to work against a lot of opponents, but against very tough opponents, it’s essential:
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $20.00 BB (6 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
Hero (MP) ($4429.50)
CO ($7120)
Button ($2587)
SB ($4449.30)
BB ($4169)
UTG ($712.40)
Preflop: Hero is MP with … Read full post
$5/$10 NLHE 6-handed game. Villains have about $1000 each, I cover. MP opens to $35, BTN calls, I call 9h 7h in the BB.
Flop Ks 6h 2d. I check, MP bets $70 into $105 pot, BTN calls, I raise to $190, both fold. Why?
The logic here is very … Read full post
I posted an admittedly under-explained bit of advice last night. I was cryptic for a reason: if I’m too specific here, anyone who reads this blog could exploit the hell out of a very common spot. But here’s a pretty simple example that I don’t think is giving away too … Read full post
Most players handle the turn far worse than any other street. In particular, when the pot is getting large, even very good players tend to revert to level two thinking on the turn. They are making the play that they think is best given their hand versus your range, with … Read full post
The Boston M
arathon is the most prestigious and oldest continuously-run marathon in the entire world. Many people dream of running it, but participation is extremely limited and exclusive. The only way to get a spot is either to qualify with a world-class time in a different marathon or to … Read full post
This one jumped out at me just because it’s kind of a paradigmatic case. I call a relatively innocuous flop against a guy who I don’t think will multi-barrel bluff well (against a good barreler folding flop is probably best). Turn and river bring two cards that may well give … Read full post
I got a very good comment/question from Christoph on a recent post about a huge bluff that I averted when I rivered a pair:
“I’ve been thinking a bit about this hand and I’m wondering about how you’d play it if you were the player holding the aces. It sure … Read full post
I just published what I think is a very interesting instructional video with Poker Savvy Plus. It’s actually the second in a series (I hesitate to call it that since it’s been months since the first part) called The Parable of Tighty McNuts.
I have no delusions of … Read full post
Robert Wright’s Nonzero is not a poker book. I picked it up because it claimed to apply game theory to human evolution, both biological and cultural, and to offer a sweeping and prophetic account of humanity’s history and future. Yes, that’s a pretty ambitious goal, and the author acknowledges as … Read full post
If I don’t pick up showdown value on this river, I shove it. I doubt he calls 250BB on the river, but I’ve been wrong about such things before:
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
Hero (SB) ($8365.25)
BB ($3787.25)
Preflop: … Read full post
You might not know it from reading this blog, but I make some big folds. The key for me is thinking about my whole range. If I can think of a few hands that I could have in this same spot, that I would have played the same way up … Read full post
Edit: My girlfriend has just pointed out to me that, as a self-styled poker journalist, Sebok might well be held to a standard of journalistic ethics as well. In that light, endorsing a particular internet poker site might not be appropriate. But that’s beyond the scope of this article, as … Read full post
You may have seen David “Viffer” Peat on High Stakes Poker. He just sat down at one of my tables tonight and wrote this in the chat:
richreich: checks 
Viffer said, “omg”
joe E scar: bets $120
Viffer said, “just anyone in london”
foucault82: folds
loosefer: folds
richreich: calls $120… Read full post
I really did not expect this guy to be capable of something like this. I’d been pounding on him a lot, on multiple tables, in and out of position, and he’d been backing down a lot. “Trapping” by slowplaying a big hand is exactly how I’d expect a guy like … Read full post
Note to the inevitable idiot who finds this post via google: I’m not serious about online poker being rigged. But you can bet that this hand, which busted me in 18th in the FTP $1 Million Guarantee, got the rail speculating:
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em Tournament, 10000/20000 Blinds 2500 Ante … Read full post
Villain here is pokerjamers, a pretty standard Pocket Fives donkamenteur hero:
PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, 530 Tournament, 350/700 Blinds 85 Ante (6 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
CO (t40190)
Hero (Button) (t65575)
SB (t25644)
BB (t66189)
UTG (t192484)
MP (t67199)
Hero’s M: 42.04
Preflop: Hero is Button … Read full post
This was a pivotal hand from my third session against the same player I’ve mentioned in a few recent heads up hands I’ve posted.
He’d been 3-betting a fair bit this session, but not as much as he sometimes has. This was one of the first 4-bets I’d made this … Read full post
Emily and I are currently camping in Nickerson State Park on Cape Cod. It’s a huge campground with hundreds of sites, and even past peak season it’s nearly at capacity. There just a few building with showers for the entire campground. The other night I visited one of them for … Read full post
When trying to exploit a particular opponent, the most important question to ask yourself is, “What are the situations where his range is either tighter or wider than it ‘should’ be? When does he build pots with hands that don’t warrant such a show of strength?”
This is the same … Read full post
I had a real neat, deep-stacked heads up match going on two tables for several hours yesterday. I felt like we were very evenly matched, and indeed I got off to an early lead, eventually lost a 700BB pot with two pair vs. a turned flush in a four-bet pot … Read full post
Edit: Made a mistake in the original post. Villain did not have two pair, he had Aces with a kicker that didn’t play.
$5/$10 NLHE, $1100 effective stacks. Action folds to a decent TAG regular in the SB, he opens to $30, I make it $90 with AJo, he makes … Read full post
As I ended Part 1, my girlfriend and I had just driven home a virtually new car (2009 Subaru Forester with about 4000 miles on it), but we weren’t as happy/excited about this as I felt we should be. I was aware that a great many people in the world … Read full post
My latest poker article, WSOP Trip Report Part 2: Jack Link’s and Beef Jerky, is now appearing in the September issue of 2+2 Magazine. Here’s an excerpt:
“I was pretty sure I was going to fold. It was the toughest decision I’d had all day, and I spent a … Read full post
Sorry I haven’t been posting much lately. I actually have some pretty exciting news to report, which will make clear why I’ve been busy.
As of today, my girlfriend and I are officially homeless. No, I’m not busto. She’s currently between jobs, and I can play poker from anywhere, so … Read full post
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $10.00 BB (5 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
SB ($3829.50)
BB ($1000)
Hero (UTG) ($4795.55)
MP ($1490)
Button ($2152.50)
Preflop: Hero is UTG with Q, Q
Hero bets $40, MP raises to $120, 3 folds, Hero calls $80
Flop… Read full post
The last two weeks have been pretty hectic (more on that soon), and I’ve barely played at all. Here’s the most interesting hand I could find without much effort from my “archives”:
No-Limit Hold’em, $10.00 BB (5 handed) – Hold’em Manager Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
Button ($3183.65)
SB ($1679.40)
BB … Read full post
I recently made another appearance on Cardplayer’s “Run It Twice” feature, discussing a hand that regular blog readers will recognize:
“I just don’t think he’s telling a consistent story on the turn and the river. On the river, now, all of a sudden he wants me to believe … Read full post
This hand from the 2+2 high-stakes multi-table tournament forum got me thinking about what it means to be “at the top” of a polarized range. Here’s a quick summary, for those who can’t/won’t follow the link:
It’s a tournament, and blinds are 100/200. Hero raises to 475 UTG with KK, … Read full post
…and it’s not even that close:
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $80.00 BB (5 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
BB ($19098.50)
Hero (UTG) ($16000)
MP ($16538.30)
Button ($16485)
SB ($15277)
Preflop: Hero is UTG with K, K
Hero bets $280, 2 folds, SB raises to … Read full post
Particularly earlier in the year, running too many big bluffs in tournaments was a substantial leak of mine. I’ve made a concerted effort to confine the monster bluffs to the cash tables, and my tourney results have improved a bit. In the $300 rebuy 6-max FTOPS, though, I did pull … Read full post
Sounds crazy, right? What better hand would fold? Ah, but what about the same hand?
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $10.00 BB (6 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
CO ($3360.50)
Button ($1316)
SB ($1012.50)
BB ($2066.50)
Hero (UTG) ($2759.50)
MP ($608.40)
Preflop: Hero is UTG with 7, … Read full post
Get high-end coaching on a small-stakes budget with my new SSNL Group Seminar.
I’m going to be conducting a series of seminars on … Read full post
Edit: On further reflection, I actually think his call is OK. He needs barely 33% equity, as he probably isn’t behind the SB caller, and my range is likely weighted towards the strong draws, against which he is a slight favorite, than the strong made hands that have him in … Read full post
This is one of the biggest leaks that I’ve helped my students to find, and as these hands illustrate, it’s not something I’m immune to myself. I’m talking about choosing the wrong hands to defend against a possible bluff/semi-bluff when there are still cards to come. It is so much … Read full post
Guy was a decent player, if a bit of a LAGtard. This is a pretty bracingly bad call though. Honestly, I think every move he made after the open raise was a mistake:
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $20.00 BB (2 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
Hero (BB) ($7751)… Read full post
Evidently there was a glitch on Poker Stars heads up Sit-and-Go’s that enabled players to start a new game using the “Rematch” button even if they did not have sufficient funds in their accounts. What you see here is a small stakes grinder who figured this out and hit up … Read full post
No-Limit Hold’em, $20.00 BB (6 handed) – Hold’em Manager Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
UTG ($2958)
MP ($1428.50)
CO ($1029)
Hero (Button) ($4157)
SB ($649)
BB ($770)
Preflop: Hero is Button with 10, 9
3 folds, Hero bets $40, SB calls $30, 1 fold
Flop: ($100) … Read full post
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $10.00 BB (6 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
UTG ($1027)
MP ($980)
CO ($1442.40)
Hero (Button) ($1471.25)
SB ($1000)
BB ($1336)
Preflop: Hero is Button with J, J
UTG bets $35, MP calls $35, CO calls $35, Hero raises to $165… Read full post
Emily and I were looking at used cars today, and though we weren’t even at the point of negotiating prices or anything, I found a few parellels to poker that I thought were interesting.
I should tell you about the guy we were dealing with first, because he was a … Read full post
Small Stakes No-Limit Hold ’em
by Ed Miller, Sunny Mehta, and Matt Flynn
Professional No Limit Hold ‘Em, Volume 1 (PNLHE) is one of my all-time favorite poker books and the one that I recommend to anyone looking to get started to the game. I eagerly awaited the … Read full post
I used to be afraid of check-raising the flop in a spot like this. It felt like I was turning my hand into a bluff, because if he called, I wouldn’t know if it was with a Q or a draw or a worse pair or a total float. Then … Read full post
How not to play in the Sunday Million:
PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, $200+$15 Tournament, 25/50 Blinds (9 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
CO (t9600)
Button (t10700)
Hero (SB) (t9850)
BB (t10000)
UTG (t10000)
UTG+1 (t10000)
MP1 (t10000)
MP2 (t9850)
MP3 (t10000)
Hero’s M: 131.33
Preflop: Hero is … Read full post
Some of you might remember a player named Jason Strasser, who in his day was one of the very best NLHE players online, at both cash and MTT’s. He dominated the 25/50 games and won a WCOOP event before largely quitting poker to become a Wall Street analyst or something … Read full post