Matt Sienkiewicz is an assistant professor of communications and international relations at Boston College. He’s also a film buff and a poker fan. Matt puts Andrew’s knowledge of Foucault to the test with his analysis of key scenes from Rounders as well as a discussion of power dynamics in the … Read full post
This question actually comes from the Tournament Poker Edge forums, but I decided to answer it here as it references the Thinking Poker Premium Podcasts.
Q: In episode three, at around the 10 minute mark, you describe how open raise sizes should be a function of the pot size, … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Dara O’Kearney went pro somewhat later in life than your average grinder, but his background in bridge, chess, backgammon, and most recently ultramarathoning made him a natural. He’s also a natural raconteur and an excellent writer. We talk about his unconventional background, … Read full post
The World Poker Tour has been kind to our podcast guests this week. Faraz Jaka won the WPT South Africa High Roller over one million rand (about $100,000), and Ryan van Sanford won the Bounty Scramble in Jacksonville for $421,068 (plus some bounties, presumably)! Ryan’s achievement is even more impressive … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Jim Greer, founder of Kongregate, is an avid poker player. Now he’s using game theory to combat “dark money” in American politics through CounterPAC, an organization that threatens to outspend candidates who accept anonymous donations. He joins the show to … Read full post
Episode 101 of the podcast is coming this week, hopefully tonight. It may be a bit delayed, but it will be out soon.
In the meantime, you need to check out this great article from Carlos Welch, where he talks about cruising Las Vegas with some folks that regular … Read full post
My latest Two Plus Two article, Lessons From the Felt, is a deviation from the norm. Instead of explaining something to do with poker strategy, I talk about some things I learned from poker that helped me in the difficult task of finding an apartment in San Francisco:
… Read full postWhen
We came close a few times, but we managed to make it through one hundred episodes without ever losing an entire interview to any combination of technical difficulties and user error. Shane Schleger, the guest on our first and fifty-first shows, was kind enough to grace us with his time … Read full post
My latest series of poker tournament training videos is now appearing on Tournament Poker Edge. This review of some key hands from a $2000 main event at Maryland Live is a rare chance to see a training video focused on a live multi-table tournament, and to see me butt … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
This landmark episode sets a new bar for navel-gazing, as guest hosts Carlos Welch and Gareth Chantler turn the tables on guest guests Andrew and Nate and ask about their lives, their poker careers, and their work together on the podcast.… Read full post
I’m excited to announce, to those who missed the news on Twitter and the podcast, that I’ve finally published a book! It’s based on my 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event, and it’s actually the first in a series of e-books compiling updated and revised versions of my most … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
For a guy who’s played $500/$1000 no-limit, Ben “Sauce123” Sulsky is a surprisingly nitcast-appropriate guest. He talks about his background in philosophy, his low-rolling lifestyle, how he arrived at the heavily game theoretic style he plays today, and how he thinks artificial … Read full post
As you’ve probably noticed, Episode 99 of the Thinking Poker Podcast has not yet been released. After recording a great interview with Ben “Sauce123” Sulsky, we discovered some noise on the file that our once-again editor Sean Lango is working hard to fix. His tentative prognosis is that Nate and … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Chris Moon, a border-straddling tournament pro and Tournament Poker Edge instructor, is on the show this week talking about Detroit, economics, data science, five-betting light, and searching for a post-poker career.
Timestamps
Sorry for the delay on this week’s podcast. We do still have an episode in the works. In the meanwhile, here’s a hand submitted by listener favorite Carlos Welch in which he bluffs frequent commenter Pie Farmer. My comments at the end:
Q: This is a hand from our regular … Read full post
If you’ve been mourning the lack of brag posts here since the end of WCOOP, your prayers have been answered. My latest poker strategy article, Reg Wars, is an extended brag about a big bluff from a $10/$25 game:
… Read full postIt’s often correct to fold a weak flush draw to
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
On Episode 77, we spoke to Kristy Arnett as she was about to embark on a career as a professional poker player. Now she returns to the show to talk about her first WSOP, the frustrations of her first few months, … Read full post
After a great series, the Main Event was a real disappointment. I cashed in 14 of the 40 preliminary WCOOP events that I played, and although I didn’t have any especially deep runs, I felt good about putting myself in position to go deep so many times.
The Main got … Read full post
Disclaimer: Just a reminder that I am a decidedly non-expert Razz player, so take this post as my attempting to muddle through a somewhat unfamiliar game with my general poker knowledge rather than a confident statement of sound Razz strategy.
Villain is a well-known Australian pro, a very successful tournament … Read full post
Andrew is still grinding the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker in Montreal, so he and Nate break down a few hands he played in a PLO eight-or-better event and a 2-7 triple draw event.
I made Day 2 of the $200 Sunday Warm-Up WCOOP, which, with only 109 of 8000+ entrants making it even that far, was an achievement in its own right. My hopes weren’t especially up, as I was one of the shorter stacks with about 16 big blinds to start the … Read full post
I’m often asked about donk betting or when to take the initiative away from an opponent who’s been betting or raising. My usual answer is that you should bet when you have reason to think your opponent is unlikely to bet the next street and you don’t want to give … Read full post
This was from the $215 rebuy WCOOP. Villain is a Zoom regular, we’ve played a few hundred hands together there and I think he’s pretty good. I imagine he has some respect for me as well.
PokerStars – $200+$15|60/120 Ante 15 NL – Holdem – 9 players
Hand converted by … Read full post
I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve called with a bluff-catcher and lost to a hand my opponent thought he was bluffing with. I’ve been on the good end of such situations a bit more often, including at the final table of the FTOPS that I … Read full post
This is from the $215 4-max WCOOP event. Villain is Chris Moorman. In my experience, this sort of “blatant” continuation betting tends to provoke LAGs, because they want to be the ones picking up all of the pots where no one has anything, and of course that’s going to happen … Read full post
Andrew gives us an update from Montreal, where he is grinding theWorld Championship of Online Poker on PokerStars. He is then joined by Nate and guest Ryan Laplante to talk about backing, turbo variance, grinding at a high volume, and more.
This is probably the dumbest thing I’ve done all WCOOP. Villain is Pascal Lefrancois. I don’t know much about him except that he’s very good. This is just a classic example of what not to do when you have a big stack in a very soft tournament. Just flatting his … Read full post
I’m too tired to try to pick out the most interesting hand of the tournament, so here’s the one I busted on. I’d be curious to hear from those who know more about this game whether I might be better off just calling flop. FWIW Villain is Caio Pimento, who’s … Read full post
The Stud/8 situations I find most interesting are often those where you have what looks like a low hand but is actually a high hand or vice versa. I’ll post the hand first then say a few things about it:
Poker Stars $300+$20 Limit Stud Hi/Lo Tournament – t100/t200 Limit … Read full post
This is something I do sometimes. There are often exploitive reasons for it, but I do also think it’s good to be capable of making a flush on the turn when you check back the flop. This hand from the $300 Ante Up WCOOP illustrates why:
PokerStars – $300+$20|5/5 Ante … Read full post
Terrence Chan discusses his long career, from the beginning of the poker book and working at PokerStars to the current state of regulated online poker at the US and his stint with Ultimate Poker. All that plus his mixed martial arts career, his Life After Poker podcast, and his … Read full post
This was from the first table of the $300 6-handed NLHE shoot-out. Villain is a very successful tournament player but in my opinion not fundamentally solid. Basically he’s learned how to take advantage of a lot of common weaknesses found in MTT players but is slow to adapt and back … Read full post
I got the WCOOP off to a decent start today, ultimately busting Event 1 ($109 full ring NLHE) and Event 3 ($215 Sunday Million replacement) on coin flips and min-cashing Event 2 ($215 6-handed). Early in Event 2 I made a pretty nitty river fold that I think is interesting … Read full post
My latest poker strategy article, The Worst Seat at the Table Should Be the One On Your Right, is now appearing in 2+2 Magazine. It’s about how, simply by playing well and applying pressure with the right kinds of hands in the right situations, you should end up making … Read full post
Andrew and Nate review a hand from a live $1/$2 cash game before talking with semi-professional poker player, entrepreneur, and DeucesCracked coach Andrew Seidman about a myriad of topics, including his book Easy Game (Andrew’s review here), his travels, his studies, and much more.
Here is the hand … Read full post
In my previous post, I argued that there are a number of political issues (construing the term somewhat broadly) that I don’t think anyone would argue shouldn’t be, and in any event were and are, discussed at thousands of poker tables around the world. This includes government actions such … Read full post
I’ve read a lot of commentary on Olivier Busquet and Dan Colman’s t-shirts from the EPT Barcelona Super High Roller final table, and I was fortunate enough to discuss the issue at length with Olivier himself as well as with the always-thought-provoking Nate Meyvis on Episode 92 of our podcast… Read full post
Andrew and Nate skip the strategy this week to get right to a special hour-long interview with Olivier Busquet. Busquet discusses his win in the EPT Barcelona Super High Roller, the economical and personal value of playing in big buy-in tournaments, and, of course, the political t-shirt drama.
I’m really impressed with the comments on What’s Your Play? TPTK Facing Strange Line. More than a few of you have gotten to the heart of a tricky situation in a more succinct way than I’m about to do.
In my eyes, the flop check-raise polarizes Villain’s range to … Read full post
Brian Rast may not have the knack for self-promotion that some of the biggest names in the industry do, but he’s been quietly winning at the highest stakes, in a variety of formats, for years. In this interview, he talks about discovering Macau, the social dynamic of nosebleed live games, … Read full post
Here’s a little preview of the show that should be coming out later today. Before you get excited, it’s not a video interview, we just took this screen grab before the guest turned off his webcam (we don’t usually use them) because it was cute.
This one comes from a $10-$25 game against a very tough and creative opponent. We’ve played together a few times in Maryland, Las Vegas, and Pittsburgh, and if I recall correctly he once told me that he learned a lot from my Poker Savvy Plus videos, though he’s now a … Read full post
Hello dear readers! I’m writing today to ask for thoughts and advice. I want to go abroad next month to play the WCOOP, and I’m thinking of going somewhere other than Canada. Nico and his flatmate Soeren have actually invited me to stay with them in London, and as much … Read full post
Tony “Bond18” Dunst, host of the World Poker Tour’s Raw Deal, joins the Thinking Poker Podcast to talk about wearing suits, interacting with fans, and treating poker like a job.
You all are really getting the hang of this! I’m impressed by how many of you began your analysis of What’s Your Plan? Good Draw, Lots of Interest with a consideration of what you would do with a set here. Speaking of which, a few people questioned whether I’d limp … Read full post
Edit: Sorry, typo in the original post. The SB completed pre-flop, he did not fold, which is how he was able to bet the flop.
This is from a $5/$10 NLHE live game. Opponents are some combination of intimidated by and annoyed with Hero, who has won a lot of … Read full post
There’s no Andrew this week, but Gareth Chantler catches Nate up on his “new job” (it’s one all poker players hope for and also one that many struggle with when they’re lucky enough to get it) and his recent travels. Then the two talk strategy, including a hand where Gareth … Read full post
My latest poker strategy article, A Wide Range Situation From the Main Event, is now appearing in the August 2014 issue of Two Plus Two Magazine. It references an earlier article I wrote and analyzes the last hand that I played in the 2014 WSOP Main Event:
… Read full postAlthough
I played two big pre-flop pots with KK in Las Vegas cash games, one where I ended up folding and one where I got all in against QQ. A lot of people expressed curiosity about these hands when I first tweeted them, so I figured I’d post the details here.… Read full post
This is a conclusion of a series of posts that starts here with an introduction to who these people are and why I’m driving to Las Vegas with them.
Objective: Drop me off in Las Vegas. Optional: Continue on to Tahoe.
The drive from Zion to Las Vegas is … Read full post
On Episode #88 of the Thinking Poker Podcast Andrew Brokos andNate Meyvis break down two hands that were submitted from the audience. One is a cash game hand from an underground joint in New York with a favorable preflop rake, and the other comes from a tournament.
Nate and … Read full post
Objectives: Spend the day in Zion National Park! Complete an appropriately challenging family-friendly hike, swim in the Virgin River, and get back to the campground before the gate closes at 9PM.
The Emerald Pools
After five days of heavy driving, we’d covered enough ground that we could afford a full … Read full post
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Nate is back on the program to discuss a hand he played in the World Series of Poker Main Event, then he and Andrew talk with Mike “goleafsgoeh” Leah about mixed games, how he got into poker, backing, and more.
Objective: Drive approximately 8 hours from our campground near Golden, CO to the vicinity of Zion National Park. Find a place to camp on near the park.
Optional: Find a place to swim.
I woke around 3:30AM. Despite the fact that I was burrowed inside of my sleeping bag with … Read full post
Nate’s no longer in 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 hands from their 2014 tournament.
This is a continuation of a series of posts that starts here with an introduction to who these people are and why I’m driving to Las Vegas with them.
Objective: Drive approximately five hours from Hays, Kansas to a campground just west of Denver, Colorado.
Rigging and Hustling
Because we’d … Read full post
I’ve obviously been running this over in my head a lot, so I might as well post it here. It’s the last hand before break, blinds are 250/500/25. I have a little shy of 20K, Villain has 30 or 35K. He seems to be the only other pro at the … Read full post
After a cross-country drive, Andrew has finally reunited with Nate in Las Vegas for the 2014 World Series of Poker Main Event! The two are joined by Carlos to talk about a few hands Nate played in a preliminary 10-game event, low-stakes tournaments in Vegas, and much, much more.
Needless to say, I’m looking forward to it. Nate ended up switching from Day 1C to 1B, and I was tempted to do the same, but last-minute changes tend to throw me off, as I’d already mentally planned some things I wanted to do yesterday. The only downside to this … Read full post
Objective: Drive about seven hours and camp at Kanopolis State Park in Western Kansas.
I woke around 6AM to find Jerica and Henry freshly showered and packing their things. A quick count confirmed that everyone was still alive and well, and I couldn’t find any itchy bed bug bites on … Read full post
If you’re in Las Vegas, please don’t forget to come meet Nate, Andrew, Carlos, and other Thinking Poker Podcast listeners and guests between 10AM – 1PM at the Gold Coast bowling alley tomorrow, July 5. Hope to see you there!… Read full post
Objectives: Drive approximately seven hours from Pittsburgh to Hoosier National Forest, where we’d camp for the night.
An Early Morning
Upon telling people about this trip, Jerica and I were both bombarded with advice about long drives with kids. Much of it would have required more planning than we were … Read full post
Alex “Assassinato” Fitzgerald joins Nate and Andrew on the Thinking Poker Podcast to talk about his childhood in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest, winning and losing a fortune, abusing drugs and getting clean, and his new life in Costa Rica.
Sorry for the delay on this episode. I’ll get a … Read full post
Objectives: Finish Packing. Retrieve Rental Car. Drive to Pittsburgh. Keep kids out of apartment during my walkthrough with landlord. “Camp” in my empty apartment.
If you don’t know what I’m talking about or who these people are, see this post.
At my landlord’s insistence, I’d agreed to doing … Read full post
Leo Wolpert joins Nate and Andrew from Las Vegas to discuss safety precautions for staying in hotels and the Rio flu, and the trio beak down three hands that Wolpert played at the World Series of Poker.
It’s been a hectic few days. I wish I had more time to share some of the craziness with you, but the truth is that I’m not at all prepared for the Vegas road trip on which I’m about to embark. I think the kids’ mother is even less prepared … Read full post