In the last three years, Thinking Poker listeners have raised more than $25,000 for the Bay Area Urban
Debate League. I’d love to set a new record this year, and to make that happen, I’ve got a special reward exclusively for folks who donate to this year’s fundraiser:
Every person … Read full post
No new podcast this week, but…
I’ve been writing some serialized poker fiction for Two Plus Two Magazine recently, and the third installment was just published. If you’ve been following along so far, I hope you’re eager to read more, because Walter Tine is eager to play!
He arrived early, … Read full post
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John “the Lawyer” makes a third appearance on the podcast to talk about why he’s dipping a few toes back into lawyering. We talk about Stud, the New England poker scene, why the games are getting less good, why prosecutors are … Read full post
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This week’s guest asked us not to use his name, but he’s got quite a resume. The octogenarian has served as an executive and a Board member for several major US corporations, and now that he’s finally retired, he’s a regular in … Read full post
Now through Sunday, I’m offering 15% off newly commissioned custom strategy videos. That’s just $85/hour of video!
Get the most out of your poker study time with a poker strategy videos custom-tailored to your needs. If you play online, I can review a database or hand history for you, … Read full post
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Paul Runge and his wife LeAnn own and operate the Bend Poker Club. We talk to him about the politics and particulars of Oregon’s social gaming regulations and the business of running a poker club.
Timestamps
0:30 hello & welcome
4:46 strategy… Read full post
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Bill Chen (@BillChenPoker) is a quantitative researcher at the Susquehanna International Group and the co-author, with Jarred Ankenman, of The Mathematics of Poker. We talk to him about the connections between poker and trading, and Nate dares to make … Read full post
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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
Last month I went out on a limb and published a (poker-themed) piece of fiction in Two Plus Two Magazine. I wrote it primarily as a standalone story, though it admittedly concluded in an open-ended way.
I was pleasantly surprised by how many encouraging comments I received and how many … Read full post
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Derek “Killingbird” Tenbusch is a co-founder and -owner of Tournament Poker Edge. He’s also a poker streamer and a beagle rescuer. We discuss all three, plus house hunting in Las Vegas and leaving Las Vegas.
Derek’s first appearance on the … Read full post
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Why is the sports book always next to the poker room? Is the Supreme Court a political actor? Should check and raise be permitted? Our wide-ranging conversation with the always-interesting Matt Glassman covers these topics and many more.
Matt Glassman is a … Read full post
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Andrew and Nate share some book and podcast recommendations and, inspired by Dara O’Kearney, discuss the value of taking days off. In the strategy segment, Andrew takes an unconventional line vs Phil Galfond in a Progressive Knock-Out.
Timestamps
0:30 hello
24:19 … Read full post
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Should dealers announce bet sizes if no one asks? Nate and Andrew discuss the arguments for and against this procedure. Plus, they discuss a strategy hand from the perspective of both active players, who happen to be brothers!
Timestamps
0:30 Hello & … Read full post
My latest piece for Two Plus Two Magazine is (poker-related) fiction called Walter Tine’s Poker Odyssey, so I’m particularly curious to know what you all think of it.
… Read full postIf he crossed the street now, they would surmise that he crossed because of them. This would surely cause offense and perhaps
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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
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Nate, in a special solo episode, dissects Phil Ivey’s bustout hand from the 2018 WSOP Main Event.… Read full post
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
My latest piece for the Two Plus Two Magazine is more of a story than a strategy article. It’s about a friend of my grandmother’s who was a small-time gambler and a few conversations we had about poker:
“I saw you on ESPN,” he tells me once he’s made his … Read full post
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Zach Elwood is the author of Reading Poker Tells, Verbal Poker Tells, and Exploiting Poker Tells. Our first interview with him was on Episode 14. He’s quoted in this New York Times article (Edit: and this Washington Post article) … Read full post
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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
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Nate and Andrew talk strategy for BB Ante tournaments, play a round of “Underrated or Overrated”, and discuss two hands where players flop sets and end up facing tough decisions later.
Timestamps
0:30 – hello
8:08 – strategy
Strategy Hand 1
Effective … Read full post
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Berk Brown has spent decades in the world of poker and seen it from the perspective of a floorperson, a dealer, and a professional player. He’s full of great anecdotes and insights about staking, longevity (of games, rooms, and professional careers), game … Read full post
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Bryan is a long-time professional poker player who, like many, has expanded into daily fantasy sports and cryptocurrencies, but unlike many, has also expanded into river guiding. He works for AVA Colorado Rafting, and he recommends Dam Nation, Cadillac Desert, and … Read full post
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Josh Nixon was a student in the Boston Debate League when Andrew was the director. In the years since then, he’s been a serious Magic: The Gathering player is now taking an interest in poker. In this interview, he talks about the … Read full post
Do your eyes glaze over when the subject of game theory comes up? Are you confused and intimidated by solvers? Do you not even see the relevance of game theory to your own play, given how exploitable your opponents seem to be? I’ve got just the thing for you!
My … Read full post
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Helen Ellis is a proud housewise and poker player and the author of the novels Eating the Cheshire Cat and The Turning Book, the short fiction collection American Housewife, and the What I Do All Day Twitter account. Her poker … Read full post
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This is the conclusion of our epic three-hour interview with living legend Dick Carson (Part 1, Part 2), featuring stories from his pool hustling days and memories of Frank Rosenthal.
Timestamps
0:30 Hello
4:07 Strategy
29:45 Dick pt iii… Read full post
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This is a continuation of our massive interview with Dick Carson (Part 1 here). In this episode, you’ll hear stories about the Binions, Bobby Baldwin, Chip Reese, Anthony Spilotro, and more. Thanks to John the Lawyer for all his help … Read full post
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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
My latest poker strategy article, Complicated Indifference, is now appearing the March 2018 issue of Two Plus Two Magazine. It aims to explain the value of acquiring at least a low level understanding of game theory, even if you know that your opponents will make plenty of exploitable mistakes:… Read full post
My latest series of poker strategy videos is a review of key hands from the $3500 World Poker Tour Main Event at Maryland Live. This is the event that I discussed with Christian Soto on one of my all-time favorite podcast episodes.
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It’s one strategy segment… followed by another strategy segment, after an interview needs to be rescheduled. Nate and Andrew discuss playing from the Small Blind and playing tricky hands like top pair with a bad kicker.
Timestamps
0:30 hello
9:35 strat
51:43 … Read full post
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Carlos Welch is back to talk about his decision to get coaching from Ryan “Protential” LaPlante and the new, looser style of play with which he’s been experimenting as a result.
Timestamps
0:30 – hello
34:19 – strat
Strategy
Hand … Read full post
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Ryan Click is a former professional poker player who now works in sales in the space/aerospace industry (and still plays a lot of poker!). We talk about the future – and present – of space exploration, the importance of a dedicated bankroll … Read full post
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Jamal Hanson introduces us to a high-stakes poker game we knew nothing about… because it’s played behind bars. Jamal, who graduated college at 16 but ultimately landed him in prison for selling crack cocaine, talks about learning to play, landing a whale, … Read full post
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Nate and Andrew enjoy some “alone time” and answer listeners’ strategy questions (and a programming question) from the mailbag. Here’s the online MIT Computer Science Course that Nate recommended.
Strategy
Hand 1
100 BB effective stacks
Dealt to Hero: Ks Ts
UTG … Read full post
I’m glad – blown away, really – that so many of you enjoy listening to the Thinking Poker Podcast. Ultimately, though, it’s a selfish endeavor (for me anyway, don’t want to speak for Nate here). I do it because it’s good for me. Poker is a stressful pursuit, and often … 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
Counting down my favorite Thinking Poker Podcast episodes of 2017. Details/retrospective here. In third place is Episode 199.5: Mississippi Grinding.
Getting to enjoy the Thinking Poker Podcast as a listener, without have been involved in its creation, is a rare treat for me. So it’s possible that I’m biased, … Read full post
Counting down my favorite Thinking Poker Podcast episodes of 2017. Details/retrospective here.
I’m embarrassed to admit that I made an error that I’m sure is as familiar as it is unwelcome to folks with disabilities. In retrospect, I think I came into my interview with KL Cleeton assuming that he … Read full post
Thanks to everyone who’s contributed so far to my Bay Area Urban Debate League campaign. Here’s the first of your free videos. It’s a one-hour look at river bet sizing in PioSolver. Not only will you learn the basics of under- and over-betting, but you’ll also get a glimpse … Read full post
We published the last Thinking Poker Podcast of 2017 on Christmas Day. It was our fifth full year of podcasting (we started in September 2012) and an exciting and challenging year. For both Nate and me (though moreso for him, following the birth of his first child), it was the … Read full post
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Jordan Young has been a professional poker player for well over a decade, but only somewhat recently has he hit a stride that seems attainable. We talk about bankroll management, painkiller addiction, the Solve for Why Academy, and how to get under … Read full post
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Cory Mikesell is a professional poker player, a chess master, a writer, and the author of 3Bet Pots Game Theory and Practice. We talk about his struggles, his successes, and how thoroughly he’s thrown himself into everything he’s done.
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Brad Willis is the head of blogging for PokerStars and the author of the excellent Rapid Eye Reality blog. We talk to him about politics at the poker table, raising sons, and living as a progressive in the American South. Plus we … Read full post
I’m once again raising money this holiday season for the Bay Area Urban Debate League, a non-profit organization I’m deeply involved with as a Board member, volunteer, and donor. Debating in high school and college changed my life, and in the 16 years that I’ve been involved with the … Read full post
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“Tapi” was born in Zimbabwe and lived in Scotland and Canada for several years before ultimately coming to the United States. Professional poker player may not have been the career that his parents envisioned for him, but after a few false starts, … Read full post
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Matt Glassman is back with a new job (senior fellow at the Government Affairs Institute), a new podcast (Congress, Two Beers In), and as usual some refreshingly wonky insight into what’s really going on in Washington. Plus when is … Read full post
Between now and the end of the year, I’m offering a 25% discount when you purchase two or more hours of custom strategy videos. That’s two hours for just $150!
Get the most out of your poker study time with a poker strategy videos custom-tailored to your needs. If … Read full post
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Carlos Welch has a new home (hotel), a new (used) van, and a new three-barreling range. We talk to him about living in Laughlin and driving across the country, and in our strategy segment, we get some insight into his “Carloose” style … Read full post
The first installment of latest poker strategy videos series just went up at Tournament Poker Edge. It’s one I’m especially excited about because it’s the first time I’ve ever done a member hand history review (well, excepting the time that Carlos and I looked over his big Bovada win … Read full post
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Andrew Therriault is the Chief Data Officer for the City of Boston. He’s also an enthusiastic poker player and the former Director of Data Science for the Democratic National Committee. We talk to him about how big data and artificial intelligence are … Read full post
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Carlos Chadha has been a professional poker player for nearly 15 years, and in that time he’s mastered everything from Seven Card Stud to Heads Up No Limit Hold ‘Em to Multi-Table Tournaments. He’s also had to master his own ego as … Read full post
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Peter Chi is an Assistant Professor of Statistics at Ursinus College teaching an undergraduate statistics course revolving around poker. He’s using this textbook and documenting the experience on his blog. You can also follow him on Twitter @PeterBChi.
Timestamps
0:30 … Read full post
Although I didn’t play any poker on Thursday either, Saturday actually felt more like a proper birthday celebration. I’ve got this friend Luis who lives in Montreal, with whom I’ve always met up once or twice whenever I was in town. Not getting to see him was one of the … Read full post
My birthday always falls during WCOOP, so it’s been a long time since I took it as a vacation day. But this year’s events felt more skippable than usual (the only thing I was really tempted to play was the $2100 PKO, and even then, the mid-week $2K events just … Read full post
I know it’s been a while, but I’m so close to finishing this review I figure I might as well go the distance. The only WCOOP event I played on this particular Wednesday was the $500 6-Max Progressive Knock-Out. I scored some early bounties, including with flush over flush and … Read full post
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Christian Soto and Andrew meet in-person in Baltimore, hours after playing together in the World Poker Tour main event at Maryland Live!, to commiserate and talk about some key hands. This interview was tremendous fun to record and hopefully will be tremendous … Read full post
My latest poker strategy article, Progressive Knockout Examples Part 1, is now appearing in 2+2 Magazine. It’s a follow-up to a previous article, using some real examples from progressive knockout tournaments to explore some theory about how to make decisions about chasing bounties.… Read full post
I know I haven’t quite finished the WCOOP review here. I got sidetracked by WPT Maryland, and after three long days of playing that (I finished 32nd), WCOOP feels like a distant memory. I’m going to make a series for Tournament Poker Edge with key hands from the WPT, so … Read full post
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Phil Galfond needs as little introduction as any guest we’ve ever had. He’s crushed at virtually all forms of poker at the highest stakes, he’s crushed in the poker training market, and now he’s preparing to crush in the real money poker … Read full post