17 March 2011
Marginal Call
Sami "LarsLuzak" Kelopuro looks at an interesting hand from the Finnish Open.
03 March 2011
Hung up on HORSE
Dear Dr. Tom,
I have noticed that a lot of pros are playing HORSE or even 8-game. As a NL player, how can I begin to branch out into other poker disciplines?
Phil, Kilburn
Reading stack sizes
It’s not the size, it’s what you do with it… Jeff Kimber explains.
Making Poker “Legit”
This month brings the news that Annie Duke has teamed up with former WSOP supremo Jeffrey Pollack to bring us supposedly the definitive league of poker. If only, so the line of argument goes, we could have one definitive league, and therefore one definitive champion, we could know where we are with this “sport”. Perhaps more importantly, we could market it more effectively and convincingly to the world at large. But can poker join the ranks of legitimate spectator sports?
01 February 2011
Where am I?
Dear Dr Tom,
My friend says that betting to “see where you are” is an out of date concept and a bad way to play, but I always thought it was an important part of poker. Who is right?
Liam, Plymouth
Tournament poker therapy, part 3
Thus far in this series of articles, I’ve discussed the concept of psychic pain in tournament poker, and attempted to categorise a few types of them. I’ve mooted a few reasons why they might be stumbling blocks for certain people.
Tilt Monkey
We all know that poker is a game of skill that is affected by luck, be it good or bad. The theory is that a good player needs less luck than a less able player in order to be successful. In the long term, this is probably true but, in the short term, the “luck factor” or “variance” can completely dictate one player’s success or failure.
06 January 2011
Tournament Poker Therapy, part 2: Identifying poker pain
By Alex Rousso.
Last month, I discussed the concept of using psychoanalysis to deal with the psychic pain that tournament poker can bring. I ended by listing what are termed in Cognitive Analytical Therapy as “Core Pain Statements”. These statements are supposed to be a candid appraisal of exactly how you feel at points of heightened psychic pain – the most obvious in tournament poker being on busting out.
Double or nothing
Dear Dr Tom,
I'm thinking of trying out the “double or nothing” STT format on PokerStars. It seems that the correct strategy is to basically fold 99% of your hands and try to make the money, i.e. half the table. Also I assume my bankroll requirements can be loosened as they're quite low variance.
Giles, Brighton
Value Town by Paul Jackson
“Value” is a word which is often used in poker circles to justify a dodgy call. Of course, if there is “true value” in a call, then you do not need to justify your action, and most players fail to consider the concept that “there is no value in losing”.