PokerGuru
Royal PCer
Joined: 16 Nov 2005
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Location: Florida USA
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 Posted:
15.04.2007, 00:54 |
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POKER LESSON of APRIL '07
Hello Again, my Poker Scholars!
Most of you have been having several weeks of good steady poker playing, of which I'm very proud, but there is always good reason to stop and take stock and get back to the classroom again. I do it myself; it's just that my classroom consists of dozens of notebooks of my own scribblings and ideas and lessons learned the hard way.
I am a believer in making the most progress by taking the easiest route, and I hope that I am that easier route for you.
This lesson will cover several areas. They are all important for you to make a second nature part of yourself in order to make your playing profitable. Sometimes that calls for repetition and review, sometimes for new trails. This lesson will include both.
I will start with a topic I always have to convince people about: LUCK. Some of you seniors of mine will recall that is the very first thing I had to deal with in your conversion to consistent winning. It should be the first lesson for every poker player. IN POKER, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS LUCK. THERE IS ONLY LEARNED KNOWLEDGE OF THE GAME AND PRACTICED SKILLS COMING FROM THAT KNOWLEDGE. Otherwise, you would not see the same faces at final tables again and again, because luck is random, like an accident.
Here is the reasoning to support what I just said: Over any period of time, short or long, every poker player will be dealt the same number of good hands and bad hands. The champions are those who have learned how to play both. It is just as important to know how to play a bad hand as it is a good hand.
Later in the lesson, I will give you a guideline for telling the difference pre-flop, which is the most important time to know. That is where your knowledge comes in of when to fold'em and when to hold'em.
But right now, I want to tell you what a few people you may have heard of have had to say about luck.
Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect."
Nehru said, "Life is like a game of cards. The hand that is dealt you is determinism; the way you play it is free will."
The extremely intelligent Thomas Jefferson said, "I am a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it."
Wise people all. And while I am quoting, I'm pretty sure you all have heard of Nick "The Greek" Dandalos, although you may not have known his last name. He was such a good predictor that he was the top setter of odds for a long, long time. Here is something he said, " Remember this: The house doesn't beat the player. It just gives him the opportunity to beat himself." I, myself, might add that most gamblers take that opportunity. But NOT my Poker Crushers! No. Because the Crushers have taken time to gain the knowledge not to have to! My Crushers have developed character and it shows.
Which reminds me of something else Nick the Greek said that I have never forgotten. He said, "The only difference between a winner and a loser is character." And to that I will add that character is developed by those who take the time to study and make the time to gain and retain the knowledge they acquire." I know you could be playing poker right now and making money, instead of reading my lesson. But I firmly believe that if you make and take the time to study my lessons, you will make much more money tomorrow.
So summing up the topic of LUCK, please never again wish a fellow player "Good Luck". It is an insult to him/her, suggesting they have no knowledge. Instead, wish them "Good thinking." That recognizes and acknowleges their learning. If I could, I WOULD BAN THE EXPRESSION OF "GOOD LUCK " from this site, as far as poker is concerned, and insist that you replace it with "GOOD THINKING!" How much more complimentary that is!
The next topic is: A Few of my Own Original Poker Rules.
#1. Don't ever call because you think your opponent is bluffing! There is only ONE TIME to call or raise.....when you believe your hand is good enough to make you the winner! That is one of the things I had to learn the hard way, and lost a lot of money until I did.
#2. Learn all you can from every mistake you make and write it down to help you remember. Look at it as a great bargain you got.....a poker lesson from the best teacher in the world: Experience.
#3. If you feel like you need a break from poker once in awhile, you probably do. Take the break and let it be renewing, not discouraging. You will return to it greatly refreshed. HOWEVER, never let that break be long enough to gather even one fleck of rust or speck of moss. How will you know when it is time to go back? Trust your instincts that are based on the knowledge you have gained over time.
#4. Don't ever be afraid or hesitate to leave a table. If you are losing money at a table, it is for a reason. The reason most often is, bluntly put, that you are playing against those who have simply learned more about the game than you have.....yet! It will put you in a bad mood which will put you on tilt, which the other players will pick up on and take advantage of. Not a good way to earn respect!!! OR money!!! You will earn more of both by excusing yourself and finding another table or another place to play. Don't even look back at the money you lost.....that can only hurt your playing and never help it. Just start over somewhere else. You could win a lot by doing no more than that!
#5. Try to always play at a table with the same number of players every time. Why? Because the value of your hand changes with a changing number of players! A pair of Aces in the hole is worth far more at a table of 6 players than it is at a table of 10 players. Just remember: The same is true for everybody else at the table. And by the way, don't overestimate a pair of Aces. After all, it is just one pair and can be beaten by 3 tiny deuces! Or by two pairs of ANYTHING! I have seen players go all in because they hold a pair of Aces. How foolish. DON'T YOU EVER DO IT! I don't even RAISE with a pair of Aces until I see at least one or two more community cards! But I always call! You are in a great position at a table with people who like to raise pre-flop.......it shows their LACK of knowledge and you know you have them outclassed!
#6. Take notes on other players and study them after the game! Very important, especially when playing online. Why? Because you will likely keep running into the same players again and you can make an EDUCATED decision about whether or not to play at their table! I never play without a notebook for player notes. This is the kind of notes I take and learn later: A seperate page for each player (small pocket looseleaf notebook). Why looseleaf? So you can put the players in alphabetical order for fast look-up! On each player's page, I note things such as: bluffer or not, often all-ins or not, often raises or not, especially pre-flop, easy to make fold or not, what kind of hand will keep and play pre-flop, big ego or not (show-off or not; loudmouth or not), and most important: shows poker education or not!
#7. This one you will hear me repeating over and over because it is worth it. It can make a poker player or break a poker player. Probably the most important of MY rules: DON'T EVER BET ON A HAND YOU STILL NEED A CARD TO MAKE! BET ONLY ON WHAT YOU ALREADY HAVE! That is the way the educated player plays. The uneducated rely on that 4-letter word, luck, when they bet on MAYBE getting a card they need, which they DO GET but only once in a great while; almost always they DO NOT!
Well, my educated ones, I could go on and on forever with my own rules I play with and make a good living by doing so, but the less you have to digest per lesson, the longer you will remember it and make it second nature to you.
Next topic: The Value of Starting Hands (HOLD'EM OR FOLD'EM)
I am talking here about the hole cards you are dealt. How much they are worth pre-flop.
Every pro will have his/her own views on this, and they usually keep it to themselves. I have my own personal view and I will share it ONLY WITH my Poker Crushers! Here it is:
The top 3 hands you could have in the hole are pairs: AA = the best, KK = second best, QQ = third best
Then an interruption in the pairs: The fourth best = AK ... BUT ONLY IF SAME SUIT
Then back to pairs: JJ = fifth best, 10 10 = sixth best
Then to the suited connectors: AQ = seventh best IF SAME SUIT, KQ = eighth best IF SAME SUIT, AJ = ninth best IF SAME SUIT, KJ = tenth best IF SAME SUIT
Then to the unsuited connector: AK = eleventh best IF DIFFERENT SUITS
Now. If you are very observant, you will see an easy way to keep track of the eleven best starting hands (and remember: Only TEN players can be at a table in regulation playing and some of them will not have a starting hand in the top eleven). Notice that in the top eleven, only one hand does not contain an Ace or Face Card.......that is 10 10
If you will fold anything less pre-flop, you will have a great chance to win......and this is one of my TOP SECRETS! Even if it is hard to fold a hand like A 10, do it! or K 10 or Q 10 or J 10 or 9 9 or A + any card.......FOLD'EM! Stick with this strategy, no matter how much it hurts you to fold, and you can hardly help but be a consistent winner! And a consistent winner = a champion!
You have probably had enough of me for this time, but I am going to speed up the coming of the lessons, so don't put off making this one part of yourself NOW!
GOOD THINKING! to the sweethearts of my heart, my poker scholars, my Poker Crushers!
Your ever lovin' Guru |
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