Poker Book Club

Poker has existed in some form or another for many years. People have enjoyed a cheeky gamble around camp fires, in pubs and basically wherever there is a deck of cards, some chips and a table. Despite unstable financial times and potential looming recession, poker seems to have escaped unscathed, in fact the British are the number one gambling nation in Europe, wagering a whopping average 17 billion GBP each year, clearly not a sign of Brits holding back, or the game of poker dying out.

A number of factors could explain the continuing growth of poker over the years. Currently Texas Hold Em is in fashion. Possibly due to the lucrative sweepstakes to be won, the exotic locations tournaments are held and the media exposure games acquire, add up to a winning formula for everyone. Celebrities are now also getting in on the action, mingling with poker pros on centre tables is certainly the new place to be seen.

Like all successful beings, poker evolves over time. There have been several variations that have flourished over time including; five card draw, seven card stud and now most prolifically Texas Hold Em, to mention just a couple. However there are many more variations, slight twists and differing rules usually found in small tournaments or just games played with friends. One particular example is Achilleios Hold Em, a quirky alternative of Texas Hold Em my friends and I created, in which one of two private cards dealt initially, must be shown. The game really becomes interesting when players decide which card to show, for example you can opt to show strength or weakness, depending on how you want to play, what your opponents are showing and what impression you want to portray.

New Technology also poses new variations and gaming styles. Despite a dealer-less table sounding like something out of a science fiction movie, it already exists in some casinos in Las Vegas, in fact is already proving very popular and is attracting large crowds, wanting to try it out. Players find they play very differently compared to sitting around a conventional table, with a large stack of chips in front of them, which can additionally act as a huge intimidator against less wealthy players. In my opinion this innovative, cost cutting approach will not be favoured by players in the long run and will be an interesting fad but never replace a human dealer.

In conclusion, the future of poker looks flush, although was never really in too much doubt. If the growth of players follows the growth of poker exposure, tournaments and winnings over the past few years, poker could become one of the most popular games played ever. Casual gaming is currently dominating the electronic games industry, which could furthermore help take poker into a new e-dimension. There are huge possibilities for online, portable, mobile poker tournaments that players can join in anywhere in the world, using the latest generation mobile phones and portable computers.

Charlie Newman writes on behalf of Pentasia http://www.pentasia.com – Search & apply online for iGaming, online gambling, betting & casino jobs http://www.pentasia.com/vacancies/ with Pentasia

Poker players will travel to the ends of the Earth to find a great game, and sometimes they will literally do just that – shipping off to far-off locales where the poker chips are real clay and the stakes are always high. To help you plan your next “poker vacation” we’ve compiled a list of some of the finest poker cities in the world – each one chosen because of the available action there – and a commitment to the greatest card game in the known universe.

The Top Cities for Poker Players

1. Las Vegas, Nevada. No surprises here. Las Vegas is, and likely always will sit atop the poker stratosphere. When you’re home to the best players in the world, the best shopping for poker accessories, countless poker rooms that line the Las Vegas Strip…AND host the annual World Series of Poker you don’t have to worry about relinquishing your number one spot for quite some time.

2. Atlantic City, New Jersey. A short drive from New York City, Atlantic City is home to some of the largest Casinos in the world. With names like Trump and Harrah’s rising above the skyline, it’s easy to see why the area draws millions of gamblers each year (despite the rundown nature of the city itself). The online poker boom inspired many of these casinos to build massive Texas Hold ‘Em rooms – which even in tough economic times continue to be filled by East Coasters looking for some real action.

3. Los Angeles, California. Only a hop skip and jump from the glitter of Hollywood exists a series of the most well-respected poker rooms in the United States. That’s right, poker has come to Los Angeles, and thanks to Larry Flint’s Hustler Casino, The Hollywood Park Poker Rooms and the Commerce Casino (and several more) serious players will never fall short of places to play after they’ve hit the beach.

4. New York, New York. You won’t find many glittering casinos and poker rooms in the Big Apple, however if it is rough-and-tumble back room games you’re looking for, you have come to the right place. The most populated city in the world is also home to more poker games being held in the back of bodegas, record stores and bars than anywhere else in America. It is a throwback to the outlaw days of poker – and despite the Internet, Atlantic City and discount flights to Las Vegas, it has never quite left.

5. Dublin, Ireland. Dublin was recently named the top poker city in Europe by a panel of card-playing experts. In addition to being home to the Irish Open, one of the largest and most well-respected poker tournaments in Europe, it also has a rich community of poker players living there. These poker-playing families have passed the game on from generation to generation – ensuring that the game will continue to flourish here for years to come.

6. London, England. The United Kingdom takes a more laid-back approach to gambling than other countries, and with that permissiveness has come some of the finest luxury poker rooms in the world. London is a place to play high-stakes poker – without having to worry about the authorities knocking your door down.

Visit http://www.pokerchest.com for an incredible selection of chips, tables, cards and other must-have poker accessories, plus slot machines, dice and everything else the gaming enthusiast could ever need!

What Are Odds? Why Are Odds Important?

1. Pot odds: The pot odds are the ratio of the size of the pot to the size of the bet. For example, if the pot has $800 in it, and your opponent bets $400, the pot is $1,200. For you to call that bet, you have to put in $400.

Therefore, the ratio of the size of the pot is $1,200, to the size of the bet or $400. $1,200 to $400 is 3-1.

2. Why are Pot odds important: The pot odds are important since you want to make bets where the pot odds you are getting are better than the odds of you making your desired hand.

In the above example, if you flopped a straight draw your odds are about 2.2-1 to make your desired hand by the river. Therefore, assuming you are going to the river, you are getting favorable pot odds and should call the bet.

3. Implied odds: Implied odds are based on how much you expect the pot to be at the end of the hand. It is often calculated where you plan to fold if you miss on the next street, but you will continue to play if you make your desired hand.

The implied odds are important since there are times where the pot odds are not good enough to call a bet, but the implied odds change a fold to a call.

Using the above example, if your opponent had bet $1,000 into the $800 pot, your pot odds are $1,800 to $1,000 or 1.8 to 1. These odds are not favorable for a straight draw. However, if you and your opponent have deep stacks, and your straight is not obvious when you hit, you may be getting favorable implied odds to make the call.

That is, if you hit your straight on the turn, you might estimate that your $1,000 bet will end up in your winning a pot of $5,000 or more. That would mean you believe you are getting implied odds of 5 to 1.

Learn to use the odds in poker like a poker pro. Learn the plays the pros make and find out what you know by taking the Free Poker Evaluation at http://www.apokerexpert.com

Mitchell Cogert is the author of “Tournament Poker: 101 Winning Moves.” After reviewing over 20 years worth of poker materials with heads-up battles against poker pros, he has identified the top 101 expert plays used by the pros. His other poker book “Play Razz Poker to Win” was selected by PokerStars IntelliPoker to be used on their site and translated for their international website. For more information http://www.apokerexpert.com

How do you learn? Are you the type of person who likes to get your hands on things and just get at it? When you buy an item that requires assembly, do you open the box, ignore the instructions and try to figure it out all by yourself? Okay, if you get stuck you might look at the instructions. Or you might open the box, grab all the instructional materials, find an easy chair, sit down and go through the assembly instructions and the owner’s manual thoroughly before you start. Then you proceed following the instructions step by step. Perhaps diagram instructions make the most sense to you so they are your preference. For some people video instructions best meet their learning needs so they go online to see if someone has made a video. Hey, you never know! These are all acceptable and effective instructional approaches that can be applied to any educational situation including learning how to play Texas Holdem poker or how to improve your poker skills.

Learning the mechanics of playing Texas Holdem poker, that is, the dealing, blinds and betting procedures can be accomplished in two or three poker hands. Becoming a good or expert poker player is another matter. Learning what, when and how to play your hole cards, when and how much to bet, raise or re-raise, or what to look for in reading your opponents are just some of the skills that must be developed to become a successful poker player. Some people are gifted with an instinctive ability or a mathematical mind that gives them an advantage in doing the poker math and making the right decisions based upon the statistics. Others are able to read body language and facial expressions which assist them with the human interaction decisions like determining when an opponent is bluffing.

Everyone has a special talent and ability that they rely on when playing poker, but regardless of what you are best at, you need to develop your all round poker style, skills and strategies to become a good or expert poker player. Traditionally, this has been done by playing a lot of poker hands, losing a lot of money, and developing your skills by learning from your experiences through trial and error. This is no longer the viable option. You cannot spend countless hours playing poker against skilled poker players learning the fine points of the game, there is just too much money to be lost. To gain this knowledge and experience, you need to access the many high quality poker educational resources that are currently available to assist you in the Texas Holdem poker learning process.

Fortunately, top poker experts and successful poker champions are willing to assist you in this educational process. These individuals share the poker successes and failures that they have experienced through text and illustrated poker books and visual DVD presentations. The books and DVDs demonstrate the actual situations or re-enactments of real life poker situations that have help shape their own poker skills and strategies development. You get to observe first-hand the thought processes that they use in making their poker decisions.

You will have the most success and learn faster if you use the instructional resources that are best suited to your personal learning style. If you are an adult, your years in school will probably helped your identify how your learn most effectively. If you are younger you may still need to experiment with several different types of resources to determine which approach is best for you. However, whether you learn best working hands on, working it out yourself, imitating the actions of others, reading books, manuals and guides or watching videos, there are a vast number of educational resources available for purchase online to assist you in improving your poker game. Each of these resources are acceptable and effective learning approaches that can teach you learn how to play poker, how to improve your poker skills and enable you to become a poker champion.

At http://www.holdempokersupplies.com we provide the opportunity for you to learn how to play Texas Hold’em poker and to develop your poker skills and strategies utilizing the accumulated knowledge and experiences of world renowned poker professionals. We provide a broad range of Texas Holdem poker books by the top poker authors for those individual who prefer the written text and visual charts and diagrams as their approach to learning. We also have a good selection of Texas Holdem poker DVDs that present the instructional material through video media for those individuals who learn best by the auditory and visual approaches. Our books and DVDs are for sale at cheap, discounted prices with free shipping also being available. We invite you to use our poker instructional books and DVDs to build your home poker library to enable you to become the best Texas Holdem poker player that you can be.

Chris Massini

If you’ve payed attention to the online poker world recently, you have probably noticed that may site’s are now offering rake back. What is rake back? Rakeback is when a poker room awards a portion of the “rake”, or money that the poker room has made off of that player, back to the player as an incentive to keep playing at the given room. The only catch is that it is usually paid by a third party site who pays the player directly. This can often result in shady business practices between 3rd party affiliate sites. Some new sites have opted to use a points system which has brought about a new level of fairness in the rakeback world.

When a poker room offers rake back, they are usually trying to keep their players playing at their room. What does this do in the long run? It keeps all of the good, winning players around. A room that has been promoting rakeback deals for a long time can be said to have lots of sharks. New players usually avoid rakeback rooms since the play can be substantially better than at other rooms. On the other hand, some poker rooms do not allow rakeback. These rooms take on another method to obtaining both new and experienced players at the same time. They do this by giving away money. This brings in hordes of “fish” who want the free bankroll, and at the same time it brings in hordes of “sharks” looking to take advantage of all of the fish splashing around with their free bankroll.

While rakeback can be great if you are a consistent winning player, it can also be bad if you are new to the game. May advise new players to study the game first, and play within a comfortable limit. Remember that wherever there are fish… sharks are soon to follow.

Read more about Bodog RakeBack and other great topics at http://www.nichepoker.net