Poker Bankroll Blog » Poker Articles https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com Wed, 03 Dec 2025 04:35:59 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.0.38 Position in poker https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/position-in-poker.htm https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/position-in-poker.htm#comments Sun, 20 Feb 2011 08:57:27 +0000 http://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/?p=3197 Submitted by Matthew Tonge this article about position in poker belongs to the Poker Strategy Series. This is the last article in a series describing 5 key steps  to become a winning poker player. The topic at hand is position in poker. Overview of the entire article series Which starting hands to play in poker Poker hand strength Bet sizing in poker Aggression in poker Position in poker Position in poker Summary: Play less hands when in early position. Having position in a hand gives you an advantage. If you watch poker on TV, you will hear the commentators talk about ‘position.’ “He’s going to play this out of position”, “She will have position for the rest of this hand.” But what is position? Put simply, it is based on when it is your turn to act in relation to the other players. So, if you are first to act after the blinds have been posted (also known as under the gun), you are in early position. A player who is in early position is also referred to as being ‘out of position.’ The closer you get to the dealer button, the later your position. If you are on the button you are always last to act, and you will be ‘in position.’ Being ‘in position’ gives you an advantage, as it means you will be able to see other players act first, and gather information about the strength of their hands before you have to make your decision. Restrict your playing range in early position Generally, you need a stronger hand to play in early position than you do in later position. For example, if you get a hand such as King-Ten suited, which can look quite nice, in early position, you are best folding. You still have most of the players at the table to act behind you, and there is a good chance someone will have a better hand. And if you decide to play, they are going to gather information from you before they have to act – giving them the advantage. However, if you get dealt the same hand on the button, and everyone folds around to you, then you can certainly play. You only have the blinds left to act, and so there is less of a chance that there is a better hand than yours out there. You should make a raise. And if the big blind, for example, opts to call, you will ‘have position’ on him, and the advantage will be yours. Open up your playing hand range in later positions Also, hands such as suited connectors and 1-gappers, such as 5-7 hearts, are best played in position, as you have the chance to see a free card when other players check to you, and you get to hit your straights and flushes without paying too much. If you play these hands out of position and check, a player in later position is more likely to bet to try to win […]

The post Position in poker appeared first on Poker Bankroll Blog.

]]> https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/position-in-poker.htm/feed 1 Aggression in poker https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/aggression-in-poker.htm https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/aggression-in-poker.htm#comments Fri, 18 Feb 2011 21:25:46 +0000 http://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/?p=3199 Submitted by Matthew Tonge this article about aggression in poker belongs to the Poker Strategy Series. This article series contains 5 key steps  to go from break-even to a winning player in poker. This fourth step deals with aggression in poker. Overview of the entire article series Which starting hands to play in poker Poker hand strength Bet sizing in poker Aggression in poker Position in poker Aggression in poker Summary: Be the aggressor – you have more chance to win the pot if you don‘t have a good hand, and you can build a nice big pot if you do have a good hand. And don’t give your opponents cheap cards to beat you. Be more aggressive! So, you’ve learned to fold your weaker hands. But what about hands you do want to play? Beginners tend to ‘limp in’ (call the big blind) too often pre-flop, and just call other players’ bets on later streets (on the flop, turn and river). You should try to bet and raise more often. This gives you a better chance to win the hand right away, as you will look like you have a strong hand, whether you really do or not! Also, if you have pocket aces, you don’t want to limp in and risk having 5 or 6 other players in the pot, as there is a higher chance that one of them will beat you. With every extra opponent you have, the chances of your Aces winning decrease. In fact, if your Aces are up against 4 other hands, you are more likely to lose than to win. You should raise, ’thinning the field ie. Forcing other players to fold and hoping to get only one or two callers,’ meaning a higher chance that your aces will remain best. If you have Ace-Queen, and raised before the flop, your opponents already believe you have a strong hand. Therefore, even if you completely miss the flop, you can bet again and still win! If you flop 2 pair, you want to build up a nice big pot as you are likely to have the best hand. You aren’t going to achieve this by checking and calling. Also, you don’t want to give your opponents the chance to see cheap, or even free, cards to beat you. An example of aggression in poker Take this hand for example. You are in early position and are dealt Ace-King off suit. You raise, and the button and the big blind call. The flop comes King, Nine, Eight, with 2 hearts. The fist player to act checks. Now, you have a strong hand – top pair, top kicker, and you might not want to scare your opponents away and not make any more money from the hand. But there are 2 hearts on the flop, and a possible straight draw if your opponents have a hand such as Ten-Jack. So you need to bet. Do not make it cheap for them to beat you. And […]

The post Aggression in poker appeared first on Poker Bankroll Blog.

]]> https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/aggression-in-poker.htm/feed 0 Bleznick and Cates high stake poker action February 2011 https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/bleznick-and-cates-high-stake-poker-action-february-2011.htm https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/bleznick-and-cates-high-stake-poker-action-february-2011.htm#comments Tue, 15 Feb 2011 17:40:26 +0000 http://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/?p=3269 High stake poker action during the second week of February 2011 Here’s a summary of the high stake poker action from the 2nd week of February 2011. During the week between February 6 and 13, the online poker action was yet again sizzling at both Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars. Jared Bleznick and Daniel Cates took center stage yet again, although not for the reasons they would’ve preferred. They both dropped serious amounts of money to players relatively unknown for the high stakes railbird community. Gus Hansen represented the other end of the spectrum as he kept his winning streak alive by taking down a $570k profit in only 651 hands spread over 8 sessions. Ironically, the largest pot of the week went down between the two losers, Bleznick and Cates, at the $300/$600 PLO tables at Full Tilt Poker. Following the usual preflop tussle which had already stuffed the pot nicely, the Kd, 7d, Qs flop ignited a little more give and take. The 9d on the turn was the last straw as both players shipped all their chips into the middle in its wake. Both players were right to shove all-in as they both had K-high straights. The river card was run twice, and the Kh on the first run split the pot between the players. The 9c on the second run though gave the win to Bleznich who thus ended up with three quarters of the $130k pot. Bleznick returned to action at PokerStars on Wednesday, only to drop around $114k to a guy named MrSweets28. Cates also saw action at Full Tilt Poker, locking horns with a Swedish player known under the moniker Lindqvro at the $25/$50 heads-up PLO tables. The affair turned into quite a bloodbath, with Cates filling the shoes of the harmed party. Both monster pots that developed ended up in Lindqvro’s possession. Gus Hansen and rumramper finished with the biggest profits, as Andreas Torbergsen joined the winners’ list too. UarePileous was the biggest loser, followed by Phil Galfond, Jared Bleznick and Daniel Cates.

The post Bleznick and Cates high stake poker action February 2011 appeared first on Poker Bankroll Blog.

]]> https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/bleznick-and-cates-high-stake-poker-action-february-2011.htm/feed 0 Gus Hansen 2011 – can he continue his heater? https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/gus-hansen-2011-can-he-continue-his-heater.htm https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/gus-hansen-2011-can-he-continue-his-heater.htm#comments Sun, 13 Feb 2011 09:37:30 +0000 http://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/?p=3262 Here’s a short recap of how Gus Hansen’s 2011 looks so far According to HighStakesDB he is up by 2.3 million$ in 2011 spread over 155 sessions. This extends Gus Hansen’s winning streak from September 2010. In 2011 he has been very successful in the Omaha poker variants, which cost him close to 4 million $ in 2010. Gus Hansen has also started to get some money back from players like Phil “OMGClayAiken” Galfond and Di “Urindanger” Dang who have both lost considerable pots to the Dane. I don’t think Phil Galfond will be too unhappy about this though, since his 2011 so far has given him a profit of almost 5 million $!!!! That’s so sick. Hopefully Gus Hansen will continue his steady earnings throughout 2011 and steer clear of the kind of blow-ups, which cost him several million $ in 2010.

The post Gus Hansen 2011 – can he continue his heater? appeared first on Poker Bankroll Blog.

]]> https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/gus-hansen-2011-can-he-continue-his-heater.htm/feed 0 Bet sizing in poker https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/bet-sizing-in-poker.htm https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/bet-sizing-in-poker.htm#comments Sat, 12 Feb 2011 22:41:23 +0000 http://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/?p=3201 Submitted by Matthew Tonge this article about bet sizing in poker belongs to the Poker Strategy Series. This series of articles covers 5 key steps  to go from novice to a winning player in poker. The third step deals with bet sizing in poker. Overview of the entire article series Which starting hands to play in poker Poker hand strength Bet sizing in poker Aggression in poker Position in poker Bet Sizing in poker Summary: Remember what you are trying to achieve by betting or raising. The size of your bets and raises should be big enough to achieve this. Bet sizing early in tournaments So you now know when you need to bet, and why. But how much? Like we said, you don’t want to give away cheap cards. If you want to raise pre-flop in the early stages of a tournament when the blinds are 10 and 20, making a minimum raise to 40 is usually a bad play. If you have a strong hand, and want to minimize the amount of opponents you have, this is unlikely to achieve that. If a player was willing to pay 20 chips to see a flop, they will probably pay 40. Generally, you want to raise to 3 to 4 times the size of the big blind in the early stages when the blinds are small. The same applies to cash games when the blinds remain the same. Bet sizing late in tournaments In the later stages of a tournament, when the blinds increase, 2 ½ to 3 times the big blind should be enough. If your opponent has a flush draw and there is 500 chips in the pot, it is pointless betting 50. Your opponent is not going to fold for 50 chips. You should generally bet between half the size of the pot and the size of the pot. So, in this case, between 250 and 500. Also, if you have a very strong hand on the river, for example, and you want your opponent to call your bet, you must size your bet accordingly. Let’s say there is 1,000 chips in the pot, and you both have around 3,000 chips left in your stacks. Going all in is likely to scare your opponent off most hands, and if you don’t have the absolute nuts, then a shove will only be called by a hand that beats you. Betting around half the pot is much more likely to be called by a hands which yours beats but still has some showdown value. Matthew Tonge For free poker tutorial videos, please visit my youtube page at you tube.com/unkempt27.

The post Bet sizing in poker appeared first on Poker Bankroll Blog.

]]> https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/bet-sizing-in-poker.htm/feed 0 Blom and Bleznick high stake poker February 2011 https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/blom-and-bleznick-high-stake-poker-february-2011.htm https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/blom-and-bleznick-high-stake-poker-february-2011.htm#comments Tue, 08 Feb 2011 20:49:23 +0000 http://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/?p=3241 Blom and Bleznick high stakes online action Here’s a recap of the high stake poker action from the 1st week of February 2011. Viktor Blom, aka Isildur1 may have had his woes during January at PokerStars’ tables, but in the end he managed to lure Lady Luck to his side, finishing the month above the red line. Last week, his heater continued. In fact, his $332,904 profit – accumulated over about 8,200 hands – made him the biggest winner of the week. Another player who did extremely well was Jared “harrington25″ Bleznick. His $251k haul was enough to give him second place on the winners/losers list. Whenever there are winners there have to be losers too. Last week, Rychard Lyndaker headlined the part of the list which fell under the red line. Tom Dwan got stuck with a massive 6-figure loss as well. One of the most interesting confrontations of the week was the one between Viktor Blom and Brian Hastings. Those who follow the going-ons of the online poker world know about the history between these two, so they’ll understand why this shaped up as a perfect opportunity for vindication for the Swede. Unfortunately for him, Hastings still appeared to have his number at the $25/$50 PLO tables, and he ended up dropping a little over $150k to the player responsible for his 2009 Full Tilt Poker demise, yet again. Both significant pots that developed during the session ended up in Hastings’ pockets. While all this was happening at PokerStars, Jared Bleznick was busy over at Full Tilt Poker fleecing a player known as “UarePielous”. The $500/$1,000 Capped PLO tables represented the scene for the trouncing. Two maxed-out ($80k) pots were registered during the slaughter and obviously: both went to Bleznick. For the first one, he flopped a set of Ks, which steamrolled his opponent’s flopped two pair. For the second 80k pot, the two players ran the turn and the river cards twice. Both times, Bleznick made boats, so there wasn’t really a whole lot more anyone could add to that. When the line was drawn at the end of the week, Blom was the biggest winner, followed by Bleznick. Also above the red line were Benjamin Tollerene with a profit of $252k, and Gus Hansen. Scott Palmer joined the winners’ circle as well. Besides Lyndaker and Dwan, Andrew Lichtenberger and Cole South lost money too.

The post Blom and Bleznick high stake poker February 2011 appeared first on Poker Bankroll Blog.

]]> https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/blom-and-bleznick-high-stake-poker-february-2011.htm/feed 0 UIGEA regulations and their influence on the poker industry https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/uigea-regulations-and-their-influence-on-the-poker-industry.htm https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/uigea-regulations-and-their-influence-on-the-poker-industry.htm#comments Mon, 07 Feb 2011 16:37:11 +0000 http://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/?p=3236 UIGEA regulations and their influence on the poker industry The poker industry continues to grow around the world (primarily fueled by poker online operators) but it continues to face headwinds in various areas. Government regulation continues to be a major factor in many markets, as does consolidation among some operators– including the planned merger of bwin and PartyGaming — as they try to scale up to challenge dominant players such as PokerStars and Full Tilt. The effects of the US UIGEA legislation on the global poker industry are major. Despite hopes that the Reid poker bill and other legislation might pave the way for regulation of online poker in the US market the situation remains largely unchanged since the UIGEA was passed in 2006. While some operators continue to serve the lucrative US market, the majority have had to look for growth elsewhere in other regions of the world, unwilling to risk the wrath of US law enforcement agencies or to possibly jeopardize re-entry to the US market in the future if online poker is regulated and legalized. Government regulation and taxation of online gaming is a growing trend, as more and more countries seek to emulate the path that Italy and France have taken, as far as not just regulating and taxing online gaming but restricting play to only citizens of those countries on regulated gaming sites. Whether or not this proves to facilitate long-term growth remains to be seen; the reality is that the lure of increased tax dollars and greater control over regulation and licensing has other countries contemplating implementing similar systems. Despite these and other difficulties, Internet poker sites have continued to grow, albeit at a much-reduced pace as compared to grown from 2000-2006 prior to the UIGEA being passed. Much of that growth has come from Europe, with growth coming from areas including Greece, Hungary, Italy, France, and Spain. While Asia continues to hold much promise the reality is that it has been more difficult than expected to tap into that potential, with actual new player acquisitions lagging many of the expectations and forecasts. As far as bright spots and potential future growth areas, mobile gaming remains one of the brightest, and poised to be a major revenue source once issues regarding security and regulation are settled. Smartphones and tablet devices continue to explode in popularity and are the perfect platform for mobile poker; the biggest impediment to growth is currently the reluctance of Apple and some other companies to support the distribution of gambling apps as well as hesitation on the part of online operators due to security concerns. As the poker industry begins to mature, so too do some of the related services such as gaming consultancies and B2B divisions and arms of online firms that help third-party clients launch their own online gaming operations. Pressure to increase profit margins and expand revenues have also led many companies to re-examine their CRM operations, rake models, and affiliate programs, with much more focus placed […]

The post UIGEA regulations and their influence on the poker industry appeared first on Poker Bankroll Blog.

]]> https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/uigea-regulations-and-their-influence-on-the-poker-industry.htm/feed 0 Gus Hansen broke in 2010? https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/gus-hansen-broke-in-2010.htm https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/gus-hansen-broke-in-2010.htm#comments Mon, 07 Feb 2011 06:26:12 +0000 http://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/?p=3233 Gus Hansen was rumored broke in late 2010 after a reportedly miserable year on the online felt. In this article I will give you a recap of Gus Hansen’s poker performance in 2010 (based on highstakesDB records). I thinks it’s safe to say that Gus Hansen didn’t go broke in 2010. He did however lose so much that his poker bankroll must have suffered. Gus Hansen’s live tournament results in 2010 include a 1st place finish in The WSOP Europe event in London as well as a 1st place finish in the winner-takes-it-all Poker Million tournament hosted by Full Tilt Poker. In total Gus Hansen won around 1.5 million $ in live tournaments in 2010. However it was his online swings at the nosebleed stakes on Full Tilt Poker, which took the headlines in 2010: Gus Hansen’s 2010 online poker performance: January: $+1.743.125 February: $+81.361 ($+1.824.486) March: $-1.617.936 ($+206.550) April: $-374.822 ($-168.272) May: $+895.070 ($+726.798) June: No information – to few hands July: $-176.303 ($+550.495) August: $-2.856.898 ($-2.306.403) September: $+208.806 ($-2.097.597) October: $+184.226 ($-1.913.371) November: $+173.546 ($-1.739.825) December: $+31.979 ($-1.707.846) As you can see if it hadn’t been for a catastrophically poor March and especially August, Gus Hansen would have been a huge winner in 2010. His almost 3 million $ August loss over around 43000 hands was the biggest monthly loss for any player in 2010. Gus Hansen’s main problem in 2010 was without a doubt his stubbornness to continue playing Pot Limit Omaha against players who have an edge on him – players like Tom Dwan durrrr and Phil “OMGClayAiken” Galfond. In 2010 Gus Hansen lost a whopping 4 million $ (give or take a few $) on Pot Limit Omaha. In comparison he was at the top of the charts when in comes to fixed limit H.O.R.S.E where he totaled a profit of 2 million $. In conclusion, the rumors of Gus Hansen going broke in 2010 were only rumors. Although losing almost 2 million $ on the online felt, he won 1.5 million $ in live tournaments and don’t forget Gus Hansen is also hugely successful in backgammon, which has most likely given him a decent profit for 2010.

The post Gus Hansen broke in 2010? appeared first on Poker Bankroll Blog.

]]> https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/gus-hansen-broke-in-2010.htm/feed 0 Texas Hold Em Rules https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/texas-hold-em-rules.htm https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/texas-hold-em-rules.htm#comments Sun, 06 Feb 2011 11:03:20 +0000 http://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/?p=3227 This article is a summary of the guides I have written so far about Texas Hold Em rules on The Poker Bankroll Blog. It goes without saying that you need to be 100% aware of the Texas Hold Em Rules in order to become a winning poker player. The articles below should provide you with basic knowledge about the most elementary Texas Hold Em rules. Texas Hold Em rules – Poker Hand Ranking An article showing the different Texas Hold Em hands and how they rank against each other Texas Hold Em rules – Poker hands An article giving in depth information about each Texas Hold Em hand Texas Hold Em rules – Big blind, small blind and the Texas Hold Em game play An article describing how the Texas Hold Em game is played Texas Hold Em rules – Poker starting hand strategy An article describing the concept of position in poker and a guide to which hands to play according to the position you have on the table Good luck on the tables!

The post Texas Hold Em Rules appeared first on Poker Bankroll Blog.

]]> https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/texas-hold-em-rules.htm/feed 0 Poker hand strength https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/poker-hand-strength.htm https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/poker-hand-strength.htm#comments Sun, 06 Feb 2011 09:28:48 +0000 http://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/?p=3203 Submitted by Matthew Tonge this article about poker hand strength belongs to the Poker Strategy Series. Matthew recently submitted an article series about 5 key steps  to go from beginner to winner in poker. The second step is all about mastering the concept of poker hand strength Overview of the entire article series Which starting hands to play in poker Poker hand strength Bet sizing in poker Aggression in poker Position in poker Poker hand strength Summary: Don’t fall in love with your hands. Some look nice at first, but if the action gets too hot, throw them away! The strength of your poker hand is relative to the strength of your opponents’ hands. You are on the button and are dealt Ace-Jack. That’s a good hand. If it is folded around to you, there is a good chance that your hand is best. But let’s say that a player in early position raises, and then a player in middle position re-raises. Now, do you still think your Ace-Jack is strong? Remember what we said about needing a stronger hand the earlier your position. The player who raised in early position probably has a strong hand. Then the person who re-raised said “hey, I know you probably have a strong hand, but my hand is even stronger!” A good player will probably not re-raise here with a hand worse than yours, like Ace-Ten or King-Queen. In other words, your hand is almost certainly behind! It is a slight underdog to a pair of tens or lower, is a big underdog to Jack-Jack, Queen-Queen, King-King, Ace-King and Ace-Queen, and is a huge underdog to Ace-Ace. The beginner would still want to play the Ace-Jack. The intelligent player will realize that it is no longer good enough, and fold. So, be more selective about which hands you play, try not to play too many hands out of position, don’t be passive – be aggressive, bet an amount that will achieve what you want to achieve, and pay attention to the strength your opponents are showing. If you can do these, you will be well on your way to becoming a competent poker player. Matthew Tonge For free poker tutorial videos, please visit my youtube page at you tube.com/unkempt27

The post Poker hand strength appeared first on Poker Bankroll Blog.

]]> https://www.pokerbankrollblog.com/poker-hand-strength.htm/feed 0