Video Article: Andrew Brokos - Flexible Thinking (PREVIEW)

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Andrew "Foucault" Brokos is well known on 2+2 for his knowledge of the game. Andrew's experiences in the $5/$10 to $25/$50 NLHE cash games provide plenty of fodder for his highly regarded poker writing and coaching. His innovative teaching style, informed by his work in urban public education, blends big picture strategy with detailed hand analysis and color commentary. Andrew has also cashed in the last 3 WSOP Main Events, including a 35th place finish in 2008 earning him $193,000.

The Card Player Pro/PokerSavvy Plus team of pros includes Michael “SirWatts” Watson, Justin “WPTHero” Rollo, Dani “ansky” Stern, Tony “Bond18” Dunst, Andrew “Foucault” Brokos, Christian “Charder30” Harder, Tom “LearnedfromTV” Chambers, and Evan “_Fisherman” Roberts.

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Barney Frank Introduces Internet Gambling Regulation Act

Barney Frank, Chair of the House Committee on Financial Services, has issued a bill entitled "Internet Gambling Regulation Consumer Protection and Enforcement Act of 2009". The bill calls for a federal system to license, regulate, and tax internet gambling operators. The bill also mentions safeguards such as enforcing age limits, protecting against money laundering attempts and guarding against compulsive gambling.


The bill has not been signed but the poker community, as well as the Poker Players Alliance are happy to see the bill finally issued. "Online poker is a legal, thriving industry and poker players deserve the consumer protections and the freedom to play that are provided for in this legislation," said Alfonse D’Amato, Chairman of The Poker Players Alliance.

The bill would also reverse the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 which made it illegal for banks or other institutions to process transactions for online betting.

"No financial transaction provider shall be held liable for engaging in financial activities and transactions for or on behalf of a licensee or involving a licensee, including payments processing activities, if such activities are performed in compliance."

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Tips From Tunica - Andy Bloch

I'm writing from Tunica, MS, where I've played in several World Series of Poker* Circuit events at the Grand Hotel and Casino. A couple of days ago, I played in a $2,000 No-Limit Hold 'em tournament, and I saw some of my opponents make some pretty odd plays. For this tip, I decided to highlight a couple of these strange decisions and describe why you should avoid making similar plays.

A Curious River Raise

Midway through the tournament, I saw King-9 in the cutoff (the seat to the immediate right of the button). I raised to put some pressure on the blinds, and I was called by the big blind. The flop came T-5-2 rainbow, so it was no help to me. My opponent checked, and I checked behind him.

The turn was a 9, giving me a pair. He checked, and I made a small bet that he then called. The river was a King and I now had two pair. After my opponent checked and, thinking that I had the best hand, I made a substantial bet. At this point, he surprised me and made a large raise. I was reasonably sure I was up against a set or Q-J for the straight, but still, I made the crying call.

He showed pocket Aces and I took a nice pot.

What should my opponent have done?

For starters, he could have re-raised pre-flop, though calling pre-flop was certainly reasonable. He also could have taken the lead in the betting on the flop or the turn, not allowing free cards to hit the board. However, his real trouble came on the river.

When he check-raised, he failed to ask himself a critical question: What hand can I call with that he could beat? His river check-raise showed a lot of strength - so much, in fact, that I probably wouldn't have called with any one pair. By the river, he really had no idea what I was holding. For all he knew, I could have had Queen-Jack or any sort of two pair. If I held the straight, he'd be facing a very large raise, one that would certainly be a mistake to call.

In this sort of situation, his best play was to check-call on the river. By the time the river card hit, he should have been looking to showdown the hand with the hope that his pair survived.

While here, I've seen many players make similar mistakes on the river. They bet or raised with any hand that they suspected was best, including marginal cards like second pair. But their big mistake was that they failed to consider their opponent's hand. When you hold marginal cards, you should ask yourself two important questions: Do I have the best hand? And, if I do, does my opponent hold a hand that he's willing to call with? If you can't answer "yes" to both questions, just check the river and showdown the hand.

Trouble on the Turn

Later in the tournament, I raised pre-flop in late position with King-6 and the big blind called me. The flop came Ac-As-7s. I didn't have an Ace, but I bet anyway when my opponent checked. After he smooth-called and a 6h came up on the turn, my opponent bet big.

This play makes no sense because it doesn't tell a coherent story. A check-raise on the flop would be reasonable - my opponent would be representing a big hand, maybe trip Aces. A check-call on the turn would make sense, too. In that case, he probably holds a monster like a full house or he could just have a seven.

As it turned out, my opponent had A-7 (that's what he said, anyway), and by betting he forced me to fold. That wasn't very smart. If he checked, I might have continued with my bluff (though that-s unlikely).

In any case, it's almost never a good idea to check-call a flop bet, and then bet the turn if a blank hits. A play like that might confuse your opponent momentarily, but you're unlikely to gain much value. Your flop and turn bets should be related – they should tell a consistent story.

If you think carefully about your turn and river bets and what you're trying to gain, you're sure to improve your results. You'll get better value on the turn and avoid drowning on the river.

See you at the next tournament stop.

* World Series of Poker and WSOP are trademarks of Harrah's License Company, LLC ("Harrahs"). Harrah's does not sponsor or endorse, and is not associated or affiliated with FullTiltPoker.com or its products, services, promotions or tournaments.

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Pokerstar's Challenge - 600 FPP Points In 2 Days!

It's been a while since I posted about my Pokerstar's Challenge. I am know finished 2400 of the 3000 VPP points to unlock the $150 bonus. I'm up $628 total for the challenge so so far. I would like to finished the challenge +$1000.


For some reason I left the challenge to the last minute for this month. I wanted to collect 1200 points this month to reach Silverstar again and I only reached 600 in the first 28 days. So that left me with 2 days to collect 600 VPP points. I calculated I make about 100 VPP points in 3 hours playing 4 tables of NL25 (6 max). So I need to play for 18 hours in 2 days, so 9 hours per day. The only problem is I had 8 hour work shifts on both days!

I ended up playing 16 hours and I reached 600 VPP points with 2 minutes remaining before midnight. For the last hour, I actually had to play 6 fast tables to complete it in time. I also wanted to deposit for another reload bonus but I had to deposit before May and I missed the chance.

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Anyway, here are some hands:

I think this is the best bluff I've ever made. Note, BB only has like $5-$6 left on the river and it is a $25-$30 pot. The way BB played this; call flop, weak lead on turn and river steal looking bet made me believe he had a flush draw.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.25 BB (5 handed)

saw flop | saw showdown

BB ($16.30)
UTG ($10.05)
MP ($33.60)
Hero (Button) ($28.25)
SB ($7.70)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 8, J
UTG calls $0.25, 1 fold, Hero calls $0.25, 1 fold, BB checks

Flop: ($0.85) 9, 2, 7 (3 players)
BB checks, UTG checks, Hero bets $0.75, BB calls $0.75, 1 fold

Turn: ($2.35) 6 (2 players)
BB bets $1, Hero raises to $4, BB calls $3

River: ($10.35) K (2 players)
BB bets $5.25, Hero raises to $23.25 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: $20.85 | Rake: $1
Main pot: $20.85 returned to Hero

Results:
Hero didn't show 8, J (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won $19.85

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I think I played this hand pretty good. My opponent invested a lot of money on a weak draw out of position. Unfortunately he hits one of his 7 outs.


PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.25 BB (6 handed)

saw flop | saw showdown

Hero (BB) ($25.85)
UTG ($8.20)
MP ($14.75)
CO ($27.55)
Button ($15.70)
SB ($22.55)

Preflop: Hero is BB with J, 9
4 folds, SB bets $0.50, Hero calls $0.25

Flop: ($1) 7, 9, 8 (2 players)
SB bets $0.50, Hero raises to $2, SB calls $1.50

Turn: ($5) 2 (2 players)
SB bets $2, Hero raises to $7, SB calls $5

River: ($19) K (2 players)
SB bets $3, Hero calls $3

Total pot: $25 | Rake: $1.20
Main pot: $25 between Hero and SB, won by SB

Results:
SB had K, 6 (one pair, Kings).
Hero mucked J, 9 (one pair, nines).
Outcome: SB won $23.80

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This hand makes me sick. The ace on the turn is a terrible card because I know my opponent has an over pair(I was guessing jacks, queens or kings) and that the ace would kill my action. He ended up having aces and I lose a $50 pot. A few hands later I hit bottom set, only to run into middle set and lose another $25.


PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.25 BB (6 handed)

saw flop | saw showdown

Button ($24.65)
SB ($8.90)
BB ($8.65)
Hero (UTG) ($26.35)
MP ($16.60)
CO ($25)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with 5, 5
Hero calls $0.25, MP calls $0.25, CO bets $1.50, 2 folds, BB calls $1.25, Hero calls $1.25, MP calls $1.25

Flop: ($6.10) 5, 7, 2 (4 players)
BB checks, Hero checks, MP checks, CO bets $5.70, 1 fold, Hero calls $5.70, 1 fold

Turn: ($17.50) A (2 players)
Hero checks, CO bets $8.30, Hero raises to $19.15 (All-In), CO calls $9.50 (All-In)

River: ($53.10) J (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: $53.10 | Rake: $2.60
Main pot: $53.10 between Hero and CO, won by CO

Results:
Hero had 5, 5 (three of a kind, fives).
CO had A, A (three of a kind, Aces).
Outcome: CO won $50.50

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Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier Breaks Multi-Table SNG Record (62 SNGS Simultaneously)

PokerStars Pro Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier broke the multi-table sng record by playing 62 sngs at the same time. He played $6.50 buy-in turbo sit-n-goes on PokerStars and finished them all within 1 hour. In order for the record to count, he had to finish in the positive and he did: +$23.67.


It wasn't easy for Elky and he was timing out at many of the tables.

Elky:

It was out of control. Short-handed play went so fast and I was sitting out a lot, but at the end I managed to regain momentum and got better.

It was a close one, Elky had to win the last SNG he played in order to finish in the positive. Here is a video of Elky's MTT Challenge. Skip to 11th minute for the record attempt.


EPT Monte Carlo S5: Elky's MTT Challenge

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$100 Sit & Go - Final Stages

"DrunkBadger" Plays The Final Stages Of a $100 Buy-In Sit & Go on Titan Poker.

(For full screen, click bottom right)



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How Big a Bankroll? - Team Full Tilt

"Poker is a tough business," says Erik Seidel. "You can go through long streaks when you don't win anything." When things go badly, when you can't seem to cash in a tournament or win a significant pot in a cash game, you come to understand the importance of maintaining an adequate bankroll.

Just how big should your bankroll be? How much money do you need to ensure that a bad run won't put you on the rail? We Full Tilt Poker pros agree that the answer depends on a number of factors, including the types of games you're playing, the level of competition you're encountering, and your psychological disposition.

As Jennifer Harman says, "Some players can be effective on a relatively short bankroll, but others need more of a cushion. They'll get stressed out and play scared if they don't have enough money behind them." So you need to be aware of your comfort level at the table. If you're nervous about what you stand to lose in a given pot, you're probably playing too high for your bankroll. Harman, like most Team Full Tilt members, recommends a conservative approach and suggests maintaining a bankroll that leaves plenty of room for downswings. "If you're playing $10-$20 limit, I think $10,000 is about right," says Harman.

John D'Agostino agrees, "You should never play a limit where you feel uncomfortable." He suggests that a player shouldn't put more than five percent of his bankroll in play at any time.

The need for a sizable bankroll exists for tournament play as well as cash games. Erik Seidel, a tournament specialist, notes that long droughts are common for tournament professionals and that entry fees can add up quickly. "If you were to play all of the $10,000 buy-in events, you could spend half a million over the course of year," says Seidel. "Even top players can have years when then don't cash for $100,000, so having a proper bankroll is critical."

"You need a much bigger bankroll in tournaments than you do in side games," agrees Chris Ferguson. "A lot of people play tournaments without nearly enough. You easily need 100 buy-ins. Maybe 200."

Playing over your bankroll is fine once in awhile, but all the pros concur that it's important to leave yourself plenty of money to recover from unlucky hands and the occasional mistake. D'Agostino, one of the top young players in poker, offers one further tip for hanging on to your money. "Don't play Phil Ivey heads up. I tried that once and I failed miserably."

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