If Carlsberg did dull poker blogs, they'd do this one

[Bad hat lady]

I'll have you know the hat wearing was a serious scientific study! One of the poker books I read said that you should know your table image and play to it. Always believing what I read in poker books I thought I should experiment. Admittedly I may have extrapolated the advice further than originally intended but it did throw up some useful facts. For example, it is hard to get people to respect your raise when you are wearing a sombrero and goggle-eye glasses. I must admit that apart from the unfortunate blinding incident, the flying helmet and goggles was one of my favourites as it not only hid your expression but could be used in conjunction with other supplementary behaviours. Declaring you are "going in" and pulling the goggles down whenever you enter a pot can put temperamental players on tilt after about the third time. To increase the affect, every time you win a pot you should spread your arms and "fly" around the table humming the theme from the Dam busters march. The down sides of this technique are:
1.   For some reason it doesn't seem to be effective when playing internet poker
2.   Flying helmets are quite hot so should only be used in rooms with American style artic air-conditioning
3.   Parts of the technique might fall foul of the new WSOP rules on excessive celebration. I can only suggest reducing the length of your arms and humming quietly until you can judge what you can get away with.
4.   You might get beaten up

By the way, after posting this message I realized I had got it all wrong. You should replace the furry flying helmet with one of those old fashioned crash helmets to partner the goggles. This gives you the opportunity to shout "beep beep, make way" when entering a pot and celebrating winning a hand by "driving" around the table making engine noises. The disadvantages are the same as for the flying helmet but at least it doesn"t hurt as much if you get beaten up.

[monkeyman]

Enough of this hat related frippery, back to the poker.
  As is my want, I"ve altered my playing habits yet again this week. I had a brief dalliance with PKR earlier in the year and decided it wasn"t to my tastes. Yes, it looks nice, but the tournament structures are way too quick for my liking. Since then, I"ve become more accustomed to play cash tables so, in view of the fact that its got a reputation for being a bit soft, I"d thought I"d give it another go. I started with omaha and was surprised to find that the standard was pretty reasonable compared to the other sites I"ve played at the same buy ins. Then onto the hold"em. Oh lordy, what is going on here. There are some very, very strange players on this site. Calling stations abound and I"ve seen a move several times over which I"ve not witnessed elsewhere.  On a number of occasions, I"ve raised from late position and only been called by the big blind. The BB then procedes to check/call the flop and turn, finishing with an all in shove on the river. On each occasion i"ve seen it, the shove on these circumstances has been with a very weak hand and I"ve won when I"ve called. If only all cash games were like this!          

[Bad hat lady]

Oh lordy, what is going on here. There are some very, very strange players on this site. Calling stations abound and I"ve seen a move several times over which I"ve not witnessed elsewhere.  On a number of occasions, I"ve raised from late position and only been called by the big blind. The BB then procedes to check/call the flop and turn, finishing with an all in shove on the river. On each occasion i"ve seen it, the shove on these circumstances has been with a very weak hand and I"ve won when I"ve called. If only all cash games were like this!          

This is a very common move in sit and goes. The problem is that they either have absolute rubbish or the nuts. I guess you just have to look at the texture of the board, concider the previous plays, and if you think they are bluffing hold on to your hat and go for it!

 

[monkeyman]

I played 3 short sessions on cash tables yesterday and decided to mix things up a bit by playing different poker variants. In order, I played No Limit Hold'em, Pot Limit Omaha and Razz. To my surprise, the biggest profit came in Razz.
   I"ve got a bit of a soft spot for Razz as it gave me my only APAT ranking points in season 1 despite the fact that I had only learnt the rules of the game 2 days before the event. I also had something of a brainstorm involving this game last year which illustrates several lessons about bankroll management. I decided I would have a go at playing cash Razz on Pokerstars. Things started well and as soon as I had made a bit of a profit, I moved up to the next buy in level. I quickly found myself playing at $3/$6 level and made $250 profit in 2 days. You can probably guess whats coming next, but within another 2 days, I had blown all my profit and was back down to 0.
 One of the reasons I play games other than hold"em is that I get bored going through the same thought processes all the time and trying different variants helps retain my enthusiasm for the game. In addition, during my many hours spent in cloud cuckoo land, I often start thinking how I"m going to win my first gold bracelet. My masterplan doesn"t involve playing the WSOP main event at all, but having a crack at some of the non Hold'em competitions. My reasoning goes something along the lines of if there"s less competitors its got to be easier to win. Mmm, think there"s a flaw in there somewhere. Nevermind, it keeps me happy.

[monkeyman]

And so my odyssey throough the nether reaches of my poker repertoire continues...
 For the past couple of days I"ve played nothing but cash stud on Full Tilt. As with Omaha, I suck at the Hi/Lo version, but the Hi only variant is beginning to click into place. I"ve made the startling discovery that I make more money (translates as "lose less" ) by NOT calling every single bet all the way to 7th street just in case I hit a useful card. I might just have to start playing HORSE tournaments as I"m now equally incompetent in the five constituent games.

[Santino67]

if you think they are bluffing hold on to your hat and go for it!  

Absolutely correct...............but which hat    

[monkeyman]

BBC news 24 have just broadcast the following revelation:

"In a move which has rocked the world of poker, Simon "Idrivetractors" Alcock has announced he is not to participate in this evening"s APAT tournament. Sources close to the legendary fish have been indicating for a number of days that "Tractors" would find something else to do with his time and our east of england correspondent braved the lines of caravans and agricultural vehicles along the A17 to get this exclusive report"
"So "Tractors", what has led you to take this step?" "I first of all want to reassure all those players who benefit from some of my dodgier plays that I have not left the fold entirely. After much deliberation, I have decided that rather than continually throw away $11 in a vain attempt to top the APAT rankings, I would occasionally find something else to do. Tonight and saturday I will instead be watching the speedway world cup on Sky TV." "This will come as quite a blow to some of your opponents. What factors have affected your decision?" "A number of thoughts led me to this conclusion. The gap between the rankings leader and myself played a part, the fact that I currently enjoy playing cash games more than tournaments and the realisation that I could do something between getting home from work and going to bed than playing non-stop internet poker all played a part" When do you think you will return?" "I should be back for the next tournaments in two weeks"  "Do you think your presence will be missed?" "Yes I do. I have a long track record of sharing my chips out to anyone at my table, so the other players are going to think of a strategy other than waiting for me to go on tilt. Even Scouse3465, who has mistakenly commented on more than one occasion that he thinks I have some kind of read on him, normally benefits from my generosity"
"Thank you for setting the record straight. Now, back to the studio where we bring you a story about the face of Elvis appearing on a doughnut"

[APAT]

 

[monkeyman]

Cash  seven card stud - the game that can prove profitable even after coming home from a night in the pub!

[monkeyman]

Along with my gradual shift from tournament to cash play, the other thing that I"ve changed my view on recently is my attitude towards drinking whilst playing. I"ve always had a self-imposed ban on alcohol during poker of any form and, allowing for the odd lapse when I"ve come home from a night out, I"ve generally been very disciplined in this respect.
  I"ve come to thinking that there"s no harm in a small drink or two and have got into the habit of accompanying an evening session at the cash tables with a bottle of Leffe Blonde. I was curious as to whether other APATers have any specific drink they partake of whilst playing or if anyone has any strong views on poker/alcohol mixing.  

[Swinebag]

Along with my gradual shift from tournament to cash play, the other thing that I"ve changed my view on recently is my attitude towards drinking whilst playing. I"ve always had a self-imposed ban on alcohol during poker of any form and, allowing for the odd lapse when I"ve come home from a night out, I"ve generally been very disciplined in this respect.
  I"ve come to thinking that there"s no harm in a small drink or two and have got into the habit of accompanying an evening session at the cash tables with a bottle of Leffe Blonde. I was curious as to whether other APATers have any specific drink they partake of whilst playing or if anyone has any strong views on poker/alcohol mixing.  

I have attributed my recent improved run of live results to drinking a lot of alcohol, in moderation of course

[mal666]

get loose with the juice

[Bad hat lady]

Along with my gradual shift from tournament to cash play, the other thing that I"ve changed my view on recently is my attitude towards drinking whilst playing. I"ve always had a self-imposed ban on alcohol during poker of any form and, allowing for the odd lapse when I"ve come home from a night out, I"ve generally been very disciplined in this respect.
  I"ve come to thinking that there"s no harm in a small drink or two and have got into the habit of accompanying an evening session at the cash tables with a bottle of Leffe Blonde. I was curious as to whether other APATers have any specific drink they partake of whilst playing or if anyone has any strong views on poker/alcohol mixing.  

The disadvantage of drinking alcohol while playing poker is that it can adversely affect your decision making processes. In its favour is that playing can take up a lot of your time so it makes sense to multi-task your vices. I would suggest that gambling and rock & roll are natural partners, of the others I would suggest drinking was less distracting than drugs or sex.

[monkeyman]

Along with my gradual shift from tournament to cash play, the other thing that I"ve changed my view on recently is my attitude towards drinking whilst playing. I"ve always had a self-imposed ban on alcohol during poker of any form and, allowing for the odd lapse when I"ve come home from a night out, I"ve generally been very disciplined in this respect.
  I"ve come to thinking that there"s no harm in a small drink or two and have got into the habit of accompanying an evening session at the cash tables with a bottle of Leffe Blonde. I was curious as to whether other APATers have any specific drink they partake of whilst playing or if anyone has any strong views on poker/alcohol mixing.  

The disadvantage of drinking alcohol while playing poker is that it can adversely affect your decision making processes. In its favour is that playing can take up a lot of your time so it makes sense to multi-task your vices. I would suggest that gambling and rock & roll are natural partners, of the others I would suggest drinking was less distracting than drugs or sex.

I must be doing something right then. I"ll normally play whilst listening to whatever obscure scandinavian heavy metal band I have an affinity for at the time. As for the other two options (a) hasn"t really ever been a consideration and do you seriously think I would be playing poker if (b) was on offer?

[ibis]

I was curious as to whether other APATers have any specific drink they partake of whilst playing or if anyone has any strong views on poker/alcohol mixing.  

After a great deal of research I"ve discovered that the optimal poker/alcohol mix depends on the game you"re playing and the time of day:

Before 8pm, I stick to lager. For a 6 max SnG, I"d go for one of those little 2% French lagers. For a MT SnG, you need something a bit stronger so go for Carling or Fosters. For a big tourney, you need at least a Grolsch or maybe Carlsberg Special brew

Between 8pm and 10pm, it"s time for wine. A nice light beaujolais goes well with a small SnG whilst a Cote de Rhone is well matched with a slightly bigger event. For the big heavyweight tournament, you can"t beat a solid Claret

10pm to midnight and the malt comes out. Light, gentle Glenfiddich for SnG, maybe a speyside for MT SnG (I"m currently experimenting with a Sherry cask Glenmorangie which is working quite well). For a big event, you need a big heavy malt so that means an Islay - Laphroaig or Lagavulin.

After midnight I don"t really play much poker. I"m usually quite tired and ready for bed. Besides, by this time I"m struggling to focus on my cards never mind them tiny buttons and a mouse.