UKGF Betting & Poker Forums » Poker

The All Pocket Pairs Strategy In Turbo Texas Hold ‘Em SNGs

Paul Jones — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 21:33:44 +0000

- [Guest post by Richard Arkless]
Figuring out a style for poker isn’t easy. This is especially the case for Texas Hold ‘Em sit and go’s, which are one the most popular forms of poker today. This game is so challenging that large universities even have had their brightest students working on how the ultimate strategy. Much progress has been made, but there is no final solution (a few systems have emerged though, including pushbotting and SAGE). One thing that has been established is that Texas Hold ‘Em isn’t a black and white game where you can apply the same strategy every time. If you take this approach, then people in the game will begin to pick up on your tendencies. In order to be successful, you must mix up your game and adapt to other players. You need to play tight against aggressive players and loose and against tight players. The toughest players are the ones who are tight-aggressive. Therefore, that’s exactly what you want to be.

Entering a new poker game and trying to adapt is indeed challenging. That being the case, there is a good strategy to implement. It has proven to be effective against players that aren’t familiar with your habits. It’s also easy to remember. It’s a tight-aggressive approach and it must be followed at all times. If you sway from the plan, then you will likely fail. To make sure you stick to it, sign a contract for yourself prior to playing and swear on something or someone dear to you. This might sound ludicrous to some people, but it’s that important and it works. It’s much better to sign a contract than it is to lose a few hundred £ in a few quick hands.

As far as this turbo heads-up Sit and go strategy goes, the basic rule is that you’re only allowed to play the following hands: all pocket pairs, AK, AQ and Ax suited. Ax suited refer to two cards of the same suit as long as one of them as an Ace. The key to success with this strategy is to avoid calling. Calling is for wimps and it will make you look like a wimp. Any time you’re dealt one of the hands above, you need to raise 5x the big blind. This will scare the living daylights out of people. If they happen to call, then you still have the advantage. If you hit the flop hard, go all-in right away. Your opponents will usually fold, but the times they call will more than make up for the times they folded in regards to potential winnings. If you miss the flop and someone bets, fold.

Using this strategy is most effective when opponents aren’t familiar with your style. Therefore, it’s best for beginners and experienced players visiting new games. If you would like to practice this strategy, online you can visit online casinos like Gaming Club (that’s where I play – you can practice this technique on free poker sites like Zynga too) to hone your poker playing skills for fun before you play for real money on or offline this is a great tactic to get your game up and get you playing like the pros. The online casinos mean you can play with players all over the world so you get a good cross section to learn with.

Safe Poker Sites

Paul Jones — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 13:28:14 +0000

Tips on Finding Safe Poker Sites

Online Poker Sites are Numerous, which Ones Are Safe?

If you’re just starting out as an online poker player, you may be wondering about
how you can discern safe poker sites from those that are unsafe. Unsafe sites include
those with poor security, lack of support and a sketchy reputation for honoring
withdrawals. Most sites are safe but there are measures that you can take to ensure
that your money and information will be handled properly.

Safe Poker Sites are Licensed

The first thing to do in searching for safe poker sites is to look for those that are
licensed. Licensed sites have to go through an application process and must meet
certain standards set by the licensing government. You’ll find that some sites are
licensed by more than one entity. Licensing is a minimum requirement when it
comes to safety and security.

Internal and Independent Monitoring

A poker site that constantly monitors itself and is also regularly checked by an
independent firm is actively working at ensuring your safety. Monitoring of games
and poker players for cheating, evaluation of poker software and running checks on
banking procedures are all part of a safe poker site’s security regime.

Quick Response

If you have a complaint or know of a security issue, you want a quick response from
the site. Make sure the poker room has 24/7 help available and that you can reach
them by at least two of these methods of communication—telephone, email and/or
live chat.

128-bit Encryption and Information Security

Safe poker sites use advanced 128-bit encryption to transfer information over the
Internet. As a poker player, you do not want a site that offers anything less than
that. There are thousands upon thousands of hackers each and every day trying to
steal and use personal and financial information off the web. Protect yourself by

becoming a poker player at a site with 128-bit technology.

Additionally, check to make sure that the poker room will not sell or trade your
information with other businesses. Each time that information is transferred, there’s
a security risk. Plus, as a poker player you’d probably rather be playing than dealing
with unwanted spam in your mailbox.

Read Reviews and Poker News

Prior to signing up take some time to read independent reviews of various sites.
Peruse three or more of each site you’re considering. Check for any complaints
about the site and be especially mindful of security features.

Find a poker news source or two and monitor them constantly to garner any new
information about security concerns or other safety issues. A poker site may have
been deemed safe for years but that doesn’t mean that it will continue to be safe.
Employees, systems and standards change and that can lead to problems.

Shop Around and Buyer Beware

Poker players will find a plethora of places to play online. When searching for safe
poker sites take some time to shop around. Tour sites that you are considering
joining and read their literature pertaining to licensing, monitoring and security.

If a site is new, that is not necessarily a bad thing. But use that Latin phrase caveat
emptor (buyer beware) when shopping for a safe site. If a new poker room is making
outlandish promises or has unbelievable bonus offers, these can be red flags. Do
your homework and you’ll find plenty of safe poker sites from which you can
choose.

Betfair Announces move to OnGame Network & Goodbye to Rakeback

Paul Jones — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 00:01:35 +0000

Online betting exchange and poker site Betfair.com has today announced that they are moving their poker operation to a third party poker network, the OnGame Network. This marks the demise of poker rakeback on Betfair from today, however any players who signed up to Betfair before 12th July 2010 will continue to have their existing rakeback deal honoured once migration to the OnGame network has taken place.

Betfair’s official statement says:

It is important to note that Ongame is a rakeback-free network, so any players acquired as of today (July 12th) will not be eligible for rakeback deals but will instead automatically benefit from our loyalty scheme, once we migrate, known as the Betfair Player’s Club. Existing players however, will remain on their current rakeback deal.

Betfair Vs Ongame Traffic

Betfair is currently ranked #16 on PokerScout.com for traffic. Moving to the OnGame network will offer Betfair players more liquidity, wider game selection, access to some sick network wide promotions and some massive MTTs. Players will also be able to play using both a Mac or a PC.

New Betfair OnGame Promotions 12th-26th July

As you would expect poker and sports betting giants Betfair are laying on some promos so that all of their players have an incentive to grind on the new network

$60,000 Points Race (AKA Rake Race) -Players simply need to grind and accumulate points (based on their play) to get to the top of the points leaderboard. $60,000 is up for grabs with $10k for the winner. A great additional bonus for playing this month.The race runs from 19th of July until 8th of August inclusive
Free ‘SnG Step 2′ Tournament Ticket – Enter three sngs between 12th and 26th July and claim a free Sit-and-Go step 2 tournament ticket.
50 Free Seats to the $200,000 Guaranteed – Betfair are giving away 50 free tickets to their new Sunday Major tournament the $200K Guaranteed. On the 4th of August players can win a free tickets by earning earn 1,000 Betfair Points from the 12th -26th of July to receive a free entry to our 50 Seats Giveaway Tournament.

The End for Rakeback?

Could this be another indicator of the demise of poker rakeback deals? More and more poker rooms are moving to sites which off poker loyalty programs / poker VIP programs as opposed to flat rakeback payments. As of March 1st this year, online poker room FullTilt Poker announced a maximum of 3% commission for all new rakeback affiliates – saying in no uncertain terms that they don’t want rakeback players. The big daddy poker site, PokerStars doesn’t offer rakeback (instead they offer an interesting VIP Program), and rakeback isn’t permitted on the iPoker network either. It seems the poker industry is fed up with handing over rakeback to winning players and wants to focus on rewarding the low and mid-stakes grinders, to keep them from going broke, and of course to keep them raking, keeping the poker sites eco-system healthy and alive.

Visit Betfair Poker

Discuss Betfair’s move to the on the OnGame Network in our Betting Forum.

It’s not real money

Paul Jones — Tue, 18 May 2010 00:16:01 +0000

One of the biggest hurdles a poker player must overcome is the mental side of the game. Almost anyone with an ounce of intelligence can work on the poker side of their game and become proficient enough to be able to make a significant second income from the game but nearly of of these players lack the mentality to do so.

Possibly the largest obstacles to cross is being able to disassociate yourself from the monetary value of the chips in front of you. Every person’s threshold is different but there will become a point where the money you are essentially gambling with means something to you. For some this may be as low as a $20 whilst others may only shudder at the thought of having $2,000 in play.

There is no sure fire way to overcome this but one possible avenue to go down is to stop talking about your bankroll in terms of actual money, instead only mention it in terms of big blinds. This way you will have a greater chance of believing your chips are just weapons at the poker table which happen to enable you to win money at the end of the game.
Thinking in terms of big blinds also helps you to play more optimally by taking materialistic thoughts out of your mind. For example, if you are playing a $3/$6 game and have $600 in front of you, you may be less likely to risk your entire stack if you are thinking of what $600 could buy you or your family but if you can train yourself to see $600 as simply 600 big blinds you can take some emotion out of your game.
Having an adequate bankroll for the stakes you play also helps you think in terms of buy-ins or big blinds instead of actual money. In fact being over-rolled is probably best if you struggle with his aspect of poker. If you have a large cushion behind you, in terms of bankroll that is, then you are less likely to be worried about the financial side of the game and will be able to concentrate more on making plays with positive expectation, regardless of how much actual money is on the line.

Written by Matthew Pitt, who writes for Betfair Poker and the World Cup Betting Blog A2bworldcup.com

ASA Bans “Annette_15″ Advert

Paul Jones — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 11:42:44 +0000

The UK Advertising Standards Authority has issued a ban to online betting company Betfair for an advert featuring 20 year old WSOPE champion and online-poker supertstar Annette “Annette_15″ Obrestad, as her online alias “Annette_15” which was used in advertising was seen to imply that Annette was just 15 years old.

The advertisment with the byline “Online experience is measured in games, not years. Join the new breed. Annette_15” came to the attention of the ASA after it was distributed via email. The ASA claimed that the advert would encourage youngsters to play poker, and is highly irresponsible.

Betfair denied that the marketing campaign was aimed at underage plaeyrs in the UK, and have stated that they will not be using Obrestad in their UK marketing campaigns. The ASA also took this opportunity to reenforce the rule that no one under the age of 25 should appear in any form of online or offline gambling related marketing campaigns in the United Kingdom.

iPoker Rakeback

Paul Jones — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 23:15:14 +0000

If you are looking for ipoker Rakeback, you need to understand that ipoker poker rooms are permitted only to offer players access to their loyalty schemes, rather than a fixed amount of rakeback. Most iPoker poker rooms offer some form of poker vip program, where users are given rewards depending on the volume of hands they play, the rake they contribute as well as other factors (such as their vip status, in some cases.)

Since flat iPoker Rakeback deals are not permitted on the network, iPoker Loyalty programs are available which are pretty similar to rakeback.These schemes generally offer points which may sometimes be redeemed for cash, live poker tournament packages, luxury items such as TV’s, laptops, holidays etc are not uncommon. Sites on the iPoker network include Titan Poker, CelebPoker, William Hill, ChiliPoker,Sunpoker, Paddy Power Poker,Dirty Stack Poker, Expekt, as well as some other skins.

For a guide to ipoker rakeback equivalents, check out Poker Loyalty Programs.

Merge Rakeback

Paul Jones — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 19:33:31 +0000

The Merge poker network offers a few good rooms for a Merge Rakeback account, namely PokerNordica, Spin32Poker and Reefer Poker.

PokerNordica Rakeback

PokerNordica is one of the oldest names on the network. They offer 30% rakeback, a deposit bonus of $500 which isn’t deducted from your rakeback as well as a monthly rake race to give players the potential to earn a lot more than just rakeback every month.

Download: Pokernordica Merge Rakeback

ReeferPoker Rakeback

ReeferPoker is a new skin on the Merge poker nework, also offering 30% Rakeback, a $420 deposit bonus and a bunch of promotions, many with a ganja theme.

Download: Reefer Poker Merge Rakeback

Spin32Poker Rakeback

Spin32Poker is the newest of the bunch, again offering 30% Rakeback, a $600 deposit bonus and a bunch of promotions including royal flush bonus, depositors freerolls and an additional points-based vip scheme to give you even more rewards for your loyalty.

Download Spin32 Merge Rakeback

Entraction Rakeback

Paul Jones — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 00:43:27 +0000

If you’re looking for entraction rakeback, you have a number of choices. Below are our picks of the best options for entraction rakeback deals:

5betPoker Entraction Rakeback

5BetPoker poker is a relatively skin on entraction. They offer 30% rakeback as well as a €1000 deposit bonus. 5BetPoker offers some of the best promotions on the Entraction network, including leagues, poker freerolls and other incentives to give players a little bit of an extra incentive to play on the software.

Download: Entraction Rakeback: 5betPoker(30%)

Devilfish Entraction Rakeback

Devilfish poker is another interesting brand the Entraction network. Devilfish Poker offers 30% rakeback to players as well as a €1000 deposit bonus on their deposit. Dave “Devilish” Ulliot can be found on the tables in bounty tournaments adding a bit of fun for the players. Other Promotions include rake races and leaderboards

Download: Devilfish Entraction Rakeback (30%)

Betfair Rakeback

Paul Jones — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 00:13:20 +0000

Betfair (Independent software) is offering up to 40% rakeback to players direct into their player accounts. Payment is made each fortnight. Betfair offers a great selection of small to high-stakes tournaments, sit and go’s, as well as cash games from micro stakes all the way up to nosebleed high-stakes where players such as high-stakes poker superstar Ilari “Ziigmund” Sahamies can often be found.

The Betfar Pro’s include Annette “Annette_15″ Obrestad (WSOPE 2007 Main event champion) Sorel “1mperium” Mizzi and John Tabatabai, all are found regularly on the betfair tables.

Betfair rakeback information.

Rake up to £1499 in any one month and you are entitled to 30% Rakeback. If you rake over £1500 in a month, you will receive a whopping 40% rakeback.

Download Betfair and get up to for 40% Rakeback

CelebPoker Announces Move to iPoker

Lisa Rogers — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 16:16:12 +0000

London, England 3rd August, 2009.
EXCLUSIVE:Online Poker room and skin on the Boss Poker CelebPoker has today finally announced that they are moving to the Playtech iPoker Network. The move will happen on the 12th of August, and is the latest in a series of sites moving from the Boss Media platform to iPoker. This will also see the launch of the new Celeb Poker VIP Program to replace rakeback.

The iPoker / Playtech network is the third biggest online poker network after Fulltilt and PokerStars. Whether a significant number of Celeb’s boss media player player-base actually moves over to the iPoker platform remains to be seen. Rakeback is not permitted on the iPoker Network, so anyone with 30% Boss rakeback via CelebPoker will be enrolled loyalty bonus / vip program, it is possible that players may get locked in to the VIP system at iPoker with no less than a 30% Rebate however specific details on this aspect of migration have not been released at this time.

Playtech’s iPoker Network is the industry’s leading platform, guaranteeing greater functionality and improved game play. Players will enjoy:

30,000 peak players including 12,000 peak cash players
24/7 action at the tables
Real time game history
Real time bonus history
Exciting tournament selection
Stunning promotions
Buddy Transfers
Huge progressive STT jackpots
VIP Club with 6 VIP Reward Levels

Expect the same award-winning customer service, plus additional 24/7 live support from within the software.

CelebPoker ->iPoker Migration Questions

How do I change over to the new CelebPoker ipoker software?
The new CelebPoker will not be available to download until we have finished the migration of your player account on August 12th 2009.

How long will the old boss media CelebPoker software be available?
The old software will be available until 04:00 GMT on August 12th 2009. The new CelebPoker will go live later in the day on August 12th 2009. Please keep checking back – as soon as you see the new CelebPoker download is available, you can log-in and play!

What happens to my bankroll?
At the time of migration on August 12th, your bankroll will be automatically transferred to your account in the new CelebPoker client. If you do not wish for this to happen, please ensure you withdraw your funds before the changeover.

I already play on another iPoker Network site. Why sign up with CelebPoker?

You’ll be able to play on both accounts and will receive great promotions on both sites. However, because CelebPoker.com offers some of the best promotions, enhanced customer service and incredible VIP Treatment, we are sure that you will want to spend most of your time with us!

How does the VIP Club work and what’s in it for me?

You have automatically been assigned a VIP Level for your new account, based upon the level of play of your best month in the last six months. Your VIP Level dictates how quickly you can earn CelebPoker Points (CPPs), for our loyalty program. Furthermore, you will automatically receive a monthly cashback bonus of up to $400, depending upon your VIP Level. VIP Levels are calculated monthly based upon the previous month’s play. Keep playing to increase your level and your rewards!

Resources

Discuss the CelebPoker / iPoker move in our Poker Forum
iPoker Rakeback Guide