Stone Cold Blog

The best way to learn in poker, as is in life, is to make mistakes. The more mistakes you make, then the more you learn from them until you end up making fewer mistakes. This is the process of learning and hopfully the tip I pass on to you today will help you to learn a little something through me making a mistake.

It’s a simple one today. When playing online, check to see which button you are pressing before you press it.

Sounds simple I know, but this was a mistake I made when playing online last night. Being dealt 47u and on the BB I happily checked to see a flop. I played the turn and river drawing with odds to hit my straight. My open ended never hit and I was left with rags during the last round of betting. With 2000 chips left and two other people in the pot I didnt think my 7 high was going to cut it in a showdown.

SB checked, I checked and sure enough, last to act bet $500, the SB called and I called. No wait! I meant I fold! Dammit! Noooooo … What have I done? I’ve only gone and clicked the Call button instead of the Fold button. Bugger.

I stared in disbelief of such a stupid thing to have done. A quarter of my stack vanished in the blink of an eye. Ouch.

Still, it did wonders for my table image – everyone thought I was a lunatic after that move!

On any online poker site you get a good 20-30 seconds in a standard game to decide what to do with your hand. Take your time and double check which button you need to click when you have decided on your move.

- Vster

Another lesson learned the hard way on the virtual felt.

I fancied a quick punt the other night and so I sat down to a 5 seater $5 tourney table. Got comfy in my chair and began to play a fairly decent game (for a change).

About halfway through the game (blinds now $25/$50) I am dealt pocket deuces. Nice. A flat call under the gun here. All including the small blind folds so its now just me and the BB who checks.

I hit my dream flop of 9 2 7 rainbow. Beautiful. I have hit my trips and chances are my opponent does not have higher trips. A large bet here could scare him off, a check to him could give away the fact I am playing a monster. So it’s a minimum bet of $50 to try and milk some money out of this sucker. If he folds then I win the pot, if he raises then I have my information.

It’s a flat call.

The turn comes a jack and I am still confident that my hand is the best. I put this guy on a dead-end draw and so I min bet again wanting him to call.

He does.

River card is a ten, no raises from this guy means I doubt he has even connected. The board is a lovely coloured rainbow so there’s no flush out there to beat me and as I have him covered in chips I lump it all in and ask him a question for his entire stack.

After hitting the raise button I think “Well what could he possibly have to keep calling my bets? He didn’t raise pre-flop … Unless he’s got…QK…O dear”.

I felt absolutely gutted I did not protect my trips, and this is my tip of the day. Protect your trips as early as possible. They really do feel like an amazing hand when you hit them but they are by no means invincible.

I couldn’t help but feel that if I raised up at least a pot sized bet, his odds would have been reduced enough for him to fold. I couldn’t belive I was giving him such amazing pot odds on his cards when I clearly had the better hand pre-river. I knew that a larger bet would have scared him off, but I wanted him to call because I kept thinking “Yeah, Ive got trips, lets have it!”.

Cranking up the pot will give you information about your opponents hand in several ways. If your opponent folds, he clearly has nothing. If your opponent calls, he has a hand (or odds) good enough to see another card. If your opponent raises your crank then most likely he has you beat (depending on the situation) or some kind of monster straight flush draw – bet with caution.

Trip 2’s is not the kind of hand you want to have up against straight or flush draws and so you should always crank the pot thereby reducing the odds of someone on a draw and enticing them to fold. If they dont fold and they are on a draw then you are giving them such crap pot odds to call it, you will be making money off them in the long run. NEVER slow play trips.

Got trips? Crank it.

- Vster

Murdo “Mad Man” Macleod has been at it again with another risky hand.

Being the loose cannon that he is, he decided to push all in with 3d2d pre-flop – the button to his left and the rest of the table folding.

Two people called him. The button called and flipped up AsAd, the small blind called and flipped over QdTh.

Oh dear.

Flop comes 9d 8c 5c

Inside straight draw for the QT, top pair for AA and not a hope in hell for Murdo’s 32.

Turn comes Jd

This gives QT the straight and is leaving AA drawing dead.

But wait.. The river card.. its 6d

Murdo “Mad Man” Macleod hits his flush, destroying QTs’ straight.

Ouch!

Scoop it down you lunatic.

But is this move so crazy? I challenged Murdo as to why he would pull such a ridiculous move and the stats are quite interesting which is why I am posting this blog.

Going into the flop, the QTu was 14.45% to win, the AA was 66.67% to win and the 32s was 18.48% to win.

QT shouldnt have called all in against two others that were all in – what were they hoping to hit? What did he put the other two players on? Nutter.

What I find unusual is that the QT was actually LESS favourite to win the hand than the 32s. This just goes to show you the strength of suited connectors.

But push all in with them? Not for me but it worked for Murdo.

- Vster