The past decade has seen an explosion of interest in poker through television and other mass-media offerings. Since one of the most convenient paths to playing is at a person’s home computer, online poker has surged in popularity. As interest in online poker has grown, so has the ability levels of many players. This of course leads to a desire for more than just a simple game or two but the option to play in a full tournament!

Simply type “online poker tournament” into any search engine to see proof of this and to try one out for yourself. Most sites offer tournaments around the clock and feature ways to hook up with other players of similar experience and skill. Some online poker rooms allow you to choose between computer opponents or human. Obviously, computer opponents provide less pressure and can be great if you are simply looking for some private fun. However, if you would like to bet on your game and enjoy the thrill of “live” poker, you will want to find a room with human opponents. These virtual poker tables usually include the ability to chat with your poker mates.

In the larger tournaments you will find that while most games are played against similarly skilled opponents, occasionally you will be up against a poker master or even a beginner to the game. As you might imagine, no type of opponent will be giving up easily, no matter their skill level!

Almost all of the human tournaments require a tournament entry fee, but a few can be found which are totally free of charge. Naturally, those charging a small fee also generally offer a much larger pot than do the free tournaments. Usually most or all of the entry fees are put into the pot for the winners.

If you decide to give one of these tournaments a go, you will quickly realize that an online tournaments is composed of multi tables. Players are provided with chips, usually in a set amount, to use for each round. Once the tournament has begun, players attempt to eliminate all others by winning the most hands and the most money. The remaining player advances to the next stage and round. The final table is the goal, and the winner there is the tournament champion.

Be careful of the addicting nature of online poker tournaments! They are so fun and intense that you may find that an hour or more has passed before you know it. Set reasonable limits so that you can enjoy meeting new people and competing for money and glory.

Texas Holdem Tips: How To Deal With Your Starting Hand

If you are new to playing poker you will find there are a lot of things to learn and remember. A list of what to look out for when you are dealt your hand in Texas Holdem will be useful.

These are the best possible things that you can see when you look at your cards:

Pair of Aces, “American Airlines” or “pocket rockets”. This is what everyone hopes to see when they pick up their cards. It’s as good as it gets.

Pair of Kings. Second best means there’s only one opening hand that can beat yours.

Pair of Queens. You should be feeling pretty optimistic if this is what you pick up.

Ace and King. This is the best unmatched pair, especially if they are suited, which gives you a chance of getting a nut flush.

Pair of Jacks. This often does well, although if there’s a higher card in the flop you may be unlucky.

Ace and Queen. Offers the same possibilities for a flush as the Ace and King, and with two high cards you’re starting in a really solid position.

King and Queen. If they’re the same suit you’re especially lucky. Any Aces turning up in the community cards could be a threat, though.

Ace and Jack. It might not seem that great, but it’s worth playing on with this hand, because there are a lot of worse combinations that could be sitting around the table.

King and Jack.. Unless your cards are suited you are taking a bit of a risk with this hand. You’ve got two fairly high cards, but be aware that you’re not as lucky as you could be.

Ace and Ten. The Ace makes this a pretty good start, but all of the hands that have been described so far are better, so take care.

Once you have learned to recognize how good your hand is, then you will be in a much better position to know how to proceed in the game. The key to poker is being able to decide when you should hold and when you need to fold. Discretion is often the better part of valor, and one of the most important things you will learn is to be able to give up when your cards are really not worth the risk.

If you’re playing Texas Holdem and you receive one of the following hands, then folding is probably your best option. There may be ways of working with these cards in other versions of poker, however. Here they are from least dreadful to the absolute worst.

5 and 9, or “Dolly Parton”. There’s not much point going on if you’re dealt this hand.

2 and 10. You might have heard of Doyle Brunson’s amazing WSOP wins after beginning with these cards, but unless you are playing at the same level as him, you’re not likely to do well with this start.

2 or 3 or 4 and 9. The 9 is a fairly high card, but if it’s all you’ve got going for you your prospects don’t look good. Should you happen to get a pair for your 9 you can still be beaten by plenty of other hands, and there’s no way you can make a straight.

2 and 6. If by incredible chance you manage to add a 3, 4 and 5 to this hand you’ll have a straight. I wouldn’t bet on it though- especially if you’re playing with more than three people.

3 and 7 or 8. You can beat someone with a 2 in the place of your 3, but it’s not worth risking anything on this hand. You can’t get much worse than this.

2 and 7 or 8. This is one of the most depressing sights you can see. You won’t be able to get a straight. If they’re not even suited then you haven’t even got a chance of making a low flush.

Casinos invest millions of dollars each year in surveillance and monitoring systems just to nab gamblers who try to count cards. While counting cards in poker is not illegal, it is usually enough of a concern to casinos as they can reduce profits. Many casinos may go to any length to safeguard their interests. These techniques may help you to avoid being caught counting cards during poker games:

Using Progression Betting

Most casinos despise card counters, but they do love progression betting. That’s because nearly all progressions don’t work. You should learn how to do progressions and find ways to make all of your bets seem like progression betting. While counting cards, sometimes you should increase your bets when you are losing and the count is poor; likewise, occasionally lower the bets if you are winning and the count is good. Break the pattern with progression betting.

Pretending to be Drunk:

It works if you are not too sensitive to alcohol. Surely, playing gambling games without full alertness is going to cause bad effects to your game. And if the casino believes that you’re a drunk, it may not suspect that you are counting cards. Of course, casinos aren’t that naive. If you are winning consistently while acting drunk, the pit boss may ask the waitress what you are drinking. So you may need to drink something strong while playing. If you want to improve your chance during card counting, it is recommended that you eat a full meal before playing, and act like a bit tipsy before ordering a drink.

Using Camouflage Strategy:

Camouflage means to blend in with the background. Some players do this well while observing and trying to copy others around them. If most players play smartly; follow them and if others are superstitious and sloppy, it is also prudent to copy them. It could be easy to disguise card counting this way, however it’s probably hard to maintain consistent playing style.

Pretending to Be Clueless:

This could work for you if you are a good actor/actress. Ask your opponents what to do, or ask idiotic questions. Or, maybe, you could act like a poker genius but offer bad advices to others. You can deliberately make common novice mistakes. If you are winning, try to lose a small amount on purpose; then try to win when the bet is bigger. The fastest way to ruin your chances in disguising card counting is by being greedy.

There’s big money and big fun to be had playing live poker in tournaments, but there are a few tips that will really help you on the way to winning. There are plenty of ways you can optimize your game and avoid ending up a loser. These are the tricks that have helped many an experienced poker player on their way to the top of the pack.

One mistake that many novices make, under the pressure of their first live tournament, is to have a few drinks too many. However confident it may make you feel, being drunk is not going to make you play any better, and in fact is likely to result in silly mistakes that cost you your money. Keep track of what you’re drinking, and make sure you know your limits. That way you won’t end up missing out on the chance to play later in the game, because you’ve incapacitated yourself by drinking too much earlier on. If you do drink, do it sensibly and pace yourself so that you can play to your best ability through the whole night. Make sure that you have plenty of non-alcoholic drinks as well, because alcohol can be very dehydrating.

When you enter the room, try and make yourself as comfortable as possible before the game begins. It is a good idea to sit where you can face the dealer as squarely as possible, because it will make you feel that you are involved in a game with them specifically. You lose this influence if you are sitting next to the person dealing the cards. Your seat should allow you a good view of the rest of the players, and you should be able to settle into a position that suits you. Don’t force yourself into an uncharacteristic stance, or try to hold a position that doesn’t feel natural to you. You should sit in a way that doesn’t cause you to shift or fidget, and which you don’t have to waste your energy thinking about, or feeling uncomfortable in. It is when you are relaxed and comfortable that you are least likely to give away clues as to your state of mind- and the state of your cards.

Be aware of the body language that most commonly gives away useful information. Inexperienced players often show their game by the way they sit, leaning their elbows on the table, or resting their cards in the bumper. Do what you can to avoid giving anything away during the game. Other players will always try and guess what cards you are holding, from your tone of voice, your expressions and your body language. You will also want to do the same to them, and to try to hide your own tells. You may want to try giving subtle hints that you are disappointed with your cards, when a particularly good hand comes up, for example. You should enter the tournament armed with a range of different strategies for concealing your game and confusing your opponents. Try not to rely too much on just one approach.

When you get a break, make the most of it. Don’t waste time discussing what’s already gone on in the game, or making small talk. This is your chance to have a short rest, recover your energy, and perhaps most importantly of all, to visit the bathroom.

The main thing is to come prepared and ready to learn from more experienced players. Playing for real money and against really serious tournament players can be fun, exciting and profitable.

Online poker offers a great way to practice against real players, and to join in without having to leave the comfort of your own home.

Whenever you watch successful poker players live or on the television – there is one thing that stands out about them than from the rest. It is something that not all poker players have. All successful poker players have one thing in common – patience. That’s right – patience is the true name of poker. So if you want to become a great poker player, then watch and observe how good poker players display patience. Here is a list of the five common traits of all good patience poker players:

1 – They do not chase cards. If they ever do chase cards, it is not because their desperate but because they want to make the pot bigger. Card-chasing for a good poker player is really just for show. Those who do card chase end up broke – always.

2 – They know the time to raise. Good poker players understand the feeling of a table and thus know when it’s a perfect time to make a bid.

3 – They don’t make mistakes. To be clear – the most successful of poker players make the least mistakes. When you have patience, mistakes tend to be few and far in-between.

4- They don’t allow the game to get personal. Trying to get back at a player who ‘wronged’ you, is never a good idea; stupid mistakes happen because of bravado and pride. Successful poker players know that a game is just a game.

5 – They don’t react with feelings. Allowing your emotions to make bets will always lend to tragic results. The best players don’t allow their feelings to distract them and they always react patiently to any poker game situation.

So, if you want to be the next successful poker player learning patience will guide you do all you true goals.

Thinking of playing No Limit Poker? You better be sure you are ready for such a wild game before you give it a try. If you’re a player use to the easy and predictable horse of Limit Poker, then No Limit Poker is like trying to ride the back of a wild North American Bison. You have to dig your heels into its side and hope for the best if you want to survive in this game. The shock of the wild No Limit Poker game can be deadly.

However, how do you raise before flopping in No Limit Poker? How much should a player raise? The easiest answer to this question is – don’t only risk the equal amount of the big blind when at the table. The rest of the players will view you as a spineless jellyfish and no one wants to be seen as not having any backbone.

You might not survive the enemy’s strike, but when planning your battle plan, you need to go in expecting to raise three to four times the big band amount. Yet, if the players before you limps in on the game, then you need to change your behavior to match theirs. Raise you bid five to six more times the big blind and this will force the other players to either defend their cards or fold their hands.

No Limit Poker is the beast of all poker games. However, it is not for everyone because the money can get so big and grow to such impossible levels that a person may not be able to handle it. Just make sure that if you play No Limit Poker, you need to have all your bases prepared.