Here’s a piece of casino advice that might sound like common sense, but I’ll explain why it makes a big difference. It’s customary for players to tip their dealers, be it any form of cards. However, in blackjack, it’s not only sound etiquette, it’s smart strategy, as well.
How? Here’s how.
First of all, and this can be disputed but I’ve witnessed it on more than a few occasions, a well-tipped dealer might shuffle later on in the game than he or she might do if they were just dealing for their hourly salary. This creates a helpful if not intentional advantage for any card-counter at the table. So if you’re there to put some of your card-counting tactics to the test or hone your skills to bring in some cash, keep this in mind.
Second, and this part is common sense, it puts a smile on the blackjack online dealer’s face. And, say it with me, a happy dealer makes for a happy table. Everyone wants to win, and everyone wants to have fun, but remembering to give the dealer their due (you might not think they deserve it, but believe me it makes your life easier at the table if you go with the flow and tip the dealer when you win). Really, though, there’s more to it than just getting to see Mr. Dealer’s pearly whites…odds are they’re yellow from years of second-hand cigarette smoke stains anyway. A happy, well-tipped dealer is also going to be a looser dealer, one that might not be as on guard with hiding his tells than one in a fouler mood. The dealer with a nice tip stack has a little less to worry about, and might just reveal a little more than the casino would prefer, to your advantage.
Many would say blackjack is different from poker. In poker, you’re playing against the other players, not the bank. Whereas in blackjack, you’re squaring off against the dealer. In fact, there are two schools of thought here. For blackjack, why would you tip the very person you’re technically playing against? Of course, in poker, the dealer takes a rake from every hand, so why give extra back to the casino?
In the end, it’s best not to let GoldenPalace logic get in the way of tradition. Especially if you have a girl hanging off your arm. You don’t want to look cheap and you don’t want scowls from the dealer, regardless of the game you’re playing.
Read More
Tells. If you can read ‘em, they’re worth more than their weight in circular plastic. So much so that poker enthusiasts, professionals and newbies alike will try anything they can to get someone to reveal a tell if their not readily volunteering that information to the table already.
So what are some useful methods? I’ve tried them all, and they’ve all been tried on me. And sometimes being aware of that, and consciously trying to stay stone-faced and stoic actually hurts you more than answering them back.
One of my favorites is when you get asked how many Full Tilt chips you have left? Most of the time these guys aren’t even going all-in, they’re just testing you and watching your reaction? Are you quick to check? Have you been keeping track already because you’re losing and want to know how much you have left before you’re done? Do your movements to count the chips reveal defeat? Be careful how you respond to this question, it’s a great one and can work magic on an unsuspecting target.
Many people can tell strength better than weaknesses by betting patterns, so they’ll use tactics like this to try to get you to talk. They’ll listen to your voice and see if they can detect fear, uncertainty, hesitancy or anxiety. The good ones will dissect even a couple words and use the information to their advantage.
Some will crack jokes, tell crazy stories, act drunk when they’re really not. All this is to do one of two things. Either get a reaction out of you and/or to throw you off your game. So even if they can’t read you, maybe you’ll do something stupid and hurt yourself anyway.
What you as the one receiving the bait should understand is that these methods can backfire if you know how to turn them around on them. Whether someone jokes or stares at his hand is just as much of a tell as your reaction to either one. Look for patterns. Watch the level of a drink with a lot of ice to see if that “drunk” person is even drinking.
You’ll run into this in any no-limit or higher stakes game, whether it’s in a basement somewhere or in a casino. But if you’re prepared for it, you’ll be the one with the edge at the end.
Read More
Sunday, April 26: The Blue Jays, who are playing well behind strong all-around performances, visit the up and down White Sox. Talk about a pitching mismatch. Halladay, who’s 3-1 record is prettier right now than his un-Halladay-esque 3.72 ERA, faces Jose Contreras. If the Sox pitching staff were a centipede, Contreras would be one broken leg holding the whole show back. Man is this guy struggling. The Sox (foolishly) just came out and said they weren’t ready to pull him yet. Use this to your advantage and bet heavily on the Blue Jays. The home team will be a sizable underdog in this one. The MLB Betting lines for the game are: Sox +150, Jays -170. Take the Jays. Even a few hot bats from the South Side boys won’t be able to overcome the pitching mismatch. The Sox will be battling from behind after the second inning. Count on it.
Staying with the AL, and staying with Sunday games, the Yanks visit the Red Sox. Now here’s a matchup of two teams back on the rise, especially the Red Sox, who enjoyed a nice winning streak. The schedule currently lists Pettitte vs. Masterson. Not a whole lot of starting experience to go with on Masterson, but Pettitte is a bright spot for the improving Yankees, with an ERA around 2.5, he’s as sharp as he was 10 years ago. How long he’ll be healthy is anyone’s guess, but right now he’s helping his team win games. Masterson may or may not actually start, we’ll see. Boston has started strong at home, but because of the pitching matchup, the Yankees get the edge on this one. Yankees -130, Red Sox +115. I’d bet the Yankees, I think they’ll win this one by 3 or more runs.
How about an upside-down NL preview? Yeah, who thought the Marlins would be atop the division at any point during the season? To Philly’s credit, they’ve climbed back to second place in the NL East, albeit at 6-6 their hardly striking championship fear into their opponents. The Marlins are slipping a bit from their single-loss perch atop the league, so this makes for an interesting Sunday matchup, especially since it’s Moyer facing Badenhop, both of which have nasty ERA’s over 6. The tipping point could be the hitting, though, with the Phillies averaging an NL fourth-best .278 average compared to the Marlins surprisingly 11th place .258. I can see Philly’s sluggers feasting more than the fish will be. Still, the Marlins are home, winning games, and will be a tight favorite here. Marlins -130, Phillies +110. I’d take the Phillies, though, I think they’ll put up 6 or 7 and keep Badenhop’s ERA in the forbidden zone for at least one more start.
Read More
Bluff Magazine is a popular poker magazine based out of Atlanta, USA and they have an upcoming poker challenge which looks awesome. Bluff Magazine has announced an online poker challenge where some of the best online poker players will battle for a spot on the cover of the Bluff Magazine.
The challenge for the Full Tilt Poker players competing in this challenge is that they have 30 days starting from March 1st to turn a $200 bankroll into as much as they can. Players competing in the challenge aren’t allowed to reload there $200 starting bankroll at anytime throughout the 30 days and they also can’t play ring table games. The players in the Bluff Online Poker Challenge will only be allowed to participate in sit and go tournaments and multi table tournaments throughout the 30 days.
The field of confirmed FullTilt players is already growing and there are some of the most well known online poker players ever that will be competing in this challenge. Many of the players have finished in top positions in WSOP events previously and thus should be well versed for the tournament action that they need to play. I suspect that the players with the most experience playing in large multi-table tournaments will do the best whereas the cash players won’t do as well.
Your playing style changes based on whether you’re playing a tournament or cash game and for those who don’t use both styles often I don’t see them doing so well. If you’re wondering how you can get a chance to become the next cover for Bluff Magazine then read the below paragraph carefully as it’s got the information you need.
Starting February at PokerStars.com all the players are having there FPP’s tracked by the poker room. The player on LockPoker at the end of this month with the most FPP’s will win the chance to enter this challenge with Bluff Magazine. The reason they chose LockPoker is because the room has very minimal traffic and new players who sign-up there will have a good shot at making the top of the FPP leaderboard.
It’s a shame that anyone interested couldn’t compete in the challenge but that would take much more organizing and wouldn’t work nearly as seamlessly as this challenge will. There are only about 2 dozen confirmed players at this point for the challenge and we’re already under one month away from the launch of the event. If you’ve been playing online poker or you read any of the popular poker forums then you’ve probably seen some of the names who will be in the challenge as some are very recognizable players to some of the online poker world.
Not everyday does the opportunity arise where you could battle it out with some of the top online poker players in the world. Not only do you get to battle it out with these players on PokerStars, but if you win you get to be featured on the cover of Bluff Magazine. Bluff Magazine is a highly recognized and reputable magazine which serves the poker community. You’ll become the talk of the poker world if you landed the cover and you still have a chance. Head on over to LockPoker and start earning those FPP’s so that you can enter this legendary Bluff Online Poker Challenge.
Read More
There has been a huge increase around the world with the amount of players playing poker in casinos.com and poker clubs. Many of you might have never been to a live game before and you may have only had some online poker experience. If you’ve only had online poker experience then you’re probably not going to know how to act at the table once you get to the poker room. Watching the televised poker events can also give you a false image of how players act at the poker table. We’re going to go through some simple poker etiquette that will help you make sure you’re not making any enemies at the table.
- One of the worst things you can do when you’re playing poker is to make fun of your opponents at the table when they’re losing. It’s important that you win politely and lose politely when you’re playing poker especially when it’s live poker. Sometimes on TV you’ll see pros not take losing or winning politely, but this isn’t the way you should act at the tables.
- The dealer has nothing to do with the outcome of a hand in poker so you should never say anything bad about the dealer when playing. A lot of players won’t take kindly to this and they might start heckling you at the table and raising your blinds every rotation. If you have nothing good to say to the dealer then don’t say anything at all.
- Whether you’re in a hand or not in a hand you should never talk about the hand that is being played. You can give away information to opponents in the hand and it could hurt the chances of other player’s chances of winning the hand. Never talk about anything about the hand until it’s been completed and the pot has been won. No one goes to the internet poker room to listen to someone trying to teach everyone how to play so just keep those comments to yourself.
- Many live casinos and poker clubs offer drinks and food which can be brought to the poker table. As a rule of thumb though you should not eat anything at the table that could leave any grease or sauce on your hand. If you really need to eat most casinos allow you to take an hour break and keep your seat at the table so that you can go and eat. Another thing to keep in mind for some of you is that you shouldn’t get to drunk at the poker table to the point where you’re upsetting the dealer or other players.
Also remember to look out for poker cheats when you are playing. When you go the casino or poker clubs it is fine to engage in conversations with the other players if they want to talk. The only thing you need to avoid is talking out of place when you shouldn’t be talking about anything like when a hand is playing for instance. As long as you use some common sense and you don’t let losing change your mood then you’ll do fine and make many friends at the poker table.
Read More