Poker News and Poker Events

The Main Event will begin on July 3rd this year, and play as normal down to the nine gamblers at the final table.

Action will then break until November, at which point play will resume November 10th, with elimination continuing through the day and possibly into the 11th to reach the champion and final player.

The break in schedule is designed to allow ESPN to broadcast the final table as a same-day event, almost covering the intensity and pressure of the last hands live. ESPN has previously broadcast the tournament as a series of programs that concluded months after the action had finished.

The United States faces a token $21 million in annual trade sanctions as a result of its online betting ban, the World Trade Organization said Friday in awarding Antigua and Barbuda the right to target U.S. services, copyrights and trademarks.

The decision is a setback for the Caribbean island nation, which sought the right to impose $3.4 billion in retaliatory measures against U.S. commercial services and intellectual property.

Washington acknowledged its Internet gambling restrictions were ruled illegal by the WTO, but argued that Antigua should only be compensated for about $500,000 for lost annual revenue.

The case has drawn the attention of a number of U.S. industries, partly because of the ways Antigua has proposed retaliating against the much larger U.S. economy. Washington's attempt to escape its legal loss by proposing a revision of the WTO's key treaty on trade in services has also fueled interest.

Reese was found by his son early Tuesday at his Las Vegas home after suffering from symptoms of pneumonia, said poker great Doyle Brunson, his longtime friend.

"Many consider Chip the greatest cash-game player who ever lived," Pollack said in a statement. "His victory in the inaugural $50,000 buy-in HORSE championship ... made him a part of WSOP lore forever."

In addition to his son, Reese is survived by a daughter and a stepdaughter, Brunson said. He was recently divorced from his wife.

Now, he will be known for another reason after he is close to striking a plea agreement with the state over an illegal gambling scheme.

The scheme was that Lee used a website for players to make wagers on various sporting events. The website claimed to be overseas, but the reality was that the operation was being run out of Lee's house.

Lee claims that he won $2.7 in the World Series and that is the number that police seized from him when they raided his house.

Let me spoil the ending of my review right up front. I believe that "The Mathematics of Poker" is the most important book on poker written in the last decade, arguably the most important poker book of the last 25 years. Despite this, I believe that this book will help relatively few poker players, and as such, its impact on the games played in most card rooms will be relatively minor.

"The Mathematics of Poker" is not a poker book with a mathematical focus; it is a college-level math text whose subject matter is game theory as it applies to the game of poker. It is not an easy read. This reviewer has a degree in mathematics, yet at several points I found the book tough to follow. I expect that most readers who have not taken college math courses will struggle to digest what lies between its covers.

Link - The state's first ever dedicated poker lounge is set to open this weekend even though the Little Rock city attorney says it's illegal.

An organization called National Poker Challenge is opening a franchise on Rodney Parham Road. The organization, based in Memphis, will open its Little Rock location officially on Saturday.

They say it’s legal because they don't charge people to play poker. But they do charge if you want your wins and losses tracked and recorded. The city attorney says that makes it gambling.

The bill by Rep. Jose Menendez, a San Antonio Democrat, would allow live or electronic poker gambling at certain establishments as well as charitable poker for qualified groups.

Poker enthusiasts, including some leading national players, are expected at the Texas Capitol on Tuesday for a hearing on the proposal before the House Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee.

If enacted into law, the measure would put Texas alongside several other states such as California and Montana that created a safe, regulated environment for poker wagering, said Michael Bolcerek, president of the National Poker Players Alliance.

A longtime ban on poker playing in the state of South Carolina will soon be under the legislative microscope if state Representative Wallace Scarborough of Charleston has his way.

The state lawmaker wants to revamp South Carolina's gambling laws to legalise in-house poker games, and is busy drafting legislation to permit the games as long as they are done under the heading of "recreational activity."

Scarborough also said the key to the proposal is making sure that the law would not open the door to organised gambling houses. "That is not my goal and not my intent," he said.

The West Virginia Legislature also has gaming on its agenda, and will be considering whether or not to have a statewide vote to legalise table games at racetracks. The current bill under consideration only requires the four counties that have racetracks to vote, but others want to make it a statewide issue.

While Woman Poker Player is not one of the classic poker publications, it is ever-increasing in popularity, and may one day be listed with the greatest poker magazines of all time.

Of course, with a name like Woman Poker Player, it goes without saying that the magazine is targeted at a specific audience. This bi-monthly publication seeks to enrich the life of female poker players, and not simply by giving them tips on the game. The magazine also has articles about well-being, fashion and other aspects of life important to all women, not just the poker-playing variety.

Game Show Network has informed viewers that its top poker show "High Stakes Poker" will screen on January 15 with some exciting new talent at the table.

High profile regulars such as Doyle Brunson and Barry Greenstein will be making room for newcomers such as 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event winner Jamie Gold and the formidable ace player Phil Ivey.

14 new players have been added to the 14 big names on the roster who played in the first two seasons of the popular show. The players buy in to the cash games with their own money, fronting anywhere from $100 000 to $1 million to play No-Limit Texas Hold'em.

Play on every street in no limit Texas Holdem poker is important. Some players put a great deal of thought into how they will play the hand pre-flop, on the flop, and on the turn, but then neglect the river. They may think the river is simple. The final card is out, and you have a good idea whether you have the best hand or not, and can bet, fold, call or raise accordingly. In fact, there are some unfortunate errors in poker strategy you can make on the river in no limit Texas holdem, and understanding some of these ideas will improve your overall game.

Bluffing Errors on the River
Bluffing on the river is a tactic that can be used to great effect in no limit Texas Hold em, but should not be overused. You need to be sure that your bluff is convincing, not just by the way you sell it, but by the play of the hand. For example: The board reads Jh 9h 5c. A player makes a bet of half the pot and you call. The turn is a 3d. You call a pot sized bet. The river is a 3s. The opponent makes another pot sized bet and you move all in. This is a poor situation to be on a bluff. In the first place, your opponent may have bet so many chips already that he feels pot committed and calls even if he believes you have him beat. In the second place, it looks for all the world like you were calling along with a heart flush draw and are pushing all-in in a desperation move to win the pot at the end. Finally, it is very difficult to sell the idea that you have a 3 in your hand. It is unlikely you would have called any reasonable bet on the flop if you were holding a 3, since you would have missed the flop entirely. Even calling a large bet on the turn with bottom pair is unlikely. The only hand an opponent can really put you on is Ah 3h, and that is enough of a longshot that your bluff will probably fail.

Folding Errors On the River
If you have been calling along in the hopes of catching a good river card and you don’t, do not be so quick to fold on the river. Remember that depending on the amount of a river bet that you have to call, you may be getting correct odds to show your hand down. If there is a $300 pot out there and someone has made a $50 river bet, they only have to be bluffing (assuming you can beat a bluff) one time out of every seven for you to be okay. Of course, if you cannot beat even the weakest of hands, you must fold, but if you have a situation for example where you have backed into bottom pair and you suspect your opponent has been leading with A K all the way and missed everything, you may consider a call. Making this kind of call on the river is a vital part of your Texas Holdem strategy.

Calling Errors On the River
There are certainly situations, however, where you must fold on the river. If you have been putting an opponent on a flush draw all the way, and the third of a suit comes on the river, you will probably have to fold, especially if you bet and are raised. Of course many opponents will bluff in this situation, but if you have made a confident read, to change it just because you don’t like the implications will be costly. Making a good laydown is one of the hardest things to do in poker. Learning to make correct folds can have dramatically positive effects on your bankroll.

If you play limit texas hold'em, you may find yourself at times playing in poker games that are not full-ring games of nine or ten people. If the casino is not able to fill your particular game, you may find yourself playing against five or fewer opponents. Many online sites even offer you the option of playing short handed games. Are short handed games right for you, and how should you adjust your strategy in short-handed games?

If you are an action player who likes playing a lot of pots, short handed Texas Hold’em may be a good option for you. The blinds are coming around twice as fast, and players are half as likely to have very strong hands. What all this means for you is that many hands you would fold in a full game you will end up playing, and many hands you would play conservatively in a full game you will end up raising. If you are a tight player who likes to sit back and wait for big hands, short-handed play is probably not your speed.

So what is the best short-handed limit Texas Holdem strategy? As with nearly any form of poker, aggression is key. When you play your hands, you have to play them strongly. If you like your hand, bet. If you get raised, you will often re-raise, even when you would not do this in a full ring game. You are much more likely to get heads-up in a short game, so that should be your goal. If you do not aggressively attack and defend your blinds in this game, other players will take them away from you, and in a game where the blinds come around much more frequently, this can be fatal.

Big cards and pairs are great in when you play Texas Holdem fixed limit short-handed. Remember, even in a full ring game, most flops miss most people, so usually your big cards or pair will be best, and even when they are not, your opponents will often think they are. For example, you have 5 5 in a five handed game under the gun. You raise. You are in the worst position, but because you are short handed, you are only facing four people behind you, two of whom you will have position on for the rest of the game. Lets say you are called by the big blind and the button. The flop comes Q T 6, and you bet. The flop is very likely to have missed both players and you may win immediately, but a bet may still win you the pot against players holding hands like 7 7, A 6, or even T 8 if you continue to bet aggressively throughout the hand.

Small suited connectors are not that valuable in short handed limit hold'em, as even when you hit with them, which will be rarely, you will not make enough to justify the times that you miss. However, in position when other players have shown weakness, you can win by playing them aggressively just as with any other hand.