The gap concept is one of the most important principles in Limit Holdem, No Limit Holdem, and poker tournaments in general. The gap concept states that a player needs a better hand to call an opening raise then he would to open the raise in the same hand. The difference in hand strength under the two different scenarios is the “gap”.

Originally coined by poker legend David Sklansky, the gap concept will help you decide which hands to play in different positions. Note the principles in the gap concept are very important. Although some of them seem rudimentary in the abstract – if you follow these rules carefully you’ll save a lot of money going all in at the wrong times. Read the rest of this entry »

There are some big differences in the style and strategy of poker played in multi-table tournaments and cash games. While playing optimally under the influence of expected value and pot odds suffices for cash games; under tournament conditions a whole new world of strategy is used. Read the rest of this entry »

Before the poker boom of 2003 when Chris Moneymaker the part-time poker player and full time accountant from Tennessee won the World Championship of No Limit Hold Em at the World Series of Poker, poker players and poker in general was pretty unpopular. Professional players at that time mostly played No Limit Hold Em and Seven Card Stud. There were no such things as poker training sites, 99% of people didn’t know online poker existed, SuperSystem by Doyle Brunson was one of the only poker books to be written and poker sites such as Pocketfives and 2+2 did not exist. Read the rest of this entry »

Isildur1, the mystery Swede, has taken his fair share of ups and downs during the past month. But it has undoubtedly been one of the most epic runs anybody has ever seen. This dark horse has literally appeared out of nowhere and started wreaking havoc at the Full Tilt Poker high stakes tables. But even with his high profile bets, nobody knows who he is or what he does. And yet, he has faced some of the toughest opponents, Dwan and Sahamies among others, and came out on top. He did not fare well against Patrik Antonius though. And it seems like he did not do well against poker legend, Phil Ivey either. He took a savage beating from both pros earlier this week, a beating that left people speculating whether or not he will finally go “busto”. Read the rest of this entry »

A massive shift $2.9 Million from one player to another – this is exactly the sort of thing that makes poker such an exciting game. It is also the sort of thing that places players a step closer to going “busto”. Most importantly, it is the very thing that Isildur1, mystery player who practically appeared out of nowhere and took the world of online poker by storm, mourns right at this very moment, courtesy of Patrik Antonius. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s been about three weeks since Isildur1 appeared and wreaked havoc on the poker world with his outrageous high-stakes bets. He has lost some and won some – but no matter what the actual stats are, it’s obvious that he’s a force to be reckoned with. And it seems that Isildur1, who remains anonymous up to date, is at it again. This time, he faced off against the legendary Tom “Durrrr” Dwan, one of the most feared online players in the Poker World today. And surprise, surprise! Isildur1 managed to snatch $2.6 Million from Dwan in a series of heads-up matches! Read the rest of this entry »

Have you ever had a tough time figuring out what the odds of making your hand really are?  Poker math can be tough, but only if you let it be.  There are a few rules that you can apply to make the math in poker VERY easy.

When facing a bet in No Limit Hold’em, or any poker game for that matter, you use pot odds to help you make certain decisions. This article will focus on situations where you are facing a bet on the Flop or Turn and are certain you need to improve to win the pot. Once you know how many outs you have and compare your “card odds” to your “pot odds”, you can then determine if it’s profitable for you to draw to the best hand. Read the rest of this entry »

Team Full Tilt is probably what many fans consider as the ‘dream team’ of poker. With such stellar members such as Patrik Antonius, Gus Hansen, and even Phil Ivey, it seems that this team can’t get any more star-studded. But Full Tilt quickly proved this notion wrong when they welcomed Tom “Durrrr” Dwan into the fold. Read the rest of this entry »

Since poker is a game of variance, it is important to risk as little of your bankroll as possible, while placing yourself in situations that can have positive returns on your investments. Two of the areas that can reap immediate dividends on your bankroll are Single table Sit and Go (or S&G’s) Tournaments, and Multi-Table Tournaments (or MTT’s). This is because the S&G’s and MTT’s generate larger prize pools than cash games do. The trouble with managing your bankroll and playing in S&G’s is that you need to finish in the money to reap a positive return on your investment. Read the rest of this entry »

While poker is a game, the financial aspect of the game has lead to many people treating poker as a business. There are countless people that use poker as their sole means of income. If you’re a successful player with regular positive results, you can easily find a game at virtually any stake, and parlay your buy in investment into a positive or negative return. But it’s the individuals who treat poker as a business that are the ones that can play this game professionally. Read the rest of this entry »