The following is a partial listing of poker articles written by R. Steve McCollum, which have been published on Ezine Articles. You may read the entire article by clicking the links provided below.
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Poker Articles by R. Steve McCollum (link with summary):
- Betting Sequences in a Hold'em Poker Tournament
The entire game of No-Limit Hold'em and all of the actions and considerations in a hand can be described simply and fundamentally by nothing more elaborate that a hand full of words. Think about it. All of the books you have read, all the experience you have accumulated, all the strategy you have debated boils down to as few as one word, fold. Or two, raise-bet. These few words describe the betting sequence of a hand. The betting sequence is a condensed look at a player's action in a hand.
- Control Points in a Sit n Go Hold'em Tournament
There are a number of points in a single table sit n go hold'em tournament when you will have a good indication that something is amiss, or all systems are go, or something important has happened and requires a response. Basically, these indicators help you to recognize when and how to make changes or corrections in your game.
- Creating Chaos in a Sit 'n' Go Hold'em Tournament
Creating chaos in a sit n go hold'em tournament is my terminology for poker psychological warfare. This style of warfare is intended to provoke losing thoughts and emotions in your opponents. It is usually achieved by interrupting the normal, friendly, or peaceful flow of the game. The idea is first to get your opponents distracted.
- Debunking Online Poker Cheating Software
There are a number of products available that rather boldly advertise their effectiveness as online poker cheating software. You can perform an online search for 'poker cheating software' to see what I mean. Granted, there are ongoing debates, and huge differences of opinion, about whether certain types of online poker software should be prohibited or not. In my opinion, a few poker rooms have erroneously prohibited certain tracking and analysis software. Nevertheless, I think that everyone is in agreement that the intent of poker cheating software serves only to undermine the spirit of a great competitive sport.
- Draws, Redraws and Drawing Dead in a Sit 'n' Go Hold'em Tournament
In the fast sit n go setting, we should be seeking to engage in only those situations where the outcomes are predictably and significantly weighted in our favor. The limited number of starting chips in a sit n go are just too difficult to replace. If you lose with a drawing hand, and you usually will, you cannot simply buy more chips. Plus, the amount of time available for recovery of lost chips runs out too quickly. So, chip risks must be limited. And, one good way to limit risk is to avoid all but the best and cheapest of draws.
- Eight Unique Opportunities For Sit 'n' Go Chip Accumulation
If you are strictly a conservative sit n go tournament player, then you may be missing some good opportunities to accumulate chips. If you will loosen a little at the right time and in the right situation, you will find a bountiful supply of chips ripe for the picking. The lesson is this: there are many windows of opportunity, like the ones in this article, that open and close quickly throughout a sit n go. So, stay alert. Be creative. And, capitalize on those fleeting opportunities to somewhat safely accumulate chips.
- Fifteen Tips For Purchasing Online Poker Software
Generally speaking, online poker software products can be grouped into three broad categories - pre-game, game play, and post-game. Pre-game software would be the training type of applications, such as a bubble trainer. Game play would be the software that would provide information to assist in decision making during a game, such as an odds calculator. And, the post-game software would be programs that help a player analyze completed games, such as an hand history converter. But, keep in mind that the purpose of any software product should be to help you to learn to make better poker decisions. In other words, to help you to become a better player. Not to do your playing or thinking for you.
- Good Timing in a Sit 'n' Go Poker Tournament
Learning to develop good timing is at the core of winning sit n go play. Because, there is little fundamental difference between any style of sit n go tournament, whether it is fast or slow, or single or multitable. All of the hands, and plays, and moves are the same. The principal difference between the tournaments is merely structure. And, structure affects timing. That is, when to do what.
- How a Poker Player Can Perform in the Zone
We have all been witness to athletic greatness. Like those gold medal winning Olympic performances on the bars, or on the ice, when an athlete appears to effortlessly flow through their routine. When their mind and body function in perfect harmony. When their concentration is so intensely focused that they seem detached from everything, even normal consciousness. To the athlete, these are the moments known as performing in the zone. Performing in the zone is the state of mind that every athlete strives to attain in every competition. And, this goal is common to all forms of competition, whether the sport is mental or physical. It is even a goal in the mental sport of poker. In poker jargon, playing your 'A' game would be akin to performing in the zone.
- How to Beat the Multitabling Sit And Go Shark
One of the fantastic features of on-line poker is the ability to play in multiple games at the same time. For the accomplished player, multitabling is a sure road to financial success. Practically all of the largest winning sit n go players multitable. They are the multitabling sit n go sharks. You are likely to confront one or several of them in every sit n go that you enter. If you make it into the money, most likely one or more will be your competition. And as you might guess, they are really tough to beat. So, given that you will frequently be competing against these sharks, how do you deal with them? Hopefully, this article will shed some light, and answer the question.
- How to Come Back in a Sit 'n' Go Hold'em Tournament
Have you ever heard the expression, a chip and a chair? I have forgotten most of the details, but the expression describes a legendary 1982 WSOP poker tournament feat. Jack Strauss, the player involved, thought that he had been eliminated. But, as he was preparing to leave the table, he discovered one remaining $500 chip hidden beneath his cocktail napkin. With that one chip he went on to win the title. The moral, of course, is obvious. Never give up.
- Intuitive Sit 'N' Go Bubble Play
Well, there are plenty of scientific and mathematical ways to analyze and conduct sit n go bubble play. There are probabilities and statistics regarding starting hands. There is the independent chip model (ICM) analysis for weighing the tournament value of various plays. There is M, and the M Zones, for help with figuring out when to do what with your stack. And, there all kinds of software to assist with every one of these calculations. But, my approach for playing the bubble in a single table sit n go is more about the predicting of likely opponent behavior than these tiresome calculations. You can call it 'playing the player', but I call it 'Intuitive Bubble Play'. However, it is not intuition absent logic. Instead, it is an approach that is firmly grounded in all of the science and math. So, maybe my approach is just logical analysis with a large dash of psychology.
- Five Tips For Sit 'n' Go Bankroll Management
Bankroll management encompasses three principles. First, protecting the corpus against erosion. Second, protecting against reversals after an advance. And third, achieving unrestrained growth.
- Five Tips For Training Your Sit 'n' Go Opponents
Perhaps you have noticed, but it just did not register, that sometimes your opponents in a sit n go hold'em tournament will do exactly what you want without any apparent, manipulative action on your part. Chances are that they have followed your lead without you knowing. Our job is to recognize those moments of influence. As it is then that we may be able to manipulate outcomes to our advantage.
- Laying Down a Sit 'n' Go Tournament Poker Hand
Giving up on a hand is one of poker's toughest decisions. Nevertheless, in some situations nothing else matters. Because, there are times when you must give up, lay down your hand, cut your losses, and survive to fight another round. The tournament graveyard is littered with the remains of those who were too curious or too stubborn. So, here are some considerations about laying down a sit n go tournament hand.
- Leakage, Sit N Go Tournament Style
We are all familiar with the poker concept of leakage, the mistakes and technical errors that leak your chips away during a game. In this article though, we are going to examine a different kind of leakage, tournament leakage. Not leakage of chips during a tournament, but rather, the leakage of tournaments.
- Limping in a Sit 'n' Go Hold'em Poker Tournament
Limping in an on-line Sit 'n' Go Hold'em poker tournament is typically a risky, wasteful use of chips. Especially in a single table tournament. This is because the rapidly increasing blinds compared to the relatively small starting stack size does not allow a sufficient buffer for failed gambles. Nevertheless, limping is an important weapon to carry in your poker arsenal. Think of limping as a doorway. On the other side might be riches or nothing. Thus, you do not want to pay much to enter. But, very often there will be a nice, and sometimes large, reward. Because, in the ideal limping situation, you get to determine the outcome.
- Making Informed Decisions in a Sit 'n' Go Poker Tournament
Making informed decisions is the essence of playing good poker. In the final analysis, it is your decisions, and only your decisions that matter. In fact, the ultimate goal of every player in any form of poker is quite unsophisticated. Contrary to what you might think, the goal is not to win the hand, nor to win the tournament. The goal is to merely make one good decision at a time. Hand after hand after hand.
- My Poker Break - the Before and After Story
Recently, I posted an article announcing that I was 'taking a break from poker'. The break is over, and now it is time for the rest of the story. So, did my two week break from poker help? In a word, yes! In fact, phenomenally so.
- Playing Big Slick in a Sit And Go Hold'em Tournament
There are more questions, more opinions, and more words written about how to play Big Slick (A-K) than any other Hold'em hand. This is because A-K is the most frequently occurring of all of the premium starting hands. So, A-K will be seen in more big pot showdowns than any other hand. But, A-K has a highly exposed achilles heal. This giant can be taken down by any pair, even a lowly pair of twos. Thus, all of the interest, confusion, and debate about how to play big slick. So, in the case of playing A-K, as with all premium starting hands, the best guide will be caution, and the best teacher will be experience.
- Poker Discipline
Discipline is one of the key ingredients of poker success. In fact, discipline or more accurately, self-discipline is the cornerstone of success in almost any of life's pursuits. With experience you will learn all of the good, as well as all of the bad poker habits. Self-discipline, or the lack of self-discipline will then determine which poker path you follow. It is entirely up to you. Will you become a perfectly good, or a perfectly bad poker player?
- Poker Self Talk and Levels of Thinking
For me, there is a direct correlation between the level of my play in a sit n go tournament and the amount of self talk going on in my head. Before you start wondering about my sanity, let me explain. If I am discussing with myself every move at the table, whether I am in the hand or not, then I am focused and observant. Consequently, I better understand my opponents, and am better able to anticipate their moves and plays.
- Poker Tilt - How To Beat The Beast
Most of us know that when you shove a pinball a bit too hard, the machine 'tilts'. You then lose your turn, or the game! In poker, a mental condition called 'tilt' operates much the same way. When your emotions start shoving your logic machine a bit too hard, you are said to be 'on tilt'.
- Sharpen Your Poker Game With Brainwave Entrainment Music
Whether we are at home or in the casino, the poker scene is usually the same. One distraction after another. The cocktail waitress, the TV, the dog, the loudmouth - they really are not conducive to achieving peak mental poker performance. After all, poker is a mental sport. So, how can we possibly maintain the level of focus required for peak mental performance with all of those distractions bombarding us? There are many methods for blocking distraction in order to achieve focused concentration. This article is about one called brainwave entrainment music.
- Sit 'n' Go Hold'em Tournament Drawing Analogy
When you are faced with a tough decision about whether or not to chase a draw in a sit n go hold'em tournament, think about this following analogy. It might help you to better understand the options and their consequences.
- Sit 'n' Go Poker Tournament Glossary
Presented here, in glossary format, are some of the poker terms and concepts common to a sit n go hold'em tournament. These particular ones are especially meaningful for the fast or turbo version of the sit n go. The goal of this glossary is to help in making informed decisions when playing in the turbo sit n go. Consequently, I have added some of the strategic considerations that underlie many of the concepts.
- Sit 'n' Go Stealing in the Small Blind
While in the small blind, if you frequently surrender the blinds to the big blind, then you are leaking a significant number of chips. Especially in a Turbo Sit n Go, where there are usually only a few opportunities to accumulate chips. Therefore, learning to steal in the small blind presents a potential opportunity in every round to accumulate a few chips.
- Seven Guidelines For The Turbo Sit 'n' Go
The Turbo Sit n Go is Pokerdom's answer to the amusement park roller coaster. Starts kind of slow, then all heck breaks loose. The Turbo will challenge all of your capabilities. And, it will expose every single flaw in your game, and in your mind. Use these insights to improve.
- Seventeen Traits Of Poker Mental Toughness
Poker is a mental sport. So, for that matter, is chess. In sports, whether the game is mental or physical, the mentally tough prevail. Mental toughness is more than a prescription for success, it is a matter of survival.
- Strategies For Playing the Stages of a Sit 'n' Go Bubble
It took me a long time to come to this realization, but just as there are stages in a poker tournament, there are also stages in a bubble. However, unlike the tournament, where the stages are clearly demarked by the number of eliminations and the size of the blinds, the bubble stages are determined largely by the blinds, and are often somewhat less clear. In the bubble there are three possible distinct stages. But, sometimes there are only two stages. And frequently, there is only one.
- Taking a Break From Poker
Forbid the thought of taking a break from poker, but it is inevitable. It happens to everyone. To pros and amateurs, alike. The day that comes when you finally admit to yourself that you are overdue for a break. When your mind has gotten fuzzy, when your bankroll has started sliding, when nothing has gone right, when everything you have tried has failed, and when you have blamed everyone but yourself, that is when it is time for a break. Simply put: you have been working too hard. Your mental circuits have grown weary. Your mind and body need some time to recover.
- The Dance of Poker
Too many poker books ago for me to recall which one, an author described playing poker as being similar to dancing the Tango. That analogy has stuck in my mind. Even today, I can visualize players seemingly embraced in a staccato, synchronized ritual of leading then following. Following then leading. Absent the romance, of course.
- The Unpredictable Successful Sit 'n' Go Tournament Player
Predictability is a tournament player's Achilles' heel. And, this applies to any player in any poker game, even to sharks. If you know what to expect from a player because of his predictability, you also know what to avoid. Thus, you can easily out maneuver your predictable opponent. Staying just out of harm's way, while you safely move his chips to your stack. So, here are a few ideas for becoming unpredictable.
- Thirty Tips For Attaining Sit 'n' Go Hold'em Tournament Success
Here are thirty tried and true tips for attaining sit n go hold'em tournament success. There are literally hundreds of tips for success in a sit n go. But, these few are fundamental. Follow them and win, or ignore them and lose. It is just about that simple.
- Twelve On-Line Sit 'n' Go Poker Tells
In live poker play, it is necessary to learn the meaning of an opponent's physical tells. The tell might be a facial expression, or a hand or body movement.
- Twelve Places to Find Sit N Go Poker Tournament Secrets
First of all, are there really any so called sit n go tournament secrets to be found anywhere? Are there treasure chests full of secrets just sitting around waiting to be discovered? The answer is a huge, Yes! Today, there are plenty of hold'em and sit n go treasure chests loaded with all of the secrets that you could ever hope to know. You can think of this article as a treasure map. With it, we are about to embark on a journey of richly rewarding discovery.
- Twenty Mistakes That Tell the World You Are a Sit N Go Poker Fish
Here are twenty mistakes that will empty your bankroll and brand you a novice. Commit a few of these mistakes during a Sit n Go, and you will have branded a big ol' scarlet 'F' on your forehead! ('F' is for Fish.)
- Understanding Luck in Poker
It has always been my conviction that a better understanding of anything that influences our game of poker leads to a stronger game. So, I have always been fascinated with those strange forces that haunt our game: chance, unlikely events, probabilities, and the grand old goddess herself, luck.
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Copyright 2009 R. Steve McCollum
