As a poker player you will make a significant amount of money by simply knowing when to fold. In fact Kenny Rogers sang in The Gambler: “You got to know when to hold’em, know when to fold’em,” so it must be true.

A common problem among losing players is their inability to let go of a hand, regardless of how the board reads or the action of the other players in the hand. It is as if they are wearing blinkers that prevent them from seeing any danger before them.

Beginners often struggle with folding their Texas poker hands pre-flop. They will play any ace or any two suited cards regardless of their position or whether or not there has been a raise in front of them. Developing a solid starting hand strategy is a key stage of learning when to fold, and if done correctly will see you folding around 80% of your hands if you are a tight players and 65-70% if you are loose.

Once a player learns how to fold pre-flop, they then encounter problem situations on the flop, turn and river. We have all come across players who will chase a flush draw or straight draw without the correct odds or implied odds to do so. It is sometimes correct to draw but if it is a weak draw you are often better off folding rather than risking making an expensive second-best hand.

The most common scenario when a player should fold but does not is when they hold a pair of aces. People see the best pre-flop hand in poker and automatically think they are entitled to win and that their hand is invincible. Although aces are a very strong hand you should be prepared to put them in the muck if the situation dictates it. Like everything in poker it is player specific, but some examples of when it could be time to fold aces include three and four flushed boards when you do not have one of the suits, when an extremely tight player raises you on a low unconnected board or when the board contains possible straights such as JT9.

Just remember that winning poker starts with folding many hands pre-flop and then also assessing your hand’s strength on each street based on the information you can gather. If in doubt what is the right move, it is usually best to fold.

The term bad beat in poker is reserved for the occasions when a player loses a hand despite being a strong favourite when the majority of the money went into the pot.

For example, you may get into a raising war with another player pre-flop and manage to get all your money in with a pair of aces against your opponent’s kings, making you an 82 per cent favourite, only for a third king to hit on the flop to stack you. Another example would be if you had a strong hand such as a set and then lost to someone after cards on the turn and river gave them a better hand.

The most common reaction when a bad beat is put on you is that of anger. This is because we know we had the best hand and as a result see the pot as our property. When a bad beat occurs it feels like someone stole that money from us so we become angry.

Becoming angry can then lead you to go on tilt, and a tilting player cannot play optimal poker and will therefore risk of losing even more chips.

One way to deal with a bad beat, whether it occurs in Texas Hold’em or Omaha poker, is to take some time away from the table. Simply choose to sit out the next hand, or maybe even the next entire orbit of the table, until you have calmed down and are not playing with your emotions in a raw state. This will minimise the risk of losing more money or tournament chips.

Some players cope with bad beats by venting their anger at the dealer or at the player who put the bad beat on them. Two people who are infamous for this are Phil “The Poker Brat” Hellmuth and Tony G. Both men are superb players in their own right but are almost as famous for their trash-talking and berating of players as they are their poker skills.

Probably the best way to get over a bad beat would be to firstly accept that they are part of poker and secondly realise that they only happen to good players. This may sound ridiculous but with a little thought it becomes obvious.

As a good player you will be attempting to commit your chips with a mathematical advantage, also known as getting your money in good. If you are doing this on a regular basis, as you should be, the only way you will lose is when your opponent outdraws you or sucks out on you. Take this last point on board as the next time you suffer a bad beat, smile in the knowledge you made the correct play and, in the long run, it will all come good.

Being in early position in Texas Holdem Poker is not necessarily a bad thing when you only have one or two players in the hand before you.  Ideally, the move we are going to talk about today is an isolation move, but you can pull this off with two players if you are watching the style of play and know that the other pre flop and flop caller has missed their hand. Whether you are playing in casino or online poker sites the strategy apply for both.

The first thing we want to address here is if it is three handed.  This is the more dangerous of the two, but watching will tell you what to do here.  Assume that you are in the BB and you have one limper behind you and late position raises.  Both you and the limper make the call to see the flop.  The flop hits and you either hit the middle pair or are holding a middle pair in your hand.  You check and the limper checks and the raiser makes a continuation bet that is called.

If you have a crafty player before the raiser, they may be looking to make a move and watching how they reacted in similar positions will help you with the size of their bet.  If you have seen them put in a turn bet to steal a pot, your bet is going to have to be enough to chase them off of their hand.  If they usually fold with a turn bet, you can get away with a value bet here to get them out and go up against the initial raiser.

When you have isolation, your move here is pretty straight forward.  You want them to make their continuation bet and then you are looking for something harmless to fall on the turn.  If that card hits, you immediately fire on the turn to give the raiser something to think about.  Unless they are sitting on a big hand, they will more than likely fold here.  If the board has put a draw out there, they may just call and go fishing for the river card to improve them.

This move is going to pick you up a lot of pots as when the stakes get a little higher, players tend to get out versus risking losing a chunk of their stack. The successes that you have with this move should more than make up for those times that you get caught by an actual hand.  If you are successful, this will eventually pay off in a big way when you are lucky enough to have a monster hand and the raiser misreads you as doing the same play and that is what this game is all about.

Folding top pair is not something that comes very easy for a lot of poker players, but it can be a dangerous hand against the wrong opponent. Once again, your power of observation and notes are going to lead you in the right direction and making sure that you know who you are up against will save you a lot of heartache when you think you have a big hand.

When you hit top pair against an aggressive opponent, the normal play is to apply pressure or set up a trap and try to take them for everything that they have. When you are up against a tighter player, everything changes and you have to recognize this situation or you will be walking up to the cashier to get some more chips. It is usually an easy read as long as you are paying attention.

Tight players will normally only come over the top when they are sitting on a monster hand that cannot be beat at that point in time. Assume you come into the hand with a raise in late position with AJ suited and have a tight player in early position that limped in. The SB folds and the BB makes the call along with the tight player. The flop comes out J73 rainbow. The BB checks as does the tight player and you are put on a decision as to how much to bet.

Now you have gotten exactly what you wanted and have hit your hand. The flop is about as good as it gets for you and stringing people along is probably where your head is at and where it should be at this point. You make a half pot sized bet and the BB calls and the tight player makes a move and raises three times your bet. What are you going to do here?

Whether you want to or not, the play is to fold and get out of the way. There are two things that point you in this direction and I would be willing to bet any amount of money that the tight player is sitting on a set. The first of these is that they came over top of you. The J does not scare them and you can be pretty sure that at the very least they sat on KK or QQ hoping to not see an A on the flop. However, it is much more likely that they have a set.

The second factor is what should really scare you here. Regardless of what you do, there is still another player in the game. The fact that they have dismissed you and are making a play with someone else that already has money invested tells you that something is amiss here and your JJ is no good. The set is the call here and you need to take the small hit and wait for the next battle.

There are those that will tell you that it is impossible to bluff in limit poker, but all you need is the right opponent.  Jennifer Harman is one of the best limit players in the world and in her chapter on Limit Hold’em in Super System 2, she is very specific about the exact type of player that you can catch on a bluff in limit.

The player you are looking for is the “Genius” of the table.  It will take some time on the table to catch him and then you are going to need the perfect board in order to do so, but you can definitely take down some chips and stroke his ego at the same time allowing for another bluff later in the game.

“Mr. Genius” is going to pride himself in making big laydowns on the river and will make sure everyone knows that he is folding a big hand.  He will more than likely do this when an obvious straight or flush hits the board and regardless of his hand, he will let it go to prove how great of a poker player he is.  We love these kinds of guys as they almost take pride in losing money the ‘smart’ way.

In order to convince him you are on the draw, you will need to play the hand that way from the very beginning.  For this move, you should be acting behind him for the best effect.  When he makes his preflop raise, you are simply going to call him down.  If the flop hits and presents an open ended straight for flush draw, you have your bluffing hand.

More than likely, he will fire off a continuation bet and you need to come right over the top.  This is a pretty common move in limit and no limit as you are building the pot for when the big hand hits.  The key to the whole hand lies in the next card.  The best situation would be for the turn to come up blank.  He will more than likely respect your raise on the flop and check it down to you.  In order to get him in your sites, you are going to have to check it also.

The reason you do this is because of the raise on the flop.  When you are on a draw, you will raise in position to get the free card on the turn.  If the raiser is on a draw, they will check the turn if they don’t hit and get to see the river for free.  Playing the hand this way against the ‘Genius’ sets it up perfectly for the river bluff.

Your check is going to put him on alert that you are on a draw.  When that river card pops the draw, you can be assured that as long as he does not have the hand, you are going to be able to take this one down.  If he bets, you raise, if he checks, you bet.  Again, as long as he did not hit the hand, there should be some deliberation followed by a nice speech about how he figured you had it, but had to take a shot anyway or a shake of the head as he says he can’t believe you sucked out.  Tell him “nice fold” and take down your pot.

	Ladbrokes Poker Room Details:
	Country of Origin	:	United Kingdom
	License	:	Gibraltar
	Year of Foundation	:	2004
	Software	:	Microgaming
	Currencies Used	:	EUR, GBP, USD
	Audited By	:	PWC
	Language	:	English
	Accepts USA Players	:	No
	Bonus	:	100% Up To $500

Ladbrokes Poker Room Review

Overview:

Ladbrokes is a well-known name in the bookmaking history of the UK. Now it has unfurled its wings to the world of online gaming as well. Ladbrokes Poker is one of the outcomes of this decision, having established not long ago in 2004. This online poker room has a lot to offer its players in forms of games that include not only poker but casino games as well. Apart from this there are different promotions, a generous bonus for a first time deposit and plenty of tournaments, which are the most popular at Ladbrokes Poker. There is a lot of money to be made at Ladbrokes Poker, as the games played are quite loose. So, anyone looking to earning a living can make a good start here.

Software:

Ladbrokes is now using the customized Microgaming software after having removed their own patented software. This has improved the traffic considerably. The software offers good 3-D graphics that provides a realistic feel to the games. The ‘My Lobby’ option is very convenient, as it gives you access to all the games through a neatly and clearly laid out list that separates the cash games from the tournaments besides which the limit versions are also listed for quick access to the games of your choice.

All table statistics, hand history, calendar and other useful features are also offered. Also available is a chat facility that enables players to interact with one another as well as the staff if they require any kind of support.

Games:

The games offered include the all-time favorite Texas Holdem in fixed limit, no limit and pot limit versions with most of the action taking place at the fixed limit tables. Omaha is the next most played game while the other available games include 5 Card Stud, 5 Card Draw and 7 Card Stud. Real money games are offered in full-ring, short-handed and heads-up versions.

The most popular games at Ladbrokes Poker are the tournaments that take place every fifteen minutes and are available throughout the day. The most amazing varieties can be seen at the sit and go tournaments that are offered in full ring and shorthanded versions in both single as well as multi table tournaments. Apart from these, several other tournaments are offered such as the jackpot tournaments, satellites and guaranteed tournaments. You can make your way to larger world tournaments through the satellite tournaments. Buy-ins to tournaments can begin as low as $2 and can go up as high as $300.

Player Traffic:

Peak time traffic at Ladbrokes falls around 1,500 players at the cash tables. This traffic is generally around European peak time, as US players are no longer allowed to wager at Ladbrokes Poker. The highest amount of traffic can be sighted at the middle stake Holdem levels.

Bonus and Promotions:

Players are offered a 100% up to $500 welcome bonus along with a first-time deposit. The bonus amount can be received when you wager 30 times the bonus amount within 30 days. Players are given Player Points for every raked hand that they play and they can redeem these points for the bonus and for buy-ins to tournaments. Promotional offers include the exciting leaderboard rake race that rewards up to $1,000,000 to the top players of the month. Apart from this there are daily free rolls of $25,000, guaranteed tournaments and sit and go jackpots.

Methods of Payment:

Deposit options include VISA, MasterCard, PayPal, Switch, Solo, Delta, Bank Transfers and check while withdrawal options include VISA, MasterCard, PayPal, Wire Transfer and check.

Customer Support:

The efficient staff at Ladbrokes Poker is available around the clock via telephone if there is some immediate query that you need to have answered or else they can also be contacted through the equally quick email service, as you can get a response to your mail within 24 hours. Besides these two support forms, you can also browse through the FAQ section where you are likely to find answers to most of the simple queries.

If you play poker long enough, you are going to find yourself in a position where you go on a bad run. It can be during a tournament or a stretch of a cash game. When this happens, you start talking to yourself, doubting every move and then of course you start to make bad plays that continue the bad luck run that you are having. When this happens, you have to be able to avoid going on full tilt or you will end up completely broke and hate the game of poker.

It is common knowledge that everyone forgets the bad beats that they lay out and always remember the ones that you receive. The first step in being able to deal with bad beats is to remember the ones that you are on the good side of. This will enable you to handle them as you can more or less consider them to be payback for the times that you did not deserve to win a hand. You know, that inside straight that chased down on the river because you ‘felt’ that it was going to hit and then found out you beat someone who flopped a set. File that one away because you will need it later.

One other thing that you will need to get straight in your head is that if there is a chance that the card can hit, then you are still at risk. While there are percentages to every hand, they are not true in odds in the respect that if 100 hands were dealt out that the side that is favored 70-30 would win 70% of the hands. While it is unlikely that it would happen, the favorite could actually lose every time.

The fact of the matter is that regardless of the percentages, the weaker hand HAS to hit sometimes. Unfortunately, you may feel that it always happens against you, but this again goes back to you remembering all of the bad beats that you have put on people yourself.

Another way to deal with bad beats is to simply take a break. If you are in tournament or a cash game, just get up and take a quick walk to clear your head and let it go. If you sit at the table and stew on it, you are not going to be concentrating on your cards and you can end up losing everything. If you are on a run of a few days where this is happening, take a longer break from poker. Give yourself a couple of days off and do anything but play poker until you can do so without thinking that you are going to take a bad beat.

Tilt is something that every great poker player has fallen victim to at one point or another. Hopefully, after it happens to you, you can learn the lesson of how disastrous it can be. Relax, get your focus back and start playing cards again. Remember, start filing all of those lucky hits you have to keep the bad beats that you take in perspective.

	Basic Details
	Country of Origin	:	Gibraltar
	License	:	Gibraltar
	Year of Foundation	:	2002
	Software	:	888
	Size	:
	Audited By	:	PWC
	Language	:	English, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, Portuguese, Swedish, Polish, Hungarian, Bulgarian, Romanian, Czech, Lithuanian, Latvian, Russian, Estonian
	Accepts USA Players	:	No
	Bonus	:	$400

Pacific Poker Review

Creators of the well known Casino-on-Net, the 888.com gaming network are also the initiators of Pacific Poker, the poker gaming website of this large online gaming provider. It is immensely popular because of the loose games that are played here and the traffic comprises mainly of players switching over from the 888.com casino website to play at the poker tables.

Pacific Poker runs some interesting events that draws huge amounts of traffic to the website with peak hour traffic exceeding 2000 players playing at the various tables. During the weekends the traffic is far greater than that during weekdays. There is loads of action and a lot of juicy games to choose from, making Pacific Poker a popular gaming website.

Software:

The upgraded edition of the software has some new features added to it that have greatly enhanced the overall performance of the software, which had earlier been a cause of disappointment for the players. The lobby has a new look with straightforward menus that are easily navigable while the filter search allows quick access to the games.

A multi table function allows players to play at four tables simultaneously without one screen overcrowding the other. The tables are neatly laid out and the cards are large and colorful enabling a clearer view of the hands being played. The game play has becomes faster and smoother while the graphics have shown a remarkable improvement with the introduction of 3-D avatars.

You can see the hand histories through a graphical replay of the played hands, which is a handy tool for those who prefer to maintain a record of their played games. Also available is basic information on flop percentages and the average pot size. The software now also offers a no-download version, which is compatible with Mac and Linux, a brilliant feature only available at Pacific Poker.

Poker Games:

Pacific Poker provides its players with the standard poker games available at all the other poker websites. These include the widely played Texas Holdem, Omaha, Omaha Hi, Omaha Lo, Seven Card Stud, Seven Card Stud Hi and Seven Card Stud Lo. There is a lot of action to be seen at the Holdem Fixed Limit and Pot Limit games and players looking to earn profits can make a good amount of money here. There are games for all kinds of players starting from micro limits of $0.05/$0.10 to high limits of $75/$150 for players who like to play for larger stakes.

There are various tournaments available on Pacific Poker that include single-table and multi-table tournaments and sit-and-go tournaments apart from which there are guaranteed tournaments with huge pot sizes. Multi table tournament pools also run into five figure amounts. Tournaments are the most sought after and have peak traffic exceeding 8000 players playing at the same time.

Bonus and Promotional Offers:

New players get a 100% welcome bonus of up to $400 when they sign up for an account, but they must wager for this bonus amount to be credited to their account. A minimum wager of 20 times the amount, which is $2000 for each $100 of free credits, must be made so as to get the bonus sum.

Pacific Poker has various promotional offers for its players among which are the freerolls that are offered to new players, players who make re-deposits and players who attempt games for the loyalty program. Apart from this there are guaranteed tournaments such as the one held every Saturday with a pool prize of $100,000.

Players can also accumulate comp points for every raked hand that they play with $10 earning them 1 point. Every 100 points gets them a credit of $1 into their account.

Payment Options:

Deposits can be made via Neteller, Credit Cards, Debit Cards, FirePay, Bank Wire, Prepaid ATM, Bank transfer and Citadel. Withdrawals take a little longer and can be made via Credit/Debit Cards, Prepaid ATM, Neteller, Bank Wire, FirePay and Bank Transfer.

Security:

As Pacific Poker is a part of the renowned 888 Holdings Group, the transactions carried out here are safe and secure. It uses RSA encryption and is declared a safe site by eCogra and eCommerce and Online Gambling Regulation and Assurance, for secure online transactions. This ensures customers that they can make deposits or withdrawals at Pacific Poker without any fear of their personal information being divulged to a third party.

Customer Service:

The Pacific Poker customer service staff can be contacted via telephone, email and live chat systems. Support is available around the clock and the team is available to answer your queries as soon as possible.

	Basic Details
	Country of Origin	:	Gibraltar
	License	:	Gibraltar
	Year of Foundation	:	2002
	Software	:	iPoker Network
	Size	:	11.9 MB
	Audited By	:	PWC
	Language	:	English, French, Italian, Spanish
	Accepts USA Players	:	No
	Bonus	:	$600

William Hill Poker Review

William Hill Poker comes from the William Hill group, a renowned bookmaker in the UK. They have been in the gambling business for years now and offer Sports betting, casino games and poker games. They are one of the leading gambling providers in Europe who have been providing excellent offline services and now have an equally good reputation for online services too.

Poker enthusiasts can find some wonderful games and promotions at William Hill Poker. The variety of promotions and the cash rewards attract a lot of traffic to the site. Peak hour traffic can go up to 2000 players playing ring games with Texas Holdem being the most sought after game.

Software

William Hill Poker switched over to the iPoker Network early this year becoming a part of one of the largest gaming network across the globe. It uses the PlayTech software to run its games. The software is simple and can be managed trouble-free. The graphics may not be one of the best in the industry but the picture and sound are sharp and clear besides which the software has scope for customisation.

The lobby displays the player stats including the hands being played, average pot size, number of players at the tables, flop percentages among others. You can even compare your own play with the table statistics helping you analyse your game and improvise for the future.

Also offered is a multi-table playing option, however you cannot adjust the size of the tables. The software is available in both the downloadable as well as in the browser-playing mode.

Games

William Hill Poker offers a commendable range of games that include Limit, No Limit and Pot Limit Texas Holdem, Omaha, Omaha Hi-Lo, Seven Card Stud, Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo and Five Card Stud. Tournaments also have a variety that include sit and go tournaments, multi-table tournaments, single table tournaments, freeroll tournaments, guaranteed tournaments and satellite tournaments that come with attractive cash prizes.

You can avail yourself of some of the exciting promotions that take place each day which include daily freerolls. Also available is a bad beat jackpot of £150 besides other jackpots. The top player in the month long tournaments also gets rewarded with a huge cash prize.

Players can also accumulate William Hill Loyalty Points that can be exchanged for cash or an entry to a live tournament.

Deposit and Withdrawal Options

William Hill Poker offers a number of deposit options that include VISA, PayPal, Moneybookers, Neteller, Bank Wire and others.

Withdrawals can be done via Neteller, Cheques, FirePay, Citadel etc.

Customer Support Customer Support is available via a live chat facility, telephone and email services, 24 hours a day seven days a week.

William Hill Poker offers poker games that suit a variety of players and is a good website to enjoy poker games that are not only exciting but rewarding as well. The luring promotions attract a huge amount of traffic to its poker tables making the games thrilling to both novices and experienced players alike.

	Basic Details
	Country of Origin	:	United Kingdom
	License	:	Malta
	Year of Foundation	:	2005
	Software	:	iPoker Network
	Language	:	English
	Bonus	:	100% Upto £1000

Virgin Poker Review

Virgin Poker is one of the latest additions, having been established only in the year 2005, to the ever-growing Virgin network. True to its character, Virgin Poker like all the other Virgin ventures offers customers luring bonuses and promotions that attract a huge amount of traffic to its Poker website. The most attractive are the Virgin Poker Points that entitle you to a whole range of fabulous prizes. The website not only offers great rewards but also has some exciting games taking place at the tables. It certainly is worth a visit as it provides you hordes of fun and enjoyment to look forward to.

Software:

Virgin Poker uses the software from Boss Media, which is widely used by the iPoker Network. The software is quick to download, easy to handle and has a smooth game play. The lobby is designed in the patent red color and has all the typical features of the software offered by Boss Media. The menu is well laid out and there are no striking avatars to obstruct the visibility of the screen. You can choose to play on a full screen or opt for a window play. However, you cannot re-size the window and there is no mini mode available either, ruling out the chance of playing at multiple tables simultaneously. A four-color deck is offered for clearer visibility and differentiation of the cards.

All the other required elements can be found here, such as a note taking facility, your own current statistics as well as that of the table, a menu filter that allows you to instantly get to the game of your choice, flop percentages, the average pot size and other features. The quick filter menu allows you to access the game of your choice without difficulty, saving you the time of having to flip through each game before getting to the one you wish to play. You can also choose the limit you want to play. An interesting feature is the ‘player’s area’, that maintains a complete record of your winnings, your position on the leader board, the total V-Points collected by you and so on.

Games:

The games offered at Virgin Poker include the standard Texas Holdem, Omaha, Omaha High/Low, 7-Card Stud, Blackjack and a few others. Stakes can start as low as 5c/10c and can go up as far as $500/$1000 at the higher limits. Most of the action as usual takes place at the Texas Holdem poker tables.

Tournaments:

Virgin Poker offers a number of tournaments that include the sit and go tournaments and the multi-table tournaments with fixed buy-ins. The prize money is distributed among the players according to their ranking at the table. This is determined by how long their chips hold on. The last man to remain at the table is the final winner and gets to keep a larger amount of the pot while the rest is shared by the others as per their ranks.

Traffic:

As the iPoker Network is one of the largest online gaming networks in the world, there is no doubt that there will be a wide range of games to play. So not finding a game of your choice is hardly likely to happen. Texas Holdem is the most sought after and the games played are soft as most of the players here are amateurs and only those seeking fun. You will find a few sharks out there but the lower and middle limits are quite easy and have plenty of cash to be won.

The flop percentages generally fall around 40%, which means that the games are rather loose and full of action. The peak hour traffic at the cash tables is around 3,000 players while those playing tournaments fall around 13,000 players.

Bonus:

You get a generous 100% bonus of up to £100 when you sign up for a new account at Virgin Poker. This bonus is deposited as £10 increments into your account. To avail yourself of this bonus you are required to play £30 worth of raked hands or tournaments to have £10 put into your account. You have 180 days to wager for this bonus amount, which gives you enough time to do so.

Loyalty Program:

Virgin Poker offers loyalty points in the form of V-Points to its players every time they play a cash game, multi-table tournament or a satellite tournament. These points can be exchanged for some fabulous gifts such as Virgin flying miles, mobile top-ups and various other interesting prizes that Virgin is well known for promoting. You can also swap these points for cash or for buy-ins to satellite tournaments.

Promotions:

A €25,000 free roll is held every month as a reward for contestants who have played loyally at Virgin Poker for a whole month. In order to participate in this free roll you must have played 1,500 raked hands before the date of the tournament. Also available are jackpots of €10,000 and some other promotions that take place at Virgin Poker all the time.

Customer Support:

The customer support staff can be contacted via email, telephone or live chat facilities.