Freerolls

You are a novice player and you don't know how to start? You want to play for real cash, but without risking your own money? Simply look for freerolls! Every poker site offers a variety of tournaments which are free to play and top players win some real cash. The prizes are not huge, but you can use it as a starting point to build your bankroll or just to have some fun.

People in these tournaments are generally very hazardous types, people who have registered to play 5-10 minutes and have some fun. They do not pay attention to things like bet sizing, position or what hand you might hold. That's why the strategy is very simple - play very very tight and very very aggressive at every stage of the tournament. Tight because your bluffs never work - people just don't find a reason to fold their hand even if it is very crappy. Aggressive for the same reason - when you have a good hand you can get a maximum value out of it.

If you follow these simple rules, I can guarantee that you will succeed in freerolls. You have to be very patient because I know it is sometimes very tempting to bluff or try to outplay your opponents in similar way but it doesn't work. So just sit calm and wait for your big hands to come - they will most certainly be payed off. I wish you good luck and I will see you on the freeroll tournament tables!

Cash Games

Although cash games or the so-called "ring" games are not as exciting (at least for me) as the tournaments, they are my main source of profit. Why? In this post I will explain some of the advantages of the cash games over the tournaments and will show you how you can use them to gain a constant profit.

First of all - imagine yourself playing tournament for 3-4 hours straight. Pretty exhausting, isn't it? And if something happens and you have to leave your computer all your efforts become pointless. That is what I like the most about cash games - you can sit and play for as much time as you want to and can leave without any hesitation. Therefore you have the opportunity to play for an hour, then go out with friends, and maybe come back and play another hour.

Another significant advantage is that you don't have to schedule your time for play ahead. What I mean is you don't have to conform with the tournament schedule so you can play whenever you want. You don't have to start playing at exactly 8:00pm - it's up to you to decide when you can afford to spend an hour or two.

The last reason I like cash games is the most important for my bankroll - the profit you gain on the cash tables is much more reliable. That means if you are playing well, you can gradually build your bankroll - slowly but securely. That is because the variation in the cash games is way less than the variation in tournaments, where you can have a whole week or even a month without any profit even if you play your best game.

I hope today's lesson finds you all well and you will seriously consider playing some poker ring games. I wish good luck and I will see you on the cash tables!

Tournaments (part 2)

As I promised in my previous post, I will share some of my experience about the poker tournaments and give you some hints on how to play in the different stages of the game. It is crucial to understand the basic concepts if you want to be a winning poker player. So lets get started!

In the beginning everyone starts excited and impatient to collect as many chips and prove to the others that he is the best. However, most of the people have absolutely no idea of strategy and planning ahead. That is why you should play very tight (as we call it ABC) poker in the beginning. Pick your spots very carefully and do not bluff because most of the people playing are still weak players who tend to call you down with weak hands. Be patient and if you are not very unlucky you will have a medium or big stack for the next stage.

In the middle stage the stacks become shallower and most of the weak players are already out of the tournament. You need to consider how big is your stack - if you are one of the short stacks, seek an opportunity to get all your chips in the middle with a premium hand - double up is your only chance for a top ranking. If you have a medium or big stack this is the time when you have to steal as much as you can, bluff from time to time, because the blinds and antes are very high, compared to the stacks of the players. The main goal is to arrive on the final table with a big stack.

The final table is where everyone wants to be - big prizes, tough competition and adrenalinе. That is the moment when you have to slow down and return to your solid tight image. Pick the spots for bluffs very carefully until you pick up some information about the players on the table - some of them will play for the win only and will risk more than others who play just to climb one or two places on the leaderboard. At this stage you will have to play your opponent, not your cards, and if your reads are correct you may be the winner.

I hope you learned something new and I will see you on the final tables!