On Episode #88 of the Thinking Poker Podcast Andrew Brokos andNate Meyvis break down two hands that were submitted from the audience. One is a cash game hand from an underground joint in New York with a favorable preflop rake, and the other comes … Read more…
Nate’s no longer in Vegas, but Andrew and Leo Wolpert sit down during Day 6 of the Main Event to talk about their own deep runs in the WSOP as well as some key hands from their 2014 tournament.
I’ve obviously been running this over in my head a lot, so I might as well post it here. It’s the last hand before break, blinds are 250/500/25. I have a little shy of 20K, Villain has 30 or 35K. … Read more…
After a cross-country drive, Andrew has finally reunited with Nate in Las Vegas for the 2014 World Series of Poker Main Event! The two are joined by Carlos to talk about a few hands Nate played in a preliminary 10-game … Read more…
Alex “Assassinato” Fitzgerald joins Nate and Andrew on the Thinking Poker Podcast to talk about his childhood in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest, winning and losing a fortune, abusing drugs and getting clean, and his new life in Costa Rica. Sorry … Read more…
Leo Wolpert joins Nate and Andrew from Las Vegas to discuss safety precautions for staying in hotels and the Rio flu, and the trio beak down three hands that Wolpert played at the World Series of Poker.
I’ve got a new series now going up at Tournament Poker Edge. It’s a hand history review from the Sunday $500. There are a lot of tough players in that field, so you can watch me talk through some interesting … Read more…
Thanks for all the comments on What’s Your Bluff Target? A few people disagreed with my premise that a bluff of some sort is mandatory here. I think that Samael sums up the argument for betting something quite well: “we … Read more…
I’ve been busy of late. Actually I was busy a while ago, and people were slow to publish stuff. Anyway, first up is Where Do the Weak Hands Go?, a Two Plus Two article that should help you think through … Read more…
In this instance I think that bluffing is clearly correct, and the most interesting question is what to target and thus how much to bet. First a little history. Villain is a nitty regular, so much so that it’s at … Read more…
This week’s mailbag is special because the question was submitted to the podcast, and both Nate and I answered it. Q: I started out as one of those players you often refer to who says “I don’t really need to … Read more…
Thanks for all the comments on What’s Your Play? Ace on the River, and sorry that it’s taken so long to post the results. Bet or Check? An Ace on the river will generally be a better card for the … Read more…
This is from a $5/$10 game at Maryland Live. Villain is an older guy, nitty mostly with regard to his pre-flop hand selection. Post-flop he isn’t just absurdly tight-passive, he’s capable of bluffing, value betting, etc. at least reasonably well. … Read more…
The WSOP is right around the corner, so bone up on your live tournament skills with my new Tournament Poker Edge series, LOL Liveaments. It’s a review of key hands from a $1000 tournament that I final tabled at my … Read more…
My latest for Two Plus Two Magazine is entitled “Hero Folding” and is about learning to feel good about folding: Whereas big bluffs and hero calls offer the dual rewards of feeling like you made a great play and seeing a … Read more…
I’ve got something a little different for this week’s mailbag. It’s a follow-up email from Yagasmurf, whose hand was featured on Thinking Poker Podcast Episode 77. You’ll have to listen to the show to hear everything I had to say … Read more…
I’ve got a new article on Learn.PokerNews that addresses one of my (many) pet peeves, the idea that satellites are a good choice for players with limited bankrolls: Winning $480 in a satellite doesn’t magically make it a good idea … Read more…
Thanks for all the comments on this week’s What’s Your Play?, and sorry for the lack of response on my end; it proved to be an unexpectedly hectic week. Important Points About Multiway Pots I want to start by making … Read more…
This hand is from a $5/$10 game at Maryland Live, currently playing 7-handed. Both Villains seem pretty competent with regard to sizing, bluffing, value betting, etc and have no blatantly exploitable tendencies. My best guess is that they have a … Read more…
I’ve got a new series now going live at Tournament Poker Edge. It’s called Evaluating Bluffs, and it’s a hand history review with an emphasis on considering whether and with what range I should have bluffed in various situations. More … Read more…
I was pleasantly surprised by the great discussion of this week’s What’s Your Play? I nearly didn’t post it because it was “just a pre-flop spot”. How Likely Are Better Hands? Everyone was rightfully quick to recognize that it’s rare … Read more…
My latest poker strategy article, Dealing With Aggression in Tournaments, is now appearing in 2+2 Magazine. The title is pretty self-explanatory, but here’s an excerpt that gives you a better idea of how exactly I address the subject: The key … Read more…
Sitting in a nitty, ten-handed $2/$5 game that isn’t even really worth playing but I’m out of the tournament and waiting for the $5/$10 to start so what else is there to do but collect hands to discuss with the … Read more…
Q: We are in a .25/.50 NLholdem home game, 5 players are left. Hero and villain are the two big stacks at the table. Preflop 5 handed: Hero ($77.75 from a $50 buy in) (KK) Raise $1.75 Villain ($58.25 from … Read more…
In case you didn’t hear the announcement on the latest podcast, Nate and I have just released more than five hours of tournament strategy podcasts that are available for $19 at www.nitcast.com. Though similar to the strategy discussions we have … Read more…
If you’ve seen my Bluffing series on Tournament Poker Edge, then you know that I’ve got a bit of a chip on my shoulder about people who claim they can’t bluff because their opponents “never fold”. It’s just not true, … Read more…
Q: I am an active live player who plays in local games in NYC. This hand was from a $1/$3 NLHE game 9 player table with mostly fairly loose players but they are quite competent for this level. Most hands … Read more…
I just realized I never plugged my latest poker strategy article, which went up at the beginning of the month. It’s called “Can Your Opponents Change Their Stripes?“, and it’s now appearing in 2+2 Magazine: Any adjective or category used … Read more…
Thanks for all the comments on What’s Your Play? Ran Out a Straight. I don’t have anything else to say up front, so let’s get down to it. Hero’s Range is More Capped Than Villain’s A lot of commenters started … Read more…
Game is $5/$10 no-limit hold ’em. Villain begins the hand with $1570, Hero covers as does the rest of the table. He’s a very good player, reads hands well, and is capable of pretty much anything. He’s maybe at times … Read more…
Q: I was BB ($600) and held KhKc. UTG+1 LAG ($500) limps CO limps Button (<$100) limps SB limps and I raise to $10. Perhaps on the small side since the table was loosening up with the end near but … Read more…
Q: I have a recurring situation that is driving me crazy. You speak to it around the edges quite a bit in the blog, I’d be interested in hearing your direct take. I win many small pots in a session then … Read more…
I posted this a few weeks ago but accidentally backdated it to appear as though it were posted on January 1. I think that as a result a lot of people never saw it. Apologies to those for whom it … Read more…
I received this question in response to my latest strategy article, Trying New Things, which is now appearing in 2+2 Magazine. Q: I read your article on 2p2’s magazine and I wanted to try something new. I determined what is the … Read more…
I finally got around to writing my first article for Martin Harris‘ new project, Learn.PokerNews. It’s called Play Your Cards Close to Your Chest, and it deals with a common beginner’s mistake: One of your first goals at the poker … Read more…
Q:I love the podcast. I especially like the strategy segments that look at situations that recur fairly frequently, and have you guys discuss to death the various possibilities, and what factors can push the decision one way or another. I … Read more…
My latest poker strategy article, Semi-Bluffing the River, is now appearing in 2+2 Magazine. It deals with trying to bluff people off of chops: “I was far from confident that I could move either of them off of the second … Read more…
One of my students sent me a fun little brag hand and gave me permission to share it here. I should say that he’s relatively new to poker but seems preternaturally talented at reading people’s physical behavior. As you’ll see, … Read more…
Thanks for all the comments on What’s Your Play? Miracle Turn. Ironically, Gareth, in his excellent comment, takes my oft-referenced Value Targeting concept to task for its lack of nuance when I made this post specifically to demonstrate a more … Read more…
Game is $5/$10/$20 no-limit hold ’em, effective stacks are at least $10,000. Villain is extremely nitty, but it’s paying off for him because he keeps coolering people who can’t bring themselves to fold when they’re obviously crushed. He doesn’t seem … Read more…
I’m really impressed by the comments on What’s Your Play? Bad Runout for an Overpair. I was actually reluctant to post it so soon after begging for more comments, because it seems like the biggest reason people have for not … Read more…
The game is $5/$10/$20 no-limit hold ’em, and it’s playing pretty deep. Villain 1 has $8K, Villain 2 has $5K, and I cover both. Villain 1 is a professional and the toughest of my opponents in this game. He’s far … Read more…
Thanks for the many, many responses to this week’s What’s Your Play? It occurs to me, in retrospect, that I was fishing pretty hard for compliments with the way I worded my post. Well, I’m glad that I got them, … Read more…
Q: Remember years ago the training websites were saying we want to teach you to not become a “robot” and think about decisions. Wouldnt that be more of the exploitive strategy and now people almost want to play like a “robot” … Read more…
I haven’t posted one of these in a while because participation in the last few was kind of lackluster. If you enjoy these sorts of posts, please comment on this one, even if you don’t have anything to say about … Read more…
Nate and I were flattered to be nominated for Best Podcast in the 2014 Bluff Reader’s Choice Awards. Hopefully this will prompt some new listeners to come check out the show, and with nearly 100 hours of content out there, … Read more…
My latest poker strategy, Analyzing Heads-Up Play From the 2013 WSOP Main Event Final Table, is now appearing in the December edition of 2+2 Magazine. It specifically focuses on the perils of what I call a “weak pot control” strategy … Read more…
Well, after posting two instances of getting away very cheap from second-best hands, I finally outdid myself this week. In my defense, I’d been outflopped or turned by unlikely hands more than a few times this session, and worse I’d … Read more…
My latest poker strategy article is now appearing on Cardplayer.com. Entitled “Own Your Bad Play“, it’s about how to make the most of your mistakes at the table: When you make an uncharacteristically bad play, you’ve given your opponents misleading … Read more…
I folded a hand this week that was reminiscent of one I posted last week. The villain in this hand is literally the tightest and most straightforward player I’ve ever encountered. His first, second, and third objectives at the table … Read more…
My latest video series is going up now at Tournament Poker Edge. It’s a hand-for-hand review of a $200 WCOOP “Sunday Warm-Up”. The notable thing about this tournament is that I late registered and had 30 – 40 BBs for … Read more…
My latest poker strategy article, He Has to Have Something, is now appearing in the November 2013 edition of Two Plus Two Magazine. It deals with a bit of sloppiness to which even otherwise good hand readers often fall prey: … Read more…
We were playing a $2/$5 game with a mandatory $10 straddle. A couple people limped, and then a tight and straightforward player raised to $60 with about $1000 behind. I had a pretty maniacal reputation and so was pleased to … Read more…
We’re interviewing a pretty strong PLO player tomorrow (Tuesday) night, and I totally forgot to prep for it. Let’s turn that into an opportunity: what do you want to hear about the game? Leave your questions as comments here and … Read more…
Just wanted to let you know about some recently published stuff you might be interested in: WSOP 2013 Trip Report, Part 4: The Main Event – Unfortunately this is a lot shorter than it’s been in past years, but I … Read more…
This is another $1/$2 Zoom hand. Villain has TAGgish stats over a small sample, 21/18 with a 3-bet of 11, with all of his 3-bets so far have come from the button or the blinds. Hero’s own stats are actually … Read more…
Only six comments on this week’s What’s Your Plan? – did I confuse everyone by posting it on Tuesday? That said, they were all very high-quality comments, so thanks to those who participated. Pre-Flop Planning “Which” makes the very good … Read more…
One of the biggest leaks I see, especially but certainly not exclusively among tournament players, is a failure to build big pots with big hands. I made a series about this called Getting Paid for Tournament Poker Edge that I … Read more…
This is from the Sunday $500 on PokerStars, a tournament that tends to draw a field of MTT specialists of varying skill. In the first hour, Villain 1, in middle position, has played 16% of his hands, 12% of them … Read more…
The situation in What’s Your Play? Weak Overpair, Four-Bet Pot demonstrates the importance of starting your hand reading early. If you aren’t already thinking about your opponents’ ranges pre-flop, it’s easy to misjudge once you see the flop and the … Read more…
Get a leg-up in this year’s WCOOP by watching me face off against four very different opponent’s in last year’s $700 heads-up no-limit hold ’em tournament. Part 1 of the new series is up now at Tournament Poker Edge, and … Read more…
I’ve been playing some small-stakes ZOOM alongside my tournaments whenever I’ve got spare screen space, and this is the most interesting spot I’ve encountered in any of my games in my first two days playing. I had to reformat my … Read more…
Thanks for all the comments on What’s Your Strategy? Overbetting Fiend. This is an extreme example of how important it is to adapt to your opponents. Although your “normal” game will surely have a positive expectation against this player, there … Read more…
Part 3 of my trip report from the 2013 WSOP is now appearing in the Two Plus Two Magazine. It deals with the only two preliminary events in which I made Day 2: the $3000 Mixed Max and the $1500 … Read more…
It’s level one of a small-field, $555 MTT at the local card room. The field will be extremely soft, re-entries are allowed for the first two hours, and including re-entries there will likely be fewer than 75 total entries. Hero’s … Read more…
I’ve been toying around with this situation for a while, and although I want to retain some measure of caution simply because I have a history of making mistakes with this sort of thing, I’m pretty sure I’ve determined that … Read more…