Play Poker Online For Free And Win With All In With King-High Hands

October 28, 2010 at 11:18 am | In how to play poker for beginners | No Comments
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When a desperate player in a poker tournament even a free poker games one doesn’t get A-A or K-K they tend to go all-in with Ace-something. Many will move all in with A-K, A-Q, and even A-4.

At worst, if someone with A-4 is called with the medium Pair, there is still one overcard. With A-K you can be called by Ace-lower whilst still being be a significant favorite.

This is fine but should not be your only all in gambit in such situations. In this this free poker games article you’ll see why you should also move all in with King-High when your backs up against the wall!

The trend for tournament players today has changed slightly in favor of moving all-in with King-something, like K-Q, K-J, K-10 (needless to say, the applications here apply also to A-K) and even K-x suited. Other players may also call with a smaller pocket Pair, therefore A-x has the same probability of winning as K-x against a smaller Pair if both cards are overcards.

And K-x posseses an additional benefit. While a hand like A-5 is a significant underdog against A-J, K-Q or K-5 is just a slight underdog.

Approximately, it is a 13 to 7 underdog, but compare this to A-5 that is a 15 to 5 (or 3-1) underdog. What you want to fetch with K-x is its live card value.

With the A-5, you must hit the Five in order to pair and take the lead. With K-5, you may have both King and Five pairing.

If you extend your all-in hand range to include K-x, you may have to move all-in more than ever before. Because many players will fold to an all-in (including marginal high A-x such as A-10 or A-9) other players at the table will receive a more aggressive impression of your play.

Also you can steal the blinds more often. The all-in itself (and not really the cards employed to move all-in) is an indication of strength; it is the same with A-x or K-x.

On the whole, if you are running out of chips and the all in approach beckons don’t limit yourself to just Ace-x, think of the King too, it could just make your day!

So why not experiment with the King High approach on the free online poker tables first, get used to it and then apply in more risky poker games later.

Hopefully this was interesting and helps your poker game be it free online poker or for cash. Certainly it will demonstrate that in any given poker game situation there are options to consider based on the cards you’ve got, the game period, opposition and known and estimated risk to name but a few.

If you’re new to this thought process then by far the simplest way to get ahead is always to practice a LOT on free online poker sites for instance http://www.NoPayPOKER.com and ONLY when you are winning consistently progress to real money stakes.

At NoPayPOKER you will find true free online poker where you 100% cannot lose money no matter how bad or crazy tilt you play. You can learn and practice and every game all day long with no worry, just join the next freeroll and try again!

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Play Poker Online For Free And Hit The Rare Straight Flush Draw

October 26, 2010 at 10:41 am | In how to play poker for beginners | No Comments
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This draw is one of the rarest in poker, free poker online or cash tables.

You have, say, 8d-7d and the Flop comes 5d-6d-K. Anyone who holds A-K has the best hand, but is not the favorite.

If your AK opponent’s hand does not get better than 3 of a kind later then you will just be favorite to win the pot at 54 to 46.

If your opponent holds no Diamonds, you still have 15 more outs to complete a Straight or Flush (9 Diamonds, 4 Fours and 4 Nines, and minus 2 to avoid overcounting the 4d and the 9d which will give you the unlikely Straight Flush) and this converts to a 54% chance of completing your hand.

There are various ways to play this hand, and many analyses possible. Let’s consider 4 strong options.

1. You can fight it out in an all-in match-up. Since the odds for you to comple the hand are 54 to 46, which is about the same as Q-Q beating A-K, the question you need to ask yourself before moving all-in is are you willing to do the same with a small Pair if you know your opponent will call with two overcards?

If the reply is Yes, you can proceed. Otherwise, you will find far more palatable options for you. The thing is that this is just one of the possible ways. If you get called, treat it as Q-Q against A-K.

If the opponent folds, then it is okay; you’ve won the pot. However, rather than ending the hand suddenly, you might want to keep your opponent hanging so that you can obtain maximum value, so there are other ways.

2. You may play this like playing an Straight or a Flush draw. If my opposition plays weakly, then I play this weakly too, or bet instead. I can decide to build to pot by betting firmly (but not largely yet). If you hit the Straight or Flush, begin with the usual way of slow-playing or value-betting.

The only worry is the fact that a greater Flush is possible for your opponent, but pay it off. Now, if your opponent plays strongly, you can revert to #1. If your opponent has the Set, you’re still 54 to 46.

3. Also you can afford to call big bets more than you will call big bets when you have just a Straight or a Flush draw. Whatever bet the opponent throws is callable, because any bet gives you pot odds.

Ideally, you should be the one doing the betting (or raising), but in case you want to slow-play, and hope that you hit and trap the opponent later, this can be done too.

4. Finally, you have the option of not playing it at all. Consider; say you are both in the top 20% in chips in the tournament (e.g. in the tournament with 50 players left, both of you are in the top 10).

Now the opponent suddenly moves all-in, you must consider: You’ve not made anything yet. Top pair can still be the favorite. Your opponent might also hold the Set. Now since your stack is comfortable, fold and wait for a less risky spot.

Hopefully this was interesting and helps your poker game be it free poker online or for cash. Certainly it will demonstrate that in a given poker game situation you will find options to think about based on the cards you’ve got, the game phase, opposition and known and predicted risk to name but a few. If you’re not used to this approach then undoubtedly the best way to get ahead is always to practice a LOT on free poker online sites for instance NoPayPOKER.com and ONLY when you are winning consistently progress to real money stakes.

On NoPayPOKER.com you’ll play genuine free poker online where you absolutely, 100% literally can not lose any money ever no matter how bad you play! Practice to your hearts content and lose all you like, you can always just join the next freeroll after all!

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Free Online Poker High Power Players Guide To Making The Most Out Of The Poker Call

October 19, 2010 at 2:58 pm | In how to play poker for beginners | No Comments
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The poker call is one of the most misunderstood and badly played moves in both money and free online poker and Texas Holdem.

It is such that players who always call are disparaged as calling stations; however, it is not because they always call that they easily spill their chips to other players. The lose because they do not call at the right times and places.

With this free poker games article, we’ll explain to you by way of example the way you use calling in poker correctly.

Are there right reasons for calling?

The reasons for calling often crossover with those used by more aggressive players for betting. Here are some example situations where you may use the poker call.

- For example, if you have A-K in a board of 10-3-K-7-8, if you are first to act, you bet; you don’t check and call.

- You value-bet. However, if you are not first to act, what should you do if someone else bets?

- Might you raise? Here, good betting reasons are not so good raising reasons. As you still have a hand you don’t raise but neither do you fold.

The rule now, for the above hand, is:

- If you’re first to act, you bet.

- If you’re not first to act, and someone bets, call an amount less than or equal to the amount you intend to bet if you’re the first to act.

- If the amount is greater, you fold. This rule applies only if you have a hand.

- Without a hand, like just Ace-high, you bet, but you fold to a bet.

- Don’t call with Ace-high (unless from curiosity).

Let us try another hand.

You have 8-7 and the Flop is K-6-9. You can check-call, but you can also bet. As your hand is not complete betting is the better option as you can hope to make the other player fold.

- If you check-call, however (or call a bet), chances are you’ll send a message to your opponent that you’re on a draw, and then your opponent may keep bullying you later.

- Nevertheless, you want to complete a strong hand, so you call.

- Just make sure you have the pot odds to call, however.

- If your opponent continues bullying you when you complete the Straight, you can raise.

Now, in another hand, you have A-6 in a Flop of 9-6-2.

- Since the flop comes small cards, anyone with big cards will fold to a bet.

- You can bet your Sixes. Or you can call, especially if your opposing player ended the hand right there with A-Q.

- You can call, and later, if your opponent keeps hammering you with small bets, you may call each small bet, because your odds are still satisfactory.

- Additionally, you may pair your kicker or your Six if you call.

Finally, if you have Q-Q in a Flop of Q-10-10, you’ve got the other guy dead.

When your opponent bets, and you raise, the chances are greater that your opponent will fold than not.

- For the reason that although your opponent might have A-Q, it is not likely as you know there are three Queens already out.

- Also an extra Ten is not as likely for the same reason.

- Your opponent might have K-J or A-K (for a useless Straight draw) or a Flush completer.

Give the opposing players openings to finish their hands, this way you hope to tempt more action from them. If an opponent completes the Straight or the Flush later, you will have the advantage. So just call, and call, until everyone escalates.

This also applies if you feel your opponent has got the spare Queen or Ten. You can let your opponent just bet and bet until the river, where he thinks you might be calling as you just had a Queen or a small Pair, so at the river you may move your chips in.

Now, what is flawed with calling stations’ calling beliefs?

- To start with: they call even with the pot odds against their favor. They usually chase inside Straight draws where they lose their chips in the long term when they keep doing this.

- Secondly: they call big bets with small, but marginal, hands even if they know they are beat. In a flop of 9-6-2 above, A-6 may call, but only if your opponents’ bets are small. But when in front of a large bet, fold A-6 because you might not win against 9-x if you cannot pair your kicker or turn Trips.

Calling stations are the ones always calling with small pocket Pairs in the presence of overcards.

- Lastly: they generally think that every player is bluffing so they are invariably tempted to call even with Ace-high. In other words, they call a bluff or something that appears like a bluff.

I hope these examples have helped you understand the poker call better. When you play try to look for similar situations where you can apply the call artfully and be aware of when not to use it.

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