9
WHY IS ONLINE TEXAS
HOLDEM POKER
SO DIFFERENT?
Texas Holdem Poker has become the fastest growing
game on the Internet. Play it a few times and
you will understand why. Its addictive. Fast. Entertaining.
Colorful. And there you are, playing live
with people from all over the globe, a great virtual
casino experience - and real money is being won by people just
like you and me. Whats not to like?
Well, you say, I would like to win more often . . .
Like the people who play slots or video poker terminals (VLT),
most people just play poker online for fun. Dont get me wrong.
10
They would love to win; they just arent prepared to do the
homework necessary to get really good at the game and win
consistently. Who has time for that?
The Pros do, thats who!
And the Pros like Online poker. Unlike VLTs, the odds are not
Stacked so much in favour of the house and players can actually
make consistent profits - if they understand the game well enough.
I have an uncle who is famous in our family. He has an unusual
career. He has made a great living playing professional poker for
over 40 years. (He was known in the trade as a rounder for
details see the dictionary at the end of this book.) And he has made
more than just a decent living he has several homes and a yacht
he moors in Florida. Hes an interesting character and he has
taught me a lot. Much of this book is based on his advice and
teaching.
My uncle says there are two major differences between casual
players and professionals.
One - Professionals always know exactly whom they are playing
with.
Dont be deceived. When you play poker you are not playing
against the cards you are playing against the other players. Great
poker players never forget this. The goal of our book is to teach
you how to better understand the guy or gal sitting across from
you at the virtual poker table. A better understanding of the
dynamics between humans at the table alone will dramatically
improve your chances of winning.
Two Pros understand the odds.
11
This book will teach you how to calculate odds using actual game
examples and give you shortcuts that will help you to increase
your chances of winning every time you play.
Odds dont tell you how to play, they tell you how to bet.
First you need to understand why reading about the conventional
brick and mortar game of Texas Holdem (the kind you play in a
real casino) certainly wont hurt but it will definitely not prepare
you for the unique experience of playing the game online.
WHY IS ONLINE POKER SO DIFFERENT?
Online poker adds several interesting wrinkles to the game of
Texas Holdem. So much is changed in fact, that there are a whole
new set of game strategies. The odds of winning the online version
of this game are now
Stacked even more in the favour of the bettereducated
players. This is one of the secrets to real success at the
virtual table.
1. YOU CAN WATCH.
If you walk into a bricks and mortar casino tomorrow and decide
you would like to just watch a game of Texas Hold'em to better
understand how its played, security will soon hustle you out of
the building. Poker is not a spectator sport at casinos. If you want
to learn the game - you need to play. And playing when youre a
rookie (or as the pros call it a fish) can be a very expensive
learning experience.
On the other hand, online, you can watch a real game as long as
you want, for no cost and for no risk. Watching a table can teach
you a lot about the players and their betting style and the game in
12
general. Watching players for free is one of the great advantages
of online poker.
Taking notes is another great strategy in Online Poker.
There is nothing wrong or unethical about keeping notes on other
players. Some Online Poker rooms even provide a feature that
allows you to take notes online while you play. This feature
facilitates the building of a database around the playing styles of
consistent players. Our advice is to record what kinds of hands
they play, how quickly they react, and to record detail on betting
and raising behaviour.
In the heat of the game, you may not always have time to go
through all of the details. But one day, a regular player will join
your table with a healthy
Stack of chips and you will appreciate
knowing everything you can ahead of time about their playing
style.
2. YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHATS IN THE POT?
At a regular card game, you need to do some rough guessing at
pot totals. (The other players rarely encourage you to go digging
through the pot to come up with a tally). Online, the total is
calculated for you to the penny. This makes calculations about
how much to bet very accurate. Why is this important? You will
learn later that one of the keys to winning is a system used by pros
for decades called Pot Betting. The more accurate your knowledge
of the pot, the better able you are to know exactly how much you
should be betting on a given hand. Online Poker is a Pot Betting
dream come true. Sharpen up your math skills a bit, and you are
on the road to making money.
13
3. YOU HAVE MORE TABLE AND BETTING CHOICES!
Have you ever walked into a real casino looking for a seat at a card
game? You may be lucky to find a few dozen. Which one is the
best for your playing style? You wont know until you sit down
and play a number of hands. And if you dont like your company
at that table? You move to another table and try again.
There are thousands of online casinos with dozens or hundreds of
tables at each one fro you to choose from. You can pick from a
wide-range of betting options and from an infinite variety of
different player combinations combinations you will have
observed before putting down your hard-eared money. And you
can do this in a matter of minutes right from your computer
screen.
Never have there been so many options for the poker player
willing to learn. Remember, you are not just playing against the
odds, you are playing against other players and in a mathematical
sense, the table as a whole. This is the real key to winning. Look
for a table with the greatest number of weaker players and you
will have an automatic advantage.
