Poker From The Rail
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Posted by AlCantHang | Filed under Bloggers on the Rail
Whenever you make the decision to sit in a game you can expect to find an eclectic group of grinders positioned between you and the end result of stacking them. Unless you pick the Saturday 4am low NLHE game at the MGM Grand where you sit with seven newly minted 21 year olds wasted on free booze and one local rock trying to take them all down, the rest of the time you will look around the table to see an odd mix of players each with their own style. You should be able to pick out the folks who have read the latest “hot” poker strategy book, the young gun’s only poker experience is from watching jerks become famous on TV, the scared money, and the always present drunken gambler.
A big part of becoming a winning poker player is being able to figure out the tendencies of your fellow table-mates and taking advantage of them. Regular guest blogger Swail has returned with a fun look at some of the personalities you can expect to see sitting around your local live poker game.
Enjoy.
Some Funny Poker Personality Types
by Swail
Many personalities exist in poker, and I thought it would be fun to discuss some of them. The list below describes some of the common archetypal poker personality profiles. Actually, instead of calling these personality profiles, it might be better to use the term behavioural attitudes, because players often shift from one personality profile to the next. In life you easily change your attitude, but it’s a hard to make even a small change to your personality. At the poker table, attitude shifts are inevitable. Some will be positive, such as the boost of confidence you’ll experience when you win a nice pot. A negative switch might come after losing a few big pots in row. When that happens, even a serious pro can go from a totally cool cat to a steaming spew-monkey who can’t let a hand go down without peppering the pot with ineffectual raises. The average poker player has the tendency to shift between a few attitudes, often involuntarily, and their range of adaptability is small. Only a great poker player will have the ability to consciously switch in and out of several behavioural attitudes. Wow, I’m really making this article sound serious, but it’s not…
I said I’d jot down a list of my proposed poker personality profiles, so here we go:
Tags: AlCantHang, Bloggers on the Rail, Guest Posts, Swail
Posted by AlCantHang | Filed under Bloggers on the Rail
Guest blogger Swail returns today with a post near and dear to my heart. I’ve become quite the expert when it comes to putting my hard earned money in a cash game only to have a combination of mediocre play and unspectacular cards evenly distribute my once formidable stack amongst the other bingo players. I am lucky enough to not rely on my skills or poker bankroll to make a living, I do not have a daily nut to make each day in order to survive. It still doesn’t mean I don’t like sitting down at a poker table and getting crushed like a newb playing for the first time.
Tags: AlCantHang, Bloggers on the Rail, Guest Posts, Swail
Posted by AlCantHang | Filed under Bloggers on the Rail
The L.A. Poker Classic has been rolling along at the Commerce Casino for a few weeks now and all reports have Tournament Director Matt Savage running another top notch series, that is as long as you avoid the tweets by notorious nit Allen Kessler. The Commerce is by far my favorite of the many California “card barns” with insane action at all levels from micro to nose bleed. It was also the place where I took my first half-hearted shot at taking the game seriously but didn’t end well when my best memory was meeting former NFL player Bob Golic. That is not a good poker trip.
Besides a great festival of tournament action, the Poker Classic also drives even more players into the cash games and these guys know how to gamble it up. You will find action under the worst circumstance, these last few weeks were sure to be insane full time. Guest blogger Swail has spent the last few weeks and checks in with his thoughts on the action and also playing stuck in the Disneyland of poker.
Enjoy.
Catching the Action and Playing Stuck at the L.A. Classic
by Swail
I’ve gotten back in touch with the road gambler in me by heading out to the Commerce Casino in L.A. for 5 weeks during the L.A. Poker Classic. The Commerce has a special significance for me since it’s where I first cut my teeth playing bigger games. It’s also the first place I ran really, really good in poker and made the decision to turn pro in 2004. I thought I’d first write a little bit about how the action is down here in L.A and discuss some of the things I hear other pros chatting about at the tables these days. Later, I’ll discuss one of the pitfalls of poker that plagues many of us, playing too long when you’re stuck.
Tags: AlCantHang, Bloggers on the Rail, Guest Posts, Swail
Posted by AlCantHang | Filed under Bloggers on the Rail
Everybody has a different story about how they got started in poker. My love affair started with a silly game with friends around a kitchen table playing nickel ante games like midnight baseball, low in the hole, follow the Queen, or just about any variation that removed skill but upped the fun times. My entire bankroll was whatever coins I could fit into my little Crown Royale pull string bag. I can’t be the only one who used one of those. But before long I found myself hosting real games and cutting my teeth in the low-limit games at the Taj in Atlantic City. Some day I may write about those old times and some of the players in the game. That was so long ago, now I can’t believe now my only income is derived from many different parts of the game.
No matter how much I’ll grind on about this sick game, it’s in my blood and I love it.
We all have a story to share about how we came to play poker whether for fun or profit or as a way of life. Guest blogger Swail returns with his second guest post and wants to tell you why he loves this game.
Why I Love Poker
by Swail
In my last post I discussed some of the things that led to me feeling like I’m constantly on the rail, even though I’ve been a pro poker player for 6 years. Why would I go through all these hardships just to play a game of cards? I’ve had several conversations with old-timer pros who’ve told me that if they’d put the same amount of time and energy into other endeavours, they’d be better off. Even Mike Matusow says he hates his life. So why do I keep playing the game? For one, it’s in my blood and it always has been, I’ll discuss that a little later. But there are other things that influence the decision. Actually, there are a bunch of reason I love this game.
Tags: AlCantHang, Bloggers on the Rail, Guest Posts, Swail
Posted by AlCantHang | Filed under Bloggers on the Rail
The world of poker is full of stories about players who come into the game with some big initial success. They tear through the game and bankrolls rapidly climb giving the common impression “this game is easy!”. Dreams of enough disposable cash to challenge any whimsical fancy, TV time during major events, and the inevitable sponsorship deal from every angle. Then Mother Variance has something to say about those dreams as well as real life stepping in to insist on it’s proper place and time.
It’s not hard to imagine becoming a “big shot” in the game of poker and not necessarily a bad thing. Setting goals and working hard to obtain them should be common among all serious players. Our new guest poster Swail is here with his first entry about his big start and how life can change things before you know it.
Enjoy
I Thought Being A Bigshot Pro Was Supposed To Be Easy
by Swail
Sometimes I get the impression that I used to run like God, and now I’m just average. I hate that feeling. Is it just me? When I quit my job as a blackjack dealer at the Casino De Montreal back in 2004 I was running really hot at poker. I’d picked up over 10 grand in just a few months playing online, while also studying and working. I was gonna take over the poker world! Next thing you know I was in Los Angeles at the Commerce playing $80-160 with guys like John Phan and Greg Mueller, up over 35 grand on my first ever serious poker trip! How did I go from being such a promising up and comer 6 years ago, to some broke guy in basement apartment in Calgary? I can think of a few reasons.
Tags: AlCantHang, Bloggers on the Rail, Guest Posts, Swail
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