How important do you think it is to have an established table image?

I don’t necessarily think that it’s the most important thing to have going for you, but it’s certainly very helpful. When you have a certain image going into tournament, you can exploit it. Switching things up a bit throws your opponents off guard – that’s pretty important.

In general, do you think that one particular image works more effectively than another?

As far as things go, I definitely think that playing looser will help you win more often. A loose image doesn’t have as much to do with your game as it does with what you’re trying to get people to perceive. So even though I’ve got a very, very loose image, I’m really not as loose as people think. I’m very loose pre-flop, but after the flop I’m quite a bit better than they think. That’s where the concept of your image comes into it. You don’t want your image to directly reflect exactly what your game is like.

I guess it also depends on how you play. Regardless of this, it’s important that you’re always aware of how people perceive you. You’re better off going with an image that suits your personality rather than trying to act like something you’re not.

People have seen you play on TV, and a lot of them probably think that they know how you play – how do you deal with that?

It actually works out pretty well because I’m generally aware of what people think of me, so I bluff a lot less than people think I do – and I get paid off for it. I also get people trying to throw crazy bluffs at me when it’s not going to be very effective for them. I definitely think that the image I’ve portrayed on television has helped me in poker.

How could someone best play against an opponent with your table image?

The best way to play against someone like me is to call frequently from position. That’s where I’m going to have the most trouble – it’s going to force me to tighten up pre-flop.

As far as all of this goes, you can’t easily change your image, but you can change the way you play – that’s an important distinction. People are going to believe what they’ve seen or think about my game for years. I can’t change that very quickly, but I can definitely change the way I play and throw people for a little bit of a loop when I want to.

So there you have it. Birdguts lays the smack down on The Hairdresser by a score of 8-1. I haven’t seen an ass kicking this bad since Willy Wonka decided to vent his frustrations on the Oompa Loompas (or was that just a dream I had, hard to tell). Check back next week for more Heads Up fun and excitement, and be sure to check in tomorrow for another FTOPS update brought to you by yours truly.

I have a question about live play that I hope someone can help answer. Here’s the situation: Nine players at table, player from early position (first to act) moves all-in after the flop, action folds to the button. Before any verbal announcement is made, the player on the button flashes their cards to the all-in player. So my question is, would the player’s hand that was flashed be considered dead and must be folded or live and flashing cards constitutes a call? Or does this player just suffer from bad poker etiquette? Any insight you could give into this situation would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

I’m probably the wrong person to answer this question, considering that I fear playing live poker like the plague. Don’t get me wrong, I’m cool with a home game once in a while where it’s just a bunch of friends hanging out, passing money back and forth and imbibing the sweet nectar of the gods. But otherwise live poker is just too damned boring for me. After multi-tabling online for a good while now, anything less than four tables of poker at once doesn’t hold by attention. Never mind a single live table where players are taking forever to make decisions and the urge to throttle them with my bare hands because they’re all such tremendous idiots is simply overwhelming (and could lead to jail time for me). Most of the time I’d rather go in for a root canal than play in a live poker game, but that’s due to the potential for some Vicodin after the root canal as opposed to a sore ass and broken spirit after a 12-hour session at the table.

But I digress. I’ve asked around the office and found some people who are far more wise and knowledgeable in the area of live poker than I, and here’s the gist of what they had to say: flashing your cards at another player does not officially constitute a fold or a call, but it is officially frowned upon and may be cause to incur a penalty. So basically, yes, it’s bad poker etiquette and should not be done. But it’s not illegal. In the words of Whitey Ford, “It ain’t a crime if you don’t get caught.”

I am hooked on Poker After Dark ever since it started. I couldn't wait to get home from work and watch it every night, including the Director's Cut on Saturdays. I was blown away that Gavin Smith beat Phil Ivey heads up because Gavin's chips were little compared to Phil's tremendous chips lead. I felt certain that Phil was a sure winner, so for Gavin to come from so far behind to win is amazing to me. Gavin was gracious to say that he got good cards during heads-up, which is true, but credit should also go to his great play.

I also enjoy watching Poker After Dark when I get the chance. My bedtime is a strict 9:30 each night, so I usually don’t get to watch, but I did happen to see the show you’re talking about. I was a bit surprised as well that Gavin took down Ivey, but stranger things have happened.

Gavin is a very strong player, one of the most underrated guys out there. Plus, when play gets heads up, all bets are off and pretty much anything can happen. Gavin got some good cards and made some good plays to take down that match. Ivey isn’t unbeatable; he’s not some superhuman card playing machine that can’t lose. Not to mention that Gavin was obviously being fuelled by some high-octane rum and cokes. Here’s my question: is there any person out there who plays better when drunk than Gavin Smith. I think not. That man was born to guzzle booze, play cards, and be Canadian. If only he could avoid the soakers.

Why do people short-stack at cash games? I hate them and hope they all burn in hell.

It’s a combination of factors that would make one short stack at a cash game. First and foremost, they think that they’re showing good self control by not buying in for the maximum amount (or even half that). They are limiting their own liability and trying their best to protect what is probably a meager bankroll. They’re probably playing a level or two above what they should be and figure it’s OK just to mess around and take a shot with 10 big blinds.

Point number two is that these people are all idiots. Yes, you can limit your liability by only buying in for 10 big blinds, but what happens when you catch a monster hand? Chances are you’re not going to win a pot bigger than 20 to 30 big blinds. Wouldn’t you rather buy-in for 100 big blinds and potentially win a truly monstrous pot with your monster of a hand? That’s the part of short-stacking that I really don’t get – you’ve minimized your risk at the cost of not being able to maximize your profit.

Wow, I think I just blew my own mind with that last sentence. Did that make sense to anyone but me? Who the hell knows? In the words of Shaquille O’Neal, “Kazaam!” Until next week…

Sports are often driven by great rivalries: Yankees/Red Sox, Duke/UNC, etc. What are some of the great rivalries in poker?

There are so many great poker rivalries; I don’t even know where to begin. Off the top of my extra-large noggin I’d say Hellmuth versus Chan, Matusow versus Raymer, Ivey versus Antonius, Gowen versus Shak (the MILF-tastic rivalry), Sheikhan versus Immigration, Vinny Vinh versus his chair, Gavin Smith versus a bottle of rum, “Jesus” versus the devil, and Mike McD versus Teddy KGB.

Now I’m certain that I’ve probably forgotten a few juicy ones, so let it be noted that this is a partial list. If you have any further suggestions, please email us at pokerfromtherail@fulltiltpoker.com and let us know. Did I mention that we now accept death threats as a form of communication?

I have played on Full Tilt Poker and been happy with the improvements until now. I do NOT like the no chat feature while someone is all-in. PLEASE change it back to what it was.

We’ve gotten a lot of feedback on this no chat while all-in feature. Most people are perfectly happy with it, since they don’t want to be bothered while having to make a big decision. Most of the derision is coming from the play money players since there’s basically an all-in every hand at those tables and very little chat is getting through.

Here’s my humble opinion on the matter: I like the new feature, with one little caveat. I think that if you’re part of the all-in you should be able to chat. If I’m all-in I want to be able to say stuff like, “If you call, it’s all over baby.” On the flip side, if I’m thinking about calling an all-in, I want to probe my opponent a little bit with a question like, “So, you flopped that flush, did ya?” But I understand the rule, and do believe that it’s for the greater good of the game. So, to all the players out there who don’t like the new feature, all I can say is STFU.

I’m a jobless bum with no potential. Which one of your pros would be most likely to bankroll me?

When you put it like that, well, none of them. Ferguson might give you a dollar and some advice on how to turn it into $10K, but that takes a lot of hard work and dedication. You seem to be looking for a quick fix, but there’s no such thing as free money.

With that in mind, I’ll skip the illogical aspect of this question and try to give it an answer. You might be able to squeeze some roll (that unintentionally sounded gross) out of Ivey, because he doesn’t give a flying crap about money. Gavin Smith might be game, but only if you made some insane prop bet with him like getting his name tattooed on your Jerry Yang. Other than that, it’s pretty slim pickings. I do have some advice for you though: get a job sir! The war is over Mr. Lebowski, the bums lose! (If I’ve misquoted The Big Lebowski, I apologize. HDouble is probably rolling over in his grave right now).

Until next week…