Let's talk Poker, gents'

[HumpinHop]

*and ladies, wouldn't want to exclude Melanie Weisner

While I'm waiting for FullTiltPoker to finish their system updates, I did a quick forum search and found the last legitimate poker thread died sometime around last year. Surely with the diversity of this site we've got to have a fairly large gambling base, so let's start a poker thread.

Do you play poker? I've only recently tried gambling outside of friends houses or using online play money, competing in weekly $100 Hold 'Em tournaments at a local bar. I wouldn't call myself good, as I'm still learning how to manage against far better players for actual cash, but I don't see this as a thread for specifically hardcore gamblers. Even if you've only played once or twice with friends or occasionally dabbled in online play, feel free to share any experiences you've had.

I'll start off with a basic question. What's your favorite hand? I've always loved 2-3 suited diamonds or suited 8-4, it's a personal goal to pull off a straight flush and they aren't hands people would expect you to play.

Captcha: 'all singing'. "Let's finish our holiday cheer..."

 

[El Poncho]

When I go on a caravan holiday with my nana, papa and brother we use the tickets you win from the arcade machines as chips and play poker, so I know most of the rules but I doubt i'd take it further than with friends.

 

[Norendithas]

From when I've played in the past, I'd say I wasn't too shabby. But my problem is forgetting the rules every time I play because I don't do it very often.

 

[Kryzantine]

I played online for a bit, then IRL with a few... I wouldn't call them friends, but local people. Notably the landlord. Turks. If it sounds like a deathtrap, it almost is, but I somehow make money off of them. My actual friends flat out refuse to play me, because we tried with chips for a bit and I just ended up dominating them.

My favorite hand is actually A 10 suited. I don't know why, either, it's just that I like that hand the most. It's got a lot of good options, and unless someone has put down some big money pre-flop, I'll usually see it through to the flop.

EDIT - I should elaborate. I mostly play Hold'Em, though that's more due to the lack of people around me who can play 7 card Stud. When I play online, I sometimes practice with Stud, if only because I'm surprisingly decent at it, but I have yet to put money into it, so I won't say anything about my skill at it. I'm terrible at other variants of poker, notably Omaha.

 

[HumpinHop]

I played online for a bit, then IRL with a few... I wouldn't call them friends, but local people. Notably the landlord. Turks. If it sounds like a deathtrap, it almost is, but I somehow make money off of them. My actual friends flat out refuse to play me, because we tried with chips for a bit and I just ended up dominating them.

My favorite hand is actually A 10 suited. I don't know why, either, it's just that I like that hand the most. It's got a lot of good options, and unless someone has put down some big money pre-flop, I'll usually see it through to the flop.

Huh, I seem to have the opposite experience. I flat out refuse to play with my friends because one member seems to win every match regardless of skill or effort, but just about anyone else I play with I either win or place very well. You don't still play then?

I can see why you like it, it's not a hand I'd raise with but if you pair up on the flop either way you've got a decent kicker.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

Pair of bullets. When those babies come up, you know you're in for a good pot.

 

[Strain42]

My friend Nick is gonna have his bachelor party be a Texas Hold 'Em tournament, and since I knew nothing about Texas Hold 'em I decided to download the App "Dogs Playing Poker" on my iPod.

It's actually taught me a lot about the game and now I feel like I don't completely suck at it.

 

[HumpinHop]

Pair of bullets. When those babies come up, you know you're in for a good pot.

I'm familiar with hooks, big slick, snowmen, the throne, the doyle brunson, deadmans, etc but I've never heard of bullets. I'm guessing 10-10?

 

[DeadlyYellow]

I am terrible at Poker. Prefer Blackjack, but that's kinda superseded by the fact that I don't gamble.

 

[Sticky Squid]

Hell if I know, fun to play strip poker with people who know the rules even less than you do though.

 

[Laser Priest]

This is how any games of poker I play turn out.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

Pair of bullets. When those babies come up, you know you're in for a good pot.

I'm familiar with hooks, big slick, snowmen, the throne, the doyle brunson, deadmans, etc but I've never heard of bullets. I'm guessing 10-10?

Really? Bullets are the top of the pile. Twin Aces.

That's a very well known phrase. If you've got a Hyena, pot bet him. Same if one comes up on the flush, you're gonna scare most people off, but if someone is holding the fourth, they're going to be betting you 'til the river, and some of the pocket pairs will be joining them.

Careful if there's a hand full of a suit though, those damn flushes throw hands far more often than they should.

 

[Sonic Doctor]

*and ladies, wouldn't want to exclude Melanie Weisner

While I'm waiting for FullTiltPoker to finish their system updates, I did a quick forum search and found the last legitimate poker thread died sometime around last year. Surely with the diversity of this site we've got to have a fairly large gambling base, so let's start a poker thread.

Do you play poker? I've only recently tried gambling outside of friends houses or using online play money, competing in weekly $100 Hold 'Em tournaments at a local bar. I wouldn't call myself good, as I'm still learning how to manage against far better players for actual cash, but I don't see this as a thread for specifically hardcore gamblers. Even if you've only played once or twice with friends or occasionally dabbled in online play, feel free to share any experiences you've had.

I'll start off with a basic question. What's your favorite hand? I've always loved 2-3 suited diamonds or suited 8-4, it's a personal goal to pull off a straight flush and they aren't hands people would expect you to play.

Captcha: 'all singing'. "Let's finish our holiday cheer..."

Favorite hand is King Queen, don't really know why, it just is. My luck hand is King five, because I once was in a small cash game max buy in was 5 dollars and the blinds were small and I decided heck I play since all the rest were paying the blind, and the flop came 5 5 5, one guy bet, everybody folded especially the guy that saw my partial reaction, I just called, and a 9 came. The betting guy checked and I put in a minimum bet and he went all in, I called he had King 9 and I went from having 5 dollars to 10 dollars and some change.

Other than that, you are just talking about play money aren't you, because I thought Full Tilt and others like Ultimate Bet and Absolute were run out of the US by our government. If you are still playing with real money on there, they don't know it and you are doing something illegal.

I remember when I tried to get on Absolute a few weeks ago, and got a notice that American players could play on it anymore.

I was actually going to start a thread about it in the politics section because I think the government is pulling bull-crap saying I can't do what I want with my money, if I want to gamble with it, I should be able to.

 

[HumpinHop]

*and ladies, wouldn't want to exclude Melanie Weisner

While I'm waiting for FullTiltPoker to finish their system updates, I did a quick forum search and found the last legitimate poker thread died sometime around last year. Surely with the diversity of this site we've got to have a fairly large gambling base, so let's start a poker thread.

Do you play poker? I've only recently tried gambling outside of friends houses or using online play money, competing in weekly $100 Hold 'Em tournaments at a local bar. I wouldn't call myself good, as I'm still learning how to manage against far better players for actual cash, but I don't see this as a thread for specifically hardcore gamblers. Even if you've only played once or twice with friends or occasionally dabbled in online play, feel free to share any experiences you've had.

I'll start off with a basic question. What's your favorite hand? I've always loved 2-3 suited diamonds or suited 8-4, it's a personal goal to pull off a straight flush and they aren't hands people would expect you to play.

Captcha: 'all singing'. "Let's finish our holiday cheer..."

Favorite hand is King Queen, don't really know why, it just is. My luck hand is King five, because I once was in a small cash game max buy in was 5 dollars and the blinds were small and I decided heck I play since all the rest were paying the blind, and the flop came 5 5 5, one guy bet, everybody folded especially the guy that saw my partial reaction, I just called, and a 9 came. The betting guy checked and I put in a minimum bet and he went all in, I called he had King 9 and I went from having 5 dollars to 10 dollars and some change.

Other than that, you are just talking about play money aren't you, because I thought Full Tilt and others like Ultimate Bet and Absolute were run out of the US by our government. If you are still playing with real money on there, they don't know it and you are doing something illegal.

I remember when I tried to get on Absolute a few weeks ago, and got a notice that American players could play on it anymore.

I was actually going to start a thread about it in the politics section because I think the government is pulling bull-crap saying I can't do what I want with my money, if I want to gamble with it, I should be able to.

Ahh that's a lovely situation, hitting quads with a hand you'd otherwise throw away. I haven't had that kind of luck as of yet, congrats.

Most of the big FullTilt cash games got shut down, yeah. I can only play real money at bars or with friends, but the play money games are still fantastic practice. Feel free to start the thread, I'd love to see what the Escapist thinks about gambling. Currently there's a big movement heading towards the Supreme Court trying to prove Poker is more skill than luck, and I think they have a great shot. If you think about how much bluffing, reading, and calculations fall into expert poker play it's hard to put it into the same category as slot machines.

 

[Kryzantine]

I played online for a bit, then IRL with a few... I wouldn't call them friends, but local people. Notably the landlord. Turks. If it sounds like a deathtrap, it almost is, but I somehow make money off of them. My actual friends flat out refuse to play me, because we tried with chips for a bit and I just ended up dominating them.

My favorite hand is actually A 10 suited. I don't know why, either, it's just that I like that hand the most. It's got a lot of good options, and unless someone has put down some big money pre-flop, I'll usually see it through to the flop.

Huh, I seem to have the opposite experience. I flat out refuse to play with my friends because one member seems to win every match regardless of skill or effort, but just about anyone else I play with I either win or place very well. You don't still play then?

I can see why you like it, it's not a hand I'd raise with but if you pair up on the flop either way you've got a decent kicker.

I'm on hiatus, really. I could play and get back into it if I wanted to, but I spend my nights on private study and occasionally tutoring. Going through Herodotus's Histories now in-depth on my own, tutoring people in game theory along with advancing my own knowledge of that. I'm happier with that than with poker, but if I need the money, I know where to go.

Poker always fascinated me in that regard, of people who seem to win every match despite all the random chance involved. Actually, in my experience, luck is maybe 10% of poker, but it's different for everybody. Luck is nice to have on your side, but years of mostly being on the unlucky end has actually trained me a lot. I play a fair bit better short handed.

And as for A 10, I see 10s a lot on the flop. Online and IRL. I don't know why. I'll call it my lucky hand.

 

[6_Qubed]

Last time I played poker was in Red Dead Redemption, and it was only after I got the Cheatysuit that I played as much as I did. Now that I got the poker achievement, I'm not sure how much I'll play now.

 

[Sonic Doctor]

Snip

Ahh that's a lovely situation, hitting quads with a hand you'd otherwise throw away. I haven't had that kind of luck as of yet, congrats.

Most of the big FullTilt cash games got shut down, yeah. I can only play real money at bars or with friends, but the play money games are still fantastic practice. Feel free to start the thread, I'd love to see what the Escapist thinks about gambling. Currently there's a big movement heading towards the Supreme Court trying to prove Poker is more skill than luck, and I think they have a great shot. If you think about how much bluffing, reading, and calculations fall into expert poker play it's hard to put it into the same category as slot machines.

Yes, that was back in my early college days when there was a cash game practically every night in the basement of my dorm hall. My university gave 3000 dollars to start a poker club. They bought special university chips and the rest of the money went to buying weekly tournament prizes and for the grand final tournaments that were at the end of the each semester open to only the top 40 in the point standings. I did great in the tournaments the first year, winning a Full Tilt Poker hat, around 50 dollars worth of food, a DVD player, and a Sony PSP(placed second in the final tournament). That was also the year I had my best basement cash game, bought in for 10 bucks and walked away with 150 in the 5 hours that we normally played most poker nights.

Yeah I heard about the movement, I hope it works cause I have tried to get on some of the "US Legal" money poker sites, but their programs and game selection is crap and I think one gave my computer a virus.

I think I will go start that thread right now.

 

[Doclector]

Any kind of straight. They're hilarious, especially when someone is convinced their triple ace is unbeatable.

Though, these days, I mostly just play full house poker...gotta say though, it's damn enjoyable.

 

[Aptspire]

Pair of bullets. When those babies come up, you know you're in for a good pot.

I'm familiar with hooks, big slick, snowmen, the throne, the doyle brunson, deadmans, etc but I've never heard of bullets. I'm guessing 10-10?

Really? Bullets are the top of the pile. Twin Aces.

That's a very well known phrase. If you've got a Hyena, pot bet him. Same if one comes up on the flush, you're gonna scare most people off, but if someone is holding the fourth, they're going to be betting you 'til the river, and some of the pocket pairs will be joining them.

Careful if there's a hand full of a suit though, those damn flushes throw hands far more often than they should.

I thought twin Aces was called the Rockets :O

 

[thirion1850]

I have no favorite hand, unless it has an ace of spades in it. For some reason, that one always wins me pots. *looks at avatar* ... Go figure. But aside that, I'm generally a sly cheater and bluffer, often told that reading my hand was as hard as chewing through brick walls.