November Nine Are Set

It was a long 8 days, but the main event at the World Series of Poker has finally played down to the final table.  The remaining nine players will have to wait until November to continue their quest for the biggest title in poker.

The biggest name in this years November Nine would have to be Michael Mizrachi.  Mizrachi had many ups and downs in the last couple of days of the main event, but he was able to hold on and finish strong in order to head into the final table 7th in chips.  The biggest chip stack falls to Jonathon Duhamel who has just under 66 thousand chips, which is about 30% of all chips in play.  There is no doubt that Duhamel will enter the final table in November as the favourite.

The unlucky tenth place finisher ended up being Brandon Steven.  Steven got all of his chips in with (A,K) suited against Jarvis’ pocket queens.  The queens held up and the November Nine were set.

The last part of day 8 played out very slowly with no player wanting to make the mistake that would cost them their spot at the final table.  When the action finally came to a close the remaining nine players and the crowd in attendance rejoiced that the final stage was finally set and one of these players would become a new multi millionaire and have a place in poker history forever.

The final table will take place in Las Vegas in November so be ready to watch what goes down!

Sammy Farha wins Event 25 at WSOP

In a World Series where big names hadn’t been winning bracelets, Sammy Farha has started to turn things around for the big name professionals by winning event #25, the WSOP Omaha Hi-Low Championship.  outlasting 212 of the top poker players in the world to win his 3rd WSOP gold bracelet.

Farha had a tough heads up battle with young Brit James Dempsey, who had just won his first bracelet only two weeks earlier.  Farha takes home $488,421 for his efforts in this tournament and Dempsey doesn’t do too poorly either, taking home $302k for second place.

Farha won the event when each player finished with trip 10’s and a jack high, but Farha’s 5th card was a 9, which was just slightly higher than Dempsey’s 8, winning him the hand, and subsequently the tournament.

With the World Series almost half way finished I expect to see some more big names earn bracelets to add to their collection.  I read on another website that Mike Matusow has $20k down that Phil Ivey won’t make a final table at this World Series.  I’m interested to see how that bet pans out because Phil Ivey is widely regarded as the top poker player in the world, and if he can’t even manage to reach a final table in any of the several events at the World Series then it will once again bring into question how much skill plays a part in the outcome of poker tournaments.

I for one think Ivey will pull it off.  Another bet Matusow made was that only 1 or fewer of the 88 players Howard Lederer had in his pre-series fantasy draft would win a bracelet.  I’m not sure if Farha is included in the list, but if he is then there is a very good chance that Matusow will have made some poor bets the other day.

The World Series is heating up and you can still win your seat to the main event.

Sign Up at Full Tilt Poker Now!

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Cake Poker WSOP 2010 Qualifiers

The World Series of Poker is coming up fast and Cake Poker is giving you the chance to be there, take part and hopefully win many of the events.  At Cake Poker you can win a $12,500 WSOP prize package or a $2,500 package.  The World Series of Poker is the best place to find fame and fortune in the poker world, so winning these packages can be the first step to a huge life change.

$12,500 WSOP Prize Package

This prize package can be used to enter the $10,000 main event, 10 $1,000 events or 2 $5,000 events.  This is the perfect package because you decide exactly what you do with it.

$12,500 Finals
Every Sunday at 4pm EST you can buy-in to a qualifer event for $350 + $24.  One prize package will be guaranteed and there willl be one prize package for every 36 entrants.

Semis
At 8:40am, 2:40pm and 8:40pm you can play in a $25+$2 semi-final qualifer where one in every 15 players gain entry to the $12.5K finals on Sunday.

Smaller Satellites
There will also be $5 freezeout and $3 rebuys daily.  The winner of each of these tournaments automatically wins a seat in the finals on Sunday at 4pm.

$2,500 WSOP Prize Package

Cake is also giving you the chance to win a $2,500 package to give more players a better chance at getting the WSOP experience.  The $2,500 WSOP prize package is won by finishing off a 5-step sit and go ladder.  Here are the buy-ins and prizes at each step:

• Step 1 – $1: 1st = ticket to step 2
• Step 2 – $6: 1st = ticket to step 3, 2nd = ticket to step 2, 3rd & 4th = ticket to step 1
• Step 3 – $25: 1st = ticket to step 4, 2nd = ticket to step 3, 3rd = ticket to step 2, 4th & 5th = ticket to step 1
• Step 4 – $108: 1st = ticket to step 5, 2nd = ticket to step 4, 2nd = ticket to step 3
• Step 5 – $490: 1st = $2,500 prize package, 2nd = $440

The World Series of Poker experience would be the chance of a lifetime.  I highly recommend checking out Cake Poker and trying to win a prize package.  Cake offers a 110% online poker bonus for first time deposits, so this free bonus money could help you win your trip to Vegas.

Review of Online Poker Site PokerSite.org

Here at Poker Bankroll Tips we want to provide our visitors with the best information possible about online poker.  This includes outlining what other poker sites on the internet are worthwhile and provide unique interesting information that many of you may enjoy.  One site that we feel everyone should check out is PokerSite.org.  This site is rich in content and provides some of the best online poker reviews you can find.  You can also venture deeper into the site and find poker bonus details pages, as well as the poker downloads pages.  There are 17 online poker reviews and there are also this many unique pages dedicated just to the bonus and the download of these sites.  It is really surprising how much information you can find on these simple topics at PokerSite.org.

Bonus Pages

The bonus pages outline the bonus details including how the bonus is earned, how big the bonus can be and how long until the bonus expires.  The page also outlines how you can go about receiving the bonus including which bonus codes you should use to receive the bonus described on the page.

Download Pages

The download pages explain the download options, such as downloading on a MAC or a PC.  The page then goes on to provide a step by step guide to successfully downloading the poker client.

Poker Reviews

The reviews on PokerSite.org are some of the best you will find anywhere on the internet.  The software is looked at in depth.  The poker room promotions are also looked at in detail with seperate sections for each of the big promotions offered by the poker room.  Also included are the tournaments, the reward plan, the support, the withdrawal and deposit options and any other interesting facts that set the room apart from all the other online poker rooms on the internet.

PokerSite.org is a great site with an amazing design.  You can really tell that the owner of the site has paid a great deal of attention to detail and this is what really makes the site stand out.  All of the content on the site is presented in a visually appealing way which allows you to spend a ton of time taking in the information that is presented!

Online Poker Bankroll Managment

One of the biggest mistakes many online poker players make is not managing a bankroll properly.  They play games that are too high for the amount of money in their account, and often try moving up levels to chase losses.  If you find yourself constantly reloading your account, then this article is for you.

What is a Bankroll?

To understand the basic fundamentals of bankroll management, you should first understand what a bankroll is.  A bankroll is money that you keep separate from your other money for the sole purpose of playing poker with.  You can either leave this all in one site in the poker site’s online cashier, or you can keep this money stored in an e-wallet such as Moneybookers if you plan to use this money at various different poker sites.

Common Bankroll Management Guidelines

Depending on what type of game you play, you will need to have a bankroll that is a certain number of buy-ins or big-blinds at the level you are playing.  Here is an easy to follow reference for managing your bankroll:
No Limit Cash Games – The common rule for no limit cash games is you should have at least 20 MAX buy-ins for the level you want to play.  So, for example if you were playing $2/$4 NL Holdem, you should have 20x the $400 max buy-in, or $8000.
Limit Cash Games – Limit games require a much smaller bankroll than no limit.  The basic rule of thumb for limit games is you should have 300 times the big blind.  If you wanted to play $2/$4 Limit Holdem, you should have 300x the big blind of $4, or $1200.
Sit and Go’s – If you prefer playing Sit and Go’s (SNGs) then you should have at least 40-buyins for the level that you plan on playing.  For example, if you want to play $10 SNGs, you should have at least $400 in your account.
Multi-Table Tournaments – Since Multi-table tournaments have much larger fields and there is a lot more variance involved, you will need to have a lot more buy-ins than playing SNGs.  On the other side a single win in a multi-table tournament could mean a huge boost to your bankroll.  A safe amount would be to have 100 buyins for the level of tournament that you want to play.  For example, if you want to play $5 MTTs, you should have at least $500 in your account.

Moving Up and Down Levels

As you grow your bankroll, or as it starts to shrink you will need to move up and down levels.  After all, if you are not winning consistently playing $5 tournaments, then you should probably drop down a $2 equivalent to focus on improving your skills first.  On the other hand, if you are consistently winning at your current level and you now have enough of a bankroll to move up a level, don’t be afraid to try the games at the next level to continue growing your bankroll over time.  Typically there is not much of a difference in opponents moving from 1 level to the next, but if you try jumping multiple levels you may be faced with a much different game.

Conclusion

Bankroll Management takes a lot of discipline to practice properly.  More often then not players will play games beyond their bankroll due to things like tilt, stress, or boredom.  Always be sure to play with money that you can afford to lose so that the actual dollar amount you are playing for doesn’t distract you from playing your best poker game.  Getting things like rakeback or a free bankroll are also great ways to get your bankroll started, so look into these also.  Study up as much as you can about the game, and in no time you should be making decent money playing poker online!

Phil Ivey Gets a Divorce

It has been reported that Phil Ivey and now ex-wife Luciaetta were granted a divorce in a Nevada court room on December 22nd, 2009.  Phil Ivey is often considered the best poker player in the world and some even consider him the best player to ever sit down at the felt.  Ivey has accrued about $12M in tournament winnings over his career.  Add the many millions he has won playing the highest stake cash games in the world and the various endorsement deals he has and you can begin to understand the net worth of Phil Ivey.  The divorce files were sealed so it is still anyones guess how much Phil Ivey is really worth at this time.

Phil Ivey was often considered the “Tiger Woods” of poker so the divorce couldn’t have come at a more interesting time.  The differences between the two however are many and there is no evidence as to why Phil Ivey and his wife decided to call it quits.  Ivey, unlike Woods, will keep all of his endorsement deals and continue to be the face of poker in the world.

You can find Ivey playing online at Full Tilt Poker, where he frequently plays the largest cash games online poker has to offer.  Full Tilt offers 27% rakeback to all new players.  The instructions on how to receive Full Tilt rakeback can be found at the top of this site under the rakeback drop-down menu.

Satellite Poker Strategy

There are literally hundreds of satellite poker tournaments available to online poker players but yet you see so little actual satellite poker strategy. Players actually overlook the value on offer in satellite poker tournaments and disregard the benefits of qualifying and playing in poker tournaments that are out of their current bankrolls. Not to mention the fact that satellites usually have good value on offer and are full of donks trying to get rich quick!

There is one major difference between regular multi table tournaments and satellite poker tournaments.If you only learn one thing about satellite poker strategy then it should be this. Satellites pay out on a flat structure and regular MTT’s are always top heavy. This means that finishing first become irrelevant in a satellite tournament because players that cash all get paid the same. There are many times in a satellite tournament when the best strategy is to fold every single hand your are dealt, yes even pocket aces, to ensure you win your seat. You only aim is to qualify for the next tournament, winning the tournament is totally irrelevant.

Early on in satellite poker tournaments you are going to find that your table has two types of players, serious players and donks. Serious players are actually trying to win a seat by playing good poker, donks on the other hand are keen to gamble early on and are simply taking a shot at big money. Taking the get chips or get out attitude is actually more incorrect in a satellite than ever. Your aim is to qualify not to win the tournament. Yes accumulating chips early will give you a chance of making the money but your tournament life is more important in satellites than in a regular MTT.

Towards the bubble is the most important time in any satellite tournament and is also one of the times when most players get their satellite poker strategy wrong. Folding solidly for 6 orbits might get you into the money but there is no crime worse than blinding down and being forced to go all in. Remember everyone in the tournament is hanging on at this stage and you can exploit this. Aggression is key, use it to maintain your stack. Don’t go mental but identify the players at the table who are playing way to tight and exploit them, then identify the players who are trying to exploit the tight players and exploit them as well! Do not let yourself get blinded down to the point in which your preflop shove has no fold equity.

Don’t overlook the opportunities on offer in satellite poker tournaments. They are a great way to get experience in higher buy in tournaments. The EPT satellites or UKIPT satellites on Pokerstars are well worth a look if you fancy trying to qualify for some live poker tournaments. If online poker is more your thing then you can qualify for some of the biggest poker tournaments on the net at Pokerstars.com as well.

Doyles Room Aussie Millions Qualifiers

The Aussie Millions main event is one of the biggest poker tournaments in the world each year.  This year, in 2010, the Aussie Millions runs from January 24^th to 31^st in Melbourne, Australia and Doyles Room is giving you the chance to play in this huge tournament and possibly turn into an instant millionaire.  Doyles Room is giving away $13,000 prize packages and this article will explain what the prize packages include and how you can go about winning one for yourself.

Prize Package

The $13,000 Doyles Room Aussie Millions prize packages include a AUD $10,500 main event entry, a ten night stay at the Crown Promenade, $1,500 in travel expenses, a Doyles Room gear package, signed copies of Super System 1 & 2, entry into a $50,000 Aussie Millions freeroll and entry into both the Doyles Room welcome and farewell parties.  As you can see, this prize package will provide the thrill of a lifetime for any lucky winners!

How to Win

Every Sunday at 8pm EST there will be a $300 + $21 qualifier tournament with at least 1 player winning a $13000 Aussie Millions prize package.  You can choose to either directly buy-in to this tournament or satellite in through one of the many methods offered by Doyles Room Poker.  On Sunday at 5pm EST there is a $57 + $3 semi-final satellite where 1 player satellites into the 8pm qualifier tournament for every $321 in the pot.  You can also satellite into the semi-final qualifier for as little as 2 gold cards.  If you are looking to skip the semi-final all together, but you can’t afford the $321 straight up, then you can always play in the $12 + $1 daily rebuy/add-on tournament that satellites players into the Sunday night final qualifier.

The 2010 Aussie Millions is sure to be an intense tournament with a lot of money to be won.  This could be your chance at fame and fortune.  If you do not have an account at Doyles Room, then you should sign up for a Doyles Room rakeback account today.  The rakeback account will earn you 33% rakeback on all cash game rake and tournament fees.

How to Play Against Calling Stations

Well everyone loves having a calling station at their table but many people don’t know how to play against calling stations properly. In fact some players even get frustrated by calling stations to the point of going on tilt. If you struggle playing against players that call all the time then hopefully this article will be able to help you improve your win rate against calling stations.

Firstly it’s important to note that calling stations are going to be among the most profitable players to play against. They usually have stats with low PFR percentages and a high VPIP. This is not always the case as some players are just post flop calling stations but for the most part calling stations will have a large VPIP and a small PFR.

The key to playing against players who call constantly is value betting. Learning when to value bet against these players is crucial and if you can master the art then playing calling stations becomes seriously profitable. Like anything in poker value betting is situational and it’s impossible to just sit here and tell you when to value bet and when not to value bet. However, we can reveal the key concepts of value betting vs calling stations so you can apply them when you think it’s correct to.

When you flop a hand that you want to be for value vs a calling station bet close to the full size of the pot. Calling stations are going to call regardless of if you bet 2/3rds of the pot or the full pot. This will allow you to gain extra value on all three streets.

You can even over bet the pot at any stage to gain even more value. Overbetting the pot is best saved for the absolute fishiest calling stations. Another important concept connected to value betting is getting three streets of value. Don’t be afraid to bet scare cards vs calling stations. Most of the time they will be clinging on to middle pair type hands and will still call you down regardless of whether the flush or straight just came in.

Aside from value betting it is important not to bluff calling stations. Once you have noted a player as a calling station you have no reason to bluff them. You know they are calling way to often so the success rate of your continuation bets and check raises will diminish substantially. Just wait till you actually have a hand and value bet them to death!

You should be extremely happy to see any calling stations at your table. Do not allow yourself to get frustrated with them and make every effort you can to get into as many pots as possible against them. Value bet them to death.

This article about how to play against calling stations was written by doovde who is currently promoting the Expekt poker bonus code on the ipoker network.

Cake Poker 1st and Ten Sit and Go’s

To coincide with the starting of the new NFL season, Cake Poker has announced a new promotion that will give away $40,000 in cash in the form of exclusive freerolls for sit and go players.  From now until October 4th, you will start to see “1st and TEN” sit and go’s on Cake Poker with buy-ins ranging from $5 to $70.  These tourneys will be 36-man shootout sng’s and on top of the normal tourney prize pool, the top few players will earn seats into the next $10,000 1st and TEN freeroll.  The bigger the buy-in the more freeroll seats will be awarded.  For example, a $5 1st and TEN sng will award the top 2 players a freeroll ticket, whereas a $70 tourney will award the top 6 players a seat.

This promotion is great for all players and should be taken advantage of because Cake is just giving away $40K to their players and all you have to do to get your cut is earn you seat through one of the many sit and go’s.

There is a freeroll every week until the 4th of October so make sure you take advantage of this offer.  You can sign up to Cake Poker rakeback through us and receive 33% rakeback for the life of your Cake Poker account as well as many other added bonuses and freerolls.

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