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Everywhere you look in the media is evidence that poker is alive and well. Texas Hold’em is the buzz word of the year, yet another poker term is threatening to take top billing in poker related news; video poker. It seems that half the people in America are clamoring to have it, and the other have want to get rid of it as fast as possible. Once more, this time in South Carolina, the issue is brought to the courts on whether or not video poker gaming is healthy for the community. In York County a Columbia judge is hearing a request today made by the Catawba Indian Nation. The Nation is requesting that they be allowed to host video gambling machines on their reservation, also in York Count. While laws were already passed in SC that prohibits the activity, but the Catawbas feel they should have an exception.
Mark Fracalossi is showing some hustle. In the last week no less than three press releases have come from his company regarding the newest poker tour, the wide traveling Small Town Poker Tour. This latest release talks of an upcoming radio spot that will feature STPT’s appearance at the Michigan Gaming and Casino Show. The STPT is set to hit all of the states searching for America’s number one poker player who is not making their living at the game. Amatuers only, this tour also boasts charity contributions made to local charities of the town that hosts them, and Fracalossi is very encouraging to folks who want to have their town be next on the stop. In the other announcements Fracalossi spoke of how the STPT will be kicking of their European tour early, and that they have added Australia to the list of major stops as well. Related Links Small Town Poker Tour Heads Down Under Small Town Poker Tour Heads Down Under
For only ten bucks the generous hearted who love motorcycles can have some fun while helping out kids during an annual Toy Run. The Toy Run is being held as always by the American Bikers Aimed Toward Education, or ABATE, members. Starting at ten am at The Relief Pitcher in Seaside, the run will end up at the Astoria Moose Lodge, where participants will be fed chili and participate in a raffle for prizes. Naturally those arriving with the best poker hands will get prizes as well. The chapter hopes to raise money in order to buy gifts and toys for local children of ht North Coast, helping all the kids in the community to have a happy holiday season. If you are a rider from Clatsop, Tillamook, Columbia and Pacific counties, or if you are just feeling generous, give Bob Pruess a call at (360) 642-3857. The North Coast ABATE chapter includes riders from Clatsop, Columbia, Tillamook and Pacific counties. For more information about ABATE or the Toy Run, call Bob Pruess at (360) 642-3857.
In a match made in card player heaven, World Poker Tour has joined forces with Chipleaders, Inc., the leading online social network dedicated to poker. The two companies will work together to create what may become the largest poker player database in the world, thanks in part to the global success of the WPT.
Working with the latest software, the two companies will work together to create section of the WPT site that will allow players to find other poker players, share experiences, and interact in a variety of ways through the site. Chipleader's innovative technology will allow players to create profiles, upload photos, communicate with friends (and hopefully make new ones), e-mail, blog, organize activities, share information, participate in forums, rank profiles, and schedule events.
With no cost to players and fans of the WPT, this should prove to be another monstrous venture by the WPT and should give them some heavy traffic for its site. According to WPT founder and CEO, Steven Lipscomb, this move will take the WPT to new heights.
"With millions of poker players in the U.S. and abroad, we can now offer them a dedicated online community which they can call their own. This level of interactivity is unprecedented in poker and really allows our WPT enthusiasts around the world to connect in way that transcends television and extends our brand," Lipscomb said in a recent press release.
According to CEO of Chipleaders, Jake Steele, the partnership of the two companies will truly benefit the poker playing community. "We believe that Chipleaders will revolutionize the way poker players interact with one another, through unique social dimensions that Chipleaders offers, while providing the highest quality user experience. Combining the leading online poker community with the world's best known poker brand is absolutely amazing and we look forward to engaging WPT fans, audience, and online players, as we develop and foster this remarkable social network devoted to poker."
As a bonus to WPT fans, they will be eligible to participate in regular promotions offered by the WPT and its affiliate site, wptonline.com.
Upon arriving at Foxwoods I wasn't sure what to expect. It had just turned cold and I had dreaded going further north than my New Jersey home when we set out to for the World Poker Finals.
When I arrived, I was ready to check out the action but had to wait about 20 minutes before I got a seat. One thing is for sure, there is no shortage of players waiting for a seat, but this will soon change. I got the chance to catch up with Kathy Raymond, Foxwoods' director of poker operations, and we spoke about Foxwoods' new poker room and the changes coming for this popular New England poker hotspot.
According to Raymond, Foxwoods plans to change its poker face by doubling the number of poker tables and moving to a new poker room in spring 2006. "We've been discussing room expansion for over a year. We had to find the ideal real estate to put such a big room. Ultimately, we decided to remove the slots on the floor currently underneath the existing poker room. This will allow us to expand our live action games by 50 percent, giving us 114 tables in total."
One thing I found out very quickly in my trips to Foxwoods was that the staff tried hard to move things as quickly as possible to get a player a seat, but there simply weren't enough seats available during peak hours. Raymond believes that the new room will solve this problem. "We're thrilled to be able to expand and service our customers in better ways, especially by eliminating long periods of time spent waiting to get on a table. We're also going to have some technological innovations that should maker things move even faster, not to mention a poker-themed restaurant on the same floor."
The evolution of Foxwoods' new poker room should surprise no one. Foxwoods has been heavily committed to poker since the debut of its original poker room. According to Raymond, "Foxwoods has supported poker before the explosion took place and will continue after it begins to slow. There has been a commitment from day one and it will continue as Foxwoods tries to provide visitors with a full-service casino."
Foxwoods, like many other gaming venues is seeing huge increases in numbers thanks to million-dollar prizes. With the new room, Foxwoods is responding to this growing interest. "I think Foxwoods has been very supportive of poker with regards to the immense explosion of popularity that has occurred with the sport. They've seen the growing numbers and have recognized that poker is an integral part of the casino, not just an amenity," she said.
The timing for the new room couldn't have been more perfect as Foxwoods continues to draw new blood from surrounding states and will increase as a younger group of players become old enough to legally play the game. "We feel the explosion of poker will not be short-lived. We firmly believe this will continue. With the demographics of our patron base, we realize that there are a lot of players waiting to get to play. They haven't reached 21 yet or they're playing on their kitchen tables or in their dorms and are waiting for their chance to come and play at Foxwoods," Raymond said.
When I tried to pry out how much the new poker venture was costing the casino, Raymond was tight-lipped. "Let's just say it was a substantial investment. We're using what we have but we're modifying to match our new and exciting ideas for the new room."
According to Raymond, the new room will give Foxwoods an edge over other casinos. "We've invested in technology that allows electronic communication between the dealer, clerks and the floor supervisors to get players seated faster. We are also using new technology to cut down on the transient noise in the room."
Foxwoods is also expanding its current player tracking system, QOS, in order to meet the growing player base. Unlike the new room, the current poker room could not support the power and data needed for the new program requirements.
In addition to the new room, Raymond believes that the staff is one of the casino's strongest qualities. "I believe Foxwoods is able to offer our players a degree of professionalism. My staff has been with me for a long time. When you can work as a team for a long period of time, you have a perfect mixture of experienced workers. We work well together so things go smoothly. We protect our players from abuse as well and this makes players feel at home. Our dealers are especially aware of novice players and try to help people who might have been intimidated seeing all the action on television."
I asked Raymond about her feelings on the game's dramatic growth and she responded as a true diplomat for the game. "I am just ecstatic at the way poker has finally been recognized as a sport. Players have been playing for hundreds of years. I spent many of the early years of the room trying to get players into the casino to play poker, but with the onset of televised poker and online poker things have changed. The explosion mixed the American pastime of poker and the new American dream of winning millions of dollars."
It is a sport, no matter which way you look at it. People have enjoyed it throughout their lives and now have a chance to win big money doing something they love. I think that the explosion will continue for a few years to come and when it levels off it will finally be at a controllable frenzy. It will never drop, just level off. An example of this is the number of women playing. There used to be maybe 12 women in the whole room. Now it's difficult to find a table without at least one woman."
Raymond also commented that poker is one of the few places where everyone is treated the same. "It's such a beautiful meld of all ages, gender, and ethnic differences. People are sitting down and having a heck of a time. That doesn't happen very often. Poker is something that brings people together."
I tried to sneak an answer out of Raymond about how Foxwoods was planning on debuting the new room, but she once again explained that everyone would have to wait and see. "It's a secret. We're planning some really nice events. We'll be putting out press releases as we get closer. It's just going to be one big party. It will be a great grand opening, I can assure you that."
Virgin is one of the world's biggest companies and like many new challengers in the online poker arena, the company has a lot of time to make up if it wishes to challenge the big players in the poker marketplace.
However, unlike many of the groups trying to cash in on online poker's dramatic growth, Virgin is a global empire whose resources are almost unmatched and should help to propel the company to possibly a lead role in the marketplace.
"Virgin Poker will use the resources of sister companies throughout the Virgin group to add new value to our player's experiences," said Simon Burridge, the chief executive of Virgin Games during a party at Virgin owner, Sir Richard Branson's posh home in Holland Park.
he successful party featured champagne and special food delicacies, invitees were treated to a No Limit Texas Hold'em tournament in which the winner won a weekend to Sir Richard's new home in Marrakech.
Unlike other competitors in the online poker industry, Virgin's overall sheer scale of its other business projects almost ensures the success of its new online site. Players should be enticed into playing by earning Virgin air miles and loyalty points that can be cashed in for Virgin products. Branson and company will also feature prizes such as Virgin flights and more weekend trips to the entrepreneur's Marrakech home to hang with Sir Richard.
The new poker site will include player blogs, industry coverage from poker writers and enthusiasts, and a poker "school" that includes live online tutorials to help new players. Virgin has made it very clear that they are going to go after the less experienced poker players by emphasizing the light-hearted side of the game.
According to Virgin production marketing manager, Joshua Morris, Virgin will appeal to all types of players. "We want to make poker more accessible. There will be no intimidation factor as we are going after the mass market."
Although Branson and Virgin are set to tackle the international online market, the company currently is avoiding allowing U.S. players to get in on the action as it doesn't want to leave itself open to any legislation that might ban online gambling. The company has put in a great deal of time working on software that will block U.S. action. Virgin however, believes there will be plenty of business from the U.K. and the rest of Europe.
In addition to offering online action, Virgin plans to have Virgin Poker on its trains and planes in order to capitalize on Virgin's captive audiences. There will however be limits as to how much a player can lose. According to one Virgin executive, the limits will be set to benefit players. "We don't want anyone landing in Las Vegas down £25,000. It's not a great way to start a holiday."
One of the stalwart rules in advertising is if you can get a prominent celebrity to promote your product, then the masses will follow (and purchase said product) in droves. Celebrity endorsements have been a part of advertising for decades, if not centuries (one of the most famous is the baseball card featuring Hall of Fame baseball player Honus Wagner, which was on packs of cigarettes in the early 1910's). Now a whole new group of celebrities are heading into promotion in the online gaming arena, with many potential problems facing them.
Former Minnesota governor and professional wrestler Jesse Ventura has recently been announced as the "spokesman" for BetUS.com, which is a sports book that is operated out of Costa Rica. Fashion model and television host Brooke Burke can be found espousing the benefits of wagering on Sportsbook.com and even Hall of Fame football player Jim Kelly touts SportsInteraction.com. The list of other celebrities that are promoting poker rooms is just about as long.
HollywoodPoker.com has actor James Woods as one of its most prominent spokesmen, and online poker rooms have sponsored such diverse personalities as Traci Bingham (former "Baywatch" actress and EmpirePoker.com spokesmodel) and Denver Broncos' football great Shannon Sharpe. Even Miami Heat center Shaquille O'Neal was gifted with a seat at the 2005 World Series Main Event from PokerStars for his birthday.
The problem that arises is that all of the celebrity endorsements may come with criminal charges as well. Online gaming and poker rooms are not allowed to operate on American soil and, in theory, those that promote the industry and receive payment from those groups could face charges for their actions. The government has said that it would prosecute Americans and seize funds that were generated from such overseas operations.
Back during the first season of the World Poker Tour on the Travel Channel, the network had to give up a three million dollar advertising deal with ParadisePoker.com. The money was seized by the Federal Communications Commission and, since then, no money poker rooms have advertised on television (the commercials you see for the "dot.net" sites nowadays are play for free sites, thus circumventing the rules). Last year, under the threat of such action, two of the major players in the radio industry, Clear Channel Communications and Infinity Broadcasting, voluntarily stopped taking the advertising of poker rooms and online sports books.
When looking at the rest of the world, this begins to look quite ridiculous. The advertising dollars flow throughout much of Europe when it comes to online gaming sites and poker rooms. Even a look at the London Stock Exchange reveals that there are several prominent online gaming businesses having shares of stock being exchanged and profited off of by many investors. It is obvious that the rest of the world is ahead of the United States when it comes to free trade and liberty in this area!
What seems to be the draw to the celebrities to endorse the different rooms is, of course, the addition to their bottom line. Kelly said that he was looking to "promote responsible gaming" through his endorsement of SportsInteraction, but also was quick to add that the additional profit from the endorsement was key to his involvement. Actor Tom Arnold, who has been hawking Betonsports.com, is going to make several hundred thousand dollars for his contract, according to Will Griffiths, the director of marketing for Betonsports.com.
With the continued "gray area" that online poker and online gaming has in the United States, celebrity endorsement seems to be a minefield of possible problems. Will the government take action against those that are involved in it? Rather than dragging the celebrities into court for making a living (last I checked, that was covered in the "life, liberty and pursuit of happiness" part of the Bill of Rights), maybe its time that the government examines its views on the online gaming industry and makes it a legal arena for all Americans to take part of.
For most, the name of Amarillo Slim Preston is a glimpse into the history of the game of poker. Many would be amiss, however, to assume that the game has passed the 1972 World Champion by. He continues to bring a formidable game to the tables even in the 21st century and has also become an author, looking at the world of poker and how it is played. Following up "Amarillo Slim In A World Full Of Fat People", Slim now has his own poker how-to book out called "Play Poker To Win" (available in most bookstores now or through Amazon.com for $14.95 US, $19.95 Canadian).
The book truly shows the spirit of the down home, folksy wisdom of the former World Champion as he recounts some of his exploits throughout the years. He uses these stories to emphasize some of the early work in the book. When looking at the psychology of poker, Slim recounts how he used psychology to win a golf course wager that he knew he was probably beaten at. He then takes this demonstration of psychology and instructs the reader in how to apply that to the poker tables. It was an interesting look inside the thoughts of a world class gambler.
Amarillo Slim also touches on many of the key elements in the basics of making a poker player. He looks at the use of tells and is quick to point out Mike Caro's groundbreaking work in that area. He also makes useful points in the mathematics of the game, poker etiquette and observance of local rules when playing (recounting a story in which two of his hands were killed while he played in England for using his most valuable weapon, his table talk) and various other outside things in a poker player's life that can be applied to how they perform in the poker world, be it online (yes, Slim even steps into that arena!) or in the casinos.
What sets Slim's book apart from others that are on the market today is that he doesn't just focus on Texas Hold 'Em. Preston delves into virtually every game that is played today or has been played in the immediate past, including five card stud and the variations of five card draw. He even has a segment of the book that looks at home game "wild card" poker games and gives some basic ground rules to work off of. These different looks are an excellent base for a new player to familiarize themselves with everything that poker has to offer and are very well done and straightforward in their approach to each game.
Probably the most enjoyable part of the book was Amarillo Slim's nearly blow-by-blow recall of his victory in the 1972 World Series of Poker. Even though it was over thirty years ago, he relives it for the reader, even breaking the hand plays down street by street. It is one of the trademarks of an excellent player to have that sort of recall and, through reading the chapter, you can almost feel like you're in the old Binion's Horseshoe on that day in 1972.
Perhaps the one thing I wanted in the book was more actual strategy from Amarillo Slim. As one of the best players to ever have graced the felt, I really got the feeling from reading the book that Slim had more up his sleeve than he was giving us! While the information that is passed along is useful, there isn't much more beyond what could normally be seen in a basic poker book or from a quick tutoring session. Slim expresses the reason that there may not be much more than what he gives when he says, "there's millions of ways to play, and how you do it is up to you." It is possible, with his Texan's wisdom and style of speech, that there wasn't more that he could say than he did. Nevertheless, I would have loved an expanded section on strategy in the games, especially the ones that are currently popular.
Even with this stated, I would still have to recommend Amarillo Slim's "Play Poker To Win". Besides being an excellent look at nearly every form of poker imaginable, it is also a tribute to one of the best players that poker has ever seen. It is also a great look back at the history of the game from its true roots of the backrooms of bars and the beginning of the worldwide phenomenon that is now the World Series of Poker. Near the end of the book, Slim states about the World Series, almost reluctantly, "...now that TV has taken hold of poker, it's turned into more of a circus and a lottery than an exclusive gathering." It's nice to be able to pick up part of that history from "Play Poker To Win", if nothing else.
Southern California Poker Tour (SCPT) Executive Producer Barry Dodd has filed for liquidation under Chapter 7 of the United States Bankruptcy Code.
According to a clerk of the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of California in San Diego, Dodd's bankruptcy filing was his second in the past 7 years.
Dodd listed over 100 creditors in his latest bankruptcy filing, which was primarily caused by financial problems encountered by the SCPT during its short existence.
Among the creditors include the owner of a poker newspaper, who claims that the SCPT still owes the newspaper unpaid advertising fees "in the 5 figures".
Barry Dodd and his son Matthew founded the SCPT in 2004 as a "minor league" televised poker series, featuring tournaments with buy-ins in the $200-$300 range, designed to attract journeymen professional and recreational poker players in Southern California.
After securing a sponsorship from The Gaming Club online poker "school", the SCPT produced two pilot episodes in 2004.
The first SCPT tournament held on September 18, 2004, a $220 buy-in event held at Lake Elsinore Casino in Riverside County, attracted 291 players including local poker professional and two-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner Minh Nguyen.
The second SCPT tournament held on October 17, 2004, the $225 buy-in Haig Kelegian Classic at Oceans Eleven Casino in the Northern San Diego County community of Oceanside, sold out all available seats. Among the 280 entrants was local poker personality "Cowboy" Joe Simpkins, who finished third at the World Poker Tour (WPT) PartyPoker Million II event in 2003.
Both SCPT tournaments in 2004 were aired on TV stations serving the San Diego TV market from transmitters located across the border in Mexico, with airings on XHUPN-TV 49 (UPN 13) on Saturdays at 11pm and its sister station, XETV 6 (FOX 6), on Sundays at midnight.
Former CNN entertainment news reporter Fred Saxon hosted both SCPT pilot episodes, with Matthew Dodd serving as the analyst.
The Dodds and the management of San Diego-based Bay City Television, the owner of XETV and XHUPN-TV, deemed the two SCPT pilot shows to be a relative ratings success, with an average of over 10000 households tuning in (the San Diego TV market has over 1 million households.)
The SCPT proceeded with aggressive expansion plans in 2005 by adding tournament stops in Central California at the Golden West Casino in Bakersfield and the Chumash Casino on the Chumash Indian Reservation in Santa Barbara County.
The $220 buy-in Central Coast Poker Championship held at Chumash Casino on February 12, 2005 attracted the largest field in SCPT history, with 681 players and a guaranteed prize pool of $150000.
The SCPT made a foray into Los Angeles County a week later on February 19 by producing the telecast of a $225 buy-in with $200 re-buy poker tournament at Hawaiian Gardens Casino, which attracted 501 players and produced a prize pool of over $170000.
The SCPT also produced a "road trip special" telecast of a $50000 buy-in poker tournament held at The Plaza Hotel and Casino in Downtown Las Vegas on May 17, 2005, with 11 players taking part to produce an "announced" winner-take-all prize of $550000.
The SCPT hired XEPRS-AM (The Mighty 1090) sports radio morning show host Scott Kaplan as the play-by-play announcer for the 2005 season, replacing Saxon whose performance in the two pilot episodes was deemed unacceptable by the Dodds. Matthew Dodd would continue to appear on SCPT telecasts as the analyst.
The SCPT and its casino partners briefly touted in their advertising that SCPT tournaments held in early 2005 would be televised on Tribune Broadcasting's Los Angeles "SuperStation" KTLA 5, which has satellite TV subscribers throughout the US via EchoStar's DISH Network, as well as cable and satellite TV subscribers throughout Canada.
However, the SCPT failed to negotiate a satisfactory time-buy agreement with KTLA. According to Barry Dodd, the time slots offered to SCPT by KTLA were all after midnight.
The SCPT ultimately negotiated a time-buy agreement with KDOC-TV 56 in Anaheim, which has cable TV distribution in most parts of the Los Angeles market, to air SCPT telecasts on Thursdays at 11pm.
However, KDOC-TV chose to list the SCPT as "paid programming" in programming listings provided to services such as TV Guide and Tribune Media Services, resulting in negligible TV ratings in the Los Angeles market for the SCPT shows aired on KDOC-TV in March 2005. The Dodds discontinued the time-buy arrangement with KDOC-TV after just two episodes.
Facing with mounting TV production costs, the SCPT and its casino partners in Riverside and San Diego Counties decided to raise the entry fee from $20 or $25 to $50 for each player, angering some players in the area who chose not to play any more SCPT tournaments. The second SCPT tournament at Lake Elsinore Casino in March 2005 drew only 105 players.
The SCPT announced in April that it had reached a TV distribution agreement with Sacramento-based regional sports network Comcast Sportsnet West, which has cable TV distribution to over 2 million households in Northern and Central California, as well as over 1 million satellite TV subscribers throughout the US on DirecTV and DISH Network.
Matthew Dodd said in May that the SCPT would debut on Comcast Sportsnet West in late July. However, the SCPT would never air on the network. According to Comcast Sportsnet West spokesperson Kim Rogowski, the premiere SCPT telecast was postponed first to August, then to September, then to October, before the telecast was removed from the schedule entirely.
The Gaming Club online poker "school" ended its sponsorship agreement with SCPT in June. The Dodds then tried without success to find another online poker "school" as the primary sponsor of the SCPT.
According to an executive of another online poker "school", he rejected a proposal to sponsor the SCPT primarily because SCPT was unable to secure a consistent TV time slot on a major TV station in the Los Angeles market.
The SCPT TV broadcasts for the 2005 season, which started airing in March in the San Diego market on XETV and XHUPN-TV each weekend, stopped airing in July.
Both Barry and Matthew Dodd have declined to respond to questions via email regarding Barry Dodd's bankruptcy filing. The telephone line of SCPT's office in San Diego has been disconnected and is no longer in service.
My buddies think that I'm crazy, but I swear that I have nothing but bad luck at this one home game that we all go to. We've been there 15 times and I've never cashed. I always seem to have great hands like 3 of a kind get sucked out by a flush or straight on the River over there. I do consistently well online and at other home games, but this place just seems to be my own kryptonite. Is there such a thing as a home field advantage in poker? - Emailed by Sean from Arizona
There can indeed be home field advantages in poker, on several different levels. One advantage that some home gamers use is completely illegal. You see, home games are often targets for cheaters. Your consistent suck-outs on the Turn and River might be the result of carefully stacked decks or bottom-dealing mechanics. Likewise, colluders love to practice their signaling skills at friendly home games. I am not accusing your friends and tablemates of cheating; I'm just encouraging you (and all of the readers out there in poker world) to be keenly aware of your susceptibility in home games, especially when the players take turn dealing the cards.
Even if you're not getting cheated, you can still be seeing the disadvantage of not playing in your home "comfort" zone. Poker is deeply rooted in psychology. Factors such as trusting your instincts, reading your opposition/detecting slight tells, focus, and patience can be more important than the cards you are dealt. With that, conditions that encourage your overall mindset to be optimal will only enhance your game. Since you've taken some bad beats and lost some money at this particular home game site, it is very difficult for you to find that psychological edge when playing there. You almost expect to take some beats at this game, meaning your confidence is busted. With all of your focus and energy focused on the seemingly inevitable bad beat on the horizon, you are missing tells, making poor decisions, and missing out on the focus that is needed to win. There is no shame in skipping this home game if you feel that you cannot overcome the hump. If you are up for the challenge, focus on your own psychological self-control and personal drive more than the cards you are dealt. I see this as a nice personal and poker challenge which could provide some positivism if you overcome this uncertainty.
Most people think they play better if they've been playing a bunch. I play better after taking a break from the game. If I take 4-5 days off from the game, I almost always have a great session my first time back. If I play every night for a week straight, I usually play poor and lose money the last couple of days. It is possible that I play worse with experience? - Emailed by Jay from Idaho
I wouldn't say that you are necessarily playing worse "with experience." I think of experience as a cumulative phenomenon. The experience that you are gaining is invaluable, and it is not to blame for your likelihood of losing after several sessions in a row. Instead, you need to look within yourself to truly identify what's causing your late-week downward spiral. I'd guess that your play deteriorates as the week drags from other factors: fatigue, lack of focus, loss of patience, the winnings that you've already secured causing you to loosen your starting requirements, etc. I'm sure that some would advise you to only play on occasion in order to avoid your mistakes and assure more wins. I challenge you to do the opposite. Keep playing a steady, busy schedule but work to overcome your leak. Take a hard look to identify what the psychological factors might be that are affecting your play negatively. I suspect that there are several of these psychological mistakes that are combining to harm your game. Playing great for several consecutive games is a difficult task for even the best professionals. If you want to take the next step to the higher poker levels, this is a hurdle that you must overcome. As the days rattle on, make increasingly focused efforts to stay on top of your game. Like an athlete who is conditioning his body for a sport's season, your poker mind and poker psychology can be honed and improved. You need the practice the mental discipline that it takes to play at this level of poker. You need to train your mind, your patience, and your confidence. Once you've flexed this newfound longevity, you will rise to be a more consistent force in cash games and tournaments.
KEEP THOSE QUESTIONS COMING!! Carlisle14@hotmail.com
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