UNDER THE GUN The player in first betting position after the dealer is said to be “under the gun”. For newcomers to poker it’s worth noting that this is the worst place to find yourself at the poker table. You may have read a series of possible strategies that can be employed from this position. Ignore them. The solution is simple when you’re starting out. Only play a premium hand from this seat.
ZEN & POKER Moving on to slightly more advanced concepts, I have just finished reading 'Zen and the Art of Poker' by Larry W. Phillips. If you think statements like, “Learn to see inaction as a weapon!” will help your game in a heads up with DeathBreath999 steaming at you with the raise from Hell, then this is the book for you. It would also of course mean that perhaps you might want to consider the switch from no-limit, no-prisoners Omaha to flower arranging. Having initially dismissed the book out of hand, I have to say it does give you a poker mind-set that I find myself employing to reasonable effect against experienced players. Beyond that, as bedtime reading for gambling fans, it’s extremely funny with Larry Phillips drawing on such diverse luminaries as Sun Tzu and martial arts star Chuck Norris to characterise 100 essential truths about poker.
FREQUENTLY ASKED POKER QUESTIONS Q: As I’m only going to be dealt pocket rockets (A pair of Aces) once every 221 hands why would I do anything else other than bet heavily on them? A: Let’s suppose the poker gods are smiling on you and you receive an Ace of hearts and an Ace of clubs. If the flop produces nine-four and two of spades you can assume a “devil dealer” has entered your luck-space. If you bet on your aces against the almost certain spade flush that’s out there you’ll learn the answer to your own question.
Q: What’s 'a dangler'? A: It’s a card in an Omaha hand that doesn’t connect with any of the three community cards currently on display.
Q: As a new player I keep reading about 'satellite' tournaments? What are they? Are they on the net or on TV? A: They can be on TV or on the net. They are basically mini-tournaments which give you the chance to win a seat in a much bigger tournament. For example it costs $10,000 just to buy yourself into the World Series of Poker but if you scan a lot of the gaming sites you’ll see there are many 'satellite' tournaments where FREE entry buy-ins to the WSOP are offered as prizes.
ALL THE ACES poker column: Saturday, March 25, 2006: Under the Gun, Zen Poker, and the Dangler
