Powerful Profits From Poker

Powerful Profits From Poker

by Victor H Royer
Powerful Profits From Poker

Powerful Profits From Poker

by Victor H Royer

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Overview

Learn When To Hold 'Em And When To Fold 'Em. . .

Poker has never been hotter, with the World Series of Poker and celebrity tournaments flooding television screens and online poker rooms drawing millions of visitors every month. While the basic rules of poker are fairly simple, learning how to win can be a challenging—and potentially expensive—experience for novice players.

Updated with the latest information, this essential guide from renowned casino insider Victor H. Royer reveals what it takes to more consistently profit from real-life situations. Here you'll find practical, easy-to-apply lessons to help achieve better, more consistent results when playing at the casino, in a local tournament, online, or just in a casual Friday night game with friends:

An easy-to-use odds chart for starting hands
Rules and techniques for Texas Hold'Em, stud poker, Omaha Hi-Lo, and others
The lowdown on low- and middle-limit cash games
How to play in tournaments both small and large
The ins and outs of playing online
The newest poker games, including Badugi, Badacey, mixed games like H.O.R.S.E., and more!

A smart player is a strong player—let Powerful Profits from Poker put you on the winning path.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780818407772
Publisher: Kensington
Publication date: 05/27/2014
Series: Powerful Profits
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 384
File size: 1 MB

About the Author

Victor H. Royer is the author of several major works on casino gambling, and is a syndicated columnist for national gaming magazines. His columns have appeared in Casino Magazine, Midwest Gaming and Travel, Casino Executive, Card Player, and many others. He has also served as a marketing and gaming consultant to the world's largest casinos, and to gaming machine manufacturers. He lives in Las Vegas.

Read an Excerpt

Powerful Profits from Poker


By Victor H. Royer

KENSINGTON PUBLISHING CORP.

Copyright © 2014 Victor H. Royer
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-8184-0777-2



CHAPTER 1

Introduction to Poker: Learning Poker Games


This first chapter provides some of the basics of casino-style poker games that you will be playing when you go to visit your favorite casino or card room. For those of my readers who are already familiar with the basics of poker—and Texas Hold'Em in particular—I recommend you skip to chapter 5, where I begin the serious discussion of poker skills and knowledge. For readers who are less familiar with poker—and Texas Hold'Em—I will provide more detailed introductory information, but I will nevertheless assume that you already know the cards, the suits, how many of each there are in the deck, and which hand beats which in the games of poker. If you are unsure of any of these simple basics of card playing or poker, I recommend that you read some of the many fine books that are available in bookstores or online book retailers. Some of these books are excellent guides to the basics of card playing as well as the very basics of poker. It is not my intent to duplicate the efforts of these many fine authors of books about cards or general card playing. Therefore, I will assume that you already possess the basic knowledge necessary to take advantage of the information about the poker games that I will be describing in this book. I would also recommend that you read some of my other books, in particular my books Powerful Profits from Blackjack, Powerful Profits from Video Poker, and Powerful Profits from Casino Table Games. These books, as well as the other books I have written in my most recent series under the general title of Powerful Profits, will provide you with an overview of casino games and card playing that may assist you in developing a greater understanding of the games of poker that we will be discussing in this book. Some of the general information about card playing or casino games that will be found in this book may also be similar in some parts of my earlier books, because there are similarities and commonalities between the various styles of casino games and the poker games that we are discussing here. After all, casino gaming and card playing are very similar. Although the game of poker is really not a casino game, because casinos do not participate in the game but merely facilitate it, it is still considered a casino game. Even card rooms, such as those in California, continue to call themselves casinos, although they are not technically casinos but merely facilities that provide card playing between patrons. That is perhaps the most important distinction between poker and other card-based casino games. Therefore, the first lesson in this chapter is that poker is completely different from other casino games and is, in fact, not a casino game at all.

Even though poker is usually called a "casino game," many players do not understand, or are not aware of, the important distinction between poker as a game between players and other games between players and casinos. Every other game in either a casino or a card room is usually a game that is "banked" by the casino or the owner or operator of the property. "Banking" here means that the action is between you and the person banking the game, which in most cases is either the casino or the card room, or whoever it is that may be operating that game at that time. Therefore, the risk is between you and the banker. Consequently, the banker has a vested interest in the game as well as you. Therefore, most casino games have what is called an "inbuilt house edge," which is derived directly from an alteration to the rules of the game. This alteration results in a mathematical edge, a percentage of the game that the casino owner, operator, or person banking the game can expect to gain in yield from running and offering that game. In many books about casino games, you will often read the words "house edge" and this simply means that—mathematically speaking—the house, or the operator of the game or the game's banker, can expect to gain a yield equivalent to that percentage from offering the game. On average, players of these games will be expected to lose that percentage of their wagers over the long haul.

In reality, poker is not a casino game because it is not a game that the casino can alter in the way that it does other casino games. In all of the other games, the action is between you, the player, and the casino. Therefore, under ideal circumstances, you and the casino should face the equal risk of winning versus losing. Of course, that would be too much of a risk for the casinos, who are the bankers of the games. It is for this reason that casinos make such alterations to casino games or to the rules of their payoffs, to assure themselves of a steady win. This is not possible for the traditionally understood game of poker. No matter what kind of a poker game is being spread, the casino or the operator of the game cannot change the game's rules in order to assure themselves of a steady win percentage in the same way as they do with all of the other casino house-banked games. This is simply because poker is a game between the players of the game, and not between the players of the game and the casino. Even if the casino is called a card room, or a real casino with other games, neither of the operators or facilitators of these games can make any changes to the game that would in some way benefit them by altering the games' payoffs to assure the casino or the banker of a steady win percentage. This is the single most important factor that you need to learn at the very beginning of any information or discussion about poker. This one reason is also why many casinos, such as those in Las Vegas or Atlantic City, do not always offer poker or do not like to have to offer poker to their casino patrons and players. Casinos, or bankers of casino games, do not like a game over which they exert no control. This is what makes poker so unattractive to them as a game. Poker takes up space, it is labor intensive, and it requires human interaction on a much grander and greater scale than any other casino game that is currently being offered in any major casino or card room in the United States, or the rest of the world. So, you may ask, how do casinos make money from the game of poker? The answer to this question depends on where you play.

In most casinos, including those in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, on the Indian and tribal gaming reservations, and riverboats in the Midwest of the United States, casinos and casino operators make money from poker by charging a percentage of each pot played—a "rake." In all such casinos where such a rake is charged, each table will have a little plaque, usually to the left of the dealer, which displays the table game limits (provided this is a limit game as opposed to a pot-limit or a no-limit game), upon which is also written the blind structure and the game type, as well as the percentage of the rake being taken from each pot, and the minimum and maximum amounts of the rake. The minimum and maximum amounts of such a rake are usually described in percentages. For example, a typical small-to middle-limit Texas Hold'Em game will usually have a house rake of 5 percent with a maximum of $3. This means that the house, the card room, or the operator of this poker game will take a rake up to the maximum of 5 percent of any rakeable pot, up to the maximum of the stated $3. In other words, the house will take from any pot over $5 the amount of $.25 for each $5 of increased pot value, up to a total amount of $3. For the rake to be $3, the pot would therefore have to be $60 in total value. If the pot value is greater than $60, the rake would still be at a maximum of $3. Consequently, if the pot is at $60, the maximum rake is still only $3. It is, therefore, to your advantage to look for games with a low rake percentage and a small maximum rake total amount.

Of course, if you are not playing in a normal recognized poker room, such as those that may be found in major casinos in Las Vegas or Atlantic City, or riverboats or some major Indian gaming casinos, or playing at online casinos that also use this rake method, this can only mean that you are playing in what has become known as the "California cardroom"–style casino. The difference between this style of poker and casino poker rooms is that these card rooms do not charge a rake from each pot played, but instead charge the player a fee to play at that table or game. The amount of this fee is usually determined by the value of the game, and can be charged each hour, half hour, each twenty minutes, or at whatever rates and conditions may apply to such card rooms. The higher the game, usually the higher the fee to sit at the game. In effect, this is what can be called "fee for play" or a "collection." This fee is usually commensurate with what could be calculated as the potential hourly rake from each table. In truth, such fees can actually get much more expensive than the rake that would normally be charged by casinos, where such charges are permitted by state law. Loose and aggressive players who enter many pots and play many hands benefit from such a fee, because they do not expose themselves to having their pots raked in the event that they get very lucky and win many pots or win many hands. On the other hand, tight players usually pay more to sit at such games, because they play very few hands and therefore win fewer pots. Paying a fee to play at such games, rather than playing in a situation where there is a pot rake, is made necessary by the jurisdiction that governs where the game is located. In California, non-Indian gaming casinos such as the many card rooms that can be found in Los Angeles and San Francisco, are not permitted by law to charge a rake in the game. Therefore, they are forced to offer poker games whereby they charge players a fee to participate, and they do this by charging the players a half hourly or an hourly fee to play at the game of their choice. This is because by law, in California or in other states where such laws exists, card room operators and owners are not permitted to "bank" their games. This is a restriction placed on them by the kind of gaming license that they are able to obtain. Such is not the case for Indian gaming in those same states. American Indian tribes who have made a compact with the states to own or operate a casino have done so as sovereign nations and, therefore, are not subject to the same laws that govern other casino or card room operators within the same state. Consequently, poker rooms found in casinos owned or operated by Indian tribes often offer games with the rake for each pot, instead of the pay for play fee.

Knowing this distinction is important for you as a poker player because your money is involved in the game. For you to succeed in making money at the game, you must not only know how to play the game, but also be aware of how much of your money is going to the facilitator of the game. Since neither casinos nor card rooms can actually charge a fee for the game itself, such as they do when they alter the game rules in games such as American roulette by altering the game's payouts, casinos and card room operators and owners need to make money in some other way to pay for the facility in which they offer the games. No business can survive without making a profit, and casinos and card rooms are no exception. Poker rooms located within casinos charge a fee by means of the pot rake, as described earlier, whereas card rooms located outside of Indian casinos or outside of jurisdictions that permit full casino gaming make money by charging a fee for play to each player at each game. Exactly how much is the fee, and how much is the rake, is up to each individual card room or casino. Although I can offer you many examples of casino rake percentages and variables, and indeed I will do so throughout this book as we discuss each game, I will caution you that these examples do not necessarily mirror each and every poker game that you may encounter at either full-service casinos, online poker rooms, Indian casinos, or in poker rooms located in card rooms. The percentages charged as a rake in many casinos vary widely, not only between casinos, but within the same casino from game to game, and even from the same type of game to another. One game of Texas Hold'Em in that same casino may have a rake of 5 percent with a maximum of $3, whereas an identical Texas Hold'Em game in that very same casino may have a rake of 10 percent with a maximum of $5. The differences in these two games may not be immediately apparent to the casual or novice observer. The amount of such a rake is usually determined by the value of the game itself. In the first example, the game may be a $4–$8–$8 Texas Hold'Em game, while in the second example this may be a lower value game such as $2–$4. Whenever a game has a lower value, usually the higher is the rake. This is because the casino does not get as many raked pots of substantial value in a game of this nature. The higher the value of the game, usually the lower the rake and the lower the maximum rake amount. As you become more experienced in casino poker, you will begin to notice these differences much more readily. As a good rule of thumb, the lower the limit of the poker game you are considering playing, the higher the rake is likely to be, and vice versa. This is particularly important in games like Seven-Card Stud, which is most often likely to be the game of choice by many casual or novice players.

Gaming centers such as Las Vegas offer many different kinds of poker games. Seven-Card Stud is a game that is most often requested by people who are only just trying poker, or are wanting to play a casino-style poker game that is similar to the kinds of poker games with which they may be familiar from home. Usually, these players select the lowest limits possible. For this reason, many Las Vegas casinos, even those that are traditionally "high end" type casinos, often spread lower limits Seven-Card Stud games such as games with limits from $1 to $4, or the more common $1 to $5. Formats such as those with limits listed as "from–to" mean that you can wager from the smallest amount of the money indicated ($1), up to the total amount of the highest number indicated (either $4 or $5). Therefore, you can bet $1, $2, $3, $4, or perhaps even up to $5 during any one round of betting at this game. They are called "nonstructured" limit games. These small limits are very comfortable for the great majority of players. The problem is, however, that casinos have the same expenditure for the table, the space, the dealers, and other such expenditures relative to the value of the game that they are offering in these small limits as they do with higher limits. As a consequence, casinos use a higher rake amount for these small games. Usually, this is a 10 percent rake with a $5 maximum. In effect, what this really means is that the casino is getting the majority of its money early in the dealing, rather than later when the pot has developed to a substantial amount, such as in the lower-rake games where the limits are much higher, therefore resulting in bigger pots sooner.

In the smaller-rake games, casinos have to assure themselves of some money because they know that these small- limit games will produce pots that only very rarely reach the maximum rake amount. As a smart poker player, therefore, you should become acutely aware of what these rake amounts and percentages actually mean to your bottom line and your win expectation at the game. Traditionally, it will cost you a lot more money to play games in the lower limits where the pots are smaller but the rake is higher. Therefore, another lesson that I can offer you early in this book is to learn to play poker well enough to play at the higher limits. By "higher limits" I do not mean the very large games where perhaps thousands of dollars may be wagered. I simply mean games higher than the $1 to $4 limits or the $1 to $5 limits that I have just described. In the game of Seven-Card Stud this higher rake is usually found at these $1 to $4 and $1 to $5 limits. In the game of Texas Hold'Em, these higher rakes are usually found in the $2–$4 games. If you wish to avoid being exploited for these high early rakes, you should never play a Seven-Card Stud game lower than $5–$10, or a Texas Hold'Em game lower then $4–$8–$8. In most casinos, such as those in Las Vegas, Reno, or Atlantic City, you will find both types of games with both styles of rake. You should, therefore, learn to choose the game that not only suits your bankroll, but also suits the longevity of your bankroll. If you cannot afford to play a Seven-Card Stud game in at least $5–$10 limits, or a Texas Hold'Em game in at least the $4–$8–$8 limits, then I recommend that you save your money before you ever try to play poker in a casino that offers games that are raked in this manner. Of course, if you are playing in card rooms such as those in California, or at limits higher than $30–$60 in some casinos where there is no rake and only a "collection fee" for sitting at the table or the game, how much these games will cost you will depend on the amounts of the fees that are so being charged by the casinos or card rooms where you happen to be playing. In the end, it will be up to you to gauge and judge how far your bankroll will be able to take you at the game of your choice. You should, however, be very acutely aware of precisely how much of your money the casino, the facilitator, or the card room or casino establishment where you are playing is going to get simply by you being at the game, either through a rake, or through a fee.


(Continues...)

Excerpted from Powerful Profits from Poker by Victor H. Royer. Copyright © 2014 Victor H. Royer. Excerpted by permission of KENSINGTON PUBLISHING CORP..
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

Table of Contents

Contents

INTRODUCTION TO THE 2014 EDITION, ix,
Foreword, xvii,
Preface, xxiv,
1 Introduction to Poker: Learning Poker Games, 1,
2 Texas Hold'Em: Five Keys to Overall Success, 12,
3 Basics of Texas Hold'Em, 40,
4 Texas Hold'Em: Playing the Game, 52,
5 Texas Hold'Em: Ranking of Playable Hands, 77,
6 Texas Hold'Em: Ring Games and Tournaments, 106,
7 Strategy for Texas Hold'Em, 161,
8 Seven Strategy Hints and Tips for Texas Hold'Em, 175,
9 Seven-Card Stud: Introduction, 196,
10 Situational Analysis for Seven-Card Stud, 207,
11 Strategy Tips for Seven-Card Stud on 3rd Street, 220,
12 Strategy Tips for Seven-Card Stud on 4th Sreet, 243,
13 Strategy Tips for Seven-Card Stud on 5th, 6th, and 7th Streets, 255,
14 Seven-Card Stud High-Low Split Eight or Better (Stud/8), 278,
15 Omaha High and Omaha/8, 290,
16 Online Poker, 331,
Poker Directory, 342,
Postscript, 346,
Acknowledgments, 351,
UPDATES TO THE 2014 EDITION, 353,
Index, 373,

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