Category Archives: Poker

In North America, online poker is in a tumultuous state. In the States of America, it is a hodgepodge of laws, bans, compacts, and individualist industries. When you go to Canada, it is completely different except for one province. Just what is the state of online poker in North America? It is one that is cloudy, at best.

Who Has the Biggest Player Pool?

If you look at it strictly by the size of player pools, then one compact in the U. S. has control, but just barely. The WSOP/888 partnership between Nevada, New Jersey, and Delawares online poker operations has pushed them to the top of the PokerScout charts. Through a look at the seven-day average of cash game players the metric used to rank the rooms because it is more indicative of players staying on a site to take part in the action the edge of the WSOP/888 combo isnt as large as you might think.

According to PokerScout, WSOP/888 and its three-state compact have 260 players on a seven-day average. This places that outlet over a newcomer to the chart, the newly enacted online gaming industry in Ontario. PokerStars Ontario is building up to try to pass WSOP/888, currently sitting in second place with their 220 players average. That pops them ahead of PokerStars Pennsylvania, who garner 200 players on average over a seven-day period.

Another Ontario entry takes down the fourth place slot on the North American online poker scene. BetMGM Ontario has a seven-day average of 190 players, good enough to push them ahead of PokerStars Michigan (130 average). It gets a bit dismal after that point, with two entities in partypoker New Jersey (95 players average) and PokerStars New Jersey (90 players average) not able to crack the 100-player mark. The Top Ten is rounded out by BetMGM Michigan (90 players), WSOP Pennsylvania (65 players), and WSOP Michigan (60 players).

North American Rooms Lag Far Behind International Community

Dont get excited about the numbers out of the North American online poker operations, because they lag WAY behind those of the top companies in the business.

For the past year, GGPoker has sat atop the mountain when it comes to the international poker community. With a seven-day average of 6400 players, they are untouched as the top player in the game. It becomes even more evident when you look at their peak online numbers; with roughly 308,000 players total, it is almost five times what the second-place contender has.

That second-place contender is the longtime former #1 in the online poker industry, PokerStars. Because of segmentation of the international market by regulations in different countries, PokerStars once dominant edge in the poker world has been significantly diminished. At one point, PokerStars had 10,000-plus players for their seven-day average now, they eke out a 3200-player average.

Perhaps the biggest mystery in the world of poker is the third largest online poker operation in the industry. IDNPoker takes that honor, but few in the Western Hemisphere would know about the company. The reason? They predominantly serve the Asian market, from China to the Philippines. Their seven-day average shows that IDNPoker is a force, however 2300 players cannot be wrong.

Rounding out the Top Five in the international community are a couple of familiar names. Winamaxs French centric outlet remains extremely popular, generating 1200 players average over seven days. Meanwhile, PokerStars European outlet (covering those countries not ring-fenced) is right behind Winamax with a 1150 player seven-day average.

If Only North America Was One

It is sad to think just how the international online poker industry would be impacted if the entirety of the Americas could be combined. Naturally, there would be some overlap, but simply a combo of PokerStars operations in Canada and the U. S. would be nearly 700 players strong. That would be good enough to be the eighth largest poker operation in the industry.

For WSOP/888, it would be similar. Combining their operations in Canada and the States, the WSOP/888 numbers would be near 400 players. That would be good enough to be in the Top 20. It does lead one to wonder just what if? governments in the Americas and perhaps around the world would simply allow for the online gaming industry to thrive rather than shrivel.

Excerpt from:

What is the State of North American Online Poker? - Poker News Daily

Like most players, Scott Stewarts introduction to poker had modest beginnings, and like most players you read about during the World Poker Tour(WPT), he has since built a robust life for himself in the game.

The Lakewood, California native is a regular in cardrooms up and down the Pacific Coast, but he has also found plenty of success throughout the rest of the country. According to Hendon Mob, Stewart has earned $2,690,625 in his career, which includes six WSOP Circuit rings, numerous final tables, and a run to 13th in the 2017 WSOP Main Event. He sat down with PokerNews during the WPT's Legends of Poker Main Event at Parkwest Bicycle Casino to talk about his life in the game.

Stewart started out playing with friends in a garage and the challenge quickly led him online, where he found early success in sit-and-go poker.

I picked it up around 17 when I got an account on one of the sites back in the day. I started playing $5 sit-and-go games, and before long I started making a little money, and when youre that young $50 is cool. I started slowly moving up in stakes.

While Stewart was climbing stakes in the online cardrooms, he was also juggling life as a normal teenager.

I had a job at a grocery store and I quit that as soon as Summer hit after Senior year. I grew up here in Lakewood, California and my parents had a pool at that time so it was about being 18, having a pool, living the dream, and playing sit-and-go games on my computer.

Stewart continued to play online and his success allowed him to maintain the carefree life of a young man in his early 20s, but it all came to a halt on Black Friday. He moved to Costa Rica to continue playing online with no options to play in the United States. It was a decision that did not yield much success, for reasons Stewart describes as a lack of seriousness and being in Costa Rica.

Im more of a fun-loving guy. I just want to have fun. I'm definitely more nonchalant, but you have to take it somewhat seriously because if you dont learn you will get left in the dust. Thats just how it goes.

I came back and sold cars for a bit in Orange County. I want to say my passion has always been poker, and I knew i was going to find my way back to it, but after Costa Rica I had no money. Black Friday hurt more people than it helped, obviously."

Stewart continued to play poker with friends at low stakes, and his ambition and passion for poker remained, even if his opportunities to play were rare.

I always played a little, but then I moved jobs and I was unhappy. I quit and went down to San Diego where they had a WSOP Circuit, and I won a tournament for around $30,000. Thats when I just started playing poker full time.

Stewart never looked back after his first win, and to this date he has amassed over $2.5 million in tournament winnings. A lot of his success can be attributed to consistency, intuition, and a strong background in math. However, Stewarts real x-factor is his attitude.

Im more of a fun-loving guy. I just want to have fun. I'm definitely more nonchalant, but you have to take it somewhat seriously because if you dont learn you will get left in the dust. Thats just how it goes.

Stewart is one of the more talkative players around the table at any given stop, and his sociable approach to the game gives him more opportunities to gather the information that will help him make informed decisions.

Ive always been into seeking that information, and math has always clicked with me, so put the two together and thats poker.

I dont study, Ive never coached, Stewart says about his approach to learning the game. I think I have a good core group of people that I talk to that have been coached and are great poker players with smart minds. I can bounce things off of them and it really helps.

Stewart spends a lot of time on the road, but his success allows him to choose his destinations carefully. Traveling the country to play in a wide variety of poker events is a challenge that Stewart enjoys, and his ability to adapt has allowed him to be successful just about everywhere he goes.

You can go to different parts of the country, places like Colorado and Florida, or somewhere in the South, and everyone plays different, and there seems to be the same style in that specific area. You have to adjust your style to exploit that type of play.

I live in Long Beach so Im going to play anything that they have at the Bike or Commerce. Over the years Ive found the places that I really like. Thunder Valley in Northern California has been great to me. I enjoy anything in Tahoe, that's a great place. I love Jacksonville. I really like the room and Ive had success there.

Stewart has a lot of reasons to love Florida. During a stretch in 2021, he cashed three times at the WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open in Hollywood, which included a deep run in the Main Event. Not long after wrapping up there, Stewart took the trip up to Jacksonville to win the Main Event at bestbets Winter Open. He has also cashed in two of Jacksonvilles WPT Bounty Scramble Main Events.

Despite all of his accomplishments, Stewart mostly wants to make money so that he can do all of the things he wants to do. He laments about his near misses and those scores that couldve set him up for life, like his run to 13th place at the 2017 WSOP Main Event or his 17th place finish at the 2019 PSPC, but he doesnt dwell on them. Stewart doesnt necessarily want to be extremely wealthy, but he does want enough money to allow him to do the things he loves the most.

Ive been thinking about goals lately, because the older you get the more you have to think about, as far as building for retirement or what you might want to do after poker. I still don't know what Im going to do. I think Im going to travel and be out in the world until its time to settle down and get something more stable.

Im always going to play. I love the game and Im never going to lose that. But the older you get, the more you start planning for how it's all going to pan out.

Whatever Stewart decides to do, it will be driven by his knack for finding ways to get the most out of life.

I just like to have fun. I like to get out there and see what the world had to offer and make the best of any situation. Whatever im going to do I'm going to make the most of it.

Be sure to check out more from PokerNews all week long at WPT Legends of Poker at the Parkwest Bicycle Casino.

- Feature photo courtesy of Joe Giron/WPT

Las Vegas-based PokerNews Live Reporting Executive, originally from Chicago, IL

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Scott Stewart Just Wants to Have Fun at WPT Legends of Poker - PokerNews.com

Nows the time to throw all your chips on the table and take a stab at this tricky brainteaser. Somewhere hidden in this sea of colorful poker chips, theres a white chip thats hiding. If you can find the hidden poker chip, you could win the greatest reward: The knowledge that youre a certified puzzle master.

Weve got you covered if you want to conquer some of the most challenging brainteasers. Complicated logic problems, riddles and puzzles can be rewarding ways to spend your time. For example, only one in 1,000 can solve this math problem.

Then again, maybe youd rather train your brain by trying to find hidden objects. In that case, youll love this casino-themed optical illusion. Check out this image and see if you can spot the secret poker chip.

What would you buy after cashing in all those chips? You could use your earnings to go on a vacation.

Just make sure to get all of your travel documents squared away. Oh, and bring some extra chargers, so your smartphones and cameras are fully juiced when youre out and about. Pack the best portable chargers and power banks to top off your tech on the go.

Aside from going on a vacation, you could also play it safe. Maybe you could pay off some debts. Then again, gambling is all about risk and reward.

Maybe you could buy something youve always wanted. If you love to splurge, why not indulge yourself in the coolest gadgets you can buy online? Here are some of the coolest luxury tech gifts that are actually worth the money.

Somewhere in this pile, theres a chip that does not belong. Youll see black, green, orange, yellow and gray chips throughout this colorful graphic. Dont be distracted by the vivid images, though. Theres a hidden object just waiting to be discovered.

Among this massive pile, theres a lone white chip. Can you spot it?

If youre having trouble finding it, you might need to rub your eyes. Or, if you wear glasses, give the lens a good rub with a microfiber cleaning cloth. These are some of my favorites.

Heres a fun fact: White chips are only worth $1. Meanwhile, black chips are worth $100. Most casinos use black, green, red and white. Sometimes, though, they substitute blue for white. In those cases, the blue chips are also just $1.

There are also some less common chip colors, like pink, purple, brown and yellow. You might even find patriotic chips that are red, white and blue. Fittingly, theyre called flags.

We get the struggle. Finding hidden object games can be more complex than you might think. Thats why we circled the answer.

If you liked this casino-style puzzle by Casumo, youll love this slot machine brainteaser.

Can you spot the missing toy thats hidden in this picture?

How many triangles can you see in this puzzle?

Original post:

Find the hidden poker chip in this tricky casino-themed optical illusion - Komando

One day after torching off $600,000 on Hustler Casino Live, Eric Persson took one on the chin in the form of a brutal $290,000 cooler against Eric Hicks on Live at the Bike.

On Thursday, Persson exited the game following a failed bluff in a $478,000 pot against the loose Alan Keating. The following day, he didn't bluff off a stack, but instead ran into a difficult and costly situation.

The final Phil Hellmuth Week show on Live at the Bike brought out more than double the audience of the first two nights, thanks in large part to the lineup, which included Los Angeles high-stakes legend Garrett Adelstein, Phil Hellmuth, Persson, and Poker Hall of Famer Eli Elezra.

According to our sources within LATB, the Friday show reached 5,000 average concurrent viewers between YouTube, Facebook, and Twitch. Those tuned in were treated to many exciting hands during the five-hour session, but none more entertaining than a hand played between Hicks and Persson.

Hitting a flush draw, especially a king-high one, on the turn is quite a pleasant feeling for any poker player. Well, not always. Take, for example, the following hand in which Persson's joy upon hitting his draw turned quickly to sorrow.

With , Hicks, a regular on LATB, raised it up from the cut-off to $1,100 and Persson, in the big blind, called with and well behind. The flop of smacked both players in the face hard Persson a flush and straight draw, and top set for his opponent.

"Oh, Eric, this is going to be on YouTube, my friend," Persson accurately predicted as he pondered his next move. "There's no f*****g way you can get off this hand."

Persson, owner of Maverick Gaming casinos, opted to lead out for $3,100, an unconventional play in today's poker world. Hicks, sitting pretty with a set of aces, raised to $10,000 and received a call.

The turn, the , was the ultimate action card. Although it gave Hicks quad aces, Persson actually wasn't drawing dead as he still had a one-outer to a straight flush. Unfortunately, for everyone at the table, there wasn't a bad beat jackpot in play.

With action first on Persson, Hellmuth's newest rival, the tank-top wearing, trash-talking casino owner who hit his flush bet out again, this time for $31,000, more than the size of the pot. Hicks, with no reason to scare off his opponent, gave it the old big-hand sigh before making the call.

The river was a meaningless and Persson snap-shoved all in for Hicks' remaining $102,000. Hicks wasted no time making the call.

"Do you have a full house?" Persson asked.

He didn't have a full house, but instead quad aces, and he took down a pot of $289,700. Persson would battle back to end the session down $98,000. Not exactly the outcome he was hoping for before the game began, but it could have been worse. Hicks, on the other hand, won $34,000 for the night after being stuck around $100,000 early.

Continued here:

Eric Persson Runs into Quad Aces in $290K Cooler on Live at the Bike - PokerNews.com

New players to the platform are in for a treat

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Editors notes:

About Everygame Poker: https://poker.everygame.eu/

Story continues

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220823005419/en/

Contacts

Media Enquiries Nik MangoldEverygame PokerT: +1 877 833 1271

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Everygame Poker with the $1,000 welcome! - Yahoo Finance

Cast: Beau MirchoffRon PerlmanGiancarlo EspositoCorey LargeTitus Welliver

Geners: ThrillerActionCrimeHorror

Director: Greg Francis

Release Date: Dec 20, 2014

When a new detective is caught by a vicious psychopath and locked in a basement, he must use the knowledge he learned from some of the best detectives at Poker Night, then match wits against his captor.

Poker Night is not available to watch on Netflix. If you're interested in other movies and shows, one can access the vast library of titles within Netflix under various subscription costs depending on the plan you choose: $9.99 per month for the basic plan, $15.99 monthly for the standard plan, and $19.99 a month for the premium plan.

Poker Night isn't available to watch on Hulu. However, prices for this streaming service currently start at $6.99 per month, or $69.99 for the whole year. For the ad-free version, it's $12.99 per month, $64.99 per month for Hulu + Live TV, or $70.99 for the ad-free Hulu + Live TV.

Sadly, Poker Night is not streaming on Disney Plus. With Disney+, you can have a wide range of shows from Marvel, Star Wars, Disney+, Pixar, ESPN, and National Geographic to choose from in the streaming platform for the price of $7.99 monthly or $79.99 annually.

You won't find Poker Night on HBO Max. But if you're still interested in the service, it's $14.99 per month, which gives you full access to the entire vault, and is also ad-free, or $9.99 per month with ads. However, the annual versions for both are cheaper, with the ad-free plan at $150 and the ad-supported plan at $100.

Unfortunately, Poker Night is not available to stream for free on Amazon Prime Video. However, you can choose other shows and movies to watch from there as it has a wide variety of shows and movies that you can choose from for $14.99 a month.

Poker Night hasn't made its way onto the Peacock streaming library. Peacock has plenty of other shows and movies for only $4.99 a month or $49.99 per year for a premium account.

Poker Night is not on Paramount Plus also. Paramount Plus has two subscription options: the basic version ad-supported Paramount+ Essential service costs $4.99 per month, and an ad-free premium plan for $9.99 per month.

Poker Night isn't on Apple TV+ at the moment, sorry! In the meantime, you can watch top-rated shows like Ted Lasso on Apple TV with a subscription cost of $4.99 a month.

No, Poker Night isn't currently available to stream on Rakuten TV.

Want to find where you can watch another movie? Take a look at ourmovie search page findout where you can watch and stream thousands of movies online forfree.

See the article here:

Where to Watch and Stream Poker Night Free Online - EpicStream

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Online Poker Calculator | Poker Odds Calculator | Poker Odds & Stats Tool

Bring me any person who doesnt value poker psychology, and Ill show you someone who doesnt understand the game.

We know that discipline is a key trait for any successful poker player to adopt. From not playing every hand to making decisions that will serve the bigger picture, its essential to be well-drilled. This sentiment applies to life in general but is something that you will need to work on in the context of poker.

This is just one area that we will be looking at today. From basic poker psychology tips to more advanced pointers, Ill be helping you understand the mental side of the game a little better.

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Psychology Tips for Playing Online Poker

Is poker psychology necessary when playing online? Or is it best to completely disregard using your brain at all when hitting up the tables on the top online poker sites?

And the winner for the best question that answers itself goes to

If you have played even a couple of hands online, youll know mastering psychology in poker is not exclusive to in-person games. Almost all web-based games you will play will be somewhat anonymous you wont be able to see anyones face nor smell their hair gel. But that doesnt mean that you should let down your guard and abandon critical thought.

As it happens, many of the same tricks, traps, and pitfalls of playing also apply when youre sitting behind a computer screen. If you are to become adept at grasping the mental side of poker, you will need to understand that tells and reads are as much of a part of the online game as they are in person.

Clearly, they are not going to be as comprehensive.

Youre mostly looking for patterns and involuntary concessions to pounce on. Sometimes, these are easier to spot, as many players slip into a false sense of security when playing at home.

And dare I say it, there does seem to be a lot of fish to shoot in the online barrel shortly after kick-out time at city bars. It should be obvious that playing poker drunk will get you into trouble. Its one to avoid if you are to use the mental side of poker to your advantage.

Mastering the skills of good poker psychology relies on cutting out the bad stuff and replacing them with good habits. The following tips are an excellent way to cultivate good practices that will make you a better player.

The number of good and bad habits associated with poker are legion, with good and bad mixed in relatively equal measure. In fact, every good poker habit is the natural obverse of a bad poker habit. For example, keeping a poker face throughout your play is a...

Poker Psychology When Starting Out

If you are thinking about how to get better at poker mentally, youve already won half the battle.

Psychology in poker is omnipresent at the top tiers of the game. The earlier one works on the basics; the faster any committed player will move up the ranks. If you dont have a strong mental game, the chances are that you will be picked off well before you get anywhere near a decent level.

The basic tenets of poker psychology can be found in any competitive sphere. From a cutthroat office job to pro sports, the ability to artificially enhance your stature or give the impression that you are in a position of control is vital. Sometimes, the opposite applies.

Inviting aggression by appearing weaker can often be advantageousmore on that a little later.

The first step toward improving your poker psychology is to understand your mindset. What do you best? What are the attributes you can amplify to make you a better player?

If you have a fidgeting, energetic, and expressive personality, dont try to be the enigmatic sulker. If you are quiet and modest, being an overbearing asshat is typically not the way forward.

Your real personality will eventually surface to undo your ruse; that will leave you in a place of confusion. And thats never a good idea. You need to develop your poker personality on the core strengths you possess.

You know that bluffing in poker is not just acceptable; its an essential part of the game. If we are to break through the euphemistic barrier, bluffing is essentially lying. Its deception. Mendaciousness. Its an art in itself and one that is totally acceptable at the tables.

Sure, you wouldnt lie to your friends, spouse, or boss. Doing so will destroy any relationship you have in the real world. But all is fair game when playing poker, so mastering this dark art is essential to your progression.

Practical Poker Psychology Tips

We have established that an understanding of poker psychology will improve your game.

Lets take a look at some of the top basic tips you can use to aid you in this department. By adopting these directions, you will begin to create a robust yet adaptable mindset that will spur you on to greater achievements.

Owning Your Mistakes The Key to Discipline

The key to evolving as a player is to own your mistakes. If youve screwed up, accept it.

Sometimes, you just cant win, but you should always consider what you could have done wrong. If you blame another player or bad luck, you are losing a great opportunity to examine multiple potential scenarios that could hold some crucial lessons.

Discipline in poker can also include mastering the arts of patience, bankroll management, mental fortitude, and your reactions to things that are out of your control.

Become the Master of Your Emotions

Jealousy. Anger. Rage. Complacency. Greed. Fear.

We wouldnt be human if we never felt any of the above. You can bet the last hair on your head that every player you encounter will have felt almost all of the same emotions you have at some point in their lives.

What sets a great poker player apart from the others is how they control such emotions.

For instance, none of us will be humming a happy song in our heads when we are heading for a showdown with a poor hand. Much so, we wont be jumping for joy when we lose a big pot. But the best poker players dont celebrate when they win big, either.

Practice the Art of Focus

Im not going to suggest you meditate or take a trip to Tibet to practice the art of focusing.

Not everyone responds to the same stimuli. Psychological fads are ten a penny, while many believe practicing yoga makes them a better person. But what works for some people will be utterly useful for others. Again, it would help if you found what aids your ability to enhance your qualities.

You could take up boxing to help you improve your ability to concentrate. After all, one slip-up in a sparring session might leave you with a sore jaw for a few days. In poker, a similar lapse in judgment or disregard for consequences might leave you down thousands.

Which would hurt most?

Work on Brain Optimization

Imagine a world where everyone had the same brain.

Well, not the same organ. But a mimeographed version that was universal among all humans. The world would look much different. It would be boring, too. I mean, this poker mental game stuff would be redundant for a start.

When optimizing your brain, you should try to understand how yours works.

There is no point in using maths to aid your development if you suffer from dyscalculia. I could suggest long runs to help optimize your brain. But if you have mobility issues, thats not going to work.

All we can do is try our best to eat well, hydrate, get adequate sleep, and avoid taking mind-altering substances. This will help to improve cognition and proper brain function.

From here, you can devise your own way to practice making that computer inside your eyes run at its optimal level.

Advanced Poker Psychology Tips

Are you looking for tips on improving mental strength for poker beyond the basics?

The good news is you can never stop learning. There is always something to consider or digest. It would help if you always started with the fundamental points, but seeking higher knowledge is a good idea.

The basic poker mental game is based on factors such as focus, discipline, emotional management, and the bigger picture. These will all combine to put you on the right path. One that is only attainable when you look within yourself for answers, as the great Daniel Negreanu put it.

But once you have mastered the qualities above, there is plenty of room to examine the finer details.

First Impressions Count

Whether its a first date or your first game on the best online poker app, youre getting sized up.

When it comes to live games, other players will look at things you probably didnt even consider. These include what you are wearing, how clean your fingernails are, and how you stack your chips. These can all give a little insight into your personality.

For instance, if youre dressed in a fresh suit, have a crisp haircut, and have great posture, youll likely be considered a threat. Turning up in an old hoodie with a scraggly beard and smelling like something that fell out of a tree might see you underestimated.

How you appear to others might intentionally throw the competition off, of course. But always keep this point in mind.

Create an Aura of Unpredictability

There are multiple ways to consciously play with how others perceive you.

This could involve dressing and talking to impress from the get-go or purposefully creating an image of someone who should be looked down on. Perhaps an even finer art is to do both, within reason. To be unpredictable. The last one, of course, is the most difficult to pull off.

If no one can predict your next move, it creates a sense of uncertainty. One that could make you a nightmare to play against.

Just make sure that any changes you bring to the table are sellable; being eccentric for the sake of it will likely blow up in your face. The smartest poker players will see through your ruse much quicker than you are comfortable accepting.

Learn From the Masters

Just as coaches tell young high school quarterbacks to study the greats, you should be hitting up videos of the top poker players.

Youll learn a lot from observing how the top poker players of all time controlled themselves in high-pressure situations. That includes everything from pulling major wins off against the odds to their reactions when suffering poker bad beats.

If you know what youre looking for, you will find plenty of patterns by watching such videos.

Furthermore, you could always consider reading some of the books and articles that great players have written. But dont expect them to give away all their secrets, especially if they are active!

Bonus Poker Psychology Tip Suggested Reads

You might find it a little troubling for me to suggest such a thing.

But if you think the top poker players on the planet arent adept at this stuff, youre dreaming. There is so much to learn about human psychology readily available to glean from both ancient and modern literature.

Here are a few book suggestions to get you started.

The books above will all help you better understand key psychological factors you can use to your advantage in poker.

They will come in handy if you have an advanced yearning to learn the ins and outs of poker psychology. For instance, Machiavellis quote, Everyone sees what you appear to be, few experience what you are, hits upon some of the stuff we covered earlier.

Or how about the following quote from Greenes Law 8: Make Other People Come to You Use Bait if Necessary?

When you force the other person to act, you are the one in control. It is always better to make your opponent come to you, abandoning his own plans in the process. Lure him with fabulous gains then attack. You hold the cards.

If youre looking to play from a true position of strength, Id recommend playing poker at the best online casinos.

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The Art of Poker Psychology - Tips to Help Your Mental Game - Gambling Sites

Video poker is all the rage these days.

Land-based casinos have offered different video poker games for decades, but its never been easier than it is today to enjoy a similar experience from home.

Thanks to video poker apps and online casinos, you can play video poker even if youre not within 500 miles of a brick-and-mortar casino. As long as you have a device with a functioning internet connection or cellular signal, you can play real money video poker whenever and wherever you want.

So, if youre looking to play video poker online, which games should you play? The following are 10 exciting video poker games available over the internet right now.

If youve played video poker games in the past, theres a good chance youve played Jacks or Better. This is probably the most common video poker game out there, available on the vast majority of machines at both land-based and online casinos.

This game is also sometimes called Draw Poker. The full-pay version of the game is also called 9/6 Jacks or Better because of the payout structure. The payout for a full house is nine times the value of the original wager, while the payout for a flush is six times the risk.

Jacks or Better is an easy-to-learn video poker game based on five-card draw. Youre dealt five cards at the beginning of the game, and you subsequently decide which to keep and which to throw away.

Your payout is based on the hand you have after your second draw. A pair of jacks or higher is the lowest-paying hand, which means a pair of tens or lower nets you nothing.

The best-paying hand is a royal flush, which will pay off at astounding 800-to-1 odds. The full payout structure is as follows:

Jokers Wild or Joker Poker is similar to Jacks or Better. However, instead of a standard 52-card deck, Jokers Wild features a 53-card deck that includes, of course, the joker card.

The joker acts as a wild card in this game, which means it can be assigned any value. While the payouts in this video poker game are comparable to those found in Jacks or Better, there are a few differences.

One of the main differences is that the payouts in Jokers Wild start with a pair of kings, which means pairs of queens or anything lower offer no payout. While the payout for pairs in Jacks or Better is 2-to-1, the payout for pairs of kings or aces in Jokers Wild is 1-to-1, or even money.

Because of the wild card, however, it is possible to draw five-of-a-king in Jokers Wild. That rare hand pays out at healthy 200-to-1 odds.

Deuces Wild is another very popular video poker game. Jacks or Better is probably the only game that gets more play, in fact. If you understood the gist of Jokers Wild, the name of this game should be enough for you to figure out how it works.

In Deuces Wild, the twos are wild cards. While Jokers Wild features just one wild card, the prevalence of four wild cards in Deuces Wild makes this a very fun way to play the game.

Needless to say, your odds of securing at least a pair skyrocket with so many more wild cards in the picture. The payout structure is also different. The lowest-paying hand in Deuces Wild is actually three-of-a-kind.

This video poker game also distinguishes between a royal flush and a wild royal flush. A traditional royal flush still pays out at 800-to-1. A wild royal flush, which includes a wild card as a filler to help you complete the hand, offers a slightly lower payout.

Tens or Better is almost identical to Jacks or Better. Rather than a pair of jacks being the lowest-paying hand, however, a pair of tens is the lowest-paying hand. The payouts at the top are also slightly worse with an extra winning hand in play.

Loose Deuces Wild features a slightly better payout for four-of-a-kind hands that includes one of the wild cards. The payout for a four-of-a-kind with twos is typically 200-to-1. In Loose Deuces Wild, however, that payout jumps to 5oo-to-1.

The better payout there costs you in terms of payouts with other hands, however. The straight flush typically pays off at 900-to-1, but the odds slump to 800-to-1 in Loose Deuces Wild.

The odds of securing a four-of-a-king completely comprised of deuces is also incredibly rare. While youll only secure a royal flush once in about 40,000 hands, though, the odds of drawing four deuces is about 10 times better.

At first glance, Bonus Poker sure sounds a lot like Jacks or Better. The lowest-paying hand is a pair of jacks. The royal flush payout is still 800-to-1. There are no wild cards, either.

There is a different payout for four-of-a-kind hands in Bonus Poker, however. The four-of-a-kind payout in Jacks or Better is 25-to-1, regardless of the number value of the cards. In Bonus Poker, however, the payout is determined by the rank of the cards.

If you draw four aces in Bonus Poker, youll get an 80-to-1 payout. Four deuces, threes, or fours pays out at 40-to-1. Any other four-of-a-kind hand has a 25-to-1 payout.

Again, though, your odds of actually drawing four-of-a-kind are incredibly low.

Double Bonus Poker is, essentially, the same game as Bonus Poker.

The only difference between the video poker games is the payouts for four-of-a-kind hands are doubled in Double Bonus Poker. The names are pretty straightforward, arent they?

Instead of the 80-to-1 payout on four aces, youll get 160-to-1 in Double Bonus Poker. Four deuces, threes, or fours pays out at 80-to-1, while all other four-of-a-kind hands are 50-to-1.

In exchange, youre getting even money payouts instead of 2-to-1 on all two-pair hands.

Were getting a little repetitive, arent we? Double Double Bonus Poker features you guessed it different payouts than both Bonus and Double Bonus Poker.

Here are the payouts for this video poker game:

Triple Bonus Poker multiplies the payouts for four-of-a-kinds by three:

You wont have quite as many decisions to make with Pickem (or Pick A Pair) Poker. This makes the gameplay for this video poker game a little different than most of the other games on the list.

You start every round with two cards. Youll then get two more cards, and its up to you to decide which of the second pair to keep. Youll then get two more cards, completing your final five-card hand.

So, youre stuck with four of the six cards youre dealt throughout the round. Without as much strategy involved in this game, its very easy to learn and still offers advantageous payouts.

As you can see, there are all sorts of video poker games out there for you to play. Each game offers unique payouts and strategies, and youll find most of them at the vast majority of top-ranked online casinos out there today.

There is all sorts of money to be made playing video poker online, so what are you waiting for?

Excerpt from:

10 Exciting Video Poker Games Online That You Should Try Today - The Sports Geek

August 21st, 2022

Bucs coach Todd Bowles.

If Joe was Todd Bowles, Joe would have been all up in the grill of whoever pulled that stunt last night to leave a potential starter at the teams thinnest position in a sh!t game with three minutes left in the third quarter against a bunch of USFL wannabes.

Thats what happened in a totally reckless if not irresponsible move that saw Bucs guard Aaron Stinnie go down with a bum knee.

The severity of Stinnies knee injury isnt public yet, maybe later today. But damn if that didnt look awful last night. Prior to the game, the Bucs didnt know who would start at left guard come Week 1. Rookie Luke Goedeke struggled with two holding calls and a sack allowed in the second quarter alone.

And it wasnt like Goedeke was facing Pro Bowler Jeffery Simmons.

Now, it seems Nick Leverett may be the starter by default.

Last night Bowles seemed to be wearing his poker face, saying he would have to see tape and learn of Stinnies diagnosis before taking additional blood pressure pills.

We wont know until we get x-rays, Bowles said. But (Luke) Goedeke, Ive got to see the tape and looked like we couldnt move the ball at all, regardless of who was in there.

Well look at the tape. My concern isnt as great right now. Ill see the tape and Ill go from there.

This much Joe knows: The Bucs have to get another guard. The position was thin and now it is damn near transparent. Serviceable guards will flood the sidewalks in the coming days, or there should be deals to be had.

Background: Back in 2014 Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht traded for Pro Bowl left guard Logan Mankins and only gave up a reserve tight end and a fourth-round pick on Aug. 26. Today is Aug. 21. A year later, Licht found his starting center on the street, Joe Hawley, after picking up starting right guard Gosder Cherilus in mid-August following Demar Dotsons injury.

So good players can still be had this late in the preseason.

See more here:

Did Todd Bowles Have His Poker Face On Last Night? - Joe Bucs Fan