Saturday, October 28, 2006

League Update: Fee entry into the WSOP

Our league is primarily about player helping players improve their game and becoming more profitable. It's not about prizes but we've decided to jump start our league and encourage participation we will be offering the following prizes to the first league member who reaches the following points level.

The first league member to earn:
  • 1,000 in team points gets one free entry into a $1,000 Guaranteed Tournament.
  • 2,000 in team points gets one free entry into a gets one free entry into a $2,000 Guaranteed Tournament.
  • 5,000 in team points gets one free entry into a wins free entry $4,500 Guaranteed Tournament.
  • 50,000 in team points gets one free entry into a wins into a $200,000 Guaranteed Sunday Tournament.
  • 100,00 in team points wins an entry into the the UBOC $1,000,000 Guaranteed Tournament.
  • 500,000 in team points wins a WPT 3 day boot camp with Mike Sexton, T.J. Cloutier, Linda Johnson, Clonie Gowen, Mark Seif, and Crispin/Jules Leyser as your instructor.
  • 1,000,000 in team points wins a free entry into the WSOP plus trasnportation and accommodations (This is addition to the 5 we intend to send).
Remember you must be a Modern Grinder League player in good standing to to qualify. Click here to learn how to qualify for the Modern Grinder League


Note: The prizes are subject to certain deadlines and availability we reserve the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater value at our sole discretion. Also subject to minimum participation requirements and may be canceled at anytime without notice. Please contact us with any questions.

Texas Hold’em Betting Strategy

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If you’re just learning to play one of the most important things you can spend time learning is basic Texas Hold’em betting Strategy. Some of the most important things to learn are basic to poker betting strategy in other poker games as well.

Here’s some very basic terminology, relating to Texas Hold’em betting strategy. The most common type of betting in Texas Hold’em is a fixed limit. In a fixed limit game, there are two betting amounts. The low and the high. We’ll use a $5-$10 Texas Hold’em table as an example. For the first few rounds each bet must be in increments of $5.00. For example if the bet is at $10, you can only call or raise it to $15.00. Then depending on the game, at some point, the betting limit doubles, all bets would then be made at $10.00 increments.

The basic Texas Hold’em betting strategy in this game is to concentrate on what you think the other players hand are based upon any clues you have. Remember, in betting the most important is to understand your opponents and bet accordingly without the other players at your table being able to predict your next Texas Hold’em betting strategy.

In the above scenario, most casinos will limit the number of raises in a single round to three or four. The number of raises in a single betting round should also be carefully evaluated into establishing your Texas Hold’em betting strategy.

As you probably already know a check is as bet of nothing. It allows you to stay in the game without increasing your bet. If no bets have been made during the round and it is your turn to bet you can check (bet nothing) and pass to the next player. Once you become more comfortable playing, a round including checks can be a golden opportunity to employ Texas Hold’em betting strategy. Of course you’ll need to evaluate the likelihood of your hand carefully and your opponenets. But this can be a winning opportunity.

In the instance above, the opportunity to bluff may enter your mind. A word of caution about using a bluff - A bluff works best when no one is expecting it. If your play is conservative, most people won’t expect you to bluff. Using a bluff occasionally, when it’s least expected is a good Texas Hold’em betting strategy. Another consideration in learning Texas Hold’em betting strategy is that if you never bluff your opponents will know you have a good hand when your bets are aggressive, thus they will fold.

Texas Hold’em is a game of chance, but learning effective Texas Hold’em, betting strategy can improve your chances greatly. The more experience you get, the better your strategy should become. Don’t allow yourself to ever get into a predictable routine during games. You’re setting yourself up for loss if you do.

For more wins and lots of fun, take some time to learn effective Texas Hold’em betting strategy.

About the Author: David Olsen has been writing about online casinos and casino strategy for over five years and is considered an authority in the online gambling world. His latest website is all about video Poker and Online Poker. Visit His site to learn more http://www.playvideopoker.us/poker_rooms/ Mr. Olsen is married with a young son.Read more articles by: David Olsen
Article Source: www.iSnare.com


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Thursday, October 26, 2006

Recommended Reading

You asked for it so here is the Modern Grinders list of recommended poker books... Recommended Reading


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Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Experts: Ban Won't Stop Online Gambling

By ADAM GOLDMAN AP Business Writer

NEW YORK Oct 24, 2006 (AP)— Gamblers may look over their shoulder now, but experts say a new Internet gambling ban won't keep bettors from ponying up, just turn them on to overseas payment services out of the law's reach... Read Full Article Here.

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When Playing Internet Poker, Be Disciplined!

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A conventional blunder made by a large number of neophyte (and an outrageously excessive sum of persons that ought to know better) players is feeling the need to participate in any hand dealt. A thriving card player just participates in 20-30% of dealt hands. Just as a skilled ball player that might be able to ink a million dollar contract by keeping a batting average of .300, the successful poker player realizes that the large amount of the time another player will run away with the pot.


Having this in mind it could be vital to play aggressive when you attain a hand that you are confident in. Remember that a good amount of of the time additional players at the table are prepared to lay down their hands. Be ready to cause the weak players out with your aggressive bets. Do you believe that you have the leading hand? If so, increase the wager! The number one reason for being aggressive remains to have folks with poor hands lay down early on, due to the fact that a certain number are apt to hang on looking on the miracle draw to take the hand. By forcing their hand early you are decreasing the odds of those miracle hands as well as also ensuring you win the pot. It's consistently better to pull down a tinier pot than take a gamble that another card player draws a miracle hand late in the game.

Your table reputation is additionally especially monumental. Form a firm table image by not bluffing early in your play. Bluffing early identifies you as a bluffer and individuals should spot your bluff A large amount of the time. Play good cards and throw down poor hands, have the opposing persons at the table notice you are clearly playing top quality cards. This creates the opportunity for you to use a healthy bluff later on in the game due to the fact that you have conditioned the others individuals into believing that once you raise you hold the cards to take the hand.

Contemplating other poker players and their betting tendencies can be equally as valuable. It can be overly easy to become wound up in your personal game and miss the "tells" the other card players might be exhibiting. Recognizing if they wager aggressively or by and large call with a strong hand empowers you and also your gambling decisions.

Most essential of all may be appreciate when to quit! Everyone must consistently be smart and focused while at the poker table. Burnout spells mental mistakes and winds up losing you bucks. Frustration is a new signal that you may be ready to call it an evening, or at the very least take a rest. Play sharp and you ought to win smart.

About the Author:
For free online poker news and reviews, visit http://www.poker-weblog.com today!
Read more articles by: J Finney
Article Source: www.iSnare.com

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Tuesday, October 24, 2006

How to get a free copy of Doyle Brunson's Super System II

We at the Modern grinder have team up with the poker sites listed below who are standing fast in supporting the rights of Americans to play poker online. To get your free copy of Doyle Brunson's Super System II simply sign up at the poker rooms listed below by clicking the link on this page make an deposit of $50 or more and play 300 raked hands. Then send us an email with your Player ID, name, mailing address and Super System book offer in the subject line to mg@moderngrinder.com

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Depositing Funds To Your Online Casino & Poker Room Account

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Ways To Deposit

When I first wanted to start playing in online casinos and poker rooms, I thought it would be as easy as 123 to start playing – surely all you need to do is to download the software enter your credit card details and away you go?

Well yes kind of, but you may already have seen there are a multitude of different payment and deposit methods available ranging from credit and debit cards right the way through to the good old snail mail check!

There are a range of options but it is vitally important that you choose the right one otherwise your casino and poker play may not be as rewarding as you first think.

Credit Cards

Historically credit cards have always been the first thing people think of when looking to deposit money – and why not – these days most of the major banks offer internet fraud protection and depositing via credit card is pretty instantaneous – so what is the problem – well there could be a few.

1, A lot of US credit card issuers now will not allow you to use their cards for gambling transactions, this is also now starting to hit the rest of the world with other big issuers.

2, Mastercard now prohibit winnings from being re deposited back onto cards bearing their logo.

3, Some banks both in the US and UK who do allow their credit cards to be used to deposit money, account for these transactions slightly differently and as a result charge interest differently usually with no interest free period and certainly in the UK with interest rates in excess of 21% AER.

4, There may also be limits with some online casinos and online poker rooms on the amount of money you can deposit and have re deposited back onto your card so if you win big you may not get it all back!

Debit Cards

Now becoming more standardised around the world but used heavily in the UK and Europe, don’t tend to suffer the same restrictions as credit cards and of course because the money is coming directly out of your bank account – unless you have an overdraft facility you are not exposed to the excessive interest rates associated with credit cards.

Bank Transfers

Still used a lot to make payments for bills etc, one of the biggest issues with bank transfers is the time – funds are not moved immediately so you often have to wait before you can use your gaming account for anything upto five days – during which lets be honest the banks will be earning some interest off your money, and at the same time the banks will charge you for the privilege of transferring your money this way.

Online Payment Services

I guess Paypal may well have started this trend off but now there are a whole host of online payment services to choose from (Paypal incidentally not being one of them as when they were took over by Ebay they stopped allowing Paypal to be used for casino transactions)

The best known ones are Neteller, Moneybookers, Western Union & Stormpay but there are others such as Citadel.

All pretty much offer a similar service in that you open an account with them – for free and you can then deposit money into them using either a credit or debit card or by wire transfer etc, once you have deposited money into them you can then use this account to deposit and withdraw funds from your online casino or poker room account – in most cases immediately.

All have a range of different services attached to them and, obviously they have to make there money somewhere, a range of different charges – as an example I deposited £25 into my Neteller account from my UK credit card and was charged a 98p handling fee by Neteller – which was taken directly off the credit card – approx 4% charge which is quite a lot especially if you are depositing large amounts into the account.

However one of the main advantages of using services such as this is that you can accept money and deposit money in different currencies – all converted at the payment services conversion rates and you can use one account to fund a range of different casino and poker accounts – and of course one account to receive all of your winnings!

One final word of caution on this though – when using your credit card to deposit funds into your payment service account just check with your card issuer that they do not treat these deposits in the same way as they would treat a deposit to a casino and sting you with high rates of interest on the transaction.

Snail Mail Methods

Need I say anything – if you really don’t want to use any of the above or you are scared about leaving your details on the internet then you can always send a good old cheque (check!) and wait for it to clear – some (not all) online casinos and poker rooms accept this method.

Conclusion

There are a myriad of different ways for you to enjoy your online gaming and deposit and withdraw money safely, if you do struggle to use your credit card then one piece of advice which the banks would kill me for saying is to balance transfer the money off your credit card into your bank account then use your debit card to deposit the funds (thus avoiding the hefty interest charges) – be careful though for balance transfer fees but this is a whole different article!


About the Author:

Andy Denton runs a number of websites including one specifically on poker strategy and poker site reviews - http://www.haveaflutter.com and has extensive experience in the financial services industry.
Read more articles by: Andy Denton
Article Source: www.iSnare.com

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Monday, October 23, 2006

Modern Grinder Video of The Weak: Mr. Bill

Here is a video about the man behind the the Online Gambling Ban from our friends over at www.APCW.org



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Sunday, October 22, 2006

Why Online Poker Websites Are A Safe Way To Play Poker

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Frequently, whenever anybody thinks about the idea of making a purchase online or transmitting their credit card information via the internet, they may tend to wonder about the safety aspect surrounding these types of internet transactions. The same kind of worry rings true for those individuals that are interested in entertaining themselves by utilizing online poker websites as a gaming establishment alternative. They may tend to ask themselves whether or not this is a safe thing to be doing or if they may be jeopardizing things such as their bank account and overall financial safety by doing so. Another way in which a prospective online poker player may question safety and legitimacy aspects of an online poker website is with regard to collusion among some of its online poker players. However, it may help you to rest a bit easier after reading the following text and learning about the different ways in which safety concerns are being addressed with regard to gaming websites such as online poker websites.

The best way for an individual to utilize the internet in order to exchange money on the web is to use something referred to by some individuals and organizations as a “digital wallet”. This type of safeguarding mechanism works in a way in which an established, forthright company, which we will refer to as the payment systems company for the remainder of this article, is the medium between the online poker player and the online poker website. The online poker player will submit his or her credit card information via the internet to the payment systems company and the payment systems company will then pay the online poker website. It is important to note the fact that the online poker player’s financial information will never be seen by the online poker website and will only be seen by the established and valid payment systems company.

Once the poker player wins, the online poker website will pay the online poker player through the payment systems company and the poker player will then be able to gain access to the money by way of an electronic funds transfer from the payment systems company to the poker player’s bank account that is provided or via a check. If the online poker player loses in the various online poker games, then the money will be transmitted from the online poker player’s credit card to the online poker website company by the payment systems company. This type of system ensures that the poker player’s financial information is not being unnecessarily distributed to various companies and websites. It will allow the poker player to have peace of mind, knowing that his or her financial information is safe from outside prying eyes. Also, oftentimes these payment systems companies will have free protection established for the individual utilizing their services should their information get into the wrong hands. In the slim chance that this might occur, the payment systems company would refund all money to the individual harmed by the financial hijacking. This also allows the individual online poker player to feel more relaxed when dealing with an online poker website.

Another fear that individuals have with regard to playing poker games via an online poker website is that collusion may be present among other players. By definition, collusion is a secret agreement between two or more persons to commit a fraudulent act. This type of thing may occur if two poker players utilizing the same online poker website are working together to defraud other players out of their winnings. They may try to do this by working together and communicating by telephone or maybe even by using a network and playing poker on the same website in the same house. There is a specific way in which online poker websites address this issue.

The way in which online poker websites address this issue is by having a system where they can monitor all hands that are being played each time by individual players throughout the online poker games. Should the online poker website investigate and feel that there is some sort of collusion going on, they will take matters into their own hands to resolve the situation. It is good to know that most online poker players are aware of the fact that online poker websites monitor all activity occurring within each game and this in and of itself may help to prevent any potential thoughts of collusion on the part of the online poker players. It is also beneficial to know that online poker websites are doing their part to prevent any possible collusion among online poker players as it hurts their business greatly should people be colluding to defraud other players and the company itself out of any potential winnings.

Prospective online poker players may also be fearful of playing online poker if they feel that other individuals will be able to hack into the system and see other players hands throughout the games and then base their wagers and folds on what they can see is being held by other poker playing individuals at their virtual table. The online poker websites have also addressed these types of issues by engaging various brands of software that use encryption methods to prevent any type of hacking on the part of poker players. Again, by protecting the large influx of online poker players that utilize their website to engage in online poker games, the online poker website is protecting itself as well. If their company is seen as having a less than desirable website in which to play poker, they will lose a lot of potential online poker players which will ultimately put them out of business in a quick manner.

These are just a few safeguards that are taken by online poker websites to ensure the safe playing arena for its online poker players. With all of the technology out there these days, you can rest assured that these online poker websites are doing all that they can to make sure that your online poker playing experience is a safe and gratifying one.

About the Author:

Jeff Dragt has been working for a variety of online poker rooms for years. For more information about poker please visit. http://www.highlimitplayers.com


Read more articles by: Jeff Dragt

Article Source: www.iSnare.com

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Doyle Brunson on Your World with Cavuto



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