Free Poker Training Update

Earlier this year I announced that I would be offering free poker lessons. A lot of thought has gone into this and how to best accomplish my goals of helping a select group become skilled Texas Hold'em players and improve the poker community. First, I'm taking on some apprentices who have the desire and aptitude for poker but not the experience or skill yet. Look for an announcement in the coming weeks about how to apply and please be aware that registration will be extremely limited, so stay tuned so you don't miss out. Email me at interest@moderngrinder.com if you want to participate, have any questions or suggestions. Until next time... MG

Poker Bankroll Requirements

Your bankroll is the amount of money you have set aside to play poker with. Some players can easily add to their bankroll from outside sources while others have no way to add if they lose theirs. If you fall into the latter category, it is very important to not play at limits that exceed your bankroll. One very important point you should know is that until you become a consistent winner it doesn’t matter how big your bankroll is. The only thing that will matter is how much you have to lose. For this reason, the information below is written for you assuming you are a winning player overall. The first rule is to not confuse bankroll and buy-in. A buy-in is the amount you sit down in a game with or the entry fee in a tournament, not the entire amount you have available to play poker with over a period of time. For example, you may have a bankroll of $10,000 to play 15/30-limit holdem. If this were the case you would probably buy-in for between $500 and $1,000. I have seen bankroll size suggestions ranging from 200 times the big bet at the level you are playing at ($800 at 2/4) to 300 times the big bet ($1200 at 2/4). My recommendation, particularly for holdem, is to start with 300 times the big bet. I play much better when I have this cushion. I have played at levels that I had much less than 300 times the big bet in bankroll and it sometimes hurts my play. This is a psychological hurdle but when reduced to facts it makes sense. 50 times the big bet is a common downswing, even for professional players, and nothing to become too concerned about if you are still playing well. However, if you start with only 100 times the big bet, if you are down 50 big bets you have lost 50% of your bankroll. If you had started with 300 big bets and are down 50, you have only lost roughly 17% of your bankroll. If you are a very sound Omaha/8 player, you can play with a 200 big bet bankroll. This is because Omaha/8 is a much more mathematically direct game than holdem, or in other words there is less short-term variance or luck. Because of the short-term variance in holdem, even professional players may see a 200 big bet downswing at times. For this reason, that extra 100 big bets may keep you from being forced to drop down a level before the cards turn in your favor. Poker Resources Featured Poker Rooms: Absolute Poker Full Tilt Poker UltimateBet PokerStars Learn to Play Poker Profitably the right way: Sit N Go Pro Outstanding Poker About the Author: Wes Young runs a poker web site at http://www.pokermonger.com where you can find information about poker strategy, poker room reviews and unique poker articles. He also publishes a weekly poker column. For information visit thepokercolumn.com Read more articles by: Wes Young Article Source: www.iSnare.com

Should you play free poker?

I've been asked many times if playing free poker online is a good way to improve your skills. Personally I avoid playing free poker (by free I'm referring to play money games were nothing tangible is at stake). Doyle Brunson is famous for saying that "poker is not a card game you play with people but a people game you play with cards" or something to that effect. In other words the the thought process of your opponents is just as important if not more important than the cards themselves. Ad: Texas Hold'em Secrets Revealed When there is nothing is at stake people play differently. It's a lot harder to go all-in with your hard earn paycheck than with play chips. Virtually everything you learn about how your opponents react in a play money game won't apply to a real money game. My advice is if you have a small bank roll play at lower limit tables until you have enough to move up. It's not glamorous to play .05/.10 limit but at least what you learn will carry over to higher limits (mostly). There are two exceptions to this rule for me: You've never played poker online or you are learning a game new to you such as seven card stud or Omaha poker. Mistakes at any limit are expensive and few of us have unlimited bank rolls so learning the rules and mechanics of a game with play money makes a lot of sense. You new to the site and want to test out the functionality or are otherwise unsure about it. If you are thinking of playing a site for the first time it makes sense to get used to the layout and controls before you invest any money. But if you are considering a site that is strangely or poorly laid out or if it is brand new I suggest moving onto a more tried and true poker site. Good luck and have fun! Poker Resources Featured Poker Rooms: Absolute Poker Full Tilt Poker UltimateBet PokerStars Learn to Play Poker Profitably the right way: Sit N Go Pro Outstanding Poker

Free Poker Training!

Free Poker Training! Pay attention because this is very exciting and may only happen once! The Modern Grinder will be offering personal coaching in playing Texas Hold'em for profit. The goal of this training will be to teach what it takes to be a professional online poker player and to see if you have what it takes. This is going to be a very limited offer so watch for details. I suggest you subscribe now so you don't miss out on any future announcements.

Site Review: Fult Tilt Poker

FullTiltPoker.com Overall Rating 9.1/10 Full Tilt Poker is one of the best in online poker: world famous pros, a huge bonus, real or play money and it's one of The Modern Grinders all time favorite online poker rooms. Full Tilt Poker was designed by world class poker professionals, and offers you the ability to learn, chat, and play online poker with the pros. Team Full Tilt Howard Lederer Chris Ferguson Jennifer Harman Erick Lindgren Clonie Gowen Mike Matusow Allen Cunningham Phil Ivey John Juanda Phil Gordon Erik Seidel Andy Bloch Gus Hansen Overview and Ratings American Players Weclome! Fast payouts (often in 3 hours or less) Fast Friendly 24/7 support Great software with Windows and Mac support Software & Graphics 8 Ring Game Traffic 8 Tournament traffic 9 Game variety 8 Rake 5.5 Soft competition 7 Sign up bonus 8 Promotions & Bonuses 9 Support 9 Financial security 10 Deposit & withdrawal options 10 Promotions 100% first time deposit bonus up to $600 Full Tilt Online Poker Series Iron Man Challange Daily Guaranteed Minimun Tournaments $5,000 cash Freeroll $18,000 Aussie Millions Prize Package Full Tilt Points Player Rewards And much more Traffic Full Tilt is one of the fastest growing poker rooms in the world and as of the writing of this review there were about 15,000 players on 5,000 tables. Most players are playing in the middle to lower limit games and tournaments. Limits and Game Variety Full Tilt was designed for players of all bank roll sizes from $.05/$.10 games all the way up $1000/$2000. You can play Hold'em, Omaha, Omaha High Low, Stud, Stud High Low and Razz. Tournaments If you are a tournament player you will love Full Tilt they have a ton of free rolls that are easy to qualify for. Additionally if you are looking for a unique experience then you have to try “The Ferguson” tournament at Full Tilt. It’s starts out as a standard Hold’em tournament but each time the blinds change the game also changes. Rotating though Hold’em, Omaha, 7 Card Stud, 7 Card H/L and Razz. Tournament buy-ins range from $1 to $1,060 they usually have many satellites to win entry into their larger tournaments. Customer Service Full Tilt provides their customers with exceptional customer service, with most emails being answered in less than 40 minutes. The fact is their site is so user friend and everything works so well you probably won't have reason to contact customer service. Click here to play at Full Tilt Poker now!