2013 March 11

By David “THE MAVEN” Chicotsky

 It’s common to hear poker players complain about bad beats. So much so, that bad beat stories have become a staple of the poker culture. There are some things we can control and others we can’t. We definitely can’t control certain bad beats, but on a macro level we can manipulate the frequency and distribution of bad beats we encounter.

 What I mean by this is that every poker player has a different ratio of the amount of bad beats they take in comparison to the amount of bad beats they deliver. The least risk tolerant players will inevitably have the highest bad beats taken to bad beats delivered ratio.

Treat yourself to the beauty of the Shenandoah Valley and play in the highly anticipated Hollywood Poker Open. Make your own great memories, as you hear the voice of Mountain Mamma beckoning you to Charles Town, West Virginia. I hear the song in my head as I make travel plans. I am not alone, plenty of other players have been awaiting Hollywood Casino At Charles Town, West Virginia to take their turn, hosting the big Hollywood Poker Open. This is the first-ever Hollywood Poker Open regional event at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races. Located only an hour from Baltimore and Washington D.C. areas, the player draw should be plentiful. With huge cash prizes and a seat in the national Hollywood Poker Open up for grabs, plus the interest thus far generated, expect nothing less than a huge turn-out. The dates in Charles Town are March 21st thru April 1st, 2013. It is fast upon us, and this event is loaded with opportunities for you. With an ambitious schedule, offering lots of $$$ to win, you can also win a trip to Vegas with a seat in the $500,000 Hollywood Poker Open.

by Ashley Adams

I really enjoyed the Biloxi, Mississippi poker room at the Isle Casino—an Isle of Capri property. (See my first two articles in this series for other rooms in the area). The Isle is beautiful, situated right on the beach, with beautiful seaside views everywhere. I decided to stay in town rather than drive the 90 minutes back to New Orleans. Before my return, however, I had a great playing session.

 The Isle spreads both $1 -$2 no limit and $4 - $8 limit hold’em. There were three games going while I was there. Players earn $2 an hour in comps, and (as in the other rooms in the area) pay a 10% rake, up to a maximum of $4, with a $2 drop for the many promotions, including bad beat and high hand jackpots. My $1 -$2 game was filled with regulars who can only be fairly described as “characters”. They often play together, know each others schticks, and were eager to share them with the only newcomer at the table: me!

 There was Charlie: His stack ranged from $2,000 to $4,000 during most of the session (there was no cap to the buy in). He was generally quiet, except with his betting action, which was often extremely wild and loose. He proved the wisdom of being welcoming to all when he said that though he often dropped a ton in this game, he kept coming back because of the pleasant company. To be sure, he was no pushover. I saw him shove $3,500 in chips into an $800 pot, win when his opponent folded, and then reveal an unpaired hand of 6-4. He gave a toothless smile when he did so, saying “Sometimes I have nothing”. Describing the philosophy of the game, one player said, “Some people play got’ems, some people play get’ems. We play get’ems over here”. And so they did. Many of the players loved to stay in when they were behind just to see if they could draw a winning hand. Pots were often $1,000 or larger.

Delaware Park’s 3rd annual Poker Classic will be happening this May 8-28! The three week tournament series will wrap up with a $2,500 Main event featuring a $500,000 guarantee. Check out the next issue of Poker Player Newspaper for all of the details of this event! Can’t wait till May 8? Okay, okay, you don’t have to twist my arm… you can get a taste of what is coming up in the Poker Classic’s “Sneak Preview” series, from March 13th – 20th. The complete event schedule is available on the inside front cover of this issue. The finale of this event series will be the 3rd annual 94.1WIP Bracket Challenge. The Bracket Challenge is fun, exciting, and unique event created by Delaware Park. Modeled after the NCAA March Madness Tournament, the event is a shoot out with some twists. The winner will get a $2,500 seat into the Main Event of the Poker Classic, and 2nd-10th receives a $300 Main Event Satellite entry. Best of all, the bonus round is added money! Come on out, it’s a fun event, and I promise you wont find anything like it.

You can’t drive it on the NASCAR Track at Dover Downs in Delaware, but you can drive it home. Just win the fully loaded 2013 Toyota Camry in the Crown Royal Poker Room inside Dover Downs Resort Casino on Sunday March 10th. With a 12 noon start, and a buy-in of only $199, the beauty in this picture could feature your poker face behind the wheel. In addition to the Toyota Camry as first prize, there are a nice amount of pay-outs in this tournament, with $5,000 going to second place, $3,000 for third, $2,000 for 4th, $1,000 to 5th, with 6th getting $700, 7th place $600, 8th, 9th 10th winning $400 each, 11th, 12th,13th, 14th, 15th receiving $300, then finishing up with 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th, all, receiving $200 cash each. Late entries will be accepted until 2pm. This is a huge bang for your money. And as I told you before, crazy cash action goes on here.

Tom McEvoy and David Chicotsky will again be teaching their tournament strategy at the Golden Nugget casino in Las Vegas on July 3, 2013, a day before the annual Poker Player of the Year Tournament. Their seminars are part of an overall package that begins at 9:00 AM to Noon, with lunch and other refreshments supplied. The second session starts at 1:00 PM and ends at 4:00 PM. At 7:00 that evening the participants will play in a satellite tournament for entry into the next day’s Poker Player of the Year event. The fee for this entire activity is $390.

Last year’s participants at these seminars apparently learned quite a bit, many of them placing at or close to the final table, thus proving the value of this outstanding poker education event. The blend of McEvoy’s decades of tournament experience, he was the WSOP World Champion in the 1980’s and young David Chicotsky’s internet and recent tournament experience, he was the 2008 Internet Player of the Year, has produced a learning experience second to none. It’s something you won’t want to miss as it is sure to improve your game, whether a beginner or an old pro.

In today’s self-interview, I invite questions on anything.

 Question 1: Have any of your opinions about poker changed over the decades that you have been researching and analyzing the game?

Not many. And here’s the deal with that: poker theory is timeless.

 It puzzles me to read so many comments from young players proclaiming that poker advice is outdated. Actually, there was a time when this was true. That was before I and others began to treat our game scientifically in the 1970s.

 Back then, much of the advice was based on homespun wisdom, on what appeared to work or not work, on empirical data. The word “empirical” mean that conclusions are based on observation or personal experience, rather than analysis, logic, and research.

Attention Ladies!! The Nevada State Ladies Poker Championship at the Peppermill Reno is scheduled for March 15-17 and will be held in the Naples Ballroom. The event kicks off with a TinyTini Tasting Meet & Greet on Friday, March 15 at 5:30 pm followed by a 7 pm $100 buyin no-limit tournament. The main event starts at noon on Saturday, March 16 with a $175 buy-in, play will stop at 11 pm and resume at noon on Sunday. $250 will be withheld from the prize pool for the winner’s seat to LIPs Tour Grand Championship event in Las Vegas. The famous LCR game will begin at 8 pm for those not so lucky in the main event. Sunday morning starts at 10 am with breakfast, silent auction and a Q&A with the pros. A “Licensed to Kill” no-limit bounty tournament will begin at 1 pm with a $90 buy-in. An Omaha high/ low tournament is scheduled for 7 pm with a $95 buy-in. Special room rates available, mention code EPOK313.

By Barbara Rogers

The Foxwoods Poker Classic Tournament (scheduled for March 4-17th) is one big reason. The World Series of Poker Circuit Events (running from March 27th-April 8th) are the other big reason. Action-packed poker never sleeps at Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut. And it JUST got better. Starting out with a $300 No limit hold’em Deep Stacks (Re-Entry) at 11am on Monday March 4th, that breaks down to $260+$40 with 15,000 chips and 30 minute blinds, it’s off and running. The same day, if you are a 7-Card Stud player, this starts at 1pm, buy-in $350+$50, 10,000 in chips, with 30 minute blinds. If you miss the Monday tournament, show up at Foxwoods on Tuesday and play the No limit Bounty (Deep Stack) re-entry event, for $160+$40+$100.This series will include more opportunities than you could hope for. I will highlight some of them for you, but if you can get your hands on our last issue of Poker Player, you can read the entire schedule on the back cover, and our big tabloid size makes for easy reading!

by Barbara Rogers

 Just south of the Minnesota border in Northern Iowa, you can see Diamond Jo Casino Worth, surrounded by pristine woodlands. It is here, in Northwood, Iowa, where you will find March Poker Madness playing out on the 21st, 22nd, and the 23rd. Thursday and Friday events will start at 7pm. Both have a $5 staff bonus for additional chips, giving you an edge. Thursday buy-in is only $50, with Friday buy-in being $100. The Championship Event is on Saturday at 12pm with a $200 buy-in, add the staff bonus chips for only $10. David Eglseder, the poker room manager, indicated super satellites will be held for only $25 with $20 re-buys. These are lots of fun, and the entire event should be a lot of fun for an amount of money that won’t hurt your poker budget!

 Mohegan Sun in Connecticut will host the DeepStacks Poker Tour from March 27th to April 1st. DeepStacks Poker Tour enjoyed one of their most successful seasons at Mohegan Sun in Connecticut, so this should prove to be an even bigger success. Find more details in the Mohegan Sun ad in this issue of Poker Player Newspaper [Read the PDF].