Feburary 28th, 2011

I’ve returned recently from a week of poker playing at the Commerce Casino, and it was one of the best weeks of my life. I’m not saying that most weeks of my life aren’t right out of a fairy tale; actually, I’m a lucky individual when it comes to being content with my life. I’m just saying that when I play poker, I am usually hosting an event, teaching a camp, doing a fundraiser, or running a cruise.

Old Man River keeps rolling along, but how many times have you found yourself at the river without much of a hand, but it’s still a hand you believe is best? Many times, I’m sure, since it’s a common occurrence. Possibly you were on a draw that missed or were an unraised blind and picked up top or middle pair along the way against only one opponent.

I gave you four stud questions in the January 17 issue. I answered the first in the last issue. I’ll tackle the second here.

Question 2: It’s fifth street. You have (Kh-9h) Ks-6c-7h. You are against (x-x)9d-Ac-5s. He called your third street raise, then check-raised on fourth street. You called and now he bets out. The pot, before his bet, had $144 in it. The folded cards were the 3d, 5c, 7s, 8d, 2c, 2s, Jh. Call raise, or fold?

Decision-making can be grueling in the best of circumstances. But seated at a poker table with a pile of chips in the center beckoning to you, whether in a real casino or online, making decisions can become quite difficult. There sits a significant pot that could belong to you! You have a very limited amount of time to evaluate the situation and make a very important decision.

In a horse race, every horse is rated based on its chance of coming in first in competition with other horses in that race. The favorite is the horse with the lowest odds against it. So a 2-to-1 shot is a big favorite over a long shot that’s 10-to-1. This is reflected in the payoff. That’s why many who gamble on the horse races prefer to bet on long shots. The payoff is greater. The more horses in the race, the less likely it is that the favorite crosses the finish line ahead of its opponents. It’s similar in poker. Your hand may be favored before the flop against each of your opponents individually, but the more opponents involved in the hand, the less likely you are to win. It’s common, in fact, for a hand to be favored over every other hand individually, yet be an underdog when considered against a full field of opponents collectively.

When it comes to mainstream poker news, September 2007 stands out for various reasons. That’s the month the WSOP held its first event outside the US with the inaugural WSOP-Europe. Annette Obrestad became the youngest player to win a World Series of Poker bracelet at age 19, and Greg Raymer won the PokerStars WCOOP pot-limit Omaha event. But there was something else that occurred in “The Middle” during that time that did not hit the mainstream news, and that was the very first episode of CPL Poker Podcast out of Blaine, Minnesota.

I recently had the opportunity to interview the crew of CPL, Mark “Verbal” Cardenas and “Karaoke” Phil Fuehrer to discuss the podcast in detail. “We really created CPL Poker Podcast to entertain our home league members. We listened to other poker podcasts and thought it would be fun. By episode forty, we branched out.” These entertainment gurus were quick to explain their nicknames as well. Mark earned his nickname “Verbal” after an error he made in the home league by pushing all-in with saying “call.” Verbal declarations are binding and so are some nicknames. Phil received his nickname because he can often be heard singing eighties songs.

Now with more than 300 listeners, the weekly show discusses a variety of topics that are targeted at low-limit players. It is the only poker podcast in the upper Midwest and the longest running. It airs on Mondays and discusses a wide range of topics from free poker leagues, online poker play, and casino tournaments and cash games. They provide their listeners “a poker viewpoint that is witty and humorous, but still based upon solid poker know-how.” The segment variety includes hand of the week, the CPL science segment, poker news and various interviews such as the Heartland Poker Tour’s first Minnesota event winner, Tom Stambaugh and most recently, Andy Bloch.

“Newer players can especially benefit from hearing the thoughts and tales of a couple of experienced low-limit hosts. Our banter and topics will certainly encourage players to keep on plugging away as they work to improve their game.” CPL currently boasts having listeners across the US although is focused on the Midwest poker scene. “We have plenty of entertainment and information for anyone who plays poker, regardless of where they reside.”

Both Mark and Phil play a variety of games in various places such as Full Tilt, the Free Poker Network, Running Aces Casino, Canterbury Park and in monthly home leagues. Their main tournament buy-ins range from $1 to $250 and cash game spreads from $2-$4 to $6-$12, limit to no-limit.

The CPL Poker Podcast hopes to become the most listened to podcast in the USA. They have seen progressive growth and look forward to expanding their market. From the basement in a Minneapolis suburb, equipped with a good mic and software, an informative and entertaining show is aired. “We’re a couple of low-limit players but think we put out an entertaining show so come check us out at www.cplpokerpodcast.com.”

Have news from “The Middle?” Email me at rsfpoker@aol.com andtell me all about it.

The 2011 LA Poker Classic at Commerce Casino is heading into the stretch run. This issue’s coverage comprises a large number and wide variety of events, though our publishing deadline and Commerce’s schedule meant that their two biggest events, the $10,000 buy-in, televised, World Poker Tour tournament and the $25,100 buy-in high roller event will be covered next issue. In this issue we’ll show you Claremont, California’s Parviz Razavian taking first place in the Event No. 47, a $2,575 six-handed, nolimit hold’em tournament and beating Brooklyn, NY’s Dwyte Pilgrim, one of professional poker’s hottest players over the past 18 months.

Last time I strayed from my normal format. Instead of focusing on a single poker concept, defined by today’s word, I allowed the self-interview questions to be about “this and that.”

Well, not quite. I chose “this” as the word, because I quickly realized “this and that” covered too much ground. So we narrowed the interview to questions only about “this.” Even so, it turned out there were thousands of ideas, tips, and concepts capable of fitting the definition. I could only address a few.

World Series of Poker Announces 2011 Schedule. The 2011 World Series of Poker schedule has been released and is available at http://www.wsop.com/tournaments/.

Fifty-eight events comprise this year’s WSOP, with Event No. 58, the $10,000 buy-in, thirteen-day main event, set for July 7.

Book by February 28 to Qualify for $1,000 Freeroll! Poker Player Cruises’ Alaska cruise is scheduled for August 5-12 on Royal Caribbean’s Rhapsody of the Seas. An Alaskan cruise is an ideal way to see glaciers, bays, and wildlife, not to mention all the poker you can play while at sea. Experience spectacular views while cruising the Inside Passage, take a helicopter trip or go dog sledding in Juneau, climb aboard the White Pass and Yukon Railway in Skagway for a scenic ride through the mountains, or simply explore the ports on your own. See the Poker Player Cruises ad in this issue of Poker Player Newspaper for more information or contact Debbie at 702.253.2700 to book your cruise.