Any Texas Hold'em players?

[Toxis]

I've been playing for a little over a year now with some buddies every two weeks (payday!) and it's always been a great time. Well, for x-mas last year, the girlfriend bought me the Phil Gordon book on Poker. Since then, I've really started trying to get a lot better at poker and feel that I'm on my way to that. I've really stepped up the level of play with the buds and we're all getting pretty damn good. I finally had a free night and went down to a local bar for one of the free tournaments to see how well I'd do against people I don't know/don't know me. Well, first game was with 65+ people and pulled out 8th spot. Not to shabby. So I went to another bar for a later game to try again against more people. 42 man tourney and pulled out a 2nd place. Only lost to the guy who plays 4 nights a week who kept getting damn good hands and I couldn't connect. What do you do when he raises and connects? Yup... you lose. Anyhow, I did get an invite to a 250+ man tournament where the winner gets free airfare/room & board to a WPT 100+ man tourney in Vegas where the winner will get 25k. A chance to play with the pros... S I G N M E U P ! ! Well, anyhow... I'm really excited to play in this large of a tournament with a serious prize.

Anyone else a serious player?

[PolkThug]

Me likey play.

[TrappedUnder Ice]

WE go to Hold em parties and have them ourselves. Quite fun. WE also play on Poker Stars.com.... We have 4 500- chip sets that we use quite often :) Not quite an addiction yet..hehe. Ive won probably as much as Ive lost so far.

[Sami]

I'm more of a 5 card stud player myself but seems like Texas Hold'em is the new fad so I'm stuck playing it. It's fun but 5 card stud is IMO much better.

Look me up at http://pokerstars.net/ , my ID is samppa.

[faster100]

cool but gotta watch playing at bars... some people take this game real serious, Not that you don't.. and some lose harder then others... tournaments would be cool... But i'll pass on the bar games.. :D

[Burnzy]

Congrats on the tourneys!

Yeah, I've been playing Hold Em' since about 98' - 99'. I haven't been playing much at all for the past 3 yrs due to the little ones running around now.

I'm lucky, I live in the SoCal area and get to play at the many casinos out here. Back in the day (pre-wifey) I used to be somewhat of a regular at Hollywood Park playing the 10-20 or 15-30 tables. Now when I get the chance to go (about 3-4 times a yr now) I usually play the 3-6, 4-8 or 6-12 tables.

I have some of Slansky's books, "Hold Em for the Advanced Player" is a good one. I would like to get his "Theory of Poker" one of these days. Ken Warrens book "Ken Warren Teaches Texas Hold'em" is good as well.

I also play Omaha on occasion, I would like to get Mike Cappelletti's book "How to Win at Omaha High-Low Poker" to further my knowledge on Omaha.


:cool:

[wodom1]

I just started playing earlier this year. I've got a friend who's a big gambler and he's gotten me into playing cards. Every couple of weeks we'll get some friends from work and buy in for $20 each, order some pizza, drink some suds, and play cards for hours...We don't always play hold 'em. Dealer usually calls and we get a good mix of games -- Hold 'em, Midnight Baseball, Stud, Omaha, Chase the Queen. Half of them I don't even remember how to play. Omaha and Hold 'em have been my favorites. So far my winnings outweigh what I've lost, and even if you lose all $20, it's still cheaper than spending those 6/7 hours at a bar!

[Tide]

I've been playing the free mini tourneys at partypoker.com . I'm going to try pokerstars.net .

[Sami]

Lets have a CP table one of these nights on partypoker.

[Mazeroth]

I've played Texas Holdem 4 times so far and managed to pull a last place, then first and two 2nd places out of 6 guys. These guys have been playing for years, but since the buy-in was only $5 I figured why not. I had only watched it on TV once and was extremely please at how well I did, and so were the other guys. This was only in the last few weeks and I'm dying to play some more!

Can you guys recommend a book on Texas Holdem that would be suitable for a new player like me? Really appreciate it.

Thanks!

[PolkThug]

The first time I played was in a 25 person tourney at a friends house. I went all in on the first hand with a full house with 3 Jacks, and I lost to a full house with 3 Queens! However, I sat around for the next couple hours watching everyone play, and I learned how to read a lot of people, so I started up a "loser's bracket" and won it.

The second tourney I played in had 30 people and I got 2nd place and a nice wad of cash to take home.:D

[Tour2ma]

I've piddled a bit... but quickly found I could like it way too much...

[Toxis]

Originally posted by PolkThug
The first time I played was in a 25 person tourney at a friends house. I went all in on the first hand with a full house with 3 Jacks, and I lost to a full house with 3 Queens! However, I sat around for the next couple hours watching everyone play, and I learned how to read a lot of people, so I started up a "loser's bracket" and won it.

The second tourney I played in had 30 people and I got 2nd place and a nice wad of cash to take home.:D what are you doing this Sunday? I've got a 20-25 (possibly up to mid 30's if this one group gets back with me) man fun game going in Shawnee. $20 buy in, winner will take half the loot no matter how many players I get.

[PolkThug]

Originally posted by Toxis
what are you doing this Sunday? I've got a 20-25 (possibly up to mid 30's if this one group gets back with me) man fun game going in Shawnee. $20 buy in, winner will take half the loot no matter how many players I get.

That sounds about my speed. :cool: ...and I live in Shawnee, so not far to stumble home.

[heiney9]

It's so addictive. I play a couple times a month with friends, we switch houses. Whoever hosts provides the beer and pizza. It's a great time. I can't believe how quickly this whole phenomenon has taken off. It truely is a stratigists game, after you discount the general luck some people get. I love playing the no-limit type rounds. We all put in $20 and play until the last player gets the pot, and then start all over again. I have a good friend who is really addicted he plays tounaments 3 times a week and sometimes doesn't get home until 2-3 AM. I haven't tried playing on-line (for fun not money) yet. I'm afraid I'd never get off the computer:p My 92 year old Grandma loves to play when we get together for family functions, and she loves kicking my ass.

H9

[aequitas]

i love holdem. your not playing the house, your playing humans and humans can be unpredictable and you have to figure what they are doing and that is where the fun is. ive been playing for a couple of years, starting back in highschool (good thing the indian casinos in socal are 18+ for the most part). a friend of mine actually won a tourneyment that gaves him a seat in the big world series of poker tourney with the 5mil to the winner this summer.

personally, i would say the biggest thing that i learned to do that improved my game was learning how to fold. take for example pocket jacks, unless i hit a set or they are still higher than teh board, im 99% likely to fold. i have lost a lot of money staying in hands much longer than i should have, but you live and learn. its good stuff. if some of the chicago people wanted to get a table together id be up for it.

anyone know how to calculate pot odds...im trying to learn that now, but an explaination from a friend didnt really sink in.

[michael_w]

I play a little bit with friends but it's huge at my school. Everyone gambles in tech class and at lunch. Usually it's only with quarters but sometimes people start throwing in bigger stuff like $5 hands.

[Toxis]

just finished our lil get together. Had 18 people, 3 tables. Paid top three... took f***ing 4th. Oh well, I'm just glad a buddy and not some tool took the pot. $300 for the winner... it was awesome.

[Toxis]

Yet another night of bar poker. This time the prize was a 5 day vacation to Lake Tahoe. I was shocked considering there really weren't any REAL players there. Took 4th out of 45ish. God that pissed me off not winning but I was low man the whole night and kept in it. Oh well... Thursday will be another day.

Dear god, I thought Audio was addicting. Free poker + free trips (already given away 24 Vegas trips) = :D

[Toxis]

oh no... I've got involved into online play for money. The addiction starts. Hence why I'm still up at 3:17am. haha I'm up $5 is all lol.