With each new Mixed Game Festival, it’s important to me to try and improve, tweak, and ensure that we do better than the previous time. I obviously have my personal goals to fulfill, but above all, my three aims always are that the venue enjoy hosting our players, that sponsors feel glad to have supported the event, and that our players have a great time. Beyond that, of course, the uniqueness of our festivals — versus other “meet up games” — is that they are designed to help promote and grow mixed game poker.

I’d like to believe that we once again achieved all of our goals with Mixed Game Festival V, which wrapped up a few weeks ago at Resorts World Las Vegas. I can’t help but smile and think back to a number of highlights where I believe we truly succeeded. I’ve put together my top 10 and have listed them below, as well as why I specifically believe these are highlights worth reminiscing about.

Poker Trivia Competition

A festival — by definition — needs to be festive. Beyond just playing poker, we try to incorporate some elements to ensure that our participants 1) show up on time to begin the cash games each day, and 2) have the opportunity to win some cool merchandise and have a great time. Historically, these have included pizza parties and poker book signings.

My daughter Abby suggested that I utilize the Kahoot! portal to create a poker trivia competition. It obviously took some time to prepare, but it was certainly a worthwhile endeavor. Admittedly, one of the most enjoyable parts for me was coming up with incorrect answers for the multiple choice quiz. Special thanks goes to Chad McVean, our Social Media director, who assisted me in running the poker trivia competition. We had close to a dozen people show up to play, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.

SUPER excited to be hosting the poker trivia competition during our upcoming @PokerLifeMedia #MixedGameFestival V at @PokerRoomRWLV.

How many questions (between 25-50) should it be comprised of?

(It’s multiple choice; and we’ll be using the @Kahoot platform) pic.twitter.com/UtU14N6LsD

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) June 19, 2023

Scavenger Hunt

Another new element we incorporated into Mixed Game Festival V was a scavenger hunt. I had put together a list of 20 items that participants needed to take pictures of and with. At first, only half a dozen people showed up for this one. However, once our cash games began, a wait list formed and rather than just sit and wait, another half dozen players mentioned they wanted to do the scavenger hunt, too, so we ran it back and did so.

It was pretty amusing to see the first hunt’s winner, Mike Patrick, hurtle himself down the final stretch towards the poker room after just 20 minutes, having successfully completed the entire list. It was great to see that every players took the hunt seriously, and put in just as much effort as they did at the felt to try and emerge victorious.

I was elated to see that all of the participants really enjoyed themselves even though of course there could only be a few winners.

Day 3 of the #MixedGameFestival at @PokerRoomRWLV has been such a blast that we’re just catching up now!

Chuck brought us 4th of July donuts to help kick off the day alongside our new fan favorite, the Scavenger Hunt.

It was so fun that we ran two, which Mike and Giancarlo won. pic.twitter.com/HcJXQbjnwT

— Cardplayer Lifestyle (@PokerLifeMedia) July 5, 2023

Miami John’s unscheduled visit

Something else we try to do to enhance the player experience at our Mixed Game Festivals is arrange for some poker celebrity appearances. I’m grateful that we’ve had the support of many professionals in the poker community who have kindly come out to splash around with our players in the low-stakes dealers choice streets. With that said, I usually make arrangements for these appearances ahead of time, so when a poker celebrity shows up unannounced it’s certainly a welcome surprise.

Prior to Mixed Game Festival V, “Miami” John Cernuto had reached out to me asking if we would be staging any tournaments. I told him that this time it would be an exclusively cash game affair. He said “OK,” and we left it at that. So you could imagine my shocked expression to see him walk in on the second day of MGF V. As I stood up to greet him, John just said “I came to support what you’re doing,” and he proceeded to play $4/$8 limit mixed games with our players for the next hour while I enjoyed a lovely chat with his daughter Debi.

John Maley, “Mr. All-Nighter”

The grand prize for this festival was a PokerStars-sponsored EPT Cyprus Mixed Game Package valued at over $3,000. For every hour of cash game play, a player would earn one entry into the random drawing for the prize package. We’ve done this sort of giveaway before, so it’s no surprise that many players try to put in as many hours as possible. One player, however, took this to an entirely new level.

John Maley drove in from Southern California straight to the Resorts World poker room. He played throughout the day, continued playing throughout the night… and continued further throughout the following day. When he finally got up from the table, over 31 hours had passed and he still looked fresh as a daisy. Only then did John take his bags and check into his hotel room. Having a player that dedicated to playing low-stakes mixed games is just out of this world.

We have a new Mixed Game Festival record… by far!

John has been in the same seat for over 27 hours playing $4/$8 mixed games.

He’s our @PokerCoaching_ Player of the Day(s) pic.twitter.com/JOigLy0Y2p

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) July 6, 2023

Eli Elezra comes to play my stack

I’m very fortunate to be able to say that over the past few years since I translated his biography, Pulling the Trigger, from Hebrew into English, Poker Hall of Famer Eli Elezra and I have grown to become very good friends. Eli has always been super kind to come and sign some books at our Mixed Game Festivals as well as splash around with our players. So, I knew he’d make an appearance this time around, but I didn’t know when.

While I was speaking with one of our players, he smiled and told me to turn around. What I saw is that Eli had suddenly appeared in the room and just sat down in my seat, where he proceeded to play my chip stack. I couldn’t help but laugh, but also head over to give him a hug and show my appreciation for his support. For those curious, after about 20 minutes, Eli had successfully added a couple dozen dollars to my chip stack.

Surprise!@elielezra1 popped in to play my stack in in the $4/8 dealer’s choice streets at @PokerRoomRWLV for Day 5 of our @PokerLifeMedia #MixedGameFestival pic.twitter.com/4TO8Pi2Qmo

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) July 7, 2023

Silent auction for two BBO Poker Table Tops

George Chao, CEO of BBO Poker Tables, has always been a supporter of our events. This time around, he contributed half a dozen portable table mats as giveaway items. On the last day of the festival, I still had two that I hadn’t yet distributed. So, I asked some players what would be a good way to give away the two remaining mats.

Someone suggested a silent auction, whereby it would cost a $1 chip to place a bid, and after all bids were submitted the highest one would win. That person’s winning bid plus all of the $1 chips collected would then be equally distributed among the dealers at our mixed game tables. We did this twice, and thus successfully distributed close to $150 in tips to our dealers!

Congratulations to Benjamin from Salt Lake City, first winner of our @BBOPokerTables portable table mat giveaways here at @PokerLifeMedia #MixedGameFestival IV at @PokerRoomRWLV

Thanks, as always, to George Chao of BBO for supporting our events! pic.twitter.com/VsSw06Mubt

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) March 20, 2023

Higher stakes mixed games with Norman, Jan, and Linda

Prior to Mixed Game Festival V, our dealers choice mixed games had exclusively been for stakes of $4/$8 and $8/$16. This time around, Norman Chad agreed to host a special Omaha 8/Stud 8 game for his regular $20/40 stakes on the final day of our festival.

I was happy to see that close to a dozen players signed up ahead of time on the wait list. Poker Hall of Famer Linda Johnson and Women in Poker Hall of Famer Jan Fisher got seats at the table, too. I’m glad to see that our festivals were able to attract crowds interested in mixed games at multiple price points, and I hope this is something we’ll be able to replicate at future events.

Alek Gillies wins the EPT Cyprus Prize Package

To be fair, whomever would have won the grand prize package would have made this festival’s highlight reel. With that said, it gives me special pleasure that our grand prize winner is a 21-year-old who had never really played mixed games before.

I had the pleasure of playing with Alek for a couple hours, and while he readily admitted that he had no idea how to play mixed games, that nonetheless didn’t stop him from having a great, positive attitude and being willing to learn one new variant after another.

For poker to thrive, we always have to attract new audiences, which means “newly minted” 21-year-olds who can now play legally in poker rooms. Mixed game poker is no different, and it’s always good to lower the average age at the felt and see some 20-somethings enjoying themselves playing dealer’s choice.

Post-Festival Shawarma with Brian, Pat, and Matt

We don’t exactly have a “closing ceremony” for our festivals, so after the grand prize is given out, cash games just sort of continue until people get tired of playing and then go their separate ways. This time around, I wanted to celebrate with a nice dinner.

Rather than head to a kosher Las Vegas restaurant alone, it was a special pleasure to bring along some guys who’ve become close friends from one Mixed Game Festival to the next, Pat, Brian, and Matt. Sure, the food at Mother Falafel was great, but the company was what made the meal a memorable one.

Charity donations fund a Monday night feeding of the homeless

Ever since our first Mixed Game Festival, there has always been a charity component to our events. I had advertised ahead of time that a portion of proceeds from the poker trivia competition and scavenger hunt would go towards the volunteer-powered Poker Gives charity. Altogether, we were able to collect a total of $300, and a couple button clicks later, the money had been donated.

A bit delayed, but just wanted to thank everyone who attended @PokerLifeMedia #MixedGameFestival V.

As promised, a portion of all scavenger hunt + trivia competition entries + some extra from me goes to @PokerGives.

We’ll be funding a “full Monday evening’s” food distribution. pic.twitter.com/X0xN6ez1Al

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) July 17, 2023

It’s one thing to just say the money is being given to charity, but it’s entirely another to witness the charity itself being given, and the gratitude from the recipients. I’m grateful that we were able to use Mixed Game Festival V as a vehicle for doing good for some needy people in the Las Vegas community, as you can see in the video below.

Some players choose to do something else entirely and take a break, perhaps playing slots at real money online casinos. I’m more partial to enjoying a movie though and a while back, I had a major revelation watching Karate Kid 3. One of the movie quotes was so profound and inspiring it changed my whole approach to poker. Feeling enthused and inspired, I went in search of other quotes from movies that might give poker players something to think about.

Karate Kid 3: Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita (1989)

“It’s okay to lose to opponent… must not lose to fear.”

This is not only a great poker lesson, but a quality life lesson as well. How many of us play ‘scared poker’? I’ll stick my hand up. I’ve changed my mindset because of this quote, and there have been several occasions where I’ve taken down the pot because I’ve decided to confront fear with aggression and confidence.

Fear can be a driving factor in poker, and if not confronted, it can cripple your game.

What holds us back from not raising a big hand when four others have limped in?

What’s holding you back from making that bluff? Are you scared you’ll look stupid in front of the other players if you get called?

A good poker player can smell fear. To combat that, you need to spray on some aftershave called ‘Confidence’ to mask that fear.

Rounders: Matt Damon, Ed Norton (1998)

 “If you can’t spot the sucker in the first half hour at the table, then you are the sucker!”

 A great quote from the best poker movie ever made. When I sit at a table, I might not play a hand for the first 20 minutes, but just sit back, observe everyone, and assign them a profile. Who are the calling stations and who are the players that only get involved in two hands an hour. Once you hook a fish, you want to reel them in slowly. You might lose them if you scale and gut them too quick. The real sharks in the poker room are the ones that circle the table looking out for their prey.

Color of Money: Paul Newman, Tom Cruise (1986)

“Money won is twice as sweet as money earned.”

 I am dedicating this quote to all the suits who, after a hard week of grinding it out at the office, come down to the poker room and take home twice what they made that week at work. Let’s face it — while all this is going on, you’re visualizing walking into the office on Monday and telling your boss you’re quitting and moving to Las Vegas.

Any Given Sunday: Al Pacino and Denis Quaid (1999)

“You find out life’s this game of inches. So is football. Because in either game, life or football, the margin for error is so small — I mean one-half a step too late, or too early, and you don’t quite make it. One-half second too slow, too fast, you don’t quite catch it. The inches we need are everywhere around us.

They’re in every break of the game, every minute, every second.

On this team, we fight for that inch. On this team, we tear ourselves and everyone else around us to pieces for that inch. We claw with our fingernails for that inch, because we know when we add up all those inches that’s gonna make the fuckin’ difference between winning and losing! Between living and dying.”

I found this quote inspirational from a poker perspective because when you’re in a  hand, you’re fighting tooth and nail to win that pot. Those ‘inches’ in poker are all about extracting as much value from a hand as possible and striving to play each hand better.

Pacino also talks about timing, “I mean one-half a step too late, or too early, and you don’t quite make it.” This speaks to me about making the right bet size, or even folding to early or too late, which costs you either way. The plays in poker are all around us – we just need to recognize the right ones at the right time.

Rocky Balboa: Sylvester Stallone (2006)

“You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t about how hard ya hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done!”

The first lesson poker teaches you is that life’s not fair. Last week I saw a player get Aces twice in three hands and both times they got cracked. You’ll get one-outed; flop a set against a straight or nut flush vs. straight flush.

Poker at times can be cruel and ugly. It’s how you handle the punches; the bad beats and bad runs that will determine how you move forward in the game.

Players can run bad for months and months. Winning is the easy part. It’s also easy to blame everyone else when you lose. Losing and fighting to rebuild your stack provides the real test of character.

The Godfather: Al Pacino, Marlon Brando (1972)

 “It’s not personal, Sonny. It’s strictly business.”

We all know what happened to hot-headed Sonny in The Godfather.

How often has another player put you on tilt when all you want to do is destroy them, but in the end it’s you who gets destroyed? If someone shows you a bluff, it’s not a slight against you or something personal – it’s business. They want your chips and you want theirs.

Poker can be an emotional rollercoaster and players can push your buttons. Generally, the name on that button is ‘self-destruct.’ The wisest course of action is to take the emotion out of the game, and not let yourself be goaded into battle with someone because of ego.

Once this happens you can play methodical poker

Remember: There are generally nine players at a table, so if your sole focus is on one, then chances are you leave yourself vulnerable to everyone else.

Incredibles 2: Agent Rick Dicker

“Do you want to get out of the hole? First, you’re going to have to put down the shovel.”

We’ve all had those cash game sessions where we go through multiple buy-ins in the hope of breaking even or turning a small profit. Sometimes the best course of action is to call it quits and fight another day.

This way you can come back with a clear head and, hopefully, a positive mindset. The break is an opportunity to reflect on your game and where you might be going wrong.

Image Credit: Looper

Casino Royale: Daniel Craig (2006)

“Then you also know in poker you never play your hand. You play the man across from you.”

Sound advice from Mr. Bond. As an MI6 agent, Bond not only had to read his opponents, but stay one step ahead of them as well. Poker is a game where you look for patterns in your opponents’ play that you can exploit. You can’t just wait for your cards to hit. You must hit your opponent first.

In the big poker game at the end of Casino Royale, Bond was able to exploit a tell in Le Chiffre to win.

Forrest Gump: Tom Hanks (1994)

“Mama always said, ‘Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.'”

 The key to success in any poker game is finding the right table of players to exploit. You don’t know what kind of players you’re going to get. There might be tight players who only raise pocket Aces and bet the nuts, or players who will raise 6-4 offsuit. It can be a real mix at the table. Playing poker is like opening one of those boxes of chocolates as a kid. Unpredictable and exciting at the same time.

Aside from the players, there’s also real excitement when you flip your two cards over and see what you’re going to get. Will today be a pocket Kings day? Or a run of 7-2 and 3-8 off?

The Princess Diaries: Anne Hathaway (2001)

“Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgement that something is more important than fear. The brave may not live forever, but the cautious do not live at all.” 

How many times have you seen a player run a stack from $200 to $2,000 and then lose it all again? Then there’s the player who has been sitting on $300 for four hours without seeming to play a hand. Poker is about risk-taking. As they say, “No Gamble, No Future.” There’s an exhilaration in putting it all on the line. There’s a huge adrenalin rush. You feel like you’re in the moment and living. And that’s the best inspiration of all.

The top 10 poker biographies that I enjoyed reading the most are:

“One of a Kind: The Rise and Fall of Stu Ungar” – Peter Alson & Nolan Dalla

It is without a doubt the best poker biography I have read about one of the best players in history. Ungar is the only player to have won the WSOP Main Event three times in its freezeout format. The authors describe Stu’s incredible life chronologically from his childhood, where he grew up among mobsters, until his death in the Oasis motel in Las Vegas.

“Life’s a Gamble” – Mike Sexton

The legendary commentator of the World Poker Tour passed away in September 2020 and in his biography you can read funny anecdotes with Doyle Brunson, Stu Ungar, Chip Reese, Billy Baxter and Jack Straus, among other legends. He also details the creation of partypoker and the birth of the World Poker Tour.

“Poker Brat” – Phil Hellmuth

Phil is the king of the WSOP with 178 cashes, 13 second place finishes and 16 bracelets. His biography has 49 chapters in which he recounts his difficult adolescence, his first trips to Las Vegas, his relationship with his wife, his life goals and all his triumphs in the World Series of Poker.

“Pulling The Trigger” – Eli Elezra

The Poker Hall of Famer has been playing for 30 years in Las Vegas and has 72 cashes and 5 WSOP bracelets. In his biography — translated from Hebrew into English by Cardplayer Lifestyle founder Robbie Strazynski — you can learn about little-known aspects of his life: his experience in the Israeli army, his first business in Las Vegas and anecdotes of the High Stakes Poker games with Doyle Brunson and other legends.

“Check-raising the Devil” – Mike Matusow

The temperamental Matusow, nicknamed “The Mouth”, has 92 cashes and 4 bracelets at the World Series of Poker. His book features a foreword by Phil Hellmuth and in 29 chapters we can read about his life, his addictions to drugs and his achievements at the tables.

“The Godfather of Poker” – Doyle Brunson

Doyle needs little introduction: two-time WSOP Main Event champion, winner of 10 bracelets, Hall of Fame inductee and author of poker’s first best-seller: “Super System”. His excellent biography has 52 chapters and is divided into parts: Texas, Las Vegas and More Adventures.

“Blood Aces: The Wild Ride of Benny Binion” – Doug J. Swanson

Benny Binion is one of the most interesting characters in the history of poker and Las Vegas. The gangster created an empire in Texas and moved to Las Vegas where he was the creator of the World Series of Poker in 1970. The excellent book is divided into three chronological parts: 1904-1946, 1947-1953 and 1954-1989.

“Moorman” – Chris Moorman

Chris is fourth in the ranking of players with the highest online earnings with $21.5 million as of this writing. On the live circuit he has earned $6.5 million with titles at the WPT and WSOP. In his biography we can read about his beginnings with bridge and pool, his experiences with staking and his trips to Las Vegas, including a night in jail.

“For Richer, For Poorer” – Victoria Coren

Vicky Coren was the first woman to win an main event on the European Poker Tour as well as the first player to win two European Poker Tour Main Events. Her memoir has 25 chapters and is divided into four parts. Though she’s out of poker now, it’s still a great, highly entertaining read. The digital edition costs only $1.99.

“Once a Gambler” – Miikka Anttonen

We close our top 10 list with a very entertaining biography that relatively few know about in the poker world; that of Finnish pro Miikka Anttonen, who has won $2 million online and over $286,000 live. There he tells about his beginnings in online poker where he won millions when he was very young. It is a trilogy that has the first two parts published, while we still await the third part.

Honorable mentions

If you have already read our top 10 poker biography recommendations, or if you are looking for more to check out, you might naturally consider using your leisure time for a different activity, such as playing at tax-free online casinos without registration. Alternatively, there are some “honorable mentions” of other poker biographies that you can read:

• “Geeking, Grifting and Gambling Through Las Vegas” – David Sklansky
• “Molly’s Game” – Molly Bloom
• “Amarillo Slim in a world of fat people” – Amarillo Slim
• “Devilfish” – Dave Ulliott
• “Johnny Moss: Champion of Champions” – Don Jenkins
• “4 Bullets” – Tyler Nals
• “The Hand I Played: A Poker Memoir” – David Spanier
• “Poker Tilt” – Dutch Boyd
• “Volatile” – Simkha Blank
• “4 Bullets” – Tyler Nals
• “All In” – Jerry Yang
• “Pizza, Pasta and Poker” – Vince Burgio
• “Confessions of a Winning Poker Player” – Jack King
• “Kingkrab: From Homeless to Poker Pro” – King Krab
• “From Feeding Tube to Final Table” – Jim Petzing
• “Cowboys, Gamblers & Hustlers” – Byron “Cowboy” Wolford
• “Hats & Eyeglasses: A Memoir” – Martha Frankel
• “Poker Face: A Girlhood Among Gamblers” – Katy Lederer
• “The Game of Life and Poker” – Noah T. Watry
• “Forty Years a Gambler on the Mississippi” – George H. Devol (you can download it for free on Amazon)

Moreover, former poker journalist and now player Kristy Arnett Moreno is currently writing a book about her story that will talk about risk, love and poker.

***Thanks for reading! Consider RT if you liked it

This story is part of my book which is a memoir about risk, love, and poker. Trying desperately to finish the first draft (it’s been years). I’m thinking about doing a prop bet of some sort. Contact me if interested

— Kristy Arnett Moreno (@KristyArnett) October 10, 2022

Of course, there are also plenty of people in the poker world whose life stories would make for great biographies. These haven’t yet been written, but if they were to be, we’re sure they’d be fantastic.

Players:

• Daniel Negreanu: The world’s most popular player with live earnings of $49.5 million
• Erik Seidel: Successfully playing and winning on the live circuit for 34 years
• Phil Ivey: Long considered to be the best player in the world
• Jennifer Harman: Winning player for 25 years and was part of the consortium that faced banker Andy Beal
• Huck Seeed: Winner of the Main Event 1996 and holder of 4 WSOP bracelets
• Antonio Esfandiari: The magician who won the inaugural $1 million buy in Big One For One Drop
• Scotty Nguyen: 1998 Main Event Champion and 5-time bracelet winner
• Billy Baxter: Stu Ungar’s backer who owns 7 WSOP bracelets
• “Miami” John Cernuto: Holds the all-time record with almost 600 live tournament cashes and counting!

Industry:

• Jack Binion: Benny’s son witnessed almost all of WSOP history
• Eric Drache: He was the creator of satellites and introduced great innovations in live tournaments
• Linda Johnson: Player, journalist, consultant, Card Player Cruises owner and one of the founders of the WPT
• Mori Eskandari: Producer for 20 years of the most popular poker TV shows
• Jack McClelland: Executive and tournament director for 40 years

If you made it this far you now have several book recommendations for your next read. I invite you to put social media and Netflix aside for a while and immerse yourself in the pages of a good poker biography, which is one of life’s little pleasures in my opinion.

Portomaso Casino has a rich and glorious history, with some very big poker names having claimed historic victories there over the years, but who are the 10 most successful tournament players to have sat down in the stunning seaside town on Malta’s picturesque coast?

You’ll surely recognize plenty of the famous faces who’ve starred at Portomaso Casino, but do you know them all? Let’s find out, with thanks to Hendonmob.com for all the stats!

10th – Stefan Jedicka ($505,135)

The first name on our list is the sole Austrian to make the top 10. Stefan Jedicka’s biggest result at Portomaso Casino is the 8-Max EPT Malta win he booked in October in 2014 when he triumphed against Pierre Neuville heads-up to score a massive $365,495 victory that remains the biggest win of his tournament career.

With two other sizeable results in the casino including a win in the IPT High Roller event of the same year – the win coming five days before his EPT Main Event result – Jedicka is clearly a man who lives it in Malta.

9th – Charlie Carrel ($509,704)

British poker legend Charlie Carrel may be more well-known these days for his controversial world views and YouTube virality, but the poker phenom has enjoyed a great record in the Portomaso Casino. All six of his cashes in the casino came in a blistering 18-month period on the European Poker Tour, where Carrel cashed three times in 2015 and another three in the following year.

The biggest cash Carrel enjoyed at the Portomaso Casino was the $201,211 he raked in for coming fifth in the High Roller event of 2015 as he outlasted players such as Nick Petrangelo at the final table, eventually seeing David Peters win the event for a result we’ll discuss  little later on as it was one of the biggest awarded in the history of the casino.

8th – Niall Farrell ($599,764)

Proud Scotsman and Celtic superfan Farrell was cock-a-hoop in the Portomaso Casino after two of the biggest scores in his stellar live career came at the famous venue. Almost exactly a year apart, Farrell’s signature EPT Main Event win came in October 2015 when he topped a final table featuring Rainer Kempe, Sam Greenwood and Daniel Dvoress to win the $588,592 top prize.

“Portomaso for me – I may be biased because I’ve done quite well there – but I love the place,” Farrell tells us. “It’s one of my favorite places to play poker. The restaurants nearby are fantastic, the casino itself is great, it’s a lovely place to play cards.”

One year on from his EPT Main Event win, Farrell’s fifth-place finish in the €2,000 Turbo 8-Max event won him a more modest $11,172, but it was also satisfying and the British poker legend, who has a ‘triple crown (WSOP, WPT and EPT Main Event win) in part thanks to victory in the location, remembers his many trips to Malta – and the Portomaso in particular – with great fondness.

“It’s got everything I want; nice weather, ice restaurants, nice bars nearby and it’s great for a relaxing poker trip. A lot of my friends are dealers and it’s their favorite poker trip as well.”

7th – Mike McDonald ($638,308)

The next luminary on the list to make the top 10 is known to many simply as ‘Timex’. While Mike McDonald no longer plays tournament poker with the regularity or at the highest level that he once did, he still ranks seventh on this list after three cashes in 2015 added to his bankroll at the time in a fairly spectacular way.

In March of that year, McDonald cashed in the €10,000-entry High Roller event for $57,035 before returning in October to finish the job, winning the €25,000 buy-in 8-Max High Roller for $561,622, outlasting players such as Jason Wheeler and heads-up opponent Juha Helppi along the way.

6th – Nick Petrangelo ($653,623)

The American also featured at that High Roller final table, but the $261,411 he earned for finishing third behind the eventual winner McDonald was not his only success in the Portomaso Casino. Five cashes in the venue also included a fourth-place finish in the March 2015 €25,000 High Roller for $217,998 when he was outlasted by the eventual winner and top dog on our list.

5th – Byron Kaverman ($670,446)

Byron Kaverman is a name synonymous with high roller status and in recent years, he’s become one of the most solid opponents anyone can look across the felt at. Kaverman’s cashes in Portomaso Casino have accrued over just six days in October 2015, but what a week! First, Kaverman came fifth in the €25,000-entry High Roller 8-Max event, before following this up with a ninth-placed finish in a €10,000 High Roller. Six days after his first cash, he booked a win in the next €10,000 High Roller, bagging the $475,355 top prize after getting the better of Mukul Pahuja heads-up.

4th – Valentin Messina ($676,180)

In fourth place, Valentin Messina is the first of two French players in the top four. Almost the entirety of Messina’s money came when he finished second in the 2015 EPT Main Event for an amazing $665,267.

Overcoming stars such as Dominik Panka, Stefan Schillhabel and Hossein Ensan – who would go on to win the WSOP Main Event a handful of years later – Messina fell just short of the trophy. Which fellow French player beat him heads-up? You’ll have to wait and see.

3rd – David Peters ($683,443)

American poker legend David Peters has also won big at the Portomaso, and only really in one event. Technically, Peters has two cashes, but while he’ll have been mildly satisfied with his 16th place finish in the 2015 NLHE High Roller, his win earlier that year in the similarly prices event costing €10,000 to enter gave him a result worth $653,552.

The event was a huge success, with 304 entries and a prize pool of over $3.2 million, a great attendance in any country around the world. Players flocked to Malta’s favorite casino and Peters beat the talented Argentinian Ivan Luca heads-up for the top prize and the trophy.

2nd – Jean Montury ($763,748)

French player Montury, known as ‘Encore’ – he even has it tattooed on his right forearm in case you forget – won half of his lifetime earnings at the live felt when he beat fellow Frenchman Valentin Messina to the trophy in the 2015 European Poker Tour Malta’s Main Event.

By far Montury’s biggest result of his career, his EPT win earned him more than ten times his best cash elsewhere, with a predominantly France-based career enjoying a brief foray to Malta in stunning circumstances with that final all-Gallic showdown.

1st – Dzmitry Urbanovich ($793,817)

Polish legend Dzmitry Urbanovitch edges out Montury by just $30,000, winning a total of $793,817 at the Portomaso Casino. He did not do so in one event and in fact has cashed seven times at the legendary place to play. His biggest win by far was the $605,929 he took for winning the EPT High Roller held in March of 2015, with the €25,000-entry event seeing him edge out Connor Drinan heads-up for the win.

This Autumn’s Malta Poker Festival not only features our third Mixed Game Festival, but plenty of other events and it is not too late to book a trip to one of the most loved casinos in the world and certainly among the poker community

There are many names for it, a cooler, cold deck, or set up, to name a few. Simply put, a cooler is when two players both have very strong hands, but one is better than the other. Poker coolers can come in many different forms, set over set, straight over straight, or even sometimes it’s just top pair top kicker vs. top pair second kicker. There are many possible outcomes a 52-card deck can produce, and every so often it produces a brutal cooler. Being on the good end of a cooler is amazing, but being on the wrong end… there isn’t much worse than that.

The degree of how bad a cooler is depends on two things: How wet the board is and how strong your hand is.

Poker Cooler — Board Wetness

A wet board is one where there are a lot of strong hands possible. For example, AKJJT with three hearts is an incredibly wet board. There are loads of straights, flushes, and full houses available. In contrast, AJ962 with no flush available is a dry board. On this board, the only strong hands are sets and some two pairs. On the wet board, if you have 67 of hearts for a small flush and lose to a full house, it’s not that bad of a cooler as there are so many clear hands that beat you. On the dry board, if you have JJ and your opponent has AA, that is a certified cooler.

Poker Cooler — Hand Strength

The strength of your hand plays a big part in how bad of a cooler it is when you lose. The stronger hand you have, the bigger the cooler. When you lose with the second nuts vs. the nuts, it’s always a cooler. But how strong that hand is can make the level of the cooler vary. It sucks to lose with a strong hand like a straight. When you have 89 and the flop is TJQ but you end up losing to AK, it hurts. It’s a cooler no doubt, but it was a pretty wet board and your hand is strong but not ridiculously strong. However, looking back at our previous example, let’s say all those cards are spades, so both players have a straight flush. This is the worst kind of cooler. Not only does 89 have one of the strongest hands you can make in the game, but on a board like that, your opponent could have a variety of flushes and straights that would be happy to put chips in the pot. So you would have made one of the strongest poker hands possible, one that only occurs 0.0014% of the time, and still lose.

In short, the stronger your hand is relative to the board, the worse the cooler is when you lose. Straight vs. straight on a paired board with a flush available = mini cooler, not that bad. Set over set on a board dryer than the Sahara = big cooler. Straight flush vs. straight flush = ungodly amounts of cooler.

Now let’s take a look at the 10 worst ways to get coolered in poker.

10. Straight vs. Straight

Starting off with an annoying, but unfortunately not too uncommon, cooler. A straight vs. a straight. Making a straight in poker is almost always a good thing. It is a strong hand and usually, you are up against pair and set combinations that can get you paid handsomely. However, when you are up against the better straight it is a killer. This is a pretty bad poker cooler; however, as we previously touched on, when there are paired boards and flushes available this makes it less of a cooler. When there are only one or two hands that beat you, being the higher straights, it sucks to lose with a straight.

9. Set vs. Straight

Coming in at number 9 is losing with a set vs. a straight. Flopping a set is a wonderful feeling. Being so disguised, you can make PILES of chips when you flop a set against pairs. As good as it feels to flop a set, it feels even worse when you end up losing with one. A set vs. a straight is worse than losing to a flush since flush draws are painfully obvious on the flop. When you flop that set and see a flush draw, you are wearier when it comes in on the turn or river. Straights tend to be a little more disguised than flushes unless the board is an obvious 89T or even a four-liner like TJKA.

8. Flush vs. Full House

Coming in at number 8 is a flush vs. a full house. We’ve all been in this situation at one point or another. You make your flush on the turn against an opponent who seems more than happy to put money into the pot. As you pile some chips in on the turn, you are PRAYING for a clean, non-board-pairing river. Then… you see it. The river pairs the board. You’re sitting there with the nut flush and are still a little uneasy. Your hand is too strong to fold to a reasonable bet, which makes it even worse when you find yourself all-in on this river and see your opponent flips over the full house. While the board pair does make it quite obvious you no longer have the nuts, it is still a major cooler considering your opponent can have several worse flushes or trips they would be happy to bet. We don’t have the poker statistics to support the following observation, but those board pairs always seem to come at the wrong time.

7. Flush over Flush

Next up is a flush over flush cooler, and these are the worst. You will flop a flush less than 1% of the time when holding two cards of the same suit. Your odds of making it by the river are better, but it is still not easy to make a flush. Having two players make a flush is even more difficult. The odds of two players flopping a flush is somewhere around 0.18%, so highly unlikely. That is what makes a flush over flush poker cooler so heartbreaking. Bonus points if it is the K-high flush vs. the A-high flush, but in any case, losing flush over flush hurts.

6. Set over Set

Next up is a truly heartbreaking poker cooler: the dreaded set over set. As we touched on earlier, sets are extremely strong hands due to how disguised they are. When you hit a set on a dry board (no flush or straight available), you should win the pot the overwhelming majority of the time. Unfortunately, it is not always the case, as every poker player has a set over set nightmare in their memory. Flopping a set happens roughly 11% of the time when you have a pair in the hole, and nobody likes wasting their 11% (and all of their chips) by getting set over set. This poker cooler is what keeps me up at night!

5. Full House vs. Full House

A full house losing to another full house is horrendous. This is a lot like the set over set scenario, the only difference being that you are no longer worried about straights and flushes. When you make a full house on a board with straights and flushes available, there are SO many strong hands your opponent can have to pay you off. Trips, straights, flushes, all of these should lose a few bets even on a paired board. When your opponent happens to have a better full house, you are just going to lose all your chips 99% of the time.

4. Full House vs. Quads

Now we are getting into what nightmares are made of, full house vs. quads. At this point in the poker cooler hierarchy, you are going broke 100% of the time. Maybe, just maybe, you can find a flat call with bottom boat against a nitty opponent, but almost all the time you are getting the money in here. Quads are extremely rare to make, so you can never expect to see them when you end up all in with your full house. If your boat gets cracked by quads, I wouldn’t blame you for tilting harder than the tower of Pisa.

3. Quads vs. Quads

The top three spots for the worst poker coolers are reserved for those unicorns, once (or never) in a lifetime, silent car ride, talking to yourself, can’t sleep coolers. I’m talking so unbelievably unlikely that you might throw up if it happened to you. First on this upper echelon is quads over quads. There’s nothing to say here other than it’s ATM time. Some people play years never making quads, so to lose when you do is gut-wrenching. One of these hands was televised in a now-famous hand between Andrew Robl and Toby Lewis at a partypoker World Open. Lewis flopped quads on QQ9 while Robl held 99 for the full house. After a few bets went in, sure enough, the case 9 came on the river, leading to a busted Robl. Whenever I get coolered, I like to watch this hand and remind myself that it could be worse.

2. Quads vs. Straight Flush

Keeping up with our unicorn coolers, quads vs. a straight flush happens so rarely you will likely never experience it, or even see it at a table. For those who have suffered this unbelievable cooler, you’ll never forget it. As previously mentioned, making quads is incredibly difficult, and seeing straights and flushes available gives you hope that you will get paid. When that hope is dashed by your opponent having a straight flush, all you can do is laugh (or cry) at that point. But on the bright side, you’ll always be able to win the bad beat competition!

Not my day: quads vs. straight flush. pic.twitter.com/CecbWOcjyD

— Jennifer Tilly (@JenniferTilly) February 24, 2020

1. Straight Flush vs. Straight Flush

Rounding off this list as the number 1 worst way to get coolered in poker, is the horrifying straight flush vs. straight flush. There’s not much you can do in this situation. If you make a straight flush, you are getting all the money in. If your opponent happens to have the higher straight flush, you better hope you are playing somewhere with a bad beat jackpot.

Whether it is a straight vs. straight, or quads over quads, getting coolered in poker sucks. It may feel like the world is against you, but that’s just poker. We all have to ride the waves of variance sometimes, and if you find yourself on the wrong end of an epic cooler, at least you’ll have a story. If you play at a casino with a bad beat jackpot, you’ll get a very nice payday if you’re on the wrong end of one of the top 3 coolers. If your preferred room doesn’t have a jackpot and one of those happens to you… well, at least you’ll earn unlimited lifetime bad beat complaints!

Like hundreds of other people, I made my way out here last week for the poker, specifically to attend the 2022 World Poker Tour event here. But this resort stands here all year round, not just when the WPT is in town. There’s obviously a ton more that attracts people to this place besides the poker room, some of which I’ve now had the pleasure of experiencing in person.

Here then, in alphabetical order, is my list of the top 10 things to do when you’re not playing poker at Choctaw Durant.

1. Arcade Games

Home to over 70 machines and games, the arcade is open seven days a week and located in the resort’s The District area. It offers plenty of wholesome fun for the whole family as well as the opportunity to redeem your tickets for some nice prizes.

2. Bar Hopping

I think I counted almost 10 different themed bars on property, plus there’s an additional swim-up bar outside in the Aqua pool. Staying hydrated is important and this place makes sure you’ll never be lacking for a place to procure beverages, alcoholic or otherwise.

3. Bowling

The World Poker Tour player party took place on Saturday at the bowling alley, providing a fun respite for players on break, as well as anyone else who just wanted to roll some strikes and spares. There are 20 lanes available seven days a week, and once a week they offer a buy one, get one free special. Plus, if you’re a hotel guest, just show your wristband from the pool and you’ll be entitled to a free game!

4. Gambling

With over 100,000 square feet of gaming space, including close to 7,500 slot machines and over 100 table games as well as a race book near The League Sports Bar, if you’re itching to make a wager and have some good old fashioned gambling fun, Choctaw Resort & Casino has got you covered. We are partial to the skill-based game of poker of course, but sometimes you just get the urge to Fire away and let Lady Luck do her thing.

5. Hot Tubs

Need a place to relax and while away all the stresses of the day? The hot tubs have got your back! Whether it’s a bit chilly outside and you’re looking to warm up or you’re just searching for a quiet place to soak and meditate for a bit, the two outdoor hot tubs genuinely transport you to a better, happier place.

6. Movies

Sure, Netflix, Hulu, and other streaming services offer you convenience in the comfort of your own room, but nothing compares to a proper movie theater experience on the big screen. The vast cinema complex here houses half a dozen theaters with a combined seating capacity for many hundreds of people. One of the theaters also features luxury loungers where you can consume the latest Hollywood blockbusters like a throned monarch, with as much popcorn and candy from the concession stands as you can carry.

7. Pools

There are multiple pools on property at the Choctaw Casino & Resort. I took a dip in two of them over the Sabbath and actually had the pleasure of bumping into new WPT ambassador Brad Owen while I was out there. Clearly we both understand the importance of taking some “me time” away from the poker grind.

The Aqua pool area consists of a fully equipped family-friendly pool complete with a couple of slides, as well as an adult only pool that features that aforementioned swim-up bar as its centerpiece. The pool area is entirely surrounded by dozens of cabanas, where you and your friends or family can enjoy a luxury poolside experience.

There’s also an additional Oasis pool area and even an indoor pool on property, but unfortunately those two were closed for renovations during my stay. I imagine that once they reopen they’ll be just as high-end as the two pools I did get to experience.

8. Spa

If you’ve still got some lingering stress that the pools and hot tubs haven’t managed to settle, let the professional therapists at Choctaw Casino & Resort iron out the kinks. I unfortunately didn’t have the time to take advantage of the spa facilities while I was here, but I can admittedly say that I looked longingly through the spa doors as I passed by multiple times each day. Not that I’m stressed, mind you. Sometimes a guy just feels like getting a little pampered. Next time, Robbie. Next time.

Update: I spontaneously booked myself a massage at the spa in the morning before I left to the airport for the trip home… WELL worth the splurge; thank you, Galen!

9. Restaurants

I maintain a kosher diet so restaurants in general are not something I can avail myself of at casino resort properties around the world. With that said I know that the “food scene” is important for potential visitors and often even a highlight period from what I’ve seen here you will not be disappointed as this property has numerous restaurants catering to even the most discerning tastes. Whether it’s just a quick grab and go at Starbucks, Subway or Papa John’s, a down home country meal at Gilley’s, some rare fare at the 1832 Steakhouse, or a chef’s special at Guy Fieri’s, prepare your taste buds for the delightful cuisine of your choosing.

10. Visiting Performers

The Grand Theater plays host to the WPT tournaments while the series is in session, but during other times of the year it hosts large scale entertainment gatherings and performances. Country music artists are big in this part of the world and some top names regularly pass through this venue. Of course, some more mainstream and other musical acts stop here, too, from time to time.

Conclusion

When this place proudly advertises that it’s a AAA Four Diamond resort, that’s not just slick marketing lingo. I’ve seen it with my own eyes. It’s a legit, top-notch vacation and entertainment destination. Though it might only be considered a regional mecca, in this writer’s opinion it’s certainly worth going a little bit out of your way to pay it a visit, even if there doesn’t happen to be a major tournament poker series in town.

Could it be the start of a second poker boom, or will numbers fall short of those expected by the poker playing public and demanded by those in charge? Of course we all love a little gamble and folks are already placing bets on how big the crowds will be come September 30, the first day of the WSOP.

Now that the full 2021 WSOP schedule has been released, we’ve practiced a little White Magic and have put together a list of our top 10 bold predictions for what’s to come when the world descends on Sin City for eight weeks this autumn.

1. The Main Event Will Welcome 10,000 players

The hardest prediction most years is exactly how many players will take part in the Main Event, but while the eyes of the world will be on the best tournament of the year between November 4-17, there are plenty more events on offer. We think that will make it a very busy year in Las Vegas.

As WSOP Executive Director Ty Stewart has said, “In 2021, the theme is ‘Get vaccinated and get back to Vegas’.” It may sound ambitious to officially lock in a statement that 10,000 players will play in the Main Event at the Rio, but poker players have really missed the live game, which leads us neatly into our second prediction.

2. Online Poker Players Will Reign Supreme

It’s no secret that staying up to date with the techniques of playing poker for a living are vital to any success. This year’s collection of live players will likely have played less poker than in many other years before they arrive in Vegas looking to win a much-coveted WSOP bracelet.

By contrast, online poker players have of course had a year at the virtual felt like no other. With a plethora of festivals moving online — including an expanded slates of WSOP online bracelet events, too — this enforced dedication through perceived value will only have honed their skills. By comparison, ‘live only’ players may have taken a step backwards, so anyone who isn’t rusty will be ready to take advantage once the cards are in the air.

3. Over 1,000 Women Will Play in the Main Event

It figures that plenty of female poker players will be playing at the World Series of Poker if it is well attended. But while female players typically account for around 5% of the field in most events, we think a lot more ladies will be playing events in Vegas this autumn.

The line for the female restroom is always a lot shorter than that of the ‘Gents’, but this year, we think it’ll be a lot fuller with female players looking to bag themselves a bracelet. It’s a been a great year for the development of the game and plenty of female winners in Vegas would help poker work towards the equality it needs to grow the game even more.

WSOP Ladies Event. Credit: pokergrump.blogspot.com

From a brief survey of the numerous popular ladies poker groups on Facebook and other social media platforms, women’s excitement to get out there and play is through the roof. We expect (and hope!) that they’ll comprise close to 10% of this year’s Main Event field and that there’s a chance we’ll see at least one woman at every table in play on each Day 1 flight.

4. The Autumn Move Will Go Permanent

This is our stand-out prediction for this year’s series. The least sweltering WSOP ever will be held in autumn at the famously icy Rio, but the coolest decision of all would be to permanently move the World Series of Poker to the October/November time slot.

If you think about it, it makes perfect sense to structure the World Series at this time of year. An Online Series in the heat of summer when those who love the sun can sit out in it while they grind followed by an autumnal affair for the live stop in Vegas before an excursion to Europe to celebrate the last big World Series winner of the year before Christmas. Player feedback will be critical with this one, but for our money, we’d love to see it.

5. Big Names Will Bag Bracelets

It could almost go without saying, but we’re talking the really big hitters. Looking at four of the biggest names, it’s been too long since Poker Hall of Famers Phil Ivey (2014), Daniel Negreanu (2013) and Erik Seidel (2007), and future Poker Hall of Famer Antonio Esfandiari (2012), have bagged World Series gold.

With all four men looking likely to take part, each of them would appear to be due a victory. Who would bet against at least one of that ‘Fab Four’ winning big yet again?

There’s also one more really big name we want to throw in the mix, and we’ve got a special prediction for him below.

6. Masks Will Unite, But Dividers Divide

Many players will not be looking forward to wearing a face mask when they arrive at the poker felt, purely down to the lack of personal comfort. But in an age where poker tells have never been more important, the fact that many face masks cover 60% of even the biggest-headed poker player’s face, could help some players. Plenty of the close-ups during the all-new CBS Sports WSOP coverage will prove that, in 2021, the eyes have it.

While masks will likely be optional, the plexiglass dividers spotted in Vegas casinos of late will likely be gone by the time the Rio opens its doors. The Wynn was the first to “tear down those walls”, with 90% of their staff vaccinated. Other casinos have followed suit due to player pressure and increased numbers of vaccinated staff and patrons, and we’d expect the Rio to be no different.

7. Phil Hellmuth Will Win the Seniors Event

How do you write any WSOP-related article without mentioning the ‘Poker Brat’? The 15-time WSOP bracelet winner will be turning 57 this summer and looking to boost his all-time career leading numbers ever further. So why couldn’t that come in the annual Seniors Event? There are fewer events on the schedule this year and if Hellmuth whiffs the WSOP Online Series then he’s going to bring his A-Game throughout the live series in order to grab gold before the action in Vegas wraps.

If you think about it, Hellmuth winning the Seniors Event just makes total sense. It’s logical yet left-field, unexpected right now but completely believable once it happens. Plus, it’s a new achievement and the “Apex Predator” hardly has any of them left.

READ MORE: Interview with Phil Hellmuth

Hellmuth winning his 15th WSOP bracelet | Image credit wsop.com

8. There Will Be No British Bracelet Winners

One of the great anomalies of recent years is the lack of British talent that has gone far in World Series of Poker events. For many years, it pleased this writer to no end to see fellow Brits hailed as some of the best players in the world and pound-for-pound, we’d like to believe that’s still true.

Sadly, over the last decade, the number of British players playing WSOP events seems to have dwindled and the natural result of that has been a distinct lack of winners. British players have won 56 WSOP bracelets among them, a number only bettered by Canada (66) and U.S.A. (1,169), but could you name the most recent five? Until international travel restrictions are fully lifted, we’d expect this recent trend to continue.

9. Shaun Deeb Will Win Player of the Year

Over the past few years, there have been few more enjoyable battles to witness than Shaun Deeb trying to win the WSOP Player of the Year. Sometimes right, sometimes wrong, but always certain, Deeb is the anti-hero fan’s choice at the WSOP.

In his frequent feuds with Daniel Negreanu, he’s been highly entertaining, coming desperately close to winning the 2019 POTY title. We can see Shaun Deeb getting a new banner up on the wall of the Rio. Or will he…?

10. It’ll be the Final WSOP at the Rio

The World Series of Poker has enjoyed its home being the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino for many years now, but could this be the ‘last hurrah’ for the gargantuan venue? Next year, the newly expanded Las Vegas Convention Center will be available and could add a new and exciting chapter to the long and illustrious history of the WSOP.

Conventions are vital to Southern Nevada’s economy. Happy to see that the @LVCVA Convention Center is one step closer to welcoming visitors back with a new West Hall expansion. https://t.co/fsrIZpon19

— Dina Titus (@repdinatitus) April 9, 2021

Deeb may have to wait for his flag to be flapping in slightly less wintry air conditioning at a new venue in 2022. You heard it here first. The World Series of Poker could take place anywhere. From Binion’s Horseshoe to the Rio the WSOP has come a long way, but its home will always be wherever the players are. They’re what hold the magic of the World Series of Poker together, and we can’t wait to follow their journeys this Autumn here at Cardplayer Lifestyle.

1. Organize your workspace

I recommend this to every professional poker player I coach. Your online poker ‘grind station’ is your office; it has to be treated with some sort of respect. Towards yourself, but also towards your craft. You can’t be sitting in your underpants, behind a messy desk using a sticky mouse and expect to perform like a high-level professional. Organizing your desk can also organize your thoughts and give you more clarity while playing.

2. Keep a food journal

Generally speaking, exercise and maintaining a healthy diet are great. We should all aim to work out and watch our caloric intake. This is a piece of practical advice for people who are looking to start their journey, but don’t know what the first step should look like. Food journals are great, not just because they help you keep track of your calories and other macros but also because it helps raise awareness. We should try to be conscious of the things we’re putting into our bodies. Food, especially, is a huge factor when it comes to mental performance. So, write down your meals and practice awareness!

3. Schedule

As a business owner myself, I can somewhat relate to the difficulties of having a strict structure. I work with clients all over the world in different time zones and it’s hard to commit to a consistent schedule. Thus, we need to focus on what we CAN control instead of focusing on what we can’t control. We probably have control over our mornings and bedtime routines,  so start there. Schedule your mornings and evenings into some 30-minute chunks, which is plenty of time to incorporate some healthy habits. Make the most use of that and you’ll most likely feel a lot better during the rest of your day.

4. Experiment with studying

Studying anything can become tedious and repetitive. Often, we fall into the trap of studying ‘just to be studying.’ We forget the reasons behind studying, not just to learn something and increase our winrate, but also to increase enjoyment at the tables. Take this period of time, during lockdown, to experiment with your study time, methods, different poker training sites, and coaches. Make the most of your time behind the books.

5. Engage in coaching/mentorship

As a coach myself, I am of course going to vouch for coaching. But this is not the only way you can engage in self-improvement. What about coaching someone else? What about trying personal training, a nutritionist, meditation, or yoga? Coaching can drastically improve the quality of your life and therefore your performance at the tables. Now is an opportunity to perhaps give one of these ideas a try to see how it helps your mood and overall mindset.

6. Focused reading

Reading can be tricky. These days, there is just so much content competing for our attention. Our Smartphones are constantly pinging and beeping. Reading can help you reclaim some of that attention and practice your own creativity while gaining new knowledge. I recommend starting with some light fiction if you’re not used to reading and maybe later transition into self-improvement and psychology. Of course, you can also choose to grab a poker book for some entertainment or for additional study.

7. Challenge yourself

Poker, especially cash game poker, is not a structured game with leagues or medals. We have to find ways to create structure and also celebrate our own process. A good way to measure our growth and focus our energy is by a challenge. I would recommend setting a challenge that is within your control; so no monetary goals but an effort-oriented challenge. For example “I want to play 15k hands this month,” or “I want to practice and master one specific skill this week.”

8. Learn a skill

Poker players tell me all the time: ‘I really only play poker.’ They often don’t realize that this singular focus is actually hurting their performance. We SHOULD focus on learning many different skills, as every new skill we gather in our life will empower us at the poker tables. It helps us to gain confidence from more sources than just our winrate.

9. Document your journey

We hear many coaches talk about this. Journaling is indeed a great tool for self-reflection. But there are other ways to document our journey. We can find a support group on Discord, start a YouTube channel, or start streaming on Twitch. Documenting your journey is a powerful method to hold yourself accountable and stay focused.

10. Practice deep focus

Focusing is a skill and it’s something we can learn. Being distracted by your cellphone or opening up internet tabs while  grinding online are common challenges among poker players. We don’t learn this skill while we’re playing poker, so we should practice this. Mental studying. Try to study without distractions or read without grabbing your phone. Set a timeslot a commit to your task until the time is over.

Conclusion

I hope these tips will help you be productive during these crazy times. This is not easy, as there is a lot of uncertainty and chaos around us. We should also be sure to practice gratefulness for what we have, patience with what we don’t have, and kindness towards who we are.

If you want to have a chat with me, please reach out to on my website or social media and I would love to have a chat with you. Every new client gets a free 30-minute coaching session if they sign up.

Hope to talk to you soon and good luck.

This article was submitted by Bahman Zarghami. As a High Intelligence coach since 2012, Bahman is no stranger to high-stress environments where people often question their resolve and ability to overcome intimidating obstacles. He has struggled with high intelligence, high sensitivity, and has fallen into all the traps that he could possibly walk into. His story is saddening, inspiring but above all, it’s a story of resilience. You can read more about his story, his work as a High Intelligence Coach and his coaching programs ‘Master Your Intelligence’ on www.coachbahman.com, and follow him on @CoachBahman on Twitter and Instagram.

1. Have a bankroll so you can afford to bluff

As in all games, you should never play for more than you can afford to lose.

When you’ve got too much money at stake, it impairs your ability to make the right decisions at the table. Generally speaking, having a large bankroll is associated with self-confidence. Poker is often about being able to bluff in the right spots and radiate self-confidence. You don’t have to be a multi-millionaire; just make sure you’re properly rolled for the stakes you play.

2. Concentration and focus

To succeed in poker, focus is required when it comes to keeping track of both your statistics as well as mapping your opponents. The more you learn about your opponents’ game patterns, the greater your benefits will be in different spots. For that reason, you should never play when you are drunk, tired or generally emotionally out of balance.

3. Be erratic

While this advice might sound strange, in poker it’s quite sound. In the same way that your task is to read your opponents, it is also an advantage to be able to mislead the other players. As such, you should never follow a particular set pattern and above all try not to show any emotions. Being unpredictable is what tends to separate the chaff from the wheat and the winners from the losers at the tables.

 4. Keep your head cool

Never incite yourself or get angry at the cards, dealers, or your opponents. Firstly, it is unprofessional and secondly, you really reveal yourself. It takes patience and finesse to succeed at poker. Tilt control is also probably the most difficult lesson to learn in poker, but if you master it you will undoubtedly have a smoother ride in each and every poker session you play.

5. Know when to call it quits

In the same way that it is important to keep a cool and calm demeanor and not tilt, it is just as important to know when it is time to stop playing and call it quits after any session. Generally speaking, if you feel yourself beginning to lose emotional control, make poor plays and bad decisions, or even wonder “is it time to wrap things up and call it quits?”, that’s usually when it’s best to stop playing. 

6. Keep quiet

Some professional players, like Daniel Negreanu and William Kassouf, have mastered the art of speech play. There’s nothing wrong with friendly banter at the tables, but be advised that most of the time when you open your mouth it also gives away information. As such, it would seem prudent to limit your speaking at the table to just courteous and necessary interaction with the dealer, floor people, and fellow players.

7. Play to have fun

As in everything else we do, poker usually goes best when we actually feel good. Poker, a mentally demanding casino game requires lots of concentration, finesse, and skill. If for whatever reason you don’t feel well, the game will still be there tomorrow; you will probably have saved yourself from losses. This is true for recreational players, but that much more so for professionals.

8. Practice makes perfect

While many are utilizing poker training sites to improve at the game, there’s no substitute for actual practice. If your eventual goal is to become a professional poker player and ladder up to high stakes play, you should have a regular playing schedule. Eventually, sitting down at a live or virtual poker table will feel like second nature to you, and to a degree you can almost “run on autopilot.”

9. Choose the right poker bonus

As a new online poker player, you can get a certain bonus amount to play for on various gaming sites such as 888poker and others. The size of your bonus depends on your deposit. When it comes to poker bonuses, it is important to find out the conditions that must be met, so be sure to read the fine print for conditions that apply.

10. Find the right online casino or poker room

Many professional poker players have special routines that they follow before their tournaments. Some poker players also have special lucky amulets that they always bring with them to get that really good gaming feeling. The same, of course, applies to the online casino or poker room you play at. Therefore, be sure to choose a casino or poker room with care – to get the best gaming experience possible.

No one is immune to tilt. Things will happen while you play poker that will throw you off. However, good players are fully aware of this and they have mechanisms in place to either prevent tilt from happening or quickly control it to minimize its harmful effects. If you have problems controlling tilt yourself, these 10 tips could come in really handy.

1. Recognize Your Triggers

Not everyone tilts for same reasons. Some people are triggered by bad beats, while others will become annoyed by a prolonged run of bad, unplayable hands. Still others will tilt when they feel they’re being targeted by an aggressive player.

The first step towards making sure you don’t tilt at the poker table is figuring out what your personal triggers are. Be honest with yourself and admit there are some things that get under your skin. When you know what triggers you, you’ll be prepared for whatever emotions might come your way ahead of time and will be able to handle them much better.

2. Don’t Start a Session When Tired or Irritated

If you play poker professionally, you might feel like you need to put in the hours no matter what. After all, your profit at the end of a week, a month, and a year is directly connected to the number of hands you play during that period of time.

However, sometimes you’re better off sitting one out. If you’re in a bad state of mind due to not having enough rest the previous night or because you’re dealing with a big non-poker related issue, you probably shouldn’t be playing. When you feel this way, you’ll be much more susceptible to tilt. Things that trigger you in general will become annoying much more quickly and you might even discover some brand new sources of tilt.

3. Take Occasional Breaks

Cash game players have the luxury of being able to take short breaks without it mattering too much. You’ll miss a few hands but, unlike in tournaments, you won’t lose any of your chips. Taking breaks every couple of hours to get some fresh air and sort out your thoughts is another great way to stop tilt from taking over. Tournament players have breaks built in to the schedule, of course, so be sure to make proper use of those times.

It is sometimes hard to be fully focused while you’re sitting at the table, watching cards and chips flying around and the opponent who put a bad beat on you stacking the chips. A brief change of scenery, even if only for a few minutes, will give you a different perspective of things. If you’re playing online on a site like dewapoker, you can simply sit out for a couple of orbits and come back when ready.

4. Understand and Accept Variance

The number one reason why poker exists is the variance. It’s because of it that even casual players win on occasion and these wins keep them coming back to the tables. If best players won all the time, amateurs would quickly get tired of the game.

All players need to accept and embrace variance. Don’t get tilted because someone is running hot during a session. Whenever you start to feel these negative emotions, make it a point to tell yourself that these bad beats are actually a good thing in the long run. They are what makes game going.

5. Avoid Complaining Too Much

Bad beat stories and constant complaining aren’t just annoying for other players to listen to; they’re also very bad for your mental state. Poker tilt can sometimes last long after a session end and you’re only prolonging this tilted state by insisting on recounting your bad luck.

It’s fine to share some really brutal beats with your friends, but if that’s all you do you’re setting yourself up to start the next session already tilted by those previous experiences. That’s really not a starting position you want to be in.

6. Don’t Get Goaded by Table Banter

Some players are really good at table talk. Even if they don’t play poker that well, they have a way of getting under your skin and getting you to make mistakes you’d never make if you were playing with a clear head.

You don’t have any way to silence these players – they’re allowed to talk and do their thing as long as they aren’t being abusive or insulting. So, the best thing you can do if you know this to be one of your triggers is to avoid getting into conversation with them. Just ignore them and don’t give their remarks any significance.

7. Don’t Play Above Your Limits

Getting into a higher-stakes game or a tournament with a buy-in that’s bigger than what you usually play can be quite tempting. If things go right, you could easily increase your bankroll by a substantial amount. However, this is usually not a very good idea for a number of reasons. One of them is that you’ll struggle to play your best game.

All your tilt triggers will be much more pronounced when you’re playing in a setting where you don’t feel as comfortable. Every bad beat will hurt more, and every bad decision you make will have a more profound effect on your mental state. If you want to avoid tilt, you definitely don’t want to be playing over your head.

8. Try to Not Overstay Your Welcome

Not all forms of tilt happen all at once. Sometimes, when you play long sessions, there will be dozens of small things along the way that slowly get under your skin. Eventually, it might start to affect your game.

This type of tilt is quite dangerous, as you might not even notice it. There isn’t a particular point in time that you can recognize as the trigger. That’s why it’s important to constantly be aware of how you’re playing, your mental state, and be honest with yourself. If you notice you’re starting to make decisions that you can’t really explain, it’s time to call it a day.

9. Beware of Winner’s Tilt

Going on a hot run of cards is one of the best feelings in poker. You get to rake in pot after pot and it seems like you just can’t lose a hand. Your big hands hold up, your bluffs go through, and it seems like the entire universe has aligned just perfectly.

The problem is, this can give you the false feeling of invincibility. Eventually, your hot run will end and if you aren’t careful, you might continue to play recklessly, thinking it’s your day and you just can’t lose. This is known as winner’s tilt and can be just as dangerous as any other form.

10. Have a Personal Checklist in Place

It’s not always easy to recognize tilt. That’s why you should have some sort of checklist in place so that you can go through the items on the list to see if you’re still playing with your head, not your heart. You can memorize this list or even have it on your phone as a written reminder that you need to keep a cool head.

Some of the things to monitor every now and again are:

• Am I playing too many hands?
• Have I been limping too much lately?
• Have I been making any plays that I knew I shouldn’t but I still went on and did it?

The important thing here is to stay honest with yourself. If you notice there are few items on your list that aren’t the way they should be, it’s a pretty good sign you might be tilting. Take a breather and see if you can get back in the zone. Alternatively, consider ending the session right then and there. Anything is better than just continuing as is when you know tilt is creeping up.