Early bird $4/$8 mix! Got my donut from Randy's and I am ready to cover todays festivities! #MixedGameFestival
First game up was chosen by @cardplayerlife Holdem – Omaha pic.twitter.com/vZkWsU75kD

— Criminal Bizzy (@Criminal_Bizzy) March 21, 2023

We started playing seven handed and all agreed to start with one of Robbie Strazynski’s favorite games, “Hold’Em – Omaha” (a.k.a., “SOHE” or “SHOP”), a game where you are dealt six cards and then split your hand into one Hold’Em hand and one Omaha hand before the flop. Other poker games in the rotation included Drawmaha, 2-7 triple draw, Badugi, Omaha Best Best, Super Stud, and Badeucey. Apparently, someone called Razz on Robbie, but I was unable to find anyone who could corroborate his tweet.

They didn’t get the memo… #callrazzonrobbie pic.twitter.com/UG0uJIV4D8

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) March 21, 2023

Soon we were joined by Dylan Linde and we had a full game! Linde stopped by to enjoy playing some of the mixed games with the attendees of the Mixed Game Festival and to sign copies of his book Mastering Mixed Games, which can be obtained during the festival for a discounted price of $20, of which proceeds benefit the charity Poker Gives. They are a non-profit organization that distributes funds to assist military families, homeless veterans, and youth programs in Las Vegas, Nevada. While playing at the table, Dylan was happy to answer any questions about games and gave out advice about how hands were played. Scott, a newer player from Florida who is quickly finding the enjoyment of mixed games, took full advantage of this as he is learning how to navigate the poker hands.

The waitlist quickly filled up as more players started to find their way back to Day 3 of the Mixed Game Festival. Plenty of great merch, including hoodies (courtesy of PokerGO and RunGoodGear), portable poker table mats (courtesy of BBO Poker Tables), and books (courtesy of D&B Poker) were being given away to players via randomly drawn splash pots.

Players could find a mix game at many different levels. There main games for the festival were $4/$8 but if that wasn’t enough to get your blood pumping you could test your skill at $8/$16, and the regular $80/$160 and $300/$600 mixed were also running in the room. The room was full of poker players and you could hear the laughter emanating from all tables as they enjoyed themselves in playing the countless different variations of poker.

Poker Hall of Famer Eli Elezra came to Resorts World to join in on the fun and sign copies of his autobiography Pulling the Trigger. He decided to sit down and show Robbie how to play his stack and splashed around a bit while we all played Baduecy.

Numerous players were excited about getting the chance to play with Eli, but perhaps nobody more than Florida’s Brian Dowd, who recorded a short video to document the moment.

What’s it like playing $4/8 Dealer’s Choice with a Poker Hall of Famer?

Florida’s Brian Dowd shares his emotional experience sharing the felt with @elielezra1.

Come to @PokerRoomRWLV to have YOUR experience at @PokerLifeMedia‘s #MixedGameFestival!

Day 4 starts within the hour. pic.twitter.com/ll1plDdwXt

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) March 22, 2023

Legendary poker commentator Norman Chad also came out to play. He was not due to appear until Day 4 but could not resist the chance to mixed it up at the felt. Players almost had the opportunity to watch him go heads up against Eli Elezra in a Dealer’s Choice game, but Norman politely declined, informing Eli that he was in attendance for the fans!

The games kept running into the night and until the wee hours of the morning. The mixed games outlasted all the other tables in the room. Some players even made a late night delivery order of pizza so that they could continue to play without having to leave the game. The final orbit we all agreed to play “Fun Under the Gun”. A game where the players are dealt their hands but then the under the gun player gets to look at their hand and decide what game to play. Typically this game is played with four cards but to give us more options the game was played with five. The $4/$8 game finally broke around 6:30 AM as players said they would see each other in a few hours to start another game. An $8/$16 game was still running, the last table with players in the room. It would not be surprising to see everyone bright an early, but not so early, for Day 4 of the Mixed Game Festival.

Day 4 and 5 Preview

Wednesday will feature the continuation of dealer’s choice cash games. WSOP $10K HORSE bracelet winner Chris “Fox” Wallace will be in attendance with his pen ready to sign copies of his book Getting Started with HORSE. Copies of the book can be obtained for $25, with proceeds benefitting Poker Gives. Thursday will feature the festival’s marquee event, a $260 H.O.R.S.E. tournament with a chance to win an EPT Prague prize package, sponsored by PokerStars. The package with an estimated total value of over $3,000 will include:

• €550 buy-in to a Mixed Game tournament
• Roundtrip airfare for one
• Four nights’ accommodation

Cardplayer Lifestyle’s Mixed Game Festival is truly one of the best events to look forward to in Las Vegas. Where else will you see poker celebrities who usually tee off for nosebleed stakes mixing it up with weekend warriors and home game heroes?

Many laughs, hugs, and bad beats are shared as players spend time catching up with each other and teaching different forms of poker. It doesn’t matter how good you are at poker; we just want to share our passion for the many, many games. Don’t be shy about joining us for a few orbits. Trust me, it will be the most fun you will ever have losing money. I myself didn’t book a win and I still ended the day — er, morning? — with a big smile.

What I learned yesterday, though, is that players who enjoy mixed games can be quite creative, and I mean that in the fullest sense of the word. I knew that the mixed games cash environment was pretty liberal in terms of games played, but I was surprised to see some games that I hadn’t even heard of before.

After the HORSE event on Day 1 of Mixed Game Festival III, yesterday was reserved exclusively for cash games, and the action started at around 2 PM. That’s what you’d call an early start in poker, but you could tell that everyone who arrived came ready to play!

It was just one table with a rotating cast of between six to eight players participating at any given time — Robbie Strazynski being one of them, from start to finish — and to say they were having a blast would be an understatement. That one table was making more noise than the rest of the tables in the cash game room combined!

With €5/10 fixed limits in place, it was a fairly affordable game that wasn’t going to break anybody’s bank (or make anyone rich, for that matter), so the focus was on having a good time.

Come Again, Please?

I was in and out of the cash game area, checking out what was happening and trying to keep up. After watching the game for half an hour or so, I was debating joining the action myself (especially after a kind invitation from the gentleman in seat three), but a few moments later, I decided it would probably be best to remain on the rail for this one.

As the button made a full round, it was time to pick the new game, and someone announced “Razzdugi.” I double-checked with Robbie to make sure I heard correctly, and he was kind enough to explain it was a split-pot game, where one half of the pot went to the best Razz hand and the other to the best Badugi hand, and the game was played like 7-Card Stud.

What fascinated me more than this completely new game (to me, at least) was that no one at the table even batted an eye. They were now playing Razzdugi, and no one missed the beat!

This included the dealers, who kept on dealing these different games as if it was nothing. The action was smoother than what you’ll find at most Hold’em tables, and that blew my mind. Sure enough, they needed a little assistance with announcing winning hands when games like “Razz High” were called, but overall, it was smooth sailing.

Poker Till Dawn

As cards and chips were flying around, players were having a great time. The table had more of a home game vibe to it, as everyone was very friendly to each other, and there was no tension. Not all of them were friends by the strictest definition of the word, but they were all brought together by their love for mixed games, and they weren’t going to let anything spoil the fun.

And they most certainly did not, as the game continued all the way until the early morning hours. I wasn’t there to see the conclusion, but Robbie let me know they wrapped it up at around 5 AM, for a total of over 14 consecutive hours of game play! During the entire session, the table only took one short dinner break. Some players came and went, but a few were there for the entire duration.

As is always the case with poker, some walked away with more than they bought in with, and others went home with their wallets a bit thinner. But there is no doubt in my mind that everyone walked away from that game a winner, as it was one of the most chilled and relaxed tables I had a chance to witness, in casinos and home games alike.

And today, they get to do it all over again, as we head into the third and the final day of Mixed Game Festival III at Malta’s Portomaso Casino.

The folks at PokerGO, notably Jeff Platt and Brent Hanks — hosts of the No Gamble, No Future podcast — are set to bring you a unique new twist on studio cash games, with No Gamble, No Future – The Cash Game, starting this coming Monday, August 1.

“This is our baby”, said Hanks, who will be co-hosting the show with his podcast partner, Platt.

“This show embodies everything we’ve always wanted to put on screen. Our podcast has turned into a full-blown studio cash game.”

While there have been many studio cash games before, ranging from High Stakes Poker to Friday Night Poker, Poker After Dark, and many more PokerGO original programming and outside productions over the years, NGNF promises to be unique, creative, and highly entertaining.

“This show is unique for a variety of reasons; the emphasis is first and foremost to entertain. We aren’t trying to showcase the most talented players in the world, but rather, the most entertaining folks who are willing to gamble and have a blast while doing so. We are also integrating a ‘Betting Board’ which mimics a sportsbook full of prop bets. We expect the players to dive in, while friends and fans at home can also have a fun sweat while betting amongst themselves,” said Hanks.

Platt echoes his enthusiastic partner’s sentiment.

“This show will be different than any other televised poker game… no strategy talk, no tanking, just pure fun combined with all the table talk you can handle. I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw some absolutely wild hands that people will talk about for years to come. I think people can sit back and be truly entertained by No Gamble, No Future. Our lineups will bring the perfect combination of skill, gamble, and personality to the PokerGO Studio.”

Star-Studded Lineups of Poker’s Finest and More

Those lineups have incredible potential, with nosebleed high-stakes players such as Nick Schulman, Matt Berkey, Jean-Robert Bellande, Eric Persson, Jake Daniels, and Alan Keating among those scheduled. They’ll be joined by other stars and legends of the game such as Poker Hall of Famer Eli Elezra, Patrick Antonius, Maria Ho, Mike Matusow, David Williams, and Jeremy Ausmus.

And that’s far from the end of the list of exciting names you can expect to see on the show. The world of influencers, entrepreneurs, and up-and-coming stars is well represented as well with the likes of Simon Yu, Christina Gollins, Eric Hicks, Lynne Ji, and Jimmy D’Ambrosio being just a few of the names mentioned.

If that wasn’t enough, a super-secret list of celebrities and many more big names that Hanks teases “will make these games as entertaining as they come” is also in the works.

“Brent has done a terrific job at setting some lineups that will provide maximum entertainment value,” said Platt.  It’s a perfect mix of poker professionals, celebrities, high-stakes cash legends, and some of poker’s best personalities who are already skyrocketing to a new level of fame in the poker world.”

The Stakes and the Setting

So, what are the stakes then? Well, this is another unique aspect of the show. They’ll vary from lineup to lineup, ranging from a friendly $5-10 game up to nosebleed high stakes of $200-400, with a variety of stakes in between. Plus, a $10,000 sit ‘n go is sprinkled into the mix as well.

It’s all going to take place on a bright and beautiful new set put together by the talented production team at PokerGO, which Platt had glowing words for, along with that betting board that Hanks mentioned.

“Our production crew has done an incredible job creating a brand-new set at the PokerGO Studio.  That set will include the “prop bets” screen that we think will enhance the action during the game.  We’re really excited to see how this added element impacts the game.”

Sneak peek at our No Gamble, No Future set! @ngnfshow @BuffaloHanks @PokerGO pic.twitter.com/ZlBOlQXCSK

— Jeff Platt (@jeffplatt) July 27, 2022

We at Cardplayer Lifestyle are really excited for the debut of No Gamble, No Future – The Cash Game. It promises to be a groundbreaking and incredibly fun show, and it’ll be beamed to your screens in just a couple days!

Be sure to tune in and watch the first episode, which will stream live on PokerGO this Monday, August 1.

Taught by Uri Peleg, an experienced cash game grinder, this course takes an interesting approach, as it focuses on the ways you can deviate from the GTO (Game Theory Optimal) to improve your results in the long run.

Instead of insisting you stick to GTO play and following it blindly, Peleg suggests that there is plenty of room for deviations in six-max cash games and even emphasizes that trying to always take the GTO approach may not be the best idea in multi-way pots.

Like all Upswing Poker courses, Elite Cash Game Exploits provides detailed analysis and explanations for every point presented in the lessons. You’re not expected to just take Uri at his word but are rather given numbers and plenty of hand examples that support his theories.

Elite Cash Game Exploits in a Nutshell

Some players may be more familiar with the idea of exploitative poker than others. Uri takes an approach that guarantees everyone can keep up with the course, offering detailed explanations of what the course is all about in the first few lessons.

Crucially, he doesn’t try to take anything away from a GTO approach to the game. In fact, he emphasizes that it’s an important baseline that all players should learn. But once you master these fundamentals, you can start looking for ways to deviate from it and take non-GTO lines against different types of opponents.

In the introductory part of the course, Peleg also talks about two main types of exploits that he’ll refer to throughout later lessons, namely:

• Hard exploits – taking full advantage of your opponent’s mistakes, but also making your strategy against them easier to notice and counteract
• Soft exploits – taking a more subtle approach to utilizing your opponents’ mistakes against them, but also making it much harder for them to figure out what you’re doing and adjust to it

There are some very interesting and quite unique ideas in there, and some of them aren’t easy to understand right off the bat. However, as you proceed with the course, things will slowly but surely fall into place.

Importance of Pre-flop Exploits

The pre-flop section of the Elite Cash Game Exploits course aims to provide you with a way of building an exploitative pre-flop strategy. Instead of blindly sticking to GTO charts, Uri suggests numerous adjustments you can make based on the types of games and opponents’ profiles.

While pre-flop decisions aren’t as intriguing or as challenging as the ones that come after the flop, Peleg emphasizes the importance of mastering this part first. As he explains it in a few simple words, this is the only street that you’ll have to play in 100% of your hands, so its importance can’t be overstated.

The strategy is built around recognizing several major player types or, as he calls them, archetypes. He ties in this discussion with the talk about HUD stats and how you can use these to group players into several main categories. Once you’re able to do this, you can proceed to build your gameplay plan against these types.

Of course, the course gives you plenty of tips and examples on exactly what you should be doing in different spots, be it first to act in extremely passive games, facing a 3-bet, or deciding whether to 3-bet yourself.

To be perfectly clear, this is still a GTO course, and you’ll find many game trees and solver talk in there. That said, instead of focusing on the “perfect” computer solutions, Uri sprinkles in some interesting ideas about how you can profitably deviate from these.

Elite Cash Game Exploits: Post-flop Section

Like with most poker training courses, the post-flop section of Elite Cash Game Exploits is more extensive, as there is frankly just more ground to cover. It is divided into several major sections, starting with some important notes about bet sizing. Once again, Peleg introduces the idea of several main categories of bet sizes based on how different players arrive at their decisions.

Understanding this thought process is very important if you want to play exploitative poker, as there isn’t a one-size-fits-all strategy. You first need to understand what the player you’re up against is trying to achieve. When you do that, you can proceed to the next step, which is finding the most suitable exploits for that particular type.

The main idea is to figure out what your opponents are doing and then get into the spots where you can fully utilize that knowledge (against them).

A big part of the post-flop section is devoted to c-betting, as one of the main bets that often defines the rest of the hand. Peleg looks at how the ideas behind the continuation bet have changed over the years and teaches you how to utilize that knowledge to recognize player archetypes and build your strategy against them.

Understanding the player type is important. However, With that said, it is equally as important to understand what motivates players to play in a certain way. Basically, the more information you can gather, the better you’ll be able to build an efficient arsenal of exploits against them.

Is Elite Cash Game Exploits a Course for You?

While there is no denying that some of the ideas discussed by Uri Peleg in this course are very interesting and can be implemented in almost anyone’s game, Elite Cash Game Exploits is clearly aimed at more experienced players.

Importantly, to fully grasp what’s being discussed inside, you will first need to have a deep understanding of GTO, which is no small task. While Uri does a great job of providing examples and explanations along the way, if you’re new to solvers, game trees, and other similar concepts, it will be very hard to keep up.

On the other hand, for serious players who enjoy studying the game, this course gives you plenty of opportunity to look at things from a different perspective. It could be just what you need to find an edge in tougher poker games, as your opponents won’t be ready for these adjustments, and it’ll take them a while to figure out what you’re doing (provided they also haven’t also purchased the Elite Cash Game Exploits course).

In summary, for the seasoned, educated poker player looking to effectively navigate their way through tough tables, Upswing Poker’s Elite Cash Game Exploits is definitely worth exploring and will easily deliver you with a return on investment multiple times over. However, if you’re inexperienced with GTO, we’d suggest first getting good foundations before moving on to this course.

Ryan Hansen almost didn’t play in the 2021 WSOP $3,000 6-max limit hold’em event that he won!

Ryan Hansen goes from no-limit hold’em to LIMIT hold’em

NOTE: PLEASE SUBSCRIBE To Bernard’s YouTube page AND LIKE any videos that you enjoy

Ryan Hansen

In this episode of The Bernard Lee Poker Show on the Cardplayer Lifestyle Podcast Family, Bernard Lee interviews Ryan Hansen, who captured the 2021 WSOP $3,000 6-max limit hold’em bracelet.

At the start of the interview, Ryan discusses his expectations playing in WSOP tournaments versus cash games. He also talked about 2021 WSOP atmosphere. Then, the Connecticut native discusses how he got started in poker in no limit hold’em and how he switched to limit hold’em and plays primarily at the Borgata Casino in Atlantic City, NJ. Ryan discusses the differences between no-limit hold’em versus limit hold’em and also the differences between cash versus tournaments.

During the second part of the interview, Ryan first discusses the differences between 9- or 10-handed versus 6-max. Ryan talks about almost not playing in the WSOP tournament, but then talks about his experience in the 2021 WSOP $3,000 6-max limit hold’em tournament. After the win, Ryan says that he will play in the tournament next year.

So instead, let’s just go with substance over style.

Over eight live sessions since taking Jonathan Little’s Cash Game Master Class, I haven’t recorded a single loss. I’ve also had my biggest ever winning session at $1-2 NLHE during this stretch.

In several online sessions since, I’ve not only produced a much better winrate than in recent months, but my desire to play online No Limit Hold ‘em has been rejuvenated.

So, did THAT grab you enough?

Jonathan Little’s Cash Game Master Class: Comprehensive Cash Game Training

Fair warning, if you plan on tackling this 30-video series, get ready to work. This is not a series for beginners. There’s gonna be some math. That all said, the depth this series provides is incredible.

Every aspect of cash game play you can imagine is covered, not just in strategies for every street of play (with tons of examples throughout), but how and when to implement both exploitative and GTO play.

Before Little gets into street-by-street play, the first couple of videos introduce the series, touching on things such as game selection, stack sizes, rake, player types, exploiting weak opponents, equity, and a couple of hand examples. Nothing too crazy yet; just a few things to think about while you fasten your seat belt.

After that though, you better be strapped in, because it’s one heck of a ride!

The third video is an introduction to probably the most important thing that will be stressed throughout the entire series: ranges!

No…. not THAT kind of range…

Long gone are the days of ‘putting your opponent on a hand’. This is 2023, friends. Ultimately, it doesn’t necessarily matter what those two cards in front of you and your opponents are. It’s all about what they could be.

Throughout these videos, you will be constantly prompted to think about ranges, both yours and your opponents’. While there are some specific examples on how certain hands can be played, thinking in terms of ranges is the predominant factor in how you should study and play your hands. This is a tool Little has utilized regularly in his Homework Challenges on Pokercoaching.com.

The video on ranges introduces the concepts of range construction, balancing, counting combinations, blockers, and math-based call/fold spots.

I should mention at this point that while there is a good deal of GTO-based theory and strategy in the series, Little does stress the importance of exploitative play as well, especially at lower stakes where there will be a larger population of weaker players. Against them, exploitative play is just going to be far more profitable. In other words, trying to balance a 4-betting range against a nit under the gun just ain’t gonna work. You’re just going to smash into those aces every time.

After that, the meat of the series is basically broken into sections of multiple 10- to 20-minute-long videos discussing aspects of pre-flop, flop, turn, and river play. This is followed by a few videos covering such topics as shallow and deep stacked play, straddled pots, bankroll management, seat and game selection, tells and more.

Ed. Note: PokerCoaching.com also offer some excellent resources for tournament players, such as the 30-Day Tournament Preparation Challenge. See our review of that here.

Jonathan Little’s Cash Game Master Class: Pre-flop Play

This section consists of 9 videos entitled: Pre-flop Bet Sizing, Pre-flop When Folded To, When Your Raise Gets 3-bet, Facing Limpers, Facing a Raise, Facing a Raise and a Call, When You Call and Get 3-bet, Facing a Pre-flop Raise and 3-bet, and Facing a Pre-flop 4-bet.

Pre-flop play is the most heavily discussed element in the series, and for good reason. As Little has imparted in many of his teachings, the first decisions you make in a hand will set you up for success during the rest of the hand. Remember kids, poker actually isn’t about winning and losing, poker’s about making the right decisions. (Thanks Doyle Brunson Poker After Dark intro voiceover!)

The bet sizing section discusses the importance of sizing your pre-flop raises correctly. Little generally suggests a consistent approach, with a pot-sized raise being optimal (plus a little extra when playing out of position), but he also suggests that a more exploitative strategy against weaker players can be beneficial.

Along with your raise sizing, the next consideration is what range to raise with. Little provides a link to a multitude of charts for suggested open raising ranges for each position (based on 100 BB stacks and your opponents being capable players – deviation based on player type is of course encouraged).

Of note, Little dives significantly into small blind raising strategy, as it presents the most unique circumstances going forward in the hand, since you’re guaranteed to be playing out of position. That said, this bit is somewhat irrelevant in a raked game, however, as the common practice of ‘chopping’ and pulling back your blinds is encouraged.

One key topic introduced in the ‘Pre-flop When Folded To’ video is the mathematical formula for Minimum Defence Frequency (MDF). Ever wonder why the Big Blind defends so liberally and hits those “Big Blind Specials” on you? Some guy drew out on you after you 3-bet him pre-flop? Well, those things happen because in a lot of situations, they’re correct to be doing so. Little references MDF throughout the series in a variety of situations.

Speaking of those 3-bet situations, MDF, pot odds, implied odds, opponent type, position, and more important concepts are all discussed in this section. Additional charts are provided as well, breaking down what percentage of hands you should be folding / calling / 4-betting. Again, there’s the caveat of considering your opponents’ style and stack sizes.

Pre-Flop Charts – Live Cash Games: Check out these fundamentally sound ranges for Raise First In, Raise First In vs 3-bet, and Facing Raise First In. This is the first step to becoming a winning player! #Poker #Coaching #Preflop https://t.co/LGnAd4qWPz pic.twitter.com/A0yzgvNr4E

— Jonathan Little (@JonathanLittle) September 30, 2019

For small stakes players, the section on ‘Facing Limpers’ will prove invaluable. It weighs in at a meaty 23 minutes – the second largest in the series, and it’s my favourite video of the entire Jonathan Little Cash Game Master Class.

Before taking this class, I was a firm believer in never limping, and always coming in for a raise. Far too often, however, despite my best intentions, I’d still be facing a flop four or five ways, thinking everyone else in the hand was making the mistakes, not me. Yes, players shouldn’t even be in the hand with Q2s from early position, but if they’re going to limp, then call a raise with a hand like that, you need to play accordingly. You’re making as big a mistake as them if you’re not adjusting! As such, I’ve incorporated more limping into my game when playing $1-2 / $1-3, and some $2-5 games, and seen a world of difference because of it.

The bulk of the section discusses the idea of ‘tricky’ limpers, (you know those guys who limp Aces and Kings UTG, hoping to backraise? Oh sneaky sneaky!) and of straightforward limpers who limp many of their hands that are predominantly garbage. It also breaks down how to play against one, or a series of limpers, how to play based on position, and what to defend with correctly if a raise comes in after you’ve limped.

I would suggest watching the entire series in order to get the best results, but if there is one section for small stakes players to check out first to immediately help their game, I recommend this one.

For games that aren’t super passive limp-fests, the next sections on facing raises (and raises and calls behind) in pots pre-flop will take care of what you need to know. Should you flat call or 3-bet? should you squeeze? What if someone else squeezes? These questions and plenty more will be answered, as most are, with: “well, it depends!” However, all the factors to take into consideration are discussed, most importantly – what are your opponent’s ranges?!

The remaining videos that deal with pre-flop play discuss how to play when the action is 3-bet or 4-bet in front of you. These sections are a bit smaller, as the lessons are quite brief, especially when it involves smaller stakes games. Spoiler: PLAY TIGHT! THEY’VE USUALLY GOT IT! Little does discuss taking player types and game dynamics into consideration, especially in higher stakes games. Yet, when it comes to the $1-2 and $2-5 games, erring on the side of ‘they’ve got it’ is usually the most prudent play, unless you really know your opponent is capable of creative shenanigans.

Jonathan Little’s Cash Game Master Class: Flop Play

This section consists of six videos entitled: The Flop, Flop Examples, When To Bet Summary, When Facing A Flop Bet, Multi-way On The Flop, and Facing A Flop Raise

By now, hopefully students are adhering to Little’s mantra of developing a good pre-flop strategy, so when you get to the flop you can play reasonably well. If you play too much junk, you’re going to have more problems and tougher decisions to make.

The first of six videos on flop play is the longest, at almost 22 minutes, with opponent types, position, and the usual considerations discussed, but the introduction of range advantage and nut advantage considerations are a major talking point. In a nutshell, this section breaks down when and how much you should be betting based on who has the range and/or nut advantage. Far too many players blindly c-bet and play the flop without giving thought to these ideas. This video will teach you how to consider these factors, as well as to exploit players who don’t.

A video of examples incorporating the concepts discussed in the first video follows this up, using position-based ranges, not specific hands. There’s also a cool hand example that suggests a 1 BB c-bet on a J55 flop. (Plus how to consider MDF if someone tries it on you!)

Next up is the ‘When To Bet Summary’. It’s pretty self-explanatory, but it’s quality information based on basically every situation on the flop.

Those players who blindly fire out c-bets with minimal to no thought are discussed in the ‘When Facing A Flop Bet’ video. Your consideration of your opponent’s range is the key factor in constructing an optimal flop play. Are they polarized or linear? What are their tendencies? Who has the nut advantage? Who has the range advantage? There is a lot to consider when facing a flop bet, and if you take the time to do so and your opponents do not, chalk up another street of superior decision making to you!

Much like facing a pre-flop 4-bet in a small stakes game, simple straightforward play is suggested when it comes to playing multi-way on the flop. C-betting polarized ranges three ways can be done, but with four players or more contesting the hand, Little suggests reigning it in and not getting out of line.

There are plenty of talking points in this section, including consideration of your opponents’ ranges (as always), situations in which raising to clean up equity can be pulled off, and avoiding reverse implied odds!

There are also several examples provided with varying positions and flop textures to see these teachings at work.

The final video on flop play is what to do ‘when facing a raise’. Again, the assessment of your opponent’s range is the first factor to consider. The range / nut advantages, player type, blockers and the game’s stakes are all factors that can impact a player’s decision. That flop raise in a $1-2 game can mean something a whole lot different than in a higher stakes game.

Recognizing players who overvalue top pair and stack off against your superior hand is a huge money maker at the smaller stakes. However, not recognizing when your value bets are just dead to a player’s raising range can torch your bankroll.

As usual, accompanying examples support this section.

With a combined 15 videos on pre-flop and flop play, the amount of instruction is intense and truly effective. It’s impossible to give a complete breakdown of all the elements in these videos in a review. They really must be experienced to get the full gist of everything Little presents. Trust me though; these videos are the heart of the series and will set you up extremely well for play on the turn and river.

Jonathan Little’s Cash Game Master Class: Turn Play

This section consists of two videos entitled: The Turn and Turn Examples

“The turn is not some mythical street where people get lost. It’s just one more betting round where the same concepts apply.”

Many players get lost on the turn and I’ll fully admit that I’ve been one. I remember very specifically following a losing session at The Mirage this summer coming away feeling very shaken about my turn (and river) decisions. I wrote a note to myself to study these streets more, so when the opportunity to take Jonathan Little’s Cash Game Master Class came about, I was thrilled with how much confidence it instilled in my late street play.

The turn is just the next street in the hand, where if you’ve made good decisions leading up to this point in the hand, there’s really no reason you can’t keep making them and continue to play the hand confidently.

All the concepts discussed thus far also apply to the turn. Again, range analysis is a key factor, based on the actions on the flop, both heads-up and multi-way. What to do with and against polarized and linear ranges is also discussed.

Ultimately, Little suggests that the turn isn’t really that different than the flop. You just want to have fewer bluffs in your range, and you want to get closer to showdown with your marginal made hands.

The examples video follows up with an extension of the hands from earlier pre-flop and flop example videos, including the next steps in the 1 BB c-bet hand.

Jonathan Little’s Cash Game Master Class: River Play

There’s just one video in this section, entitled The River. The first thing Little mentions in this video is that this is where most of the players “drown”. Yup.

If you’re playing well and polarized, you need to be giving up on some more of your bluffs. This was a HUGE hole in my game that I’ve worked on plugging. Far too often players (myself included) blindly think that if they’re bluffing when they get to the river, that third barrel has to be fired. Consideration of ranges be damned, I’m getting that bluff through! Nope. Bye-bye money.

That said, exploiting weak opponents on the river can be done with proper bet sizing if you have a good feel for their tendencies. Against competent opponents, however, Little stresses the importance of balance and considering MDF.

I was wowed by how much depth there can be to river play. We’re going to be counting combos, thinking about blockers, and doing some math here, especially when it comes to reaching the river with a polarized range. More topics include overbetting (you might be surprised how profitable this can be in small stakes live games, as I’ve recently discovered), betting for thin value, bluffs, and multi-way situations.

Jonathan Little’s Cash Game Master Class: Full Hand Examples

Again, just one video in this section, but this is the time to put everything we’ve learned together. This video contains over 30 minutes of full hand examples. Tons of hands, start to finish. GTO and exploitatively, it’s all here.

Jonathan Little’s Cash Game Master Class: Last Lessons

This final section includes seven videos entitled: Shallow Stacked Play, Deep Stacked Play, Short-Handed Play, Straddled Pots, Bankroll Management, Other Topics, and Final Thoughts.

Now that we’ve given our game an overhaul, it’s time to discuss some other issues that can come into play.

First up are tips on short stack and deep stack play. To be fair, these sections may not be seen as overly groundbreaking by more experienced players, but hearing how Little expands on the ideas is certainly worthwhile.

The shallow stacked section (sub 40 BB) discusses the increased value of high cards, the decreased value of hands with implied odds, and the underrated value of fold equity. This is well elaborated on with a formula showing just how profitable it can be to shove versus a late position raise.

The deep stacked section (100 BB +) discusses the increased value of hands with implied odds that can make the nuts, and how suited connectors that make marginal flushes and straights can win, but are often overrated.

The differences between lower- and higher-stakes games are also discussed. It’s far less likely in a low-stakes game that an opponent is piling in money with a nut blocker type hand. Again though, know your opponent!

Another series of examples is provided, including one that shows the problems with suited connectors if the pot starts getting huge.

The video on short-handed play is the shortest in the series because, really, there are only a couple of considerations to make. As the table gets shorter, you’re just eliminating the early position player ranges (UTG, UTG+1 etc). Also, many players adjust incorrectly (either playing too loose, or too tight – if they still give the first player to act an early position range!)

Next is a section on straddling. I loved this video for no other reason than that I share Little’s beliefs on straddling: we both hate it! There really is no strategic benefit to straddling, other than wanting to play bigger and gamble more. If others want to do it, fine, let them; but now we’re going to be ready to play well against them.

Button straddling is more reasonable, but it’s bad for the game, and especially for the blinds because now they are essentially playing UTG and UTG +1. You don’t want them folding out their garbage hands because of that. You want them contesting the pot!

I’ll include a fun story with regards to this, as it can be instructive. Recently I played in a game where the whole table had to agree to allow a player to button straddle. I sat in the SB, to the direct left of a player who wanted to do this. I was the only person to object, which they did not take kindly to. The player was already quite obnoxious, and despite my efforts to calmly explain the logic behind my protesting, they decided to go to war with me verbally and on the felt. As this had tilted the player so surprisingly much, I was able to take advantage of their reckless aggression against me and stack them three times in an hour!

via GIPHY

To recap: Don’t straddle. Learn to counter the straddle.

Proper bankroll management is a topic many recreational players either don’t adhere to, or if they do, have many questions about. Different people will have different opinions on how many buy-ins you should have to play at a certain level, which Little does, but he also incorporates winrate into calculating what you should be playing. Shot taking and when to move up are discussed (when your bankroll is 1.5x what you should have to comfortably be playing your current level, you can safely move up or take a shot). Little also stresses having discipline with your bankroll. Do not press your risk of ruin if variance has gotten the better of you at your current level. Suck it up, work on your game and move down! I unfortunately had to do this recently, but thanks to this course I’m moving back up.

The penultimate section is a collection of other topics that Little touches on briefly such as game selection, seat selection, what makes for a “good” game, rake, room promotions, buy-in sizing, mindset, and tells. Of note in the tells section is his recommendation of Zachary Elwood’s collection of books/videos on the topic.

LEARN MORE: Reading Poker Tells Video Series

Finally, Little wraps up the series with a thank you and a few last tips and reminders. If you’ve made it here and watched all 30 videos, congratulations, and get excited for what’s coming to you at the tables!

Jonathan Little’s Cash Game Master Class: Worth the Price!

I’ve always been a fan of Jonathan Little’s teachings, but I honestly can’t say that any poker course or training tool I’ve ever studied has had such an immediate positive impact on my game like this Cash Game Master Class has.

I know my graph with which I started out this course review only presents a very small sample size, and a lot had to go well (and not go wrong) for that largest-ever win I scored. Yet, a lot of what I’ve learned from this course has helped me maximize profit and minimize loss in situations I previously wouldn’t have. At the end of a session, knowing I’m leaving a winner has been nice, but above all I’ve been truly satisfied and confident in how I played and the decisions I’ve made.

With that said, I’m glad to once again be moving up in stakes, knowing my game is better than it’s ever been. Yours can be too. It’s just a couple of clicks away at Pokercoaching.com.

Over the last few years, the Cash Game Festival has earned a place of prestige on the European poker calendar, with the number of yearly stops growing along with attendance. So, too, the Malta Poker Festival achieved immediate prominence with its successful debut last fall. What was the catalyst for the two organizations to partner together?

Ivonne: I personally have been wanting to partner with Cash Game Festival for over a decade. I admire the sense of camaraderie and friendship of their staff, board members, and founders. This is something that reflects our core values.  The Malta Poker Festival debuted a few months back to rave reviews and players can’t wait until November to come back.  May is fantastic in Malta so this partnership makes a lot of sense. With that said, this represents a different product than our November crown jewel. In May we are focused on giving players more time at the felt, more enjoyable play, and the freedom to socialize that cash games offer. It is a perfect warm up for November.

READ MORE: 2018 Malta Poker Festival Recap and Highlights

The overwhelming majority of events on the poker calendar are tournament-oriented, with the Cash Game Festival being a major notable exception. A hybrid cash game-tournament series is something heretofore unheard of though. What can players expect and what’s unique about this joint event?

Ivonne: The Cash Games Festival will be running non-stop from Monday May 13 until Sunday May 19. Each day a tournament will take place as well. There are many offerings for players to choose from: a one day event, a two-day event, a freezeout, interesting re-entry variants of the game (i.e., not just No Limit Texas Hold’em).

The schedule is inspired by a recent trip I took to Los Angeles where I was able to choose whatever game I wanted to play all within low buy-in amounts. Liquidity was there, it was never a problem. We want to give local players and our guests those options. Whether you prefer to play poker early or late, we are happy to cater to your poker tastes.

Live poker continues to grow in popularity around the world and the calendar keeps getting increasingly packed with poker events. How did you settle on the timing for this joint mid-May venture?

Ivonne: For any tournament we plan, there is a careful examination process of the worldwide poker calendar. Phone calls are placed, and alliances made to ensure that we do not clash anyone. This is something a lot of poker organizers unfortunately fail to understand, to the detriment of the whole industry.

Ivonne Montealegre

The schedule of events also includes a special Short Deck Championship tournament, in collaboration with the Hendon Mob. This isn’t the first time you’ve partnered with them though. Beyond a well-known brand name, what do they bring to the table that makes them such a great fit for this joint poker festival?

Ivonne: Oh, this excites me! Every year I sit down with one of the brilliant minds behind the Hendon Mob, Roland Boothby, over goulash and drinks to brainstorm ideas. After The Hendon Mob Championship’s success last year, Roland was all ears to hear what I had to say. He was so receptive and creative. Short Deck came as a natural answer to the question: “what can we do to blow it out of the stadium?” Haha. We care for innovation in May, and for every single player to love our festival and have the fondest memories of this spring event on the island. Also, Heads-up to the flag hunters out there: They also created a special online flag for this particular event!

The Hendon Mob to team up with Cash Game Festival and Malta Poker Championships for special “short deck” event.
Portomaso Casino & Club 22, St. Julians, Malta
13-19 May
https://t.co/HyJDcPdTLq

— The Hendon Mob (@TheHendonMob) April 12, 2019

It’s the first-ever Short Deck tournament to be spread in Malta. As we’ve commonly seen the game played mainly by high rollers, how did you decide on the €150 price point?

Ivonne: This was entirely Roland Boothby’s and the Hendon Mob’s expertise; they have been analyzing the game and found exactly that; Short Deck tournaments have until now had very high price points — too high for new people to give the game a try for the first time. So, we decided on doing the opposite — a price point that’s accessible to anyone. Now all we need is support from players, the arena to play is there.

Portomaso Casino has a regular, dedicated cash game area. Will additional tables be added in other areas around the venue to accommodate for increased foot traffic during the joint festival?

Ivonne M: One of the reasons I love to work with and in Portomaso are the venue’s capacities. With its sister property Hilton Malta, we can create new spaces and use our imagination. Portomaso has without a doubt the biggest capacities, best staff and logistics to deploy any kind of poker event on the island.

In a new wrinkle, final tables of all tournaments on schedule will be played in Club 22, on the top floor of the Portomaso Casino rather than in the tournament ballrooms. Why?

Ivonne M:  Because WE CAN! and because the sky is the limit.  We want to create a jaw dropping experience.  I want every single player to feel like a Rockstar and I will personally deliver that concierge VIP experience.

Club 22 Portomaso Casino Malta | When cleared to make room for lights, cameras, and a poker table, the view will make the playing experience unforgettable.

The Cash Game Festival is known for live streaming and that’s a new innovation for the Malta Poker Festival. Often, it’s only high-stakes cash games and tournaments that get live streamed. Why offer this to lower stakes players?

Mauritz: We feel that every player — no matter if it´s a recreational player or a full-time pro — deserves to have the opportunity to feel the excitement that a TV table seat generates. Imagine telling your friends, relatives, or fellow poker players from home to log in to a certain Twitch channel that you´ll be on for at least 2.5 hours playing poker whilst a commentator analyses your play.  The possibility of analyzing your game on a video once the hand is over is limitless!

This creates so much value for everyone involved and our core policy is to give players experiences that will last, and that they can share with others.

Mauritz Altikardes

Beyond the poker, will there be any special activities for players to engage in off the felt?

Ivonne: Oh yes! We will soon announce all the activities we have in store, including awesome dining and speakeasy moments. But flexibility is also key, so we want to have a number of available activities to players and let them choose.

Mauritz: We offer packages for players that consists of happenings outside the casino every day. These could include drinks at a night club, guided tours, theme dinners, beach volleyball, a BBQ cook-along, and even a shooting range. You never know what we’ll come up with and Malta has plenty to offer. All of the online qualifiers receive a “vacation package” and other players are welcome to purchase these packages and participate as well. We always have tons of fun at every one of our tour stops.

Finally, we mentioned a packed poker event calendar, and indeed there are other competing festivals happening elsewhere at the same time as yours. Give us your pitch for why poker players ought to choose Malta and come to play in your cash games and poker tournaments.

Ivonne: Sunny weather, great tournament structures, and cash games running all the time. It’s the most fun atmosphere in the most amazing location at a very affordable price.

Mauritz: Well, there´s no doubt that Malta is the go-to location for poker events. The island nation has everything for poker players: 300 days of sun gives you a relaxed atmosphere and a lot of pool time, you have really good restaurants, a unique cultural environment and a sick load of fun things you can do off the felt with people who know how to have fun. And when you’re ready to play some poker, you´ll come to our event and have even more fun in a great venue with an experienced crew who are only there for one thing – to give you the best possible experience. At our events, everyone is a VIP!

After a brief hiatus, our ongoing Ask the Poker Experts series is back again this month. With the World Series of Poker (WSOP) approaching, understandably many players are planning their schedules and finalizing which tournaments they’ll be playing. Most poker media sites are similarly producing plenty of content revolving around the dozens of bracelet events as well as other tournaments series that will be running around Las Vegas during the WSOP. But what about the cash game scene?

In the early years of the WSOP, many of the best professional poker players opted to skip the tournaments altogether in favor of focusing on the cash games, which were known to be jucier than usual. Some things don’t change, and the same holds true today in regards to cash games, namely that WSOP season is still thought to be the best time of the year for them, with numerous games available 24/7 at pretty much any casino with a poker room.

I’d like to thank Roy Cooke, Andrew Neeme, Brad Owen, and Tim “the Trooper97” Watts, who kindly agreed to take part in this month’s panel and offer their tips. I’m certain that Cardplayer Lifestyle readers will find their answers intriguing and instructive.

Just did an interview with @TimeTra38856673 about his world record attempt for longest poker session. Stop by Aria and say hi to him if you’re in the area. He’s going to be there awhile… pic.twitter.com/n1A9tR60nU

— Chris Wallace (@foxpokerfox) April 10, 2019

Zach was in Vegas this month to play an 80-hour session to get ready for his record breaking attempt in late June. Yes, you read that right, 80 hours was just a warm-up! The record currently stands at 115 hours, a mark set by Phil Laak in June of 2010 at the Bellagio here in Vegas. Zach seems confident that he will break that record this summer, and after speaking with him during his training session, I think he’s a favorite to set the record. Before we cover what Zach is doing, let’s look at the mechanics involved of setting a Guinness World Record.

The first thing you have to do is pay around $12,000 for a judge to come over from Europe and adjudicate the record. If everything you did was within the rules and you break the record, the judge will declare you the record holder right then and there. It seems like a big number, but what is immortality worth? Can you say that you hold an official world record? I’ve found a lot of people online claiming longer sessions, but no one knows if they are true. We know Laak’s record is legitimate because a Guinness judge was there and it’s listed on their website.

Then, you must play poker continuously for more than 115 hours. I personally couldn’t come anywhere close to this mark. When I was younger there were definitely some 30-hour sessions, but these days I’m just not sharp after more than 12 hours and being awake for that long sounds awful. Zach will be allowed a five-minute break every hour, and he can save up a few of those breaks if he doesn’t always use them. This might allow him a 15-minute nap at some point, which could be enough REM sleep to really help him plow through to the end.

Zach Gensler at the Aria poker room in Las Vegas

For the record to be recognized, you also must play with new players every four hours. It can not be the same opponents for longer than that. I’m not sure why that rule is in place, but that’s what Guinness says, so that’s what he must do. Laak had a bunch of friends show up and swap in and out throughout the game, but Zach wants to do it against random opponents who may not even know about the record attempt. I stopped by his table at hour 33 at the Aria last week during his training session and no one at the table seemed to know that he had even been playing that long.

Zach’s hope is that he can find a poker room that wants to help him with his record attempt, but while Aria has expressed interest, they say they are too busy during the WSOP when Zach is hoping to break the record. If you know a poker room that wants to be part of this record attempt, have them contact me and I’ll put them in touch with Zach. Somewhere in Vegas would be preferred.

How Does One Survive Without Sleep?!

I did some research on sleep deprivation and performance before I went to meet with Zach and learned some interesting things. Zach has done this kind of thing before, including some very long poker sessions and other long periods without sleep, so he will probably feel these effects less than you or I might. There is probably some natural ability as well, which Zach believes he has. This certainly jives with research that shows that some people need drastically less sleep than others.

What I learned was that after 72 hours most people simply can not stay awake. They start to have 30-second micro-bursts of sleep, become very irritable, make lots of mistakes, and often start to hallucinate. The desire for sleep becomes very powerful at the three-day mark. But at 80 hours, Zach says he was in pretty good shape. At 33 hours when I interviewed him, he seemed no different than I would be after a six-hour session.

It looks like @TimeTra38856673 is going to make it his first goal of 80 hours in his training to break the world record for longest cash game session later this year. Here’s a short interview I did with him at the 33 hour mark. pic.twitter.com/W6s6HjN8I2

— Chris Wallace (@foxpokerfox) April 11, 2019

I think this feat is similarly equivalent to free divers who can hold their breath for long periods of time. If I don’t breathe for 10 minutes, I will almost certainly die. But free divers have successfully held their breath with no apparent long-term damage for more than 22(!) minutes. Training and natural ability have a big effect on what the body can handle. While Zach has not done any kind of formal training for this attempt, he has certainly had a lot of practice and seems to have some natural ability.

My best guess — and I’m not a scientist or a doctor — is that Zach will complete the 120-hour session and achieve the new world record. It seems very important to him to be a part of poker history, and he really loves the game. I think that by the 100-hour mark he will be seriously impaired, probably not playing very well, possibly having trouble reading his opponents’ facial expressions, and that his mistake rate will soar. But if he plays tight and solid, which seems to be his personality, I think he will be fine. His 80-hour practice session ended in a profit of over $1,500, so he could technically fold his way through the next 40 hours and still be up if he can match that performance when he goes for the record in June.

Timetraveler completed a unofficial 80hr session at ARIA casino Las Vegas in his quest for Guinness World Record for Longest Marathon Poker play.i completed to session $1500 up.I feel like I just ran 100 miles.

— TimeTravelerPoker (@TimeTraveler524) April 14, 2019

Laak reported rambling, being a bit lost, and some minor visual hallucinations. Another record breaker (though his attempt doesn’t seem to have been verified by Guinness), Barry Denson, reported aural hallucinations, believing that there were children playing loudly near the slot machines close to the table when there were no children nearby. Denson’s record attempt made it to 120 hours, though I couldn’t find official verification of this anywhere.

In my search for the official records, I did find some odd, poker-related, records. My favorite was the world record for the largest strip poker tournament, which had 196 participants and was held by Paddy Power in 2006. Well, it was my favorite until I did some, ahem, “research” and found some video of the event. Most of the participants were men, and the final video after the winner was crowned might reveal a bit more of the winner John Young, than you are prepared to see. Unless 115 hours of poker causes him to lose his mind, I assume Zach will keep his clothes on after he breaks the record.

My biggest concern for Zach will be his recovery after the attempt. Research shows that your immune system is in real trouble after a few days without sleep, and a poker room is a great place to be exposed to every possible airborne illness. He will need a lot of sleep after the record, and I’m hoping that he doesn’t wake up fighting off two different colds and a case of the summer flu.

I slept 14hrs after my Marathon Poker https://t.co/ZmB5DDpp8J I’m eat buffet at ARIA hydrating and enjoying Life!I feel good and will be owning the World Record for Longest Marathon Poker play.I love poker for charity!

— TimeTravelerPoker (@TimeTraveler524) April 12, 2019

Even if he does get sick, Zach will probably say that it was worth it. He doesn’t have a bracelet or a WPT title, or even any TV time. He doesn’t have big results on Hendon Mob, or his face on the cover of a magazine either. But if he is successful, he will be a part of poker history.

Among the things I was looking forward to most during this current trip to the European Poker Tour stop in Sochi was playing in cash games.

As my days here have been busy, in “typical Robbie fashion” I forwent sleep on a couple nights so as to carve out time for playing. It had been four-and-a-half months since my last proper poker room session, at the Malta Poker Festival in November (writing that oddly feels like entering a confessional ), so to say that I was hungry for some action would be an understatement.

Been at #EPTSochi since Sunday morning. Haven’t played a single hand of poker.

Time to have some fun #cashgames pic.twitter.com/5xqetUCrTR

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) March 26, 2019

I logged two sessions, nine and eight hours long, respectively, and they couldn’t have been more different from one another.

Session #1: Gotta own my failures

The first one really couldn’t have gone much worse, and I’m certainly partially to blame for that. In retrospect, I realize I was pretty rusty. My usual fare of dealer’s choice home games in Israel keeps my mental game well-honed and my poker skills well-oiled, but that’s very different fare from a standard Texas Hold’em only poker room session. Spewy? You betcha. I played too many hands and saw my chip stack slowly dwindle. I unfortunately also lost all of the big pots I contested… so, I headed back to my hotel room tail firmly ensconced between my legs and with my wallet significantly lighter.

Perhaps it was fitting punishment for having previously written that “in a country famous for its caviar, it makes sense that there would be a lot of fish…” Oops.

Well, I can’t say I felt outclassed, but at least at my table the fellas seemed to know what they were doing…

…except for that one guy who called my $130 pre-flop jam w/ QJ of clubs… I had QQ, and a different opponent had JJ.

Of course the board ran out with four clubs… pic.twitter.com/MDuwMAKcjt

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) March 27, 2019

Session #2: Back in the groove

The second session thankfully went a LOT better. Having a few hours of play under my belt, the itch to play had been sufficiently scratched that I could sit and play my game, waiting patiently for good cards to hopefully come; and come they finally did. Except for one instance versus a short stack, and another instance where I got “owned for the minimum” by a player who didn’t realize she in fact held top two pair, all showdowns went my way.

I was even able to punctuate a two-hour-long card drought during the session (#foldfoldfold) with two well-timed bluffs, getting pocket kings and then pocket jacks to muck, respectfully, while holding nothing more than two low offsuit, unpaired cards on ace-high boards. By the end of the session, I was able to recoup about two-thirds of the previous night’s losses.

Thankfully, last night’s cash game session at @sochicasino went a lot better than the previous night’s… #alltherubles pic.twitter.com/jp5K9GOpZT

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) March 28, 2019

Lessons Learned

As a poker player, it’s always important to reflect back on your sessions to see what sort of lessons you can learn, and how you can improve for next time around.

In hindsight, I realize that the table atmosphere had a lot to do with how I fared in each session. On the first night I was facing a table full of stone-faced locals who didn’t care much for talking and who collectively probably couldn’t put more than one English sentence together. That’s not a knock on them, by the way. If anything, it made me appreciate what it must be like for foreigners to come and play poker in the United States.

By contrast, the mood at the table during my second session was jovial and talkative, an environment in which I tend to thrive. There were another couple of foreign players at the table, so the three of us naturally bonded as non-speakers of Russian. For their part, the local players spoke English marginally better than those I was sitting with the previous night, meaning they understood and laughed at our jokes and actually made efforts to engage us in conversation. I made a new Italian Facebook friend in Pier, while my new Russian friend Maxim couldn’t stop extolling the virtues of my “lucky patch” (until he lost all his chips and tossed the patch back to me, saying it was “cursed”).

My new friends, Pier (left) and Maxim (right)

If the above session mini-recaps entice you to someday perhaps take a shot at the Casino Sochi cash game tables, just be advised in advance of the procedures and room particulars. It’ll save you some time and hassle trying to figure it out on your own (like I had to do).

PSA: If you’re looking to play cash games at #EPTSochi, @sochicasino:

There’s a bank open 24/7 on the 1st floor to exchange your currency for rubles.

You must (then) bring rubles to the poker room cash cage on the 2nd floor to exchange for “casino units.” Minimum stakes 1/3 CU. pic.twitter.com/QYUTgQjvKG

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) March 27, 2019

Note that you also need to have a casino loyalty card, which you’ll receive on your first visit to the casino upon presenting your passport. Also note that casino security is probably the tightest I’ve ever seen. You’ll have to pass through metal detectors and security checkpoints at multiple junctures while wandering the casino floor. The poker room is located on the second floor, which is the only place in the building where you’re permitted to wear a hat.