Baccarat

Have you ever heard of the “Gentleman’s game”? Right, it is the reputation of Baccarat which is a very popular casino game all over the world.

People believe that Baccarat has been introduced to France from Italy during the region of Charles VIII of France (1483-1498), which is similar to Faro and to Basset. There are three accepted variants of the game: baccarat chemin de fer (railway), baccarat banque (a deux tableaux) and punto banco (or North American baccarat).

Although being not very good at this casino game, I like playing it and I still remember when I was a kid I saw a film named “King of Gambler” (star by Andy Lau) which gave me a very deep impression, in which he mastered all the gambling tricks and at that time I really admired him…

The valuation of hands in Baccarat is quite different from other poker games like Texas Hold’em so we should pay special attention to it. In Baccarat, cards 2-9 are worth face value and 10’s and face cards (J Q K) are with zero, and Aces are worth 1 point. Players calculate their score by taking the sum of all cards modulo 10, meaning that after adding the value cards the tens digit is ignored.

Anyway, have a try then you will get everything of its essence…

Poker is Knowledge

Poker is a game but not that simple as it requires many kinds of knowledge that is quite different form what we have learnt in school. In fact, poker is full of competitions just like our life so that poker is a kind of knowledge.

To win in any kind of activity, such as poker game even our life, a player must obtain three kinds of knowledge: factual, tactical and strategic knowledge.

Factual knowledge refers to the basic concepts or rules of the competitive game which is sometimes gained by memorizing. If one is not familiar with the terminology of a competitive game, his goal of winning in it will be impossible. We can imagine how one can win in Texas Hold’em if he can’t distinguish the flop from the turn or the river and how a poker player win in a tournament if he has no idea what a royal flush looks like…

Tactical knowledge is composed of the different actions that are carried out by the player in order to achieve certain goals which can be acquired by practice. So, to gain all the needed tactical knowledge, the poker player must keep on playing.

Strategic knowledge is acquired when the poker player has already mastered the first two types of knowledge. When the poker player has strategic knowledge he sees the whole poker session, which can last for several hours, as one game. With a broader view, his actions are more directed and more planned.

For me, poker is not just a game but also a kind knowledge that teaches me a lot in my life. I will hold on to keep playing and keep learning…

Poker Jokes on Christmas

I spent Christmas Eve with friends last night and we really had a crazy night. We talked a lot during our relaxed time while the following three jokes relating to poker games that friends told me impressed me deeply because I was crazy about poker recently.

No.1---A brain surgeon receives a phone call from a colleague on a Saturday night. "We need another poker player for tonight" the friend says. "I'll be there right away!" the doctor replies with a sense of urgency. As he puts on his coat and makes his way out the door his wife asks him "Is it serious?" and the doctor replies "Oh, very! There are 3 other doctors already there!"

No.2---A homeless man asks another man for two dollars. The man says "Will you use the money to buy booze?" The homeless man replies "No sir, I don't drink." The man then asks "Will you use the money for gambling?" The homeless man replies "No sir, I don't gamble." So the man says "Do me a favor and come home with me. I want my wife to see what happens to a man who doesn't drink or gamble."

No.3---A woman walks into living room and sees her brother playing poker with their dog. "Wow!" she exclaimed, "You must have the smartest dog in the world!" and her brother replies "He's not all that smart. I've beaten him 3 out of 5 games so far."

Today is Christmas and everything should be special and full of joy…so let’s go to have a good time…Have fun!

Christmas Eve

I had a dream yesterday that Santa Claus came to join us on poker table and said, in essence, “I am about to give away a lot of money…” Over the course of next several hours, Santa Claus emptied thousands of thousands dollars out of his bag. At times, there were many players couldn’t believe their good fortune. For some players, the concept of Santa showing up and giving them a holiday gift just seemed...well, too good to be true. Santa even offered some sage advice to players “It's better to be good than lucky...because miracles usually happen on this table”…

When I woke up this morning, I was so happy that I can’t help enjoying the dream until now.

Tonight, on this 2008 Christmas Eve, there will be a lot of people who don’t have to work at all. Shall they enjoy the time sitting together with family members to chat and play poker games like Texas Hold’em, Omaha or Speed Hold’em just like me? Maybe… Children might be the happiest tonight who will be waiting for Santa Claus making his rounds giving gifts to good children.

Happy Holiday, everyone…

Pot-Limit Omaha

The past weekend for me was really like a nightmare although it was the Winter Solstice when people all over the country ate dumplings…I really want to forget everything happened yesterday and just concentrate myself on poker games.

Today I choose pot-limit Omaha which is a community card poker game similar to Texas Hold’em where each player is dealt four cards and must make his best hand using exactly two of them, plus exactly three of the five community cards. However, it is different from Texas Hold’em…

More people will see the flop in Omaha which also creates bigger pots, making your decisions on the flop even more crucial; players need a stronger hand to win at Omaha because the best hands are those that are made and hold additional value, like top set with a big draw in Omaha. Meanwhile, although position is very important in all forms of poker, it is less important in Omaha and it is usually the player holding the best hand that wins the pot…

I haven’t won in my game by far and I’m not sure whether it is because of my lost mood, but I will hold on…

7 Card Stud---Old Yet Popular

7 Card Stud, which is personally my favorite kind of poker, was the most popular poker variant in casinos of the eastern part of the United States and also home games all over this country before the popularity of Texas Hold’em.

It is one of the oldest forms of game which 2 to 8 players can play and the initial deal is two cards face down and one card up to each player. Position in this game is not that important as other poker game as the position can potentially change with each flip of a card. The first betting round starts with the highest hand showing or for the first round the high card. Then another card is dealt up and another betting round is repeated until there are four cards face up. Then a final card is dealt down and a final betting round held. The ranking of the hands are the same as regular poker except to take the five best cards out of the ones you are dealt.

7 Card Stud is much more complex and requires greater focus and discipline when playing it compared to Texas Hold’em. No matter what, be confident that you bet…

Speed Hold’em-----Time Limited Yet Fun Limitless

Texas Hold’em is one of my favorite poker games, while recently I’m introduced a new game named Speed Hold’em which is a kind of variant of Texas Hold’em whose difference lies in whether betting time is limited or not.

Actually, Speed Hold’em is a very fast poker game comparing to Texas Hold’em while it has many advantages. The most obvious one is that you don’t have to wait for a long time for the other players to take action so that you need not to wait and wait wasting your time. I really feel bad when I wait for a long time before. Meanwhile, when players are asked to play poker quickly, the weak poker players will make mistakes.

Similarly, in any time during the poker game the players can fold and get out of the hand. All bets will be lost at that point.

Speed Hold’em has really attracted me and I have gained more and more fun from it. So friends, don’t hesitate any more, let’s go together to have a try…