Wearing glasses when you play poker is a personal choice we all make.  I save the glasses for situations where I think I need them.  I always have a pair on me when I’m playing live poker, just in case they can be of use to me.  If my opponents are making tough calls when I’m bluffing, or betting into me every time I miss a flop, I will put on the glasses to try and hide whatever it is my opponents may be picking up.

A lot of top pros don’t use the shades; it says something about your ability if you can be successful without them.  The whole poker-face thing, you know what I mean?  But if you feel more secure behind a pair of specs you should use them.  The best thing about wearing the shades is that you can watch opponents without them knowing you’re taking in their every move.

Greg Raymer has taken the whole poker glasses thing a step further.  He wears novelty lizard eyeshades that not only mask his expressions but also throw off his opponents a bit.  I don’t think it gives him a huge advantage, but it will always be his trademark.  Phil Hellmuth is so attached to his shades that it’s hard to see him without them on.

Like every other product around poker, the sunglasses industry has evolved during this poker boom.  The newest thing in poker glasses are Pokerlenz glasses that are designed to block out your opponents view of your eyes while still keeping things bright and easy to see.  These are not sunglasses and shouldn’t be used as such – they’re just for poker.  They can fill prescriptions, or the regular ones can be worn with contacts.  The frames are made to wrap around the wearer’s head so that opponents can’t see where you’re looking.

If you give off physical tells that you can’t seem to correct then the use of  glasses to help hide these tells is a useful strategic defense when you play.  Feeling secure when you play is more important than most of us think, so go ahead and wear glasses if your game is suffering from the ease with which opponents can get a read on you.

You know those annoying Mac/PC commercials you see on TV all the time these days? If the guys who make PCs wanted to strike back they should make an online poker commercial with the same premise.

If you have a PC your options regarding places to play poker online are almost limitless. There are so many poker rooms out there right now you could probably find a different one to play for every day of the month. If you have a Mac you’d barely be able to find enough sites to play on a different day for a week.

So where do Mac computer users go to play poker online? There are a few options out there that give you one important decision to make before getting your chips. Not all poker rooms that offer their tables out to Mac users have downloadable software. Some you can download and play the same way you would on a PC, while the rest all use online Java web-based software.

In the downloadable section the best out there right now according to most MacPoker web sites is Full Tilt Poker. At Full Tilt you get all the features of the downloadable PC software right on your Mac. This includes all the tables, the tournaments, great tips and articles and the boatload of poker pros Full Tilt has promoting their wares. Another big plus at Full Tilt is that unlike a number of poker rooms they are still accepting American players.

If you choose to go the online Java web-based route, there are two great sites that are neck-and-neck for the title of being the best. They are Pokerroom.com and Pacific Poker. Both offer great, easy-to-use compatible software and lots of tables, tournaments and features. The downside for both rooms is that if you’re American they won’t take your money.

If none of these poker rooms do it for you there are still a few more out there that with work with your Mac. Some of the other downloadable software includes Bugsy’s Club, and Party Poker, while other Java web-based software providers include Absolute Poker and HollywoodPoker.

To calculate an online poker player of the year is an idea that’s still in early development. The idea of having an accurate database on all online play does not exist yet, in my opinion. Up until recently the player of the year designation would go to one player for each site. Top earners from each site could be compared, but the action is different depending on the site you’re using.

There are some current attempts at claiming some players as the overall online player of the year, but even these are only semi-accurate. Card Player Magazine has begun to report on online action and has player of the year standings posted. The problem is that it only includes certain rooms, and not all of them. Marketing is still playing a controlling role in this list, and until all the online action is included the results are not completely accurate.

The sites included in the Online Player of the Year are the five that allow American action. So in that way these standings would be more accurate than any other because the Americans are included.

Points are given for money finishes in minimum $100 buy-in tourneys with 100 entrants or more. The amount of points a player gets is proportionate to size of tourney, number of entrants, and place finished.

The fact that there is a media body that’s making the effort to publish these rankings means it will improve over time. Eventually all the sites will be included and the ranking will be accurate. If interest in the online players continues to grow, more media will pick up it.

The current leader is Matt “ch0ppy” Kay, and he has 3,124 points, which is a 234-point lead to this stage in the year. He earned those points by finishing in the money in nine tournaments since January, three of which he won. His biggest cash was over $200,000 when he won the PokerStars Sunday Million back in January.

Does it make sense that you can order alcohol and buy smokes in a bar, but you can’t gamble? Actually you can gamble in some bars, but it’s playing VLT machines – which is giving your money away, not really gambling. Apparently only two of the three big sins are allowed in bars. It’s just another example of anti-gambling hypocrisy.

I can see why they would want to keep regular cash ring games out of bars. I doubt the bars would even want them because of the difficulties it would cause. Think about it. If your local bar brought in cash ring games they would need to find the space for them, get some actual dealers (I don’t want waitresses or bartenders dealing to me in a cash game), and they’d have to bring in extra security with all that cash floating around. That’s just the beginning of some of the problems that cash ring games would cause bars.

However, most of these problems wouldn’t exist if bars just held poker tournaments. Even better would be a poker league. There are bars out there that hold pool leagues and darts leagues, what’s the difference or harm of a poker league? If a bar can hold a darts or pool tournament why can’t they hold a poker tournament? There’s skill involved in all three games and just like in a poker tourney there’s money and/or prizes on the line when you’re playing in a pool or darts tourney.

One argument against poker tournaments is the buy-in it takes to play in them. The last time I signed up to play in a darts or pool league or tourney, there was an entry fee. Why can’t you start up a poker tournament with the same kind of fee? If you’re going to treat pool or darts a certain way, then poker should be treated the same and not singled out.

Online poker isn’t just profitable for skilled poker players and the online poker rooms; online poker has more heart than just the ones on the cards.

The heart we’re talking about comes from the numerous online poker charity tournaments. All you have to do is enter those four words into any Internet search engine to find many examples. It’s not just a couple of poker rooms, either. Almost every online poker room is getting into the charity poker business, with just a few examples being Bodog, PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Ultimate Bet.

The causes benefiting from all of these charity poker tournaments popping up online range in size from very personal to global. On any given day you might find a small charity tournament helping a specific person, or bigger tournaments with all the benefits and profits heading to a charity that helps out with everything from cancer to homelessness to drunk driving.

The most famous online poker charity tournaments exploded online a few years ago after two highly publicized natural disasters. These were, of course, the Asian Tsunami and Hurricane Katrina. Dozens of online poker rooms held charity tournaments with all the cash going to aid the victims of those disasters.

The charity association with poker doesn’t just exist online, though. For large and small charitable organizations, poker tournaments have become very profitable ways to raise much-needed funds. Many professional poker players are getting in on the act as well by hosting online and real-world charity tournaments. One of the most famous poker charity pioneers is Barry Greenstein. Dubbed “the Robin Hood of Poker” because he donates his winnings to charitable organizations, Greenstein has set the standard for poker charity and the rest of the poker world is trying to live up to his example.

The world of online poker is an incredibly crowded one. There may not be as many online poker rooms as there used to be, but you could still play at a different site every day of the month and still have a few left over to try out. Even though there are tons of different poker rooms out there they don’t all stack up.

If you want to judge by traffic alone then the king of the industry is PokerStars. PokerStars is famous for sponsoring World Series of Poker champions Chris Moneymaker and Greg Raymer. They also have WSOP champ Joseph Hachem as a spokesman, but he didn’t earn his way into the main event through a PokerStars tourney. Their famous faces and overwhelming advertising on T.V., in magazines and all over the Net has seen PokerStars’ player numbers grow so much over the past year that they now boast the highest traffic of any online poker room.

However, just because a lot of people like something doesn’t mean it’s the best. PokerStars may lead the way in players, but they’ve got company in the online poker leading brands discussion. (Along with PokerStars you’ve got lots of discussion about Full Tilt Poker and Bodog’s poker room.)

Full Tilt also boasts plenty of advertising and they seemed to up the ante in their online ads after the online gambling trouble in the U.S. started to stir last year. Everyone knows Full Tilt because of the ton of poker pros that sport their logo, from Chris “Jesus” Ferguson to Phil Ivey. One thing that you hear about Full Tilt from online poker vets is that they know how to treat their customers. One thing I like about Full Tilt is that it’s the only place you can go online to see if Mike Matusow can type as fast as he can talk.

Last, but certainly not least is Bodog Poker. Since they decided to stay in the American market while other books pulled out, Bodog has seen tremendous growth in their poker room numbers. Bodog is quickly becoming one the best-known Internet brands through its stylized marketing and simple word of mouth from satisfied customers. Look for Bodog’s growth to continue as more players are introduced to their top-notch software and game-play.

Anyone that does any form of gambling online – whether it’s poker, sports betting or casino games – has seen the online industry take a hit since the U.S. enacted the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). All you have to do is look at the large number of online sports books and poker rooms that have stopped doing business with Americans to see the ramifications.

The industry may have finally received some good news though. Late last month rumors started circulating around the Net that Congressman Barney Frank was working on ways to repeal the UIGEA. After some real research by accredited online media sources, it was revealed that the rumors actually had some truth to them and Frank was in fact looking in to ways to get the UIGEA off the books.

For anyone unfamiliar with Mr. Frank, it’s not much of stretch that he’s been one of the biggest critics of the online gambling laws. Frank has been a staunch supporter of American’s rights and with quotes like “adults are entitled to do with their money what they want to do” (Mar. 15, 2006), and “What kind of social, cultural authoritarianism are we practicing here?” (July 11, 2006), it’s not hard to see where he stands on the online gambling issue.

After the Democrats took control of the house late last year, Frank – a Democrat from Massachusetts – became the Chairman of the House Financial Services committee. Even with Frank’s new position and the changes in the House, a repeal of the UIGEA isn’t as easy as it might sound. Online gambling isn’t one of the issues at the top of Congress’s list right now. With wars going on and a floundering economy, that’s to be expected.

A report from Stanford University provided a bleak outlook on the possibilities of a repeal, giving only a 10% chance of it actually happening. Of course, 10% is better than the 0% chance that existed a few months ago. With a WTO violation still to be ruled on and the American gambling public still hopping mad, there are still have a number of groups fighting for their rights.

This fight is far from over and the river card won’t be dealt out for quite awhile. Whether the yay or nay side on online gambling holds the best cards at the showdown is still up in the air.

The idea of making a living playing internet poker presents a bit of a quandary for me. The notion of someone quitting their job to play poker doesn’t seem logical. Playing poker for a living is something that is dictated by the size of your playing bankroll. My bankroll has been large enough where I was able to afford to just play poker. I’ve also had periods where my bankroll shrank to a level where I had no choice but to make money doing something else.

Let’s face it, people who play online poker for a living can afford to. They’ve amassed a bankroll that permits them to survive the win-loss variance at a blind or buy-in level where they can extract enough money to live when the win variance is high. If the bankroll isn’t there, you’re looking for a job or a deal. It’s that simple really. You first support your game until your game can support you. You don’t tell your boss to go to hell because you won a ten thousand dollar tournament, or you had two months of successful grinding at a $20/$40 blind level.

If poker is going to be your business you had better get your ducks in a row, and I’m not talking about a pair of deuces. Organization and documentation of your playing activity is essential for the intermediate player that’s thinking about investing a lot of time into playing. Once you have enough information about your game the process of recognizing and plugging your leaks can commence. Just like any career, you will get out of it what you put into it.

This is no job at the shop. Playing poker for a living requires that you not only plug the leaks in your game, but you have to plug all the leaks in your brain. Learning to accept the emotional roller coaster that playing online can bring is one of the toughest parts of the game. It’s not for the faint at heart, and I don’t care who you are – the game will spit in your face with regularity for the rest of your playing years.

Developing a mindset where adverse results have little or no effect on your behaviour is one of the professional’s toughest accomplishments. If you think you can maintain all that, and still believe that it can happen to you, you just might have what it takes.

So, you’ve taken your shot in a fair number of tourneys and maybe you’ve even cashed in a few times. But, you’re still one step away from making the final table and collecting some of the big cash. You’ve perfected the poker rookie’s tourney technique, now let’s take it up a notch. (Can’t understand poker jargon? Here’s a good poker glossary.)

Early tournament strategy

If you think you have the best hand, let your opponents think they have you beat and let them start the betting. This is slow-playing, of course. Once you’ve seen the river and you still think you’ve got your opponent beat, come out betting and hope your opponent feeds your pot. If you’re not sure that you’re holding the best hand at the table, don’t give that information away. Be aggressive (not insanely aggressive though) and try to steal the pot with a well-timed bet. Being aggressive is a good thing but if your opponent comes back at you with a raise, get out of the hand. Never pay to see if your opponent is attempting a bluff.

Middle tourney strategy

Most of the fish and bad players are gone by now, but watch out for those lucky stragglers who could bust you with a bad play that turns out to be a very lucky play. If you’re holding a strong hand after the flop, force your opponent to pay to play. Never give away that free card on the turn unless you’re sure you have the nuts. Giving that free card could be giving away the hand. Don’t bluff too much. If you end up getting called on a bluff at this level, you’re likely going down. Don’t go on tilt. If you’re chugging along and suddenly get ripped by a bad beat or a bluff, keep your cool. If you go on tilt, your stack will be in big trouble.

The final table

You’ve finally made it and have the big money in your sights. Try and throw in some semi-bluffs when the betting is low, or everyone’s in the mood to check. You’ll be able to steal a few pots like this, and if you hit one of your outs you could be in for a nice payday. Watch out for raises or check-raises when you’re semi-bluffing. Calling this is usually a big mistake. Pay close attention to chip-stack size at this point. If you have more chips than your opponents, use your chip power to push them around with larger-than-normal bets. If you have a good hand, don’t be afraid to bet the size of the smallest stack at the table. If a small stack goes all-in, make sure you have a great hand before calling. The short stack will hardly ever bluff this late in the tourney.

Think you’re any good? Try your luck at this online poker site!

The poker boom has caused a huge spike in the number of people who play poker. This gigantic rise in player numbers has been felt especially online. A larger number of players get into poker because they see the pros making millions on TV.

Most of these televised poker events are tournaments, but most online poker players will have to play in ring games to make their bankroll show continuous growth. This is where the problem comes in.

A ring game and a tournament are two very different things and need to be played differently. In a ring game you have to be ready to really grind if you want to make money. This means patience, perseverance and repetition. Luck still plays a part in ring games, but not as much as in a tournament.

The key to raking in big cash in ring games is basically to win as much money as you possibly can with your premium hands, while avoiding big losses with your mediocre and trash hands.

Showing a profit in ring games takes a lot of discipline no matter what limit you’re playing at. Whether it’s limit or no limit, the deployment of smart disciplined play will be the key to cashing out with a profit. The key to discipline is consistency. If you can continually play the odds correctly, you should in the long run come out ahead. If you’re on a draw with a 75 percent chance of making it and you continuously go for it when the pot odds are in your favor, then you should ultimately make your draw and hit your winning hand 75 percent of the time. As long as you’re making maximum value on these wins they should more than make up for the losses you sustain when you don’t hit your draw.

This is what playing smart is all about. Poker techniques like pot odds and reading the board to determine the nuts are essential to making the right decisions. Making the right decision is decisive in a tournament, but in a ring game it’s the difference between your stack growing or shrinking.

Tournament play may seem more exciting than ring games, but if you want to be a consistent money-maker at poker, ring games are the real way to go.

Play free online poker here, and if you’re looking to make some extra cash playing online ring games, try here.