Straddling in poker greatly increase the excitement within any poker game. This action is typically performed by an Under the Gun player in a community card game. Yet some poker game rules permit ANY player to straddle before the hand while allowing unlimited subsequent straddles leading up to the hole cards being dealt. In this article, we’ll define what straddling in poker is, outline the mechanics behind this poker action, and explain the reasons why it may — or may not — be a good fit for your favorite poker game. Poker Straddle Explained: What is Straddling in Poker? A poker straddle is ..read more

Poker Hand Rankings are extremely important when playing the game we all love. Without a firm understanding of card rankings, players are left wondering which combinations will result in the best poker hands and which cards are the weakest. If you’re completely new to the game of poker, you may want to consult a poker hands chart that’s printable and easy to read. You may also want to look at a poker hand rankings PDF file if you’re online. In this article, we’ll explain why poker hand rankings are important, how to print out your own chart, and explore other beginner tips for playing poker ..read more

How often do you cbet the flop? If you’re a live player, just estimate this. Is it 25% of the time, 50% or even 80% of the time? And if you’re an online player, just take a look at your statistics. This is one of the things I love about playing online: PokerTracker 4 tells me exactly how often I make every play. Through 15K hands played so far this year, I’ve cbet the flop 65.77% of the time with a win rate of +216bb/100 hands. In real world terms, I cbet about 2 out of every 3 flops and I earn 2.16bb on average each time. You generally want to cbet the flop around 60% to 70% of the time. In o ..read more

Online poker tournament players seeking maximum value can sign-up now for a WPT Global account to get rake-free MTTs from now until April 28th! That’s right! From now through April 28, 2024, all funds used to buy-in to WPT Global online tournaments will go directly towards the prize pool — no fees or commissions involved! Click here to become eligible for rake-free online tournaments. This exclusive offer applies to Multi-Table Tournaments (MTT) played on the WPT Global site from authorized jurisdictions, and will expire on Sunday, April 28th. WPT Global Warm Up Festival Players can win prize ..read more

In just a couple weeks, the 2024 Spring Edition of the Malta Poker Festival (MPF) is set to get underway. Thousands of hopefuls will descend upon the Portomaso Casino from April 22-29 to compete at one of Europe’s most highly anticipated poker stops and was recently nominated at the Global Poker Awards as the best standalone festival. Part of what always makes the event so festive and popular is the fact that many partner-branded events are incorporated under the Malta Poker Festival umbrella. To get a better sense of how those partnerships come together and how the multiple organizations ..read more

I’ve just returned home from the work-ation of a lifetime. Having never really been on a mega-cruise before, there was a lot that I had been looking forward to on the 2024 WPT Voyage, but even with my anticipation at peak levels, the week-long experience honestly just blew any expectation I had right out of the water. I’ve covered many poker events over the years and I’ve become pretty adept at striking the right balance between fulfilling my work commitments and enjoying downtime. I must admit that this was probably the biggest (and, well, only) professional challenge I faced while aboard the ..read more

The RunGood Poker Series (RGPS) heads to sunny California for an 11-day live poker tournament festival next month that will be chock-full of mixed games. Specifically, poker players will be greeted with five unique mixed game events at the Graton Resort and Casino. The four-star complex is located just off the Pacific Coast near Santa Rosa and offers a poker tournament atmosphere that is ideal for mid-stakes events. There will well over a dozen Ring events held between May 2nd-12th at the RGPS Graton tour stop. Moreover, the No Limit Hold’em RunGood Main Event will begin on Friday, May 10th, a ..read more

The 2024 WPT Voyage has officially arrived back at its starting destination, having awarded over $1.5 million in total cash prizes and crowned several new World Poker Tour title holders in the process. Following is an event-by-event summary of the live poker tournaments that took place on Virgin Voyages’ Valiant Lady cruise ship between March 31st and April 6th, 2024. 2024 WPT Voyage Main Event Winner Aram Oganyan | Image Credit: WPT Flickr 2024 WPT Voyage Tournament Results Live poker tournament action began on the evening of March 31st Eastern Time with the $2,500 buy-in No Limit Hold’em T ..read more

A Full Boat in poker is one of the most powerful hands in terms of poker hand rankings. Most commonly referred to as a “Full House,” a Full Boat is defined as a five-card poker hand that contains Three-of-a-Kind along with One Pair. For example, if you have three Tens and two Nines, then you have a Full Boat: Tens over Nines. And vice-versa: if you have three Nines and two Tens, then you have a Full Boat: Nines over Tens. But why is this hand referred to as a Full Boat (or simply a “Boat”) when playing cards? We’ll answer that question and talk more about this unique poker hand in this article ..read more

The 3-bet is an important tool for aggressive and deceptive poker play, but not many beginners spend enough time getting to grips with the concept. Essentially a re-raise made before the flop, 3-betting used correctly can isolate weak players, help build a larger pot with a premium hand or become part of an extended bluffing strategy. But how does it work? That’s where we come in. Keep reading for a comprehensive guide to 3-betting in poker. We’ll explore the basic mechanics, main advantages, potential pitfalls to look out for and how to optimize your 3-betting for maximum effect. What is a 3 ..read more