I went to Borgata recently and stumbled upon their no-limit table with 1-2 blinds, $60 min/$300 max buy in. They were trying desperately to get ppl to play, so I obliged them. Was lots of fun esp for someone used to 2-4 3-6 (which is like watching paint dry at times), but ended sadly after having doubled up my stake and then busting out the very next hand going all in with AK suited vs a 6-6. Having just doubled up my meager poker stake, I thought for a second that I should just be happy and coast for a while but I guess you gotta keep playing the odds. Painful way to end the night though
They have those games here in Vegas too ($2-$4 blinds, $200 buy-in, and higher). IMHO, the game should not be played as a tournament, but rather as a cash game; I therefore would never go all-in pre-flop with AKs, or almost any other hand for that matter, unless I wanted an excuse to go home or double up. I would leave the all-in stuff for the post-flop situations where I feel I am significantly more than an even money favorite. FWIW, I don't like (or play) this game too much.
In poker, especially NL hold'em, every decision is situational. In one online tourney, I once folded QQ when someone went all-in because I was close to getting into the final table if I just hung in there for a while. You have to decide what is the best move in that particular situation (your ranking, your opponent, your objective and the likely outcome of your move) and choose appropriate action. And you should never torture yourself with hindsight (should've, etc). Going all-in preflop is inevitably a gamble, no matter what the odds. I found that I lost more all-in with AA than I should have....
OK, wish me luck...I may need it.... we are having a Bright poker game...$100/$200 "hold-em" at my brother's house. 10 of us to start with...BT traders, family etc. I'm hoping that they all go out drinking before the game.....I, of course, will be in Church praying (praying to win) (oh, come on, I'm just trying to be funny, not sacrilegous)....LOL I'm hoping that the $100/$200 will be converted down to a smaller denominator, but with my brother, I never know... Stay tuned!! Don
The other night on the WPT, Mike Sexton mentioned that the famous director John Huston used to serve vodka for his poker buddies while he was downing shots of H2O.
Update: I moved down to $10 and $5 SNGs and have been doing well. Especially on the $5 tournaments the level of players is low; I can be sure of increasing my stake by playing enough games. But the payouts are so low that the hourly income is insufficient. So I have to get better and move up to the $20 tables.
On what channel and during what week is the Bright Poker Game scheduled to be aired? Let's see...ESPN, Bravo, Travel Channel, Game Show Network, The Casino and Gaming Television Network... No wonder (it is rumored) Bob has an exclusive, plush Gaming Parlour/Theatre fully-studio-configured in his elaborate, new-home design plans...