Gaming Today

Logic vs. intuition when playing poker

Recently a good friend with whom I serve on the Board of Directors of an engineering society gave me a box full of old Poker Digest magazines dating back to 1998. The publication was later sold and is no longer in business. A number of the issues included columns that I had written. My photo […]

Knowing the basics of poker is paramount

Recently, I wrote a column that explained that while you cannot control luck, you can influence it to favor you. I recognize that playing poker is a matter of probability — chance in a mathematical sense. The probability of winning will increase when you start with a strong hand vs. a weaker one. Playing Texas […]

Scout paytables before playing casino games

You may recall in the Feb. 19 issue of Gaming Today, I wrote about fellow columnist Elliott Frome’s advice to “Scout out paytables before sitting to play” games in casinos. While you cannot beat the casinos, some do pay better than others. This applies to all casino games including poker. Some poker rooms have more to […]

Poker has its own unique language

Poker has a unique language all of its own. How would we communicate without the special poker terms? When I attempted to list them, before I finished the task, I had counted well over 100 terms that we use on a more or less regular basis. Some are used so often that we just accept […]

Luck does have a seat at the table

Like it or not, luck plays a very big role in the game of poker. What is “luck?” Awhile back, we defined luck based upon a study by Professor Richard J. Wiseman: “Luck is success or failure brought about by chance rather than through one’s one actions.” Professor Wiseman heads the Psychology Research Department at […]

Some sage advice from a fellow poker writer

Jonathan Little is one of my favorite poker writers. I never miss his columns in the Sunday editions of the Los Angeles Times.   His Jan. 19 column caught my attention. I had to stop and ponder. Let me quote: “In poker, before you make any bet, you should stop to think about what the result […]

Remembering poker legend Johnny Hale

Oklahoma Johnny Hale, the highly acclaimed poker celebrity and pioneer and longtime columnist for Gaming Today, died in late December at the age of 92. He may not have been tall in stature, but he was a giant of a man for all he contributed to the poker world. Check Out More Poker Here Hale […]

Many ways for poker player to succeed

I always enjoy Elliot Frome’s columns in Gaming Today. Recently, he wrote a column advising casino players to “Scout paytables before sitting to play.” He observes how difficult it is for the players to go home winners – practically impossible in the long run. The casino take is formidable. That’s true in every game you […]

Don’t be blind to both big and small blinds

Blind bets are used in Texas hold’em to get chips into the pot before the cards are dealt out. They are compulsory. Usually there are two blinds — the small blind and the big blind. For example, in a $4-$8 game, the small blind (SB) is two $1 chips placed on the board by the […]