I
recently had the opportunity to watch a new version
of tournament poker called speed poker. The
format I watched was played using Texas holdem,
with pot limit betting before the flop and no limit
betting after the flop. Each player had 15 seconds
to act, or their hand was automatically folded,
and each player had a time bank they could activate
if they needed extra time. Once all of the time
was used in the time bank, they could not use it
again. The game required two dealers to keep on
top of the action and the tables started six handed.
This speed poker format was very interesting to
watch, as the game moved along at a very nice pace,
and it reminded me of playing online poker.
Players
who play online have the advantage of being used to
acting quickly over their opponents who play mostly
live poker, but remember that online players often have
tells because they don't have to hide their emotions
when they are in front of a computer like when they
are facing real opponents. I am sure that online poker
players will only have an advantage over players of
close to the same skill level. Professional poker players
tend to be able to adapt to most situations quickly,
and they have the advantage of being able to quickly
determine pot odds and the correct play.
Speed
poker is not widely available at this time, but
I feel that it has a good chance to catch on because
it is more entertaining in many ways than regular
tournament poker, especially for spectators. If
you want to sharpen your skills for speed poker,
here are a few tips you can do to improve your chances.
·
Play tournaments online, where you only have 20
to 30 seconds to act.
· Practice quickly determining pot odds.
· Always pay attention to all of your opponents.
Any small tell or playing tendency that you can
pick up can make the difference between winning
and losing an entire tournament.
· Practice in high-pressure situations. The
lack of time in these tournaments to make decisions
builds a great deal of pressure into the game.
If
you have a chance to watch a speed poker tournament,
I highly recommend it. As a spectator or a participant,
you will probably enjoy it a great deal. Until next
week, good luck at the tables.
You
may also be interested in. Poker
Knowing When To Quit
By watching these things, you will be able to
reduce your losses during these sessions by correcting
your mistakes or quitting. Common
bluffing tricks and techniques for Texas holdem
Attempting to induce a bluff is not always successful
and requires a solid understanding of your opponents
betting tendencies and playing style. No Limit
Texas Holdem Heads Up Tournaments
This type of structure is fairly new in comparison
to multi table Texas holdem tournaments, but has
been around for a few years. Poker
Stakes Disregard And Play Like A Pro
The best players are able to completely disregard
the stakes, or amount of money in play. This may
seem like an easy thing to do, but it is not.
Working
your way to the World Series of poker
Satellite tournaments require a slightly different
strategy than normal tournaments.
