James Bond and gambling have gone together since the beginning. In the first scene of the first book, James Bond is introduced in a casino. Today is no different, with real-world spies playing roof-top or back-room poker in war zones and hot-spots around the world.
Matching skill and wits against your opponents, the current game of choice in casinos around the world is Texas Hold’em. Hold’em is not a game of pure chance, and you’re playing against other players instead of the house. This gives us the best of all worlds.
This is a game of skill, and that skill can be mastered with minimum effort, provided you follow a proper training progression.
POKER BASICS
You need to start with understand the basics of the game.
- The dealer is marked with a dealer button that rotates clockwise through the players (whether you’re playing a home game or with a table dealer at a casino).
- The two players to the left of the dealer put in blind bets. The player directly to the left of the dealer puts in the small blind, and two places to the left is the big blind.
- Every player is dealt two cards face down. These are called pocket or hole cards.
- The action (first move) starts with the player to the left of the big blind. They can fold, call the bet, or raise the bet.
- Other players follow suit, folding, calling, or raising.
- When the first round of betting is complete, the dealer deals three cards face up in the center of the table (board). This is the flop.
- These cards are community cards. Everybody is using their cards, plus the community cards, to make the best hand possible
- After the flop there is another round of betting. Each player can check, bet, or fold.
- The dealer deals one more card, face up on the board. This is the turn.
- One more round of betting.
- The dealer deals the final card, face up on the board. This is the river.
- Final round of betting.
- The remaining players show their cards. The best five card hand made up from their pocket cards plus the cards on the board is the winner.
- In rare cases, the five cards on the board will be the best possible hand. If this happens, the remaining players split the pot.
POKER HAND RANKING
From highest to lowest:
Royal Flush — An Ace-high straight of one suit.
Straight Flush — A straight of entirely one suit.
Four-of-a-King (Quads) — Four cards of the same rank.
Full House (Full Boat, Boat) — Three-of-a-kind, plus a pair. The example provided would be called “Queens over Aces” or “Queens full of Aces.”
Flush — Five cards of the same suit.
Straight (Run) — Five cards of sequential rank. Note that in hold’em, Aces can be high or low.
Three-of-a-Kind (Trips, Set, Triplets) — Three cards of the same rank.
Two Pair — Two cards of the same rank and another two cards of the same rank. The example hand would be called “Kings and Queens.”
Pair — Two cards of the same rank.
High Card — When you don’t have any of the above, your highest card determines your hand.
With the basic rules taken care of, it’s time to start training.
POKER TRAINING
When you know the rules and how the game is played, you will want to start with learning the proper tactics – what starting hands to play and what not to play – until these are second-nature. Books like Winning Low Limit Hold’em will tell you what you should be playing, while software programs like Poker Genius and Poker Snowie will let you play up to two hundred hands per hour. This will help you quickly gain an understanding of what starting hands to play and the flow of the rest of the game.
At this point, you’ll need to get out there and start playing for real to fully gain an appreciation for the play of the hands, and knowing how your position at the table affects your strategies.
When you begin to get a feel for the game and are usually one of the best few players at the table, it’s time to move up levels. If you started at the $2/$4 table, it’s time to move up to the $5/$10 table and repeat the process. You need to hone your skills playing against others as you continue to learn the odds and intricacies of game play.
You can continue this process as long as you’d like, but it doesn’t take very long to reach a point where you can make $20-$50 an hour playing mid-stakes limit poker. At this rate, one night at the tables could pay for the cruise you’re on or the weekend in Vegas, while making you a consistent winner among friends, family, and most others you’re likely to casually play with.
QUICK-START GUIDE:
To get started playing – and winning – today, pick up Winning Low Limit Hold’em , Small Stakes Hold’em: Winning Big With Expert Play, and an app like Poker Genius or PokerSnowie.
Find a poker room, house game, or start your own by picking up a poker table top, chip set, and cards.
Play tight, play aggressively, and advance as quickly as possible as long as you’re staying profitable.
More information and the complete training plan is available inside the full Gentleman Spy Program.