The Poker Lab Rat

POKER.COM is Brisbane, Australia based & licenced by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, Canada.

POKER.COM - for beginners
This site is friendly and offers all the features of the tougher online poker rooms but seems to not only attract a nicer crowd but it also has some unique stuff built into it’s unique poker software to help you get a better handle on the game. Play features like ‘All in show downs’ add some fun as you follow hand %s - just like on TV! We like this poker software a lot.

When you join Poker.com you get entry into the $500 NEW PLAYER FREEROLLS for 7 days.  (The $500 NP Freerolls play daily and $500 NP Freerolls play every 3 hours each day)  Freerolls are a big feature at poker.com in general though with a freerolls tournament at least every 2 hours 24by7.

This poker room is also good for cash games and making money… once you’ve got your poker sealegs!

POKER.COM competition - the ‘fish factor’
A Poker.com advertisement asks “Want to play with the pros? Why? When you can win $ off the rookies that play at Poker.com!” - this effectively summarises the level of competition at the Poker.com poker room. In general we have found play fairly soft & passive. Friendly too.  Gameplay is smooth & fast with easy competition at low to mid range tables.

POKER.com - The Bonuses
As all poker rooms offer these here are Poker.com’s December joining bonuses:
100% first deposit match bonus, up to $200 FREE. (ie if you deposit $200 that’s $200 free). Plus entry to a $1000 Freeroll of your choice. You need to enter bonus code “100FIRST1K” when making your initial deposit. The bonus payout has some play through requirements ($1 bonus paid per 250 comp points).

2007 Aussie Millions Satellites - you can still be in to win a $12,500 package! (WSOP and WPT Satellite entry also available via Poker.com)

OK, your can visit Poker.com using the link below or read the 2 poker room reviews provided for more info.

>>GO TO Poker.com
>>READ Poker.com review 1
>>READ Poker.com review 2

Hope to see you at a table!
Elle

We hear a lot of whinging from poker players wanting to win big but not finding the right opportunities to do so. Cash games are great for day to day profit but in my view you do need to get into tournament play to make the break into professional poker proper.

I recommend the Aussie Millions as a great poker opportunity, and we have several of our PokerLabRat.com team playing in it.

Do you fancy a VIP trip Down Under?  Eurobet Poker are offering TWO packages worth $15,000 each to play in the Aussie Millions Poker Tournament at the Crown Casino in Melbourne, Australia. (That’s a trip for 2 with accomodation, spending money and of course buy-in to the big event).
 
The Aussie Millions is the Southern Hemisphere’s premier poker event with a prize pool of more than AU$5,000,000 (that’s around 3 million Euros or a tad over 2 million GBP).

Eurobet Poker is offering all their online poker players the opportunity to play for one of two VIP packages worth $15,000 each. There are several ways to enter, including a free-entry tournament every Monday. 
 
Register for any of the ‘Aussie’ poker tournaments under the ‘Tournaments’ section
Play - win - fly!

It’s that simple! 

PS: Eurobet Poker is undoubtedly one of the best poker rooms on the internet! (But unfortunately they are unable to accept USA Players)

 Up to 20,000 players online
 A 100% first deposit bonus – up to $600!
 Highly safe and secure software
 

PPS: Full Tilt Poker still accepts US Players and is also offering you the opportunity to enter the Aussie Millions. If you’re US based, have a look HERE at Full Tilt for details. 

Tournament Multi-player Blackjack is a lot like poker!  If you like to gamble at the Blackjack tables then read on… this blog is for you.

There’s a new kid on the web - Get21.com Blackjack Tournament Room.

At Get21.com you play against other players, not the house, for a prize pool of cash. There is no such thing as ‘house odds’, and Get21 is not a casino! They are however all above board and fully licenced in Kahnawake, Canada as a specialist virtual Blackjack Room.  

The usual Blackjack card room rules apply, and even though you have to beat the dealer’s hand - the strategy is actually in staking chips to make sure that you outscore the other players on the table. (If you want to win money anyway). Blackjack Knockout tournaments are fast and fun.

Multiplayer Tournament Blackjack is much more like online poker than casino Blackjack play. You select a Blackjack game from the range of options in the Blackjack Room Lobby and buy-in to play, just like poker. Each player is issued with 1000 chips and games can run across multiple tables. The winner is the player with the most chips at the end of the tournament. Some credible $$$/£££/€€€ on offer.

Try something new - the minimum deposit is only $20… In fact, if you’re in quick Get21.com will bankroll you the first $10 in a real money account. That’s $10 free without a deposit. (This special offer applies for the first 1000 players onboard and it’s filling up fast!!!)

>> For more information read this info sheet HERE

>> Visit the Get21.com Blackjack Room

Some tips on playing better online poker from the infamous Doyle Brunson of Doyles Room Poker

Watch Opponents Early Action Choices. 

There is something I find useful about pre-select buttons. They can provide tells. Watch the speed with which someone acts. If a decision is pre-selected, then it usually will occur instantly when the action reaches the player.

I say “usually”, because the occasional lapses in Internet communications mean that sometimes there will be a delay, even if the action has already been chosen and the software is trying to respond immediately.  Most of the time this delay won’t happen, and you get some information because of the opponent’s use of these special buttons.

The main thing I keep in my head is that when an action happens instantly, it’s probably a result of pre-selected action. Why would an opponent pre-select? There’s only one reason I can think of. The opponent knows that he’s going to take the action, no matter what anyone else does in front of him. That puts an added emphasis to that opponent’s decision, in my mind.

For example, what if no bet is due and an opponent instantly checks? Chances are, the player has determined in advance that he is going to check. At Doyle’s Room, he may have selected either the “Check/Fold” button, which is a typical choice, or the lesser-used “Check/Call any” button. It is probable that the “Check/Fold” was chosen, and, if that’s so, then I can assume that the instant check means the player likely would have automatically folded if there had been a bet and I’ll give the players less credit for having a strong hand.

Other Tells
Similarly, if an opponent raises instantly, I’m pretty sure he intended to raise no matter what, and that usually indicates a very strong hand.

There are other tells you can divine from these pre-selected buttons, when you take the time to think about what an instant action means. If an opponent seems to frequently use the pre-select buttons, but occasionally hesitates, you can figure him for a type of hand where the decision is not obvious. So, always consider what an instant action –or the lack of one – might mean.

Doyle Brunson

>>To read a comprehensive review on Doyles Room Poker see HERE.

>>To visit Doyles Room click HERE.

>>To see a summary of the top 4 sites for poker still accepting US players see HERE.