blonde poker forum

Thanks very much to The Camel for agreeing to go into the Well. This will run until Sunday, when Keith leaves for Vegas.

The Camel has been a fixture on the poker circuit for a number of years. Cutting his teeth in casinos in Reading in the 1990s, and at various times being an odds compiler and sports gambler, Keith graduated to play in poker events worldwide. He has amassed over $700,000 in live tournament results, and most recently finished 4th in the Amsterdam MasterClassics for $150,000 plus. His live schedule is somewhat curtailed these days though, I assume due to the arrival of his first child Jake in the last couple of years.

Online, predominately on Stars, Keith is reported to have won over $250,000 since 2005.

A much respected and acerbic poker writer, with a regular column on The Hendon Mob and in Cardplayer magazine he also wrote a blog which, while active, was a must read.

To quote from an interview on Poker Verdict

"The Camel is eminently qualified to speak about poker, which he does with clarity and good humour on The Hendon Mob's website. One of his articles - "Playing Poker For a Living... Or At Least Very Seriously" contained a dozen insightful tips for the top amateur considering going pro. In it The Camel was not only honest about losing a "five-figure sum" at the craps tables following a poker bad beat; he also neatly summed up the positives of making a living from the game.

He wrote: "Don't become one of those bad-tempered gits who play because they have to, not because they want to. Playing poker seriously is a great life; you will meet some fascinating, interesting, funny and bizarre people. What is the point of giving up work to do something so risky if you don't enjoy it?"

Keith also supports Queens Park Rangers.


Over to you for questions......

Keith

If you could have any other kind of lifestyle apart from being a poker player, what would you choose to do?

I like your quote about bad tempered gits and playing because you want to. How do you handle bad tempered gits in live games?

Mad

Keith, you've always been very strict on your views of players like JJProdigy and ZeeJustin, how do you think that poker and it's community can weed out the cheats? Also what do you think to Bodog signing ZeeJustin, and also (before I hog all the questions) what's your opinion on JohnnyBax signing with UB?

Would you sign with UB yourself? And what is your view on the current "legal" card rooms out there?

Hi Keith, isn't it about time you made your annual blog entry ? I for one really miss those ruminations.

Any chance of a Vegas blog this year ?

Hi Mad,

I have recently been reading some books by an American writer called Charles Bukowski.. he neatly explained why I hated working in the "real" world. (Apologies for the language involved, but in context of his writing it fits in well...)

"The Florida State Department of Employment was a pleasant place. It wasn't always as crowded as the Los Angeles office which was always full. It was my turn for a little good luck, not much, but a little. It was true that I didn't have much ambition, but there ought to be a place for people without ambition, I mean a better place than the one usually reserved. How in the hell could a man enjoy being awakened at 6:30am by an alarm clock, leap out of bed, dress, force-feed, shit, piss, brush teeth and hair, and fight traffic to get to a place where essentially you made lots of money for somebody else and were asked to be grateful for the opportunity to do so?"

My brother fits double glazing for a living.. he works 12 hours a day/ 6 days a week. He gets paid pretty well, but he never gets to see his kids. On Sunday he just dozes in front of the telly, he's so tired after his weeks graft.

I have been extremely lucky. I have been at home seeing my son grow up. I wouldn't have traded that in for the world.

When I was a kid, I was desperate to be a journalist.. I worked a summer at my local newspaper. And I must admit I left disillusioned. According to the main staff reporter  (a guy who had worked in journalism for 30 years+), the editor (an irish woman in her early 30's) was by far the most talnted journalist he had ever worked with. However, as she wasn't a "face" and didn't know anyone on fleet street she couldn't get a job on a National. (She had applied hundreds of times). It is a career where who you know is more important than what you know...

I did fulfill a lifelong dream when the ill fated "Sportsman" newspaper published a double page spread written by me. I was unbelieveably proud.

So, in answer to your second question, if I couldn't be a journo, I would have to work from home doing something (preferably self employed).. I would rather earn less than give up my interaction with Jake, my son.

The large amount of miserable gits at the table is one of the reasonsI have played very little live poker recently (I have only played 3 tournaments so far this year). I can't understand why winning players would moan about bad beats/ bad players etc... If there wasn't bad beats, bad players wouldn't play. And obviously the better player you are, the more bad beat you will suffer.

If you are terrible player, you will never suffer a bad beat, because you will always be going into a pot with the worst hand!

If you don't enjoy playing poker, leave it to us who do, so we aren't inflicted with your gloominess!

Hi Keith,,,

Stan Bowles  or Rodney Marsh ?

Hi Chris,

I think there should be a zero tolerance policy on cheats. Once a cheat, always a cheat in my book.

It's not like you can cheat by accident, and it's not like stopping JJ and ZJ from playing poker forever will totally ruin their lives. They are very bright kids and will succeed in another profession.

As for bodog signing ZJ, I could never play at a site which condones cheating so obviously. I doubt they will miss me, but I certainly won't miss bodog.

I think the community has done pretty well outing cheats, it is up to the sites and cardrooms making sure they are excluded from playing.

I lost all respect I had for Bax when he signed for UB. He was vocal in his support for ethical poker and yet when the $$$ came calling he took them from a site which had a superuser for 18 months+ and tried to cover it up. For Hellmuth and Duke not to say anything was not a suprise, for Bax to join this site was a great disappointment to me.

Guess that answers part 1 of my question :)

You've been known to have the odd punt in the past, do you still bet regularly?, whether for fun or for profit.

Absolutely no chance of me signing for UB.

I really don't understand this great attraction for poker players to be sponsored. Surely the reason most people give up work to be poker players is the chance to be your own boss, do exactly what you want, when you want and generally stick 2 fingers up at traditional life.

Yet, when you sign to represent a site it's like taking a job.

I was offered a sponsorship deal a number of years ago. It was an excellent offer but one of the conditions was that they had editorial control of my blog. There was no chance of me giving that up!

Now, for the run of the mill players, I guess accepting a deal that helps you carrying on playing poker makes sense.. but why someone who has just won $5mill plus by winning the wsop would want to be told what to do by a poker site, where and when to play... is totally beyond me. They have just earned the right to be their own boss for the reast of their lives and there are giving this up for the price of a few buyins. Unbelieveable.

I play 95% of my online poker on Stars.. they by far the best imo. Their customer service is second to none. I once accused two players of colluding ion a game against me.. they took 2 weeks to investigate, but their respose was an email as long as your arm detailing all the times these two guys had played against each other. They concluded that they could see why I thought they were colluding but didn't believe they were. It was a truly amazing response and although I was disappointed they didn't agree with me, I was massively reassured by their investigation.

I can't see the point of playing elsewhere when I'm so happy playing at Stars.

Hi Ralph,

Because I don't play so much nowadays I lost the enthuisiasm to write a blog.. I was actually considering restarting it for Vegas (I'm going for 5 weeks.. by far my longest ever trip to Vegas, and I might need something like a blog to keep me sane).

No promises, but maybe the ruminations might restart!

Hi Booder,

That's easy.

Bowles.

Marsh might have nearly been Stanley's equal on the pitch, but he's proved with his actions off the pitch over the last few years he's an arse who've I got no respect for.

Now, if your question had been "Stan Bowles or Simon Stainrod?". I would have been pondering that one for many hours!!!

If you call every day regularly, I guess I bet regularly  ;)

Actually, I have made more money betting than playing poker since Jake came along.

I just don't get the idea of betting for fun. Where is the fun in losing?

Would you rather have $200 sent to your stars account or collect £100 in person to see my face?

What advice would you give to someone considering 3 betting your utg raise?

Hi Keith

1. Take us back to those early days at Reading. What grounding did it give you in poker? At what point did you decide you could branch out and play bigger buy-ins in different venues? At the time was this justified by your record or were you just hooked?

2. Do you still play better after a few beers?

3. Is it still Hold Em for you? Not Omaha or other variants? Why?

Are you still good friends with Jim Britton?

I'd rather wait til I see the pain on your face as you hand me 5 crisp twenties.. and if I'm in a good mood I might even spend the oner on a nice bottle of bubbly.

You'll learn not to take me on at prop betting!

Don't do it.

I'm an absolute rock, and if I'm raising UTG I've got AA or KK.

Probably.

Now I know that to be slightly suspect in a hand that I had the privelige of seeing you play against Jennifer Harmen in the Bahamas........Sevens springs to mind.

Favorite live comp and why??
Is there anywhere you would not play??
You have the opportunity to invite three people round for dinner. Who and why??

Hi Richard,

1. I would be mightily suprised if there has ever been a harder school at £5/£10 levels than those days. Regular players included: Bob Coombes, Tony Chapman, Simon Trumper, Simon Eastwood, Nouri, Neil Channing, Graham Pound and Mike Magee. Check out what these guys have won away from Reading. I sat in these games for a couple of years and just watched and learned. I tried to incorporate little things I admired from all these guys games and gradually moulded all I saw, plus a few tricks I devised into a game of all of my own. I started to hold my own, then even beat the game.. and I realised even then, if I could win at Reading I was good enough to win anywhere.

The game was totally different back then, and the style I adopted was pretty successful. I was wildly aggressive and almost seen as a maniac.. But, people were scared to play pots with me as they never knew which 2 cards I was going to turn over in a showdown and I got away with stuff I would never get away with nowadays.

I had a HUGE edge back then, especially before I became better known.


2. I have always played my best poker when inebriated. It takes away my inhibitions and I play more carefree poker. The best I ever played was in the first ever big tournament at the Bellagio (3k entry). On day 1 I must had drunk 30 budweisers. Nearing the end of day I was ordering two at a time because the waitresses were taking too long to come back to the table. And I was totally devastating the table, raisng virtually every hand and blasting players out of pots. It was great. I came back for day 2 and the reality of how much we were playing for had sunken in and I played like a wuss, hardly playing a pot and limping into 6th or 7th place.. very disppointing!

3. Virtually play nothing else apart from Holdem. Stud is a memory game and at my age, memory isn't my strongest point. Omaha is a game for rocks and I haven't got the patience for it. And I lose far too much playing Hilo anything to contemplate ever playing it again!!! Holdem is the perfect poker game imo. You can be successful by using a wide variety of tactics and it more a mind game than a card game. How can both tikay and Julian both be winning players? They play totally different games yet both win. That's part of the joy of the game.

one more then Keith


you play less on the UK circuit these days. Is this entirely due to Jake and your desire to be at home or is it a reflection of any views you may have on playing the circuit now compared to say 5 years ago?

as a supplementary, which events are you playing in Vegas and do you go there with a genuine positive expectation? 

Ha I was rather thinking "entirely ignore me and look to your left in case someone acting behind has a monster"

I had QQ in that hand with Jennifer. She reraised me so much preflop (almost an overbet if I recall correctly) I certainly didn't think she had AA and almost certainly not KK. So i shipped it in. She had the boots :(.

The other questions I will need some time to think about.. I'm going out for a few hours and I'll mull them over!

Hi Keith,

Non poker questions if thats OK.

Are QPR worth a punt for Championship title 08/09?

What's your opinion of the new owners of Rangers? Good for the game or just dabblers who could get bored easily?

Who's the most loyal R's fan you or Andy ward? :)

Good luck in Vegas...

Hi Keith, thanks for doing this.

A a sports bettor what areas do you specialise in and do you bet racing aswell, in the Betfair age do you think the edge that experienced punters have is taken away with the markets being far more readable to everyone than say 5 years ago?


Do you stake players or have regular swaps when you do play live?

What do you consider to be the most common mistakes that cash players make in tourneys and visa versa?

If you were offered a 6 month affair with a page three model that had a QPR fetish in bed or a 6 month 10% of Thewwy which would you choose?

thanks and gl in Vegas

Ahhh my old mate the Bandit.

Whatever became of him? Did the men in white coats finally catch him?

Hi Keith,

What are your 5 best Vegas tips.

Favourite Live comp: Honourable mentions for Monte Carlo and the Vic but top of my list is definitely Amsterdam. Added money in the main event, plentiful comps for food and drink for the players and the only place you aren't too upset when you get knocked out of a tournament.. the extra curricula activity in Amsterdam is better than the poker!!!

Where I would not play: I don't like private games much. They rely on credit and I have seen alot of peeps get in far too deep. Plus the rake is often outrageous. As for casinos/cardrooms I don't like Vienna's concord  card club much.. Horrible place, plus I have never seen a visitor get a ruling in his favour when up against a local. I don't like the casino at Barcelona very much either. The rake is bordering on criminal and you never hear anything in the poker press about safety. I know of 4 players who have been mugged outside the casino. Why aren't potential players told? Well, the reason must be that the casino is very liberal in its treatment of poker journalists. The journo's realise if they write something negative about the casino, they will probably be shut off from getting freebies in the future. It stinks.

Three people for dinner:

So hard to decide this.. I had to have a poker dinner party and a non poker party..

Poker: Asher Derei - My poker mentor. He took me under his wing when I first started travelling to European tournaments and taught me so much I couldn't hope to ever repay him. A free dinner is the least I could do!

Carl McElvey - An old time road gambler from Texas. Not as well known as brunson or Johnny Moss but every bit as good a player. More amazing stories from the olddays, would keep us entertained all evening.

Alan Vinson - The funniest man on the European poker circuit bar none.


Non poker: Stephen Fry - funny and intelligent. A British institution

Tony Benn - Always admired him. Conviction politians like him give me faith in politics.

Keira Knightley - Simply devine.

What is your opinion of the aviation club charging an annual membership fee to gain enterance?

How do u see the future of uk casino poker?

Who do you think is the person behind the Poker Bastard?

I would say that the reason I don't play as much now as I did was 90% the arrival of Jake.. I just have no desire to be away from him for long periods of time.. however even if he didn't exist I doubt very much I would be be playing as often as I did then.

The reasons? I hate the way many players behave these days. whooping and hollering when they win a pot.. it's like they've just scored a goal in the FA Cup final. People seem to have no empathy these days. Also, I really don't think my edge is so big these days, with expenses and  increasing buyins you really need a huge edge to justify travelling long distances to tournaments. And I'm certainly not as good a player as I was 5 years ago and the standard of opposition has improved enormously. For exaple, I used to think the main event at festivals at regional casinos used to be the best value on tour. Lots of players not used to playing deep stacks and slow clocks. Now all that seems to have changed. I played the GUKPT at Newcastle last month. I played on 4 seperate tables. Facing about 35 opponents there was only 1 genuine ice cream and maybe 3 other weak spots. There were at least 10 players I would rate as very good or better. Now that isn't a very good ratio in my book. The casino must take a little of the bvlame for running ZERO super satellites. But, the fact is young players in particular are just very good. They have learned in a couple of years what it used to take 20 years to learn. The internet and all the learning materials available have alot to answer for!

My two main tournaments at the wsop are the 10k heads up event and the 10k main event. I played almost exclusively heads up poker last eyar and I'm pretty good at it. I'm actually pretty proud of my sharkscope graph! I really think I have a considerable edge here. Plus the main event is the one tournament where everyone who is capable has a HUGE egde. Apart from that I will play between 6 and 8 small no and pot limit holdem events and hope I run good. I would like to think I have a small +ev but even if I don't I doubt I'm -ev.

Hi Keith,  Hope the family are keeping well.   Any thoughts on the football starting this weekend. For the last few events..world cup etc their seems to be good odds available on match betting. I think their are a few real opportunities to buy money.

Hi Simon,

QPR definitely are NOT worth a punt at the current price of around 8/1. We may well be owned by 2 Billionaires but they don't seem inclined to spend much of their wealth on high class players. Clinton Morrison and Sammy Clingan (is he any good?) were not the sort of names we were hoping for in the close season. Samuel Eto and Francesco Totti would have been more like it..

We were in massive danger of going bust before they turned up, so they can't be all bad.. but I'm sure they aren't the second coming of Abramovich. They are businessmen pure and simple.. in it for the money.

I have a season ticket at Loftus Road even though I live 300 miles away.. think that qualifies me as more loyal than Mr Ward, don't you? :)

Hi Phil,

Long time no see.. trust you and the family are tickety boo!

Basically bet on any sport that I have an interest in.. so apart from Motor Racing and boxing... that's just about everything!

I think in many ways it is easier to win today than it was when I started.. as long as you don't set your goals too high. I think I could win £500 per week with my eyes shut just arbing between Betfair and the traditional bookies and betting in dodgy each way races. It really is easy as long as you're not too greedy.

If you are betting straight up, I think it is more important than ever to go against the crowd. Regularly on betfair selections which are "sexy" get overbet massively and although the shrewdies had a value price, the sheep often take rotten value and you are more likely to get the value on the other options.

I have staked players in the past. My three criteria in order of importance for deciding whether to back someone are: 1. I trust them. 2. I like them. 3. I think it's a winning proposition. I'm prepared to waive number 3 if I'm doing well and I'm staking a friend.

I have been extremely lucky in my swaps with other players. I had 3% with James Vogl when he won his bracelet, 2% with Neil Channing when he won in Ireland, 3% with Stuart Fox when he came 2nd at the WSOP last year, 5% with Bushy when he came 2nd at the wsop etc etc. When I've copped a result, it seems like I've had few if any swaps! I don't have anyone I "always" swap with, usually just whoever I have a beer with the night before or see in the 15 minutes before a tournament starts.. just pretty random really.

In the old days, cash players used to be far too tight in tournies.. but I think that is changing. As I said in an earlier answer I think the vast majority of players are at least competent now and many are very good or better.

If you swap page 3 girl for Keira Knightley or Angelina Jolie I think I would have to say sorry to Mr Thew....

Keith
What are your views on the decision to delay the main event final at this years WSOP?

Can you remember Mo  'come to poppa' Fard from Tiberius in Southsea and how did you rate his game?

Ok here goes:

1. If you are playing table games make sure you get your play "rated" and only play good value games. ie don't play roulette with 00 (there are single 0 roulette games at Bellagio, Monte Carlo and the Wynn) and don't play blackjack when the dealer draws on soft 17 or you don't get the surrender option.

2. Make sure you have dinner in the revolving restaurant on top of the Strat. It's a bit pricey but the views at dusk are absolutely stunning.

3. Best lapdancing club is Spearmint Rhino. But don't go on either Friday or Saturday night. Far too busy.

4. Don't be afraid to complain if there's something wrong with your room. You often get a free upgrade.

5. Phone the cardroom of the hotel you want to stay in and ask them to book you in at casino rate. You often get your room at about 2/3 the price of the standard rate.

I must admit I hadn't heard about this. I like playing at the aviation, it's kinda like a 1920's gentlemans club. Very classy with a great restaurant. But, I certainly wouldn't pay an entrance fee to join a club in order to pay a fee to play poker.

I think uk casino poker while not doomed, is clearly uncertain. When the casinos are allowed to get unlimited slot machines, they've got to find space for them somewhere and the men with calculators will look at the figures and see the poker rooms are the least profitable part of their business and might be tempted to scrap them.

This happened before the poker boom. My favourite cardroom at Reading was closed to put in more roulette tables.. yet because the regular punters who came for poker then stayed to play the wheel stopped coming the casino soon emptied. It is vital that some poker friendly people are in positions of power within the casino industry.

I sat next to him at a tournament at the Vic late last year. He revealed himself. It is nobody who has ever been linked with the crime. I was very suprised, but I can't tell you who it was!

Hi Denis,

I have had very lump bets on Portugal at 8/1 and Spain at 13/2. Purely because they are in very easy groups and should qualify for the 1/4 finals impressively. The plan is to lay them back at much shorter prices and have a very nice little freeroll.

It won't be the last time one of my plans goes pear shaped!

Cheers Keith, the family are all good with the liitle un learning a new trick everyday we are loving parenthood.

best of luck in Vegas

Dreadful decision. I wish I had the willpower to say "fuck 'em" and boiycott the event. But, I just can't bring myself to.

Harrahs don't give a damn about players and the so called player committee are just a bunch of self interested nodding dogs. They should be ashamed of themselves.

Mo was a great character and I used to love being on his table.

It is guys like Mo that poker is sadly missing today.

It's very sad that the guys from the Matchroom crapshoot farce tournaments are considered characters.

::)

hey big man,
please excuse the anal nature of these...oh yeah & if i could get a sharpish repsonse to the last one  ;popcorn;
what's the best part of your live game?
what's the best part of your online game?
what's the worst part of your live game?
what's the worst part of your online game?
i'm dithering over tonights tea; stir fry or baked potato w cheese n beans?

Never mind all these poker questions Mr H.  Tell us about the jobs you did before becoming a tax dodger ... I would particularly like to hear of your time at Blue Squirrel ... That IS a funny story :)

Who would you say is the most under rated player in poker

are there any big name US players that you think are just hype and you would love to be locked in a room with

is there anybody that you dont wanna play HU  is there a limit to how high you would play someone HU

Hello Keith,
1. To what extent (and how prevalant) do you think foul play exists in live tournaments?
2. You forgot to mention the 6/5 payouts on the vegas blackjack?
3.  If your physical read says 'fold' but all the other evidence in the hand (including the maths) suggests a call, what % of the time do you fold?
4.  Where is the best place in the world for players to take a busman's holiday? (in terms of minimal playing effort to cover X's and quality of resort)
5.  Please decipher the following speech play.  blind v blind, minimum pot to the river.  Board JTTQ3.  SB who has pretty much been mute with ipod/asleep now unplugs and says "I can only win this by betting" and bets the pot!  You have 98 in the BB and have a little more than a legal reraise in your stack?

One firm have you at 15/1 (I took 17/1 with them 2 days ago), I don't want to run the risk of having my post deleted so PM me if you want to know who, or check out the easyodds comparison site.  By mid June I think you will be pleased with the signings.

Re poker - Do you offer coaching?

What is you faveourite bet of all-time?   Not necessarly the biggest win, but the most satisfying?

In order:

1. It used to be accumulating chips.. but now I'm older and more responsible (code for tighter and rockier) it's having the image of a lunatic which means I am more likely to be called down light early in tournaments when nowadays I am only sticking all my chips in when I've got the nuts. Usually.

2. Playing heads up sngs.. I think there is a formula to beat these.. and it seems not too many people know this formula. I think I have a pretty sizeable edge against most players in these (esp in turbos) and particularly against heads up cash games specialist.

3. Definitely not turning big stacks into big results. I am definitely guilty of having frozen at final tables when big money is at stake. The 2002 final of the European Poker Classics at the Vic and the 2006 final of the MasterClassics at Amsterdam particularly stick in my mind as ocassions when I totally bottled it.

4. Getting distracted in online tournaments. I'm always doing other things while I play online poker.. Whether it is betting on horses, watching a movie, tracking football scores or perusing a porn site eating dinner.. it all means I am not concentrating on the job. And when there is often tens of thousands at stake, that is criminal.

5. Bit late for last night's dinner menu.. but a baked potato with butter, chilli con carne and topped with grated cheese sounds pretty good to me.

My working history is a bit chequered to be honest.

Before going to college I spent one summer being a gopher at the DHSS.

After leaving college I played quiz machine for a living for 3 or 4 years.

Then I was cashier in a bookies for about 6 weeks.

But my mightiest job was as an odds compiler for the glorious at the time fledgling internet betting site: Blue Squirrel.

A pretty fair description of my time there can be found here: http://camelpoker.blogspot.com/2006/11/alternative-wikipedia-entry.html.

The rst of my life has been spent tax dodging indeed!

1. Chris Bjorin. I have never seen his name in anyone's list of top 10 players. He just sits quietly and unassumingly and wins. He has been a huge winning player for as long as I've been playing and probably much longer. And he's a top quality bloke too.

2. Loads. I'll pick 10 for starters: Men The Master, Clonie Gowen, Vanessa Rousso, Paul Wolfe, The Grinder, Amir Vahedi, Phil Gordon, Moneymaker, Greg Mueller, Andy Bloch.

3. Most of the higher stakes hu players on stars don't play each other. there really is little point. Why play someone who you have a neutral ev or -ev (after rake) when you can play a random in 2 minutes time? The best player I've played hu was Genius28. He was awesome. He spanked me 9-1 or something until I asked him not to play me any more. He has since left my level wayyy behind and he takes on Ivey, Hansen and the rest in the big game on ft now. And he's not 21 yet. Scary. I have only once played a 5k hu on stars. I was playing a guy who I thought I had a huge edge against. Yet, playing for those stakes I played far too tight and lost. I rarely play above 1k now. When the money means something, I just can't perform at my best level.

Hey Camel, you serious about the quiz machines? in the 90s these were really beatable...often paid for my Friday nights out at the end in the takeaway, my fave been Every Second Counts where most times my 50p would result in a £15-20 win (very nice in 1995!) as it was always about Films that I knew, other good ones were Coronation Street and Give Us A Break...the machines were fair and if you had the knowledge you had a good chance, the ones in pubs and takeaways are now just guessathons with questions such as:

How long does Blurs Song 2 last?

A : 2.00
B : 2.01
C : 2.02

...and this is when you get to the £1 level!

Easy question.  The answer is A.

Next.

WRONG!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blur_%28album%29    ;nana;

Don't you love wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_2

WRONG!

Ha! Ok...got the Cd out put in player...2.02 FTW!!!!

CORRECT!

Album version or single CD version?

Lol there is only one version of Song 2...give it up son... ;djinn;

Is there?

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dg4aPJ93b8o


Anyway, I haven't asked The Camel a question yet.

Who, in your opinion, is the best British poker player in the following categories:

1.  Holdem tournaments
2.  Holdem tournaments/cash
3.  All forms of poker

?

Looool....but thats You Tube video not the offical audio track on Cd...the answer is 2.02, I ty!

Hi Simon.

Tough questions!

1. I have only ever experienced one form of foul play in tournaments. Namely soft play. And many of those who indulge in this practice honestly don't believe they are cheating. However, I'm sure more serious foul play does occur, Negreanu accused Men the Master of being the beneficiary of chip dumping and Paul Maxwell almost certainly suffered against team play in the final of the 25k wpt champinship a few years ago. Cheating like this should be punished very heavily, although actually proving foul play is mightily difficult.

2. Well, I assumed anyone bright enough to be reading blondepoker would be bright enough to avoid this abomination!!! (code for: yes, I forgot this!)

3. Against an unknown opponent I would call 100% of the time. I think tells against strangers are mightily overrated. The problem is different players offering the same tell, can be doing for it for really diverse reasons. For exaple there were 2 guys in Reading who used to shake like a leaf when they were in a pot. However, one shook because he had a huge hand and was scared of the opposition folding and the other guy shook when he was bluffing and was scared his oppo would call. This is an extreme example obv.. but while I would go with a tell 100% of the time against some opponents, against guys I had never played before I would use all other evidence before resorting to using some tell to make a decision.

4. Tough one. The games at the Crown Casino, Melbourne were incredibly soft (and I'm informed outside tournie time they are even softer!). However exe's are extremely high there.. but Oz is a great country and it's definitely worth a visit!

5. Very very tough. I think I probably call for reasons outlined above. Having said that, a quiet guy suddenly becoming chatty is as a reliable tell as there is for him having a monster. But, he could easily be thinking any ten is a monster here.

15/1 might be a smidgeon of value, but if I was pricing the league up to 100% (this is modus operandi to unearth what I consider value bets) I would make QPR 12 or 14/1. I have already had a very small wager on Charlton at 25/1 in the Championship. That was value I think.

I have helped a couple of guys, but nothing long term as yet. I do play unconventional poker and for me to coach a player longterm I think they must have a similar mindset to me. I really couldn't coach a rock to play a diametrically opposite style I don't think.

Very tough question.. I couldn't choose one, so it's a deat heat between:

1. One day in June '88 I did my cobblers at Windsor races. I was crying in my beer in the pub just outside the track when this guy started talking to me..
"What's up son?"
"I've just done my bollocks at the races"
"I'll tell you something to cheer you up"
"Go on"
"I work for Major Hern and we've just started working a two year old called Nashwan. He is amazing, I haven't seen anything like him since Brigadier Gerrard. Have a few quid on him to win next years Derby"
Well, for the next year, every time I fancied wasting a few quid on a throwaway lucky 15 or trixie or whatever I had the cash on Nash the dash to win the derby, Guineas or doing the double.
I was very happy come the first week on June 1989!

2. I was watching the Davis Cup final in 1994.. Sweden beat Russia in the final. Magnus Larsonn was a journeyman pro around that time with a huge serve. He won both his singles matches in the final playing tennis I didn't think he was capable of. He was outstanding. The week afterwards was the Grand Slam Cup for the top 8 players in the world. Larsson didn't qualify by right but a few players dropped out and he was called up as a reserve. At the time Sampras and Agassi totally dominated mens tennis. However, I felt Larsson could go one of two ways. Maybe after his triumph in the Davis Cup he would be mentally and physically exhausted (after all the partying!) and perform dismally. Or he could continue playing like a man possesed and do some damage. At 80/1 I took a chance and had a right lump on! He became the first man to beat both Agassi and Sampras in a tournament to lift the title and I won enough to buy a new car!

Hi Keith
Did you prefer the WSOP when it was Downtown or now its at the Rio

Whats your favourite restaurant in Vegas and your favourite bar

Best thread of all time.

Hi Keith, fabulous read this, ty.

If you're winning HU poker by a little known formula, how does someone like Genius28 beat you 9-1?  Not being funny, just wondering how he could beat such a strategy 9-1? 

What does he do that's so much better? (suppose that's a silly one, if you knew you would've beat him)

Thanks

stoneii

Thanks Keith,
Re: Qu5 from me, I did call and it turned out he was telling the truth!

Next one:

There's been a raise by player A and a re-raise by player B before it gets to you.  How often (number of times per tourny or number of tournys per time) does the opportunity arise for you to smash it in without much of a hand?  What criteria need to be in place for you to be confident of getting it through and which is singularly the most significant?  Your stack or theirs, or do both need to just right?  When you spot these occasions and it looks like the right play, what % of the time do you make the play and what % do you 'bottle it' a la LIDO?  (I assume that's the sort of 'bottle it' you referred to?)  Do your cards matter at all?  To what extent are you looking for some sort of 'backup in case I get called' hand or will any two do if the right situation arises?

Ta!

Brian Robson

Bryan Robson.

As a result of this thread i have now discovered your blog and enjoying it lots.

Do you think that that in on-line poker the RNG actually gives you random cards and that there is no difference at all to live poker?

Any views on this WSOP ME FT debacle?

Hi Sledge.

If you think the mid 90's were good you should have been around in the mid 80's!

The machines (such as ten quid grid, bar quest, blockbuster etc) only had about 1000 questions each. Within a couple of weeks I would learn the entire bank of questions and then I could literally play the machine until I had emptied it of money. I used to make £100+ every lunchtime, then proceed to the nearest Ladbrokes and blow the lot.

Making all that money so young (I started playing quiz machines when I was about 18 or 19) really meant I have never had any respect for money. How could I slog at some crappy job I hated for £150 a week when I could go to a pub and earn £50 an hour playing a trivia machine?

The machines these days are totally crap. They have banks of 10,000 + questions and change the difficulity of the question if you start showing some expertise.

The manufacturers have succeeded in stopping the pros beating these machines, but they have also turned off the casual players who liked to actually win a couple of quid now and again. Now, noone plays them.

aye, mucho respect  ;hattip;

Hmmm definitively saying who is the best poker player in Britain is a virtually impossible question. There is a (ever growing) group of at least 20 players who when playing their "A" game could justify being called the best player in Britain..

I think a fairer way of doing this would be to say who, when arriving at my table, when I've got a big stack of chips would make my heart sink the most..

1. Ram Vaswani. Never ever lets down the pressure. If you're in a pot with him, your whole stack is at risk and he can turn up with any 2 at any time. A total and utter pest.

2. Ben Roberts. God this man has more patience than Job. Never seems to put his chips in a pot in  bad situation and is the best example of using game selction to his advantage. Would rather drive 100 miles back home without playing a hand than sit down in game where he isn't a considerable favourite.

3. Chufty. I don't play many other games (if you ever see me in an omaha game rush to get in the game.. I'm usually there because I'm on raving tilt) but every time I watch Richard play he's getting the absolute lot. He's a monster. Vastly underrated in tournaments too, he will get a big result somewhere soon, provided he keeps his enthusiasm for poker.

Hi Craig,

Long time no see. Up for a few racks of pool at Tilted Kilt this year?

No contest.. downtown was better for me. There was a camaraderie between the players that seems to have totally disappeared these days. Many a riotous evening took place at either the Horseshoe or Nugget bars. It felt like everyone was in it together then. Nowadays people stay in small groups and there is virtually no boozing.. shame.

Favourie restaurant. For views the restaurant at the top of the stratosphere. For food.. the Japanese at Bellagio.

 :dontask:  what a waste


when in Ireland, guinness or lager, gl in vegas

Hi stoneii,

It's not exactly a little known formula. It isn't rocket science, but few players have the gall to try it..

Genius was/is the best exponent of this strategy. He also used techniques I haven't seen before or since to counteract my strategy.

If I played him again, (thankfully he has agreed not to take me on!) I would try something different.

If I decided I had a hand I wouldn't mind taking him on with I would make a big overraise, meaning he would have to play for all his chips.

This is definitely the best strategy against someone who is outplaying you. And this is why I saw nothing wrong with the guy pushing in with T4 against James Akenhead, who was clearly outplaying him. If your overmatched, play big pots!

I'm ashamed to admit I can't drink Guinness.

When I was a student I won a pub quiz, where the prize was as much Guinness as I could drink that evening. I could only manage a half :( I know, I'm a wuss.

Thanks for the good wishes Dewi.

This is an great example of how poker has changed. 6-8 years ago I would make plays like this very regularly. And would only be called by AA or KK. The amount of times I was shown QQ or AK in this spot as they folded would make you shudder. Nowadays, player A would call me down pretty light (TT or AQ) while player B would call me down with a VERY wide range of hands (KQ, 66 etc etc). Hence the conditions have to be just right to pull this play off. The raise sizes have to be a correct % of stack size.. the players have to be capable of making a laydown and the time in the tournie has to be right (ie near the bubble or a significant jump in prize money). The cards are irrelevent, indeed I would rather make this play blind in case I give off any tells..

Hi Keith, great thread!!

Certainly gave me an idea of what to expect when i finally agree to do an 'in the well'

I'm doing my first vegas poker trip in 4 days time, playing mainly the venetian & ceasers deep stacks.

What advice would you give in terms of how to approach these tournies and the type of standard i may expect to come up against.

Finally, u said u would struggle with stainrod & bowles, what if you had to choose between bowles & dichio?  ;)

thanks in advance

vinny

Tilted Kilt has been closed down, replaced by a crappy mock Irish bar called McFaydens.

p.s Genius28 is old enough to play the WSOP now, so you might want to avoid him if you play the HU event!!

Genius28

(http://www.pokerkingblog.com/images/chris_genius28_lee.jpg)

SNIPER IS OBV THE BEST EVER IN ALL FORMATS, IN FACT IVE HEARD THE TEXAS DOLLY HIMSELF STATE"IM NOT FIT TO TIE HIS SHOE LACES"....

 rotflmfao ;dingdell;

Hi Keith, I hope are well.

Do you think there is a difference between the top UK/European players and the very top players from the US in terms of the standard of play?

Have you found as you've got older and wiser that some players from your generation have tightened up to not only adapt to the game but because they have more to lose now/they aren't as fearless?

In your past, when you've had bad downswings, did you have trouble with moving down levels?

As a neutral, what is the best poker game/session/hand you have witnessed?

Who is your tip for Euro 2008? (sorry if you've been asked this already)

Very much appreciated

By far the easiest question I've been given.

I'm 1000% sure that RNG gives out random cards.

If you want to worry about anything, worry about collusion. Much more likely than a bent RNG imo.

Another example of Harrah's screwing the players in order to make a few extra quid.

Imagine the stress of trying to sleep at night for 3 months knowing you are chip leader in the ME. Might well send some players insane.

Hi Vinny,

If you're on the direct route..  it looks like we'll be on the same flight!

Not sure what size stacks you play online, but the standard in the comps you'll be playing will be significantly lower than, say, the 100rebuy on stars.

99% of the good players will be playing the wsop. You'll be left with a nice mixture of rocks, calling stations and maniacs.

Play tight early, move through the gears in levels 3-4 and then abuse the bubble period liberally.

You'll do fine.

Dichio carved out an entire careeer from one goal (it was an amazing strike away at Wolves). He got a transfer to Serie A on the back of it!

That's because I had 10% of you, you choker.

Typical Titmus.

First post for 3 years is a rubdown.

A brilliant read this thread has been. A few small questions from me if that's okay?

1) When it was first announced that poker could be played online; a) what was your initial reaction? b) how long did it actually take you to embrace the online game? c) what was the highest stake you could play?

2) You have talked about Keira Knightley and Angelina Jolie as two of the hottest ladies around (can't disagree with you). But without getting you into too much trouble, who would you rank among the top 5 best looking lady poker players?

3) How long did it take you to get used to the new attitude of SOME poker players - with the whoops/hollas etc? When exactly did you notice the change? Would it be around 2003 WSOP ME time or before that?

4) If you was only allowed to play in one tournament ever again before saying farewell to poker, which tounament would you play in?

5) Run it once or run it twice?

6) Greatest lay down you've ever made?



Cheers,
Baz :D

Thanks for a very entertaining and insightful well Keith.

All the best of luck in your quest for the big score in LV, and please keep us posted if you can find the time.

Ralph

Hi Aaron,

I do think many of the so called "top American" players are over rated. They have a much bigger culture oif celebrity and all it takes is one or two big results for a guy to be a "star". And of course, virtually anyone can win a tournament or two. The way the regular players treat the big names over there is amazing.. I remember sitting at wsop table with Hellmuth a couple of years ago. Some guy said "I hope I lose my chips to you Phil, at least it will make a good story for the guys at work". And proceeded to give him his chips! In Europe it is totally different. The big names have to fight harder than anyone for chips because everyone want to knock them out and knock their ego down a peg or two!

I think that's the same in any walk of life. When you're young you can take risks because you have no responsibilities and if it all goes pear shaped, you can can start all over again. When you reach a venerable age (like me!) you have more things to consider. I have to make sure there's food on the table and money in the bank to pay the bills. Hence I am much more risk averse than I was 20 years ago. I alos tend to think I was a much better player when noone knew who I was than I am today.

I never had trouble moving down in stakes at all... as long I was still in action!! Having a big ego is the most expensive failing in gambling. If you are playing above your bankroll you will almost certainly play scared, losing poker (unless you are a total sicko like RiverDave!). Better play within you roll and make logical decisions rather than let yourself be bluffed out of potsw because if you're wrong about calling you can't pay the electricity bill.

I will never forget the way Phil Ivey played in the Grand Prix de Paris in 2003. It was before he was acknowledged as the best player in the world. I was sat at his table for about 10 hours and he drove me absolutely up the wall. Every time I had a hand he folded, every time I was bluffing he reraised me. It was amazing. He totally and utterly owned me. He actually bubbled in this tournie after taking two horrendous beats, but I have honestly never seen a poker performance like it.

I haven't studied the Championship too deeply but I have had 2 outright bets.. I've had £3,000 on Spain at 6/1 and £2,000 on Portugal at 8/1. Not because I particularly fancy these two sides, but because I think they are very likely to trade at considerably shorter later in the tournament. Indeed, I've already laid off my Portugal bet at 11/2 so I win £5,000 with no risk if they land the trophy...

What a great post! (Football aside, I don't do football)

Thanks for this well Keith, I've enjoyed it immensely.

My question.

Did you know that despite us having completely opposite opinions in many things, and having knocked a fair few sparks off each other in the past, I Have always liked you as a person and respected you as a player?

1. I was really sceptical at first.. I was concerned that the game might be bent and really didn't trust the sites would just do a runner with my money. I started off playing very small and not risking too much money. I soon loved it. Playing poker in my boxer shorts without anyone complaining. Bliss! I used to play $10-$20 heads up limit holdem against Erik123 in those days. We used to play marathon sessions of 8-10 hours sometimes. While he's kicked on to be a muliti zillionaire, I'm still skint!

2. Ha! I can't possibly comment except to say Jennifer Tilly is pretty damn amazing seeing as she's older than Tikay. She's a pleasure to play with too, no airs and graces and really good fun.

3. I still haven't got used to it. I hate it. Winning a 50:50 shot is not reason to jump around like a goon. You actually haven't done anything great, except get lucky. So many players have got absolutely no empathy these days. When you've won a big pot and given yourself a chance to win a big tournament someone else has just had their hopes crushed and feels absolutely dreadful. Put yourself in their shoes for a minute, will they feel worse if they see you overcelebrating? If yes, don't do it. There will be plenty of time to celebrate at the bar later, sitting at the table isn't the time for whooping and hollering imo.

4. Hmmm. My favourite tournie is the Mastclassics of poker at Amsterdam. They treat the players superbly (added money, lots of comps and great staff) and the city is great fun. Although there will always be something special about the wsop however much Harrah's try and ruin it, I think Amsterdam would be my last ever tournament.

5. I would never ask to run it twice but if someone asks I will say ok. I like everyone at the table to be happy and will go out of my way to do this. If a player, (esp someone who is losing) wants to run it twice, that's fine by me. I was once playing omaha at the Commerce and all the money went in on the turn in a pot. We turned the cards over and he wanted to run it twice. He didn't notice he was drawing dead! I said ok and obv, I won... 10 minutes after the pot was over he realised he couldn't win!!

6. I am not exactly known for my great laydowns! I always think the opposition is probably bluffing and call them down!

Great response - ty muchly.

Now be sure and take one of them bracelet thingys home!

Thanks Tom, I've actually really enjoyed doing the well. The questions have been excellent and really got me thinking. I did one on 2+2 about a year ago and the questions were mostly banal and tedious. I knew I could trust blonde to come up with something more interesting!

I really thought you believed I was a jumped up git who just argued with some of your posts just to be contrary.

You are a treasure to blondepoker and I don't think you realise how much duller this place would be without your contributions. They are gold pure gold. (except for the ones about tournament structures! ;sleep;!!!). And you should definitely play the wsop main event. Sooner rather than later. There isn't a tournament on earth you would be better suited to.

Puke

Keith's week in the well is up to day and I think we'd all agree its been an excellent read, so questions today only please

thanks to him and good luck in Vegas.

Hopefully he'll add a post or two to the well when he is Stateside to let us know how things are going

One last one from me - Keith, when you sit down at the table at the start of a game, do you always behave in a standard way - I mean do you sit back and do some watchfull waiting (unless you get a big hand) to suss out the other players or do you bring a variety of approaches? I'm talking about playing with folk you probably don't know much about. Is it different when you do know the opponents?

thanks

Mad

Good point, well made.

Are you going to sign up to the soccermanager.com blondepoker league?

Cheers Keith, really enjoyed reading this thread.

C'MON THE Rs  :)up

What is your opinion on player/player staking for tournaments? Have you ever staked players for a long period of time?

Do you think you will play poker/sports bet for the rest of your 'working' life or do you think you will reach a point where you have no real need to make any more money?

What is the best advice you could give to me?

In ure opinion what is the best/ worst sport to trade on?

Any memorable lays or plays or big touches?

Last 1 Keith any advice for a novice looking to lay and trade more serious on betfair, Any books or sites be helpful.

Cheers,

GL in Vegas!

Hi Mad,

I'm going to answer this question as though you are talking about tournaments.. I don't play much cash.

How I approach a new table is almost entirely down to how many chipsw I've gt in comparison with both the average in the tournament and the average on the new table.

If there are lots of young scandies, I will definitely have a smaller range of raising cards, but a wider range of reraising cards.

If I have lots of chips I will be very aggressive and also call alot of raises with marginal holdings as long as I'm in position.

If I am about average, I will sit back and wait for good spots.

If I'm below average, I'm going to aggressively look for a double up.. I never get anted away!

I have no clue what this is??

I only stake players if they fit all of these criteria.. (in order of importance) 1. I trust them. 2. I like them 3. I rate their game highly. I am sure staking is a profitable excerise for the right backer/backee partnership, while I haven't found the right players to go into long term staking arrangements, I have put alot of players in individual tournaments or bought pieces in big tournies.

I don't know. At the moment it suits me as I love being home and watching my little boy grow up. It's something lots of fathers miss out on. I'm very lucky. but, when he goes to school I might seek a new challenge.. I'm not sure what, but something might just pop up.

The best advice I could give you is quit taking me on at prop bets. You can't win!

The absolute worst sport to trade on is horse racing, especially low quality racing. There are too many plots and non triers. If you don't have the right information it's very very tough to beat. And don't even think of betting in running on horses.. Some peeps have the racetech pictures which are upto 5 seconds in advance of the pictures from Racing UK or ATR. You might be betting on a horse who has already fallen!

The best sports to trade on are usually the ones you know the best.. For me it's NFL and Championship football. I devour huge amounts of information on both sports and if you are better prepared than the guys you are taking on, it can only be an edge. American football is a great sport to trade in running on betfair because the market usually massively overreacts to a score or a turnover. In a game where 50 points are expected, a touchdown is imprtant, but nowhere near as important as a goal in a football match. If you watch the betfair markets you wouldn't believe this!

I'm getting old.. so the list of memorable touiches is quite long... but I don't seem to have any of the money some of these provided me with: Duke of Monmouth in the Triumph Hurdle, Remittance Man in the Champion Chase, Stockport e/w at 150/1 in Div 3 of about 1984, France to win the Euro championships, Red Star Belgrade to win European Cup, St Louis to win the Superbowl, Nashwan to win the Guineas and Derby, Magnus Larsson to win Grand Slam cup..

God. How have I managed to spend all that???!?!?!?

I think the best way to start is to stick £20 in betfair and just try playing very small on sports you follow closely. Try and work out trading techniques that suit your temprement. Books won't help I doubt. You need to find your own niche.

That's it I think.

Off to Vegas in the morning. Great questions and I've really enjoyed being in the well.

Thanks for all the kind comments and hopefully I can actually come home with some $$$$ for once!

a brilliant read mate, thanks and good luck.

all the best in vegas keith!

Just read the whole thread, great read.
Good luck in Vegas.

Good luck in Vegas Keith. If you read any of this back then i have something to add. A good sport to bet on is darts! The bookies hardly ever get it spot on and there is easy money to be had.

;)

Cheers Camel... NEXT!

great read keith! - enjoyed it very much

;goodluck; in Vegas

good luck over the pond!

nh wp gg

Hi, ignore please if asked before, but why do you play so many NLHE heads up turbo sngs? What is the main feature that allows you to dominate them?

Keith, did you go to Danny Maddix's Testimonial in 2000?

Keith, have you got any money on QPR getting promoted this year? Who do you see as biggest rivals?

hi Keith enjoyed reading you in the well,
i used to have a few bets in running on the horses in UK racing near the end of a race,,stopped when i found a lot of the bets which won where never matched,no surprise most of the bets matched where losers,when you say some people receive pictures 5 sec before racing UK viewers.do you mean the time difference between terrestrial TV and digital when race is on BBC or c4