Why I love Poker:

[boose_bagina]

because of guys like my friend. This is an excerpt from an IM conversation we had:

Him: I just started playing poker online
Me: Good for you, what are you up? [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]
Him: I'm down $200
Me: thats sucks, what are you playing?
Him: 5/10 on party
Me: hahaha, thats why.
Him: Yeah, it sucked. This one hand I had 7/4 and the flop comes 74Q. I ended up losing like $70 because the guy ended up having like threes Q's
Me: What the hell were you doing playing with 74(off or suited)?
Him: Whats wrong with 74? and it was suited
Me: Its a bad hand
Him: Why is it a bad hand?
Me: are you serious? alex, read some books or websites or something, and don't play so high, sit down at like the 0.5/1 tables.
Him: Nah, I'm too lazy. I'm gonna put another $200 in the acount tonight and try to get it back, I'll let you know how it goes.


...I play home games with this guy during the school year, and none of this surprised me. Worst of all, this guy isn't a donk either, he's pre-med. Anyways, its guys like this that make poker so enjoyable for me.

Cheers [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[Uglyowl]

7-4 seems a bit extreme. People have a hard time believing Q9 isn't a great hand, but 7-4?

[boose_bagina]

i wish i was joking. later on, his reply was, they could make a straight or a flush

I take offense to this post. "Four 7 Offsuit" is one of my AIM handles [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

[CORed]

Hey, any two cards can win. I mean, how would you feel if you folded that 74 and the flop came 774? [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

[MicroBob]

i don't know why you would take offense.

he was playing 74-SUITED....not 7-4 off.
They're completely different!!



When I dealt blackjack for a few months I dealt to lawyers, doctors, etc who all believed in 'hot-shoes', 'not taking the dealer's bust-card' and other such ridiculous myths.
As well as playing numbers in pretty little patterns on the roulette board because there's a better chance of it hitting (or something weird like that).


Even some math students fail to come to grips with some pretty obvious stuff in poker and gambling.


These are NOT ridiculously drunk or stupid people.
They have income and in their occupations do such things as performing surgery, saving your ass in a court-room if you're sued, flying airplanes (my sister's boyfriend....who swears by his 'system' for beating craps because a pit-boss told him), etc etc.


When it comes to general probability and the like some people are just plain stupid.



An intelligent news-anchor on CNN was interviewing Phil Gordon I think about his book and asked some general questions about winning poker.
Phil dumbed-it-down of course and said that to win you want to be 'tight and aggressive...meaning that you are so tight that you are probably playing fewer hands than your opponents...,meaning that you will fold more...but when you do play you are going to raise with them more often.'

now both anchors were stunned.....'you mean to win you want to play the LEAST hands and fold MORE??'
they couldn't understand how this could be possible.
they thought he ws on drugs.
many people are that way.


they just don't realize that only playing 20% or so of your hands is the way to go.


MANY MANY people will continue to play in home-games and will NEVER get it.
The games will CONTINUE to be profitable.


(your friend sounds similar to a friend of mine who always seems to struggle with his $200 buy-in's at 5/10)

[theblitz]

$200 at 5/10? doesn't know much about bankroll requirements either.

BTW, you should have asked him for his poker handle "So I could see how you were getting on" [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

[imported_leader]

"I'm gonna put another $200 in the acount tonight and try to get it back, I'll let you know how it goes."

So how did it go? I'm willing to bet that $200 is lining some shark’s pocket.

[GMan42]

[ QUOTE ]
"I'm gonna put another $200 in the acount tonight and try to get it back, I'll let you know how it goes."

So how did it go? I'm willing to bet that $200 is lining some shark’s pocket.

[/ QUOTE ]

The great thing is, if he hits just a moderately good run of cards while he plays any two, he can double up or so pretty easily...then starts thinking "what the hell does my friend know about what good starting hands are. Pokar is easy." This is what keeps the fish hanging on the way they do.

[MicroBob]

[ QUOTE ]
then starts thinking "what the hell does my friend know about what good starting hands are. Pokar is easy." This is what keeps the fish hanging on the way they do.


[/ QUOTE ]


yup. many many fish think this way.
they remember the one time that they kept hitting and they convince themselves 'well, all I have to do is play like I did when I won REALLY BIG like that.'