The Poker Pirates

Pirate Aid

Admiral Jay's Strategy on:

Plundering Poker Bonuses
First I want to reiterate what all professionals have been saying in every book. Hand selection is very important. This is also true with my tactic. The hand selection in this strategy is very limited and so this is a very tight approach. The object is to eliminate the rake and by playing minimal hands, starting with optimal hands which have a higher percentage of winning, showing strength that will place fear in opponents, and cutting out weak hands that may be subject to draw-outs.
Important requirements for this approach. First you will need enough time to implement this to your opponents. Make sure you have at least 2 hours to play. Full table- 7 or more players. Patience and discipline is a must.

Position

Position is very important to every poker game. I simplify the positions so there is little determination by other players on what hand you are holding. First, split the table into halves using the button as the divider. Try to split the table is half according to the amount of players. The blinds and the first few people will be First Position. Leaving the last few and the dealer button as last position. Position is important because you gain more information on players that are just after the button opposed to people that are in later positions. Now consider your position and the strategy associated with each.

Pre Flop Strategy

First Position Hand Requirements: AA, AK, AQ, AJs, KK, KQs, QQ, JJ, TT, 99 - These hand are going to be your premium hands. You raise with these hands and re-raise with these hands. These hands are most of the time percentage favorites over all other hands. Remember show strength with these hands because most people will mistake strong plays for weak plays. If players think you only raise and re-raise with premium hands they begin to fear what cards you are playing.  This increases the value of your table appearance.

Last Position Hand Requirements: All premium hands with a few more additions. Ace suited with any card, all pocket pairs, KJs, QJs. We will call these other hands: mid range hands. The premium hands you always play the same raise and re-raise. The mid range have a few more rules attached. If nobody has entered the pot you raise with these hands. This gives the illusion that you have a premium and you are ready to take down the pot.   If anyone has entered the pot with a raise just dump the hand. As far as your opponent knows your dumping rags. If there are many limpers then call with these hands.   Because there are so many mid range hands you should be able to limp in often enough without ruining your ultra tight image.

Post-Flop Strategy

Most flops should have you in the lead, so anytime you fire a raise you will have the dominant hand at the time. Raise after the flop if you hit or miss you want to represent strength still. 3 Reasons for this:

If you hit your pumping up your pot.

You are showing strength for a made hand. opponents will remember this and be afraid of what you are holding. If they have no chance they will probably give up the pot.

If you have been always raising on made hands then the ones you miss will appear that you have hit again.

Do not try to fancy play made hands. Example: You hold AK and flop K, 7, 2. You lead from the beginning and should continue to lead. Even if you flop a huge hand still play it strong. Example: You hold JJ and flop A, J, 3.   A fancy play may be to check and hopefully someone hit the ace so you can re-raise. A fancy play here may give away more information then just a straight forward play. It perhaps will cost you money too because in the last example you come out with a bet, then the ace decides to re-raise you. Here is where the play gets interesting. You then have the opportunity to jam the pot once more adding one more bet to the pot or just smooth calling for a check-raise on the turn. If you have more players calling maybe jamming, which is re-raising is the better option. If you are heads up or 3 handed maybe a smooth call is better. But both will show strength and always keep your opponents guessing.    Another reason to smooth call would be to set up your next action. If you have check-raised the turn a few times you put a little fear into opponents that you are calling, especially if they are drawing against you. That clues you into knowing what your rival has.

Showing Strength

Aggression is a huge part of holdem. You want to show strength whenever you can. Make people fear that when they are playing you they are probably going to lose. You will want your opponents to do most of the checking and calling and you do most of the raising and re-raising. Using the premium hands will allow you to show strength almost every time you enter a pot. Here is another reason you would want to use strength.   This mainly works when you are in position to your adversaries. Example: AJ spades ; Flop Q(spade) 4(spade), 2(hearts). Because you raised or re-raised pre-flop and raised post flop and you are in position, your opponents my just check it to you. This will in most cases buy you a free card at the turn. If you are in position and they all check it down to you, it would be wise to take the free draw and hope you hit the spade on the river. Let's say the turn is no help or maybe a little help like a 10(dimonds). You can take the free card here and get one more look for a spade or King, maybe an Ace, or even if there were no raises a Jack may win. Showing strength will give you many more options as the game progresses.

Know When To Holdem

Another reason you want to show strength is because you want to be in control of the hands you play. If you have KK, and we all know that cowboys are Ace magnets, and let's say An Ace Flops. You should always come out firing with you premium hands. You get check raised or get re-raised on the turn. You are probably beat. But that's why you did all the raises and re-raises to find that information out. You might as well let that go instead of calling 2 more bets. Oh well if you get bluffed once in a while. You will eventually be at the better end of that re-raise and you will get paid. So if at the turn the board is no help to your starting hand and you still don't have much to go on just drop your hand if someone is raising into you and wait for the next opportunity.

The River

If you made it this far then you probably have the best hand. Watch for chased hands like a Flush or Straight draw. People will chase all the way down just to get a 1 in 4(or worse) chance to win. You should make a lot of calls at the River. Unless you have absolutely nothing make the call. Most times the pot odds will dictate that call. Try not to get into raising wars at the end unless you have the Nuts.

Mix It Up

Ok I have been preaching to keep tight and don't stray from the system. Well you may have to sometimes. If you start getting too much respect for your raises then it time to switch it up some. Check raise if you are only on a draw, or raise with a suited connector.   On the contrary if you are getting bullied by people who have figured out what your game plan is, start calling a little more loosely. But remember don't get too attached to that type of play. Just do it for a round maybe two. Don't do it too often, and also remember your trying to put fear into your foes, and that is the most important thing that this strategy is based on.

Try It and Stick To It.

One thing you need to ask yourself and be honest. Are you playing to win or are you playing to have fun? I know that this strategy is strict and it may seem that you are playing very few hands. There is a good reason for this. Most bonus requirements require raked hands if you participate or just fold as long as your not sitting out. You want to risk as little as possible, and when you are risking you would like to have the better chances. Some days this will work like a charm you will hit your Ace and get called all the way down. Other days you'll have KK and someone will play A6 off suit and catch the ace on the turn to suck out your pot. Be honest with your hand selection and stick to the set plan and don't start playing Q6 of hearts just because someone just cracked your AA with it. It happens to everyone. We're here to take out as many bonuses as we can. Playing as many hands as we can with as little risk as possible is the way to go. I suggest this strategy at the .50-1.00 limit tables all the way up to the 5.00- 10.00 limit tables. At the end of a 2 hour session you should have 100 raked hands. You will see your bankroll grow and grow. It works If you just stick to it. Just remember that poker has ups and downs but in the end you should be ahead.

     Hand Ranking

     Online Poker Tells

Pirate Aid		Admiral Jay's Strategy on: Plundering Poker Bonuses First I want to reiterate what all professionals have been saying in every book. Hand selection is very important. This is also true with my tactic. The hand selection in this strategy is very limited and so this is a very tight approach. The object is to eliminate the rake and by playing minimal hands, starting with optimal hands which have a higher percentage of winning, showing strength that will place fear in opponents, and cutting out weak hands that may be subject to draw-outs. Important requirements for this approach. First you will need enough time to implement this to your opponents. Make sure you have at least 2 hours to play. Full table- 7 or more players. Patience and discipline is a must. Position Position is very important to every poker game. I simplify the positions so there is little determination by other players on what hand you are holding. First, split the table into halves using the button as the divider. Try to split the table is half according to the amount of players. The blinds and the first few people will be First Position. Leaving the last few and the dealer button as last position. Position is important because you gain more information on players that are just after the button opposed to people that are in later positions. Now consider your position and the strategy associated with each. Pre Flop Strategy First Position Hand Requirements: AA, AK, AQ, AJs, KK, KQs, QQ, JJ, TT, 99 - These hand are going to be your premium hands. You raise with these hands and re-raise with these hands. These hands are most of the time percentage favorites over all other hands. Remember show strength with these hands because most people will mistake strong plays for weak plays. If players think you only raise and re-raise with premium hands they begin to fear what cards you are playing. This increases the value of your table appearance. Last Position Hand Requirements: All premium hands with a few more additions. Ace suited with any card, all pocket pairs, KJs, QJs. We will call these other hands: mid range hands. The premium hands you always play the same raise and re-raise. The mid range have a few more rules attached. If nobody has entered the pot you raise with these hands. This gives the illusion that you have a premium and you are ready to take down the pot. If anyone has entered the pot with a raise just dump the hand. As far as your opponent knows your dumping rags. If there are many limpers then call with these hands. Because there are so many mid range hands you should be able to limp in often enough without ruining your ultra tight image. Post-Flop Strategy Most flops should have you in the lead, so anytime you fire a raise you will have the dominant hand at the time. Raise after the flop if you hit or miss you want to represent strength still. 3 Reasons for this: If you hit your pumping up your pot. You are showing strength for a made hand. opponents will remember this and be afraid of what you are holding. If they have no chance they will probably give up the pot. If you have been always raising on made hands then the ones you miss will appear that you have hit again. Do not try to fancy play made hands. Example: You hold AK and flop K, 7, 2. You lead from the beginning and should continue to lead. Even if you flop a huge hand still play it strong. Example: You hold JJ and flop A, J, 3. A fancy play may be to check and hopefully someone hit the ace so you can re-raise. A fancy play here may give away more information then just a straight forward play. It perhaps will cost you money too because in the last example you come out with a bet, then the ace decides to re-raise you. Here is where the play gets interesting. You then have the opportunity to jam the pot once more adding one more bet to the pot or just smooth calling for a check-raise on the turn. If you have more players calling maybe jamming, which is re-raising is the better option. If you are heads up or 3 handed maybe a smooth call is better. But both will show strength and always keep your opponents guessing. Another reason to smooth call would be to set up your next action. If you have check-raised the turn a few times you put a little fear into opponents that you are calling, especially if they are drawing against you. That clues you into knowing what your rival has. Showing Strength Aggression is a huge part of holdem. You want to show strength whenever you can. Make people fear that when they are playing you they are probably going to lose. You will want your opponents to do most of the checking and calling and you do most of the raising and re-raising. Using the premium hands will allow you to show strength almost every time you enter a pot. Here is another reason you would want to use strength. This mainly works when you are in position to your adversaries. Example: AJ spades ; Flop Q(spade) 4(spade), 2(hearts). Because you raised or re-raised pre-flop and raised post flop and you are in position, your opponents my just check it to you. This will in most cases buy you a free card at the turn. If you are in position and they all check it down to you, it would be wise to take the free draw and hope you hit the spade on the river. Let's say the turn is no help or maybe a little help like a 10(dimonds). You can take the free card here and get one more look for a spade or King, maybe an Ace, or even if there were no raises a Jack may win. Showing strength will give you many more options as the game progresses. Know When To Holdem Another reason you want to show strength is because you want to be in control of the hands you play. If you have KK, and we all know that cowboys are Ace magnets, and let's say An Ace Flops. You should always come out firing with you premium hands. You get check raised or get re-raised on the turn. You are probably beat. But that's why you did all the raises and re-raises to find that information out. You might as well let that go instead of calling 2 more bets. Oh well if you get bluffed once in a while. You will eventually be at the better end of that re-raise and you will get paid. So if at the turn the board is no help to your starting hand and you still don't have much to go on just drop your hand if someone is raising into you and wait for the next opportunity. The River If you made it this far then you probably have the best hand. Watch for chased hands like a Flush or Straight draw. People will chase all the way down just to get a 1 in 4(or worse) chance to win. You should make a lot of calls at the River. Unless you have absolutely nothing make the call. Most times the pot odds will dictate that call. Try not to get into raising wars at the end unless you have the Nuts. Mix It Up Ok I have been preaching to keep tight and don't stray from the system. Well you may have to sometimes. If you start getting too much respect for your raises then it time to switch it up some. Check raise if you are only on a draw, or raise with a suited connector. On the contrary if you are getting bullied by people who have figured out what your game plan is, start calling a little more loosely. But remember don't get too attached to that type of play. Just do it for a round maybe two. Don't do it too often, and also remember your trying to put fear into your foes, and that is the most important thing that this strategy is based on. Try It and Stick To It. One thing you need to ask yourself and be honest. Are you playing to win or are you playing to have fun? I know that this strategy is strict and it may seem that you are playing very few hands. There is a good reason for this. Most bonus requirements require raked hands if you participate or just fold as long as your not sitting out. You want to risk as little as possible, and when you are risking you would like to have the better chances. Some days this will work like a charm you will hit your Ace and get called all the way down. Other days you'll have KK and someone will play A6 off suit and catch the ace on the turn to suck out your pot. Be honest with your hand selection and stick to the set plan and don't start playing Q6 of hearts just because someone just cracked your AA with it. It happens to everyone. We're here to take out as many bonuses as we can. Playing as many hands as we can with as little risk as possible is the way to go. I suggest this strategy at the .50-1.00 limit tables all the way up to the 5.00- 10.00 limit tables. At the end of a 2 hour session you should have 100 raked hands. You will see your bankroll grow and grow. It works If you just stick to it. Just remember that poker has ups and downs but in the end you should be ahead.
Hand Ranking
Online Poker Tells