How many times have you seen on television a critical hand in a poker tournament that has someone faced with a big decision on calling a bet?

What goes through the mind of the winning poker player when faced with this decision?

Allow yourself to imagine a scene of you faced with a similar situation.  What would you do?

When considering making a big laydown Phil Gordon came up with several factors to consider in his work “Phil Gordon’s Little Green Book”

- Is my opponents play consistent?  If yes, laydown that big hand.  If no, a call may be the right play

- Does this decision make me pot committed? If more cards to come do I have the correct pot odds to call.  If I don’t call I have made a big mistake by giving up a big opportunity to make a big stack.

-  Do my opponents respect my play?  Do they know I usually have a big hand and they probably have me beat it is time to laydown but, if they have no respect it is time to call.

-  Have I been forced off hands recently,  if so, time to call.  No time to become a pushover.  If not, may be good time to laydown

-  Can the opponent afford a mistake.  If yes, call.  If no, probably fold

Almost everyone will have to make a critical laydown to become a winning poker player.  in this lesson you have learned some key factors that will help you make the correct decision for your situation.

Now take a look at your play.  Do you think like a winning poker player and know what to consider when making a laydown?

After you read this article you will have learned a guideline to follow when making a poker deal at the final table of a poker tournament.

The negotiation phase of the poker tournament deal

Normally, the offer for a deal takes place when 5 or fewer players are remaining although sometimes you see players try to deal with the final 10.

The card room will not allow a deal to take place unless all players agree.

That means ALL players.  If one player does not agree then the deal is off and the prize fund is distributed as posted.

I was in a tournament a few weeks ago when the final table started and  one player with a short stack was yelling to the Tournament Director.

“Hey, we agree to pay all 10 places.”  I Jumped up and said “NO!  I do not agree! ”

You see, the prize fund only paid the top 3 places and to chop that would have been totally unfair to the chip leaders.  Myself being a chip leader I was opposed to a deal..

Of course,  this may cause other low stacks to give you glairs and make little slide comments but, it is your right as a player if you don’t agree then you need to speak up loud and clear.

Do not let other players persuade you into a bad deal no matter how good a sales job they try on you.

You’re probably wondering… Ok, so when should I make a deal or accept the terms of a chop.

The answer is to negotiate the most equitable chop for your stack size or more.  You must be wondering by now how to figure out a fair chop.

6 Guidelines to use to negotiate a chop

There really is no standard answer to figure out a fair chop but, if you do some simple math you will come up with a guide to help you negotiate.

Arnold Snyder, in his book “The Poker Tournament Formula”, posted 6 guidelines to follow and I summarized each below.

1.  If you have 5 or fewer players left,  usually only the top place has to give up money.  If 6 or more, take most from the first prize and a little from the second prize.

2.  If you are the chip leader and all players are close in quantity but you have a little more.  Always insist on being declared the champion with a bit more than the rest of them.

For Example, if you have 3 players left and 9000 in total money.  Instead of splitting 3000 each.  Offer to take 3050 and have the other 2 take 2075 each.  This will have you declared the champion for bragging rights.

3.  If there is a big gap or disparity in chips, and you have more than double then insist on taking a bigger piece of the prize but don’t short change the other players too much.  They won’t agree if they don’t take more than what is posted on the prize funds

4.  NEVER use coercion to persuade a player to chop,  if the player wants to play than by all means play it out.  Sometimes the player will regret the decision but, it is that’s persons right to refuse.  Do not abuse them for it.

5.  NEVER chop if one or more players are in desperate chip position.  If you see one or two players with barely enough to get through the blinds and antes one time, then let the cards decide if they will be in the chop or not.

6.  A 2 way chop gives you the best leverage when you are the chip leader.  Normally, if your stack is double or more, your opponent will agree to any amount more than the posted second prize amount.  If they are closer , negotiate the best deal you can but you definitely want a bigger piece of the prize and be declared champion!

A formula to calculate a chop

Take the total amount of the prize fund remaining and divide it by the number of players in the chop.

Now figure out a way to give slightly more than this mount to first place, while making the other players happy with a settlement that gives them more for each place.

Of course, if the chip leader has a big lead then offer more.

There are apps that calculate down to the exact dollar that you can place on a mobile device.  You may want to invest in this software to give you an exact guide to negotiate.  Otherwise, just use the simple calculations described in the previous slides.

I’m sure that by now you can see that making a deal at the final table can bring you more money if done systematically by performing some simple calculations and negotiating within the sample guidelines.

This by all means is not the only way to negotiate but, it does give you the best possible way to acquire a fair deal at the final table of a poker tournament.

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Are you ready to make a deal at the Final Table?

You are about to embark on a long voyage that will include both calm seas and smooth sailing along with rough seas that seem like your in a storm.

When you reach your final destination you will see that your cup is filling up with the cash that you need to continue your journey.

How in the world do you expect to fill the cup unless you have a guide or a map to continue the journey?

Yes, poker is a journey that will take you to the most exhilarating places and to the depths of hell. But when you reach the Nirvana of winning your first poker tournament there is no other feeling on this planet.
You will find that all the great tournament poker players had a story behind the quest for the holy grail of poker at the World Series in Las Vegas.

Great players all had one thing in common they had a deep passion for the game that kept them going even when they were in the depths of hell, they arose to become the tops in their profession.

Johnny Moss, the old master went down plenty of times but always seemed to rise to the top.

Doyle Brunson, the great poker master got robbed and mugged a few times but picked himself up and became the legend he is today.

They all had a passion for the game and while they both used different strategies to win the passion is what kept them consistent in their wins.

Now this article gives you a map that will not guarantee you win every time you play, but will point you to a winning pattern that will produce a consistent way to cash in at events and the strategies to win when cashing is not your goal but winning is your intended outcome.

As this page ends, imagine getting a personal instructor delivering you lessons on how to be a winning tournament poker player through the research of many experts in tournament poker play.

Now, I can almost hear your brain talking…. I can do that myself…Yes, you could do it yourself, however, do you have the time to do the research?

If you would like to free up your time so you could play poker, then let me place you on a list so I can send you a free lesson and you decide for yourself if you want to continue the lesson or opt out of the list if you are not satisfied.

While your eating dinner you’ll picture how much better your life could be by being a winning poker player. You be the judge, sign up now if your interested in playing winning poker!

Here is a free training video from poker pro Jonathan Little. Watch it and then sign up and win!

Jonathan Little Poker Teacher

P.S.

Phil Helmuth, Jr. won 11 bracelets at the “World Series of Poker”. What makes him so special? He sometimes acts like a jerk and yet he wins!

Sign up today and be special!

Jonathan Little Poker Teacher

One strategy I have used recently is that of positional raises with a tight aggressive image.  You would be amazed at the success of my bluffs and the payoffs for my nut hands.   Of course it all depends on the type of player you are up against to use this strategy.  Some players will call in the early stages of an event no matter what image you present.

A poor poker dealer will often deal very slowly. This is bad for the winning poker player.  Less means the winning player has  fewer hands per hour to increase winnings.

A slow dealer often does not run the game efficiently either.   This will cause many breaks in the action, especially when many players are not paying attention meaning even fewer hands per hour.

There are even some dealers that can not quickly identify the winning hand at a showdown.

It sometimes takes players to point out the winning hand.

A slow poker dealer will also take too much time counting down pots. A dealer that cannot count the pot fast enough will slow the game down figuring out simple things like the rake and jackpot drop.

An inexperienced dealer may also take extra time figuring out who is involved in side pots as well as how much they should be.

This type of dealer will often lack in confidence and it will show. This can create problems with players at the table that tend to be disruptive.

Misdeals and exposed cards are also common in games like that. All of these errors lower the enjoyment of playing live poker. There are instances where the dealer could either make an error or not know procedure and have to call the floor supervisor over to help with a decision.

All of these things can slow a game down to the point where it is not enjoyable or profitable.

All dealers need to be aware of the importance their job and strive to improve.

Training is available >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Click image to find out the answer.