There is one place where everything is possible. And that place is deep within you.

There is barely anything worse than limiting you, it is part of the human nature though that we are afraid of the unknown and fear what impact it might have to our comfort zone. It is so much easier to pick the easy way because it means less time and work that we potentially have to put up.

You might wonder what this got to do with poker. Well, at poker everything is possible as well and it is up to us what we make out of it. It is not about the cards that we get dealt, it's about the way we play them! Many players just complain about bad beats, but they barely analyze their own game because all they see is that their Aces got cracked by xy. They limit themselves because they are not able to look beyond the horizon and try to find a reason why this actually happened.

Most players though don't respect the game and their opponents and wonder why they don't get respect themselves ... well the answer is pretty simple: Don't isolate yourself and build up knowledge about all aspects of this game. One of the first lessons are manners and the respect for the game and their opponents. It is pretty easy to pick up the basics and basically everyone can learn how to play, but it does indeed take a life time to master.

Some do have a talent and the gut feeling that it takes to be successful for this game and you can barely learn that ... you either have that killer instinct or not. But all other aspects of that game can be learned ... as long as you are not lazy and willing to invest some time, money and work into your education. There are so many places online where you can learn more about this fascinating card game, yet many don't realize how much they are isolating themselves.

There are many different approaches though to get better. Some prefer playing and you indeed gain a lot of experience, it is much easier nowadays with online poker where many grinders play more hands in a month or year than live players will ever have in their lifetime. Another option is reading books ... the disadvantage there is that it is mostly biased and just the opinion of the writer and you shall not believe everything that is written in there and take it for granted. You have to draw your own conclusions out of it, otherwise it does not help you towards your own game. Or can you sit at the poker table all the time and got Harrington On Holdem right next to you and check for the right chapter every time you play a critical hand?

Training sites and coaching are getting more and more important nowadays and you can learn a lot on the big sites out there. Because what can be better than watching more experienced players and listening to their thinking process? Last but not least ... the interaction with other players. It does have its advantages and disadvantages, especially if you are not open minded and can't take criticism. But sometimes it does help a lot to discuss specific situations with other players to get another view and more feedback.

Most players though don't prefer the last option to improve their game, because they take the criticism personally ... but why did you post the thread / blog / whatever in first place than? You can't really expect that everybody will agree with you ... every feedback can be valuable, even though it might mean that it does expose a leak and weakness in your game. If you accept that and respect it, it may be an asset towards your game and will help you to improve. Don't be afraid though to share it with others, nobody is perfect and we all make mistakes ... but we all share the same passion and are students of this game.

Nobody ever said it gonna be easy ... most things in all aspects of our life are complicated. But if we never risk anything, how can we really expect that things will improve? There is no gift package around the corner, it might hurt though when we discover everything beyond our horizon and we may as well get hurt. But those are the lessons that life offers to us and when we learn from those mistakes and experiences, than we do also have a serious chance to improve.

If you just give up and don't want to improve, than that is absolutely fine ... but please don't complain about the own situation than because it is only up to you to change this. Nobody else can do this for you ... because if that was the case, than you didn't learn anything and will fail in the next possible scenario again. Don't always depend on others, be more self confident and take care of yourself ... you are responsible for your own success and if that requires more work and effort, by all means go for it and don't just close your eyes!

I know it can be tough and it is against our human thinking ... because who really likes to get told that he may not be as good as you thought you were. But not every criticism is bad, it is a matter of fact that you won't always get just positive feedback ... but it is up to you how you handle the negative feedback. Also, don't take the positive feedback as granted, analyze if it was just a friend trying to be nice or if was really intended that way. But don't block yourself from interactions with others that do have the same passion ... that is the worst thing that you can do to yourself and it might not be possible to repair the damage later once it has been caused.

Thanks for reading. Any feedback is highly appreciated

off to Leicester Square ( Leicester is pronounced  " Lester "  for all my  american friends ) for 2 days of Poker in the Park festival opened by Liv Boereee and with lots of big name british poker players who you may or may not have heard of lol , Devilfish plugging his new book ,Neil Channing  giving seminars and tutoring should be fun ,Evander Holyfield will be there too,   Marquees for all the events are up, slap bang  in the center of London and one of the nearby casinos is running freerolls with some decent prizes too , i'm booked in for 4 tournaments Nuts Poker , red hot poker , rake the rake poker and the pokertree so should be a busy schedule , the girls from Nuts magazine and also the Bodog girls should be there but Hey sorry girls !!  THERE'S POKER GOING ON check it out at pokerinthepark.com

I was reading the funny pages on Monday and I swear I saw LakeofFire in one of them.

What do you think?

hi   im a noob here   can some1 tell me  how  to preregister  for the ofc  at doyles  room?.........................help me

Hi,

I just wanted to say THANKS!!!! to all my Rowdy Rounders friends that attended my birthday bash. We had an excellent turnout (80 people) for a small buy-in. Everyone seemed to enjoy the structure and had a good time. There was so much LUV at the tables one of my "Buddies" bubbled me..lol. What can I say.. For those of you that missed it you missed a good one... Doc

PS: If you think you might be interested in seeing so more of this type of tourney let me know.. I know someone who knows someone..

Hi all, A friend sent this to me earlier today..Thought it was worth a post.. Will it happen? I sure hope so.. Doc


Just last week it was starting to look like a lost cause. But a pair of recent developments in the U.S. government could not only give the drive to legalize online poker new life, they could even push it to the top of lawmakers' agenda.

After years of putting the issue off, the Internet poker legal push in the United States may be seeing new life after the AGA (American Gaming Association) suddenly decided to endorse the action.
“In a new policy statement, the American Gaming Association said it was open to
the concept of legalized Internet gaming, as long as a regulatory structure was in place to protect consumers and the game's integrity,” writes Howard Stutz at the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Some industry watchers are speculating that the AGA's endorsement could fast-track the Internet poker legal drive -- particularly because the Senate Majority Leader, Nevada's Harry Reid, is thought to be particularly susceptible to the AGA's influence. "Being in favor of legalizing Internet Gambling is important, because the Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate, Harry Reid from Nevada, is facing an extremely tough reelection bid in November,”writes I. Nelson Rose at the Gerson Lehrman Consulting Group.
"This greatly increases the chances a bill will be passed this year,
which would have a major impact on companies like IGT, PartyGaming and
Harrah's."

Harrah’s already endorses the idea of legal Internet poker and has made moves to enter the market when it becomes fully legal in the U.S.
In addition to the AGA's endorsement, the potential resolution of the
health care issue in the U.S. may also help open the door for legal
online poker. "The fact that health care reform has passed may now free
up time for legislators to continue examining the issue, and thus push
regulation closer to passing, rather than keeping the current bills, HR
2267 and the mysterious Bipartisan Tax Fairness and Simplification Act,
stuck in committees, or even in earlier parts of the process," writes Glen Farmer at USAPlayers.com.
Poker Players Alliance~~~FIGHT FOR YOUR RIGHT TO PLAY!!!

Hi all,

I'm sure everyone remembers how much fun I had in Argentina last fall at the Americas Cup.... WELL FOLKS>>>IT"S BACK!!!!!

Americas Cup of Poker
Represent your country and win a share of $150,000!

The PokerStars Americas Cup of Poker is the event that sees qualifiers and Team PokerStars Pro compete for their country at a spectacular live final held at Iguazu Falls, with a $150,000 prize pool on the line. The action starts online, where you can win a place on your country's team and qualify for the live final. Get ready for over four weeks of online qualification that will determine which eight countries will participate at the live final.

The live final will take place at the stunning Iguazu Falls this May. It's the trip of a lifetime that gives you the chance to explore one of South America's most beautiful regions - and play poker for cash and the glory of your country while you are there. See below to find out how you can represent your nation.

Poker is all about winning big money, but it's also about pride. And there's no greater sense of pride than the feeling you get when you represent your homeland. Your country needs you, so you better make it count.

Here's how it works

From March 15-April 14, players in the nine countries listed below have the chance to help their nation make it to the live final: USA, Mexico, Canada, Colombia, Chile, Venezuela, Peru, Brazil and Argentina. Don't worry if your country is not listed, all remaining Latin America countries are invited to play as 'Rest of LATAM', taking the total number of teams to 10.

All 10 countries will play against each other in three tiers of matches at freeroll, $0.10 and $1.10 buy-in levels. Points will be awarded to the top 100 finishers in each tournament. The country with the most points accumulated in each match will win that fixture. You'll be playing to score as many points as you can (see below for how points are awarded), and it's important to remember although you're playing for your country, you are also playing for yourself. The four players who accumulate the most points will represent their country at the live final should their team make it. See below for schedule information. To register, open the PokerStars lobby, click 'Tourney' and 'Regional'.

When all the matches are complete, the six countries with the most wins will automatically qualify for the live final. The remaining four teams will then play off for the final two positions. Check out the Country Rankings page for the latest national rankings.

You can win tickets to the $0.10 tournaments by playing in free-to-enter Sit & Go's that run around the clock during the Americas Cup of Poker. You can find these in the lobby by selecting 'Tourney' and 'Regional'.

Match Schedule

Points

Players finishing in the top 100 in each group tournament will be awarded points for their country. Visit the Points page to see the payout structure. The top six countries with the most wins at the qualifying stage will make it to the live final. Additionally, two more countries will win a place via the play-offs. We'll be keeping you updated with the latest results on the Country Rankings and Player Rankings pages.

Play-offs

Once the first nine rounds of matches have taken place, the top six countries qualify for the live final. The remaining two spots will be determined online April 16-18. The four teams will play each other once more in a series of tournaments, with the two best teams progressing to the live final at Iguazu Falls.

Live Final

Eight countries in total will go forward to the live final at Iguazu Falls - the six countries with the most wins and the two teams who qualify through the play-offs. Each team will be made up of the four players that won the most points during qualification, plus a member of Team PokerStars Pro who will join as captain! The eight finalist countries will then battle for their share of the $150,000 prize pool.

The payout structure at the live final will be as follows.

It was an HONOR to play poker for Topnotch and i wish him the very best!..I only hope that breaking Vegas is the next goal !.. :) My reward in playing top's game has already came in the knowledge of knowing that we all raised enough to help him reach at least 1 more goal in life ..Good luck in vegas TOP!!!!....As for this tourny with Joe Sebok..Thank you Joe for puttn something like this together...I look foreward to mabe seeing you at my table (unless you're planning on taking all my chips..then mabe not} lol

The first three rules of poker are patience, patience & patience.