Full Tilt Tournament Offers Something for Almost Nothing

For those of you interested in the various online challenges I have discussed in previous posts, Full Tilt offers a tournament that makes for a good beginning.

Firstly, the challenges I have referred to are the Chris Ferguson and Daniel Negreanu challenges where they are taking nothing, as in the case of Ferguson or a couple bucks, as with Negreanu, and turning it into tens of thousands of dollars using smart bankroll management.

Full Tilt has a tournament every day at 8:15 p.m e.s.t. where for just $1 you can win a share of $10k. The reason this is a good tournament for those interested in the challenge is for several reasons. First, it only costs one dollar. Or, you can use Full Tilt points that you accumulate from playing on the site. It doesn't take many points or much to accumulate enough to play in the tournament therefore, you can enter for next to nothing.

The other cool thing about it, as far as the challenges go, is that it pays out to just over the top one thousand entrants. Now that's a lot of pay spots. Keep in mind that there are usually over nine thousand entrants, so it is a pretty thick field to get through. However, the structure makes it quite viable to finish in the money.

You will not become rich playing this tournament. I have entered it several times and have finished in the money most times. However, it takes a very long time and usually the payoff is small. To give you an idea, my best finish was 30th and I made $20. That was after seven hours! Pretty crazy I thought. However, it didn't cost me anything, and would work well towards building a beginning stack for the challenge.

If any of you are interested, give it a shot and let me know how it goes. Especially, if you are trying the challenge out for yourself. Good luck!

Patrik Antonius and Isildur1 Battle Continues on Full Tilt

Full Tilt appears to be the place for high stakes confrontation. Last night I decided to check out the big rooms to see if anything interesting was happening after having heard about the record breaking pot won by Patrik Antonius over Isildur1 from Sweden.

Surprisingly or not, both Patrik and the swede were at it again. In a heads up battle that spanned more than one table the two were going at it with what appeared to be well over a couple million spread out over the tables.

Is it just me, or is that a tremendous amount of confidence in an online site to leave that much cash with them. Let's say there was some kind of problem with the site, it goes down and you can't access your million. Who do you call? What if every time you call the line is busy? A lot of people who play at Full Tilt would probably be calling as well to figure out what had happened. The big difference however, is that you left them with over a million. What if they never come back? Who do you call then? I'm sure it wouldn't happen.

Anyway, the battle raged for a while and to be honest, I watched for a little bit but then got bored and decided to move on. The most entertaining part about watching Patrik and Isildur1 were the constant comments coming in from everyone else who were observing. It was pretty hilarious. Each one seemed to have some opinion or advice for the two players. I was more fascinated with the fact that there were several hands were more money was exchanged than most of these railbirds will earn over several years. With each passing hand there was enough money passed to account for something significant. Hey there goes a Mercedes. That was three months in St. Tropez. Hey, I think that was my house!

It was entertaining for a while but then, I had to move on. I believe Patrik Antonius was victorious again for about a million. Or was it Isildur1.

Patrik Antonius Wins the Largest Online Pot in History... So Far

Some of you might have heard about this already and some may not. Here it is:

The place was Full Tilt. The table was "Royal Guard".

The players were Patrik Antonius and Isildur1. When the hand started both players were sitting with over $400,000.00. I know most of you play online with this amount of money most of the time so I'm sure you can all relate. Personally, I like to save that kind of money for dog race betting.

Without going into too much more detail than is necessary, by the turn, Patrik Antonius was all in and Isildur1 only had a little over $11k left over. When the cards flipped up, both players were tied with two pairs A's and Q's. Both had draws to break the tie with just the river remaining and who hasn't seen an exciting river card online before.

This hand and river was not to be an exception. An 8 came giving Patrik an inside straight and he scooped the pot for a grand total of $878,958.50. That should buy a few more shirts and hair cuts.

The action at Full Tilt, particularly in the PLO section seems to be getting fast and furious. Perhaps the arrival of Tom "Durr" Dwan has a little something to do with it. Surely, the future will have more stories to tell in the "millions". Keep in touch, there may be a new record any day now.

Great new home game "Anaconda" keeps poker interesting and insane all at the same time.

In the past when discussing various poker games I have mentioned one of my home games that I have every week with a group of friends who really enjoy crazy bingo type poker.

For those of you who don't know, bingo poker games are those that are far more dependent upon luck than any real strategy.

The newest bingo poker game that has gripped my home game with a fever is one that we call Anaconda. Don't ask me where the name comes from. All I can tell you is that when it gets a grip of you it can really take your breath away. I know, terrible puns.

Regardless, poker at home will never be the same once you introduce this game to your friends. The pots can get huge and the action is furious. It is a limit type game with a high low split. It is not based on traditional poker hands but is instead a point based game. All cards are worth their face value with pictures worth ten and Aces worth one or eleven.

Five cards are dealt out across the middle of the table face down. Each player is then dealt five cards of their own. The game begins by turning over one of the cards in the middle. If you hold that card in your hand, you have to lay it down face up on the card in the middle of the table. With each turned card a betting round ensues. By the end, which ever players remain make a determination as to whether they want to go for the high end or the low end. This is done by secretly placing one chip or two in your hand then simultaneously exposing it with the other players at the end.

Here's where it can be fun. You also have the option of going for both the high and low on a sweep. If you win, you get the whole pot. If you lose one, you lose it all and the other player or players take it all. Finally, if you mange to get rid of all the cards you were holding in your hand after the cards are turned up in the middle, you win the whole pot.

Sound fun and easy? You have no idea what you are in for. Trust me your poker home game will never be the same. That snake is vicious. Good luck.

Is online poker rigged? The debate continues.

After my last posting I received some feedback explaining that the reason for my difficulty online stemmed from the reality that the programs on most online sites are rigged for action. This is something I've addressed before but have remained unclear on as far as a final decision.

There was an interesting story done by 60 Minutes last year about the question regarding whether online poker sites were rigged and if any kind of cheating was going on. The story is readily available online if any of you are interested in seeing it.

It is not surprising that some would respond to me in that way given the types of experiences that seem uniform to many engaging in the online poker experience. However, there are the arguments that because so many more hands can be played online, that the bad beat experiences and combination hands just "appear" to be more frequent.

In any event, both sides to the debate have legitimate positions and it is up to each person's own experiences to make a determination. I've heard people swear that their online experiences have been nothing but positive while others have gone completely in the other direction.

During my recent discussions with somebody on this matter they suggested a fun experiment. Log on to one of the sites with a friend and go into a heads up room. That way you can check with one another the number of times each of you are in play simultaneously when the flop comes down. It you both make hands on a frequent basis at the same time, it may be evidence of rigging. If it doesn't happen, maybe it isn't. Regardless, it sounds like an interesting experiment. Do it online with a poker buddy then try it for the same number of hands at a friends house with a deck of cards and see what kinds of results you get.

One thing is for sure. The question of online poker being rigged will be one that floats around for a while to come.

Negreanu enters the ring for a version of the Ferguson Challenge

First I would like to apologize for taking so much time off of writing the blog. I really have been crazy busy with all kinds of things going on.

That's enough of that.

So Daniel Negreanu announced that he has started a challenge with online poker over at Poker Stars. It is similar to Chris Ferguson's challenge which I have commented on in the past. The format that Negreanu has laid out is interesting and may also be feasible.

His basic rules, although subject to amendment as he has mentioned, are pretty straight forward. He will attempt to turn $10 into $100,000.00 over a few years using straight forward strategy and a solid small ball approach with good bankroll management.

He started at $.01/.02 and has since moved up to $.02/.05. The rules go like this. He must have a minimum of 500 times the big blind and he can never buy in for more than 1/5 of his existing bankroll. That is pretty much it. He has left it open to amendment as he moves up to the higher levels but this has yet to be put into action.

Now, in the past when reviewing and trying out Chris Ferguson's challenge, I had my doubts. Simply because his rules were incredibly strict, particularly as they apply to bankroll management and playing in the micro levels online make it incredibly difficult to move forward. If you want more details about his challenge you can check out a couple of my earlier entries.

So I decided I would take a swing at Negreanu's challenge. Firstly, I would like to say I don't believe I am of the same calibre player as Daniel or Chris but I believe I can hold my own. Secondly, I believe that playing initially at the lower levels, most players are on similar play fields only because things are happening that wouldn't happen with better players at higher levels because people in the "micros" don't care about pushing all-in at anytime just for the hell of it.

Anyway, I started out and much like Daniel, I made it through to the next level. Having gotten my role up to $25, I was able to graduate to $.02/.05. That being said, the difficulty now ensues. If I get busted with one buy in that takes me down to $20 and according to the rules, I have to drop back down. In fact, with any session that I drop down beyond $25 I am supposed to drop down. At such low levels, the play is pretty bad but the luck factor is kicked up a couple notches. Needless to say, it has been difficult getting out of this position while adhering to the rules.

I was of course curious to see how Daniel had been doing and found out something interesting. Negreanu had commenced the challenge around the beginning of the year. He had posted over at Full Contact Poker near the end of January that he had moved up to the next level and also outlined all his sessions for anybody who may be interested. However, there hasn't been another entry from him since. This could mean many things. He may not be continuing with the challenge, he may simply not be posting his progress at the moment or he may be having difficulty.

Personally, I think it is incredibly difficult to pull it off. Both Negreanu and Ferguson's challenges are crazy tough. This is not to say they are impossible. I just think the nature of play in the micro levels online combined with strict bankroll guidelines make it tough to move.

I have tried the challenge on both Full Tilt and Poker Stars and I am of the mind set that it is incredibly difficult to move forward and make anything online. I take crazy beats one after the other in close proximity to one another and every time I think I'm about to move forward I get knocked down again. I have come to the conclusion that I am a super online donk. If anyone has figured out a way to conquer the repetitive low percentage underdog hands from taking you out with such high frequency, I would love to hear from you.

If somebody pushes all-in preflop with pocket 4's and I have pocket AA and I call, we go heads up and he spikes a 4, I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do anymore. Do I fold the AA preflop? This type of thing seems to happen way too frequently for me to overcome. I know that low percentage hands will hit from time to time, it is just the incredible frequency that occurs online that gets me. Often, only a few hands apart. In the meantime, I will stick to "brick and mortar" games for my income and leave the online gains to the magicians.

Good luck all and hope to hear from you, especially if any of you are in the midst of trying the challenge.

Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino Does it Again!

The Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino never fails to amaze me with its surprises. Not only was it the site for the taping of the new season of High Stakes Poker this past December, but the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino still has one of the most entertaining poker rooms in Vegas.

I know many of you will have different opinions on this one. However, if you want to have a good time while visiting Vegas, you'll have a hard time beating the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino for entertainment value. I say this for many reasons.

The Golden Nugget is located in old town. So, if you are a sucker for nostalgia you will probably really enjoy it. The poker room there is also small. It doesn't really compare to the monster poker rooms in some of the hotels on the strip, but I assure you it will keep you entertained.

The best approach to hitting this unique poker room is to go in with a relaxed state of mind. This is probably good advice for all poker sits in general, but I would especially recommend it for this particular room. I would especially make this recommendation if you prefer limit poker instead of no-limit. The reason for this I believe is obvious. Limit is going to attract many more casual players who will be there just to have a good time and the more of them that are sitting at your table, the more likely you will be getting the bad beat end of the stick.

The Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino is a blast and it was especially enjoyable during this year's World Series. Congrats to all my friends who cashed this year. If I'm not so busy the next time around I will definitely see you there.

Improve Your Poker Reads... From Television!

There have been many different articles and opinions written about how people can improve their poker reads at the table. I've written a few about how to catch a liar at the poker table. Your should check them out.

The science I applied has since been put into a television show called "Lie To Me." It is a new show starring Tim Roth. Roth plays a doctor who is hired by various agencies to come in and investigate suspects and witnesses to crimes and try and tell if they are lying. It is a fun show.

What is more interesting is that the show is based upon the work of Dr. Paul Ekman. In a nutshell, he studied thousands of people and their expressions in an attempt to determine their state of mind, emotion and whether or not they were being truthful. The work is fascinating.

Even more interesting is how the information can be applied at the poker table. If you are one who enjoys talking to your opponents during play, this is an incredible tool. It is not to say that you can become a master of reading after reviewing the material one time. In fact, it will probably take you a considerable amount of time to get a grasp of it. Regardless, there are countless tidbits available that can help you to improve your reads.

Who knows. Maybe you can become the next "Dr." of poker reads. Enjoy and good luck.

Onlie Poker Tournaments Love The Pocket Pair

As far as the online poker tournaments go that I have engaged in recently, there appears to be a truly remarkable phenomenon the likes of which I have not experienced in my many days of playing poker. The online poker tournament experience, seems to have the market on this particular phenomenon.

For some reason that I could not even begin to explain, there are a remarkable number of times during sit and go poker tournaments that play online, that I see multiple players being dealt pocket pairs at the same time. It is truly remarkable. I can't remember that last time I sat in a casino and saw so many pocket pairs in a poker tournament in such a short period of time.

I know that some of you may be thinking, well, there are way more hands dealt to you online when you are playing in a poker tournament than when you play a tournament in a casino. This may be true. However, I doubt that you can remember that last time you saw three or more players pick up pocket pairs in a casino tournament at the same table multiple times during the same session.

I'm not talking about it happening once during the entire tournament. It happens several times. It really does amaze me how many times it happens in a single sit and go. In any event, it has either resulted in my quick exit from these tournaments or my quick tripling up. Both have happened several times.

I would love to know if anyone out there is having the same experience. I'm not quite sure what to make of it. At the very least, it is keeping things interesting.

Bellagio Has Best Poker Room in Las Vegas

It wasn't too long ago that I was out in Las Vegas having the time of my life, as I usually do there, going from hotel experience to hotel experience. While in a poker game with a buddy of mine we got into a debate about which poker room in Vegas is the best.

This is clearly one that will cause considerable debate. For me there was virtually no question. I will favor the Bellagio ten times out of ten. The hotel for starters is spectacular. Not that most of the hotels on the strip are not, but the Bellagio really has its you know what together.

My buddy is more of a nostalgic kind of player. He claims that without any debate, the best poker room is at Binions. He loves the history of the room. It is a good size with a decent number of games going at any time. It is located in old town, which is always a fun place to visit. And who doesn't like the shady stories attached to that place.

For me, you can't beat the environment at the Bellagio. You have a huge choice of games available to you and who knows who you might see there in the way of pros. You might even get to pick up a few tips. I like Binions but the environment makes me laugh. The floor seems to suck your shoes down as you walk across the room and I'm always afraid to brush up against the walls there. I'm not quite sure what is on them anymore.

I'm sure there are many opinions on this topic but I for one will forever be a Bellagio type of guy. That room has been very good to me.

Chris Ferguson Poker Challenge... Slow going for now

For of those who continue to follow my escapades, this Chris Ferguson accomplishment online is still one that I deem remarkable. However, I am not giving up. I am of the firm belief that if any one person can accomplish an online poker achievement like that, so can another person. Maybe even another person.

The games continue to be a challenge. Playing poker in the lower levels on most sites is incredibly difficult to move forward since the rake is so high in comparison to what you can win and so many players choose to play out they're entire hands to see what happens.

There are definitely certain games that I find somewhat easier poker as opposed to others. That is not to say any one game is easier than any other in general. However, there are definite factors that seem to arise in online play that seem to make certain games easier to move forward in than other games. I will discuss more of this in the future if I somehow manage to continue moving forward.

The good news is that no poker game in this remarkable Chris Ferguson challenge has yet to take my minuscule bankroll away as of yet. I will continue to fight and hopefully come out the poker champion of building a roll from nothing. Only the bizarre world of online poker holds the answers.

Full Tilt Poker Gets Amended Complaint From Clonie Gowen

The fight between Full Tilt Poker and Clonie Gowen continues. For those of you not familiar with the legal battle that has been going on between Full Tilt Poker and Clonie Gowen, it has all been laid out in her complaint and is available to the public. Here it is in a nutshell.

Clonie Gowen alleges that in exchange for her promoting Full Tilt in a variety of different ways that she was promised a 1% share in the company which she values at four billion dollars and as such believes she is entitled to a forty million dollar pay out. Full Tilt and their affiliates claim there was no such agreement. Clonie Gowen was at one point supposedly offered a six figure settlement which she refused. She also claims that other members of Team Full Tilt, of which she was a member, had received disbursements in accordance with their deals but she did not.

The battle continues. What is most interesting is that she was obviously promised something in exchange for the promotional work she did. I dont' think she offered to work and promote a gambling company for the goodwill and warm feelings it would have given her. Then again, I don't really know her. I suppose anything is possible.

Regardless of the deal, it should be interesting to see how this one plays out.

Party Poker Not What It Used to Be

The party seems to have really left Party Poker. It is one of the sites that I am experimenting with trying, much to my dismay, to repeat the great Chris Ferguson's 10k accomplishment from nothing. It is not easy going.

First off, the micro games where I am forced to dwell until I get any kind of roll started are brutal. Everyone is obviously playing for fun and doesn't really care about blowing a buck or two. I can't really blame them. There isn't much in terms of any real poker playing going on and who can expect anything different at that level. It is fun but there doesn't seem to be much hope in moving the roll forward.

The real unfortunate part about Party Poker now seems to be the incredibly lower membership. They just don't seem to have many players there at all any more. What is worse is that if you are interested in playing any other game besides Hold Em, there are very few games available. This kills me because Party Poker is where I used to make the most money online but now it is hard to keep a game going. For instance, if you enjoy playing stud, you will see at Party Poker tons of vacant tables. There just isn't any interest.

When I used to make money at Party Poker, I used to only enjoy playing the ten player tables. Now, those tables are few and far between if you want to play anything higher than $2/4. As such, even if I do manage to get some kind of roll started and want to rise up out of the micro limits, unfortunately, there isn't many games to go to.

What I have noticed in the games I have played now at Party Poker is a phenomenon that never used to occur. If you play at Party Poker now you will experience your game breaking up. That never used to happen before. So in addition to struggling to find a game that I enjoy, there is no guarantee that game will even last for long. The whole experience is unfortunate and I would love to know why so many people have left or choose not to play at Party Poker now. It isn't as if the federal legislation limiting American money transfers is the only reason. Americans are still playing at other sites. Poker Stars doesn't seem to be experiencing the same drop off. I'm sure Americans are still playing there.

If anybody knows the reason that Party Poker seems to have become so unpopular, I would love to know. I would also love to know how I could get more games going that I enjoy playing over at Party Poker but I suppose that would mean more players would have to come back to Party Poker. Therefore, somebody tell me what has happened to the party at Party Poker. I will keep you posted as I try to duplicate Ferguson's incredible achievement at Party Poker even if they only have one or two tables going.

Excalibur Hotel in Las Vegas Electronic Poker Should Fold

I get that we're living in the electronic age when it comes to poker. I understand that hotels like the Excalibur in Las Vegas want to usher in the electronic era and welcome new technology. I get it that poker players at the Excalibur in Las Vegas may be predominantly beginners. This is no excuse for the poker room at the Excalibur in Las Vegas to have gone completely electronic. I tried it. I really don't get it.

You play poker to make money. No question about it. However, a big part of the experience is watching your opponents. You watch how they handle their cards and their chips. You watch their reactions to the dealer and how the cards are laid out. You study how they interact with the dealer when things go well and when they don't. Perhaps you just enjoy interacting with a dealer. You use the interplay to see if you can affect the others to do as you please. Maybe, you just enjoy the company.

At the poker room of the Excalibur Hotel in Las Vegas, all of the above are gone. You become one of the mindless, sitting at another video terminal that could basically be anything. You have no connection to the cards or the chips. You never really know much of anything because the program owns you from the moment you check in. This is what online poker is all about and I don't go to Las Vegas to play online poker.

When I go to play poker in a casino, I want to know that everything is as I see it. I don't want to be a part of a computer program, which is what we all become when we play online. I want to see the dealer. I want to know that he or she is a real person. I want to see that deck of cards. I want to see the cards come off one at a time and skim across the felt. I want to see how the chips go in. Every bet is a little different from the last but each will tell me something. The poker room at the Excalibur hotel in Las Vegas wants to take that away from me. I won't have it.

It is a real shame because I always enjoyed visiting the Excalibur hotel in Vegas. It was one of the first ones I ever stayed at and I love the way it is connected to the Luxor, Mandalay Bay and New York New York. I can only hope that this electronic trend for the world of poker will not catch on with the rest of Las Vegas. I could hardly imagine the Belaggio poker room ever going electronic. If that sad sorry day ever happens, I guess I'll be spending a lot more time in Atlantic City.

Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino Presents Split Tens

Recently while playing at the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas I was reminded about the difference between online play and B&M casinos.

When playing seven card stud and you are starting off with split tens, it is probably best that your opponents are not showing anything higher than your ten. Sure it is possible that they are starting with a higher buried pair or even a rolled up anything, but as time passes and you gain more experience with your opponents, you will learn to read for that.

However, online with the split starting hands under jacks, I have for one reason or another experienced a remarkably high percentage of hands where I hit trips on either fourth or fifth street. The game at the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino clearly helped me come back to reality. It would appear that hitting those trips as frequently just didn't seem to happen and I often found myself getting to fifth street with nothing more than a pair under jacks that I would have to fold out.

Strange how that happens. That being the difference in the types of hands I make playing online in comparison to when I am not. The Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino is probably my favorite old town casino in Vegas and a great place to be brought back to your senses.

Remember when playing in live B&M games only start your stud hands with premium hands. Jacks or better split and best to have something building like a straight or flush as well. Those trips are only going to hit a small percentage of the time.

Great seeing everyone at the game, by the way. Will hopefully be heading out there again soon to learn that maybe aces up really do have a chance to win after all, despite my online experiences.

Harrahs Announces the 2009 World Series of Poker Schedule

The schedule is up. The most prestigious event in the poker world will once again be arriving at the Rio all suite hotel and casino in Las Vegas. The tournament will run from May 26 to July 15 2009. There will be 57 bracelet events available for you to test your chops at with many favorites returning.

Among the most popular tournaments coming back to the Rio hotel are the 50k H.O.R.S.E, always popular with the cafeteria crowd. Also there will be a 40k buy-in NLHE event to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the series. That should be another popular entry for the riff raff.

Many 10k and classic $1,500 tournaments will also be offered followed the ceremonious Main Event which once again will delay the play of the final table until November. The tournament organizers having enjoyed the result from last year's experience.

It should be one to remember. I'm just gonna head over to my piggy bank and grab my entry for the H.O.R.S.E. tournament. I'm looking forward to seeing all of you there. Better brush up on your Razz. If you are looking for me I will be in the spa at the Rio all suite hotel and casino.

Online Poker Tournaments: Explore your options

In the continuing saga of trying to duplicate Chris Ferguson's 10 or 20 thousand dollar accomplishment online from nothing, it continues to be a struggle by the way, I have discovered something interesting with the online poker community.

There happens to exist on a couple online poker sites, the opportunity to play a variety of different games. During the boom, you couldn't get me off of the hole em tables. I was making money consistently and I could do it quickly. I only had to sit for a short period of time and I could win more than enough for that session. It was great.

Then something happened. To this day I can't quite explain what it was but it definitely happened. Suddenly I couldn't win a hand anymore. I'm not talking about cold cards. I'm not saying that for a couple days I was getting the bad end of things. I could not win anymore. It didn't matter if I was up against the whole table or just one opponent, it just wasn't happening at all anymore. So, I realized it was time to give it a rest.

I cashed out a chunk of my chips and gave up on online play for a while.

Recently I discovered a rather entertaining trend. On the sites that offer a variety of games, I am able to win once and a while again. That's right, I have started winning again. It is still crazy. The challenge is immense. However, it would seem that with games that aren't as popular as hold em, I seem to have gained a bit of an edge again.

It would seem that with traffic having died down considerably online and hold em still being the most popular game, that if you are a decent player at the other games, you stand a chance of coming out ahead more often than not.

This could be due to more players exploring the other games but not quite knowing how to play yet. Also, a large part of the gamble aspect of hold em seems to diminish in the seven card games. Whatever it is, it is slowly working and seems to help a little in the exploration to duplicate Chris Ferguson's accomplishments. It is still not easy and I am a long way away from victory, but I have started along the path. If you are looking to expand your opportunities with online poker, you may want to explore what some of the other games have to offer.

Best of luck!

Chris Ferguson Freeroll Challenge

The saga continues. As I have mentioned in the past, I am continuing to try to match Chris Ferguson's incredible achievement of building a $10k roll from nothing. I am the first to admit that I am not at Chris Ferguson's level as of yet but I am extremely interested in seeing the viability of getting to somewhere from nothing.

The challenge continues to be surviving beyond the initial freeroll. I have been playing a little on Poker Stars as of late because I have found that surviving the freerolls on other sites has been next to impossible. With the initial freeroll on Poker Stars you can win a ticket to another tournament where there is a chance to finish in the money. I am not sure if Ferguson took this route initially. I believe he played on Full Tilt where there may have been money waiting at the end of the initial freeroll.

I have managed to acquire a few tickets to subsequent tournaments with payouts. The best finish I have had so far in those subsequent tournaments is a winning of $1. Needless to say, it has been tough. Playing the micro games afterwards with Chris Ferguson's rules I haven't been able to move forward. That is proving to be the hardest part to date. If anyone has any tips I would love to hear them.

Anyway, I considered surviving the freerolls an accomplishment since everyone playing doesn't care and you really have to play solid AND get lucky to survive. I will keep you posted how this plays out.

Party Poker Slowing Down Still

So it has been a while since the federal government has passed legislation condemning certain types of online monetary transfers. As such, it made it illegal for many U.S. players to play online poker.

The one site that seems to have continued to suffer considerably from the government's decision is Party Poker. The word "suffer" of course is relative. I am sure that Party Poker still does relatively good business. Their returns must be substantial considering the appeal of their site to players around the world.

Party Poker recently revamped the appearance of the site. It looks good and is easy to navigate. However the one fact that can not be denied is the considerable drop in membership. Party Poker has since opened up all kinds of gaming sites including Backgammon and Blackjack. I'm sure there are still plenty of people who enjoy playing those games online although I can't imagine why you would.

The poker games have dropped off considerably. There are definitely not nearly as many tables going as there used to be and the action has slowed down considerably. I used to enjoy the $5/10 limit games on Party Poker with ten player tables and today you are lucky to find one table like that going.

As far as Party Poker poker games, it would appear that the most action and busiest tables are all in the basement at the micro levels. As you should know, the rake down there is heavy so it is difficult to move forward at all. What you will find there still, no matter what games you choose to play are the infamous ridiculous rivers. That's what makes that site fun! Crazy action. That may also have something to do with why the traffic hasn't picked up much on the site. I'm sure if American players really wanted to keep playing there, they could figure out ways to do it. Obviously they haven't.

A real shame actually. The site used to be a lot of fun. However, as I mentioned earlier, I'm sure they are doing just fine.

Freeroll Tournament Potential Winnings

A considerable amount of time has passed since last I wrote, however that has more to do with getting extremely busy than anything else. This is not to say I have given up in any way on my determination to see if being successful in freeroll tournaments can't eventually lead to the building of a bankroll. There may be some money available and possibly even some truth to the amazing accomplishments of Chris Ferguson in this area.

Since I last spoke to you about my endeavours in this arena, I have entered a couple freeroll tournaments with some success. Generally what happens is I enter the freeroll where I hope to finish high enough that I gain a ticket to another tournament where there is some payoff for finishing high enough in that. So it is a two tier process. So far, I have achieved some limited success.

I have finished high enough on one occasion to move onto the second tournament where I finished in the money. Hang on to your hats. I made $1.00. It has been crazy almost impossible to move that money up. I have won a couple more qualifying tournaments and am trying to win another $1.00. I will let you know how that goes.

In the meantime, it has been hard to see how Ferguson could have made 10 or 20k in one year doing this considering how hard it is to move from the micro limits. However, I am not saying it is totally impossible, just simply a crazy hard challenge. I will keep you posted.