Where to Start Your Poker Playing Career

Poker is a game played around the world and it’s played by everyone from teenage beginners to professionals with 30 years experience that have won millions of dollars. But where is it best to play? Where do you stand the best chance to win? Find consistent games? You ultimately want to find a city that has a great combination of accessible games, games with different levels of entry fees, and great alternative aspects like cost of living or income tax. Lets take a look at some of the best cities to begin your poker playing career according to cardplayer.com.

Atlantic City, New Jersey

It’s no secret why Atlantic City makes this list. AC is home to many different casinos like Tropicana, Caesars, Harrah’s and Trump Taj Mahal to name a few. The largest poker operating resort in the city is Borgata holding 85 tables to host card games. The casinos vary in type of games to play. If you’re looking to play in smaller type games, you can play at Ballys, the Showboat, the Trump Taj Mahal, and Harrah’s for smaller stake games. Atlantic City is the home to current professional poker player Phil Ivey who has won 10 World Series of Poker Bracelets.

Harrah’s in Atlantic City

Las Vegas, Nevada

Another no brainer to make this list, Las Vegas, Nevada is essentially the betting capital of the United States. Card playing takes the back seat to slot machines and sports betting in this city. The city holds just under 50 card rooms and you’ll never have to worry about these tables having players at them. If you go to the Venetian, you’ll find yourself in the largest venue in the city holding 59 tables. Other venues on the strip like Bellagio, Caesars Palace, Aria, and Orleans hold anywhere from 24 to 39 tables. An underlying reason to begin your poker playing career here is due to the low state income tax. The city does however have high sales tax so take that into account.

The Las Vegas strip.

Check this article out to find out other great cities to start your poker career.

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The Art of the Bluff

Poker is a great game to play, especially when you really understand the game and strategy. The beauty of poker is that even when you don’t have the winning hand, or a good hand for that matter, you can still win. It’s no secret that the person dealt the best hands the whole night always wins. Just think about it, what are the chances you’re dealt the best hands all night and eventually win? Slim to none. Cards are dealt at random and it’s what you do with them that ultimately decides hands. I’m talking about bluffing. Bluffing is a beautiful thing in cards as you can manipulate others to thinking you have one hand when you really have another.

A key part to bluffing is your “poker face.” It’s one thing to be dealt a poor hand and lie that it’s poor, but it’s another to make others believe you have something better. For example, lets say you have a 7, 2 off suite. This hand is the worst hand because the cards are far apart enough that you can’t complete a straight, they’re the 2 lowest that don’t connect in a straight, and because they’re off suite you’re immediately at a disadvantage to complete a flush. Now if you were to place a high bet, pretending you had pocket aces (two aces) while an ace was on the board, you would need to keep a great poker face. A great poker face has a dead face. You don’t smile nor show disgust regardless of the hand. You have to really let your opponent try to read you based off as minimal information as possible. Let them look into cards in their hand, cards on the board, and what could be left in your hand. Don’t over due it and bet an insane amount if you’re not the greatest bluffer. You don’t want to give away everything. Another point to make is if you get caught in a bluff, it’s not the end of the world. Don’t be afraid to try again, you’re not meant to win every bluff. Also remember that the person also playing may be bluffing. Even when you think you don’t have the best hand but are acting as if you do, you may have the best hand after all.

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Places to Catch Fireworks

With July 4th coming right around the corner, everyone is preparing for barbeques and family gatherings. But what would any Independence Day be without fireworks? These loud, gorgeous spectacles light up the night sky for millions across the country, and from Texas to New York, everyone thinks they have the greatest. If you’re looking to catch some of the best firework shows in the United States, look no further than these locations.

Kaboom Town in Texas is more than just a clever play on words. It’s home to some of the best fireworks in the state, boasting over 1,500 pounds of the sky candles set off every July 4th. With famous barbeque, live air shows and carnival rides, Kaboom Town’s annual show is recognized by the American Pyrotechnics Association as one of the top ten fireworks displays in the nation.

Boston’s firework show, over the Charles River Esplanade, is a sight to be seen for miles around. Drawing over 500,000 visitors to watch the show, locals say the best spot to view the show is across the river at Cambridge. Often accompanied by live music, Boston’s 4th of July celebration is sure to light up your night.

Nashville, Tennessee is considered by some to be the music capital of the United States. But would you have guessed they’re also known for their spectacular 4th of July celebrations? The “Music City July 4th: Let Freedom Sing” celebration draws the largest crowd in the south with its day-long activities, A-list country performances, and 27-minute long fireworks show.

When thinking of The Big Apple, you conjure images of massive buildings and a larger than life community. It’s no wonder that this famous city has the largest fireworks display in the United States. Lighting up their famous skyline with hundreds of bright blooms, this is a show not to miss for any able to attend.

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Some of the Best Surfing Spots

When Dror Gal isn’t busy working on the installation of solar panels, he enjoys many different kinds of recreational activities. One that he’s big on is surfing. Although he lives in Nevada, Dror makes many trips to California where he catches some ways in the Pacific Ocean. Do you get board of the same beaches? Looking for a new experience? There are many great beaches where the waves and scenic views are different. Let’s take a look at some of the best surfing spots from around the world according to list25.com.

Superbank, Gold Coast, Australia

The Gold Coast has long been known as a surfers paradise. The coast stretches for 70 kilometers and has four epic point breaks. One of these breaks, the Superbank, is known as one of the best breaks in the world. These waves form into solid walls and tubes of water making for a great surfing opportunity. That large area allows many surfers to surf without over crowding the beach.

Lima, Peru

Peru contains over 1,500 miles of coastline making for plenty of space to surf. While the water may not look all that great compared to other waters but Peru creates some of the best waves in all of South America. The waves tend to be about a meter high and break in three sections. The great thing about the break is that they break in all different sizes allowing surfers of all different talent to surf.

Cloudbreak, Tavarua Island, Fiji

This heart shaped island offers all sorts of degrees of difficulty in surfing from the ultimate pro to a toddler. With that said, Cloudbreak in particular is just for the hardcore surfer. Waves begin to form up to 1,600 meters off the coast and can reach heights as high as 10 meters high and the wave can hold together for about 500 meters before breaking.

For more information on many other great surfing destinations, check this article out at list25.com.

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World Series of Poker Gambles on Luring New Players

Colossus Creates Controversy in Poker World

LV Sports Press

While the WSOP Colossus tournament continues to wind down toward that elusive final table, there was some rumblings in the poker world when the payouts were finally announced.

Once the dust had settled the final number of entrants was announced at 22,374, compiling a total prize pool of 11.1 million dollars. However the announced 1st place prize was only $638,000. Yes I know that is ton of money for a $565 buy in event but it is much lower than the standard poker tournament payouts of 10-20% for 1st place which would have netted the winner an expected 1 million dollars or better.

While the news generated buzz, the WSOP decided on a flatter payout table giving minimum cashers a bit more for their buck and a story to take back home for them. Early cashers received a minimum of $1096 which is double their investment and I think the…

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World Series of Poker’s ‘Colossus’ Tournament Sets New Record

Since the early 2000′s, the sport of poker has picked up a lot of momentum. Often times, poker is now televised on some of the biggest TV networks, like ESPN for example. The sport is so big that tournaments to play the card game are increasing in size, dramatically. The World Series of Poker’s “Colossus” has broke the record for the largest live tournament in history. The tournament crushed the old record of 8,773 entrants at the 2006 Main Event by hitting a total of 22,374 entrants for the $565 buy in tournament.

With tournaments getting to sizes of this nature, the take home prize money is increasing rapidly as well. If you’re fortunate to place first out of the 22,374 entrants, you’ll take home $638,880. The total prize pool is $11,187,000. Yes, that’s million. Should you finish in 2,241st place, the final spot that still walks away with money, you will win $1,096. That’s not bad for a $565 buy in. There were actually initially 25,571 paid entries for the tournament but the official number fell down to 22,374 due to no-shows.

For more on this tournament and others, check out this article at reviewjournal.com.

from Dror Gal | Poker http://drorgal.net/44/

Disney Cruises

The Disney Gang

Disney’s Adventures branch will partner with AmaWaterways for a brand new line that will open the Danube river to the cruise-happy. In 2016, travelers will be able to sign up for a week-long tour along Europe’s second-largest river for an authentic smorgasbord of cultures. Disney cruises have tended to balance elegance with kid-friendliness by inviting the entertainment of many of the beloved iconic characters aboard its big ships, but the Danube river cruise will be geared more toward adults, and will replace characters in costume with European performers who demonstrate the cultural arts with authentic spectacles. It will still offer games, movies, and karaoke nights, but with that, wine tastings and luxury spa services as well. The relaxing fun-for-everyone attitude aboard will not be stripped, just tailored to the more mature and sophisticated experience intended.

Disney currently runs its four ships globally with destinations ranging from the Caribbean islands to the Asia and the nations of the Indian Ocean. This new expedition under its smaller family vacation branch along the Danube will visit central and eastern European countries like Germany, Austria, Hungary, and Croatia. Adventures by Disney, as the branch is called, brings families along guided vacations where they can relax and be engaged in learning simultaneously. Disney stated itself it wants to see the river cruise lines offer a less fantasy-prone vacation for couples and families that want to explore the intricacies of world cultures without familiar distractions. The ships are set to leave in the summer of 2016 from Vilshofen, Germany, and will arrive in Budapest, Hungary. The country-based itineraries include activities including but not limited to visits to wineries and breweries, bicycle excursions, tours through medieval castles, historic choir shows, horseback riding, and a slew of musical shows and movie nights. (For a list of the daily itineraries, click here.) Cruisers will be able to explore each country and its popular and less known attractions.

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The Winning Hands of Texas Hold’em

Established in the early 1900′s, Texas Hold’em is one of the most popular poker games known to date. The objective is have the best five card hand after you have been dealt two cards and the board shows five. You need to use each of your two cards as well as three of the five cards showing on the board. Obviously, there is betting involved as cards are dealt and ultimately can be used to your advantage in order to make a competitor believe your hand is better than his, even if it’s not.

There are many different great winnings hands. Lets start from the ultimate best hand and work our way down the pecking order. The “Royal Flush” is the best hand you can have. This is when you have an Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and Ten, all of the same suit. The next best hand is the “Straight Flush.” Similar to the Royal Flush, a straight flush is five consecutive cards of the same suit. Now someone else can also have a straight flush but the straight flush that finishes at the highest card wins. The next best hand is “Four of a Kind.” Here you hold all of the same card, for example four Jack’s. The next best hand would be a “Full House.” A full house is the combination of three of one card and two of another. For example, if you had three tens and two fives, you would have a tens full of fives full house. Now the higher the top card in the full house when it comes to two different full houses determines the winner of the hand. The next best hand you could have is a “Flush.” A flush is when you have five cards of the same suit. An example would be a two, five, seven, eight, and queen all of spades. This would be a queen high flush. The flush with the highest card at the top it wins the hand. The next best hand is a “Straight.” A straight is when you have five consecutive cards based on number/rank. An example of this would be a combo of eight, nine, ten, jack, queen. The straight leading up to the highest card would ultimately win. The next best hand would be “Three of a Kind.” Three of a kind is just as it sounds, when your card combination holds three of the same card. After Three of a Kind comes “Two Pair.” Two Pair is when you have two card and matched them with two card on the board. The next best hand would be “One Pair.” Here you will have matched one card that you hold with a card on the board. If there are no combinations at all on the board, you play the “High Card.” Here it’s whoever holds the highest card, the highest possible card would be an ace.

As you can see, there are many different combinations that can win you a hand. You’ll have to leverage the bets you place based on the cards you hold and what the board shows in order to capitalize the most on your hand. You certainly don’t want to not win a big betting hand when you have a straight flush.

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