The main reason that there are not a lot of women who play poker is that it has traditionally been thought of as being a man’s game. As a result women are usually discouraged from playing the game if they ever show any interest in it at all. This is slowly starting to change as we do see more and more women starting to play the game as it becomes more and more popular but the fact remains that poker is a game that is dominated by men and women are often made to feel unwelcome.

Another reason that women often don’t play poker is that they often don’t have the personality for it. Poker is a game that attracts competitive people and the reality is that most women are not particularly competitive. The result is that they really don’t enjoy the game and in a lot of cases they are not particularly good at it. There are of course some women who are very competitive and they do tend to do well at poker but there are not a lot of women like that.

Even if women want to play poker and have a competitive attitude they often lack the necessary skills to be good at the game. This is again because of the fact that we treat boys and girls differently. It is the same reason that girls often don’t do well in math and science when they are at school, there is an attitude that they don’t really need to learn these things. Since good math skills are actually important to be good at poker this puts girls in a position where they are often not able to compete if they do decide to pursue a career in poker.

One reason that there are not a lot of women poker players is oddly the rise in the number of ladies tournaments. The problem is that the women who play in these tournaments are usually treated like they are not playing in a serious poker tournament. Instead these events are treated like social activities. The result is that the women who compete in them never really develop their skills and never get better at poker. They would be far better off playing in small regular tournaments rather than in ladies tournaments. This would allow them to improve at the game and possibly become competitive as players.

Jose Luis Velador went to the last day of Event # 33 of the WSOP leading in chips and having a potential of getting his 2^nd career bracelet. The big wall blocking him off though was a star studded field of poker notables like David Chiu, Victor Ramdin, Rob Hollink, Burt Boutin, Josh Tieman, Kevin MacPhee, and Phil Ivey.

Phil Ivey was making a climb on the leader board when Velador found himself in a very favorable situation. Velador flopped a full house and was thinking of how to get the most out of it.

Good thing Phil Ivey was curious and with Velador’s table talk, he was able to get a crucial pot. He also was able to knock out one of his heavy contenders. Jose Luis Velador went on to knock the rest of the field and get his 2^nd bracelet. He also took home $260,517 for the 1^st place.

Here was the scenario: Jose Luis Velador gets J-diamonds, Jack-clubs, 10-clubs, 9-diamond with a chip count of 349,000; Phil Ivey was holding A-spade, A-diamond, 8-clubs, 2-spade.

Velado pushed 18,000 to raise and Ivey reraise to 66,000. Velador called.

The flop revealed J-spade, 4-diamonds, 4-hearts. Velador checked. Ivey continued his bet to 80,000. Velador thought for a bout a minute and pushed all in.

Ivey spent some time thinking chatting with Velador and probing if the latter has Aces too. Velador told Ivey that he’ll show his cards whatever Ivey will do. Ivey called and showed his cards. Velador also showed what he has.

The turn revealed 7 of clubs while the river gave them a King of clubs. Ivey was eliminated and Velador deepened his stack to 686,000.

Taking the initiative is making the aggressive plays during the betting round. This involves betting and raising. You do not gain initiative if you just call or check.

When do you take the initiative

The most common time to take the initiative is before the dealer makes the flop. There is always a high probability that there will someone who will raise and there will be callers to follow. Of course there is always the chance during the turn or the river.

Again, the player that shows the fang on the poker table is the player with the initiative. The initiative will move from one player to another on different betting rounds. It is up to you to make the impression that you have the strongest hand and dominate the table.

Why you should have the initiative

Taking the initiative gives you several advantages. When you raise or when you bet on a hand, you give the cards you are holding unlimited strength. Image is very important in poker. When you have the initiative you are taking the helm and you will control the table as people will wait for you to make your move.

You will also make life difficult for your opponent since they cannot put your cards on a certain range and cannot estimate how they should play against it. When you have the initiative and play aggressive, you push the other players to the edge. You force them to make difficult decisions. The tougher they handle, the more mistakes they will make. You can lure them to your trap and you will go home with more poker money in hand.

He’s a classy guy – by the way.

There are different types of poker chips available in the market these days. They come in all sizes and shapes and can be customized to one’s own preference. The most common are the plastic poker chips. They are inexpensive and light weighed thus a great choice for amateurs.

The plastic chips can be questioned on durability but they make great accessories for poker while on the move as they can be replaced and made of 100% plastic. Thus they are ideal for an unfussy game with friends.

Another category consists of more durable and pleasing to the eye “the diamond poker chips”. A tad expensive than the plastic poker chips but they give the same feel of casino environment. There is a huge variety of colors and texture available for customization. The eminence and the quality is great of the diamond poker chips and at 8$ per 100 chips is great value for money.

Clay poker chips are the most preferred ones with the exact feel and sense of a casino. They are great for pro players to impress guests at home and come in array of colors and textures. The weight usually hovers around 8.5 to 13 grams per chip, so go and grab your set of chips.

Looking for casino chips? My friend has a great Casino Chips Collection, and he updates his site on a timely basis with new casino chips.

How can she even BE with David Benyamine?

They were at a World Poker Tour event, sitting at the same table… Man I feel for whoever sat in between them — apparently they’re so… touchy.

I don’t want to be the new Pokernews – so don’t expect tournament updates and live blogpodcasts etc… I’m not a pro.

See you around!