Poker Strategy Poker Tips and Tactics. It's been said that poker is easy to learn but hard to master. This page will give you some tips to help you become a winning poker player, with general poker advice and strategy for players new to the game, as well as some more advanced concepts to consider once you have a good handle on the basics. The story of PokerStars, Amaya, the Stars Group and, ultimately, Flutter Entertainment can be told through its entrants in The Gaming Intelligence Hot 50. It is a story of pioneering entrepreneurialism and global conquest. It is a story of legal battles and PR wars. It is a story of jealousy and greed. According to Severin Rasset, PokerStars director of innovation and poker operations, 'There are tools that provide their users with sometimes small and other times clear advantages over others. Once in a Royal Flush, however. These ordinary quirks turn into an epic online poker story. Here are some of my favorites. Quirks that only technology could bring have made for some great online poker stories Bad beat poker stories. The most common poker stories are accompanied.
Table Of Contents
PokerStars announced today some changes to policies on use of third party tools, which will go into effect March 4, 2019. The major policy changes involve the banning of seating scripts along with restricted use of automated or semi-automated reference materials during play.
The changes are set to go into effect in all poker games across all PokerStars markets.
European Poker Tour Schedule. Check back soon for more must-play EPT events coming your way. EPT Sochi – March 19-28, 2021. The EPT heads back to Russia and Sochi's picturesque surroundings. PSPC and EPT Barcelona – Postponed. The PSPC and EPT combine for poker's biggest tour stop of the year – don't miss it. About: Security. With the help of a group of poker experts, Robbie Strazynski ponders when live poker tournaments will return and what factors will come into play. With the help of a group of poker experts, Robbie Strazynski ponders when live poker tournaments will return and what factors will come into play. Poker tournaments europe december 2021 calendar.
Impetus for Change
According to Severin Rasset, PokerStars director of innovation and poker operations, 'There are tools that provide their users with sometimes small and other times clear advantages over others, undermining the spirit of the game.'
The policy changes have been put in place in an attempt to establish a 'safe and fair environment' for all their users and to provide 'a clear and unambiguous picture of the additional resources available to them,' as Rasset explains it in his Feb. 27 PokerStars Blog post.
'Our goal is to ensure that the same rules and standards apply to everyone,' he added.
'Our goal is to ensure that the same rules and standards apply to everyone.'
While tools like bots, Rasset pointed out, have always been banned on PokerStars and the site has largely ensured the absence of them, the site is now focused on eliminating other threats to an even playing field.
'For PokerStars, my vision is to limit as much as possible the use of tools that artificially enhance the process of sitting down to play, and play itself,' wrote Rasset. 'Tools that can give players an edge over others and which detract from the journey of developing the skills necessary to become a better poker player.'
Banning of Seating Scripts
The use of seating scripts, or automated programs designed to auto-seat players at tables when particular (weaker) players sit in, have been protested for years by vocal members of the online poker community. The rampant use of these 'bum-hunting' tools that allow the most profitable players to target weaker players has been deemed a destructive practice for the poker ecosystem.
PokerStars agrees and is taking action to stop it.
'Any tool or service that sorts available games or (semi-) automates the process of joining games based on the game-play statistics or notes of other players will be prohibited,' said Rasset. 'A tool that solely (or semi-) automates adding players to a set number of tables, without any reliance on information about other players, is permitted.'
This isn't PokerStars' first foray into blocking seating scripts, as they already tested it out and implemented a feature called 'Seat Me' in their Southern European markets. The automated seating program, which keeps players from choosing their own tables and seats in cash games, was tested out for a year in PokerStars' Spanish market before they expanded it early last year to the shared liquidity market that joined player pools in Spain and France, and later Portugal.
Soon, players on all PokerStars clients will be using an automated seating system that prevents seating scripts.
Limiting Use of Reference Materials
PokerStars' updated policy will also prohibit the use of automated or semi-automated poker reference materials while the client is open, with limitations placed on use of starting hand charts.
'We do not wish for players to be supplied with in-depth reference material (commonly 'starting hand charts'), follow it blindly while playing, and artificially boost their performance,' Rasset writes. 'Broadly speaking, reference material can only be used for basic hand decisions, like unopened pot and preflop decisions, rather than as a live virtual decision maker.'
'These changes are a big step forward for us and, we hope, the poker community.'
In the full PDF presentation for developers, the company elaborates on exactly the types of third party materials that are allowed, and those that are not. Examples of permitted starting hand charts include those that code for raise, raise or fold, and fold in unopened pots, assuming no player has already entered the pot and frequencies of which action to take aren't provided. Charts that specify frequencies of actions to be taken, like distinguishing between calling, folding or three-betting, and charts that specify actions to take when facing a raise, are all on the list of prohibited during gameplay.
Rasset also specifies, 'All material must be able to be converted to a maximum of nine, 13x13 charts.'
While it's somewhat unclear exactly how the poker site developers can police use of certain reference materials, Rasset assured that enforcement will be possible.
'…We also need to be able to ensure that we create enforceable and sustainable policies, making sure that players who do follow the rules are not at a disadvantage. The changes we are announcing today follow an extensive period of development to ensure that we can achieve these goals.'
Taken directly from the PokerStars Blog, materials prohibited while the poker client is open include the following:
1. Reference material that provides advice beyond a basic level, such as a large collection of tables offering recommendations beyond whether to play certain hands or not in unopened pots.
2. Tools or services designed specifically to ease referral to reference material.
3. Tools or services that compute advanced equity calculations, such as range vs range simulators, Independent Chip Model or Nash Equilibrium-based programs.
Allowed, with Restrictions
A summary of tools deemed acceptable was also provided. These include tools for determining pot odds or absolute hand strength, basic static reference materials, in-game Heads-Up Displays (HUDs) that only gather information from hands personally played, as well as 'Macros and Hotkey programs for gameplay efficiency that do not reduce the requirement of a player having to make a decision.'
'For PokerStars, my vision is to limit as much as possible the use of tools that artificially enhance the process of sitting down to play, and play itself.' Parx casino and racing.
Within the use of HUDs, restrictions are placed in terms of 'qualitative and feature limitations on statistics displayed in-game.' For example, players are restricted from having statistics split based on card values to indicate player tendencies with specific hole cards or on different board textures. Players are also not allowed to display statistics based on stack sizes or table position, or make specific notes according to player tendencies. In the full presentation, it explicitly says that HUDs may not 'Rate, label, categorise or stereotype players based on their tendencies.'
'These changes are a big step forward for us and, we hope, the poker community,' Rasset writes. 'Personally, I'm looking forward to seeing their contribution to the safe and welcoming environment we aim to offer every one of our players, regardless of experience and ability.'
For a full explanation of the new policies, including examples of what is and is no longer permitted while playing on PokerStars, you can have a look at this PDF presentation by The Stars Group.
The Stars Group owns a majority shareholding in iBus Media.
Tags
PokerStarsSeating ScriptsSeverin RassetStarting Hand Charts
PokerStars was founded by an Israeli senior programmer for IBM Canada, Isai Scheinberg. He began to write the software that would form the basis for PokerStars in the late 1990s and formed Rational Enterprises, originally based in Costa Rica, to operate his new poker site.
On September 11, 2001, the site was launched in beta version for play money only. A few months later, in December, the real money version was opened.
After a few years operating in Costa Rica, PokerStars announced a move to the Isle of Man, a British Crown dependency, in 2005. Scheinberg's decision to shift to this location was influenced by the 0% corporate tax rate and the island's policy to remove all bans on companies that were accepting poker bets from US players.
The site was granted an eGaming License by the Isle of Man Department of Home Affairs under its Gambling Regulation Act of 2001.
'The decision to relocate to the Isle of Man was unanimous,' said the Director of Communications for the site, Nola Dolla.
Pokerstars Story
Online poker experienced a dramatic rise in popularity in the mid-2000s, and this can largely be pinpointed to one single event: Chris Moneymaker's victory in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) event in 2003.
Moneymaker was a full time accountant and part time poker player who enjoyed dabbling with the game in his spare time. Moneymaker entered a $39 satellite tournament at PokerStars and won himself a seat into a larger satellite. He went on to win that one too, earning entry into the WSOP.
What happened after that was nothing short of miraculous.
How many slot machines does mohegan sun have. Amateur poker players were suddenly flocking to online poker sites around the world, trying to emulate the rags to riches story of their new poker hero. PokerStars in particular benefitted enormously from what became known as the 'Moneymaker Effect'.
After Moneymaker's victory in 2003, PokerStars was on a roll in terms of WSOP qualifiers. A year later, the site qualified 315 players for the $100K championship event, 15% of the total tournament players.
At the time, the Vice President for Marketing of PokerStars, Dan Goldman said:
In January 2006 the Scheinberg family enlisted NM Rothschild, a large merchant bank in London, to explore options for floating or selling the company. At the time PokerStars was valued at around $2 billion.
Potential buyers included the Rank Group and William Hill and there was also speculation that a merger could take place. It was widely believed that PokerStars would choose to float on the London Stock Exchange, following in the footsteps of some of its rivals such as PartyPoker.
Later in 2006, the UIGEA was introduced in the United States, making it illegal for financial institutions to process transactions from US residents that were related to online gambling. As a result, many gambling sites made the decision to pull out of the lucrative America market.
Poker Strategy Poker Tips and Tactics. It's been said that poker is easy to learn but hard to master. This page will give you some tips to help you become a winning poker player, with general poker advice and strategy for players new to the game, as well as some more advanced concepts to consider once you have a good handle on the basics. The story of PokerStars, Amaya, the Stars Group and, ultimately, Flutter Entertainment can be told through its entrants in The Gaming Intelligence Hot 50. It is a story of pioneering entrepreneurialism and global conquest. It is a story of legal battles and PR wars. It is a story of jealousy and greed. According to Severin Rasset, PokerStars director of innovation and poker operations, 'There are tools that provide their users with sometimes small and other times clear advantages over others. Once in a Royal Flush, however. These ordinary quirks turn into an epic online poker story. Here are some of my favorites. Quirks that only technology could bring have made for some great online poker stories Bad beat poker stories. The most common poker stories are accompanied.
Table Of Contents
PokerStars announced today some changes to policies on use of third party tools, which will go into effect March 4, 2019. The major policy changes involve the banning of seating scripts along with restricted use of automated or semi-automated reference materials during play.
The changes are set to go into effect in all poker games across all PokerStars markets.
European Poker Tour Schedule. Check back soon for more must-play EPT events coming your way. EPT Sochi – March 19-28, 2021. The EPT heads back to Russia and Sochi's picturesque surroundings. PSPC and EPT Barcelona – Postponed. The PSPC and EPT combine for poker's biggest tour stop of the year – don't miss it. About: Security. With the help of a group of poker experts, Robbie Strazynski ponders when live poker tournaments will return and what factors will come into play. With the help of a group of poker experts, Robbie Strazynski ponders when live poker tournaments will return and what factors will come into play. Poker tournaments europe december 2021 calendar.
Impetus for Change
According to Severin Rasset, PokerStars director of innovation and poker operations, 'There are tools that provide their users with sometimes small and other times clear advantages over others, undermining the spirit of the game.'
The policy changes have been put in place in an attempt to establish a 'safe and fair environment' for all their users and to provide 'a clear and unambiguous picture of the additional resources available to them,' as Rasset explains it in his Feb. 27 PokerStars Blog post.
'Our goal is to ensure that the same rules and standards apply to everyone,' he added.
'Our goal is to ensure that the same rules and standards apply to everyone.'
While tools like bots, Rasset pointed out, have always been banned on PokerStars and the site has largely ensured the absence of them, the site is now focused on eliminating other threats to an even playing field.
'For PokerStars, my vision is to limit as much as possible the use of tools that artificially enhance the process of sitting down to play, and play itself,' wrote Rasset. 'Tools that can give players an edge over others and which detract from the journey of developing the skills necessary to become a better poker player.'
Banning of Seating Scripts
The use of seating scripts, or automated programs designed to auto-seat players at tables when particular (weaker) players sit in, have been protested for years by vocal members of the online poker community. The rampant use of these 'bum-hunting' tools that allow the most profitable players to target weaker players has been deemed a destructive practice for the poker ecosystem.
PokerStars agrees and is taking action to stop it.
'Any tool or service that sorts available games or (semi-) automates the process of joining games based on the game-play statistics or notes of other players will be prohibited,' said Rasset. 'A tool that solely (or semi-) automates adding players to a set number of tables, without any reliance on information about other players, is permitted.'
This isn't PokerStars' first foray into blocking seating scripts, as they already tested it out and implemented a feature called 'Seat Me' in their Southern European markets. The automated seating program, which keeps players from choosing their own tables and seats in cash games, was tested out for a year in PokerStars' Spanish market before they expanded it early last year to the shared liquidity market that joined player pools in Spain and France, and later Portugal.
Soon, players on all PokerStars clients will be using an automated seating system that prevents seating scripts.
Limiting Use of Reference Materials
PokerStars' updated policy will also prohibit the use of automated or semi-automated poker reference materials while the client is open, with limitations placed on use of starting hand charts.
'We do not wish for players to be supplied with in-depth reference material (commonly 'starting hand charts'), follow it blindly while playing, and artificially boost their performance,' Rasset writes. 'Broadly speaking, reference material can only be used for basic hand decisions, like unopened pot and preflop decisions, rather than as a live virtual decision maker.'
'These changes are a big step forward for us and, we hope, the poker community.'
In the full PDF presentation for developers, the company elaborates on exactly the types of third party materials that are allowed, and those that are not. Examples of permitted starting hand charts include those that code for raise, raise or fold, and fold in unopened pots, assuming no player has already entered the pot and frequencies of which action to take aren't provided. Charts that specify frequencies of actions to be taken, like distinguishing between calling, folding or three-betting, and charts that specify actions to take when facing a raise, are all on the list of prohibited during gameplay.
Rasset also specifies, 'All material must be able to be converted to a maximum of nine, 13x13 charts.'
While it's somewhat unclear exactly how the poker site developers can police use of certain reference materials, Rasset assured that enforcement will be possible.
'…We also need to be able to ensure that we create enforceable and sustainable policies, making sure that players who do follow the rules are not at a disadvantage. The changes we are announcing today follow an extensive period of development to ensure that we can achieve these goals.'
Taken directly from the PokerStars Blog, materials prohibited while the poker client is open include the following:
1. Reference material that provides advice beyond a basic level, such as a large collection of tables offering recommendations beyond whether to play certain hands or not in unopened pots.
2. Tools or services designed specifically to ease referral to reference material.
3. Tools or services that compute advanced equity calculations, such as range vs range simulators, Independent Chip Model or Nash Equilibrium-based programs.
Allowed, with Restrictions
A summary of tools deemed acceptable was also provided. These include tools for determining pot odds or absolute hand strength, basic static reference materials, in-game Heads-Up Displays (HUDs) that only gather information from hands personally played, as well as 'Macros and Hotkey programs for gameplay efficiency that do not reduce the requirement of a player having to make a decision.'
'For PokerStars, my vision is to limit as much as possible the use of tools that artificially enhance the process of sitting down to play, and play itself.' Parx casino and racing.
Within the use of HUDs, restrictions are placed in terms of 'qualitative and feature limitations on statistics displayed in-game.' For example, players are restricted from having statistics split based on card values to indicate player tendencies with specific hole cards or on different board textures. Players are also not allowed to display statistics based on stack sizes or table position, or make specific notes according to player tendencies. In the full presentation, it explicitly says that HUDs may not 'Rate, label, categorise or stereotype players based on their tendencies.'
'These changes are a big step forward for us and, we hope, the poker community,' Rasset writes. 'Personally, I'm looking forward to seeing their contribution to the safe and welcoming environment we aim to offer every one of our players, regardless of experience and ability.'
For a full explanation of the new policies, including examples of what is and is no longer permitted while playing on PokerStars, you can have a look at this PDF presentation by The Stars Group.
The Stars Group owns a majority shareholding in iBus Media.
Tags
PokerStarsSeating ScriptsSeverin RassetStarting Hand Charts
PokerStars was founded by an Israeli senior programmer for IBM Canada, Isai Scheinberg. He began to write the software that would form the basis for PokerStars in the late 1990s and formed Rational Enterprises, originally based in Costa Rica, to operate his new poker site.
On September 11, 2001, the site was launched in beta version for play money only. A few months later, in December, the real money version was opened.
After a few years operating in Costa Rica, PokerStars announced a move to the Isle of Man, a British Crown dependency, in 2005. Scheinberg's decision to shift to this location was influenced by the 0% corporate tax rate and the island's policy to remove all bans on companies that were accepting poker bets from US players.
The site was granted an eGaming License by the Isle of Man Department of Home Affairs under its Gambling Regulation Act of 2001.
'The decision to relocate to the Isle of Man was unanimous,' said the Director of Communications for the site, Nola Dolla.
Pokerstars Story
Online poker experienced a dramatic rise in popularity in the mid-2000s, and this can largely be pinpointed to one single event: Chris Moneymaker's victory in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) event in 2003.
Moneymaker was a full time accountant and part time poker player who enjoyed dabbling with the game in his spare time. Moneymaker entered a $39 satellite tournament at PokerStars and won himself a seat into a larger satellite. He went on to win that one too, earning entry into the WSOP.
What happened after that was nothing short of miraculous.
How many slot machines does mohegan sun have. Amateur poker players were suddenly flocking to online poker sites around the world, trying to emulate the rags to riches story of their new poker hero. PokerStars in particular benefitted enormously from what became known as the 'Moneymaker Effect'.
After Moneymaker's victory in 2003, PokerStars was on a roll in terms of WSOP qualifiers. A year later, the site qualified 315 players for the $100K championship event, 15% of the total tournament players.
At the time, the Vice President for Marketing of PokerStars, Dan Goldman said:
In January 2006 the Scheinberg family enlisted NM Rothschild, a large merchant bank in London, to explore options for floating or selling the company. At the time PokerStars was valued at around $2 billion.
Potential buyers included the Rank Group and William Hill and there was also speculation that a merger could take place. It was widely believed that PokerStars would choose to float on the London Stock Exchange, following in the footsteps of some of its rivals such as PartyPoker.
Later in 2006, the UIGEA was introduced in the United States, making it illegal for financial institutions to process transactions from US residents that were related to online gambling. As a result, many gambling sites made the decision to pull out of the lucrative America market.
Those that were publically traded had no choice as they were answerable to their shareholders. As a privately owned company though, PokerStars could make its own decisions.
PokerStars declared that it would not be seeking its previously planned IPO in the near future. The flotation that had been planned for the spring of 2007 was delayed indefinitely.
Pokerstars Stock Symbol
The company made a strategic decision to continue serving North American players, filling the niche left in the US market by so many poker sites leaving.
It would face consequences for remaining active in the US in later years though.
No history of PokerStars would be complete without a mention of the World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP). This was launched by PokerStars in 2002 and has grown to be the biggest online tournament series in the world.
Below is a brief timeline of how this competition has evolved over time.
- 2002 – The first WCOOP began offering nine events and $730,000 in prize money.
- 2003 – Eleven events were offered, drawing the crowds who wanted to see WSOP winner Chris Moneymaker in action. A total of $2.7 million in combined prize money was up for grabs.
- 2004 – An extra event was added to this WCOOP, and prize money reached $6 million.
- 2005 – Prize money during 2005 was doubled to $12 million, and 15 events were scheduled. Nearly 20,000 took part.
- 2006 – Eighteen events ran during WCOOP 2006, with $18,700,000 in prize money.
- 2007 – This year saw the introduction of short-handed tournaments for the first time. $24 million in prize money was available to more than 40,000 players who took part in the 23 events.
- 2008 – Just under $40 million in prize money was offered over 33 events.
- 2009 – This year's event broke the record as the biggest online tournament series staged. Players from 140 countries took part in 45 events over the course of 18 days to compete for the prize pool of over $50 million.
- 2010 – More records are beaten and over $63 million in prize money was paid out in 62 events taking place over 23 days.
- 2011 – The Main Event featured over 1,600 players and a first prize of $1,260,018.
- 2012 – The number of events was up to 65 and over $55 million in prize money was awarded.
- 2013 – Prize money was back up to over $60 million and a total of 66 events took place.
On April 15, 2011, the PokerStars website was shut down by the US government, along with other poker sites still serving the US market. PokerStars had no choice but to suspend its poker services for US customers, although it remained open in other regions.
This day became known as Black Friday in the online poker industry. On April 20, PokerStars reached an agreement with the Department of Justice to regain use of their website in order to distribute account funds to there US customers.
PokerStars began to pay out funds to US customers almost immediately and, the following year, the company reached an agreement with the American government.
They admitted no wrongdoing for its past activities in accepting US customers and it was acknowledged that they would be able to apply for licenses to operate in the US once the necessary legal framework was in place. As part of the agreement PokerStars purchased the assets of its previous competitor:Full Tilt Poker.
Today, despite no longer operating in the United States, PokerStars remains the largest poker website in the world. It's already active in attempts to legally return to the US as the nation begins to regulate online poker.
