Tue, 01/18/2011 – 05:09 – PokerPages Staff

As a beginner poker player it is inherent that you learn to objectively evaluate your game play.  This requires that you apply your knowledge of the poker rules and betting strategy in a consistent manner.

Sklanksy’s Fundamental Theorem of Poker illustrates this concept:

Every time you play a hand differently from the way you would have played it if you could see all your opponents’ cards, they gain; and every time you play your hand the same way you would have played it if you could see all their cards, they lose.  Conversely, every time opponents play their hands differently from the way they would have if they could see all your cards, you gain; and every time they play their hands the same way they would have played if they could see all your cards, you lose.

In short, Sklansky is stating that consistent game play is the key to success at poker.  By altering our game play from situation to situation, we lose.  If we play consistently, we win. 

Through self-evaluation, the beginner can begin to identify their mistakes.  The goal is not whether the play resulted in a win, but what would have been the best play.  By continually evaluating your play, you develop consistency in the game.  In the end, the consistent play will lend to long-term success.

To learn more, check out PokerSchoolOnline, the best source on the internet for poker related learning.  Then put those skills to work by playing free at PokerStars.net.  Also, check out the PokerPages sections Poker Information and Poker Articles for more poker tips and strategies.

Tue, 01/18/2011 – 05:22 – PokerPages Staff

Team PokerStars sponsored pro Viktor ‘Isildur1′ Blom’s meteoric rise to the top of the game was completed at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure when he was finally unveiled as the man behind the most exciting alias in high stakes cash game history.

The Scandinavian sensation recalled the moments that shaped his education in poker during an interview with a Swedish newspaper last week.

Blom admitted his interest in poker stemmed from a native episode of ‘The Poker Million’ which aired when he was a teenager.

“I started playing poker when I was 14 years old I think. With my friends and my brother. There was this program on TV, Pokermiljonen that made us pick up the game.”

“It always went well for me, but it was not until I was 18 that I realized that I could become really good.”

The 20 year-old began testing his skills online in European poker rooms before depositing his first bankroll with Full Tilt Poker in 2008.

Blom admits that he found it extremely difficult initially as he had not been prepared to face players who were more accomplished than himself.

“I started playing on American sites and there I was really stunned by how good the level was. I was not prepared, I did not know there were players even better than me.”

The Swede remains bullish about his Hold’em skills, proclaiming himself to be the finest player in the world in heads up play.

“In Hold’em Heads-Up I am probably the best of all and this experience I carry with me.”

Blom concluded by professing his love for the game and stating that money is not his primary motivation.

“Of course it is tough when you lose, but in the end it does not matter. It is just money. I play because I love it, it is that simple.”