We dust off our internet spade and go
digging for web freebies to improve your poker
I have some good news for you – there’s nothing wrong with being an internet pikey. Don’t be ashamed to go trawling for free information, because that’s half the fun of the web. And as poker becomes more and more popular, so more and more poker-related goodies appear online. But how do you sort the wheat from the chaff? No worries, we’ve done the hard job for you. Here we present the top 12 poker-related goodies that WILL improve your game, all for a total investment of zero pounds and zero pence.
Chip calculator
What’s it do?
Works out how many chips to use in tournaments
Where do I find it?
Poker chipsets were one of the best-selling gifts last Christmas, but the manufacturers never seem to give you an amount of chips that distributes easily to players for a home game. Thankfully, www.homepokertourney.com has the answer, with this little calculator that lets you test out different combinations of chip colours and denominations. By entering the amounts and colours you have to play with into the calculator – along with the number of players and an idea of desired chips-per-person – this smart tool tells you how you should supply each player. You may have to accept that there’s no perfect solution for the chipset you bought, but the calculator will at least make sure you have the right denominations to cover specific blind structures.
Table plans
What’s it do?
Tells you all you need to know in order to make your own poker table
Where do I find it?
Surely you’re sick of sitting on the floor watching cards stick to every tea stain and glob of jam on the coffee table? You’re not getting any younger either. Don’t you find your back hurts more and more after those six-hour sessions with the boys? Well here’s your chance to dust off the Black & Decker Quattro your uncle was ludicrous enough to buy you five years ago and prove you’re a man. There are a number of free plans and guides on the web, but we’ve chosen this one simply because every single stage of the process is so well documented, with a fantastic series of photos to stare at blankly every time you realise you don’t really know what you’re doing. From marking out wood to cutting the material to cover your rail, everything you need to know is here.
Odds calculator
What’s it do?
Calculates winning odds on specific hands
Where do I find it?
Ever wondered just how crazy you were going all-in with K-Q off-suit against those pocket Eights? You need an odds calculator and, although there are loads on the internet, the prince among thieves is the one on our website (obviously), which allows you to specify how many players are in the hand in question, along with their position on the table. Simply click on the cards at the bottom to add them to the relevant hands (and flop/turn if required) and click on ‘Get Odds’ to find out who the favourite is. You can deal more players in by clicking around the table. An honourable mention also goes to the calculator at www.pokerlistings.com/ poker-odds-calculator for the fact that it covers loads of poker variants, and not just Texas Hold’em.
Free gambling
What’s it do?
Teaches you that gambling is a mug’s game
Where do I find it?
Being poker players, we often find ourselves in situations (aka casinos) where ‘proper’ gambling surrounds us. Who hasn’t walked dejected from a poker room having crashed out of a tourney and wondered whether solace might be found on the Blackjack tables? Or considered that, just perhaps, Caribbean Stud is close enough to ‘real’ poker that you think you have some edge over it? Well, let me save you the bother of pissing $100 up the wall by pointing you in the direction of the Bodog freebie online casino. Play Blackjack, roulette, slots, video poker… Try and make a profit, and keep an honest book of just how well you do. I’m sure you’ll agree this kind of gambling is a mug’s game after 20 minutes. In fact, I’d put money on it.
ClickTray Calendar
What’s it do?
Keeps track and reminds you of all-important online tournaments
Where do I find it?
If you’re like most poker players you probably have more than a few poker software clients on your PC. With the various freerolls, big online events and daily favourite tournaments going on it can become hard to keep track of everything. But fear not – ClickTray Calendar is here to take care of everything and ensure that you catch all that juicy online action. Sitting quietly in your system tray, this application can be programmed with multiple events (and their recurrences), ready to pop up with little on-screen reminders when it’s time to register for that big weekly freeroll (you know, the one you like to come 3,457th in every week). Events can even be linked to applications, so let ClickTray Calendar automatically fire up Virgin Poker in time for the lunchtime turbo.
Pro charts
What’s it do?
All manner of information for your poker room
Where do I find it?
If you’ve ever wanted some ‘official’ help when random issues arise during your home game, look no further. Once again www.homepokertourney.com comes to the rescue with a host of charts and sheets to print out, laminate and slap on the wall. It all looks very professional, and gives you something to throw wads of moist toilet paper at while you’re waiting for a hand. The ‘rules of poker’ is an obvious one, but single sheets are also available that cover subjects such as 7-Card Stud, blinds, payouts, chip values, etiquette… basically everything you need to know about poker. There’s also a decent trouble-shooting chart that covers most dealer errors and irregularities that you might bump into now and then.
TimeLeft
What’s it do?
Gives you an instant countdown and reminder
Where do I find it?
Here’s the scene: you’re busy ‘working’ like the hero you are, but that second monitor is going to waste, so you have a quick browse through PokerStars’ lobby for a freeroll. There it is – good old ‘Hubble’s Hold’em Freeroll’. Problem is, registration doesn’t start for 38 minutes. Do you really trust yourself to remember to go back in 40 minutes and register? No, of course not. Not a problem! Fire up TimeLeft and just tell it to buzz you in 40 minutes with the message ‘Freeroll registration open’. A tiny, harmless clock will sit on top of all your applications, and even if you forget to check it as it gently ticks down, a pretty little reminder note appears with a ‘ding’ at the programmed time and you’re sorted. Handy for online auctions too!
Tips newsletters
What’s it do?
Free and generally good poker advice
Where do I find it?
There’s no end to the amount of poker strategy and advice posted on the web, but there are a few diamonds in the rough that are worth digging for. ‘Roy Rounder’ is the nickname of a player that claims to have successfully made a living ‘grinding’ away at poker for the last 10 years. His site is really just an advert for a book called No-Limit Hold’em Secrets, but the newsletter you can sign up for is actually cumulatively as good as a book! Subjects covered include: when to chase a straight, how to represent the flop, why you shouldn’t slowplay big hands, how to avoid going on tilt, and many more. Though ALL of this information is well represented elsewhere online, having it arrive as a concise, regular, readable newsletter makes it easier to digest.
Chip tricks
What’s it do?
Teaches you to look ‘cool’
Where do I find it?
We’ve all looked on in wonder as the likes of Johnny Chan and Antonio Esfandiari make chips seemingly jump and dance before our very eyes. And while some people seem to think that being able to perform chip tricks is more important than actually playing good cards, who are we to criticise? We’re just there to ‘ooh’ and ‘ahh’, and don’t you ever forget that. Anyway, here’s your chance to dazzle the three friends you have (no, your mum doesn’t count) as pokerchiptricks.com is kind enough to not only explain in pain-staking detail how to perform these slights of chip, but also provide stage-by-stage photo tutorials – and in some cases full video tutorials – on the various tricks known to man. With a bit of patience you’ll be the star of the table.
Tournament Director
What’s it do?
Runs your home or professional poker tournament
Where do I find it?
I know you were awfully impressed with yourself when you bought an egg timer to keep track of the blinds, but this is a whole new level of tournament management. Put very simply, the Tournament Director will do as much or as little as you want in regards to running your poker home games. If you just want to programme it with your blinds, fine. But if you want it to manage table breakdowns, keep track of active players, display the average chip stack and calculate the prize structure, it’ll take just a further few minutes to set up. A tremendously clever piece of software, it really is a case of getting out of it as much as you’re prepared to put in. And what’s more, you can try it free for 30 days before deciding whether you want to keep it. And you can’t say fairer than that.
Poker Indicator
What’s it do?
Gives you live information on hand odds
Where do I find it?
This freebie will only work on play games unless you’re prepared to pay for an upgrade, but it still qualifies as an excellent training tool. Poker Indicator plugs into your game (check on site for software compatibility) and monitors the hand you’re dealt as well as the board as it develops. Initially it ranks your hand as per the Sklansky grouping method, and tells you what percentage of games this hand can expect to win. As the board progresses, the information updates to show you what final hand you’re most likely to complete to, as well as how many outs you have to improve. It also displays a bar graph showing how likely it is your opponents have specific hands. Don’t rely on it for betting decisions, but it’s a great way to learn odds.
Session Tracking
What’s it do?
Tracks and manages all your poker games
Where do I find it?
You need to do this immediately! No longer will you be able to go on and on about that ‘amazing’ win you had (you know, the one that cost you $1.20 to enter where you won $7) and conveniently ‘forget’ every time you blow $10 for nothing. Session Tracking allows you – totally for free – to enter each and every game you play, and then examine the data this produces. Apart from keeping you honest, it enables you to see your average win rates, your return-per-hour, your best five sessions, your worst five sessions… just LOADS of great information. And you get a BIG CHART to stare at. This is brilliant when you’re doing well, but not quite so good when you’re losing. But that’s why it’s there. Can’t recommend this highly enough – sign up now!
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