Saturday, November 29, 2008 - Cardroom
The Card Room would like to say to all of you welcome aboard the new CEREUS platform. We finally made it and although there have been a few minor bugs, overall the launch has been a tremendous success. As well we have been addressing issues brought up by our players including software improvements that have been suggested.
As you may or may not be aware, the bigger player base allows for large guarantees that happen more frequently and higher stakes tables along with pushing up our famous bad beat jackpot that much quicker! In fact, just *two* days after the launch of CEREUS, new UB player ‘Square Route’ took down over $250,000 after losing a hand holding a straight flush!! Sounds like a dream come true and your turn may be just around the corner!
Check out our hot bad beat tables and the new guarantee schedule below!
Wednesday 21:00, Sniper $80K Guaranteed, $200+15
Thursday 20:30, $100K Guaranteed, $1000+50
Saturday 15:30, $15K Guaranteed DoubleStack (PLO 8/b), $150+12
Saturday 17:30, $100K Guaranteed, $300+20
Saturday 21:00, Sniper $50K Guaranteed, $120+10
Sunday 14:00, $100K Guaranteed, $500+30
Sunday 17:30, $200K Guaranteed, $200+15
Sunday 21:00, Sniper $50K Guaranteed, $120+10
The Card Room
Tags: Cardroom, Cardroom Commentary
Comments (2)
Saturday, November 29, 2008 - P0ker H0
Im going to talk a little bit about something I think most players struggle with, and that is adjusting to a new table when getting moved in Live poker. In Live poker the game is a little slower and it takes a little longer to get used to your table. Aside from sitting there and watching everyhand and player there is something I like to do. I like to examine everyones stack and see what stacks have the most 25 chips in them. Why you might ask? well the person with the most 25 chips is probably the one who is stealing blinds the most. We know this because when antes kick in there are always at least an extra 9 “25″ chips in the pot. We can use this information to assume that whoever has a stack full of greens, has either been very active, or very lucky. Also when I steal pots, I like to keep my 25 chips and stack them high. It gives the illusion of a much bigger stack than it seems, and this can steer people away from getting involved when you dont want them to.
Next time you play live, try this and watch how quick you will know who is aggressive and who is not.
Gl Everyone
P0ker H0
Tags: P0ker H0, Poker Strategy
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Saturday, November 29, 2008 - UB Marketing
L I O N wrote in about his experience with the UBauctions and the lessons from the pros…
Shawn Rice primarily focused on bankroll management. He advised me that if you build a bankroll at a level, that you need to move up in stakes in accordance with money management formulas. If you lose money and have to move back down in stakes, you still gain experience against better players which can only help you to improve as a player. I had never thought about that aspect. He also gave me guidelines for how much and how many times you should re-buy at cash games.
I focused on ring games with Shawn, and he was very helpful reviewing basic strategy, hand reading, and evaluating opponents. He gave me a few things I need to work on, some of it having to do with bankroll management, and table selection. Mark was very helpful to me in suggesting changes in my bet sizing in No Limit Ring games.
Mark focused on SNGs. He reviewed situational play in the SNGs, and he verified that in general that I am on the right track with my approach. He emphasized the importance of being aware of my position and stack size, and my opponents stack sizes and tendencies. Mark also discussed how to determine whether your stack has sufficient fold equity against your opponent’s stacks, and some ideas from when you should call an opponent’s bet when on the bubble. Mark also discussed the importance of finding out as much information as you can about your opponents. He also emphasized the importance of concentration and focusing while playing, and the importance of studying poker from videos, contact with good players, and disciplined practice.
Both Mark and Shawn are very knowledgeable players who communicate well and formulated their instruction to be appropriate to my ability and experience level.
I previously had a lesson with Gary Deebo who was also a very knowledgeable tournament player. It would be an excellent opportunity for a player of any skill level to take instruction from any of these three gentlemen.
Thanks,
L I O N
Tags: lessons from the pros, UB Auctions, ub marketing
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Saturday, November 29, 2008 - Phil Hellmuth
OK, I woke up Friday at 10:00 am (ouch!), and hopped in my white stretch limo at 10:30 am. Then my limo driver Singh drove up the runway right to my private jet ride at the San Jose airport. Tom Smith is one of the two brother Founders of “Taser”—along with Rick—and he was my pilot as well! Talk about full service…We flew to Vegas and picked up Layne Flack, McClain Karr, Jeff Madsen, Todd Brunson, Lara Miller, and Brandon Cantu. Then we flew to Phoenix where we had our whole weekend scheduled up.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Friday, November 21, 2008
2:00 pm General Tournament first seating – Ft. McDowell Casino Poker Room
4:00 pm – 5:00 pm Celebrity Media time – Radisson Hospitality Suite
5:00 pm VIP Dinner at The Peaks Steakhouse – Ft. McDowell Casino
7:00 pm – 7:30 pm Meet & Greet for Tribal leaders and media winners – Ft. McDowell Casino
7:30 pm Poker Class for Celebrities – Radisson Hospitality Suite
9:00 pm General Tournament second seating – Ft. McDowell Casino Poker room
Saturday, November, 22, 2008
10:30 am – 11:30 am General public meet & greet – Ft. McDowell Casino entrance of Poker Room
12:00 pm High Roller Tournament – Ft. McDowell Casino
4:00 pm – 5:00 pm Dinner for families, celebrities, VIP law enforcement guests – Ft. McDowell Casino outside courtyard
5:00 pm – 8:00 pm Resume tournament – Ft. McDowell Casino
8:00 pm Final Grand Prize Table – Ft. McDowell Casino
10:30 pm Rick’s After Party at Myst – board buses for Myst
I grabbed a quick workout—Todd later complained when I dropped my bags in his room—mine wasn’t ready yet–and I stripped down to my undershorts to put my workout gear on, he said, “I didn’t know where this was going!” Very clever line Todd. We had dinner at 5:00 pm, then at 7:00 pm we taught a bunch of the celebs how to play poker including: former Dallas Cowboys Ed “Too Tall” Jones, “Hollywood” Hendersen, and Steve Cole, John Bunnel (FOX’s “Wildest Police Videos”), American Gladiators Siren and Wolf, Paula Trickey (“Pacific Blue”), Karri Turner (“JAG”), rapper Young MC (), and County music stars Mark Wills and Nick Nicholson. At 10:30 we took a limo to the “W” to meet quarterback Matt Leinart, who was nice enough to let Madsen, Flack, Cantu and I sit in his family box for the Giants-Cardinals game Sunday afternoon. We arrived at 11:30, but Leinart texted me at exactly 11:32 saying he was out of there as he needed to get some sleep (understandable). Also, another text came in at exactly 11:32 from Young MC saying that two Phillies players wanted to meet me. So I walked across the room and had a great time chilling with Jeff Jenkins and Pat Burrel for about an hour. Those guys are still on cloud nine! They were in such a great mood and in such a high spirit that it was awesome to see! We had a great time talking baseball and poker, and Burrel and I started needling each other back and forth. That was so much fun! Burrel just tells it like it is, and that is refreshing, and fun. [“Phil I love watching you because you’re such an asshole.”] Uh, OK Pat. I dragged Nick and his wife out to the club with us, and the next day he said, “A country singer at a hip hop club, of course no one recognized me.”
The next day we had the VIP tournament at noon, which was a $1,000 buy in, with $1,000 rebuys, and a $500 add on. On Friday there were two tournaments that were smaller with rebuys, and for the whole weekend we raised $450,000 for the “Taser Fallen Officers Foundation” charity! All of this money goes directly to officers and their families that have been injured, or have died in the line of duty. Ever since 911 I have had a soft spot for the policeman and the fireman, and I’m so happy to help out the cause! I emceed for ten hours straight, and I played and made the money (13th, and they paid 13). Todd played great, and he was defending champion as well, and when he was heads up, with pocket queens, and a queen on the board, it looked like he had defended his title, but the “Birthday boy”(great story – his wife put him in the tourney for his birthday and he won it!) hit a flush and went on to win.
Clonie has been at more of these charity events–that I do–than anyone else. After Cantu went broke with 8-6 off suit, he got up to quit. But Clonie took the microphone and said, “I will rebuy you Brandon, but then we have to have a last longer bet where the loser gets tased by the winner!” Cantu reluctantly agreed to the bet. Now I was already needling Cantu about playing too fast, and now he was all in with Q-3 off suit (rebuy!), then Q-3 off suit (another rebuy), then J-3 suited (he actually had the best hand and jack high won the pot), of course I announced each of his all ins while I needled him about playing too fast! Then suddenly, he was all in again in a three way pot, and Cantu had A-A! He won the pot and took the chip lead! Clonie was so bummed out that she stopped talking entirely! After the rebuy it was Cantu with $70,000 and Clonie with $15,000. Still, hours passed after that as the whole room watched the battle. We taped the sound of a Taser and played it over the microphone! We had people testify on the mic what it was like to be tased! When we hit the final fourteen, Clonie was all in, Cantu called her with A-7, and “Too Tall” was in there as well, the cards came off: Ah-Js-Jd-4h-10h, and Clonie showed down the Jh-9h! Brandon looked sick to his stomach! They were now about even in chips. Finally, Cantu went broke on the bubble, and Clonie will Tase him at the Bellagio, and we will invite poker players to watch it, and play the video on youtube.com, cardplayer.com, and bluff.com!
On Saturday night I was too tired to go out, so I went to bed early, knowing that I had a limo to the game and four tickets to Leinart’s box. During the game I enjoyed chatting with Leinart’s mother, brother, and father. They are all well grounded and positive people. Then we headed down to meet Matt postgame, and afterwards I hopped into the limo for the airport. Layne, Cantu, and Madsen went to dinner with Matt. I’ll have to hear the report later…In any case, I am writing this in my London limo, while I’m headed straight away from the airport to studio for my first “Premiere League” match. Who needs sleep to win? 14 hours ago I was at the Cardinals game, in a few minutes I’ll play my first heat here in London.
Tags: Celebrities, London, Matt Leinart, Phil Hellmuth, Phillies
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Friday, November 28, 2008 - COO
Hi Everyone,
Our technical staff are working around the clock to address the issues you are having with the new software update. I apologize for the delay in response to your e-mails, we have a surge of requests coming in and it will take a bit longer than usual for our staff to get through them all. I assure you that we are here, we are listening, and we are working to fix these problems.
Before contacting our support team, please see if the content below helps solve your issue:
Problem: Everytime I click ok to receive the update it does nothing and now I can’t get on to Ultimatebet.
Solution:
- Close the Upgrade if it has crashed. This may require going into Task Manager (CTRL+ALT+DEL) and ending upgrade.exe process.
- Go to Start > Program Files > Settings > Control Panel > Add Remove Programs (depending on OS).
- Select any and all versions of Ultimate Bet and uninstall.
- Go to the folder Program Files to check for Ultimate Bet folder. If folder is found delete it.
- Go to www.ultimatebet.com
- Download and Install the UB software again.
Problem: I can’t get in without verifying my email (missing validation code).
Solution:
Try logging in now. All UB accounts should no longer have issues with the validation process.
Question: I have to change my screenname? What’s up with that?
Answer:
The CEREUS poker network offers UltimateBet fans many new advantages, including an expanded pool of players, bigger Bad Beat Jackpots, more guarantees and a lot more action at the tables. As a result of the expanded player base, there is some duplication of player nicknames.
Duplicate nicknames can’t exist on the same network, as it would cause a lot of confusion and mistaken identity issues.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused some of you, but keep in mind that picking a new username can work in your favor. If existing players recognize you at the tables and already know your playing style, your new name would make you appear brand new to them at the tables and they won’t know how to react to your moves. This is a significant advantage.
Once you login to your account, you will see a popup window asking you to change your nickname. To check the availability of the new nickname, click the button called “check ID.” Keep in mind that this change is a one-time deal, you will not be able to do it again, once your new nickname has been selected.
If you would like to keep a version of the username that you originally registered, simply add an additional letter, number or underscore. Special characters are not allowed. All nicknames will be in capital letters.
Please write down your new nickname, so if you forget it , you can easily look it up. Remember to keep your account password private, especially when other people may have access to your computer.
Problem: I am having a problem retrieving my password.
Solution:
Please try the Forgot Password process again located at the Login Window. We have made this process simpler and it should work now.
If you are unable to login after following these steps, please contact us at support@ultimatebet.com including the answer to your security question so we can provide further assistance.
Again, we will be working on addressing ALL your concerns around the clock. I know that some of you are unhappy with the changes we’ve made to the game interface. Change – any change – is usually met with resistance and it’s totally understandable. I urge you to give it another shot. I can assure you that the technical problems you are experiencing with the update are temporary. We will not let up until all these issues are resolved.
If you get past the superficial changes and think about the massive benefits this new network has to offer, I think you will fall in love with UB all over again. With so many more players online at one place, think of the massive jackpots, better tourneys, more guaranteed’s, bigger promotions. It’s huge!
I hope that you will stick with us through this time of change and I promise that we will do our absolute best to make sure that you have the most amazing online poker experience.
Tags: Cereus, COO, customer
Comments (3)
Friday, November 28, 2008 - ProductMan
I definitely overdosed on turkey this year. It is hard to believe that Christmas hasn’t arrived on the scene, especially since I already feel like hibernating until spring, but I blame that on whatever that turkey sedative is called, since the weather is surprisingly nice. If I couldn’t post this blog from the comforts of my bed, thanks mostly to the advanced surfing skills of my new iPod touch, you probably wouldn’t be reading any of this. I guess I could use my laptop, but I’m charging the battery for some eventual online poker action.
What better way to celebrate Black Friday than by hitting the poker tables, especially with the launch of Cereus. It looks like things are now running smoothly, with no more than a few minor hitches. Some dude, who actually only registered a few days ago, already snagged 250K by hitting the first Cereus Bad Beat Jackpot. I’m looking forward to more of these massive jackpots, more holdem tournaments, millions of new players, and tons of new features. Since I’m really neurotic, I’m going to love the new rabbit cam, and especially the added security and stability.
Now I just need to figure out how to run the UB software on my iPod. I have a texas-sized fridge full of leftovers to get through and it would be really awesome to hit the poker tables while lying on the kitchen floor. Texas holdem anyone?
Tags: Cereus, Product Team
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Friday, November 28, 2008 - smokin_aces
Last weeks ‘Ask a Pro’ was a great success. Our winner, Paul, submitted a fantastic question. Yesterday Annie Duke provided an enlightening and thorough answer. We’re all going to benefit from this kind of dialogue. I know it’s made me rethink part of my strategy already.
Moving forward, next week we’ll be treated to an answer by Hollywood Dave! So get your questions in and maybe you’ll get selected. As usual, to submit a question simply make a comment on this blog post. For the complete run down on how this works, check last weeks post.
Best of luck!
Aces
Tags: Annie Duke, Ask A Pro, Hollywood Dave
Comments (6)
Friday, November 28, 2008 - John Greene
Everybody wants to be a shark at the poker tables. We all want to have that ability to just take out other players at just the right time, either by leaping out of the water and then diving onto your prey.
Or, by waiting just under the surface, knowing that if you’re patient, something will happen and then you can strike.
By the way, this is how I lost $1,500 in a single hand thanks to a guy whose name I don’t remember. He watched each player at the tabe, hand after hand after hand and played very slow. It must have gone on for about thirty or forty hands that way, just very methodical. Then, in the span of ten hands, he’d taken out six of us, leaving two others, who he then devastated over the course of another five.
There’s other kinds of sharks, of course. There’s whale sharks, who take the long route over a series of games, barely getting by and sucking in enough financial plankton to wheeze through things for a while, but they get left behind by the rest of the players. They’ll usually limp out of a tournament early, but occasionally, an unwary player or will get slapped by their tail and find themselves wondering what happened.
My favorite, though, is the tiger shark. Why? That sh*t’s just crazy, yo:
Tags: The Ultimate
Comments (1)
Friday, November 28, 2008 - UB Marketing
Oh happy day, CEREUS is finally here. And, while the “strongest technology on earth” powers UltimateBet and hosts thousands of players, we’re looking forward to December promotions. Bigger and Better. Here’s the scoop…
The WILD CARDS Super Bowl promotion is already visible and available. Mid-field seats. Yes. Forgot to put this detail on the UB website. I’m looking at the stadium layout right now and these are in the front two sections, mid field, lower half near to the turf. Ten tickets plus travel and accomodations to Super Bowl XLIII. It’s a shame the marketing team can’t play for these.
So, what’s coming after thanksgiving?
• The points race will be back. We had it in October for $115,000 but for
December the prize pool total is $220K.
• UB players will have access to GIZMO tourneys where you enter with
UltimatePoints and win anything from a Plasma TV to an HP touchsmart computer – very cool.
• UBOC. We’re getting close and there’ll be even more options to qualify for
any of the events, including a 300-seat guaranteed tournament (right after christmas) to the
UBOC million dollar Championship.
• Tournament leaderboards will be back. We missed them this week, but hey,
even leaderboards need a break every once in a while.
• Poker H0 H0 H0 Christmas special. Need I say more?
Well, the schedule I’m looking at is actually quite long and robust. But you get the idea, tons coming up. We got some great promotion ideas from players through the UB newsletters, maybe we’ll get some here in the comment section 
Tags: Cereus, Marketing, Promotions
Comments (2)
Thursday, November 27, 2008 - smokin_aces
Last week we began our ‘Ask a Pro’ series, where you can submit your questions to a UB pro. For a complete run down on how this works, check last weeks post.
Annie Duke was gracious enough to answer last weeks question. The winner of last week’s submissions was ‘Paul’ with this well thought out inquiry.
“I’ve got a question for Annie: what recommendations do you have for borderline hands in tournament situations? I’m thinking of hands like suited connectors, ace rag/x-suited, small pocket pairs. How do things like stack size, position, other players in the pot, and stage of tournament guide your decision making with these hands. I know that’s a lot to answer, but those are the hands I have the toughest time playing.”
Here is Annie’s response.
“Wow. This is a question I could write a whole book on so I am going to cherry pick my answer to try to keep it shorter and more to the point. I am not so much going to discuss the suited connector issue as the stage of the tournament part of the question. Generally, early in a tournament you want to play tight. The reason for this is two-fold: 1) There are no antes so the pot odds are poor in comparison to later in the tournament. The worse the pot odds, the more pressure on your hand to win which means you have to play tighter 2) Players cannot be bluffed so you need to show over the best hand more often.
To go deeper into point (1) let’s take a 100-200 blind situation with no antes. You raise 3X to 600. 200 is the call and 400 is the raise so on the raise portion of the bet the pot is laying you 5 to 4 (400 raise to the 100 small blind, 200 big blind and your 200 call). This means that you can lose 5 times for every 4 times you win in order to break even. That means you must win the pot about 45% of the time to break even on the initial raise.
Now when the antes kick in there is now 250 more in chips in the pot (25 ante from 10 players). That means the pot is now laying you 750 to 400 on your 400 raise. What this means is that the pot is laying you nearly 2 to 1. In order to break even on this bet you only have to win around 35% of the time. 45% vs 35% is a huge difference in the pressure on your hand so after the antes kick in you get to play looser because your hand doesn’t have to be as good to be profitable (you can lose more often and be profitable).
Now for point (2). In the beginning stages of a tournament your opponents tend to be playing quite loose. One of the main reason we play weak hands (like small suited connectors) is so that our opponents won’t know that we always have a good hand when we play and stop giving us action. So, we are willing to play some bad hands, hands that might be small long run losers, in order to generate action on our big hands.
But when opponents are already playing super loose, that means they are already going to be paying off our big hands. In that case, there is no reason to play a bad hand because you don’t need to do anything to generate action.you are already getting it.
So, you can see in early stages of the tournament there is no reason to get involved with crappy hands like small suited connectors. Save those for later when you can bully the table!”
Thanks Paul for such a great question! We look forward to your involvement with this blog.
Be sure to check back tomorrow to find out which pro will answer the question next week. If you want to submit a question, enter it in the comments section of tomorrows ‘Ask a Pro’!!
GL
Aces
Tags: Annie Duke, Ask A Pro
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