Legendary poker theorist and writer David Sklansky joins us on the Zoo. We discuss Twoplustwo Publishing’s new book, Small Stakes Hold’em: Help Them Give You Their Money, an already controversial strategy work by David and his business partner Mason Malmuth. Freshly published in January 2024, the new book focuses on adaptive play in the softest small-stakes games and against the absolutely worst players. “When I started to play these games,” David writes in the book’s introduction, “which...

OOP Oberleutnant Greg Porter returns to the Zoo pod for an update on his successful career as poker pro. I can’t believe it’s been six years! Time has really flown since the early days of our little group and teaching community. Greg is an indispensable and senior member of said little community. He runs the OOP training games, providing high-level poker feedback, and specialized coaching. Greg edits my more challenging pieces and, more importantly, provides timely puns in the Poker Zoo...

It’s been a long time since I played in Washington, but the scene continues to evolve, however strangely. See, it’s all about the weird rules and regulations. Podcast guest Mannes N. gives us an update on the state of the games. The most important details are the rules for the tribal casinos and the rules for non-tribals, which are particularly hard on the poker player. To complicate matters, the tribes have basically quit the poker business, taking the big bets with them, and forcing all...

The poker world loves tournaments in the 2020’s. Online, tournament culture is vital and MTT-heavy while cash game action stalls. GG has challenged Pokerstars with huge tournaments series. U.S.-facing ACR continues to thrive. As for the live scene, everyone is amazed at the action, with WSOP and WPT now vying almost non-stop for your dollars; did I see they were bringing back the NAPT? I give in. Today we talk with one of the best in tournament poker, Enrico Camosci, and hear what it takes to...

Vegas is home to more than just gaming, it is home to the history of those games and to those who created that history. Richie Brodie, lifelong “poker bum,” has played with all the greats, from Doyle and his “southern” crew, to the Mayfair’s Erik Seidel, to California’s rising 1990’s NL scene with Bobby Hoff and Barry Greenstein (along with an apparently more reluctant Dan Harrington). Today we hear his story and the story of a whole age of poker, from the pre-internet obscurity of the late...

Picture late 2019. Britain was finally Brexiting, Trump was somehow still presidenting, and general protests for a more liberal, freer society were happening all over the world- remember Hong Kong? Remember life before mask and vaccine discourse?  That’s when I last talked with Gerard S., aspiring pro and studied player who had worked with a number of noted pros and organizations, including Fausto Valdez and Solve For Why. Gerard had a poker blog, a girlfriend, a residence in sunny Florida,...

Swirling beneath the never explicit politics of the poker scheme is the treatment of so-called “recreational” player. A lot of condescending, hypocritical stuff is said every day, on every platform, by every talking head about this source of all poker income. Occasionally, however, that tension is resolved when one decides to stop donating and start taking his own, or in this case, her own. Jen Gianera is one of those players who decided to turn it around, and to great effect. Since taking...

Few are able to get themselves banned from social media sites like Abe Limon, guru of west coast live poker and advantage gambling. Our last pod with Abe was a little rough on the ears, so we make up for it this time with good conversation ranging from his online arguments, why the WSOP is not meaningful for poker, his take on abortion, and even to a little split-pot strategy sideshow. It’s incredibly funny to hear that Abe, while wandering the social mediascape in the midst of a lifetime...

Welcome back to the Poker Zoo, now a little long in the tooth but looking to finish strong. We never really left, of course, but I did need a personal break to focus on writing; Dean, my co-host and producer, was suffering a significant personal tragedy concurrently. So, a pause in the action. We persist now, and I am hoping to do about twenty more poker zoos before moving onto something different – consider this season two. Or maybe it’s season three… why do podcasts have seasons? To...

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! For our final episode of 2022, Dean and I talk shop and how it’s going for him. We discuss poker swings, education, and the unpleasant, hard reason why some players succeed while others keep running in place. The conversation branches off into the plan, or lack of, for the Poker Zoo. Oops, letting the outsiders know what we’re thinking. Then, Dean interrogates me over what’s behind my return to poker writing. Has the new stuff changed in tone from the...

Yes, the Poker Zoo returns amid the poker crisis, but not the one you think. Previous guest Fernando is back, troubled by developments on the casino floor caused by the lack of top-notch dealers. That doesn’t keep me, having restrained myself from much commenting during the most heated days, from getting his thoughts on the Hustler “cheating” scandal. Manager, please! We touch on all the aspects of the dealing issue, from the bomb pot explosion to the bigger economic picture and the labor...

The poker vlogging movement is only ten years old but has probably done more for keeping poker in the public eye than any pro celebrity of the era: the vloggers matter. It all mostly started with Tim “The Trooper” and few other experimenters and click revenue hopefuls (including the unfortunate Mark Ari). Then, the number rapidly expanded into the more popular second wave featuring the now ascendant Andrew Neeme and Brad Owen, who have been correctly rewarded with amazing gigs and business...

This week Dr. Robert Samuels returns to the Zoo to talk about the latest round of poker cheating accusations and scandals. Robert recently polished up an old solution – can the online game operators work together to fight cheats? Can there be a governing body to adjudicate poker? While I cynically don’t find this sort of organization feasible, Robert makes some compelling points. He also reminds us of the symbiotic nature of online and live play – it’s important for each to be healthy for...

We stay in the live streets this week and talk hands with Ralph B., a low-stakes cash game reg I know through Red Chip Poker. As for many players, Covid shook up Ralph’s poker life, and in his case, decided it was time to turn a break-even passetemps into a winning habit. Today, we find out how the new approach is doing and get into some strategy. We also get a little deeper into the Detroit and Michigan poker scene, feeding off the Jambasket episode. Now, Ralph claims to always be the...

Dean is unleashed this week and talks with a familiar face, east coast tournament grinder, limit player, and general smart-ass Yaser Al-Keliddar. If you’re on the tournament joyride, you know Yaser or should get to know him – he’s a great table presence. In today’s pod, Al-Keliddar recounts his rough introduction to the game involving the Trump Taj, a reluctant vehicle, and his parents. It’s all downhill from that, of course, and his Hendon has grown impressive – including a coveted WSOP...

Vagabond vet DGAF called him “Tom Brady Jr.” but in reality, the story is more interesting than just always getting there at the right time. Las Vegas live pro Nate Serisky takes us through his year – well, not of living dangerously exactly, as he’s on stake and decent with money management – but of truly being a poker player and making it happen in a pool that has drowned many dreams. We go through Nate’s hot start in the city of sin, his far cooler runnings for much of 2021, and then at...

Thomas Pinnock of Zenith Poker returns to the Zoo to review his most challenging year in poker. In addition to releasing a controversial new set of exploitative ranges and taking on a six-max challenge, Thomas kicked up a series of related kerfuffles with a video mocking many preflop ranges. Trouble followed on multiple fronts, and I get some of the details from him – including whether any of this has changed his perspective. Agree with him or not, Pinnock is an increasingly important poker...

Today we go behind the scenes and talk to Shaun Yaple, General Manager of the Hustler Casino in Gardena, California. I find out what it takes to run a card room and where does poker fits in. We discuss the unusual ecosystem of L.A. Poker, including some advice for all struggling card rooms and poker rooms. Shaun also tells us about the origin of the freshly popular Hustler Casino Live, L.A. poker’s newest live stream. For more industry talk, here’s Poker Room Manager Steven Pique on the...

On the cusp of a new year, new ventures. One is returning guest Michael Lukich’s two-pronged effort to improve your game through better solver and data study, Solver School. It’s still in creation, but Michael has burned the ships: we find out that he has quit his day job and is committed to poker and poker consultation. The question I ask him is, in a now crowded marketplace of trading sites and solver aids, what can Solver School do for you? Michael on Poker Out Loud, and previously on the...

It’s our holiday podcast. When we last checked in with TBR member Luka Vitasovic, he was settling into a long “coaching for profits” contract with Nick Howard’s Poker Detox program. Today, in a continuation of our CFP series, we find out how that’s gone. Is Luka crushing or mushing? Here’s the rest of our Coaching for Profits series. PZ47 with Alvin Lau PZ43 with Luka PZ40 KYT and the Adam Jones Academy PZ36 Francois, aka DLF/Blackbaron The argument for coaching for profits, by Jason...

It’s time to reach across the country and check in with Poker Zoo co-host Dean Martin, who lives and plays on the other side of the garbage heap. How did Dean (and Mrs. Dean) get through the ‘rona and what is he up to now? More from Dean and Persuadeo on learning poker. Unfortunately, we had to cancel, since the recording was made, the December 16th meetup game.  Hand #1 2/5 500 eff, 8 handed. Table just opened – 2nd or 3rd hand of the day. Straddle 15, 3 callers, I’m on the BU and...

It’s back to what promises to be a bumpy podcast grind with Zoo favorite Jason Burge, aka JamBasket Poker, one of Michigan’s big online cash winners. We hit as many topics as possible with some drive-by commentary. Burge is already kind enough to offer some valuable analysis and recap on his obscure JamBasket Youtube channel; pretty good, player-observant stuff in a world of often irrelevant solver recaps that anyone and their mom can do. (His theory content in TBR is more valuable, in fact.)...

Poker, crypto, and the Non-Fungible Token craze are all well-met bedfellows: exciting, profitable, and a little grimey. Overnight Monster and Bluff Barbarian creator Alvin Lau took a flyer on a new NFT project this year, Hungry Ghosts, and this is his story. Listen to him on today’s Zoo describe many of the truths of NFT projects and the interesting culture that drives them. Alvin is a professional poker player and coach, and consistent guest on the Zoo. Here are some links relevant to the...

It’s the end of an era at Twoplustwo, but the conversation, especially on controversial topics, doesn’t stop. Robert Samuels has been a major contributor to the gem of 2+2 media, its monthly magazine, and joins us today on the Zoo for poker psychology talk. Samuels is a double doctorate and professor at UC Santa Barbara who goes beyond rudimentary mental clarity exercises to look at the heart of the poker player and his unusual game. His book Bad Beat Therapy: How to Become a Better Poker...