Ask The Pro Index

Send your poker questions by email to Mark Seif at askthepro@absolutepoker.com. Mark is one of the top-ranked tournament players in the world, and is a past World Poker Open champion.

Click on any question below to read the answer from Mark

• WSOP 2005 Part III
  In WSOP 2005 Part II, we went through the first open event of the WSOP 2005 which Allen Cunningham won and I came in a disappointing 53rd after taking a bad beat with pocket queens against pocket jacks - all in pre flop against the chip leader. I was second in chips when that crucial hand came up - ugggh! It still hurts to recall that hand -lol. Maybe someday I will get over it.
  
  
• WSOP 2005 Part II
  In WSOP 2005 Part I, we went through my poor WSOP history and ended with the big move of the WSOP from Binion's Horseshoe to the Rio . Here in part II, I will take you through the first open event of the WSOP 2005 which Allen Cunningham won.
  
  
• WSOP 2005 Part I
  Mark, big time congratulations! What does it feel like to win a WSOP bracelet? What about two in one week? Come on dude, please tell. I play on AbsolutePoker all the time. I am 22 and going to college studying math but I know I will end up being a professional poker player soon. I want to know what to expect when I win my first bracelet!
  
  
• Dear Mark,
  If one player has A-2 and the other has A-3, then the player with A-3 wins the pot. But why on some occasions do the same players sometimes split the pot? This has happened to me several times. Can you tell me why this happens?
  
  
• Dear Mark,
  Is there a standard size bet in proportion to pot size in NL Holdem? I know a standard raise is about 3 times the bet. I haven't been able to find anything about betting pot size. Thank you for your help.
  
• I read somewhere that it is a good strategy to play very tight at the beginning of a tournament, until about a third of the players have been knocked out. Do you agree with this strategy?
  
  
• Can you tell me about your worst Bad Beat?
  
  
• Can you tell me your strategy for playing pocket pairs in No Limit Holdem?
  
  
• World Poker Finals at Foxwoods - Part I
  
  
• World Poker Finals at Foxwoods - Part II
  
  
• World Poker Finals at Foxwoods - Part III
  
  
• Mark, could you please settle an argument between my friends and I? These guys are saying that a player only has to use one of his dealt cards to make a poker hand. I say that you are supposed to use both your dealt cards and any three of the community cards to make a hand. Please help before someone gets hurt!
  
  
• Hello my name is Alexandre Héroux and I'm a big fan of poker. Last night something really weird happened and I would like your opinion on it. We were playing normal poker (5 card draw) with "Jack and low" type of wild card. My friend had K-K-J-Q-Q and told us he had five Kings because if his Jack was a wild card, then his Queens became his low cards making it five Kings. But some of us argued that even if his Jack was a wild card, it was also his lowest card giving him only one wild card and resulting full house Kings full of Queens .

  I'm not really sure who was right so could you please e-mail me back with an answer if possible.

• Five Diamond World Poker Classic at the Bellagio - Part I
  
  
• Mark, I have been playing poker for about 9 months now and I have only played online. I mostly play tournaments in the $20-50 range and sometimes play $3/6 limit holdem. I love no-limit holdem and have done pretty good in those tournaments except when it gets down to about 5 players. I always seem to go out in 4 th or 5 th place. Can you give me some advice on short-handed play? I think I am playing too tight because I usually get blinded down to a short stack and then get beaten sometimes by really bad hands.
  
  
• The TLB and the First Mark Seif Heads-Up Shoot Out
  
  
• I visited your website, and found it quite interesting. I have been playing about a year, and just got back from Vegas..   I did fair. Can you tell me how to take my game to the next level? Books, software, or anything that will help me... Are there any seminars available by good players?
  
  
• I play a lot of Omaha Hi/Lo online. I seem to have two pair after the flop quite often. My question is: how many bets should I call hoping one of them pairs on the board and I get a full house?
  
  
• When I play poker with my friends I tell them I'm raising before I move any chips I say I'M raising then I put in one amount of chips then I put the rest in. They say I'm string betting and I say I'm not. I tell them its a legal bet and not string betting if I say I'm raising before I move any chips. Can you tell me if I'm right?
  
  
• I am trying to spend more time in tourneys and this year hope to enter into more satellites for some the bigger events. Do you have any perspectives on how to do this with success?
  
  
• All I want to know is how you know when you are ready for the big leagues. I know the game well, but I don't have the discipline, so what should I do so I can be like you and the rest of the pro's?
  
  
• I live in California and there are quite a few tourneys in the $200 to $500 buy-in range. I have agree to do this, but we haven't agreed on the split. I was leaning towards a 60-40 range with the 40% going to them. Is there a norm in the poker industry?
  
  
• What is the best learning tool to improve on-line poker knowledge and also in live games? Can you recommend any specific books, websites, magazines, etc?
  
  
• Two players, four cards showing, I am unpaired with both a flush draw and open-end straight draw (but not a straight flush), the other player has two pair. Who has the best odds of winning?
  
  
• If one player has A-2 and the other has A-3, then the player with A-3 wins the pot. But why on some occasions do the same players sometimes split the pot? This has happened to me several times. Can you tell me why this happens?
  
  
• Is there a standard size bet in proportion to pot size in NL Holdem? I know a standard raise is about 3 times the bet. I haven't been able to find anything about betting pot size. Thank you for your help.
  
  
• I play primarily online NL games, however I recently gave a local casino a shot. I played the $3/$6 limit tables and faired rather poorly. Could you please give your opinion on differences in strategy or mind set in a limit vs. no-limit game?
  
  
• I have noticed that there are several players that raise the blinds and continue to raise through out until they reach the river card thus making if very difficult to play your hand. What is a good rule of thumb when playing against these type of players?
  
  
• When I play poker with my friends I tell them I'm raising before I move any chips I say I'm raising then I put in one amount of chips then I put the rest in. They say I'm string betting and I say I'm not. I tell them it's a legal bet and not string betting if I say I'm raising before I move any chips. Can you tell me if I'm right?
  
  
• What do you think about not raising with pocket aces in a tournament situation in order to make a bigger pot? Thanks so much for your help!
  
  
• How can an individual be classified as a PROFESSIONAL PLAYER?
  
  
• What is your favorite starting hand?

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