Welcome to the first edition of “Face Up”, your definitive guide to all things poker. Because this is brought to you by Poker Face, you will be treated to a wealth of poker information with a distinctly Australian flavour. Americans don’t have a monopoly on the game, despite some evidence to the contrary! In fact, Australians are beginning to shine when it comes to poker. Joe Hachem was Australia ’s first winner of the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas last year, and Crown’s “Aussie Millions” now tempts some of the best known players to try their luck down under.

Enjoy!

Q & A Session

Besides poker, all other casino games are played against the house – the establishment who puts up the money you can potentially win. This means that whether others are playing or not, the odds of you winning or losing remain the same. This is known as the “house advantage”, a built in percentage, which ensures that the house, over the long term, always wins. So, for example, the house advantage for Roulette is 2.7%. So, for every $100 you place down on the table, you can expect that, over the long term, you will get back $97.30. The house will take $2.70. For Blackjack, that percentage is 1% (if played correctly), and for poker machines is approximately 5%.

Poker is different because you are not playing against the house, but other players. Your ability to “read” a variety of situations, including body language and card hands, dramatically affects your chance of winning. So in effect, it becomes a game of skill, rather than pure chance.

Part of its popularity is because good playing rewards you with good returns. It also means you can play against your friends, discuss skill & tactics, and all your “losses” go to those you love (you’ll remember you love them the next day…or maybe the next week) instead of the casino.

Poker Terminology

For some, just remembering what a Flush or a Full House means is enough. For die-hard poker players, part of the fun of poker is coming up with original and obscure phrases to describe a variety of poker situations. We suspect that they are invented in order to break up the monotony of some of the duller rounds played…. Here are some we thought we’d share. Motown - When a player holds two pairs and one other card, and the pairs are Jacks and Fives (of any suit), they call it a Motown, because, when you say it together – “Jacks and Fives” it sounds a bit like Jackson 5, famous in the 70’s as recording artists with the Motown label.

Splash the Pot - No, this doesn’t refer to an emergency bathroom break. Rather, the way a player throws his or her chips carelessly into the middle of the table. This is bad manners at a poker table, as it makes it difficult for the dealer and players to ascertain exactly how much was bet.

Your Poker Nickname

Many of the world’s poker players, good, bad and indifferent, have nicknames. Listed are some which you may find amusing. Our best nickname tip – choose your own before someone else chooses for you. You could end up with a shocker, like some of these…. The Godfather , X22, Jesus, The Poker Brat, Devil Fish and Bubs .

For more nicknames, and to test your knowledge of “who’s who” in poker, go to Poker Nicknames

If you have a question you’d like answered in the next edition of Face Up or any feedback about content please send it to ronan@poker-face.com.au