TIPS March Newsletter

TIPS sponsors its first graduate

The International Poker School has confirmed that its ambitious sponsorship programme is now up and running following the company’s decision to sponsor one of its most impressive graduates, Paul Pitchford. 

Announcing the deal, poker pro and TIPS’ director Paul Zimbler said: “We knew Paul was a very good player after he bagged the Omaha title at the APAT World Championship of Amateur Poker. Once he had attended a couple of our seminars, we realised that here was a guy with enormous potential and we took the decision to sponsor him in a variety of tournaments across the UK.

“Our role now is to support and mentor Paul as he negotiates his way through professional poker’s occasionally choppy waters, but he knows we’re there for him 24/7.”

The affable Paul Pitchford was delighted with the news of his sponsorship. “Thanks to TIPS’ support, it means I get to play in a number of the UK’s most prestigious tournaments,” he said. “Naturally, I’m really looking forward to that, but I don’t feel as though I’m suddenly cast adrift because both Paul Zimbler and several other TIPS’ pros will be there to advise me as I hopefully make progress throughout the year.” 

TIPS’ long-term aim is to sponsor and mentor a number of players who have graduated from its acclaimed poker schools. The company has already identified at least two other players who have shown great potential at its seminars as being ready to receive its financial backing.

“This is another aspect of TIPS that a number of good amateur players perhaps need reminding of,” commented Paul Zimbler. “We’re here not just to coach, train and educate players; if they’re good enough, we’ll back them with our own money, so enabling them to take the first steps in the game’s professional ranks too.” 

Seminar Dates

10th April – Big Bluff Poker Club, London
17th April – Alea Casino, Glasgow, Scotland
9th May – Equal Chance Poker Club, London

For further details on our Seminars please click here  

Are you managing properly?
By Paul Zimbler

‘Bankroll management’ is a phrase many of us are familiar with, but a number of players do not actually know what it means and in truth, too few put into practice, yet it is a vitally important, and frequently overlooked, aspect of the game.

So what does ‘bankroll management’ mean and is there a formula we can apply to ensure we’re correctly stacked according to the type of game we’re playing?

First things first.

Managing your bankroll is exactly the same as managing your normal bank account. In much the same way as you don’t want your account to be overdrawn, otherwise your bank start sending you nasty letters and charging you a fortune for the privilege, well similarly, you do not want to be ‘overdrawn’ at the poker table either. There are no nasty letters in this instance, because you’re busted out and have taken the high road home…

In other words, poker’s version of bankroll management means you must keep an eye on your available cash / chips depending upon what type of game you’re contesting and the stakes for which you’re playing.

There is a rule of thumb used by many players to establish just how much they should have before starting to play.
However, the size of your bankroll is also dependent upon how you view poker. If it’s little more than a pastime and you’re perfectly happy to play for a couple of quid or less, but get nosebleeds if the stakes go any higher, then you have little or no need for a back-up bankroll. If you win, well done; if you lose, well, it’s hardly the end of the world if you’re down a fiver or so.

Assuming you’re a regular daily player with aspirations to earn some real money from the game, then it’s worthwhile having a bankroll to cover the inevitable peaks and troughs (or should that be slings and arrows?) you’ll encounter. Assuming you have a job, should the worst come to the worst, you can always bail yourself out courtesy of your monthly pay cheque, but the plan is to avoid this if at all possible and work towards a winning player.

For players who prefer live games, it’s generally considered prudent to have a bankroll which is around 20 times your average game buy-in. Of course, should you up the ante, then your average buy-in levels changes too, so an appropriate adjustment has to be made to your bankroll too.

Online poker is a different beast altogether as you’ll need a larger bankroll, even if you’re playing at the same limit as you would do in a live game. This is because you see significantly more hands when playing online – and generally against lower quality players.

This ‘unknown’ element (poor internet players can – and often do - get lucky), means there will be larger-than-normal swings in your bankroll levels. If you’re involved in just a single table online game, therefore, your bankroll should be hovering around 20 times your average game buy-in. You should always allow 3 buy-ins per game.
Once you start multi-tabling, this ratio naturally increases, but not precisely in line with the number of tables you’re playing.

It’s worth noting that no less a figure than Chris ‘Jesus’ Ferguson maintains that the golden rule is never to risk more than 5% of your total bankroll on a single table. If you stick to the figure of 20-25 I mentioned above, therefore, you will not go far wrong.

Graduate Testimonials

Lydia Podhoradecki - Online qualifier from Betfred Poker

I first learnt to play poker 2 years ago, I think my boyfriend taught me to get me off his back about him wanting to play. I fell in love with the game straight away and started taking every opportunity to play. I remember being terrified the first time I played in a Casino, thinking that I was only a beginner and shouldn't be there.

I was fortunate enough to win my ticket to TIPS via an online Satellite. As soon as I had won I checked out the website and thought it looked like an excellent opportunity to take my game to the next level.

The day itself was great, I'd never been to Dusk Till Dawn and I was made to feel very welcome by Scott Marsh and the rest of the team. The seminar started off with a discussion group, it was a little surreal to watch footage of Paul Jackson heads up against Phil Ivey at the Monte Carlos Millions and to discuss the hand with Paul himself.

The Sit and Go’s were a great opportunity to put your new skills into practice and analysing play with the pros in the process was really useful. As well as greater knowledge attending the seminar has given me a lot more confidence in my game and I've already been trying out some of the tips given to us by the pros. To summaries, it was a really informative day and had I paid for the ticket would have been worth every penny. I was surprised at how approachable everyone was, regardless of their level of experience. I would recommend TIPS to any poker lover.

Paul Marsh

I have been playing poker for just over 2 years now and regard myself as an average enthusiastic poker player. I attended the seminar with an open mind and was looking forward to meeting the pro’s in a real life environment. I took all the information I learnt and put it into practice which obviously helped me as I came 3rd in the MTT at the end of the seminar.

My prize was a LIVE seat into the Twenty Twenty festival at Dusk Till Dawn. I asked TIPS if I could play the following day whilst everything was fresh in my mind, they said yes go for it. As I regard myself as an average player I thought I would be out of my depth in that tournament but I managed to cash and come 14th out of a field of 167 winning £200.

I know that without the coaching I received from the pro’s I could not have achieved this. Stealing “free money” in limped pots and pinching blinds on the button was just two aspects of the day that I put to my good use.

No matter what your standard of poker is, listening to these pro’s will always enhance your game.

Thanks for taking me to the next level!

Follow us on and . See us on Facebook: Negreanu, Brunson & Matusow do

Well, you would expect a cutting edge outfit like TIPS to have a Twitter following, but our growing number of followers now include three of the world’s greatest players.

We reckon that between them, Daniel Negreanu, Mike ‘The Mouth’ Matusow and the poker godfather himself, Doyle Brunson, have collected more than $20 million in live poker winnings and now they’re following us – presumably for some tips?

“It’s a huge show of support for TIPS from a trio of worldwide poker ,” says Stephen Broadhurst of Poker Analytics. “You can imagine how many other organisations crave these guys’ attention. For TIPS to have it suggests they’re doing something exciting.”

We couldn’t agree more. So why not follow us too? You can join in by clicking here and receive regular updates regarding our pros, graduates, sponsorship and a whole lot more.

We also have a fan page on Facebook with more than 500 members, including successful pros such as Ivan Demidov, Dave Colclough, Paul Jackson, Peter Vasiliou, Ian Frazer, Joe Beavers, James Browning, Neil
Channing, Julian Thew and a host of others. Why not pop along and join us?

Site review

Littlewoods Gaming is the company behind the new GameOn online gaming brand…

When it comes to succeeding as an online gaming organisation, there is one crucial factor which supersedes all others, one which must exist in abundance if a company’s credibility is not to be undermined. That factor is customer trust.
Of course, this does not just apply to internet gaming. As our propensity to shop online increases exponentially, so we tend to gravitate towards retailers whose names we feel comfortable with, recognise and have confidence in.
Successful organisations understand that customer trust must be earned. Furthermore, those capable of accumulating it also appreciate that they’re likely to be around for a long time.

Littlewoods Gaming, the company behind the GameOn online gaming brand, was originally founded in 1923 when pioneering entrepreneur John Moores and two friends began distributing their first football pools coupons outside of Manchester United’s famous Old Trafford ground.

The business grew at an astonishing rate and soon, the football pools had embedded themselves within the very fabric of British society. Indeed, the company was to become the very first sponsor of the FA Cup, the world’s oldest football knock-out competition.

Almost ninety years later, the Littlewoods name continues to resonate with people who enjoy their weekly flutter on the football pools, a spin of the roulette wheel, or a game of online poker – and no wonder. The company has created more than 100 millionaires and distributed cash winnings to an estimated 60 million people.

With such a rich heritage, it’s no surprise to learn that Littlewoods prides itself on being referred to as “the trusted name in gaming”.

“Such is the appeal of Littlewoods’ long-standing tradition that it attracts hundreds of thousands of players to its range of gaming products every week,” says Helen Farrow of Abacus Gaming, a London-based gaming research organisation. “As everyone knows, there are thousands of on- and offline alternatives, but players flock to Littlewoods in their droves because they trust the brand,” she adds.

“It’s worth pointing out too that the company invests back in the community,” continues Ms Farrow. “Over the last 86 years, Littlewoods has contributed more than £1.1 billion to football, as well as to a host of other sports, the arts and numerous good causes.”

Now the Littlewoods GameOn brand is fast establishing itself across continental Europe, offering a series of fun and exciting games and the opportunity to trouser the internet’s biggest gaming-related prize of more than £2 million every week.

In an age when just about anyone can set up an online gaming operation in their bedroom, GameOn’s ultimate parent company enjoys one significant advantage – it is listed on the London Stock Exchange.

This means that players undertaking a modicum of research before donning their visor to settle down at the virtual casino table can examine the company’s accounts, its record on corporate responsibility and every other aspect of its operation. Unlike many other online casinos, everything associated with the Littlewoods GameOn brand is transparent because British law determines it must be.

It’s another important factor responsible for building so much trust between the company and its customers.
“However unfair it might be today, the gaming world has always had a reputation for being something of a shark pool,” reflects Helen Farrow, “which is why organisations operating businesses that are scrupulously fair and honest ultimately succeed. The number of gaming outfits trying to make a quick buck from players has multiplied as the internet’s reach has expanded, but a select few, like the Littlewoods GameOn brand, offer players a safe harbour.”

Combining a series of compelling games with reliability and honesty accounts for Littlewoods’ continued success and for that cherished moniker – ‘the trusted name in gaming’.

Satellite Schedule

The International Poker School (TIPS) would like to give you the opportunity to win your seat to our next seminar. TIPS have teamed up with a number of major online poker sites to allow you the chance to win a seat for as little as possible. To view Satellite Details click here.

March

15th – Bwin Poker                            
17th – Party Poker
21st – William Hill Poker
22nd – Bwin Poker
24th - Littlewoods Poker
28th – Bwin Poker
29th – Virgin Poker
31st – Cake Poker

April

1st – TGF Poker
4th – Noble Poker
5th - Bwin Poker

Poker joke

A doctor answers his phone and hears the familiar voice of a colleague on the other end of the line. "We need a fourth for poker," said the friend.

"I'll be right over," whispered the doctor. As he was putting on his coat, his wife asked, "Is it serious?" "Oh yes, quite serious," said the doctor gravely. "In fact, there are three doctors there already!"