Daniel Negreanu Quotes

All-star lay downs are all about reading your opponents, trusting your instincts, and then making the right move.

The secret behind playing small ball poker isn't so much in the hands you choose to play. It's more about the amount you choose to bet with the hands you end up playing.

Hold'em is a game of calculated aggression. If your cards are good enough for you to call a bet, they are good enough to raise with.

I'm not a good poker player, but I've got one bluffing technique - as long as you're quick with the blinds, you're fine.

In cash games, you're apt to see more players staying in to see the flop. If you have a hand worth playing, your best options are to either limp in or make a slightly larger pre-flop raise to build the pot and narrow the competition. A raise of four times the big blind should do the trick.

Check-raising with a drawing hand on the turn is simply a kamikaze gamble. It might work once in a while, but if you consistently attempt it, too often you'll find yourself watching the rest of the tournament from behind the rail.

Playing only when you have a strong hand, also known as being a slave to the cards, is simply not the way to win tournaments.

Beginning players are predictable and rarely bluff. They tend to focus only on their own hand and simply hope to catch the one card they need to improve.

In No Limit hold'em tournaments, size your bets based on your opponent's skill level. You can cut corners by betting wisely - save a little here and make a little extra there.

Players too often bet too much money when they hit a strong hand. That only serves to drive opponents out of the pot, and that means a lost opportunity to maximize the value of a powerful hand.

There's no doubt that position is a very important aspect of the game. But some players take this concept to the extreme and consequently miss opportunities when they refuse to play hands out of position.

One or two great lay downs per tournament will give you a few extra lives while a few well-timed bluffs will give you a ton of extra chips.

Ultra-aggressive players have a knack of making otherwise sound players commit huge stacks of chips with relatively weak hands, like A-Q.

The benefit of fast play is that you'll get players to commit their chips with relatively weak hands since it will be hard for them to believe that you have a strong hand every single time. The downside is that your opponents will raise weak when you have nothing at all, forcing you to fold.

The correct strategy in heads-up poker is based on identifying and acting upon your opponent's strengths and weaknesses.

Playing middle pairs like 10-10, 9-9, 8-8, and 7-7 can be difficult but only if you overvalue them and mistakenly play them as you would premium hands.

Any call that jeopardizes a big chunk of your chip stack just because you think your opponent might be on a bluff is flat-out wrong.

I think the key to poker is being steady and giving yourself a chance to win every tournament.

As a general rule, the more precious the chips you'd consider betting, the more you should lean toward playing it safe. Check it down; cautious play is usually the recipe for long-term success in poker.

When you play No Limit Hold'em, the ideal strategy is to take minimal risk, do little bluffing, and hope that weaker players call you when you have a strong hand. But that's the perfect world. Sometimes you'll face opponents that play very conservatively and will rarely pay you off when you have the goods.

In poker, position is power. When you've got position, play more hands and apply more pressure before the flop.

Very few players want to go home wondering if they've folded the best hand. They feel humiliated when they're bluffed out of a pot. As a result, these players make calls with marginal hands that put their entire tournament at risk.

In tournaments, you want to steal the blinds as cheaply as possible without risking a high percentage of your chips.

Playing tricky poker doesn't have to mean making bizarre moves or playing way out of character. Rather, it's simply about taking advantage of what you know about your opponents and how they perceive your style of play.

It's never a good thing when an opponent has a solid read on you pre-flop.