Dark Bet Poker
Table Of Contents
On Monday, a new Season 12 episode of Poker After Dark (PAD) aired on PokerGO. The episode, titled “One Bourbon, One Shot, and No Fear”, was played in a hybrid cash game format, meaning blinds started at $25/$50 and then escalated to $50/$100 and $100/$200. The buy-in was $20,000 with a single rebuy permitted.
Dark Bet To announce a bet on the next betting round before the card (s) for that round get dealt. The player announcing such a bet 'in the dark' must be first to act on the coming round, and the. A player is said to be taking a betting action in the dark if they take that action before seeing the card (s) that are dealt just prior to the betting round. The most common uses of this phrase are to check in the dark and to bet in the dark.
Among those in action were Sam Soverel, Jake Daniels, Chris Johnson, Alex Ding, Justin Young, and Jonathan Little, who was making his first appearance on PAD.
“Getting to play on Poker After Dark, a show I watched every time it came on TV as a young poker play, was an amazing experience,” he told PokerNews. “The environment was immaculate and the games were tough!”
Big Hands from PAD
Alex Ding vs. Justin Young
Ding raised the button to $175 holding the and Young three-bet to $600 after looking down at the in the small blind. Ding called and then bet $450 after Young checked the flop.
Young called and then checked when the turn gave him a set. Ding checked behind and the completed the board on the river. Young bet just $400 and Ding, who improved to aces up, raised to $2,000.
Young took his time before popping it to $6,800 and Ding quickly called only to see the $15,800 pot pushed to his opponent.
Chris Johnson vs. Alex Ding
Johnson raised to $150 from the hijack holding the and Ding three-bet to $550 from the button with the . Both blinds folded, Johnson called, and the flop came down .
Johnson checked and Ding bet $450 with his flush draw. Johnson called and spiked a set on the turn, which also gave Ding an up-and-down straight draw. Johnson check-called another bet, this time $1,900, and the bricked the river.
Johnson checked, Ding bluffed all in for $5,550, and Johnson snap-called to win the $16,975 pot. With that, Ding was left to rebuy for $20,000.
Jonathan Little vs. Alex Ding
Dark Room Poker Bet
With a $100 straddle on, Little raised to $250 with the in the cutoff and Ding three-bet to $1,000 holding the on the button. Action folded back to Little and he called to see a flop of .
Little check-called a bet of $800 and then checked the turn, which gave Ding a club flush draw. Ding bet $2,800, Little called, and the completed the board on the river. Little checked for the third time and folded when Ding bet $4,000. Ship the $13,425 pot to Ding.
Chris Johnson vs. Jonathan Little
Johnson straddled to $100 with what turned out to be the and Little raised to $300 under the gun with the . Ding called next to act with the , Johnson put in the additional $200, and it was three-way action to the flop.
Johnson checked, Little bet $700 with the nut flush draw, and Ding folded. Johnson opted to call with his gutshot and backdoor club draw, and he hit the former on the turn. Johnson checked and Little, who made top pair to go with his diamond draw, bet $2,000.
Johnson paused for a few beats before moving all in and Little called off the $10,000 he had behind to create a $26,575 pot.
The duo agreed to run the river twice, but neither the on the first nor on the second helped Little.
Sam Soverel vs. Alex Ding
With a double straddle to $400 on, Johnson raised to $1,000 holding the and Ding reraised to $4,200 with the in the small blind. Soverel, who had straddled under the gun to $200, looked down at the and opted to move all in for $15,725.
Action folded back to Ding and he called to create a $32,950 pot. It was a flip and the competitors opted to run it twice. On the first, the flop gave Ding a set and burned an ace for Soverel. The turn gave Soverel a flush draw, and he hit it on the river to secure half the pot.
On the second run, the flop paired Soverel and left Ding in dire straits. Neither the turn nor river helped Ding and he sent the majority of his chips over to Soverel.
Little’s SNG Strategies
Little, a frequent contributor to PokerNews.com, is slated to appear on PAD episodes over the next four weeks. His “Lesson Learned” week of a $5,000 SNG airs on March 8 and 15 and features Little,James Romero, Matt Affleck, Justin Saliba, Faraz Jaka, and Brad Owen.
“When I first started playing poker, I played sit-n-gos,” said Little. “They force you to know how to play well deep-stacked, shallow stacked, at a full table, at a short table, and heads-up. If you are not a well-rounded poker player, you will be at a severe disadvantage in them.”
He continued: “All you really have to do to succeed at poker is find a game you can beat, play it a lot, and keep a proper bankroll. Finding a game you can beat is easier said than done though. While you often cannot control your opponents’ skill levels, you can control yours. If you do everything in your power to understand and implement a fundamentally sound poker strategy better than your opponents, you will have an advantage over them, resulting in the money flowing your way.”
One way Little has not only developed sound poker strategies but also shares it regularly with poker players is via his renowned PokerCoaching.com.
“I made PokerCoaching.com to be the training site I wish I had as a new poker player, and also the site I want today to ensure I remain at the top of the game,” he said. “Unlike most training sites that only offer pre-recorded videos, PokerCoaching.com is incredibly interactive. It has quizzes, private live webinars, private streams where you can interact with our world-class coaches in real time, game theory optimal charts in an easy-to-use app, and in-depth courses that cover every aspect of the game. Try it for free at PokerCoaching.com/free.”
Win $5,000 Seat to Play on PAD
Right now, PokerCoaching is giving poker fans an opportunity to join Little on PAD by giving away a $5,000 buy-in to compete in a Season 13 episode.
To enter the free giveaway all you need to do is enter your email address. There are also additional ways to unlock extra entries such as referring friends and following PokerCoaching on Twitter. The competition closes on July 31, 2021.
“I am excited to be able to give away one $5,000 buy-in seat to play with me in a sit-n-go on Poker After Dark next season,” Little explained. “Head over to PokerCoaching.com/pokerafterdark to enter the free giveaway. Good luck!”
Remember, Poker After Dark will air every Monday but is only available to PokerGO subscribers. If you’re not currently subscribed, you can get a monthly subscription for $14.99, a three-month plan for $29.99, and an annual subscription for $99.99.
*Images courtesy of PokerGO.
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Jonathan LittleJustin Young
To be a professional poker player you have to be smart, a little bit crazy, and, oh yeah, pretty much a degenerate gambler. That’s because most professional poker players don’t just gamble on cards, they’ll bet on just about anything.
For example, pro poker players Rich Alati and Rory Young have made one of those infamous “How much money would it take for you to ___?” bets, which involves Alati havng to stay in a pitch-black bathroom for 30 days straight without any communication with the outside world. See what I mean? Anything.
If he succeeds, and he’s already inside the bathroom somewhere in Las Vegas as we speak, Alati will receive a cool $100K from Young. If he gives up and doesn’t make it the 30 days, Young gets the cash.
A heads-up match between Rory Young and Rich Alati has turned into the $100K prop bet that everyone in poker is talking about.https://t.co/GbYSDn3A27
— PocketFives (@PocketFives) November 29, 2018
Now, if one of your first thoughts was, “that can’t be a good for his health,” you’re not alone.
Dark Bet Poker Game
PocketFives.com reports…
“One day, there was this young dude sitting at an empty table with like $40,000 in front of him and I sat down and we started playing heads up,” said Young. “We started getting along okay and then over the next couple of days we were talking at the table and stuff. I play a lot of Lodden Thinks and this is one of my go-to questions, ‘How long do you think you could last in a dark room, with no human interaction?’”
Young has heard all kinds of answers and believes most people often overestimate their own abilities when answering. Responses are usually in the 20-25 day range, but Young says Alati surprised him with his answer of 30 days.
“I was like, ‘Oh, that’s interesting – would you ever consider putting any money on it?’ and he said, ‘Yeah, but it would have to be a large amount to make it worthwhile,’” said Young, who found out that amount meant somewhere between $50,000 and $100,000. “We talked a little bit more and within an hour we had something booked.”
Dark Best Plays
Totally normal.
Dark Bat Pokemon
“Food is delivered every three to six days and we’ve randomized what days it’ll be delivered and we’ll drop off six days worth of food so he doesn’t know how long it’s been,” said Young. “It could be three days, it could be six days. He’ll have no idea of how long it’s been, so no watches or clocks or things like that.”
There are five night-vision cameras broadcasting around the clock and the only privacy Alati gets is when he’s in the shower or the toilet cubicle. Alati’s family and a few select others have access to the feed.
Surely Alati prepared in advance to attempt this… unique task, right? Of course he didn’t.
“He spent, I believe, 10 minutes in a dark bathroom,” said Young. “He was in the Bahamas for the partypoker event, flew back, and within 24 hours he was in the bathroom. He hadn’t prepared any of his food, he hadn’t gotten anyone to bring his food in, so I’ve had to do it. I think he’s done zero preparation.”
The around-the-clock footage is being recorded and Young and Alati are hoping to turn it into a reality show and find a home for it once all is said and done.
Dark Bet Poker Rules
One of those watching the live feed is Alati’s sister. Young has talked to her on a near-daily basis since the bet started on November 21. Not surprisingly, his sister, a lawyer, tried to get him to back out and just give up the $5,000 [he had put in escrow for the bet].
“They tried to get him to not do it but he doesn’t listen to anybody but himself. She tried very hard to get him to pull out and he wasn’t having it. She’s pretty worried,” said Young, who admits to having some worries over potential health issues for Alati during and after the bet.
As if that wasn’t crazy enough, another professional poker player, Huckleberry Seed, now says he wants to try the bet, but for more money and with much more difficult living conditions.
“The other night, I get a phone call from a random number and it’s Huckleberry Seed. Long story short, he wants to do it for a million, but he wants much tougher conditions,” said Young, who said he’d consider taking the former WSOP Main Event champ up on the offer if a broadcast partner or other third party put up some of the money. “[Seed] said he wants to do it with no bed, no food for the first 21 days, he’d do it for a total of 40 days, and just water. Also, he said I could put some cockroaches in the bathroom.”
Told you pro poker players were a “little bit” crazy.