Weekly Tournament Triple Up!

After a nice hiatus, I came back to the Zynga Weekly Tournament. Today I tripled up! Not much chips, but you know what the Chip Taker is capable of.

Check out the photo. Instagram style.

 Boom! Just tripled up again. I have 30K now. Posting while I'm playing. Got two kills on this play too. I know you love 4 of a kind 8's, it's a classic Chip Taker hand.

Ha, another Weekly Tournament double up. 80K now. Only problem is I have things to do. We'll see if I can squeeze in some more tourney time.

I took a bag of chips from Sherri. Now I'm over 100K. Thx Sherri. Now I'm trying to switch positions with George, but he's trying really hard to stay above 1 Million. Not for long Georgie...

Thx George. The good thing about Zynga's Weekly Tournament is there are plenty of players like George that are perfect for me to take chips from. Now he's trying to get back over 1 Million from a different seat.

Str8 Flush. James Bond style. Gimme that Daniel. 130K.

That's it this week. I'm going to smash these players now that I'm using my original weekly tournament formula.

Until next time.

Weekly Tournament Triple Up!

Zynga Poker Player Resembles Hollywood Celebrity

Who does this look like?

Zynga Poker Player Resembles Hollywood Celebrity

You Frauds Will Lose

As you may be aware, I have declared war on cheaters playing Zynga Texas Holdem Poker. This was a 5 player tournament versus 4 players all on the same team. Or 1 player with 4 accounts. We may never know.

The first pic shows me getting a straight flush and taking chips. Thinking, "Why you no call??"

The next pic shows the final hand of the game. Read the chat and enjoy.

Do the math. They paid a total of 40 Million chips to enter this tournament. This 1 received 15 Million for 2nd place, the next 1 got his chips back, the other 2 lost all. They lost 15 Million chips trying to cheat me out of what I do best. Rookies.

Take from the rich and prey on the cheats.

Strike Strategy

You Frauds Will Lose

All in. All out.

She said she was watching the tv show Lost. Then she lost.

Isabella, you know it was me who knocked you out of the last tournament right?

All in. All out. 1st Place Strike.

All in. All out.

Taking Poker Millons Without Raising

Thought I'd share this poker pic with you.

Taking chips from Zynga poker frauds.
Facebook poker champion, Strike Strategy

Taking Poker Millons Without Raising

The Game has Changed

For all of you who have done well at Zynga's Texas Holdem Poker, you may have noticed that the game has changed. There are now an influx of 'beginners', not first time players, but players who started a new account to take advantage of these flaws in Zynga's game. They are frauds, and now they don't always appear on a table alone. To compensate for their lack of tournament knowledge, they roll in twos and threes. If they are on either side of you, one will raise. If you call, the other will reraise. If just two of them are in the hand and one has a lot more chips than the other, he will raise high for the other to call, then he will fold, to share the chips.

They do this boldly. They do not care what you think, they are cheating to win. They can be beaten, but you must be aware of other successful techniques, and use them with precision. Can you report them? If you wish. There may not be much time to do so if you are still playing.

Certain tricks that were almost guaranteed to make you win, don't always work anymore. These were tricks that required you to xxx a xxx of xxxxx in xxx xxxxxx. If you try it, you may look just as bad as these frauds if the cards in your hand are revealed. Even worse, you stand to lose a lot of chips, and no one wants that.

Strike Strategy.
Are you a tournament player? Weekly Tournament player? Lets have some fun:
Text me at  xxx xxx xxxx anytime.

The Game has Changed

"Server Problems"

It's a little disturbing when you are poised to win a 1 Million chip Tournament, you are dealt pocket queens, when all of a sudden, you are no longer able to click any buttons.
Has this ever happened to you? In the middle of a game, you press the Check button, but your time keeps running out? Out of desperation you click Raise, Fold, anything in hopes of regaining control of your player.

It's happened to me several times, but what is interesting is that this is something that NEVER used to happen before. The response by players is, "Oh it's server problems".

Zynga needs to understand that if players are risking the chips they earned, and I must add that these chips have a monetary value, it is best that players lose their chips as a result of the game, not any problems as a result of interface or programming, or any other technical issues that Zynga is having.
Capiche?

"Server Problems"

Joe's Chip Stack

Nice try Zynga. Unless my chips are $5, and his are $1

I guess I'm supposed to get jealous and buy $11.5M poker chips. :)

Joe's Chip Stack

Poker Fraud

Have you ever played against someone with this pic? Actually, there is one on my buddy list. Remind me to delete them if I haven't done so already. Sometimes when someone speaks to you via zynga chat, your mind puts a voice to the person. For some strange reason, there was a really deep voice to the one with this pic. "Strrike gi me chip...."

Zynga Poker Frauds are everywhere. My last post has some good clues to help you recognize one. An additional trait that I didn't mention is the player's profile pic. Keep a lookout for:

• a hot Oriental girl
• a probably too young to play poker and supposedly future hot Oriental girl
• a hot Caucasian girl (or girls)
• a girl in a small bathing suit
• a girl whose pic focuses on large breasts
• a baby (careful...these guys are tricky)
• a cartoon character
• a pic that does not, or barely enlarges

The list made you laugh right? Understandably so. But take it seriously, because it might save you a few hundred thousand chips.

Strike Strategy

Poker Fraud

Tissue Inflation

Due to the popularity of buying a player a box of tissues when they lose, be aware that Zynga has inflated the cost from 10 chips to 500!!!
So for all of you Zynga poker players who dish out tissues frivolously, don't expect to see a warning from Zynga. They need you to help the struggling economy.

Tissue Inflation

ZZZZZZZZ...

Do you know what it means when a player types "zzzzzz"? The universal meaning is "This is boring". Look for a different underlying meaning when a zynga poker player types it. Many times you will find that it means:


Before the flop - They have good cards
After the flop - The flop was good for them

There may be other occasions where it has a different meaning. If you've seen something more than once, please share. Otherwise, take heed to the knowledge I have shared with you.

ZZZZZZZZ...

Zynga Poker Flaw #1

Why is Zynga poker so fun? Because the program is designed to make you win often when you join. Simple but effective. That is why so many people play. However, there are those who exploit this feature. They have a main account with millions, perhaps even a few billion chips. They then open a new account, feed millions into it (chip dumping), and play on tables that will net them as much chips as possible. This works often because its a new account. In fact, several players believe that these frauds are employed by Zynga. Maybe. Just look at some of the comments on Zynga's fanpage. You tell me.

Regardless, there are ways to spot these Zynga frauds.

 

1. Strange name
2. They have only been a player for a few months or less or they have not played very many hands compared to the amount of chips they have.
3. They risk 50% to 100% of their total chips on the table
4. They go all in preflop with cards like Q7, 69, K8, 22, and they win. Especially on the river.
5. They have less than 5 'poker buddies'
6. I did not circle the percentage of 'Sit N Go's Won' in this example. You will notice that many of the frauds will have a zero in this category. The zynga fraud I chose in this pic has a very good percentage, but they have been a player for less than a month, and I beat him with ease because he is not skilled. The likely reason was that he won 1 out of 6 tournaments.

When you join a table, look at the profiles of the other players. You will find the Zynga frauds in advance. Don't call their All In preflop raises. Even if you have AA there is a high likelihood that you will be beaten by a straight, flush, or full house.

Will Zynga correct this flaw? Maybe, but there are obvious advantages if they don't. First, they can boast about they amount of players they have, and there are many of these frauds posing as players. Second, if the rumor that these frauds are employed by Zynga is true, then it is unlikely that Zynga will crack down on them. Third, they do a very important job. They win hands with cards so poor, that it may be considered pure luck by the players that lost. We know this is not the case, but this makes the loser want to play more to get their chips back. Remember, Zynga's goal is to get as many players as they can to play as often as possible. This is what makes a never ending game successful.

Zynga Poker Flaw #1

Fast Tables

This is a shot of Zynga's Fast Table. A friend of mine told me to try it out because she has been doing quite well on them. Easy chips are my weakness so I decided to try it out. Very quickly I discovered a few things. There are reasons to play here, and there are reasons not to.

Do not play here if:

1. You have been playing Zynga's Texas Holdem tournaments for less than a month
2. You do not play well against impatient people
3. You rely heavily on timing to set up your big wins
4. You usually take your time to make your 'call' 'raise' 're-raise' or 'fold' decision
5. You are doing other things at the same time.

You should play here if:

1. You play well against impatient people
2. You are experienced at Zynga's Texas Holdem tournaments
3. You are good at making big decisions quickly
4. You want to win within 45 minutes 
5. You think other tournaments and the weekly tournament is too slow
6. You enjoy taking chips from players who are gambling over 50% of their total chips on 1 tournament
7. You know that there are a lot of players from #6 that play here  

Have fun!

Fast Tables

Achievements and Collections

For a while now, Zynga has been introducing new additions to their poker playing experience. Here are 3:

Achievements

To set itself apart from other online poker applications, Zynga has set up Achievements for players. An award of chips are given when players get hands such as Three of a Kind, Full House, or other benchmarks such as winning a million chip pot, or having 50 poker buddies. They have created bronze, silver, gold, and platinum level achievements with each category getting slightly more difficult. Note: The platinum level has been "Coming Soon" for as long as I have been playing. Many players have forgotten it.

Collections

Beside each players avatar (picture) there is a space where the player is able to show off achievements. Collections are achieved when a player wins a hand and is awarded an object. The object varies, but once all 5 in a collection is awarded, the player wins chips and receives an 'item'. The player can then choose to display the item beside their picture.

Collection Items

What I was just referring to. Examples of Collection Items are platinum dice, crown, a lucky chip, world cup soccer ball etc.

Other Items

These include items purchased with the Casino Gold 'currency'. Cigars, pole dancers, ninjas and quite a few other new items are in this category. Players can see what they have by clicking on their picture, clicking the Items tab, and the list will be displayed. Hint: to remove something beside your pic, go back to the Items tab and click 'Display None'.

Achievements and Collections

BEWARE the Weekly Contest

The Weekly Contest is a cool new feature that Zynga introduced to their poker application. But beware...We all know what can happen to players looking for a huge amount of chips in a short time.

The Weekly Contest is not to be confused with the Weekly Tournament. The Weekly Tournament starts with a prize pot of 100,000,000 chips. As more players join, the pot gets bigger. It usually ends up being in excess of 600,000,000 chips! At one point, I finished better than 25th place. To see more details about how I did, click here.

The Weekly Contest is a competition between you and your 'poker buddies', to see who can win the most chips in a week. It doesn't matter how much chips you lose, it only counts what you win. So theoretically, you can win 100,000 chips, lose 200,000, and still beat your friend that makes 90,000 and loses none.

The award for beating all of your friends is 20K. You do the math. You will know if it is right for you.

UPDATE: October 10, 2011

 

I won the weekly contest last week, so why don't they show my pic wearing the crown?

BEWARE the Weekly Contest

Challenges

Zynga has introduced 'Challenges' to their Facebook Poker game. An excellent addition. Challenges are small trials that give players opportunities to make some chips on the side. A few examples are:
Win 3 Hands in a Row - Payout 8,000.
Knockout (Take all of a players chips from the table) - Payout 7,000.
Weekly Warrior (Score in the top 5% in the Weekly Tournament) - Payout 100,000

But the catch is that 5 of your poker buddies must also accomplish the task for you to win. If they do, then you each win the full prize money.
This setup does a few things. First, players who lose all of their chips can get back on their feet quicker. Second, it adds another dimension to their poker game. Remember that Facebook is all about being social, and their games support it. This leads to the third point. The challenges encourage players to add more 'poker buddies' to assist them in completing their tasks.

Do you play the challenges, or are you strictly poker?

Challenges

Why They Ask for My Poker Chips

This is a response to yet another repeat request for my chips. The name has been hidden to protect the guilty.

XXXX, I have not played with you yet so I am not sure what you need to do to get better.
But there are common issues with players who ask me for chips more than twice.

1) They play tournaments that exceed 10% of their chips

2) They play cash tables that exceed 10% of their chips

3) They battle against much more experienced players

4) They take too many uncalculated risks

5) They assume my bank is open to the public

Why They Ask for My Poker Chips

Tag your Friend

To tag someone on your Facebook status, just type @ and then your friends name.

Tag your Friend

Why there isn't more 1 Million chip Tournaments on Facebook Poker

I finally won my 1st 1 Million Chip Tourney in facebook poker. So far I've placed in 3 out of 5. Not bad, but the two I didn't place in lit flames in me. Perhaps I'm too competitive. Perhaps.

I've only played in 5 of these million chip tournaments. That may sound strange to those who know how much chips I have. Before I played, there were only two 1M tourneys running. I had to watch one just to know when the table would be available. Apparently, quite a few players do this, because of how the table fills up so quickly.

If there were more available I may have played in more. This brings me to my point. In all of the 1M tourneys I've played in, there are usually only a few players that have in excess of 10M in their account. That means all of the other players are using more than 10% of their chips as a buy-in, in hopes of winning the big one. In terms of ROI (return on investment) do you think this makes sense?  If you want to know what I think, click Here and read "The More Expensive the Tournament, the Tougher the Competition".

You would be surprised to know how many of these players have less than 2M in their account, or those whose highest chip total rank is only 1M. So to answer why there isn't more 1 million chip tournaments on facebook poker...Way too many players will lose way too much chips. In the end, players with few chips will regret losing so much in just one game. They may lose confidence, but more importantly for Zynga, they may lose the desire to play again.

At the time of writing this, 422,174 players are playing Zynga's Texas Holdem. From what I've seen, every time someone loses all of their chips it takes longer for them to start playing again. They may eventually choose to play another game instead. Maybe a game from a different developer.

To curtail this, Zynga has introduced "Challenges" (Read Daniela's post). Challenges are an interesting topic, that will be discussed.....another time.

Strike Strategy



Legend (I know you know, but some people might not)
Tourneys = Tournaments
K = Amount of chips x 1000
Buy-in = the amount you have to pay to enter a tournament
Place = Finishing 1st, 2nd, or 3rd
Sit n go = A type of tournament. The 1st 9 people to buy in can play.
Payout = The amount of chips awarded for placing in a tournament.
Playing tighter = Folding a lot

Why there isn't more 1 Million chip Tournaments on Facebook Poker

VIP Status

Interesting. I just found out about Zynga's Texas Holdem Poker VIP tables.

If you purchase $2 (US currency) worth of poker chips, Zynga will give you free VIP status. Why is that interesting? Because otherwise, you must pay 1 million chips for limited access. How limited? 30 days.

So whats so special about VIP? I've heard there is a yellow background instead of green. Hahaha!!
One person said less bingo players. Of course, there are less amounts of all players when you must pay 1 million chips or real cash.

Did you know that if you pay Zynga $150 US (real cash) you will get 6 million chips?  Too bad there is no option to cash in mine. Do you know anyone that did this and they still have their chips? Do you know anyone that has paid money at all for chips?

Back on topic. I have asked at least 10 players with the VIP icon beside their name if they thought that VIP was worth it. One player said "not sure yet". All others said 'not really', or 'no'.

Maybe Zynga has something in store for the VIP program. They better. Players can't really be happy with the value they receive for the price they have paid. For many of the others who got it as a bonus when they purchased chips, they don't seem to care for it either.

VIP Status