Fourth Street Blues

By R C Ducantlin

Fourth Street Blues is a story about playing Texas Hold'em in an online world.

It is an account of hands played and the logic behind the strategies. No whining about bad beats. No bragging about someone drawing the one card needed. Just a few dozen updated tips for playing quality, hand-dealt and online poker.

A few of the pointers inside Fourth Street Blues:

• You do not have to memorize hundreds of rules to understand probability and odds.
• Both aggressive and passive playing techniques have value.
• Remember a few standard rules to make good poker decisions.
• Grasp post-flop fundamentals, including post-flop action and a solid continuation strategy.
• You can hold your own against big stack opponents without fear of being bluffed into oblivion.

Fourth Street Blues is the first step in evolving your poker game!

 

You will find tips for all skill levels: Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced.

Meet the Players
Dook – Definitely a talkative newbie.
Hipster – Patient and skilled.
Crusty Old Dude – Enough said.
Red Nails – What a singing voice.
Greenhair – A fashion faux pax who will take your chips.

Cameo Appearances From
College One – Too snide by half.
College Two – Too lazy by half.
Blonde Bouffant – Too much by half.
Oxford Shirt – Too button-down.
Man Bun – Too many exposed muscles.
Cowboy aka Dipster – Too few brain cells.

Snippets of what people say about Fourth Street Blues.

"Ducantlin's story is full of surprising poker tips and ideas you probably thought would never work."

"I think I have played against most of the characters at the table."

"Fourth Street Blues is an example of why poker is not a mystery but is impossible to solve."

"R. C. has simplified the thought processes for playing good poker."

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: R C Ducantlin, Ltd.
• Release date: Jan 7, 2022
• ISBN: 9781949211641

R C Ducantlin

Fortunately, in secondary school, my interest in reading was sparked. A close friend and an instructor, who took interest in a boy he later called ‘The rebel without a clue.,’ were instrumental in my learning the value of a good book. Both piqued my interest in reading. My lifelong friend inspired me to read J.R.R. Tolkien and I became addicted to the fantasy genre. The instructor required I read interesting historical novels for academic credit. Frank Norris, Leon Uris, and Ken Follett are inspirations and fuel my love of history. Born to a military family, it was logical that I follow the military tradition. However, after four years of “yes sirs” and scraping the wax off floors I decided there must be more fun in a corporate career. Thirty plus years of work experiences across the globe, the corporate career landed me in Colorado, where I live with my wife and I can be close to my children and grandchildren.

Book preview

Prologue

Walking into a casino is always a twinkling of anticipation. There is a fortune waiting within the windowless walls. The riches are yours if you are smart enough, and lucky enough, to walk away a winner.

Routinely touted as the fairest game of chance, poker is simple to learn and complex to master. The best you can hope for is understanding the cards you hold and when the odds lean correctly to your advantage. If you have those two things, cards and favorable odds, you will win the hand. Well, you will win most hands.

Hand-dealt Texas Hold ‘em is a preferred version of poker for many card-playing aficionados.

Aficionado is a polite euphemism for a gambler. Do not fret if you are a newbie. Also, do not let anyone tell you that you are a Donkey. Fish and Donkey are the older terms for an inexperienced player.

The new term is Donk.

You and I are not Donks.

What is this story?

Fourth Street Blues is the collated thought processes of a successful Texas Hold ‘em player. Successful both online and at tables with felt.

Hour Zero

The Rules – A Primer

A primer is a short, easily absorbed, informative piece of writing. Therefore, this list is not a complete list of poker rules or a comprehensive manual. This book doesn’t begin to cover the millions of ways to play Texas Hold ‘em.

Following are a few poker concepts and terms necessary to succeed at Texas Hold ’em poker. Concepts you will need to understand to succeed in today’s world of aggressive poker. If you are serious about playing poker, find four, or five, of the many good instructional guides and start reading.

Of course, after reading this story, you can begin your detailed study, aka putting your hands and chips on the felt of a poker table.

First, always know where you are. You are not in Kansas any longer. Maybe you are in Kansas. Who knows? The point is: Know Your Position

We will get to the definitions in a moment. First, a few words, call them information nuggets, on playing strategy.

Good Position: On the button.

The button is the disk which indicates the dealer’s position. Because you are the button, you are the last person to act after the Flop, Fourth Street, and the River. You are required to Watch and Learn. Read that again. Watch and Learn. Being on the button is a learning opportunity. Which players did not fold and are still in the hand? How do they play their initial and subsequent bets? Does their hand shake when they move chips? Will they touch the pendent at their neck when they have good cards? Do they stop looking at people when they are bluffing? Everything is there for you to decide your action. Watch and Learn.

Bad Position: In the Small Blind.

The Small Blind is the first chair left of the Button. This position requires you to act first for three betting rounds. Decide how to play the cycle with the least information available.

Pro Tip: Assuming two quality cards land in front of you, counter the lousy position by playing aggressively. But, there is always a but. Remember, fewer players at a table translates to more frequent betting. A small table makes an undesirable position worse. With superior cards and caution, you must be more aggressive when in a bad position.

Another handy little rule: There is no free lunch. No one sees the Flop for free. When you find good cards, everyone pays to play. Regardless of position, force the action with quality cards.

Are you sensing a theme? Beginners, and those who are primarily online players, live for the cheap Flop. Make them pay, but remember it is dangerous to let them in. Be careful of the cheap Flop. An inexperienced Jamoke, or a seasoned Shark, will look to flop an Open-Ended Straight Draw or Trips.

If you believe someone has gotten lucky, do not think twice about running away from the Hand. Save your chips. It is called Rounders for a reason. There is another deal about to come your way. Cards are coming to you, assuming you have chips on the felt. If you believe someone got lucky, run away, keep your chips, and play the next hand.

The fourth card, Fourth Street, is also called the Turn. The fifth card is the River. Be Smart on the Turn and the River. Thoughtful action on the Turn and River cannot be emphasized strongly enough. Repeat it. Be Smart on the Turn and the River. Here are a few of the Turn and River rules to consider:

Someone hits the Flush. After the Turn, with three cards of the same suit, surely one Jamoke holds a flush or an excellent flush draw. Yes, you can call the Jamoke Shirley.

Someone hit Trips or a Full-House. When you see a pair on the Board, the other Jamoke probably has Trips, on her way to a Full-House, and wants you, the Flush Draw, to bet hard. Okay, maybe they only have Trips. Do Trips beat you if you fail to draw whatever you need?

Folding is your friend. After the Turn, be cheap. Call or bet a small amount if you’re holding a draw into a Flush or a Straight. Commit just enough to get the River cheaply. Folding is your friend when you miss the draw on the River.

Too good to be true. The Turn was good for me! Damn it. Make the Jamokes pay if you know you have the best hand possible. If you know you are on top, make it expensive for everyone in the hand to see the River. If you make it expensive, and they don’t go away, reconsider your position.

The Inside Straight. A word about Straights, Inside Straights, specifically. Never call when drawing to an Inside Strait. After the Flop, depending on who is doing the math, your odds of hitting one of four cards are under 10% on the Turn. Less than 20% on the River. Are you considering a draw to an Inside Strait because the call is cheap? Please don’t do it. If you call, and the Turn fails to give the Out, run away.

A word about Outs. An Out is a card that will improve your hand to a likely winner if drawn on the Turn or the River.

Memorize this modest formula. It gives approximate offs for how likely you are to improve your hand with Outs. Multiplying your Outs by two (2) will approximate the probability of hitting your hand on the next card. Multiplying by four (4) after the Flop will approximate the chance of hitting your hand on the River.

Example one: Four outs for the Straight.

The math: 4 outs x 2 more cards = 8% on the Turn, and 4 outs x 4 cards = 16% on the River.

Example two: Nine outs for the Flush.

The math: 9 outs x 2 more cards = 18% on the Turn, and 9 outs x 4 cards = 32% on the River.

Sun Tzu said: Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak. Screw Sun Tzu. If you are holding fat cards, and you know it, clap your hands, then put your chips in the middle.

Make your bet enough chips to cause concern for anyone behind you. Behind you means, on your left, clockwise around the table. Also, if the