Americas Cardroom is one of the top online poker sites in the world, and I give you 11 tips every ACR player needs to know.

Watch the YouTube video to see the 11 tips in action:

Listen to the podcast episode #499 as you follow along below:

Tip #1: Use the Lobby Statistics for Table Selection on Americas Cardroom

“AvPot” = the average pot size. Look for 15bb+.

“% Flop” = the percent of hands dealt that see the flop. Look for 25%+.

“H/hr” = the number of hands dealt per hour. Look for 80-90.

Tip #2: Believe the Estimated Tournament Run Time

If a tournament says it’ll take 4.5, it will take 4.5 hours. If other commitments will prevent you from playing the full length, don’t play the tourney. You limit your tournament ROI because you won’t be able to make it to the end.

Original estimate at 4:30; my 2nd place took 4:20… accurate indeed!

Join Americas Cardroom with code “SPSPOD” and get 27% Rakeback and support the show! (affiliate link)

Tip #3: Save Your Hand Histories Into PokerTracker 4

ACR allows the use of PokerTracker 4 (get PokerTracker 4 here and support the show), and that’s one of the reasons you play on this site. Turn on “Save Hand History” so you can build a database of hands to study, plug leaks with and use a HUD to exploit ’em!

Tip #4: Use Your HUD for Better Reads & Decisions

Don’t ignore your HUD, but use it to make solid reads and profitable exploits versus their tendencies.

Know where the stats are in the HUD, and put them in popups for more detailed statistics. Like knowing 3bet by position, or cbet by relative position and street.

He 3bets from the BTN and folds to 4bets??? Let’s 4bet bluff ’em!

Tip #5: Turn on “Show action history”

ACR has a nifty option for showing their actions street-by-street. This will help you replay the hand in your head before important turn and river decisions.

Tip #6: Preset the Bet Size Buttons

This is more efficient for betting/raising with your most common sizes:

My personal button sizing options.

Tip #7: Take Player Notes in the PokerTracker 4 Note Editor

Do this so you can have player notes at the ready when reviewing hands during study time.

Tip #8: View Stacks in Terms of Big Blinds

To do this, just click on any players chip stack on the table. It’ll flip from $ to BB’s or tourney $’s to BB’s.

This makes it so much easier to:

• Know everyone’s stack and pot size in terms of BB’s for tournaments.
• Avoid results orientation or concern over $ at risk in cash games.
• Play multiple stakes without having to do the math for bet/raise sizes in cash games.

Tip #9: Color Code Each Player’s HUD Panel by Player Type

Use the Note Editor to choose a player’s HUD panel color by player type. My preferences:

• Red for Nit’s
• Yellow for TAG’s
• Orange for LAG’s
• Green for Fish
• Purple for Gamblers

Learn from this Gambler’s 11 repeated mistakes that cost him 270bb’s:

Tip #10: Tag Hands for Later Review

Use PokerTracker 4 to tag important/key/confusing/mistaken hands so you can quickly find them and review them later.

Tagging a mis-click hand.

This was going to be a 10-tip list, but then I remembered, “Give ’em one more to grow on!”

Tip #11: Look for 3bettors BEFORE You Enter the Pot

ACR is full of TAG and LAG players who love to 3bet. Before entering the pot, look for 3bet bluffers still to act.  If there are some, you’ve got options:

• Narrow your range so you can more easily defend.
• Use a larger size to discourage their 3bet bluffs.
• Plan for the 3bet bluff, so open and re-bluff them with a 4bet.

Episode #500!

“I’ve become a better player this past month with all the work I’ve done.”

You just wrapped up July. So, how are you feeling about your poker progress through July?

Are you a better player now than when you started on July 1st?

Well, I want your August to be better than July, and more importantly, I want you to be a better player at the end of August than you are right now on the 1st.

Listen to episode #500 as you follow along below:

Set a Controllable Goal

You’re going to set a single goal for the entire month of August. On September 1st, I want you to be able to say, “Whoa, I’ve become a better player this past month with all the work I’ve done!”

Wouldn’t that be great!

I’m going to help you do it by setting a goal right now. The goal that you’re going to set is around some kind of controllable in poker. 

You CAN’T control your winnings, results or win rates.

What you CAN control is:

• How much time you put into study and play.
• The type of games/formats you play.
• Focus sessions or volume sessions.
• The sites you play on and the days/times that you play.
• Whether you’re warmed up or not, distracted or not.
• If you get enough sleep so that you have an active and ready mind to study and to play poker well.

So make a goal around a controllable item for the month August.

My August 2024 Poker Goal:

I’m going to study 10 minutes every single day, and as soon as I learn something, I’m going to play a 60-minute session practicing that thing I learned.

So my controllable goal is around the amount of daily purposeful study and purposeful play time I’ll commit to.

If I do this throughout all of August, I will have studied for 310 minutes, or just over 5 hours. That’s a lot of study!

And, I will have purposefully practiced the strategies I learned for 31 hours!

I know that by doing these two things I will be a better player at the end of the month of August then I am right now.

It’s Your Turn

I want you to figure out what that thing that you can do everyday is, and do it so that on September 1st, you can say, “I’ve become a better player this month with all the work I’ve done!”

For example, maybe you constantly play without warming up and you’re distracted with ESPN. Just getting rid of those two things by doing a quick hand reading exercise to warm up and NOT watching ESPN could easily make you a better player by the end of the month.

So, times ‘a wasting! What are you going to do for the month of August so that you can turn yourself into a better player by the end of the month? Set a goal that you can control and get to work!