Run It Once expansion: Ace for poker fans?

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News that poker training site has taken on new coaches divides the card-playing community

The expansion of the Run It Once online poker training facility has generated a significant debate among players signed up to the popular twoplustwo.com forum website.

According to a report from the aforementioned site, the Phil Galfond-owned training facility has just announced the recruitment of a further two coaches in the former of familiar pros Dyan ‘IamLucSac’ Linde and Ben ‘Sauce123’ Sulksy.

The website has long promised to provide novices and newcomers with a resource to gain tips and expertise from other players as well as posting questions, meeting other players and utilising a series of slick tutorial videos posted on the site.

These two brand new additions bring the total number of coaches signed up to the Run It Once programme to an impressive 31 in total, though this latest announcement has generated a significant level of online chat – both positive and negative – regarding the move.

For instance, users like the individual posting on the twoplustwo forum under the name of ‘Itisnice’ are critical of the move, likening the use of such sites to a scenario whereby the ten experts in every 100 standard players opt to bring “a huge chalkboard” and set up “a poker instruction for payment station for anyone to attend” – thus taking away any of the advantage a more moderate or experienced player may have.

But not everyone agrees with the notion that sites like Run It Once provide a guarantee of success for any newbies looking to score big on the green felt.

Users like Keyser, for instance, have taken to the twoplustwo forum to argue the case that nothing is certain when it comes to players using sites of this kind.

He writes: “In the real world, 9 out of the 10 fish don’t show up to the seminar; 30 or 40 breakeven regs either misapply the lessons and don’t improve or aren’t smart enough to understand them in the first place; only some of the slightly winning grinders work hard enough to improve significantly; and a handful of the experts get better but the others are too cocky to admit they could improve.”

Keyser even goes as far as supporting the use of such sites as a means of improving your play – provided you put in the legwork:

“If you’re capable of understanding the lessons and work hard enough to implement them correctly the relative gap between you and the field increases even if the field is slightly better on average.”

Meanwhile, speaking to calvinayre.com, Bluefire Poker tutor Alan Jackson believes that ultimately big money professional success in the game boils down to dedication and there is no quick route to winning

“I suggest playing 6 days a week, ideally a fairly set schedule,” he said.

“When playing was my primary focus I played 7 days a week, with a few days off each month, from 8am to noon.

Videos, guides and tutorials may help, but to be the best you need to put in the hours.

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