Pro Beats Robot in Limit Holdem Challenge

It wasn't just the WSOP main event that was a success, as organizers for the first ever World Series of Poker Robots said their tournament, which pitted the best computer programmers--via their poker "robots"--against each other, was a smashing success.

Longtime I-gaming executive Steve Latham helped promote the event, which invited programmers from India, Canada, Hong Kong and the United States to pit their poker bots against each other in a tournament. The winner, Hilton Gibbons, got $100,000 for his efforts and was invited to a heads-up game against poker pro Phil Lakke (a.k.a. the "Unibomber"), who proceeded to topple Gibbons' bot.

For the moment, human's prevail in poker, but University of Alberta professor Jonathan Schaeffer, who was involved in the event, said it may just be a matter of time before the tables are turned.

"I don't think that there's a program today that would be a strong favorite versus a human," Schaeffer said, but he added that one-on-one limit Hold'Em glitches can be solved, thereby enabling a computer to play perfectly.

It took more than 300 hands for Laak to put away "PokerProbot," and after the action, Laak acknowledged that most average players would have a tough time against it.

"It would for sure make money online," Laak said. "At least in the simpler versions of Texas hold 'em with betting limits, bots are better than the average person."

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Hold'em Starting Hands

The most crucial decision you make in a Texas Hold'em game is whether you will play your hole cards or not.

Here's a list of the best, and those that are good enough, starting hands when playing Holdem poker:

The Strongest Starting Hands:

PAIR of HIGH CARDS - AA, KK, QQ, JJ, 1010
ACE and HIGH CARD SUITED - AK(S), AQ(S), AJ(S), A10(S)
FACES SUITED - KQ(S), KJ(S), QJ(S)
ACE KING - AK

Medium Strength Starting Hands:

FACE TEN SUITED - K10(S), Q10(S), J10(S)
MEDIUM PAIRS - 99, 88, 77
TWO HIGH CARDS - AQ, AJ, A10 (ace king ranks higher, above), KQ down to J10
ACE and MEDIUM SUITED - A9(S), A8(S), A7(S)
MEDIUM SUITED CONNECTORS (No Gap/One Gap) - J9(S), 109(S), 108(S), 98(S), 97(S) down to 75(S)

When you receive these starting hands, it's pretty safe to play them for the pot. But of course you have to play it wise. There are still the flop, the turn, and the river to consider.

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