The title says it all... At best I give myself a C- for my play today. I was very edgy all day and broke many of the cardinal rules of good poker in the first hour of my session. A good quick way to get down on a session is make plays at people in non pots and get played right back at.. oops
After going down a quick 2.5k I decided I was playing so poorly my best bet was to quit for the day.. but of course I need to play until my big blind. I had a little gamble in me after getting down to quickly and decided to make a play (with outs this time) and won a big pot when I cracked someones kings with my overcard and nut flush draw. I managed to take down another medium pot before I called it quits after only an hour session and being down a much mor reasonable 600. I will be back at it tomorrow with my head on straight.
Since poker was out of the question I sat down to watch the final table of the world series on ESPN. I became increasingly annoyed during the first hour as Jerry Yang pleaded with God when he was all-in to let him win. Then there was Lee Watkinson's fiance dancing around with her hands in the air praying to Jesus for a 7 to beat Jerry Yang in the same hand.. come on people... really?
Can what your religious beliefs and poker mix? Sure they can.. I think a great example is Daniel Negreanu.. He knows what he believes but doesn't preach it to everyone.. especially at the tables. If someone asks he will tell them i'm sure but he lets how he acts and reacts be a witness to what he believes.. The day I see Daniel dancing with his hands in the air praying to God for a 7 on the river.... i'm quitting poker. that's my rant for the day. Catch you tomorrow
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Monday, October 08, 2007
A Bad Sports Weekend
What a bad weekend in sports for me.. My Badgers and Gators both lose in nailbiters and then the Packers blow it against the Bears of all teams. ridiclous At least the Bills-Cowboys game was a good cap to the week.
Aside from that all has been pretty well in the poker world. I played close to 10 hours today and had some decent results. I feel like my play was overall about an A- and the biggest pot I lost was a situation where I don't know how I can lay down. I called a raise with 77 in the SB and catch the A73 rainbow flop. After much betting and raising my opponent turns over AA. oops
I spent last wednesday and thursday in San Francisco helping a buddy of mine move the rest of his stuff to vegas. It was an interesting trip and the city is absolutely beautiful. I now consider myself a wine connoisseur after just two days. I'm not... but I like to think it.
I did manage to get a few hours of poker in since our hotel room had wireless. The trip wasn't a complete waste of time.
My trip plus weekend session results +2000
Monday session results +2400
Aside from that all has been pretty well in the poker world. I played close to 10 hours today and had some decent results. I feel like my play was overall about an A- and the biggest pot I lost was a situation where I don't know how I can lay down. I called a raise with 77 in the SB and catch the A73 rainbow flop. After much betting and raising my opponent turns over AA. oops
I spent last wednesday and thursday in San Francisco helping a buddy of mine move the rest of his stuff to vegas. It was an interesting trip and the city is absolutely beautiful. I now consider myself a wine connoisseur after just two days. I'm not... but I like to think it.
I did manage to get a few hours of poker in since our hotel room had wireless. The trip wasn't a complete waste of time.
My trip plus weekend session results +2000
Monday session results +2400
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
Confidence Mirrors Results
A week or so ago I realized something. I'd been playing for the previous month or so with very little confidence in my game. Of course I did have a good reason to be hesitant.. every move I seemed to make at the tables seemed to blow up in my face.
Forgetting the two years of positive results that was a result of grinding it out and playing solid poker I went into what i've come to call my poker depression. I am over that dissapointing phase of my life by the way..
The question then became how to get my confidence back. There were two parts to this that I will try and explain as briefly as possible.
1. My friends Mike and Chad came to Vegas for a week long vacation from the frozen tundra of Wisconsin. They stayed at the house for a couple of those days and one of the nights we decided to play drunk 5 dollar sit and go's. It's hard for me to comprehend how a 5 dollar tournament helped me to get my confidence back in much higher stakes games... yet it did.
I was able to take down seven of the ten tournaments we played and two of the three I lost I was all-in as an 80%+ favorite but was outdrawn. No offense to these guys if they happen to read my blog.... but they were just bad. I had a great read on both of them and I was able to call out their hole cards on several occasions. It felt good to helplessly beat down the weaker players... which brings me to part two.
2. I decided to step down a couple levels and try and have a couple winning sessions before sitting back at my bigger games. You would be amazed what pulling multiple buyin wins at the 1/2 and 2/4 no limit levels can do to you at the bigger games. Especially when your confidence at poker is at an all time low.
The players at these levels are alot more timid and thus can be ran over much easier. I assume the main reason is that the money mean alot more to players at these levels than at bigger games. An $80 bet at 5/10 or 10/20 is nothing yet at the 2/4 level it can be pretty intimidating.
In a search for inspiration one day I stumbled across this classic quote from the Texas Dolly himself that is now written on the dry-erase board on my wall. "Try to decide how good your hand is at a given moment. Nothing else matters. Nothing!"
Anyways.. I've been playing pretty solid the last few days. I've been running well in the pot limit omaha games on bodog. I consider this game to be more of my specialty than no limit holdem. The 3/6 game has been a solid choice lately. I really believe that players in this game are much easier to play against. My style in this game is simply either I have it or I don't. I won't draw at less than the nuts and I won't draw without the right odds. So many people get caught with the 2nd nuts or bottom set and can't let it go in this game that if you play solid and don't stray from a winning strategy it can be very profitable.
I did have one hand today that cut into my early profits I will tell you about.. then it's time to sleep for me. I played this hand like a complete chump.
Playing 5/10 no-limit I was two from the button with a raise to $35 by the second to act and 3 callers in front I made the call with As 9s.
Flop was 3h Js 8s.
It checks to the player on my immediate right who bets $75... a little less than half the pot. I make the call with the nut flush draw and player on the button thinks for awhile before calling also. Everyone else folds.
Turn 3s
This time player on my right bets out $110. I think for a moment before calling. I'm getting skeptical at this point and I figure the best thing here would be to see what this guy does on the river. The player on the button thinks forever before calling.
River 4d
Again he fires. This time $330. Everything in me is screaming fold. There are two reasons a fold is a no brainer here.
1. I have played with this guy before and I have notes on him. I know that he is able to give up on a hand and probably won't fire here without the goods. Absolute best case scenario for me besides a bluff is he has a hand like Ks Qs but would he really fire here with that hand and two people calling him on the turn?
2. Hello? Did you forget about the guy on the button smooth calling the whole way. He could be sitting on Jd Jh and laughing his ass off at both of us. The odds are against it since he could of and should of raised that hand on the flop. Yet the possibility is there and should be weighed in. If #1 isn't enough the combination of both these reasons is an EASY fold.
Instead... I make the call. The button thinks forever again and makes the call with god knows what but it doesn't matter because the guy on my right shows 3d 3c for quads and rakes in a nice pot.
Enough is enough... I'm off to bed. Hope my aimless ranting made some sense to you guys.
Until next time
Monday session results +1200
Forgetting the two years of positive results that was a result of grinding it out and playing solid poker I went into what i've come to call my poker depression. I am over that dissapointing phase of my life by the way..
The question then became how to get my confidence back. There were two parts to this that I will try and explain as briefly as possible.
1. My friends Mike and Chad came to Vegas for a week long vacation from the frozen tundra of Wisconsin. They stayed at the house for a couple of those days and one of the nights we decided to play drunk 5 dollar sit and go's. It's hard for me to comprehend how a 5 dollar tournament helped me to get my confidence back in much higher stakes games... yet it did.
I was able to take down seven of the ten tournaments we played and two of the three I lost I was all-in as an 80%+ favorite but was outdrawn. No offense to these guys if they happen to read my blog.... but they were just bad. I had a great read on both of them and I was able to call out their hole cards on several occasions. It felt good to helplessly beat down the weaker players... which brings me to part two.
2. I decided to step down a couple levels and try and have a couple winning sessions before sitting back at my bigger games. You would be amazed what pulling multiple buyin wins at the 1/2 and 2/4 no limit levels can do to you at the bigger games. Especially when your confidence at poker is at an all time low.
The players at these levels are alot more timid and thus can be ran over much easier. I assume the main reason is that the money mean alot more to players at these levels than at bigger games. An $80 bet at 5/10 or 10/20 is nothing yet at the 2/4 level it can be pretty intimidating.
In a search for inspiration one day I stumbled across this classic quote from the Texas Dolly himself that is now written on the dry-erase board on my wall. "Try to decide how good your hand is at a given moment. Nothing else matters. Nothing!"
Anyways.. I've been playing pretty solid the last few days. I've been running well in the pot limit omaha games on bodog. I consider this game to be more of my specialty than no limit holdem. The 3/6 game has been a solid choice lately. I really believe that players in this game are much easier to play against. My style in this game is simply either I have it or I don't. I won't draw at less than the nuts and I won't draw without the right odds. So many people get caught with the 2nd nuts or bottom set and can't let it go in this game that if you play solid and don't stray from a winning strategy it can be very profitable.
I did have one hand today that cut into my early profits I will tell you about.. then it's time to sleep for me. I played this hand like a complete chump.
Playing 5/10 no-limit I was two from the button with a raise to $35 by the second to act and 3 callers in front I made the call with As 9s.
Flop was 3h Js 8s.
It checks to the player on my immediate right who bets $75... a little less than half the pot. I make the call with the nut flush draw and player on the button thinks for awhile before calling also. Everyone else folds.
Turn 3s
This time player on my right bets out $110. I think for a moment before calling. I'm getting skeptical at this point and I figure the best thing here would be to see what this guy does on the river. The player on the button thinks forever before calling.
River 4d
Again he fires. This time $330. Everything in me is screaming fold. There are two reasons a fold is a no brainer here.
1. I have played with this guy before and I have notes on him. I know that he is able to give up on a hand and probably won't fire here without the goods. Absolute best case scenario for me besides a bluff is he has a hand like Ks Qs but would he really fire here with that hand and two people calling him on the turn?
2. Hello? Did you forget about the guy on the button smooth calling the whole way. He could be sitting on Jd Jh and laughing his ass off at both of us. The odds are against it since he could of and should of raised that hand on the flop. Yet the possibility is there and should be weighed in. If #1 isn't enough the combination of both these reasons is an EASY fold.
Instead... I make the call. The button thinks forever again and makes the call with god knows what but it doesn't matter because the guy on my right shows 3d 3c for quads and rakes in a nice pot.
Enough is enough... I'm off to bed. Hope my aimless ranting made some sense to you guys.
Until next time
Monday session results +1200
Monday, October 01, 2007
say whaaaat?!
That's right kids... Here I am! Alive and well.
Poker is a serious business and i'm finally back to treating it as such. One can only live off of self pity for so long and then the realities of life eventually set in.
I won't lie and tell you everything is great... its not. My bankroll is at the lowest number I can remember it being in a long time (around 20k) yet I don't believe this will be more of problem than it is at this very moment. I've been playing alot the last few days with alot of confidence and my results have mirrored that.
For those of you who claim to live vicariously through my poker... both the good and the bad. I apologize and regular updates should resume shortly. I'd like to thank you all for your patience with me.
Until next time..
Poker is a serious business and i'm finally back to treating it as such. One can only live off of self pity for so long and then the realities of life eventually set in.
I won't lie and tell you everything is great... its not. My bankroll is at the lowest number I can remember it being in a long time (around 20k) yet I don't believe this will be more of problem than it is at this very moment. I've been playing alot the last few days with alot of confidence and my results have mirrored that.
For those of you who claim to live vicariously through my poker... both the good and the bad. I apologize and regular updates should resume shortly. I'd like to thank you all for your patience with me.
Until next time..
Friday, August 10, 2007
Here I am! thats about it...
To those of you who have been sitting at your computers hitting F5 for the past two and a half weeks since my last post.... I sincerely apologize. I'm in what I call a state of poker depression. It hasn't helped my cold streak at all and I assure you i'll be getting over it soon and getting back into the groove... until then... I will continue to wallow in my own misery and be perfectly content doing so.
It's actually not as bad as it probably just came across. As my cold streak followed me around from table to table it started to effect my play to the point where I would look at myself in the mirror and ask myself what the f*ck my problem was. Yeah.... it was that bad. I've decided to take another week or so off and clear my head of all things poker and come back when i'm fresh. This will be sooner rather than later but I still need a little time. It's a much better option than recklessly throwing around my chips hoping to randomly break out my losing streak... which is the way it was starting to seem to me.
So! That's that. I've taken comfort in knowing i'm not the only player who has gone through one or two rough patches. Paul Wasicka wrote a pretty good article in the most recent bluff magazine about cold steaks and I found it very helpful. Until next time...
"In the long run there's no luck in poker, but the short run is longer than most people know." - Rick Bennett
It's actually not as bad as it probably just came across. As my cold streak followed me around from table to table it started to effect my play to the point where I would look at myself in the mirror and ask myself what the f*ck my problem was. Yeah.... it was that bad. I've decided to take another week or so off and clear my head of all things poker and come back when i'm fresh. This will be sooner rather than later but I still need a little time. It's a much better option than recklessly throwing around my chips hoping to randomly break out my losing streak... which is the way it was starting to seem to me.
So! That's that. I've taken comfort in knowing i'm not the only player who has gone through one or two rough patches. Paul Wasicka wrote a pretty good article in the most recent bluff magazine about cold steaks and I found it very helpful. Until next time...
"In the long run there's no luck in poker, but the short run is longer than most people know." - Rick Bennett
Monday, July 23, 2007
Good Play + Long Session = Positive Results?
Who would of thought? This concept has continuously laughed in my face this entire month yet I know that it will catch up eventually. Today it actually worked out. I ended up putting in a solid 10 1/2 hour session and finished in the black a little over 2000.
That number is nothing compared to where my month is at but I need to start somewhere. My day actually should of finished a little over 3000 but I took an unnecessary gamble at the tail end of my session that ended up costing me. I knew it was a gamble when I made the move and 15 outs twice couldn't improve.
Still... it was unnecessary and I havn't been a successful player for 2 years because I gamble it up every time I flop a big draw.
I will detail this hand plus much more when I post tomorrow.. I apologize for the lack up updates lately. It's been a very trying month and I havn't felt the desire to blog much...
That number is nothing compared to where my month is at but I need to start somewhere. My day actually should of finished a little over 3000 but I took an unnecessary gamble at the tail end of my session that ended up costing me. I knew it was a gamble when I made the move and 15 outs twice couldn't improve.
Still... it was unnecessary and I havn't been a successful player for 2 years because I gamble it up every time I flop a big draw.
I will detail this hand plus much more when I post tomorrow.. I apologize for the lack up updates lately. It's been a very trying month and I havn't felt the desire to blog much...
Monday, July 16, 2007
finding the positive in a big pile of negative
It's been a rough month and its definately starting to take its toll mentally.. however, if I couldn't handle it I would of quit this business a long time ago. This week is a week of changes and it couldn't be more welcomed. Brad gets into town within the hour and tomorrow we are going to start pulling some crazy live sessions. Last time Brad was here I was in a big slump and his motivation and passion for the game drove me into about a 2 month long streak where I played -alot- of poker and was loving it... I have little doubt this trip will have the same result.
If something is giving me bad results a change is good.. I plan on playing little if any online poker in the next week and am focusing on building up a solid cash bankroll again. My month so far sucks, yet is meaningless and all that matters is making good decisions now. I have yet to have a losing month since i moved out here and I don't plan on starting now. There's alot of work to do the next couple weeks...
I will update often detailing our live sessions. Tonight is softall and drinking night so nothing new until early wednesday most likely. Peace out
If something is giving me bad results a change is good.. I plan on playing little if any online poker in the next week and am focusing on building up a solid cash bankroll again. My month so far sucks, yet is meaningless and all that matters is making good decisions now. I have yet to have a losing month since i moved out here and I don't plan on starting now. There's alot of work to do the next couple weeks...
I will update often detailing our live sessions. Tonight is softall and drinking night so nothing new until early wednesday most likely. Peace out
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
a big psychological win
I've been getting slaughtered at all games and all stakes the last couple days... it's actually been quite sick. Since this is not a bad beat blog I won't go into alot of detail where I will inevitably whine and complain more than any of you dare to listen to. Long story short.. My money was in as an 90% favorite or better with 2 to come and both times I lost in $3000+ pots... i think it's time to rebuild at 5/10 and forget 10/20 for awhile.
Odviously i've been a little annoyed with how this whole month has started.. Down a quick 8k with nothing real positive to show. I took a few days and came back today and was quickly down 800. I was playing well and kept playing when I got my money in good and actually held up for a big pot. I kept playing for another hour or so and called it quits after a short session. After such a rocky start I decided for my own sanity I would stop with a small winning session under my belt and come back tomorrow with a little more confidence in my game than I have been my last couple sessions.
I'll put in a few sessions during the week... but overall I plan on relaxing and putting in some mad crazy sessions when brad is here next week. It will be alot of live play and i'm looking forward to the change of pace. The Orleans Open starts on saturday and goes through the end of the month and i'll hopefully be mixing in a few of those events to get my live game back. Until next time...
Crazy stupid bad session results: -3000
Monday session results: +600
Odviously i've been a little annoyed with how this whole month has started.. Down a quick 8k with nothing real positive to show. I took a few days and came back today and was quickly down 800. I was playing well and kept playing when I got my money in good and actually held up for a big pot. I kept playing for another hour or so and called it quits after a short session. After such a rocky start I decided for my own sanity I would stop with a small winning session under my belt and come back tomorrow with a little more confidence in my game than I have been my last couple sessions.
I'll put in a few sessions during the week... but overall I plan on relaxing and putting in some mad crazy sessions when brad is here next week. It will be alot of live play and i'm looking forward to the change of pace. The Orleans Open starts on saturday and goes through the end of the month and i'll hopefully be mixing in a few of those events to get my live game back. Until next time...
Crazy stupid bad session results: -3000
Monday session results: +600
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Strong finish and a rough start
I able to finish the month of June with a few solid sessions and overall I am very happy with my performance for the month. This current month.....not so much. I've taken some sick beats and i've decided that a day off in the middle of what is supposed to be my "work week" is a good idea. This will most likely result in me putting in a session on my normal thursday off but that's life.
Here are my session results since I last posted:
Saturday June 30: +1800
Sunday July 1: -1500
Monday July 2: -3000
July has not been nice to me so far. I will say sunday's session was alot me in the cash games which is where most the negative came from. My tournaments were pretty sick.. I was top 5 in chips in the bodog 100k guaranteed with about 100 people left when I got all my money in with AK vs AQ and lost. Then about 5 hands later I moved my last 16,000 in with 10d 10s against a raise to 2600 from a stack of around 19,000. I was called by 8d 9d and I was drawing dead on the turn.....nice
In the Full Tilt 500k guaranteed I decided I wanted the chip lead or to bust early. I was dead tired and needed a nap... but if I could get a big chiplead I would play it out. Within the first 5 minutes I picked up Ad Kd under the gun and limped. There was a raise to 140 and three callers when it came back around to me. I popped it up to 700 and had 1 caller from the player directly to my left who had originally limped behind me preflop.
Flop As 6d 9c
I lead out 800 and i'm instantly moved in on. I decide this is my spot and make the call. I'm most likely splitting this pot or losing to a set of aces. I decide i'm willing to take the risk especially since I already have over half my stack in this pot. I call.
I show my AK. He shows Ac 3s. Nice....
Turn 3d
River 10s
Not alot I can do here and I turn off my monitors and took a nap....one of the few things I did right on sunday.
Monday I don't know.. I'm not going to sit here and make excuses but I got my money in a large majority of the time as a clear favorite and lost (my set vs overpair, my KK vs 1010 on the 9 high flop... all losers). These days are tough and can take the wind out of the sails of even the best poker players. I've been through this kind of run before and i've always came through stronger and wiser than before. I don't see this spot being any different. I would not be sitting here talking to you right now if these spots were impossible to get through. I just need a day off to clear the head and tomorrow i'm back in the grind.
My final results for the month of June:
On a bit of a side note i'm really looking forward to when Brad comes out here towards the end of the month. Not only is this kid great at getting me off my ass and into the live poker rooms (bleh) but he always seems to be fired up to play which can be very contagious. I will start working on having a solid cash bankroll again when he gets out here and hopefully keep it this time. Not only that but he's going to try and get my golf game back on track... it's been getting a bit ridiculous.
Oh yeah... Saturday night I went and hung out with Darksy and his british friends out on the strip. I was skeptical about hanging out on the strip since it's mostly a pain in the ass but I ended up having a great time. The brits...well... they were very entertaining and I really have no clue what was said the majority of the time. I'm pretty sure they said if I decide to head to the UK one day i can stop in and have some tea and crumpets with them. I'm not exactly sure...
Until next time...
Here are my session results since I last posted:
Saturday June 30: +1800
Sunday July 1: -1500
Monday July 2: -3000
July has not been nice to me so far. I will say sunday's session was alot me in the cash games which is where most the negative came from. My tournaments were pretty sick.. I was top 5 in chips in the bodog 100k guaranteed with about 100 people left when I got all my money in with AK vs AQ and lost. Then about 5 hands later I moved my last 16,000 in with 10d 10s against a raise to 2600 from a stack of around 19,000. I was called by 8d 9d and I was drawing dead on the turn.....nice
In the Full Tilt 500k guaranteed I decided I wanted the chip lead or to bust early. I was dead tired and needed a nap... but if I could get a big chiplead I would play it out. Within the first 5 minutes I picked up Ad Kd under the gun and limped. There was a raise to 140 and three callers when it came back around to me. I popped it up to 700 and had 1 caller from the player directly to my left who had originally limped behind me preflop.
Flop As 6d 9c
I lead out 800 and i'm instantly moved in on. I decide this is my spot and make the call. I'm most likely splitting this pot or losing to a set of aces. I decide i'm willing to take the risk especially since I already have over half my stack in this pot. I call.
I show my AK. He shows Ac 3s. Nice....
Turn 3d
River 10s
Not alot I can do here and I turn off my monitors and took a nap....one of the few things I did right on sunday.
Monday I don't know.. I'm not going to sit here and make excuses but I got my money in a large majority of the time as a clear favorite and lost (my set vs overpair, my KK vs 1010 on the 9 high flop... all losers). These days are tough and can take the wind out of the sails of even the best poker players. I've been through this kind of run before and i've always came through stronger and wiser than before. I don't see this spot being any different. I would not be sitting here talking to you right now if these spots were impossible to get through. I just need a day off to clear the head and tomorrow i'm back in the grind.
My final results for the month of June:
On a bit of a side note i'm really looking forward to when Brad comes out here towards the end of the month. Not only is this kid great at getting me off my ass and into the live poker rooms (bleh) but he always seems to be fired up to play which can be very contagious. I will start working on having a solid cash bankroll again when he gets out here and hopefully keep it this time. Not only that but he's going to try and get my golf game back on track... it's been getting a bit ridiculous.
Oh yeah... Saturday night I went and hung out with Darksy and his british friends out on the strip. I was skeptical about hanging out on the strip since it's mostly a pain in the ass but I ended up having a great time. The brits...well... they were very entertaining and I really have no clue what was said the majority of the time. I'm pretty sure they said if I decide to head to the UK one day i can stop in and have some tea and crumpets with them. I'm not exactly sure...
Until next time...
Friday, June 29, 2007
My day off
Thursday has become my traditional day off. I do need a day off and I figured what better day than Thursday? It's the day before the weekend starts and the day all my spamalot friends have off which means I end up going out on wednesday nights.
Lately i've had a real interest in learning a new game. Not just learning a new game but becoming good. I feel very comfortable in holdem, omaha hi and 8/b games. It's time to add some new weapons to the arsonal. The weapon of choice? Razz. I don't play HORSE games because I feel i'm dead money at both stud games.
I chose Razz simply because there are alot bigger games to be had online. Plus, it's alot of fun. I've been sitting here for the last hour or so playing 3/6 razz on ftp and listening to the final table of the 50k horse event on worldseriesofpoker.com.
I really feel like i'm getting a solid grasp of the game. I have a very natural agression in poker but this game calms me down a bit being a limit game. Bluffing based on your up cards on 4th or 5th street is easy and instinctive and i'm quickly becoming very comortable in the game. Hopefully over the next couple weeks I can become a regular at some of the bigger games. I need to show a consistant profit at the smaller levels before I allow myself to put a bigger part of my bankroll at risk. It's just smart...
Wednesday was one of those days I couldn't bear to drag my lazy ass to the tables. I somehow managed to do it for a few hours and was able to make enough to let myself feel like I actually accomplished something for the day. I decided to stick with pot limit omaha most the day. If there are full 5/10 PLO games I prefer to play in them over holdem. I'll sit in a full 10/20 game and i've even sat in a full 25/50 game a time or two. There's alot more action and -alot- of bit pots in pot limit omaha. It's an action junkies dream come true.
On a bit of a side note... I've said in past blogs that my motivation at times has been slipping. I've been fixing that lately and it's been showing in my results. This is directed at you BRAD since you're my biggest critic as far as being lazy goes. Over the winter when I didn't feel like playing....I didn't play. I've now adapted at least some form of forcing myself to play even when I don't "feel like it". I'm setting some pretty agressive goals for myself to finish off the year.. I'll need to keep this kind of attitude if i'm going to succeed. I'll have more on that in a week or two once I work out the details. For now it's just the focus of keeping my distractions small and my pots big.
Catch you all tomorrow..
Wednesday session results +1900
Lately i've had a real interest in learning a new game. Not just learning a new game but becoming good. I feel very comfortable in holdem, omaha hi and 8/b games. It's time to add some new weapons to the arsonal. The weapon of choice? Razz. I don't play HORSE games because I feel i'm dead money at both stud games.
I chose Razz simply because there are alot bigger games to be had online. Plus, it's alot of fun. I've been sitting here for the last hour or so playing 3/6 razz on ftp and listening to the final table of the 50k horse event on worldseriesofpoker.com.
I really feel like i'm getting a solid grasp of the game. I have a very natural agression in poker but this game calms me down a bit being a limit game. Bluffing based on your up cards on 4th or 5th street is easy and instinctive and i'm quickly becoming very comortable in the game. Hopefully over the next couple weeks I can become a regular at some of the bigger games. I need to show a consistant profit at the smaller levels before I allow myself to put a bigger part of my bankroll at risk. It's just smart...
Wednesday was one of those days I couldn't bear to drag my lazy ass to the tables. I somehow managed to do it for a few hours and was able to make enough to let myself feel like I actually accomplished something for the day. I decided to stick with pot limit omaha most the day. If there are full 5/10 PLO games I prefer to play in them over holdem. I'll sit in a full 10/20 game and i've even sat in a full 25/50 game a time or two. There's alot more action and -alot- of bit pots in pot limit omaha. It's an action junkies dream come true.
On a bit of a side note... I've said in past blogs that my motivation at times has been slipping. I've been fixing that lately and it's been showing in my results. This is directed at you BRAD since you're my biggest critic as far as being lazy goes. Over the winter when I didn't feel like playing....I didn't play. I've now adapted at least some form of forcing myself to play even when I don't "feel like it". I'm setting some pretty agressive goals for myself to finish off the year.. I'll need to keep this kind of attitude if i'm going to succeed. I'll have more on that in a week or two once I work out the details. For now it's just the focus of keeping my distractions small and my pots big.
Catch you all tomorrow..
Wednesday session results +1900
Monday, June 25, 2007
A day of pot limit omaha
I had to cut my session short tonight since it's softball night. I don't mind since softball is one of the things I really look forward to doing every week.
I've been trying to work a few kinks out of my game.. mostly i've been trying to not pay off people like a donkey on the river. I hate to say it like that since I believe one of my strongest skills in poker is picking off bluffs with semi-weak hands. I credit that skill alone to why I can consistantly turn a profit. It's just that lately i've been making some donkish calls on the river that could be added to the profit for my day instead of creating more work for me.
Example... 3/6 PLO. I call a raise to $21 preflop with Kc Ks 9s Jd in the cutoff with 3 other players in the pot.
Flop 9c 9d 8h
It checks around to me and I bet half the pot. I get called by one player and everyone else folds.
Turn 6c
My opponent leads out and fires a close to pot sized bet of $170. I call but this was my first mistake of the hand. This is where I need to let my hand go. The odds very much that my opponent has a full house. With all the possibilites in omaha it's very uncommon for someone to lead out the pot with anything less. Even if he made a bad call with 7 10 and turned a straight he's in the lead here bigtime. Still, I make the stubborn call most likely drawing at 5 outs.
River Qd
My opponant fires out $300 and I make the call. If I couldn't get away from my hand on the turn I should have been able to -easily- get away here. He turns over 9h 6s Ac 10h and yes.... he did infact have me totally crushed the entire hand. I don't know what my problem was to be honest with you. I consider pot limit omaha to be a game i'm very strong in yet I played this hand like a complete amateur with no clue. Let this be a lesson to you all.
The good news is that hand cleared my head pretty good and I ended up leaving the table with about $2300.
monday session results +1700
I've been trying to work a few kinks out of my game.. mostly i've been trying to not pay off people like a donkey on the river. I hate to say it like that since I believe one of my strongest skills in poker is picking off bluffs with semi-weak hands. I credit that skill alone to why I can consistantly turn a profit. It's just that lately i've been making some donkish calls on the river that could be added to the profit for my day instead of creating more work for me.
Example... 3/6 PLO. I call a raise to $21 preflop with Kc Ks 9s Jd in the cutoff with 3 other players in the pot.
Flop 9c 9d 8h
It checks around to me and I bet half the pot. I get called by one player and everyone else folds.
Turn 6c
My opponent leads out and fires a close to pot sized bet of $170. I call but this was my first mistake of the hand. This is where I need to let my hand go. The odds very much that my opponent has a full house. With all the possibilites in omaha it's very uncommon for someone to lead out the pot with anything less. Even if he made a bad call with 7 10 and turned a straight he's in the lead here bigtime. Still, I make the stubborn call most likely drawing at 5 outs.
River Qd
My opponant fires out $300 and I make the call. If I couldn't get away from my hand on the turn I should have been able to -easily- get away here. He turns over 9h 6s Ac 10h and yes.... he did infact have me totally crushed the entire hand. I don't know what my problem was to be honest with you. I consider pot limit omaha to be a game i'm very strong in yet I played this hand like a complete amateur with no clue. Let this be a lesson to you all.
The good news is that hand cleared my head pretty good and I ended up leaving the table with about $2300.
monday session results +1700
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Solid month so far
I've been pleased with my results so far this month. I am still very dissapointed with myself as far as the WSOP goes but i'm playing solid poker and that's what matters most.
My biggest problem with running well is I start to think that I can be lazy and not play as much. I should be playing -more- since running well generally means i'm playing well and making good decisions.
Not alot to report for saturday and sunday's sessions. I put in about 4 hours each day and finished +400 saturday and -500 sunday. I put in a good run at the 100k guaranteed on bodog but fell just short of the money and I busted out of the 500k guaranteed on full tilt when my kings ran into aces. oops...
My biggest problem with running well is I start to think that I can be lazy and not play as much. I should be playing -more- since running well generally means i'm playing well and making good decisions.
Not alot to report for saturday and sunday's sessions. I put in about 4 hours each day and finished +400 saturday and -500 sunday. I put in a good run at the 100k guaranteed on bodog but fell just short of the money and I busted out of the 500k guaranteed on full tilt when my kings ran into aces. oops...
I've been using pokertracking.com to keep track of my results. The graph doesn't fit on the page so you can check it out here.
Until next time...
Grinding away...
I didn't come out of my room until 10:30 tonight.. I woke up and started working right away. I put in a pretty good session and I only played one big pot. Everything else was just grinding away, picking up small pots and overall just playing solid poker. The one big hand I did play? It makes me wonder what goes through peoples heads sometimes.
I've been playing pretty agressive and I pick up Ac As under the gun. I decide to just limp. Seat 6 (from here on known as Joe) who has played a big pot 2 of the last 4 hands raises it up to $45. It folds back to me who makes it $150 to go. Joe calls.
Flop Ah 10s 4d
I can't really check here since the pot is so big. I fire out $180 and Joe calls quickly.
Turn 8d
I'm not threatened by anything on this board and my best bet here is to induce a bet from Joe. I'm willing to risk giving the free card in this spot. I check and Joe instantly moves it in for his last $700. I quickly call and Joe shows Ks 10s. Nice.... Overall about a 6 hour session.
Friday session results +2500
I've been playing pretty agressive and I pick up Ac As under the gun. I decide to just limp. Seat 6 (from here on known as Joe) who has played a big pot 2 of the last 4 hands raises it up to $45. It folds back to me who makes it $150 to go. Joe calls.
Flop Ah 10s 4d
I can't really check here since the pot is so big. I fire out $180 and Joe calls quickly.
Turn 8d
I'm not threatened by anything on this board and my best bet here is to induce a bet from Joe. I'm willing to risk giving the free card in this spot. I check and Joe instantly moves it in for his last $700. I quickly call and Joe shows Ks 10s. Nice.... Overall about a 6 hour session.
Friday session results +2500
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
feeling pretty good and on track
I've been putting in some good sessions lately. After 15 hours yesterday I put in a solid 6 today. I was cut short because I had bowling tonight and then I picked up where I left off when I got back. Right now i'm sitting on the lovesac with the laptop watching Mike and Mike on ESPN2 and playing a 5/10 table on FTP.
Played in the full tilt 40k guaranteed with Brad and busted out around 100/350. I played 2 cash tables and finished around +900 in my early session. I did have one strange hand that had me wondering what goes through peoples heads sometimes.
I'm holding Kc Ks on the button. The 5 seat (we'll call him Bob) raises to $45 and it folds to me. I smooth call hoping that the blinds will fold and I can go heads up. The plan here is to get an extra bet from this guy on anything other than an A high flop. If it comes A high I can get away cheap without anyone knowing I had a monster. I don't make this play often but it's good to keep people on their toes.
Flop 5s 6c Jh
Bob fires out $50 and I make it $140 to go. Bob calls and we goto the turn.
Turn 3s
Bob checks and I still feel pretty good about my hand. AA and JJ are on my mind yes but my plan here was to trap this guy and if I ended up trapping myself I think it's one of those spots I have to pay it off. I think a minute and fire out $220. Bob quickly moves it in for his last $550 and I make the call.
Bob shows 2s 3d??? alrighty then... The river comes a harmless Ad and I take down the pot. Moral of this story? I don't know... but it's an interesting one.
Monday session results +1500
Played in the full tilt 40k guaranteed with Brad and busted out around 100/350. I played 2 cash tables and finished around +900 in my early session. I did have one strange hand that had me wondering what goes through peoples heads sometimes.
I'm holding Kc Ks on the button. The 5 seat (we'll call him Bob) raises to $45 and it folds to me. I smooth call hoping that the blinds will fold and I can go heads up. The plan here is to get an extra bet from this guy on anything other than an A high flop. If it comes A high I can get away cheap without anyone knowing I had a monster. I don't make this play often but it's good to keep people on their toes.
Flop 5s 6c Jh
Bob fires out $50 and I make it $140 to go. Bob calls and we goto the turn.
Turn 3s
Bob checks and I still feel pretty good about my hand. AA and JJ are on my mind yes but my plan here was to trap this guy and if I ended up trapping myself I think it's one of those spots I have to pay it off. I think a minute and fire out $220. Bob quickly moves it in for his last $550 and I make the call.
Bob shows 2s 3d??? alrighty then... The river comes a harmless Ad and I take down the pot. Moral of this story? I don't know... but it's an interesting one.
Monday session results +1500
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Main event here I come!
I apologize for the lack of updates recently. I've been putting in a few decent sessions but nothing to be too proud of. Today was a good turn of the tides as far as my tournament game and results go. I bought into the 500+35 on full tilt with 100 main event seats guaranteed. 3338 players with top 139 getting a seat and I managed to finish 130th.
It was a huge grind the entire tournament. I was only above average stack once in the early rounds and I spent the rest of my time under the average. I was able to secure my seat with a few well timed moves and alot of folding to hold on long enough. I'm pretty psyched about playing in my first main event. $10,000 tournament entry and $2000 cash for expenses for my finish.
Thanks to Brad for railing me from about 350 on. It was nice to have someone to talk to while I folded over, over and over again.
As far as the cash games go its been up and down with nothing too amazing to report. I did have one day of +4800 earlier in the week and then two days finishing around -1200. I'll do a better job tracking my progress this week. I've been playing on my laptop lately because my computer chair upstairs is broken. Yes, my $300 chair I bought 8 months ago is dead. I went to get a new one yesterday and they were out of all the good ones at office depot. I'll go searching again tomorrow. At this point i'll take anything until I find a good one just because of all the money i'm losing by playing only 2 or 3 tables on the laptop.
Until next time...
It was a huge grind the entire tournament. I was only above average stack once in the early rounds and I spent the rest of my time under the average. I was able to secure my seat with a few well timed moves and alot of folding to hold on long enough. I'm pretty psyched about playing in my first main event. $10,000 tournament entry and $2000 cash for expenses for my finish.
Thanks to Brad for railing me from about 350 on. It was nice to have someone to talk to while I folded over, over and over again.
As far as the cash games go its been up and down with nothing too amazing to report. I did have one day of +4800 earlier in the week and then two days finishing around -1200. I'll do a better job tracking my progress this week. I've been playing on my laptop lately because my computer chair upstairs is broken. Yes, my $300 chair I bought 8 months ago is dead. I went to get a new one yesterday and they were out of all the good ones at office depot. I'll go searching again tomorrow. At this point i'll take anything until I find a good one just because of all the money i'm losing by playing only 2 or 3 tables on the laptop.
Until next time...
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Update coming soon...
I've been a little slack on the blog updates recently and I apologize. I've been playing just havn't been posting on here. I will put up a new post while i'm playing the sunday tournaments.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
The $1200 misclick
Put in a quality session today. What is quality? I consider anything over four hours a good session. sad i know... but that's just the life I live. I'm really working on it... ok?!
After about a 4 1/2 hour winning session (+1100) i decided enough was enough and met up with my buddy Bruce at a local bar close to the house for a couple drinks and a relaxing rest of my night. As it turned out I was quite up for drinking and we spent almost 7 hours at this place and it turned out to be a great night. If anyone puts a shot of jeager in front of me in the next week i swear i'm going to puke.
Anyways moving right along... After I got back to the house I decided to make a quick post to the blog and head to bed. Of couse, I couldn't sit and write in my blog without a table of 5/10 up and running. As I pulled up blogspot I went to click on fold for my Qc 4c I was looking at and my mouse accidently hit call. This is what followed.
War_Crimes Fold $ 0.00
TaintViolater Fold $ 0.00
BigBadDevil Fold $ 0.00
peter500 Call $ 10.00
liquidghost Call $ 10.00 oops....
foxridge1 Fold $ 0.00
Currahee Fold $ 5.00
powerdog17 Check
Flop Qd 4s 7s
peter500 Bet $ 45.00
liquidghost Call $ 45.00 I decide to play this one a bit different and see the turn card before throwing in a raise
powerdog17 Fold $ 0.00
Turn Qh
peter500 Check
liquidghost Bet $ 80.00 can't check
peter500 Raise $ 160.00
liquidghost Raise $ 280.00 very unlikely he has Q7. A call here is unthinkable. There are so many hands that I can beat that can call a raise. I make this raise almost without hesitating
peter500 Call $ 200.00
River 2c
peter500 Check
liquidghost All-in $ 841.00 The two of clubs is almost the most beautiful card in the deck. It almost guarantees me having the best hand and doesn't scare away any hands that can pay me off. My decision to go all-in here is simply because i'm happy with the pot size now and I know alot of hands such as KQ and AQ can't fold in this pot. The check worries me about being paid off but i'm happy with this pot if he doesn't call. This bet can also come across as very suspect and possibly get a call from much weaker hand. The river all-in overbet can be a very strong move in my opinion. It keeps opponents on their toes.
peter500 Call $ 841.00
Betting round completed
Last active pot = $0.00 Side pot 7 = $2,524.00
liquidghost shows Qc 4c: full house
peter500 shows Qs 10s: three of a kind
I think the only reason this hand amuses me so much is the fact I was in it completely by accident.
moving along...
I want and need to goto bed yet i'm having a sick run at my one table while i'm writing this. In the 30 minutes or so it's taken me to write all of this i've gone from my $1000 buyin to almost $5000.
enough is enough... I can hardly keep myself awake. until next time...
Saturday session results +4900
After about a 4 1/2 hour winning session (+1100) i decided enough was enough and met up with my buddy Bruce at a local bar close to the house for a couple drinks and a relaxing rest of my night. As it turned out I was quite up for drinking and we spent almost 7 hours at this place and it turned out to be a great night. If anyone puts a shot of jeager in front of me in the next week i swear i'm going to puke.
Anyways moving right along... After I got back to the house I decided to make a quick post to the blog and head to bed. Of couse, I couldn't sit and write in my blog without a table of 5/10 up and running. As I pulled up blogspot I went to click on fold for my Qc 4c I was looking at and my mouse accidently hit call. This is what followed.
War_Crimes Fold $ 0.00
TaintViolater Fold $ 0.00
BigBadDevil Fold $ 0.00
peter500 Call $ 10.00
liquidghost Call $ 10.00 oops....
foxridge1 Fold $ 0.00
Currahee Fold $ 5.00
powerdog17 Check
Flop Qd 4s 7s
peter500 Bet $ 45.00
liquidghost Call $ 45.00 I decide to play this one a bit different and see the turn card before throwing in a raise
powerdog17 Fold $ 0.00
Turn Qh
peter500 Check
liquidghost Bet $ 80.00 can't check
peter500 Raise $ 160.00
liquidghost Raise $ 280.00 very unlikely he has Q7. A call here is unthinkable. There are so many hands that I can beat that can call a raise. I make this raise almost without hesitating
peter500 Call $ 200.00
River 2c
peter500 Check
liquidghost All-in $ 841.00 The two of clubs is almost the most beautiful card in the deck. It almost guarantees me having the best hand and doesn't scare away any hands that can pay me off. My decision to go all-in here is simply because i'm happy with the pot size now and I know alot of hands such as KQ and AQ can't fold in this pot. The check worries me about being paid off but i'm happy with this pot if he doesn't call. This bet can also come across as very suspect and possibly get a call from much weaker hand. The river all-in overbet can be a very strong move in my opinion. It keeps opponents on their toes.
peter500 Call $ 841.00
Betting round completed
Last active pot = $0.00 Side pot 7 = $2,524.00
liquidghost shows Qc 4c: full house
peter500 shows Qs 10s: three of a kind
I think the only reason this hand amuses me so much is the fact I was in it completely by accident.
moving along...
I want and need to goto bed yet i'm having a sick run at my one table while i'm writing this. In the 30 minutes or so it's taken me to write all of this i've gone from my $1000 buyin to almost $5000.
enough is enough... I can hardly keep myself awake. until next time...
Saturday session results +4900
Saturday, June 09, 2007
the worst 45 minutes of my career
Wednesday was one of the worst sessions i've ever had.. I played for 45 minutes and finished at -5100. Just sick. I usually won't let it get to that point but I was actually playing very well. I got my money in best 2 of the 3 times (the one I didn't was a flopped ace high flush against a flopped straight flush) and was outdrawn the other two. The two beats were at 10/20 which is why I had such a bad day. I think i'll just avoid 10/20 for awhile.
I decided maybe poker needed a rest so I went out with some friends for awhile. Was feeling pretty good when I got back so I sat for awhile and cut the days losses to only about -4000. It's okay.... all I can do is just shake it off and move on to the next day.
Thursday was an off day. I went to the Las Vegas 51's (AAA team for the Dodgers) game with some friends. We tailgated ahead of time and $1 beer night is always a good time. Overall, it was a very good day off.. especially after how brutal wednesday was.
Friday was a good day and welcomed healing to my bankroll. A few hands confused me but I was playing about as good as I feel I can. This one hand still has me scratching my head...
I'm in the cutoff with 9c 9s. It folds to the 5 seat who raises to $40. I call everyone else folds.
Flop 2h 9h 2s
5 seat bets $50. I just call. Not alot of danger here. I have position and will check raise the turn if he bets again.
Turn 10s
5 seat doesn't dissapoint and bets $100. I raise to $300 and the 5 seat makes a quick call.
River 10d
5 seat checks. The only real questions now are did he call me with a 10? and if he didn't... how much will he call on the river? I decided that $300 was a good bet. He quickly called and mucked to my full house and I eagerly checked the hand history to see what he could of called me with. I was pretty set on the JJ-KK range. I didn't really see anything else that could of played the hand like he did. You can imagine my suprise to see he called me with As 8d?? really? Either I made the perfect bet or I left money on the table because he had about $250 in front of him still when the hand was over. I'm still a little perplexed about the whole thing. Oh well.... next hand please.
Friday session results +2900
I decided maybe poker needed a rest so I went out with some friends for awhile. Was feeling pretty good when I got back so I sat for awhile and cut the days losses to only about -4000. It's okay.... all I can do is just shake it off and move on to the next day.
Thursday was an off day. I went to the Las Vegas 51's (AAA team for the Dodgers) game with some friends. We tailgated ahead of time and $1 beer night is always a good time. Overall, it was a very good day off.. especially after how brutal wednesday was.
Friday was a good day and welcomed healing to my bankroll. A few hands confused me but I was playing about as good as I feel I can. This one hand still has me scratching my head...
I'm in the cutoff with 9c 9s. It folds to the 5 seat who raises to $40. I call everyone else folds.
Flop 2h 9h 2s
5 seat bets $50. I just call. Not alot of danger here. I have position and will check raise the turn if he bets again.
Turn 10s
5 seat doesn't dissapoint and bets $100. I raise to $300 and the 5 seat makes a quick call.
River 10d
5 seat checks. The only real questions now are did he call me with a 10? and if he didn't... how much will he call on the river? I decided that $300 was a good bet. He quickly called and mucked to my full house and I eagerly checked the hand history to see what he could of called me with. I was pretty set on the JJ-KK range. I didn't really see anything else that could of played the hand like he did. You can imagine my suprise to see he called me with As 8d?? really? Either I made the perfect bet or I left money on the table because he had about $250 in front of him still when the hand was over. I'm still a little perplexed about the whole thing. Oh well.... next hand please.
Friday session results +2900
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
A question of motivation
I ended the month of May on a bit of a sour note and had to ride out a rough stretch at the end. I took a very large number of bad beats 3 sessions in a row. One thing that i've always done is pull myself away from a bad session when I start to feel my play is sloppy. It could be i've been playing bad or it could be I just can't hold on when I get it in with the best of it. Either way, when a session goes south and I can't turn it around, i stop. It's just good money management. I had to cut myself off 3 sessions in a row last week, which tends to make for bad results.
My overall results for the month of may are about +14000 after being able to recover my bad run to -2500 before the month ended.
These are the times when I play the least poker.. not only because i'm running bad but because it's hard to find the motivation necessary to sit and play for the hours that are required. Last week I went out twice during the week and spent most of thursday out on lake mead with some friends. I will do anything necessary to make sure when I sit down at the tables I am making clear and correct decisions. Even if it involves losing a day.
A good day today. I put in a few hours and felt great. I'm planning on putting in a longer day tomorrow. I have two checks coming and when they do I will go down to the Rio and see what I can do in satellites for the series. I'm still upset with myself for the situation I ended up in regarding the WSOP this year but I still have no doubt it's for the best. Until next time..
Tuesday session results +2400
My overall results for the month of may are about +14000 after being able to recover my bad run to -2500 before the month ended.
These are the times when I play the least poker.. not only because i'm running bad but because it's hard to find the motivation necessary to sit and play for the hours that are required. Last week I went out twice during the week and spent most of thursday out on lake mead with some friends. I will do anything necessary to make sure when I sit down at the tables I am making clear and correct decisions. Even if it involves losing a day.
A good day today. I put in a few hours and felt great. I'm planning on putting in a longer day tomorrow. I have two checks coming and when they do I will go down to the Rio and see what I can do in satellites for the series. I'm still upset with myself for the situation I ended up in regarding the WSOP this year but I still have no doubt it's for the best. Until next time..
Tuesday session results +2400
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