I’ve been in a rut lately.
I haven’t been getting a lot of joy out of things.
Poker wise – things have been up and down. Busted out of a blogger game last week to a total asshole. I HATE players who berate their opponents. To keep my sanity, I have to remind myself about the inverse penis:asshole ratio.
The bigger the dick the guy IS, the smaller the dick the guy HAS.
And yes Fluxer, I mean you.
I placed third in Kat’s donkathon – which was fun. But boy did it last a lot longer than I thought it would. I played like crap near the end…way too weak/passive.
I dunno. I just feel…..blah.
Apathy is a dangerous beast.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
Early exit from the Big Game
Three easy steps to busting out of a deep stack tourney in 8 minutes.
1. Get AKh, raise 3xBB and win the blinds.
2. Get AKo, raise 3xBB, get called and fold to a post flop bet when you miss the board.
3. Get QQ, call a pre-flop reraise and then go all in on a flop of 3 baby cards. Get called by AA.
And there you have it!
I thought a lot about the QQ hand. And there are only two ways I don’t lose my stack there. I can fold pre-flop when Al re-re-raised me. I know that the 3rd raise is supposed to mean Aces…but I just don’t think I’m good enough to fold there. And an Ace or King on the flop would have stopped me.
Ah well – the better hand held up, as it should. I don’t know who won yet, but I hope Al put my stack to good use & took the fooker down!
1. Get AKh, raise 3xBB and win the blinds.
2. Get AKo, raise 3xBB, get called and fold to a post flop bet when you miss the board.
3. Get QQ, call a pre-flop reraise and then go all in on a flop of 3 baby cards. Get called by AA.
And there you have it!
I thought a lot about the QQ hand. And there are only two ways I don’t lose my stack there. I can fold pre-flop when Al re-re-raised me. I know that the 3rd raise is supposed to mean Aces…but I just don’t think I’m good enough to fold there. And an Ace or King on the flop would have stopped me.
Ah well – the better hand held up, as it should. I don’t know who won yet, but I hope Al put my stack to good use & took the fooker down!
Friday, October 19, 2007
Ignorance is bliss
Getting rivered sucks. Having someone catch a 2-outer stings. But what hurts worse is playing like an idiot, and knowing it. Sometimes I long for my early poker-playing days when I didn't know what a donkey I was.
Last night I played like a complete donk. I went out 5th or 6th….I don’t even remember. All I know is I willingly put my money in twice, with hands that had I thought about it, I would have played differently. But I didn’t think. Ugh.
I know what the problem was….I was tilting. Not from anything that happened that night, I was tilting from a brutal suckout the week before. It was like stealth subconscious tilt, and I let it get the better of me.
Live and learn.
On the flipside – I’m stocking up on tokens for BBToo!
I don’t play many of the blogger tourneys because, well, I am lame and am usually in bed by 10:30. But I had so much fun in the couple that I’ve played, that when Al mentioned that BBToo was coming, I decided to try and make as many as I could….and then he announced the amazing prize for the Tournament of Champs. Al can definitely hang.
*********************************************
In case you haven’t seen it….the new issue of Truckin’ is out.
1. AlCantHang and I Walk Into a Bar... by Paul McGuireWhenever you walk into a bar with AlCantHang, you're immediately assuming full responsibility for your actions. You always know what you are getting yourself into. There's no false pretense. You will drink and drink and drink and drink as life unfolds around you. You surrender to the flow of the liquor... More
2. Morrissey by Betty UndergroundI did my usual, obvious, snooping about, inviting myself in to use the powder room after the long drive. I knew my way around. I knew what it looked like the last time I was there. I was looking for signs. Girl things. Grown up girl things. A woman's touch in the decor. Pictures of the happy couple. Anything. Nothing... More
3. Driving to See Mama by John "Falstaff" HartnessWell, there was six of us in that car, and we'd been drinking and smoking cigarettes since we left base, so when Briggs rolled down that window, all that smoke just chimneyed up out of that window and that policeman had to jump back... More
4. A Mawmag's Dream by Sigge S. AmdalI was flirting, no, I was dancing with my own future's certain death. And why? There was no love to speak of. Love can come later in some cases, I know, but if there's nothing, no great emotion to ride on – why on earth was I still dancing? ... More
5. What Might Have Been by Sean A. DonahueThe struggles of life are few and far between. We walk through life looking for the elusive, looking for the elite, or looking to be the elite. Sometimes in our search for what we want, we find what we really need. But we are too self absorbed or blind to see it... More
Have a good weekend kids!
Last night I played like a complete donk. I went out 5th or 6th….I don’t even remember. All I know is I willingly put my money in twice, with hands that had I thought about it, I would have played differently. But I didn’t think. Ugh.
I know what the problem was….I was tilting. Not from anything that happened that night, I was tilting from a brutal suckout the week before. It was like stealth subconscious tilt, and I let it get the better of me.
Live and learn.
On the flipside – I’m stocking up on tokens for BBToo!
I don’t play many of the blogger tourneys because, well, I am lame and am usually in bed by 10:30. But I had so much fun in the couple that I’ve played, that when Al mentioned that BBToo was coming, I decided to try and make as many as I could….and then he announced the amazing prize for the Tournament of Champs. Al can definitely hang.
*********************************************
In case you haven’t seen it….the new issue of Truckin’ is out.
1. AlCantHang and I Walk Into a Bar... by Paul McGuireWhenever you walk into a bar with AlCantHang, you're immediately assuming full responsibility for your actions. You always know what you are getting yourself into. There's no false pretense. You will drink and drink and drink and drink as life unfolds around you. You surrender to the flow of the liquor... More
2. Morrissey by Betty UndergroundI did my usual, obvious, snooping about, inviting myself in to use the powder room after the long drive. I knew my way around. I knew what it looked like the last time I was there. I was looking for signs. Girl things. Grown up girl things. A woman's touch in the decor. Pictures of the happy couple. Anything. Nothing... More
3. Driving to See Mama by John "Falstaff" HartnessWell, there was six of us in that car, and we'd been drinking and smoking cigarettes since we left base, so when Briggs rolled down that window, all that smoke just chimneyed up out of that window and that policeman had to jump back... More
4. A Mawmag's Dream by Sigge S. AmdalI was flirting, no, I was dancing with my own future's certain death. And why? There was no love to speak of. Love can come later in some cases, I know, but if there's nothing, no great emotion to ride on – why on earth was I still dancing? ... More
5. What Might Have Been by Sean A. DonahueThe struggles of life are few and far between. We walk through life looking for the elusive, looking for the elite, or looking to be the elite. Sometimes in our search for what we want, we find what we really need. But we are too self absorbed or blind to see it... More
Have a good weekend kids!
Saturday, October 06, 2007
Woooooo!
October is off to a good start…
Banky posted about the league game on Thursday – I placed 3rd, after getting suuuuper short-stacked when we were five handed (my stack 300 when the blinds were 75/150) yet I managed to stay in, double up a couple times, and make it into the money. The game had 13 players with some newbies, so there was a good sense of energy and fun that we had been missing. I also was happy that I was able to pick up some tells – specifically against one of the new players.
I had KQ on the button and raised 3xBB. SB folded, new girl in the BB calls. The flop comes QJ4 rainbow. She checks, I bet about half the pot and she calls, and when putting her chips into the pot I notice that he hands are shaking like crazy. There have been times where I *think* I notice a shaky-hand tell, but this time I knew it. She checked the turn and I checked behind, and when she bet out on the river I folded right away, and she flipped over pocket Jacks (for trips). I felt so good about my fold because I paid attention, and listed to the information that was given to me.
Banky went out early, but he had a great attitude about it. I think the RC4 win (specifically that he came in first in his Limit table) really gave him some confidence and some perspective on the game.
Today was another good result:
I love the token SNGs on FullTilt…and two weeks ago I won a $75 token (I played the $8 two-table turbo, then the $24 two table). The last time I had one, I played a SNG and won, so I decided to give it another try…and I won again!
I got some nice hands early on, and on back-to-back hands took people out with pocket jacks. I was a monster chip leader, but then went card dead. I played pretty tight for awhile, and then it was 4 handed. By this time, my chip lead had eroded, and there was only one short stack. She stole pot after pot off of the other two players, and then they took each other out on AA vs A9. AA held up, and we were in the money, with equal-ish stacks.
I was able to relax then, and got my aggression back.
The hand that pretty much gave me the game was when the SB min-raised, and I pushed with 55. He insta-called and turned over AJo, and I caught a 5 on the flop. He was left with 210 chips….but battled back to over 2000, but eventually went out to the other player (the previous short stack who played the bubble perfectly) when he went all-in with K2 and got called by AQ. Q on the flop, A on the turn and we’re heads up.
Heads-up was pretty easy….a few hands back and forth. One hand that I debated about was Ac5c in the BB. She went all-in and I considered calling, but I had a big chiplead (9000 to 3000) so calling would have put us even. Banky was looking over my shoulder and said “what hand do you hope she has, A4?” and “do you think you can outplay her – if yes, don’t give her more chips”. I was pretty sure I could chip away at her stack legitimately, so I folded.
The very next hand, I pick up Ac9c and I raised 3xBB from the SB. I already knew I would call her all-in, and when I did, she showed As5s….exactly the same hand I had folded to her push the hand before. And this is the exact reason I folded….if she pushed with a better Ace, I would have been in big trouble, just like she was in now.
The flop was 8c 5d 4c, giving her a pair, and me a flush draw. The turn was the 6d, giving me a gutshot draw to go with my flush draw, and the river was the Tc giving me the flush, and the win.
I’ve felt really positively about my game lately. Decisions seem clearer and easier, and I’ve been lucky to have the results to go along with my play. Sometimes it feels like you play an excellent game, but things don’t go your way. It’s times like this, when the discipline of playing well really pays off.
Banky posted about the league game on Thursday – I placed 3rd, after getting suuuuper short-stacked when we were five handed (my stack 300 when the blinds were 75/150) yet I managed to stay in, double up a couple times, and make it into the money. The game had 13 players with some newbies, so there was a good sense of energy and fun that we had been missing. I also was happy that I was able to pick up some tells – specifically against one of the new players.
I had KQ on the button and raised 3xBB. SB folded, new girl in the BB calls. The flop comes QJ4 rainbow. She checks, I bet about half the pot and she calls, and when putting her chips into the pot I notice that he hands are shaking like crazy. There have been times where I *think* I notice a shaky-hand tell, but this time I knew it. She checked the turn and I checked behind, and when she bet out on the river I folded right away, and she flipped over pocket Jacks (for trips). I felt so good about my fold because I paid attention, and listed to the information that was given to me.
Banky went out early, but he had a great attitude about it. I think the RC4 win (specifically that he came in first in his Limit table) really gave him some confidence and some perspective on the game.
Today was another good result:
I love the token SNGs on FullTilt…and two weeks ago I won a $75 token (I played the $8 two-table turbo, then the $24 two table). The last time I had one, I played a SNG and won, so I decided to give it another try…and I won again!
I got some nice hands early on, and on back-to-back hands took people out with pocket jacks. I was a monster chip leader, but then went card dead. I played pretty tight for awhile, and then it was 4 handed. By this time, my chip lead had eroded, and there was only one short stack. She stole pot after pot off of the other two players, and then they took each other out on AA vs A9. AA held up, and we were in the money, with equal-ish stacks.
I was able to relax then, and got my aggression back.
The hand that pretty much gave me the game was when the SB min-raised, and I pushed with 55. He insta-called and turned over AJo, and I caught a 5 on the flop. He was left with 210 chips….but battled back to over 2000, but eventually went out to the other player (the previous short stack who played the bubble perfectly) when he went all-in with K2 and got called by AQ. Q on the flop, A on the turn and we’re heads up.
Heads-up was pretty easy….a few hands back and forth. One hand that I debated about was Ac5c in the BB. She went all-in and I considered calling, but I had a big chiplead (9000 to 3000) so calling would have put us even. Banky was looking over my shoulder and said “what hand do you hope she has, A4?” and “do you think you can outplay her – if yes, don’t give her more chips”. I was pretty sure I could chip away at her stack legitimately, so I folded.
The very next hand, I pick up Ac9c and I raised 3xBB from the SB. I already knew I would call her all-in, and when I did, she showed As5s….exactly the same hand I had folded to her push the hand before. And this is the exact reason I folded….if she pushed with a better Ace, I would have been in big trouble, just like she was in now.
The flop was 8c 5d 4c, giving her a pair, and me a flush draw. The turn was the 6d, giving me a gutshot draw to go with my flush draw, and the river was the Tc giving me the flush, and the win.
I’ve felt really positively about my game lately. Decisions seem clearer and easier, and I’ve been lucky to have the results to go along with my play. Sometimes it feels like you play an excellent game, but things don’t go your way. It’s times like this, when the discipline of playing well really pays off.
Monday, October 01, 2007
RC4 victory!
Sometimes poker can be really fun.
On Saturday, Banky and I participated in RC4 (the 4th iteration of a team based poker event called the Royal Cup). The name sounds more official than it really is…it’s essentially a bunch of poker enthusiasts getting together for a crazy day of poker.
Each team has 8 players, who each play in 4 rounds:
Stud/Omaha (half the team plays Stud, the other half Omaha)
Limit Hold’em
No Limit Hold’em
Heads-up
Our team rocked the house (ok, we rocked the community hall), and took 1st place!
Because you got more points the higher you placed in the sit-n-gos, I knew it was going to be a good day when half of our players finished first or second in the Stud & Omaha games. We remained strong throughout the day, but lost some steam during the heads-up matches where we only won 2 of 8 (last time, we won 6 of 8 HU matches). But despite our lackluster HU performance, we still pulled in a win. It felt so good to win as a team. Especially since poker is both a social and solitary pursuit – week in and week out, these people were my opponents….but they’ve also become my friends. It was a really good feeling to have someone to cheer for, and someone to cheer for you.
My results were not the best of the team, but were still very respectable. I played Stud and finished 3rd, I finished 2nd in Limit, 5th in No Limit, and lost my heads-up match. The Limit game was the most frustrating loss for me, as I really outplayed my opponent – three times I got him all-in with the worst of it only to have him suck-out to double up and stay alive. He was a strong opponent though, and we played heads-up for well over an hour. I was most disappointed in my HU game. I think I was a better player than my opponent, but I didn’t play my best. C’est la vie.
All in all, it was an awesome day…and it’s always fun when you come home with some cash in your pocket.
On Saturday, Banky and I participated in RC4 (the 4th iteration of a team based poker event called the Royal Cup). The name sounds more official than it really is…it’s essentially a bunch of poker enthusiasts getting together for a crazy day of poker.
Each team has 8 players, who each play in 4 rounds:
Stud/Omaha (half the team plays Stud, the other half Omaha)
Limit Hold’em
No Limit Hold’em
Heads-up
Our team rocked the house (ok, we rocked the community hall), and took 1st place!
Because you got more points the higher you placed in the sit-n-gos, I knew it was going to be a good day when half of our players finished first or second in the Stud & Omaha games. We remained strong throughout the day, but lost some steam during the heads-up matches where we only won 2 of 8 (last time, we won 6 of 8 HU matches). But despite our lackluster HU performance, we still pulled in a win. It felt so good to win as a team. Especially since poker is both a social and solitary pursuit – week in and week out, these people were my opponents….but they’ve also become my friends. It was a really good feeling to have someone to cheer for, and someone to cheer for you.
My results were not the best of the team, but were still very respectable. I played Stud and finished 3rd, I finished 2nd in Limit, 5th in No Limit, and lost my heads-up match. The Limit game was the most frustrating loss for me, as I really outplayed my opponent – three times I got him all-in with the worst of it only to have him suck-out to double up and stay alive. He was a strong opponent though, and we played heads-up for well over an hour. I was most disappointed in my HU game. I think I was a better player than my opponent, but I didn’t play my best. C’est la vie.
All in all, it was an awesome day…and it’s always fun when you come home with some cash in your pocket.
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