Played the $300+30 last night with some success. I got to the club early trying to make enough for the buy-in. Ended up down on a suck-out and built myself back to about $80 up playing $1-2 before the tournament started.
28 players were in, and unlike last week, I reminded myself to keep very patient. I was not going to make moves unless I had the cards or the read on the players and just try to accumulate slowly. We started with 6000 in chips and things were going well. Pocket kings held up on an all-in and I had around 14k in chips when I looked down on the button with A-Jsuited. Nobody was in the pot and I pushed 900 (blinds were 100-200). SB calls. BB folds. Flop A-K-4. SB goes all-in for about 5500 and I call. He turns over J-J to my A-J. I have him dominated since I have one of his outs. Turn is a blank and then, of course, he hits his third J on the river for trips. A one-outer. ugh. I am down to about 8K and I am pissed. I had not made any mistakes until that point and this one was a freak catch. I took a minute, said nice hand and moved on. The main thing I did, and I think this was a turning point in the game for me, was to take remind myself that I still had a fair amount of chips and that I should not go on tilt. I put on the iPod (Bach's Cello Suites are great to keep you focused) and waited for hands and position.
Luckily, the patience worked out. I was sitting in the BB with K-9 offsuit and it luckily was checked to me with 2 callers. I checked and the flop came out K-9-4. SB checks, I check, other payer (the one who caught the luck might I add) pushes in the rest of his chips (7000), SB calls, and I go All-In with 7500. We turn them over and the aggressor has nothing A-7. SB has bottom 2 and my hand holds up. Now I am sitting with about 24K and am back in the game. 8 players left.
At this point the final table looks like this. Chip Leader -about 50k, me and 2 others about 25k, two with about 15k and 2 small stacks. One short stack falls and after a few hands I am mid-position and looking at A-A. Luckily, the player to my right bets out about 6K (he has about what I do), I think and want to isolate so I push All-In. Short stack to my right goes All-In for about 8K. It is folded to the first aggressor who folds. I show and the short stack shows K-K. Aces hold up and I know about about 45k in chips, second to the leader who has about 65 at this time.
The tournament pays 4 places, there are 6 left. The director comes over, asks if we want to make a deal. We end up agreeing and I take second with $2k to show for it.
What I liked about how I played was I did not make any moves that I regretted. I waited for the cards and when I saw weakness, I pushed on it, whether I had the cards or not. I also did not tilt, even though I got a very bad beat that could have sent me over the edge.
Final tally was this. +$80 for the initial round, +1500 tournament (after tips and buy-in), -$300 for stupidly returning to the tables after the tournament (it is hard to shift back to the $1-2 game after playing tournaments I have found).
+ $1280
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Friday, July 27, 2007
What Would You Do?
I played the other day in the clubs new $50+10 tournament. It was frustrating as usual. I had had a great run for about a month, leaving with 2-3x what I bought in at consistently, but recently, the poker gods and my own misplays have been costing me.
But in this case, what would you do?
500 chips to start. Up and down for about 40 minutes and I am sitting on about 440 with the blinds 10-20.
I am in the BB with Qs+3d. 2 players in and I check. 10h was exposed on the deal.
Flop comes Ks+10d+10s. Check all around. turn is the 3s. SB bets 65, I call with my spade draw and small pair. 3rd player doubles the bet. I call, putting him on a K or maybe a 10 but figure if the spade comes, I am good. 6s comes on the river making my flush. I am first to act and push all in for about 300. Let me first say that the other player in the hand seems a little green. I have never seen him at the club before and he is not on top of all the etiquette. So, to continue,
he flips over his cards, without saying anything and then pushes his chips in. I initially thought it was a fold. Then I look down and he is holding K-10 for the boat. I am sitting there, waiting for the dealer and he pushes him the chips. Another guy at the table says that his hand is dead as he did not make the verbal call or push his chips in before turning over the cards.
I get up and tell him, 'I thought you were folding, but you had the better hand and I don't want to be a prick about it.'
I figured it was a tiny buy-in, he did not know the table/tourny rules and as well, I had been up for 35 hours straight and my heart was not in it. On the other hand, I technically won the hand when he showed before committing. For a bigger game/bigger stakes, I would have made a fuss, it just did not seem worth it on this one.
Would you have done the same?
-$60
But in this case, what would you do?
500 chips to start. Up and down for about 40 minutes and I am sitting on about 440 with the blinds 10-20.
I am in the BB with Qs+3d. 2 players in and I check. 10h was exposed on the deal.
Flop comes Ks+10d+10s. Check all around. turn is the 3s. SB bets 65, I call with my spade draw and small pair. 3rd player doubles the bet. I call, putting him on a K or maybe a 10 but figure if the spade comes, I am good. 6s comes on the river making my flush. I am first to act and push all in for about 300. Let me first say that the other player in the hand seems a little green. I have never seen him at the club before and he is not on top of all the etiquette. So, to continue,
he flips over his cards, without saying anything and then pushes his chips in. I initially thought it was a fold. Then I look down and he is holding K-10 for the boat. I am sitting there, waiting for the dealer and he pushes him the chips. Another guy at the table says that his hand is dead as he did not make the verbal call or push his chips in before turning over the cards.
I get up and tell him, 'I thought you were folding, but you had the better hand and I don't want to be a prick about it.'
I figured it was a tiny buy-in, he did not know the table/tourny rules and as well, I had been up for 35 hours straight and my heart was not in it. On the other hand, I technically won the hand when he showed before committing. For a bigger game/bigger stakes, I would have made a fuss, it just did not seem worth it on this one.
Would you have done the same?
-$60
Hooded Man Vs. Machine
I guess machine is not yet up to the task of beating man in poker, although it was close.
Here is an article about how Phil Laak took on an Artificial Intelligence computer at a poker game and almost lost. The thing that scares me is with all the on-line play, we are more susceptible then ever to bots coming and taking our money. We are not all Phil Laak.
LINK: Unibomber beats Polaris
Here is an article about how Phil Laak took on an Artificial Intelligence computer at a poker game and almost lost. The thing that scares me is with all the on-line play, we are more susceptible then ever to bots coming and taking our money. We are not all Phil Laak.
LINK: Unibomber beats Polaris
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Just giving it away
It just gets worse. Last night was one of those nights where everything was off. I would probably have saved some cash and just sat on the corner and gave out money for 4 hours. That was how badly I was playing.
The pinnacle of my first explosion was in the $300+30 tourney. I have played it before, and have cashed a bunch of times, so I know it pretty well. I generally do pretty good in tournaments and sit-n-go's because I have patience and wait for my opportunities. This one was going ok. It was into the second hour and I was up to about 9500 in chips (started at 6K). There was one player, who I have played before, who was playing alot of hands and winning, but mainly because he was getting cards, not because he was outplaying people. I had not seen a decent hand in awhile, and I got impatient. I looked down in MP with A-5 suited. I throw out 450 (3x the blinds), it folds to him and he raises to 1450. It comes back to me and on a hand that I should have laid down, or at worst just made the call and play it after the flow, I struggle for like a minute and then throw in all my chips, thinking that if he is on mid-pair or A-10 or something he will fold it. He calls and shows me K-K. I don't improve and am out.
It was such a stupid play that I really got frustrated. If I was going to come over the top, don't struggle (not that he would not have called with K-K). If I know I am an underdog, I can fold. If I think I am an underdog who can improve, then call. I make the complete BAD play. At least I can take away to stick to my guns and play tight in the beginning, loosen up with chipstack and later rounds. UGH.
I then proceeded to donk off $250 more at the tables through bad calls and suck-outs.
Not a good night at all.
-$580.00
The pinnacle of my first explosion was in the $300+30 tourney. I have played it before, and have cashed a bunch of times, so I know it pretty well. I generally do pretty good in tournaments and sit-n-go's because I have patience and wait for my opportunities. This one was going ok. It was into the second hour and I was up to about 9500 in chips (started at 6K). There was one player, who I have played before, who was playing alot of hands and winning, but mainly because he was getting cards, not because he was outplaying people. I had not seen a decent hand in awhile, and I got impatient. I looked down in MP with A-5 suited. I throw out 450 (3x the blinds), it folds to him and he raises to 1450. It comes back to me and on a hand that I should have laid down, or at worst just made the call and play it after the flow, I struggle for like a minute and then throw in all my chips, thinking that if he is on mid-pair or A-10 or something he will fold it. He calls and shows me K-K. I don't improve and am out.
It was such a stupid play that I really got frustrated. If I was going to come over the top, don't struggle (not that he would not have called with K-K). If I know I am an underdog, I can fold. If I think I am an underdog who can improve, then call. I make the complete BAD play. At least I can take away to stick to my guns and play tight in the beginning, loosen up with chipstack and later rounds. UGH.
I then proceeded to donk off $250 more at the tables through bad calls and suck-outs.
Not a good night at all.
-$580.00
Sunday, July 22, 2007
1-2NL, 2 Hours, NY Club
Went to the club this afternoon to kill a few hours. Only 1 table of 1-2NL going. I try a new strategy, buy in small ($150) and try and use some over top all-in moves to double it up.
About 15 hands in I look down with AQ off-suit UTG. I throw in $13. 2 Callers. Flop comes A-10-8 rainbow. I throw out $20, one fold, the guy to my right (who is an older, but often aggressive type player) makes it $45. I have another $97 left if I make the call and figure at this point I am probably good, but you never know with what this guy playes so I push all in. He thinks for a minute, makes the call. A Jack comes on the turn, King on the river, I make a straight. He murmurs to himself 'that was a lucky river for you', but he never shows his hand. I think i was good the whole time, but he threw his cards into the muck. Doubled to about $320.
I knocked off about $80 later when I pushed with 2 pair against trip 7's (I need to learn how to check with that pair hits the board that aint mine).
Another ridiculous play later on my part, and this one got me annoyed, but I still won the pot. Aggressive player to my left, I am UTG, pot is about $40. 3 players in the hand. I am holding Kh-5c. Flop K-4-8 rainbow. I check , aggressive guy puts out $17. Player to my right calls and I call. Next card is a 2h (2 hearts now on the board). Aggressive guy checks, guy to my right checks, and for some reason, I thought I was on the button (guy to my right was). So I say "All-In", even though I guess I had checked since I was first to act. The dealer says "All-In Blind" to me. I look down and say, "umm...sure". Push all my chips in (like $200 left) but am clearly off. Aggressive folds, but player to my right is thinking. He just looks really confused by my move. He did not realize that I had meant to push on the turn, but got caught up in a mistake. He thinks I went all-in blind before the river. The 10 on the river looks innocent enough. He takes awhile and then asks if I will show if he folds, I say sure. He mucks, I show the K-5 and he looks disgusted since he had me beat, but my off-putting mistake got him into a state where it knocked him off his game (I am assuming 2 pair or A-K). Just goes to show you, if you act out of character, players will not know how to react. Still took down $100 on that mistake.
All in all, for a 2.5 hour session, I hated the way I played but still came out ahead. There is a $300 +30 tourney tomorrow that I have cashed in a few times. Looking at it this way. I can buy in for $150 instead of $330.
+$190
About 15 hands in I look down with AQ off-suit UTG. I throw in $13. 2 Callers. Flop comes A-10-8 rainbow. I throw out $20, one fold, the guy to my right (who is an older, but often aggressive type player) makes it $45. I have another $97 left if I make the call and figure at this point I am probably good, but you never know with what this guy playes so I push all in. He thinks for a minute, makes the call. A Jack comes on the turn, King on the river, I make a straight. He murmurs to himself 'that was a lucky river for you', but he never shows his hand. I think i was good the whole time, but he threw his cards into the muck. Doubled to about $320.
I knocked off about $80 later when I pushed with 2 pair against trip 7's (I need to learn how to check with that pair hits the board that aint mine).
Another ridiculous play later on my part, and this one got me annoyed, but I still won the pot. Aggressive player to my left, I am UTG, pot is about $40. 3 players in the hand. I am holding Kh-5c. Flop K-4-8 rainbow. I check , aggressive guy puts out $17. Player to my right calls and I call. Next card is a 2h (2 hearts now on the board). Aggressive guy checks, guy to my right checks, and for some reason, I thought I was on the button (guy to my right was). So I say "All-In", even though I guess I had checked since I was first to act. The dealer says "All-In Blind" to me. I look down and say, "umm...sure". Push all my chips in (like $200 left) but am clearly off. Aggressive folds, but player to my right is thinking. He just looks really confused by my move. He did not realize that I had meant to push on the turn, but got caught up in a mistake. He thinks I went all-in blind before the river. The 10 on the river looks innocent enough. He takes awhile and then asks if I will show if he folds, I say sure. He mucks, I show the K-5 and he looks disgusted since he had me beat, but my off-putting mistake got him into a state where it knocked him off his game (I am assuming 2 pair or A-K). Just goes to show you, if you act out of character, players will not know how to react. Still took down $100 on that mistake.
All in all, for a 2.5 hour session, I hated the way I played but still came out ahead. There is a $300 +30 tourney tomorrow that I have cashed in a few times. Looking at it this way. I can buy in for $150 instead of $330.
+$190
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Inspiration
I just read this quote by Louis Pasteur.
I do not think you can sum up in better words how the constant learning and re-learning of strategies and situations in our game makes our game that much stronger and can seem to the outsider to influence luck in our favor. I think I am going to run with this for awhile.
CHANCE FAVORS THE PREPARED MIND
I do not think you can sum up in better words how the constant learning and re-learning of strategies and situations in our game makes our game that much stronger and can seem to the outsider to influence luck in our favor. I think I am going to run with this for awhile.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Why I like this game.
Poker is such a mind fuck. You try and manipulate skill and luck together into something that resembles consistency and success yet we all fall to the constant bad beats and misplayed hands. It is a metaphor for life, are we aggressive? Deceptive? Strategic? Obvious? and we can be up and down at any point and either it can be devastating or no big deal. I try and be very Zen about poker. What will be will be, when i make mistakes, I try and learn from it and never let it get me too riled up or down. This does not always work.
Regardless, we love it.
Here is a good story though.
My buddy who plays at my club is an 30 year old high school teacher. Asian kid. A little wild, but generally solid. Despite his tats and funky style, he is also seems to be just a good all around guy. One of those guys you like playing with.
So I saw him the other night at the club. He comes up and tells me about the bad beat jackpot at the other place we play. He was playing 2-5 and limps in with 4-5d. Basic betting goes on and at the end of the hand, he is looking at at a straight flush. The other guy in the hand bets into him and he comes over the top all-in. At this point there is 3K in the pot. Of course he calls and the other guy shows the top end of the straight flush to beat his low end.
In the end, he lost $1500 on the hand BUT made over $14,000 on the bad beat jackpot. The winner of the hand got an extra $6k and everyone at the table got close to $2k. Now that is the best way to lost a made hand that I have ever heard and it could not have happened to a better guy (except me of course :-).
Regardless, we love it.
Here is a good story though.
My buddy who plays at my club is an 30 year old high school teacher. Asian kid. A little wild, but generally solid. Despite his tats and funky style, he is also seems to be just a good all around guy. One of those guys you like playing with.
So I saw him the other night at the club. He comes up and tells me about the bad beat jackpot at the other place we play. He was playing 2-5 and limps in with 4-5d. Basic betting goes on and at the end of the hand, he is looking at at a straight flush. The other guy in the hand bets into him and he comes over the top all-in. At this point there is 3K in the pot. Of course he calls and the other guy shows the top end of the straight flush to beat his low end.
In the end, he lost $1500 on the hand BUT made over $14,000 on the bad beat jackpot. The winner of the hand got an extra $6k and everyone at the table got close to $2k. Now that is the best way to lost a made hand that I have ever heard and it could not have happened to a better guy (except me of course :-).
Yes, I still suck.
It is interesting to me how we as poker players so often don't learn from our mistakes. Take this example from me killing time last night.
$20, 6 player sit-n-go.
Everyone started with about 1500 chips. I am down to about 1100. I am UTG with Aces. I ALWAYS push something in with aces as I have had them cracked too many times with BS. But for some reason, i did not listen to history or my game plan and limped, hoping for a raise. Of course, with a 6 player table, that leaves only 5 behind me and it is easy for people to limp in. The SB and BB limp as well.
Flop 10-7-4 rainbow.
SB pushes in 200. I come over the top All-In. He shows 7-4 for 2 pair. I bust out.
Pretty much any bet I would have made before the flop would have gotten this guy out. It is the usual, winning a small pot is better than losing a big one.
Oy. After the last few weeks, where I have been running pretty strong and making 4 figures in 2 weeks, these small little losses, mainly because of my boneheaded playing, is really annoying to me.
-$20 (plus $2 buy in)
$20, 6 player sit-n-go.
Everyone started with about 1500 chips. I am down to about 1100. I am UTG with Aces. I ALWAYS push something in with aces as I have had them cracked too many times with BS. But for some reason, i did not listen to history or my game plan and limped, hoping for a raise. Of course, with a 6 player table, that leaves only 5 behind me and it is easy for people to limp in. The SB and BB limp as well.
Flop 10-7-4 rainbow.
SB pushes in 200. I come over the top All-In. He shows 7-4 for 2 pair. I bust out.
Pretty much any bet I would have made before the flop would have gotten this guy out. It is the usual, winning a small pot is better than losing a big one.
Oy. After the last few weeks, where I have been running pretty strong and making 4 figures in 2 weeks, these small little losses, mainly because of my boneheaded playing, is really annoying to me.
-$20 (plus $2 buy in)
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Here Is Why I Suck
I suck for the following 2 reasons: 1 Queen and 1 more Queen.
I told myself that I would not play tonight as I had played a almost 4 hours yesterday. Well, here i am sitting at home and decide to play a sit-n-go on FTP. I usually cash in 45-50% of the games that i play, but don't love playing on-line and my a.d.d. gets in the way, so i tend to play small stakes. I ended up playing two for a total of $120 in the span of 1 hour. In both, i raise with pocket queens, get a caller and then push when an overcard hits the board. In both instances the other player pushes back with the overcard, in BOTH situations (note:suck!), I re-raise all-in. Both times I am called and shown the bigger card. Lost both times. That is why I suck and should not mess with the ladies.
-$120 (plus $11 rake)
I told myself that I would not play tonight as I had played a almost 4 hours yesterday. Well, here i am sitting at home and decide to play a sit-n-go on FTP. I usually cash in 45-50% of the games that i play, but don't love playing on-line and my a.d.d. gets in the way, so i tend to play small stakes. I ended up playing two for a total of $120 in the span of 1 hour. In both, i raise with pocket queens, get a caller and then push when an overcard hits the board. In both instances the other player pushes back with the overcard, in BOTH situations (note:suck!), I re-raise all-in. Both times I am called and shown the bigger card. Lost both times. That is why I suck and should not mess with the ladies.
-$120 (plus $11 rake)
1-2NL, 3.5 Hours, NYC, Underground Club
Sat down at the table with 5 other players as they were still trying to build a game. the guy to my right was so nervous (or lit-up) that he could barely stand still. Another few basic grinder types just trying to pass the time are there. 2 younger 20something guys sit down, next to each other and are friends. I always hate when friends sit next to each other to play. 1. They always almost always will just check down pots to each other and more importantly, I always worry that they will change the pot odds by not staying in when they should because their 'boy' is in.
From the minute they sit down, i have already put them as on-line players with not too much table experience. This gets proven quickly with their constant aggressive play, but never in amounts that will change the play too much. From $2 to $7 or $11. Not any moves that are really meant to get people to lay hands down, just constant pot sweetners. I don't mind this as I see them as targets to get outplayed.
I sit down with $200, they have both bought in for max ($300). Both have won some early hands but both also have showed alot of weakness in their game just waiting to be exploited.
Many hands play and I am down about $50 when I look at K-9s on the button. I limp and on-line guy 1 makes it $12. 3 callers so i call to for odds. Flop comes 10c, Js and Qs. OL Guy1 makes it 15. 1 caller and then to me where I pop it to $45 with the straight and straight flush draw. Without thinking for a second OLG pushes all in. This is what I love about these type of players, they see a good hand and they think being aggressive is enough. I call for all my chips and turn over the the straight and he turns over the trip Jacks. He doesn't improve so i take down the pot for $400.
All was going well until nervous guy limps before me and I push $25 with pocket Qs. He is so nervous that when he pushes $50 out for a min raise, I come over the top all-in. He calls and shows pocket Ks. I don't improve and lost my first buy-in. I understand what he was doing in limping with kings, but i think it was a bad move. You can get very hurt that way.
I buy back in for another $200 and am up and down here and there. Funniest hand was this.
5 players in the pot. ON-line guy 2 made it $7 to go so there is a bit of action. I am holding 6-4d and am playing a bit cocky, for no reason as many of my plays have not been working. Flop comes 7d 10d Qd. I have the low straight, it is checked to me, being a bit of a dick, i say 'I will bet my flush' and throw out $35. Folds to another guy with about $70 total left. But here is the thing, he has his iPod on, so he did not hear my statement. He things for awhile and goes all-in with Ac-Qs for top pair. I call immediately and win on the river as everyone around the table starts laughing that if he had not been listening to his music, he may have laid it down as I told him what I had.
All in all, left with $210.
-$190 for the session.
From the minute they sit down, i have already put them as on-line players with not too much table experience. This gets proven quickly with their constant aggressive play, but never in amounts that will change the play too much. From $2 to $7 or $11. Not any moves that are really meant to get people to lay hands down, just constant pot sweetners. I don't mind this as I see them as targets to get outplayed.
I sit down with $200, they have both bought in for max ($300). Both have won some early hands but both also have showed alot of weakness in their game just waiting to be exploited.
Many hands play and I am down about $50 when I look at K-9s on the button. I limp and on-line guy 1 makes it $12. 3 callers so i call to for odds. Flop comes 10c, Js and Qs. OL Guy1 makes it 15. 1 caller and then to me where I pop it to $45 with the straight and straight flush draw. Without thinking for a second OLG pushes all in. This is what I love about these type of players, they see a good hand and they think being aggressive is enough. I call for all my chips and turn over the the straight and he turns over the trip Jacks. He doesn't improve so i take down the pot for $400.
All was going well until nervous guy limps before me and I push $25 with pocket Qs. He is so nervous that when he pushes $50 out for a min raise, I come over the top all-in. He calls and shows pocket Ks. I don't improve and lost my first buy-in. I understand what he was doing in limping with kings, but i think it was a bad move. You can get very hurt that way.
I buy back in for another $200 and am up and down here and there. Funniest hand was this.
5 players in the pot. ON-line guy 2 made it $7 to go so there is a bit of action. I am holding 6-4d and am playing a bit cocky, for no reason as many of my plays have not been working. Flop comes 7d 10d Qd. I have the low straight, it is checked to me, being a bit of a dick, i say 'I will bet my flush' and throw out $35. Folds to another guy with about $70 total left. But here is the thing, he has his iPod on, so he did not hear my statement. He things for awhile and goes all-in with Ac-Qs for top pair. I call immediately and win on the river as everyone around the table starts laughing that if he had not been listening to his music, he may have laid it down as I told him what I had.
All in all, left with $210.
-$190 for the session.
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