I think the wild ride started when I folded AA preflop.
In the Bodonkey last night, things went slowly for me early on. Not many hands worth playing, not many pots won when I had something. I stayed tight and didn't try to make any tricky or fancy plays. "Keep it simple" was my motto, and I stuck to it.
My stack dwindled down but I hung in. When we were down to about three tables, I picked up AA in late position. One player raised to 1,550, it folded to me, I min-raised to 2,500, hoping for a reraise all-in so I could call. On cue, the raiser pushed. I reached for my mouse to click the "Call" button, but my finger clicked the left button as the cursor was crossing the "Fold" button, and my bullets vanished. I nearly jumped out of my chair. I couldn't believe that I had screwed up my chance at what might have been an easy double up. Lucky for me, I still had a barely decent stack of chips left, but I was sure that my doom was sealed. I have been telling myself ever since that the Aces probably would have been cracked.
Then again, maybe not. Not long after that hand, just about everything started going my way. I picked up some strong starting cards. I bet them, and either picked up the blinds or won the hands on later streets. If someone pushed, I had a strong enough hand to call, and it held up. I still played extra tight, folding hands like AJ and 88 when I was out of position or sensed strength in my opponents. It got to the point where, by the final table, I could do no wrong. Mostly, I got my chips in ahead and came out ahead. I remember one suckout where I got all my chips in with 99 against Columbo's A-x. He flopped an A, but I turned a 9 to cripple him. A few hands later, Columbo doubled through me when he came from behind on one hand. But my rush would hold out and I started knocking players out one after another.
The end of the final table went so fast that I was able to pull these from Bodog's hand histories without much trouble:
Columbo pushes with JK; I call with 66. A Jack flops, but the turn is a 6, and I bust him.
Three hands later:
Kurokitty pushes with 44. I call with 88 and bust him.
Next hand:
Newinnov pushes with 99; I call with TT and bust him.
Two hands later, blinds $1K/2K/200:
I raise to 3K from the SB with J4; TFG in the BB calls.
Flop: 3h 4c 5c
I bet $6K; TFG raises to 12K; I call.
Turn: 6c
I check. TFG pushes for 8,856. I have over 116K so I call. TFG shows Ad 2d for the flopped straight, which has become a 6-high straight on the turn.
River: 2s
We play the board and chop the pot. TFG goes on tilt.
Four hands later:
I have Ac Jc on the button and open raise to 9K.
TFG in the SB pushes for 20,356. Pokerpeaker folds. I have over 120K so I call. TFG shows Ah Th. Board comes Q-3-J-6-J rainbow and I bust him.
Very next hand, heads up:
Pokerpeaker in the SB/button pushes for his last 8,684. I have 4d 3c but I have $150K so I have to call. Peaker shows Kc 6d.
Board comes 3s 5s Ad 5c 9s. My pair of 3s busts him.
Come on, say it with me - sick, sick, sick.
Stop the presses - I won my first ever blogger tournament. My previous best finishes in any blogger tourney were one second place, and two third places. But I'm not fooling myself by thinking that I won last night by my mad skillz. The Card Fairy dumped a boatload of good luck dust on me, and I know it. Now I plan to use the bankroll boost and T$ to play a few extra games and practice so I can improve my play. I don't want to depend on the good graces of the poker gods every time I sit down at the felt. But if they choose to smile on me again like they did in this week's Bodonkey, I will take any favors they are willing to bestow on me.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Monday, February 18, 2008
Poker hara-kiri & break time
Last Tuesday in the Bodog Blogger Tournament, I performed the poker equivalent of throwing myself in front of a moving train, even though I saw it bearing down on me, and knew that the chances of it stopping without running me down were slim to none.
You see, I had been dealt KK in MP, raised 3XBB PF, got reraised by a LP player. The flop came with an Ace. I bet big for information and got raised. Gee, do you think he has an Ace in his hand? I called anyway. The turn was not a King, but I pushed. Of course he called, of course he had AQ, and of course I was out. 54th of 56. I would be hard pressed to think of a more foolish move to make.
I did not play poker for the rest of the week; I needed some breathing room after such utter donkery. I spent my spare time reading, watching a little TV, and hanging out with my family. I enjoyed it, and found that I didn't miss playing. But I wasn't giving up poker for Lent; just for a few days.
I broke my poker fast Sunday. I had (and still have now) the vestiges of a cold and wasn't feeling like running errands with my wife and son, so I stayed home and looked for a tournament to get into. I found a 180-player $4.40 SNG on PokerStars. Busted out in 83rd place after a long stretch of getting few hands to play and having to fold the ones worth playing. Then I decided to look at the guaranteed tourneys on Bodog because they so often have big overlays. I found a $4k guarantee with a $30 + 3 buy-in that only had about 40 people signed up. Normally I wouldn't play at that level, but with the $T that I had won in earlier Bodog Blogger games, I thought this would be a good opportunity for me to get into a tourney that could really pad my account if I could cash in it. By the time the tourney started, the guarantee had been exceeded, so there was no overlay. But, what the hell, I thought, might as well see how the mid-level play is. I didn't find it to be much different from what I am used to in the blogger games. I did OK for a while, and lucked out a few times to stay alive. I eventually finished 46th out of 140 runners. I know I could have played better on a few hands and possibly gone deeper, but I wasn't altogether unsatisfied with the decisions I made overall.
Once I busted out of the $4K, I felt like playing one more, so I jumped into a single table $2.20 SNG on Bodog. I very rarely play one-table SNGs because the payouts are negligible, especially at the micro-stakes where I play. But I figured it wouldn't take too long and I could scratch my poker itch one last time for the day. I ended up taking that one down for a $6 win (= a whopping $3.80 profit). I had to suck out a couple of times while on the short stack, but once again I felt like most of my decisions were good, or at least reasonable.
So far in 2008, I am roughly at the break-even point, bankroll-wise. I still have a nice cushion in $T on Bodog, so I can play the Tuesday night blogger tourneys for several more weeks without touching my cash there. I may not be able to make it regularly on Tuesdays, though, if I get cast in the play that I auditioned for Sunday evening. We'll see how that cuts into my poker playing time, if at all. If I am out of the Tuesday night games for a few weeks, I may have to seek out some of those other Bodog tourneys and maybe catch one where the overlay is in effect when the game starts.
You see, I had been dealt KK in MP, raised 3XBB PF, got reraised by a LP player. The flop came with an Ace. I bet big for information and got raised. Gee, do you think he has an Ace in his hand? I called anyway. The turn was not a King, but I pushed. Of course he called, of course he had AQ, and of course I was out. 54th of 56. I would be hard pressed to think of a more foolish move to make.
I did not play poker for the rest of the week; I needed some breathing room after such utter donkery. I spent my spare time reading, watching a little TV, and hanging out with my family. I enjoyed it, and found that I didn't miss playing. But I wasn't giving up poker for Lent; just for a few days.
I broke my poker fast Sunday. I had (and still have now) the vestiges of a cold and wasn't feeling like running errands with my wife and son, so I stayed home and looked for a tournament to get into. I found a 180-player $4.40 SNG on PokerStars. Busted out in 83rd place after a long stretch of getting few hands to play and having to fold the ones worth playing. Then I decided to look at the guaranteed tourneys on Bodog because they so often have big overlays. I found a $4k guarantee with a $30 + 3 buy-in that only had about 40 people signed up. Normally I wouldn't play at that level, but with the $T that I had won in earlier Bodog Blogger games, I thought this would be a good opportunity for me to get into a tourney that could really pad my account if I could cash in it. By the time the tourney started, the guarantee had been exceeded, so there was no overlay. But, what the hell, I thought, might as well see how the mid-level play is. I didn't find it to be much different from what I am used to in the blogger games. I did OK for a while, and lucked out a few times to stay alive. I eventually finished 46th out of 140 runners. I know I could have played better on a few hands and possibly gone deeper, but I wasn't altogether unsatisfied with the decisions I made overall.
Once I busted out of the $4K, I felt like playing one more, so I jumped into a single table $2.20 SNG on Bodog. I very rarely play one-table SNGs because the payouts are negligible, especially at the micro-stakes where I play. But I figured it wouldn't take too long and I could scratch my poker itch one last time for the day. I ended up taking that one down for a $6 win (= a whopping $3.80 profit). I had to suck out a couple of times while on the short stack, but once again I felt like most of my decisions were good, or at least reasonable.
So far in 2008, I am roughly at the break-even point, bankroll-wise. I still have a nice cushion in $T on Bodog, so I can play the Tuesday night blogger tourneys for several more weeks without touching my cash there. I may not be able to make it regularly on Tuesdays, though, if I get cast in the play that I auditioned for Sunday evening. We'll see how that cuts into my poker playing time, if at all. If I am out of the Tuesday night games for a few weeks, I may have to seek out some of those other Bodog tourneys and maybe catch one where the overlay is in effect when the game starts.
Saturday, February 02, 2008
Bodog Poker Blogger Tournament Series begins February 4
The official announcement is out, and Bodog is pumping up their Tuesday night poker blogger tournament series. Here is the scoop, straight from the Bodog's mouth:
Bodog Introduces Poker Blogger Tournament Series
Bodog is proud to host the Bodog Poker Blogger Tournament Series opened to any Online Poker Blogger. Join up and challenge other Poker Bloggers each week in our Bodog Poker Room and live to tell about it. Earn points and work your way up the Tournament Leader Board for a spot in the final tournament for your chance to win a $12,000 World Series of Poker* prize package and be a part of Team Bodog 2008.
How it Works
The Bodog Poker Blogger Tournament Series is composed of a series of 18 qualifying tournaments that run weekly beginning Tuesday, February 5th, 2008 to Tuesday, June 3rd, 2008. The top 30% of finishers in each qualifying tournament will earn points based on their finish. These points will be used to rank players over 4 months of qualifying. At the end of the qualifying series, the top 18 players on the Tournament Leader Board will play in the Final Tournament on Tuesday, June 10th, 2008 with the first place finisher winning a $12,000 WSOP* prize package!
Prizes
Weekly Tournaments
Buy-in: $10 + $1
Prize Pool will be distributed as per Bodog's standard multi-table payout table. In addition, the top 5 players each week will also win T$109 to be used to buy-in to the $100,000 Guaranteed Tournament held every Sunday at 4:00 PM ET. The top 5 bubble players each week will win a free buy-in to next week's Weekly Tournament. (T$11 will be credited to these players' Bodog account within 24 hours after the completion of the tournament)
Final Tournament
Buy-in: $0 + $0 (must finish in the Top 18 on the TLB to be invited)
Grand Prize: $12,000 WSOP* Prize Package with Team Bodog
2nd place: T$540 to be used to buy-in to (2) World Series or Players Choice Semifinal
3rd place: T$379 to be used to buy-in to (1) World Series or Players Choice Semifinal and (1) $100,000 Guaranteed Tournament
4th: T$270 to be used to buy-in to (1) World Series or Players Choice Semifinal
5th: T$109 to be used to buy-in to (1) $100,000 Guaranteed Tournament
Bodog Blogger Tournament Leader Board
The Tournament Leader Board will be available at http://www.bodoglife.com/promotions/poker/blogger-tournament/
throughout the course of the Bodog Poker Blogger Tournament Series. It will provide the point totals for every player that has played in the qualifying tournaments. The top 30% of players in each tournament will receive points according to finish which at the end of the qualifying tournaments will ultimately determine who will move on to the Final Event. The top 18 players on the TLB at the end of the qualifiers will earn their way to the Final Event.
How To Register
To register for the Bodog Poker Blogger Tournament Series, poker bloggers must first go to http://www.bodoglife.com/promotions/poker/blogger-tournament/ and sign in with their Bodog account information in the upper right hand corner. Once this is completed, they then must click on "REGISTER NOW" to register themselves into the tournament series. Bloggers will each have to do this once in order to play in the series. Once this is done, they then need to find the "Online Poker Blogger Tournament" in the software and register as they normally would each and every week.
Bodog Blogger Tournament Host Site
Bodogbloggertournament.com will host this tournament series and will provide poker bloggers with weekly updates on:
* tournament results for winners and losers
* announcements for special promotions or guest players
* the latest in Bodog Poker Room news and gossip
* tips on how to succeed at Bodog Poker
----------------------------
Follow any of the links above to get more info. Props must again go out to $mokkee for hosting the Tuesday night games and working with the Bodog folks to sponsor this weekly tournament and now up the ante to make it even more attractive for bloggers to enter.
See you there!
Bodog Introduces Poker Blogger Tournament Series
Bodog is proud to host the Bodog Poker Blogger Tournament Series opened to any Online Poker Blogger. Join up and challenge other Poker Bloggers each week in our Bodog Poker Room and live to tell about it. Earn points and work your way up the Tournament Leader Board for a spot in the final tournament for your chance to win a $12,000 World Series of Poker* prize package and be a part of Team Bodog 2008.
How it Works
The Bodog Poker Blogger Tournament Series is composed of a series of 18 qualifying tournaments that run weekly beginning Tuesday, February 5th, 2008 to Tuesday, June 3rd, 2008. The top 30% of finishers in each qualifying tournament will earn points based on their finish. These points will be used to rank players over 4 months of qualifying. At the end of the qualifying series, the top 18 players on the Tournament Leader Board will play in the Final Tournament on Tuesday, June 10th, 2008 with the first place finisher winning a $12,000 WSOP* prize package!
Prizes
Weekly Tournaments
Buy-in: $10 + $1
Prize Pool will be distributed as per Bodog's standard multi-table payout table. In addition, the top 5 players each week will also win T$109 to be used to buy-in to the $100,000 Guaranteed Tournament held every Sunday at 4:00 PM ET. The top 5 bubble players each week will win a free buy-in to next week's Weekly Tournament. (T$11 will be credited to these players' Bodog account within 24 hours after the completion of the tournament)
Final Tournament
Buy-in: $0 + $0 (must finish in the Top 18 on the TLB to be invited)
Grand Prize: $12,000 WSOP* Prize Package with Team Bodog
2nd place: T$540 to be used to buy-in to (2) World Series or Players Choice Semifinal
3rd place: T$379 to be used to buy-in to (1) World Series or Players Choice Semifinal and (1) $100,000 Guaranteed Tournament
4th: T$270 to be used to buy-in to (1) World Series or Players Choice Semifinal
5th: T$109 to be used to buy-in to (1) $100,000 Guaranteed Tournament
Bodog Blogger Tournament Leader Board
The Tournament Leader Board will be available at http://www.bodoglife.com/promotions/poker/blogger-tournament/
throughout the course of the Bodog Poker Blogger Tournament Series. It will provide the point totals for every player that has played in the qualifying tournaments. The top 30% of players in each tournament will receive points according to finish which at the end of the qualifying tournaments will ultimately determine who will move on to the Final Event. The top 18 players on the TLB at the end of the qualifiers will earn their way to the Final Event.
How To Register
To register for the Bodog Poker Blogger Tournament Series, poker bloggers must first go to http://www.bodoglife.com/promotions/poker/blogger-tournament/ and sign in with their Bodog account information in the upper right hand corner. Once this is completed, they then must click on "REGISTER NOW" to register themselves into the tournament series. Bloggers will each have to do this once in order to play in the series. Once this is done, they then need to find the "Online Poker Blogger Tournament" in the software and register as they normally would each and every week.
Bodog Blogger Tournament Host Site
Bodogbloggertournament.com will host this tournament series and will provide poker bloggers with weekly updates on:
* tournament results for winners and losers
* announcements for special promotions or guest players
* the latest in Bodog Poker Room news and gossip
* tips on how to succeed at Bodog Poker
----------------------------
Follow any of the links above to get more info. Props must again go out to $mokkee for hosting the Tuesday night games and working with the Bodog folks to sponsor this weekly tournament and now up the ante to make it even more attractive for bloggers to enter.
See you there!
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Fifth is the new first
For the second week in a row, I somehow managed to finish in fifth place in the Tuesday night Bodog Blogger Tournament, hosted by $mokkee. It took even more lucksackery for me this week than last; there were at least two hands where I pushed with small pairs, got called by bigger pairs or overcards, and flopped a set to double up. Thanks once again to Bodog's generous overlay, I had $T109 added to my tournament credit balance, to go along with the real cash for my fifth place finish. I think I'll be playing more at Bodog, as I understand that they often have a nice overlay in many of their other tourneys too.
Pokerpeaker was the other luckbox in the game last night. He was down to 65 chips at the final table, made an astounding comeback, and took second place. Go read his blog for the gory details. Lightning36 came out on top at the end, for his fourth (!!!) Bodonkey tourney win.
Starting next Tuesday, the Bodog Blogger Tourney will become a series of 18 weekly tournaments which will include leaderboard points and a Tournament of Champions at the end of the series, with a "sick" prize (sez $mokkee) to be awarded to the champ, plus other prizes for the rest of the top finishers. The announcement of what the prizes will be is scheduled for Friday Feb. 1, so stay tuned to $mokkee's blog for the dirt on that. I'll be playing and hoping to keep my rush going.
Pokerpeaker was the other luckbox in the game last night. He was down to 65 chips at the final table, made an astounding comeback, and took second place. Go read his blog for the gory details. Lightning36 came out on top at the end, for his fourth (!!!) Bodonkey tourney win.
Starting next Tuesday, the Bodog Blogger Tourney will become a series of 18 weekly tournaments which will include leaderboard points and a Tournament of Champions at the end of the series, with a "sick" prize (sez $mokkee) to be awarded to the champ, plus other prizes for the rest of the top finishers. The announcement of what the prizes will be is scheduled for Friday Feb. 1, so stay tuned to $mokkee's blog for the dirt on that. I'll be playing and hoping to keep my rush going.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
What's a donkey to do?
Has it really been three weeks since I posted here? Feels like longer. Occasionally I'll get an idea that seems like it might be worth posting, but that feeling usually passes quickly. But, if for no other reason than to pretend that I am still a poker blogger, I figure I'll throw something up here.
Let's get the trivial things like results out of the way first.
Cash games since last post = in the red
Tourneys since last post = in the black*
*The asterisk is because my "profit" has come from the tournament credits I won in the Bodog Blogger Game last Tuesday. I folded and luckboxed my way to fifth in that tourney, which got me $29.60 in real US money, but also $T109 in my Bodog account thanks to their generous bonus program for these tourneys. If not for that, I would still be well into the red for tournaments so far this calendar year. I plan to use the $T to play in the Tuesday night games as regularly as I can, and possibly to check out some of their other tournaments.
Because I am a consistent loser at tourneys these days, I am trying to play in more ring games to see if I can perform with some semblance of success. I stick to the micro-limits, to make my bankroll last as long as possible. I have no desire to jump through the hoops or pay the fees to fund my accounts at the poker sites, so I'd like to milk my meager stakes in the three sites where I am funded for as long as possible.
A problem with that is, playing for nickels and dimes means that any wins I bank don't amount to much, so my roll doesn't grow with any speed. That isn't to say that I am impatient; I can fold hand after hand with the tightest of them. In fact, I am doing that as I type this, in a $0.02 - 0.04 Limit O8 game on PokerStars. I have had a bunch 0f hands with middle cards, and very few Aces, so my Fold button is getting a real workout. What I need is a run of decent hands so I can win some pots from the any-four-cards playing fish in these games. Maybe I need to switch back to Stud 8, which I did OK at for a while last year.
I'm playing strictly Limit poker in the ring games, mostly because I feel more comfortable playing Limit outside of tournaments. I have not, however, played in any Limit tourneys yet, because they generally take way too long.
I'm in my usual quandary about what to do about poker. Am I enjoying it enough to tolerate the steady diminishing of my bankroll? Will it do me any good to read more poker books, or have I reached a saturation point with those? Should I find something better to do with the time that I spend on poker now?
Here's one I'm wondering about: Should I take a bigger risk, play at slightly higher levels where I can use what little I have learned about how to play correctly against other players who might actually fold their crap hands to my bets and raises? I have resisted this temptation for a long time, partly because I am a wuss and don't like to get in over my head, and partly because I know that variance could easily cripple me with a few losing rounds as well as give me a nice cushion if I were to have a few winning sessions.
I expect that I will just plod along as I have been. I'll play in the Bodog Tuesday night game as long as my credits and bankroll there hold out, and try to slowly build my roll on PokerStars and FullTilt as I get the chance.
And now, a word from one of our sponsors:
Are you ready for the WSOPE Europe, the biggest tournament in European poker? You can compete yourself in WSOPE satellites for a place at the table in the main event. Pitch your online poker skills against players around the world to see who is the best.
Let's get the trivial things like results out of the way first.
Cash games since last post = in the red
Tourneys since last post = in the black*
*The asterisk is because my "profit" has come from the tournament credits I won in the Bodog Blogger Game last Tuesday. I folded and luckboxed my way to fifth in that tourney, which got me $29.60 in real US money, but also $T109 in my Bodog account thanks to their generous bonus program for these tourneys. If not for that, I would still be well into the red for tournaments so far this calendar year. I plan to use the $T to play in the Tuesday night games as regularly as I can, and possibly to check out some of their other tournaments.
Because I am a consistent loser at tourneys these days, I am trying to play in more ring games to see if I can perform with some semblance of success. I stick to the micro-limits, to make my bankroll last as long as possible. I have no desire to jump through the hoops or pay the fees to fund my accounts at the poker sites, so I'd like to milk my meager stakes in the three sites where I am funded for as long as possible.
A problem with that is, playing for nickels and dimes means that any wins I bank don't amount to much, so my roll doesn't grow with any speed. That isn't to say that I am impatient; I can fold hand after hand with the tightest of them. In fact, I am doing that as I type this, in a $0.02 - 0.04 Limit O8 game on PokerStars. I have had a bunch 0f hands with middle cards, and very few Aces, so my Fold button is getting a real workout. What I need is a run of decent hands so I can win some pots from the any-four-cards playing fish in these games. Maybe I need to switch back to Stud 8, which I did OK at for a while last year.
I'm playing strictly Limit poker in the ring games, mostly because I feel more comfortable playing Limit outside of tournaments. I have not, however, played in any Limit tourneys yet, because they generally take way too long.
I'm in my usual quandary about what to do about poker. Am I enjoying it enough to tolerate the steady diminishing of my bankroll? Will it do me any good to read more poker books, or have I reached a saturation point with those? Should I find something better to do with the time that I spend on poker now?
Here's one I'm wondering about: Should I take a bigger risk, play at slightly higher levels where I can use what little I have learned about how to play correctly against other players who might actually fold their crap hands to my bets and raises? I have resisted this temptation for a long time, partly because I am a wuss and don't like to get in over my head, and partly because I know that variance could easily cripple me with a few losing rounds as well as give me a nice cushion if I were to have a few winning sessions.
I expect that I will just plod along as I have been. I'll play in the Bodog Tuesday night game as long as my credits and bankroll there hold out, and try to slowly build my roll on PokerStars and FullTilt as I get the chance.
And now, a word from one of our sponsors:
Are you ready for the WSOPE Europe, the biggest tournament in European poker? You can compete yourself in WSOPE satellites for a place at the table in the main event. Pitch your online poker skills against players around the world to see who is the best.
Sunday, January 06, 2008
Okie-Vegas 2008 - be there!
GCox has posted the announcement that everyone (who is anyone) has been waiting for:
Okie-Vegas 3 is go for launch this summer! Go check his site for the lowdown. I'll be there, good Lord willin' and the crick don't rise, so don't miss your chance to take my money, hang out with some wild and crazy poker bloggers, and have a whooping-hollering-yeehaw-good time.
And if you are wondering what Okie-Vegas 2 was like, check my report here, which also has links to other folks' accounts of the festivities.
See you there!
Okie-Vegas 3 is go for launch this summer! Go check his site for the lowdown. I'll be there, good Lord willin' and the crick don't rise, so don't miss your chance to take my money, hang out with some wild and crazy poker bloggers, and have a whooping-hollering-yeehaw-good time.
And if you are wondering what Okie-Vegas 2 was like, check my report here, which also has links to other folks' accounts of the festivities.
See you there!
Looking behind, looking ahead
A new year has begun , so it's probably time to review how I fared in 2007, and what I plan to do in 2008.
I keep records of my play, so I have a pretty good idea of my results for online play for the past year. (I have left live play out of this review because I played so little live poker.) Here are some figures that I have to chew on:
Tournaments played (SNG and scheduled): 107
Tournaments cashed: 21
Tournaments won (finished first): 3
Cash game sessions: 88
Cash game sessions where I quit with a profit: 42
I don't even know what constitutes a "good" record for cashes per tourneys played or anything like that, but I definitely lost a chunk of change, compared to the stakes I play, in tournaments in 2007. I came out just a few dollars behind for the year in cash games, but I didn't spend nearly as much time at ring games as in tourneys, so I don't think I have a good sample to know if I am better suited for ring game play than tourneys.
Here are some more telling stats:
Tournaments played with buy-in of $11.00: 22 (of the 107 total above)
Tournaments cashed with buy-in of $11.00: 4
These $11.00 games were all blogger tourneys, and my performance in them was pretty poor. Other than one charity tourney where I put in $40.00, these blogger tourneys were the highest buy-in games that I played, and therefore put the biggest dents in my bankroll. Although my cashing percentage in lower buy-in tourneys isn't much higher than for the blogger tourneys, they also don't drain my roll as much when I finish out of the money.
What does this tell me about how I am doing as a poker player, and about what I should do in the coming year?
First, I have to look at my roll. I have funds on three sites at the moment: FullTilt, PokerStars, and Bodog. I only have money on Bodog because they offered to stake me in exchange for the link on this blog; the other two sites have been funded for a while, although I needed some help to get more money onto FullTilt when that account got low. As of now, PokerStars has the most and FullTilt has the least. One significant equation that I have looked at is this:
FT is where almost all the blogger tourneys are.
Blogger tourneys cost $11.00 or more to enter.
I have less than $100 on FT now.
I don't do well in blogger tourneys.
All of these factors add up to:
I won't be playing in any blogger games on FT until I build my roll there.
I don't want to deposit any more funds on any sites right now; I would rather add to my accounts the old fashioned way: by EARNING (read: winning) it.
I have less than $100 on Bodog too, so I will have to see if I can build that up through smaller-stakes tourneys and such so I can play in their Tuesday night blogger game more often.
I have a somewhat bigger roll on PokerStars, although it is still under $200, so I might be able to play in a few mid-level games there if I do so intelligently. Unfortunately, the blogger group that I know best doesn't seem to play much over there, or at least doesn't have regularly scheduled tourneys or games, so it isn't quite as much fun.
So, I know I won't be playing in the blogger games any time real soon. But what is on my list of things to *do* rather than *not do*?
1. Read and study more to improve my game. I know that I need to refresh my mind and memory on the proper techniques so I can make better decisions, which should help my bottom line results in the long run.
2. Work on playing my opponents more and my cards less. I really need to develop these skills a lot further if I hope to succeed at all.
3. Play more ring games and see how I do there. I want to be a well-rounded player and not narrow my focus too much onto tournaments.
4. Learn more about, and play more often in, several varieties of poker. I don't want to spread myself too thin and try to become an expert in everything, but I do want to have a decent working knowledge of multiple games and of poker in general.
5. Be more focused and in the game, and not allow myself to be distracted while playing. If I can improve at this, I'm sure it will help me perform better and, again, make better decisions.
6. Take more notes on my opponents, and use them to my advantage. I've done very little of this, although I know that it could be a huge help to me, so I need to be more disciplined about it.
How are those for New Year's resolutions? I'll bet they match those of some of the rest of the poker players in the world, and maybe some of you who read this. I wish us all luck in keeping up with them, and in becoming better poker players in 2008.
I keep records of my play, so I have a pretty good idea of my results for online play for the past year. (I have left live play out of this review because I played so little live poker.) Here are some figures that I have to chew on:
Tournaments played (SNG and scheduled): 107
Tournaments cashed: 21
Tournaments won (finished first): 3
Cash game sessions: 88
Cash game sessions where I quit with a profit: 42
I don't even know what constitutes a "good" record for cashes per tourneys played or anything like that, but I definitely lost a chunk of change, compared to the stakes I play, in tournaments in 2007. I came out just a few dollars behind for the year in cash games, but I didn't spend nearly as much time at ring games as in tourneys, so I don't think I have a good sample to know if I am better suited for ring game play than tourneys.
Here are some more telling stats:
Tournaments played with buy-in of $11.00: 22 (of the 107 total above)
Tournaments cashed with buy-in of $11.00: 4
These $11.00 games were all blogger tourneys, and my performance in them was pretty poor. Other than one charity tourney where I put in $40.00, these blogger tourneys were the highest buy-in games that I played, and therefore put the biggest dents in my bankroll. Although my cashing percentage in lower buy-in tourneys isn't much higher than for the blogger tourneys, they also don't drain my roll as much when I finish out of the money.
What does this tell me about how I am doing as a poker player, and about what I should do in the coming year?
First, I have to look at my roll. I have funds on three sites at the moment: FullTilt, PokerStars, and Bodog. I only have money on Bodog because they offered to stake me in exchange for the link on this blog; the other two sites have been funded for a while, although I needed some help to get more money onto FullTilt when that account got low. As of now, PokerStars has the most and FullTilt has the least. One significant equation that I have looked at is this:
FT is where almost all the blogger tourneys are.
Blogger tourneys cost $11.00 or more to enter.
I have less than $100 on FT now.
I don't do well in blogger tourneys.
All of these factors add up to:
I won't be playing in any blogger games on FT until I build my roll there.
I don't want to deposit any more funds on any sites right now; I would rather add to my accounts the old fashioned way: by EARNING (read: winning) it.
I have less than $100 on Bodog too, so I will have to see if I can build that up through smaller-stakes tourneys and such so I can play in their Tuesday night blogger game more often.
I have a somewhat bigger roll on PokerStars, although it is still under $200, so I might be able to play in a few mid-level games there if I do so intelligently. Unfortunately, the blogger group that I know best doesn't seem to play much over there, or at least doesn't have regularly scheduled tourneys or games, so it isn't quite as much fun.
So, I know I won't be playing in the blogger games any time real soon. But what is on my list of things to *do* rather than *not do*?
1. Read and study more to improve my game. I know that I need to refresh my mind and memory on the proper techniques so I can make better decisions, which should help my bottom line results in the long run.
2. Work on playing my opponents more and my cards less. I really need to develop these skills a lot further if I hope to succeed at all.
3. Play more ring games and see how I do there. I want to be a well-rounded player and not narrow my focus too much onto tournaments.
4. Learn more about, and play more often in, several varieties of poker. I don't want to spread myself too thin and try to become an expert in everything, but I do want to have a decent working knowledge of multiple games and of poker in general.
5. Be more focused and in the game, and not allow myself to be distracted while playing. If I can improve at this, I'm sure it will help me perform better and, again, make better decisions.
6. Take more notes on my opponents, and use them to my advantage. I've done very little of this, although I know that it could be a huge help to me, so I need to be more disciplined about it.
How are those for New Year's resolutions? I'll bet they match those of some of the rest of the poker players in the world, and maybe some of you who read this. I wish us all luck in keeping up with them, and in becoming better poker players in 2008.
Saturday, December 15, 2007
WPBT Winter Classic 2007 trip report
I've been home from the WPBT Winter Classic for five days now and, like the procrastinator that I am, I'm just now writing my recollections from the trip. Some of the memories are starting to fade from my aging brain already, so I'd better commit them to my blog before they vanish completely.
Overall, I had a great time and I'm very glad I went. The best part was meeting lots of people that I had only chatted with or heard of on line. Although I am probably going to leave some out, the roll call of new faces that I got to put with names includes Dr. Pauly, Iggy, Change100, Columbo and the Mrs., Instant Tragedy, Pokerpeaker, Falstaff, Derek, Otis, AlCan'tHang, Mean Gene, Weak Player, Penner, Blinders, Zeem, The Rooster, Mr. Subliminal, CarmenSinCity, Joe Speaker, Irish Jim, BadBlood, Bacon Bikini Mary, Mattazuma, ScottMc, Maigrey, Garthmeister, Texas April, StB, Biggestron, TraumaPoker, Waffles, Linda Geenen, CC, Johnny Hughes, CK aka B.w.o.P, and undoubtedly more whom I can't remember at the moment. Please leave me a comment if I left you out (or got your link wrong) and I will update this post. I also renewed my acquaintance with the Okie-Vegas crew that I met this summer: GCox and Carrie, Maudie, Gracie, Jordan, TripJax (and ChickJax for the first time), Katitude, and F-Train. Some of the people above, I got to spend a bit of time with; others, I managed an introduction and a handshake and that was it. But it was a pleasure meeting everyone, and I'm sorry that I didn't get to meet even more people who were there but I just plain missed.
As for the reason for the whole thing in the first place: Poker. My performance was, in a word, variable. I played the mixed games at MGM Friday night; went up for a bit, then donked off enough chips to finish my night down about half my buy-in. It was fun playing a variety of games, with a variety of players. At my table during the course of the evening I had Falstaff, Trauma, Mary, the Rooster, Linda, Jordan, and a few others. Everyone was there to have a good time and the play was fairly loose, even by a tighty like me which may well account for me finishing down as much as I did. We played Crazy Pineapple, Omaha 8, Razz, maybe Stud 8, and strangely enough, one orbit of good old fashioned Hold 'Em. All $3 - $6 Limit, thank goodness, or I think I would have had to bail out early or skip it altogether.
The Main Event tourney on Saturday at the Venetian. I decided going in that I was going to stay tight and not take any foolish chances. The structure arranged by Falstaff and the Venetian poker room allowed for being conservative and sticking around for a while. Too bad I couldn't follow my own game plan. The hand that essentially finished me went down something like this (like I said, my memory is getting worse by the hour).
The table had been playing fairly tight. Blinds were 50/100, I still had maybe 5000 of my starting stack of 6000. I was in EP and got AJ (may have both been diamonds). I raised to 400 in hopes of representing a strong hand and getting heads-up or taking the blinds. Carol (whose screen name I don't recall), two seats to my left and almost even with me in chips, called; everyone else folded. Flop had A 9 5, all hearts. I felt like I had to bet my top pair to see where I stood, so I put in around 500. I think Carol raised to about 2000. At this point, I didn't put her on the flush, as I would expect her just to call. I thought she might have another A with possibly a lower kicker than mine and she was trying to get me to fold. I called, leaving me with roughly 3000 or a little less. The turn was a J, not a heart. I caught my second pair, so I bet out. Carol went all in. I thought about it, thinking she was still trying to push me off the hand, and made the call. She turned over 99 for the flopped set. I didn't see that coming, but I should have, as her bets made sense for that holding. I just didn't run through the entire range of hands she might have had. Also, even worse, it was still early enough in the tournament that I could have folded on the turn and had plenty of chips to keep playing. That mistake is what bothers me the most about this hand. Anyhow, I didn't catch an A or J on the river. I had Carol covered by 75 chips, but I lost those a few hands later when my Kd Jd ran into Linda's AK which flopped two more Aces. So, I busted out before the second level was done. I felt really stupid after that and swore, for about the 77th time in my life, that I was done with poker, forever. That lasted about 20 minutes, until I decided to play some low-stakes Limit. I got into a $4 - 8 game which turned out to be pretty soft. I caught a few hands and won a few pots, and then Maudie joined my table after she busted out of the tourney. She did better than I did, catching some monster hands and raking some very nice pots. I only wish I could have made back my tourney buy-in, but that would have taken more time than I had. I wanted to see Second City at the Flamingo that night, so I headed down there and got a ticket to the 10:00 PM show. To kill time before that started, I played some $2-4 Limit for about an hour and a half and finished about $20 ahead. Oh yeah, Second City was great.
Sunday, I played in the noon $60 tourney at the Imperial Palace, after visiting with the blogger gang in the sports bar for a while in the morning. I didn't last long in that one either, but I feel like I just got unlucky this time. I picked up AK in MP, pushed for about 2000, and got called by the BB who showed AA. No help for me and I was out. After going back to the sports bar to watch the Cowboys come from behind to beat Detroit, I went back to the IP poker room and played some $2-4 Limit. This game was softer than the Venetian $4-8, and thanks to a few sets and other good hands that held up, I finished that long session having more than doubled my $60 buy-in. My results for the trip were in the minus column, but I found that I still know how to play poker, at least some of the time.
When I wasn't at the poker tables, I didn't spend a lot of time with the other bloggers. I hung out with the group Thursday night at the Pai Gow tables and even played a little, finishing $20 ahead for the night. Friday, I spent at the Las Vegas Hilton treating myself to an afternoon at the Star Trek Experience, going on both rides and the Backstage Tour. That really was fun for a long-time Trek fan like me. But the rest of the time, I still felt mostly like the new kid at school, not really knowing everyone else who had already been through last semester together and had their friends to hang out with. That isn't to say that anyone was aloof or unfriendly to me; the opposite is true. But I think it is not uncommon for someone who is just meeting a group of people for the first time not to integrate into that group right away. I figure that if I go to another WPBT gathering, I won't be the rookie any more and I'll fit in a little better. Still, my style doesn't match that of a lot of this group, so the hard-drinking and party-till-dawn crowd probably won't be counting me among their number, at least not for the whole weekend.
Since I got home, I have played in the Riverchasers on Thursday and the Donkament on Friday. I didn't do very well in either of them, so my FT bankroll is getting punier all the time. It looks like I will be taking a break from the regular blogger tourneys and playing smaller games to build my roll back up. (I still have some $$$ on Bodog so I will probably play in their Tuesday night blogger tourney at least some of the time.) Meanwhile, I'll be reading my favorite poker blogs to keep up with what's going on in our little corner of the world.
To anyone reading this who was in Vegas last weekend: Thanks for the great time! I hope everyone had as much fun as I did, or more. See you at another one soon!
Overall, I had a great time and I'm very glad I went. The best part was meeting lots of people that I had only chatted with or heard of on line. Although I am probably going to leave some out, the roll call of new faces that I got to put with names includes Dr. Pauly, Iggy, Change100, Columbo and the Mrs., Instant Tragedy, Pokerpeaker, Falstaff, Derek, Otis, AlCan'tHang, Mean Gene, Weak Player, Penner, Blinders, Zeem, The Rooster, Mr. Subliminal, CarmenSinCity, Joe Speaker, Irish Jim, BadBlood, Bacon Bikini Mary, Mattazuma, ScottMc, Maigrey, Garthmeister, Texas April, StB, Biggestron, TraumaPoker, Waffles, Linda Geenen, CC, Johnny Hughes, CK aka B.w.o.P, and undoubtedly more whom I can't remember at the moment. Please leave me a comment if I left you out (or got your link wrong) and I will update this post. I also renewed my acquaintance with the Okie-Vegas crew that I met this summer: GCox and Carrie, Maudie, Gracie, Jordan, TripJax (and ChickJax for the first time), Katitude, and F-Train. Some of the people above, I got to spend a bit of time with; others, I managed an introduction and a handshake and that was it. But it was a pleasure meeting everyone, and I'm sorry that I didn't get to meet even more people who were there but I just plain missed.
As for the reason for the whole thing in the first place: Poker. My performance was, in a word, variable. I played the mixed games at MGM Friday night; went up for a bit, then donked off enough chips to finish my night down about half my buy-in. It was fun playing a variety of games, with a variety of players. At my table during the course of the evening I had Falstaff, Trauma, Mary, the Rooster, Linda, Jordan, and a few others. Everyone was there to have a good time and the play was fairly loose, even by a tighty like me which may well account for me finishing down as much as I did. We played Crazy Pineapple, Omaha 8, Razz, maybe Stud 8, and strangely enough, one orbit of good old fashioned Hold 'Em. All $3 - $6 Limit, thank goodness, or I think I would have had to bail out early or skip it altogether.
The Main Event tourney on Saturday at the Venetian. I decided going in that I was going to stay tight and not take any foolish chances. The structure arranged by Falstaff and the Venetian poker room allowed for being conservative and sticking around for a while. Too bad I couldn't follow my own game plan. The hand that essentially finished me went down something like this (like I said, my memory is getting worse by the hour).
The table had been playing fairly tight. Blinds were 50/100, I still had maybe 5000 of my starting stack of 6000. I was in EP and got AJ (may have both been diamonds). I raised to 400 in hopes of representing a strong hand and getting heads-up or taking the blinds. Carol (whose screen name I don't recall), two seats to my left and almost even with me in chips, called; everyone else folded. Flop had A 9 5, all hearts. I felt like I had to bet my top pair to see where I stood, so I put in around 500. I think Carol raised to about 2000. At this point, I didn't put her on the flush, as I would expect her just to call. I thought she might have another A with possibly a lower kicker than mine and she was trying to get me to fold. I called, leaving me with roughly 3000 or a little less. The turn was a J, not a heart. I caught my second pair, so I bet out. Carol went all in. I thought about it, thinking she was still trying to push me off the hand, and made the call. She turned over 99 for the flopped set. I didn't see that coming, but I should have, as her bets made sense for that holding. I just didn't run through the entire range of hands she might have had. Also, even worse, it was still early enough in the tournament that I could have folded on the turn and had plenty of chips to keep playing. That mistake is what bothers me the most about this hand. Anyhow, I didn't catch an A or J on the river. I had Carol covered by 75 chips, but I lost those a few hands later when my Kd Jd ran into Linda's AK which flopped two more Aces. So, I busted out before the second level was done. I felt really stupid after that and swore, for about the 77th time in my life, that I was done with poker, forever. That lasted about 20 minutes, until I decided to play some low-stakes Limit. I got into a $4 - 8 game which turned out to be pretty soft. I caught a few hands and won a few pots, and then Maudie joined my table after she busted out of the tourney. She did better than I did, catching some monster hands and raking some very nice pots. I only wish I could have made back my tourney buy-in, but that would have taken more time than I had. I wanted to see Second City at the Flamingo that night, so I headed down there and got a ticket to the 10:00 PM show. To kill time before that started, I played some $2-4 Limit for about an hour and a half and finished about $20 ahead. Oh yeah, Second City was great.
Sunday, I played in the noon $60 tourney at the Imperial Palace, after visiting with the blogger gang in the sports bar for a while in the morning. I didn't last long in that one either, but I feel like I just got unlucky this time. I picked up AK in MP, pushed for about 2000, and got called by the BB who showed AA. No help for me and I was out. After going back to the sports bar to watch the Cowboys come from behind to beat Detroit, I went back to the IP poker room and played some $2-4 Limit. This game was softer than the Venetian $4-8, and thanks to a few sets and other good hands that held up, I finished that long session having more than doubled my $60 buy-in. My results for the trip were in the minus column, but I found that I still know how to play poker, at least some of the time.
When I wasn't at the poker tables, I didn't spend a lot of time with the other bloggers. I hung out with the group Thursday night at the Pai Gow tables and even played a little, finishing $20 ahead for the night. Friday, I spent at the Las Vegas Hilton treating myself to an afternoon at the Star Trek Experience, going on both rides and the Backstage Tour. That really was fun for a long-time Trek fan like me. But the rest of the time, I still felt mostly like the new kid at school, not really knowing everyone else who had already been through last semester together and had their friends to hang out with. That isn't to say that anyone was aloof or unfriendly to me; the opposite is true. But I think it is not uncommon for someone who is just meeting a group of people for the first time not to integrate into that group right away. I figure that if I go to another WPBT gathering, I won't be the rookie any more and I'll fit in a little better. Still, my style doesn't match that of a lot of this group, so the hard-drinking and party-till-dawn crowd probably won't be counting me among their number, at least not for the whole weekend.
Since I got home, I have played in the Riverchasers on Thursday and the Donkament on Friday. I didn't do very well in either of them, so my FT bankroll is getting punier all the time. It looks like I will be taking a break from the regular blogger tourneys and playing smaller games to build my roll back up. (I still have some $$$ on Bodog so I will probably play in their Tuesday night blogger tourney at least some of the time.) Meanwhile, I'll be reading my favorite poker blogs to keep up with what's going on in our little corner of the world.
To anyone reading this who was in Vegas last weekend: Thanks for the great time! I hope everyone had as much fun as I did, or more. See you at another one soon!
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Tuesday night blogger tourney at Bodog
I will have a report about my trip to Las Vegas for the WPBT Winter Classic soon. In the meanwhile, check this out:
I have heard about a blogger tournament on Bodog which is held every Tuesday night, and I may be joining in soon. Here are some details....
Play Bodog’s Online Poker Blogger Tournament Tuesday Nights!
If you are 1 of the 5 money bubblers, you’ll have your $11 buy-in refunded and if you finish in the top 5 you will win an entry for Bodog’s Sunday $100K Guaranteed tournament.
This tournament runs weekly on Tuesday evenings and requires a password for entry.
Tournament Details
If you haven’t played at the Bodog Poker Room before, please download and install the FREE software client at: http://poker.bodoglife.com/how-to-play/download-poker.html. It only takes minutes!
If you’re not yet a Bodog member, sign up for your FREE account by clicking the “Join Now” button in the Poker Room client.
Getting Started At The Bodog Online Poker Room
http://poker.bodoglife.com/how-to-play/getting-started.html
If you need assistance with signing up for the tournament or with starting a Bodog Account please call or email:
Bodog Poker Customer Service Number: 1-866-909-2237
Bodog Poker Customer Service Email: poker@bodoglife.com
Bodog Poker - New Design, New Look!
http://www.calvinayrelife.com/bodog-poker-new-software-new-look.html
Bodog Poker – A Name You Can Trust!
http://poker.bodoglife.com/how-to-play/shuffle-certification.html
BoDonkey Poker Blogger Tournament Banner
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2036/1801232650_1ecf43fb1f.jpg
Featuring the Bodacious Bodog Girl Izabella.
Read daily tournament updates at tournament host site http://www.smokkee.com/
Latest update: “Bodog has record turn out for online poker blogger tournament!”
Bodog will continue to run this tournament on Tuesday nights into the New Year and increase prizes as well as turn this into a poker league with an ongoing leader board.
Live The Life in Las Vegas Contest at Bodog
Enter to win an exclusive trip to Las Vegas and experience the life.
Entrants are automatically entered to win an iPhone in Bodog's weekly giveaway.
What are YOU waiting for? Enter now at http://www.livethelifecontest.com/
I have heard about a blogger tournament on Bodog which is held every Tuesday night, and I may be joining in soon. Here are some details....
Play Bodog’s Online Poker Blogger Tournament Tuesday Nights!
Bodog invites Poker Bloggers to play in its Online Poker Blogger Tournament with a total of $600 in bonus money.
If you are 1 of the 5 money bubblers, you’ll have your $11 buy-in refunded and if you finish in the top 5 you will win an entry for Bodog’s Sunday $100K Guaranteed tournament.
This tournament runs weekly on Tuesday evenings and requires a password for entry.
Tournament Details
- Day of week: Tuesday Nights
- Start time: 8:35pm ET
- Tournament Name: “Online Poker Blogger Tournament” at Bodog
- Entry Password: bodogblogger
- Buy-in + fee: $10 + $1
- Starting Chips: 3000 (Double Stack)
- Payout: Standard Bodog payout structure
- Bonuses:
- T$109 bonus paid to the top 5 finishers.
- T$11 bonus paid to the 5 players that are eliminated prior to payouts.
- These bonuses will be awarded within 24hrs of the tournament completion.
- T$ = Tournament Credits. These can be used as a buy in to almost all scheduled tournaments at Bodog and have a ratio to cash of 1:1.
- T$ can also be combined with cash to buy in to tournaments.
If you haven’t played at the Bodog Poker Room before, please download and install the FREE software client at: http://poker.bodoglife.com/how-to-play/download-poker.html. It only takes minutes!
If you’re not yet a Bodog member, sign up for your FREE account by clicking the “Join Now” button in the Poker Room client.
Getting Started At The Bodog Online Poker Room
http://poker.bodoglife.com/how-to-play/getting-started.html
If you need assistance with signing up for the tournament or with starting a Bodog Account please call or email:
Bodog Poker Customer Service Number: 1-866-909-2237
Bodog Poker Customer Service Email: poker@bodoglife.com
Bodog Poker - New Design, New Look!
http://www.calvinayrelife.com/bodog-poker-new-software-new-look.html
Bodog Poker – A Name You Can Trust!
http://poker.bodoglife.com/how-to-play/shuffle-certification.html
BoDonkey Poker Blogger Tournament Banner
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2036/1801232650_1ecf43fb1f.jpg
Featuring the Bodacious Bodog Girl Izabella.
Read daily tournament updates at tournament host site http://www.smokkee.com/
Latest update: “Bodog has record turn out for online poker blogger tournament!”
Bodog will continue to run this tournament on Tuesday nights into the New Year and increase prizes as well as turn this into a poker league with an ongoing leader board.
Cheers and may the best online poker blogger win!
Live The Life in Las Vegas Contest at Bodog
Enter to win an exclusive trip to Las Vegas and experience the life.
Entrants are automatically entered to win an iPhone in Bodog's weekly giveaway.
What are YOU waiting for? Enter now at http://www.livethelifecontest.com/
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Countdown to the Winter Classic
First up, what's been happening in my poker world lately?
Not much. Since my last entry, I played in the Mookie twice (75th out of 112, and 45th out of 90, ugh) and a few 2-table SNGs where I had some success: 3 tourneys, 2 cashes (1 second place, 1 third place). I also played some micro NLHE cash games. I came out behind in both sessions, but that didn't surprise me because my NL cash game sucks. I thought I should try to shake the rust off because I expect that a lot of the bloggers will want to play some NLHE next weekend, and I'd like to join in and not donate all my chips in the first orbit. But if there is any low stakes Limit playing going on, I'll be taking some of that action. Oh, last night I played in the APL weekly tourney at my nearby venue. 11th out of about 24, good for a handful of points in their system. I wanted to get some live action in before the trip, even if it wasn't for real money.
I've been saving up some dough and should be able to bring enough to allow me to play a few rounds of poker, buy a nice meal or two, see a few attractions and generally have a good time without worrying about whether I will be able to fill up my gas tank when I get home. I'm still open to anyone who wants to join me for some non-gambling diversions, so let me know in comments or e-mail if you want to do some of that stuff.
I've been thinking about what I want to project in the way of an "image" when I go to the Winter Classic. I have only met a few of the people that will be there, when I went to Okie-Vegas in July, so most of the folks I will be meeting only know me from playing with me on line, if they have even heard of me at all. I will probably just be myself and play my usual game. But I am toying with the idea of putting on a front for the games with the (other) tourists, just to see how I like it and if it makes any difference in how things go. I might take on the role of the good-ol'-boy from Texas, being everybody's friend and acting like poker is just a lark, while in reality playing the best I know how. That ought to be fun, for me and maybe for the others at the table. Besides that, I know that, as long as I don't forget it, I plan to bring something that I hope will get a chuckle or two from my blogger friends. Especially the geekier ones.
See you all in eight days!
Not much. Since my last entry, I played in the Mookie twice (75th out of 112, and 45th out of 90, ugh) and a few 2-table SNGs where I had some success: 3 tourneys, 2 cashes (1 second place, 1 third place). I also played some micro NLHE cash games. I came out behind in both sessions, but that didn't surprise me because my NL cash game sucks. I thought I should try to shake the rust off because I expect that a lot of the bloggers will want to play some NLHE next weekend, and I'd like to join in and not donate all my chips in the first orbit. But if there is any low stakes Limit playing going on, I'll be taking some of that action. Oh, last night I played in the APL weekly tourney at my nearby venue. 11th out of about 24, good for a handful of points in their system. I wanted to get some live action in before the trip, even if it wasn't for real money.
I've been saving up some dough and should be able to bring enough to allow me to play a few rounds of poker, buy a nice meal or two, see a few attractions and generally have a good time without worrying about whether I will be able to fill up my gas tank when I get home. I'm still open to anyone who wants to join me for some non-gambling diversions, so let me know in comments or e-mail if you want to do some of that stuff.
I've been thinking about what I want to project in the way of an "image" when I go to the Winter Classic. I have only met a few of the people that will be there, when I went to Okie-Vegas in July, so most of the folks I will be meeting only know me from playing with me on line, if they have even heard of me at all. I will probably just be myself and play my usual game. But I am toying with the idea of putting on a front for the games with the (other) tourists, just to see how I like it and if it makes any difference in how things go. I might take on the role of the good-ol'-boy from Texas, being everybody's friend and acting like poker is just a lark, while in reality playing the best I know how. That ought to be fun, for me and maybe for the others at the table. Besides that, I know that, as long as I don't forget it, I plan to bring something that I hope will get a chuckle or two from my blogger friends. Especially the geekier ones.
See you all in eight days!
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
No Exit, and Las Vegas side trips
Here is another example of one of those hands where you are doomed from the start.
Final table of a 2-table, $2 +0.25 SNG at FullTilt. Blinds are 300/600, no ante.
Seat 4: bro72997 (14,995)
Seat 6: yestbay1 (8,470)
Seat 8: Skimmer133 (3,535)
Skimmer133 posts the small blind of 300
bro72997 posts the big blind of 600
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to yestbay1 [Ks Kc]
Naturally, I want to get as many chips in the middle as I can without scaring anyone away, so I min-raise to 1,200.
Skimmer133 thinks about it, then raises to 1,800. Then, faster than you can say, "I've got a hand":
bro72997 raises to 14,995, and is all in
yestbay1 calls 7,270, and is all in
Skimmer133 calls 1,735, and is all in
Skimmer133 shows Qs Qh
bro72997 shows As Kd
My cowboys are ahead, but.....
*** FLOP *** [Ad 8c Ah]
*** TURN *** [Ad 8c Ah] [5s]
*** RIVER *** [Ad 8c Ah 5s] [Jh]
So I finish second for a $10.80 payoff. Damn, but I hate getting my KK cracked with only three players left. But what are you going to do? About the only thing I would have expected to see different is for the QQ to push right away instead of min-re-raising me. No doubt he was trying to suck his opponents in the way I was. Such is poker.
On a different note, while I am in Las Vegas for the WPBT Winter Classic next month, I plan to get away from the poker tables for at least a little while (heresy, I know) and do some touristy, geeky stuff while I am there. I would be glad for some fellow travelers to join me on some of my non-gambling adventures. Here is a list of some of the diversions I am considering spending my money on before I donk it all away:
Star Trek: The Experience, at the Las Vegas Hilton (yeah, I'm a Trek geek, so?)
Stratosphere Tower (I'm staying at the hotel so this is almost a sure thing)
Eiffel Tower, Paris (haven't been up in it yet, will this be the trip that I do it?)
Manhattan Express roller coaster, New York New York (done this before, ready to go again)
Second City show, Flamingo (I've wanted to see them for a while, maybe Sat. night?)
T.I. pirate battle, Fremont St. Experience, whatever else strikes my fancy if there is time
I think Falstaff is planning a drive out to the Valley of Fire on Sunday, and there is a good chance I will join in on that. I will have a rental car and should be able to take a few passengers, for those interested.
If you will be in Vegas for the Classic and have any interest in doing any of this stuff, or have ideas of your own to share, leave me a comment or e-mail me at david DOT westbay AT verizon DOT net. We'll work out the details either before the big weekend, or when we get there. I am registered on Falstaff's sign-up sheet, so you can find my cell phone number there if you are on it too. If you aren't, go here to get the skinny.
Oh, I played in the Riverchasers tourney again last week. Finished 57th out of 96. I was very card dead the entire game and couldn't gain any traction. But I had a good time and will be playing again in the weeks to come as my schedule and bankroll allow. See you there or maybe in the Mookie!
Final table of a 2-table, $2 +0.25 SNG at FullTilt. Blinds are 300/600, no ante.
Seat 4: bro72997 (14,995)
Seat 6: yestbay1 (8,470)
Seat 8: Skimmer133 (3,535)
Skimmer133 posts the small blind of 300
bro72997 posts the big blind of 600
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to yestbay1 [Ks Kc]
Naturally, I want to get as many chips in the middle as I can without scaring anyone away, so I min-raise to 1,200.
Skimmer133 thinks about it, then raises to 1,800. Then, faster than you can say, "I've got a hand":
bro72997 raises to 14,995, and is all in
yestbay1 calls 7,270, and is all in
Skimmer133 calls 1,735, and is all in
Skimmer133 shows Qs Qh
bro72997 shows As Kd
My cowboys are ahead, but.....
*** FLOP *** [Ad 8c Ah]
*** TURN *** [Ad 8c Ah] [5s]
*** RIVER *** [Ad 8c Ah 5s] [Jh]
So I finish second for a $10.80 payoff. Damn, but I hate getting my KK cracked with only three players left. But what are you going to do? About the only thing I would have expected to see different is for the QQ to push right away instead of min-re-raising me. No doubt he was trying to suck his opponents in the way I was. Such is poker.
On a different note, while I am in Las Vegas for the WPBT Winter Classic next month, I plan to get away from the poker tables for at least a little while (heresy, I know) and do some touristy, geeky stuff while I am there. I would be glad for some fellow travelers to join me on some of my non-gambling adventures. Here is a list of some of the diversions I am considering spending my money on before I donk it all away:
Star Trek: The Experience, at the Las Vegas Hilton (yeah, I'm a Trek geek, so?)
Stratosphere Tower (I'm staying at the hotel so this is almost a sure thing)
Eiffel Tower, Paris (haven't been up in it yet, will this be the trip that I do it?)
Manhattan Express roller coaster, New York New York (done this before, ready to go again)
Second City show, Flamingo (I've wanted to see them for a while, maybe Sat. night?)
T.I. pirate battle, Fremont St. Experience, whatever else strikes my fancy if there is time
I think Falstaff is planning a drive out to the Valley of Fire on Sunday, and there is a good chance I will join in on that. I will have a rental car and should be able to take a few passengers, for those interested.
If you will be in Vegas for the Classic and have any interest in doing any of this stuff, or have ideas of your own to share, leave me a comment or e-mail me at david DOT westbay AT verizon DOT net. We'll work out the details either before the big weekend, or when we get there. I am registered on Falstaff's sign-up sheet, so you can find my cell phone number there if you are on it too. If you aren't, go here to get the skinny.
Oh, I played in the Riverchasers tourney again last week. Finished 57th out of 96. I was very card dead the entire game and couldn't gain any traction. But I had a good time and will be playing again in the weeks to come as my schedule and bankroll allow. See you there or maybe in the Mookie!
Wednesdays
Thursdays
Monday, October 29, 2007
Frustration sets in
I played quite a bit over the past several days. I have been trying to win a $26 token on FullTilt to get me into either the Mookie or Mondays at the Hoy. Out of four tries, one $6 + 0.50 token frenzy and three $8 + 0.70 2-table SNGs, I have exactly zero tokens to show for my efforts. I know of at least one completely moronic play that cost me dearly in one of the SNGs (pushing with 99 to a reraise on a K-high flop), and another play that was almost as bad (calling a BB reraise preflop with A8 in the SB; he had 77). If I had played well and just not caught the cards I needed, it wouldn't be as frustrating, but knowing that I blew it all by myself makes it a bit harder to take.
I did play in the Riverchasers game last Thursday, though, and actually made it to the money! For my $10 + 1 investment, I finished in 18th place out of 104 and took home a whopping $10.40. Hey, at least I got almost my whole buy-in back. Who comes up with these payout amounts, anyway?
Now that I have run through almost 1/3 of my recent bankroll boost, it is time to go back to the micro SNGs and try to score some cashes there to build my roll back up. I still may play in the Riverchasers since the buy-in is only $10 + 1 and I was able to add another deposit through a swap. But I have decided that I don't want to buy my way into the $24 + 2 tourneys; it will eat up my stake too fast. I'm sure that I can score some tokens with smarter play, so I will be trying those again, hopefully before too long. I would like to score some more points in the Battle of the Bloggers series, even if my chances of winning the Aussie Millions prize are about as good as getting dealt a royal flush in my first five cards ten hands in a row.
I did play in the Riverchasers game last Thursday, though, and actually made it to the money! For my $10 + 1 investment, I finished in 18th place out of 104 and took home a whopping $10.40. Hey, at least I got almost my whole buy-in back. Who comes up with these payout amounts, anyway?
Now that I have run through almost 1/3 of my recent bankroll boost, it is time to go back to the micro SNGs and try to score some cashes there to build my roll back up. I still may play in the Riverchasers since the buy-in is only $10 + 1 and I was able to add another deposit through a swap. But I have decided that I don't want to buy my way into the $24 + 2 tourneys; it will eat up my stake too fast. I'm sure that I can score some tokens with smarter play, so I will be trying those again, hopefully before too long. I would like to score some more points in the Battle of the Bloggers series, even if my chances of winning the Aussie Millions prize are about as good as getting dealt a royal flush in my first five cards ten hands in a row.
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Starting up again at FullTilt
With the help of a friend, I got some money into FullTilt. I didn't deposit a lot; just enough to let me play some low buy-in tourneys including some token tourneys or SNGs in hopes of winning a token or two that I would use to enter some of the blogger tourneys.
So far, I'm not making much progress. Since making my deposit, I have entered two $2 + 0.25 two-table SNGs, and one $6 + 0.50 token frenzy. I finished 8th and 6th in the SNGs and 95th out of 189 in the token frenzy. I feel like my play was not bad in these tourneys, but the cards weren't running in my favor much. In the SNG tonight, I sucked out once and avoided a suckout on another hand to stay alive as long as I did.
I am going to continue to play the small stakes games to work on building up my bankroll and trying again in the token tourneys. I may play in one of the $10 + 1 blogger games, but that will put a dent in my roll if I don't cash, and I don't want to run through this deposit too fast. I am playing my usual tight game, being selectively aggressive where it counts. It is possible that I am playing a bit scared, but I'd rather tighten up a little extra than take crazy risks in hopes of scoring big.
So far, I'm not making much progress. Since making my deposit, I have entered two $2 + 0.25 two-table SNGs, and one $6 + 0.50 token frenzy. I finished 8th and 6th in the SNGs and 95th out of 189 in the token frenzy. I feel like my play was not bad in these tourneys, but the cards weren't running in my favor much. In the SNG tonight, I sucked out once and avoided a suckout on another hand to stay alive as long as I did.
I am going to continue to play the small stakes games to work on building up my bankroll and trying again in the token tourneys. I may play in one of the $10 + 1 blogger games, but that will put a dent in my roll if I don't cash, and I don't want to run through this deposit too fast. I am playing my usual tight game, being selectively aggressive where it counts. It is possible that I am playing a bit scared, but I'd rather tighten up a little extra than take crazy risks in hopes of scoring big.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Give and Take
Some of my poker adventures of recent note:
I played in an APL tourney last week for the first time in a while; finished fifth. Mostly played tight while everyone else donked it up. On my last hand, I had Q7o in the BB, blinds were 2,000/4,000 and I had 8,000 left after posting my blind. UTG calls, the other players fold, I check. Flop comes Q - A - x. Although I didn't like the A, I knew I had to push with my pair of queens. Of course the villain had an Ace, and I didn't improve. C'est la poker.
World Blogger Championship of Online Poker (WBCOOP) on PokerStars - I was one of the 1,337 entrants in this tourney, and I had a good time playing. I got a lot of good starting hands early, but they didn't always get me many chips. I had AK several times, including one of the weirdest hands I have ever played:
Blinds are 50/100. I have 8,275 of my original 10,000 chips. UTG, I pick up Ah Ks and raise it to 400. Next 3 players fold. NeillyAA, with 6,275 chips, calls me, everyone else folds.
Flop: Kd 9d Qh. With TPTK, I bet 700, NeillyAA raises 950. Could he have JT for the made straight? Not out of the question, but I don't want to throw away top pair on that unlikely possibility. He could have two pair or a set, so I could easily have been behind at this point. So what do I do? I call. Perhaps not the smartest play I could have made if I had thought it through. In hindsight, I probably should have bet the pot instead of 700, because of the straight and flush draws on that flop. But that might not have prevented the raise anyway.
Turn: Kc. I bet 1300 on my trips, NeillyAA shoves with his last 4225 chips. I have him covered, and I just don't feel like I am beat here although there were lots of ways I could have been, such as if he had 99 or QQ or the aforementioned JT. So, not giving him credit for his possible winning hands, I call.
He turns up 6s 4s. I haven't seen a bluff more stone cold than that. The river is the 2h and I take the pot of 12,700.
Considering that I wasn't showing any signs of giving up my hand, I can't figure out why he would think that he could bluff me out on the turn. The next best explanation I can come up with is that he wanted to get out of the game and go do something else.
I went on to finish 383rd in the tourney. Not even close to my 26th place finish last year, and nowhere near the prizes, but I enjoyed playing, and railbirding some of my fellow bloggers who were in. Surflexus and BadBlood both made it deep and won 160 GB iPods, which is quite an upgrade from the 4 GB one that I won last year. Congrats to them both!
I also entered the Monkey Tourney last night. Out of 11 runners, I finished all the way up in 7th place. I did OK most of the way, managing to build up my stack and make a few decent plays. The fateful hand went something like this:
Seven players, blinds 75/150. I have 2235 before I post the SB. I wake up with Ah Kh. It's folded to me, and I raise to 450. Surflexus, with 3037, calls in the BB.
Flop: 2c Qh Th. I have the royal flush draw, which looks mighty pretty, but nothing else yet. Worth a bet, though, eh? I put out 550; surf raises to 1100. Even if he has paired one of the board cards, any A, K, J or heart could be an out for me, so I call.
Turn: Ad. Now I have top pair, top kicker, plus my draws. I only have 685 left, so I push, and surf instacalls. He shows Ks Js for the turned straight. Turns out the Aces weren't outs for me after all. A Jack would split the pot, a heart would win it for me.
River: Qc. None of my outs comes through, and I bust. A bit of a stunner, but I've had much worse beats laid on me. I'm not sure how I could have played it any differently; I was probably doomed from the start of the hand, unless I raise even more preflop and surf folds then.
I'm considering having a friend help me add some money at FullTilt, so I can play in some of the blogger games there. Except for the Monkey Tourney, all of the blogger tourneys seem to be on FT, and I don't get to hang out with everyone since I don't have enough on FT for the buy-ins. Plus the Battle of the Bloggers Tournament 2 is starting up over there, which should make the various tourneys that count towards it even more fun. See AlCan'tHang's blog for more info on the BBT2.
I played in an APL tourney last week for the first time in a while; finished fifth. Mostly played tight while everyone else donked it up. On my last hand, I had Q7o in the BB, blinds were 2,000/4,000 and I had 8,000 left after posting my blind. UTG calls, the other players fold, I check. Flop comes Q - A - x. Although I didn't like the A, I knew I had to push with my pair of queens. Of course the villain had an Ace, and I didn't improve. C'est la poker.
World Blogger Championship of Online Poker (WBCOOP) on PokerStars - I was one of the 1,337 entrants in this tourney, and I had a good time playing. I got a lot of good starting hands early, but they didn't always get me many chips. I had AK several times, including one of the weirdest hands I have ever played:
Blinds are 50/100. I have 8,275 of my original 10,000 chips. UTG, I pick up Ah Ks and raise it to 400. Next 3 players fold. NeillyAA, with 6,275 chips, calls me, everyone else folds.
Flop: Kd 9d Qh. With TPTK, I bet 700, NeillyAA raises 950. Could he have JT for the made straight? Not out of the question, but I don't want to throw away top pair on that unlikely possibility. He could have two pair or a set, so I could easily have been behind at this point. So what do I do? I call. Perhaps not the smartest play I could have made if I had thought it through. In hindsight, I probably should have bet the pot instead of 700, because of the straight and flush draws on that flop. But that might not have prevented the raise anyway.
Turn: Kc. I bet 1300 on my trips, NeillyAA shoves with his last 4225 chips. I have him covered, and I just don't feel like I am beat here although there were lots of ways I could have been, such as if he had 99 or QQ or the aforementioned JT. So, not giving him credit for his possible winning hands, I call.
He turns up 6s 4s. I haven't seen a bluff more stone cold than that. The river is the 2h and I take the pot of 12,700.
Considering that I wasn't showing any signs of giving up my hand, I can't figure out why he would think that he could bluff me out on the turn. The next best explanation I can come up with is that he wanted to get out of the game and go do something else.
I went on to finish 383rd in the tourney. Not even close to my 26th place finish last year, and nowhere near the prizes, but I enjoyed playing, and railbirding some of my fellow bloggers who were in. Surflexus and BadBlood both made it deep and won 160 GB iPods, which is quite an upgrade from the 4 GB one that I won last year. Congrats to them both!
I also entered the Monkey Tourney last night. Out of 11 runners, I finished all the way up in 7th place. I did OK most of the way, managing to build up my stack and make a few decent plays. The fateful hand went something like this:
Seven players, blinds 75/150. I have 2235 before I post the SB. I wake up with Ah Kh. It's folded to me, and I raise to 450. Surflexus, with 3037, calls in the BB.
Flop: 2c Qh Th. I have the royal flush draw, which looks mighty pretty, but nothing else yet. Worth a bet, though, eh? I put out 550; surf raises to 1100. Even if he has paired one of the board cards, any A, K, J or heart could be an out for me, so I call.
Turn: Ad. Now I have top pair, top kicker, plus my draws. I only have 685 left, so I push, and surf instacalls. He shows Ks Js for the turned straight. Turns out the Aces weren't outs for me after all. A Jack would split the pot, a heart would win it for me.
River: Qc. None of my outs comes through, and I bust. A bit of a stunner, but I've had much worse beats laid on me. I'm not sure how I could have played it any differently; I was probably doomed from the start of the hand, unless I raise even more preflop and surf folds then.
I'm considering having a friend help me add some money at FullTilt, so I can play in some of the blogger games there. Except for the Monkey Tourney, all of the blogger tourneys seem to be on FT, and I don't get to hang out with everyone since I don't have enough on FT for the buy-ins. Plus the Battle of the Bloggers Tournament 2 is starting up over there, which should make the various tourneys that count towards it even more fun. See AlCan'tHang's blog for more info on the BBT2.
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
Just call me the "new" Luckbox
Last night in the Monkey Tourney on PokerStars, I had more suckouts than I have ever seen in one session of online poker. It was incredible what the PokerStars RNG was dealing me, and I rode the streak of luck to second place, my best finish ever in a Monkey Tourney or WWdN tourney.
A couple of examples:
PokerStars Game #12403376911: Tournament #62929419, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level II (15/30) - 2007/10/02 - 20:48:02 (ET)
Table '62929419 2' 9-max Seat #6 is the button
Seat 1: 65 pony boy (1040 in chips)
Seat 2: ISS Spock (3300 in chips)
Seat 3: yestbay1 (1335 in chips)
Seat 4: FishyMcDonK (2795 in chips)
Seat 5: ricoM (1940 in chips)
Seat 6: tree4twenty (2035 in chips)
Seat 7: JOHN-E-FLUSH (3120 in chips)
Seat 8: ringo6624 (1335 in chips)
Seat 9: 32midnight (1100 in chips)
JOHN-E-FLUSH: posts small blind 15
ringo6624: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to yestbay1 [Kh Qs]
32midnight: folds
65 pony boy: folds
ISS Spock: calls 30
yestbay1: raises 90 to 120
FishyMcDonK: folds
ricoM: raises 90 to 210
tree4twenty: folds
JOHN-E-FLUSH: folds
ringo6624: folds
ISS Spock: folds
yestbay1: calls 90
*** FLOP *** [Ks 3h Td]
yestbay1: bets 360 (gotta bet TP here, right?)
ricoM: raises 360 to 720 (should have smelled a rat here)
yestbay1: raises 360 to 1080 (in case he is trying to push me off the hand)
ricoM: raises 360 to 1440 (well, I'm committed now)
yestbay1: calls 45 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [Ks 3h Td] [2s]
*** RIVER *** [Ks 3h Td 2s] [Qd]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
yestbay1: shows [Kh Qs] (two pair, Kings and Queens)
ricoM: shows [As Ac] (a pair of Aces)
yestbay1 collected 2745 from pot
ricoM said, "nh"
I didn't stop to think that ricoM might have Aces there; a recurring fault of mine, not putting my opponent on a hand based on their betting patterns. I should have considered folding to his reraise, or just calling, or at least I should have given it a lot more thought than I did. Instead, it took a river suckout to keep me alive.
Next, another questionable call by me:
PokerStars Game #12404271698: Tournament #62929419, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level V (75/150) - 2007/10/02 - 21:36:22 (ET)
Table '62929419 2' 9-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: 65 pony boy (2505 in chips)
Seat 2: ISS Spock (1250 in chips)
Seat 3: yestbay1 (2327 in chips)
Seat 4: FishyMcDonK (4135 in chips)
Seat 5: ricoM (4643 in chips)
Seat 6: tree4twenty (3140 in chips)
ISS Spock: posts small blind 75
yestbay1: posts big blind 150
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to yestbay1 [Ah Jd]
FishyMcDonK: folds
ricoM: folds
tree4twenty: folds
65 pony boy: folds
ISS Spock: raises 250 to 400
yestbay1: calls 250 (hoping to hit the flop)
*** FLOP *** [Jc Kh 2s] (second pair, not bad but there's an overcard, watch out!)
ISS Spock: bets 850 and is all-in
(I have him covered, but if he has a K, I'm hurting. So what do I do?)
yestbay1: calls 850
*** TURN *** [Jc Kh 2s] [5s]
*** RIVER *** [Jc Kh 2s 5s] [Jh]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ISS Spock: shows [Qd Qc] (two pair, Queens and Jacks)
yestbay1: shows [Ah Jd] (three of a kind, Jacks)
yestbay1 said, "oh man"
yestbay1 collected 2500 from pot
ISS Spock [observer] said, "..."
Once again, I can't get away from a second-best hand, which lucks into a winner on the river.
On this one, I think my play was good, but I still had to catch perfect to take the hand, and, well.....
PokerStars Game #12404606266: Tournament #62929419, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level VI (100/200) - 2007/10/02 - 21:54:08 (ET)
Table '62929419 2' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 1: 65 pony boy (11096 in chips)
Seat 3: yestbay1 (6904 in chips)
yestbay1: posts small blind 100
65 pony boy: posts big blind 200
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to yestbay1 [Ks 5s]
yestbay1: raises 400 to 600
65 pony boy: raises 400 to 1000
yestbay1: calls 400
*** FLOP *** [Kh Ts 5h] (hot damn, two pair, heads up, I'm gold)
65 pony boy: checks
yestbay1: bets 1200 (don't overdo it, hope for the call)
65 pony boy: raises 2200 to 3400 (he probably has a K with a good kicker)
yestbay1: raises 2504 to 5904 and is all-in
65 pony boy: calls 2504 (and shows Kc Tc, for top two vs. my top & bottom)
*** TURN *** [Kh Ts 5h] [5d] (Yahtzee!)
*** RIVER *** [Kh Ts 5h 5d] [Ad]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
65 pony boy: shows [Tc Kc] (two pair, Kings and Tens)
yestbay1: shows [Ks 5s] (a full house, Fives full of Kings)
65 pony boy said, "wow"
yestbay1 said, "good god"
yestbay1 collected 13808 from pot
65 pony boy said, "awesome"
My next chat comments were:
yestbay1 said, "this sucks"
yestbay1 said, "it means I'm using up all my luck in one night"
A few hands later, the tables were turned:
PokerStars Game #12404650696: Tournament #62929419, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level VI (100/200) - 2007/10/02 - 21:56:31 (ET)
Table '62929419 2' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 1: 65 pony boy (3992 in chips)
Seat 3: yestbay1 (14008 in chips)
yestbay1: posts small blind 100
65 pony boy: posts big blind 200
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to yestbay1 [3c Kc]
yestbay1: raises 400 to 600
65 pony boy: calls 400
*** FLOP *** [3s 5d 2d]
65 pony boy: checks
yestbay1: bets 1200
65 pony boy: raises 2192 to 3392 and is all-in (he shows As 6s for the gutshot draw)
yestbay1: calls 2192
*** TURN *** [3s 5d 2d] [2c]
*** RIVER *** [3s 5d 2d 2c] [Ah] (the river hits my opponent for a change)
*** SHOW DOWN ***
65 pony boy: shows [6s As] (two pair, Aces and Deuces)
yestbay1: shows [3c Kc] (two pair, Threes and Deuces)
65 pony boy collected 7984 from pot
yestbay1 said, "that's better"
We traded chips for a while, then I fell into a couple of traps and called off most of my chips to his big hands. Eventually I pushed with 6d 7d but 65 pony boy had a pair of 8s, and the 6 on the flop wasn't enough to save me.
Although I'm not sorry to finish as high as I did, I am not particularly pleased with how I played a lot of these hands. I have to do better because the cards are not going to fall my way as often as they did in this tourney.
I will, however, take my luckbox hands when I get them. I wouldn't mind having a few in the Blogger tournament mentioned in my last post. I managed to win an iPod in the 2006 Blogger tourney; can I match or beat that this year? Come play in this year's game and see how far you can go! Or cheer me on, if you are so inclined. I hope to see you there.
A couple of examples:
PokerStars Game #12403376911: Tournament #62929419, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level II (15/30) - 2007/10/02 - 20:48:02 (ET)
Table '62929419 2' 9-max Seat #6 is the button
Seat 1: 65 pony boy (1040 in chips)
Seat 2: ISS Spock (3300 in chips)
Seat 3: yestbay1 (1335 in chips)
Seat 4: FishyMcDonK (2795 in chips)
Seat 5: ricoM (1940 in chips)
Seat 6: tree4twenty (2035 in chips)
Seat 7: JOHN-E-FLUSH (3120 in chips)
Seat 8: ringo6624 (1335 in chips)
Seat 9: 32midnight (1100 in chips)
JOHN-E-FLUSH: posts small blind 15
ringo6624: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to yestbay1 [Kh Qs]
32midnight: folds
65 pony boy: folds
ISS Spock: calls 30
yestbay1: raises 90 to 120
FishyMcDonK: folds
ricoM: raises 90 to 210
tree4twenty: folds
JOHN-E-FLUSH: folds
ringo6624: folds
ISS Spock: folds
yestbay1: calls 90
*** FLOP *** [Ks 3h Td]
yestbay1: bets 360 (gotta bet TP here, right?)
ricoM: raises 360 to 720 (should have smelled a rat here)
yestbay1: raises 360 to 1080 (in case he is trying to push me off the hand)
ricoM: raises 360 to 1440 (well, I'm committed now)
yestbay1: calls 45 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [Ks 3h Td] [2s]
*** RIVER *** [Ks 3h Td 2s] [Qd]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
yestbay1: shows [Kh Qs] (two pair, Kings and Queens)
ricoM: shows [As Ac] (a pair of Aces)
yestbay1 collected 2745 from pot
ricoM said, "nh"
I didn't stop to think that ricoM might have Aces there; a recurring fault of mine, not putting my opponent on a hand based on their betting patterns. I should have considered folding to his reraise, or just calling, or at least I should have given it a lot more thought than I did. Instead, it took a river suckout to keep me alive.
Next, another questionable call by me:
PokerStars Game #12404271698: Tournament #62929419, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level V (75/150) - 2007/10/02 - 21:36:22 (ET)
Table '62929419 2' 9-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: 65 pony boy (2505 in chips)
Seat 2: ISS Spock (1250 in chips)
Seat 3: yestbay1 (2327 in chips)
Seat 4: FishyMcDonK (4135 in chips)
Seat 5: ricoM (4643 in chips)
Seat 6: tree4twenty (3140 in chips)
ISS Spock: posts small blind 75
yestbay1: posts big blind 150
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to yestbay1 [Ah Jd]
FishyMcDonK: folds
ricoM: folds
tree4twenty: folds
65 pony boy: folds
ISS Spock: raises 250 to 400
yestbay1: calls 250 (hoping to hit the flop)
*** FLOP *** [Jc Kh 2s] (second pair, not bad but there's an overcard, watch out!)
ISS Spock: bets 850 and is all-in
(I have him covered, but if he has a K, I'm hurting. So what do I do?)
yestbay1: calls 850
*** TURN *** [Jc Kh 2s] [5s]
*** RIVER *** [Jc Kh 2s 5s] [Jh]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ISS Spock: shows [Qd Qc] (two pair, Queens and Jacks)
yestbay1: shows [Ah Jd] (three of a kind, Jacks)
yestbay1 said, "oh man"
yestbay1 collected 2500 from pot
ISS Spock [observer] said, "..."
Once again, I can't get away from a second-best hand, which lucks into a winner on the river.
On this one, I think my play was good, but I still had to catch perfect to take the hand, and, well.....
PokerStars Game #12404606266: Tournament #62929419, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level VI (100/200) - 2007/10/02 - 21:54:08 (ET)
Table '62929419 2' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 1: 65 pony boy (11096 in chips)
Seat 3: yestbay1 (6904 in chips)
yestbay1: posts small blind 100
65 pony boy: posts big blind 200
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to yestbay1 [Ks 5s]
yestbay1: raises 400 to 600
65 pony boy: raises 400 to 1000
yestbay1: calls 400
*** FLOP *** [Kh Ts 5h] (hot damn, two pair, heads up, I'm gold)
65 pony boy: checks
yestbay1: bets 1200 (don't overdo it, hope for the call)
65 pony boy: raises 2200 to 3400 (he probably has a K with a good kicker)
yestbay1: raises 2504 to 5904 and is all-in
65 pony boy: calls 2504 (and shows Kc Tc, for top two vs. my top & bottom)
*** TURN *** [Kh Ts 5h] [5d] (Yahtzee!)
*** RIVER *** [Kh Ts 5h 5d] [Ad]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
65 pony boy: shows [Tc Kc] (two pair, Kings and Tens)
yestbay1: shows [Ks 5s] (a full house, Fives full of Kings)
65 pony boy said, "wow"
yestbay1 said, "good god"
yestbay1 collected 13808 from pot
65 pony boy said, "awesome"
My next chat comments were:
yestbay1 said, "this sucks"
yestbay1 said, "it means I'm using up all my luck in one night"
A few hands later, the tables were turned:
PokerStars Game #12404650696: Tournament #62929419, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level VI (100/200) - 2007/10/02 - 21:56:31 (ET)
Table '62929419 2' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 1: 65 pony boy (3992 in chips)
Seat 3: yestbay1 (14008 in chips)
yestbay1: posts small blind 100
65 pony boy: posts big blind 200
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to yestbay1 [3c Kc]
yestbay1: raises 400 to 600
65 pony boy: calls 400
*** FLOP *** [3s 5d 2d]
65 pony boy: checks
yestbay1: bets 1200
65 pony boy: raises 2192 to 3392 and is all-in (he shows As 6s for the gutshot draw)
yestbay1: calls 2192
*** TURN *** [3s 5d 2d] [2c]
*** RIVER *** [3s 5d 2d 2c] [Ah] (the river hits my opponent for a change)
*** SHOW DOWN ***
65 pony boy: shows [6s As] (two pair, Aces and Deuces)
yestbay1: shows [3c Kc] (two pair, Threes and Deuces)
65 pony boy collected 7984 from pot
yestbay1 said, "that's better"
We traded chips for a while, then I fell into a couple of traps and called off most of my chips to his big hands. Eventually I pushed with 6d 7d but 65 pony boy had a pair of 8s, and the 6 on the flop wasn't enough to save me.
Although I'm not sorry to finish as high as I did, I am not particularly pleased with how I played a lot of these hands. I have to do better because the cards are not going to fall my way as often as they did in this tourney.
I will, however, take my luckbox hands when I get them. I wouldn't mind having a few in the Blogger tournament mentioned in my last post. I managed to win an iPod in the 2006 Blogger tourney; can I match or beat that this year? Come play in this year's game and see how far you can go! Or cheer me on, if you are so inclined. I hope to see you there.
2007 PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker
I have registered to play in the PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker!
This Online Poker Tournament is a No Limit Texas Holdem event exclusive to Bloggers.
Registration code: 1872371
Saturday, September 22, 2007
What a donkey - or was I?
I played in the Friday Night Donkament last night for the first time in many weeks. I have very little money left on FullTilt, so I was glad to be available to play in this low buy-in game.
My play was variable in the tourney, probably tighter than it should have been in some spots, and I lucked out a couple of times to stay alive to make the final table. I got there as one of the shorter stacks; with blinds at 250/500/50 ante, I knew I would have to make a move before long if I was going to have any chips with which to fight to the money places.
On my very first hand at the final table, with 7,556 in chips, I picked up KQo in the SB. From MP, Katitude raised to 1,500. She could have had a monster hand, or just a good hand. Her stack was 31,540, virtually tied for the chip lead, so she could have just been trying to bully the rest of us with a hand of medium strength. With my M just over 5, I chose to push, thinking that just calling would leave me with too little if I had to fold on the flop, and hoping that I could get Kat to fold. Perhaps I should have just folded there, but I took my chances. Unfortunately, cyberkat in the BB called all-in for her last 5,176. Although Katitude stopped and thought about it, she called my raise; too many chips in the pot for her to fold, I expect. Kat showed 99, cyberkat showed KK. I was in trouble, but the flop brought a Q and I won the side pot with Kat while cyberkat took the main pot.
The bad news was, that only gave me 3,660 to play with. I had the button on the next hand, but my M was now below 3 and I was the shortest stack at the table. I decided that any decent hand meant all my chips were going in the middle.
It didn't take long. That very next hand, I got Qd Jd. It was folded to MiamiDon two seats to my right, with just over 10,000 in his stack. He raised to 1,650, bayne_s folded, and I shoved my last 3,610 in. I knew there was a chance that I was behind, and the blinds behind me could get in the pot too, but I couldn't see the point of throwing away suited connecting face cards when I was so far behind the rest of the table in chips. Even if MiamiDon called, which I expected he would, I could be in a race or not too far behind.
The blinds folded, and the hands were turned up: MiamiDon had 9s Jh against my Qd Jd. I guess he was on a steal, and it turned out that I had him dominated.
The flop: 8d 4d 5d. A miracle board for me. The pair of deuces on the turn and river didn't help Don, and I took the pot.
Don proceed to comment in the chat box,
"QJ,"
"unreal"
"what a donkey"
I made light of it by typing, "but they were sooooted," but his reply was, "whatever."
Now, I will be the first to admit that I am no expert at poker. I make plenty of donkey plays, and made some earlier in this game (possibly including my push against Kat above). But I didn't think this move against Don was that bad. On the other hand, if it was, I'm more than willing to learn from it. Should I have folded my suited QJ to Don's raise here, as he seems to think I should have done? Since I was on the button, I didn't face the blinds again for a whole orbit, so I had the option of waiting for something better to come along. But what are the chances of that, with the antes sucking away at my stack while I wait for the blinds to come around? QJs looked really good right then. Frankly, I'm not sure what would have made me fold this hand considering my M and my position as smallest chip stack. I could have called Don's raise instead of pushing, but that would have taken about half my stack, and if I folded on the flop I would have had about 2,000 chips, which would have put me in a ridiculous position.
I can't say I had much of a read on Don, but I had a bit of a feel that he was on the aggressive side and might have a fairly wide range of raising hands. And although I am terrible at computing pot odds on the fly, I think I was in a decent spot here:
Small Blind: 250
Big Blind: 500
Antes: 450
Don's raise: 1,650
Pot: 3,050
My reraise: 3610
Don's call, if he makes it: 1,960
Total pot: 8,420
So it cost me 3,610 to try to win 5,010, for odds of about 1.4 to 1. Marginal, but is QJs above or below the margin that would call for a fold here? Since I didn't figure out the odds at the time, I had to go with my gut, and my gut told me it was above that line. If I had lost on that hand, I would not have felt cheated at all, knowing that my hand would not be that hard to beat. Instead, it turned out that Don raised with an arguably more marginal hand than mine, and was unable to catch up.
Did Don calling me a donkey bother me? Sure, a little. But as I said, I want to learn more about the right way to play. If Don is right and my still-developing poker instincts are off base, I want to know how to improve. But I don't want to assume that someone calling me a donkey means it is true, and change the instincts that I have been working on just because of one remark.
If you are reading this, I would love to hear your honest comments. I am not looking for confirmation that I was right unless you truly feel that way. Constructive suggestions are always welcome. If you want to tell me how I could have played that hand better, that would be much appreciated. If you just want to say, "Hee haw! What were you thinking, dumbass?" then kindly keep that to yourself.
By the way, I busted out a few minutes later when my AQ ran into bayne_s's AK. I suppose I should have folded that one, when bayne raised, I reraised, and he popped me again to put me all-in. Oh well, I can't say I am a good enough player yet to fold AQ there; maybe someday.
Until then, I will wear the donkey ears when they fit, while trying to make those occasions less and less frequent.
My play was variable in the tourney, probably tighter than it should have been in some spots, and I lucked out a couple of times to stay alive to make the final table. I got there as one of the shorter stacks; with blinds at 250/500/50 ante, I knew I would have to make a move before long if I was going to have any chips with which to fight to the money places.
On my very first hand at the final table, with 7,556 in chips, I picked up KQo in the SB. From MP, Katitude raised to 1,500. She could have had a monster hand, or just a good hand. Her stack was 31,540, virtually tied for the chip lead, so she could have just been trying to bully the rest of us with a hand of medium strength. With my M just over 5, I chose to push, thinking that just calling would leave me with too little if I had to fold on the flop, and hoping that I could get Kat to fold. Perhaps I should have just folded there, but I took my chances. Unfortunately, cyberkat in the BB called all-in for her last 5,176. Although Katitude stopped and thought about it, she called my raise; too many chips in the pot for her to fold, I expect. Kat showed 99, cyberkat showed KK. I was in trouble, but the flop brought a Q and I won the side pot with Kat while cyberkat took the main pot.
The bad news was, that only gave me 3,660 to play with. I had the button on the next hand, but my M was now below 3 and I was the shortest stack at the table. I decided that any decent hand meant all my chips were going in the middle.
It didn't take long. That very next hand, I got Qd Jd. It was folded to MiamiDon two seats to my right, with just over 10,000 in his stack. He raised to 1,650, bayne_s folded, and I shoved my last 3,610 in. I knew there was a chance that I was behind, and the blinds behind me could get in the pot too, but I couldn't see the point of throwing away suited connecting face cards when I was so far behind the rest of the table in chips. Even if MiamiDon called, which I expected he would, I could be in a race or not too far behind.
The blinds folded, and the hands were turned up: MiamiDon had 9s Jh against my Qd Jd. I guess he was on a steal, and it turned out that I had him dominated.
The flop: 8d 4d 5d. A miracle board for me. The pair of deuces on the turn and river didn't help Don, and I took the pot.
Don proceed to comment in the chat box,
"QJ,"
"unreal"
"what a donkey"
I made light of it by typing, "but they were sooooted," but his reply was, "whatever."
Now, I will be the first to admit that I am no expert at poker. I make plenty of donkey plays, and made some earlier in this game (possibly including my push against Kat above). But I didn't think this move against Don was that bad. On the other hand, if it was, I'm more than willing to learn from it. Should I have folded my suited QJ to Don's raise here, as he seems to think I should have done? Since I was on the button, I didn't face the blinds again for a whole orbit, so I had the option of waiting for something better to come along. But what are the chances of that, with the antes sucking away at my stack while I wait for the blinds to come around? QJs looked really good right then. Frankly, I'm not sure what would have made me fold this hand considering my M and my position as smallest chip stack. I could have called Don's raise instead of pushing, but that would have taken about half my stack, and if I folded on the flop I would have had about 2,000 chips, which would have put me in a ridiculous position.
I can't say I had much of a read on Don, but I had a bit of a feel that he was on the aggressive side and might have a fairly wide range of raising hands. And although I am terrible at computing pot odds on the fly, I think I was in a decent spot here:
Small Blind: 250
Big Blind: 500
Antes: 450
Don's raise: 1,650
Pot: 3,050
My reraise: 3610
Don's call, if he makes it: 1,960
Total pot: 8,420
So it cost me 3,610 to try to win 5,010, for odds of about 1.4 to 1. Marginal, but is QJs above or below the margin that would call for a fold here? Since I didn't figure out the odds at the time, I had to go with my gut, and my gut told me it was above that line. If I had lost on that hand, I would not have felt cheated at all, knowing that my hand would not be that hard to beat. Instead, it turned out that Don raised with an arguably more marginal hand than mine, and was unable to catch up.
Did Don calling me a donkey bother me? Sure, a little. But as I said, I want to learn more about the right way to play. If Don is right and my still-developing poker instincts are off base, I want to know how to improve. But I don't want to assume that someone calling me a donkey means it is true, and change the instincts that I have been working on just because of one remark.
If you are reading this, I would love to hear your honest comments. I am not looking for confirmation that I was right unless you truly feel that way. Constructive suggestions are always welcome. If you want to tell me how I could have played that hand better, that would be much appreciated. If you just want to say, "Hee haw! What were you thinking, dumbass?" then kindly keep that to yourself.
By the way, I busted out a few minutes later when my AQ ran into bayne_s's AK. I suppose I should have folded that one, when bayne raised, I reraised, and he popped me again to put me all-in. Oh well, I can't say I am a good enough player yet to fold AQ there; maybe someday.
Until then, I will wear the donkey ears when they fit, while trying to make those occasions less and less frequent.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
WPBT Winter Classic 2007 - I'm (all) in
Although I didn't think I would get out there this time, I have decided to make the trek to Las Vegas for this year's winter poker blogger gathering, December 6 to 9. You only live once, right? Plus, I had so much fun at Okie-Vegas this summer, I just couldn't pass up the chance to see some of my new not-so-invisible Internet friends again and meet some of the still-invisible ones for the first time.
I should be arriving in Sin City either Thursday evening or Friday morning, and leaving early Monday morning. Besides the poker playing and general debauchery, I plan to be a tourist and see some sights and maybe a show while I am there. If anyone who will be there can tear themselves away from the tables and machines long enough, you are welcome to join me for gawking at the (other) tourists and soaking up the scenery.
Some other info about the Winter Classic can be found at Falstaff's blog. I'm sure it will be a ton of fun and I am very much looking forward to it.
See you there!
I should be arriving in Sin City either Thursday evening or Friday morning, and leaving early Monday morning. Besides the poker playing and general debauchery, I plan to be a tourist and see some sights and maybe a show while I am there. If anyone who will be there can tear themselves away from the tables and machines long enough, you are welcome to join me for gawking at the (other) tourists and soaking up the scenery.
Some other info about the Winter Classic can be found at Falstaff's blog. I'm sure it will be a ton of fun and I am very much looking forward to it.
See you there!
Monday, September 10, 2007
Cruising, Vegas, and other poker adventures
I have played some poker since my last entry over a month ago, with varying results. Not that I am results-focused, mind you, but I do keep track and these past few weeks have been up and down, on the win/loss side as well as the did-I-play-that-right side. It has also been a period of playing in a variety of settings, which has made it a bit more interesting for me.
My first report is actually from before Okie-Vegas. My wife and son and I went on a cruise to Alaska at the end of June and beginning of July. The ship had a casino, and a poker table where they dealt $3/6 limit Hold 'Em and held a couple of one-table tournaments. I played a few times during the course of the 7-day cruise, and although I didn't come out ahead, I played reasonably well. The tournaments were oddly structured: only eight players could register, and it was winner take all, i.e. no payout for any place other than first. I played anyway, since the buy-in was only $30+3 and I thought I could use the experience. I finished fourth in both tourneys. I should have played more aggressively, knowing that I would have to get lucky to have a shot at the prize.
After returning from Okie-Vegas, I have played in some cash games and SNGs on line. I cashed in one 45-player $1.25 SNG, finishing third; the others didn't turn out so well. I have more or less broken even in the cash games. Nothing very exciting to speak of in my on-line play lately.
I also paid a visit to the real Las Vegas in early August. The main point of the trip was to attend the huge Star Trek convention at the LV Hilton, but an important part of the plan was to play poker with Wil Wheaton, who was one of the guests at the convention. Wil had posted on his blog that he intended to organize a semi-private game at the Hilton poker room, and I told him that I would be there for it. The game was held on the Friday night of the convention weekend, and we had a full table for our mixed limit game. We alternated between Hold 'Em and a few other games including Omaha 8, an orbit of Razz, and even some Crazy Pineapple. Some other friends of Wil's were there, and some fans from the convention, and everyone had a fun time. I scored the best hand of my poker career so far during a hand of Omaha 8. I was dealt As Ks Qc Jc. Normally I would throw that away in high-low split since it can only go one way, but I hadn't played many hands and I wanted to get in on some action, so I limped in. The flop was Ac-Kc-blank (maybe a 9, not a club). With top two pair and a straight flush draw, I bet or called, don't remember which now, and got heads up with Sharon, one of Wil's friends from PokerStars. The turn was another blank, I bet, Sharon called. The river was the Tc. I bet, Sharon said, "OK, I'll pay you off," and I turned up my cards and said, "I have a Royal Flush." Everyone was quite surprised, except maybe the dealer, who didn't seem to be fazed by it. Maybe he sees those once a month or so. The unfortunate thing was, if we had been playing Hold 'Em when I got the Royal, I would have won a nice jackpot of a few hundred dollars. The jackpot did not apply while we played Omaha, so I wasn't eligible. Still, it was quite a thrill and I won't soon forget that moment when the ten came up on the river.
I finished the Hilton game down about 1/4 of my buy-in, but the entertainment of sitting at the table with that group of people was well worth the cost.
The other big game I played in recently was the Amateur Poker League Semi-Annual Regional Championship, which I had qualified for earlier this year by winning one of the monthly venue championships. I lasted past the first break, but the cards didn't come my way and the hands I got didn't hold up. I thought I made good decisions pretty much the whole time, so I don't feel bad about not making it deeper into the tourney.
No big plans for me concerning poker in the coming weeks. I'm not playing regularly in the APL tourneys at the nearby venue because of the cigarette smoke problem. I haven't been playing on line much, although I just busted out of a 20-table $4.40 SNG as I type this (QQ ran into flopped set of tens). I won't be going to the WPBT Winter Classic, for financial and scheduling reasons, but I hope to be there next summer. I will be playing here and there, so don't be surprised if you see me in the next seat at some PokerStars or Full Tilt table, as long as you are playing the micro-stakes.
My first report is actually from before Okie-Vegas. My wife and son and I went on a cruise to Alaska at the end of June and beginning of July. The ship had a casino, and a poker table where they dealt $3/6 limit Hold 'Em and held a couple of one-table tournaments. I played a few times during the course of the 7-day cruise, and although I didn't come out ahead, I played reasonably well. The tournaments were oddly structured: only eight players could register, and it was winner take all, i.e. no payout for any place other than first. I played anyway, since the buy-in was only $30+3 and I thought I could use the experience. I finished fourth in both tourneys. I should have played more aggressively, knowing that I would have to get lucky to have a shot at the prize.
After returning from Okie-Vegas, I have played in some cash games and SNGs on line. I cashed in one 45-player $1.25 SNG, finishing third; the others didn't turn out so well. I have more or less broken even in the cash games. Nothing very exciting to speak of in my on-line play lately.
I also paid a visit to the real Las Vegas in early August. The main point of the trip was to attend the huge Star Trek convention at the LV Hilton, but an important part of the plan was to play poker with Wil Wheaton, who was one of the guests at the convention. Wil had posted on his blog that he intended to organize a semi-private game at the Hilton poker room, and I told him that I would be there for it. The game was held on the Friday night of the convention weekend, and we had a full table for our mixed limit game. We alternated between Hold 'Em and a few other games including Omaha 8, an orbit of Razz, and even some Crazy Pineapple. Some other friends of Wil's were there, and some fans from the convention, and everyone had a fun time. I scored the best hand of my poker career so far during a hand of Omaha 8. I was dealt As Ks Qc Jc. Normally I would throw that away in high-low split since it can only go one way, but I hadn't played many hands and I wanted to get in on some action, so I limped in. The flop was Ac-Kc-blank (maybe a 9, not a club). With top two pair and a straight flush draw, I bet or called, don't remember which now, and got heads up with Sharon, one of Wil's friends from PokerStars. The turn was another blank, I bet, Sharon called. The river was the Tc. I bet, Sharon said, "OK, I'll pay you off," and I turned up my cards and said, "I have a Royal Flush." Everyone was quite surprised, except maybe the dealer, who didn't seem to be fazed by it. Maybe he sees those once a month or so. The unfortunate thing was, if we had been playing Hold 'Em when I got the Royal, I would have won a nice jackpot of a few hundred dollars. The jackpot did not apply while we played Omaha, so I wasn't eligible. Still, it was quite a thrill and I won't soon forget that moment when the ten came up on the river.
I finished the Hilton game down about 1/4 of my buy-in, but the entertainment of sitting at the table with that group of people was well worth the cost.
The other big game I played in recently was the Amateur Poker League Semi-Annual Regional Championship, which I had qualified for earlier this year by winning one of the monthly venue championships. I lasted past the first break, but the cards didn't come my way and the hands I got didn't hold up. I thought I made good decisions pretty much the whole time, so I don't feel bad about not making it deeper into the tourney.
No big plans for me concerning poker in the coming weeks. I'm not playing regularly in the APL tourneys at the nearby venue because of the cigarette smoke problem. I haven't been playing on line much, although I just busted out of a 20-table $4.40 SNG as I type this (QQ ran into flopped set of tens). I won't be going to the WPBT Winter Classic, for financial and scheduling reasons, but I hope to be there next summer. I will be playing here and there, so don't be surprised if you see me in the next seat at some PokerStars or Full Tilt table, as long as you are playing the micro-stakes.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Top Ten Best Things about Okie-Vegas 2007 - for me, anyway
I went to my first face-to-face poker blogger gathering on July 21, at GCox25's place in Oklahoma City. I had one helluva lot of fun, and packed a lot of good times into one day and evening. Here are my top ten favorite things about my trip to Okie-Vegas:
10. Learning Chinese Poker for the very first time, and not sucking at it. Beginner's luck was mine.
9. Watching the Coxes' midget Yorkie-Shih Tzu dog run up and down the furniture and beg for attention. That little furball can leap, lemme tell you.
8. Chowing down on tasty Oklahoma barbecue from Van's Pig Stand and homemade sausage balls, deviled eggs, and endless other munchies courtesy of the fabulous cook, hostess, photographer with everyone's cameras, and all around good sport Mrs. GCox.
7. Participating with the other bloggers in my first dial-a-shots; some live, as with AlCan'tHang, and some on voice mails of bloggers who had some flimsy excuse for not attending in person AND didn't even answer their damn phones.
6. Watching and hearing 23skidoo, surflexus, Jordan, GCox, F-Train, Katitude, and Maudie get up and sing some karaoke. Video was recorded (not by me); hopefully highlights (or lowlights) will be posted somewhere soon. If TripJax sang any karaoke, I missed it, dammit.
5. Singing a bit of karaoke myself, to that number one hit by Yes, Owner of a Lonely Heart. Jon Anderson does not need to worry about losing his singing job to me. I also played some air guitar and drums on a song or two, which I am much better at than singing.
4. Listening to Mrs. GCox sing along with the karaoke machine. She is actually a wonderful singer and put the rest of us to shame.
3. Doing the Time Warp with most of the bloggers as our grand group karaoke finale (at least before I left). Photographic and video evidence of this performance exists, but that is all I can say for now.
2. Playing in my first "live and in person" poker blogger tournament. I used my "unconventional play" strategy (also known as playing like a moron) to donk off all but 2 big blinds worth of chips, then staged an amazing comeback (also known as turning into a card rack and suckout artist) to finish in second place, right behind the deserving Katitude who took down first prize.
1. And the number one best thing about my first Okie-Vegas experience..... meeting the gracious, friendly, welcoming, funny, crazy poker bloggers and their friends and family members. I think it was Gracie who said that our group of poker bloggers consists of some of the best people around. I couldn't agree more, at least based on my experience this weekend. I hope to get together with these folks again soon, and to meet more of the folks who didn't make it to this party and were missed by all.
Thanks must go first and foremost to Gary and Carrie Cox, our host and hostess, who went out of their way to make everyone feel at home, whether they had ever met us before or not. I also have to thank everyone who played at my tourney table for putting up with my newbie-ish play. I have played very few live tourneys for real money, and it showed. But eventually I settled down and the poker gods looked favorably on me in the second half of the game, especially when I caught a runner-runner boat over boat to triple up and stay alive. Of course, I was very glad to meet everyone there, and I feel like I have some real, live, not-invisible Internet friends now.
I can't wait to read everyone else's reports on Okie-Vegas 2007. I'm pretty sure everyone had fun, and might possibly have a story or two to tell.
10. Learning Chinese Poker for the very first time, and not sucking at it. Beginner's luck was mine.
9. Watching the Coxes' midget Yorkie-Shih Tzu dog run up and down the furniture and beg for attention. That little furball can leap, lemme tell you.
8. Chowing down on tasty Oklahoma barbecue from Van's Pig Stand and homemade sausage balls, deviled eggs, and endless other munchies courtesy of the fabulous cook, hostess, photographer with everyone's cameras, and all around good sport Mrs. GCox.
7. Participating with the other bloggers in my first dial-a-shots; some live, as with AlCan'tHang, and some on voice mails of bloggers who had some flimsy excuse for not attending in person AND didn't even answer their damn phones.
6. Watching and hearing 23skidoo, surflexus, Jordan, GCox, F-Train, Katitude, and Maudie get up and sing some karaoke. Video was recorded (not by me); hopefully highlights (or lowlights) will be posted somewhere soon. If TripJax sang any karaoke, I missed it, dammit.
5. Singing a bit of karaoke myself, to that number one hit by Yes, Owner of a Lonely Heart. Jon Anderson does not need to worry about losing his singing job to me. I also played some air guitar and drums on a song or two, which I am much better at than singing.
4. Listening to Mrs. GCox sing along with the karaoke machine. She is actually a wonderful singer and put the rest of us to shame.
3. Doing the Time Warp with most of the bloggers as our grand group karaoke finale (at least before I left). Photographic and video evidence of this performance exists, but that is all I can say for now.
2. Playing in my first "live and in person" poker blogger tournament. I used my "unconventional play" strategy (also known as playing like a moron) to donk off all but 2 big blinds worth of chips, then staged an amazing comeback (also known as turning into a card rack and suckout artist) to finish in second place, right behind the deserving Katitude who took down first prize.
1. And the number one best thing about my first Okie-Vegas experience..... meeting the gracious, friendly, welcoming, funny, crazy poker bloggers and their friends and family members. I think it was Gracie who said that our group of poker bloggers consists of some of the best people around. I couldn't agree more, at least based on my experience this weekend. I hope to get together with these folks again soon, and to meet more of the folks who didn't make it to this party and were missed by all.
Thanks must go first and foremost to Gary and Carrie Cox, our host and hostess, who went out of their way to make everyone feel at home, whether they had ever met us before or not. I also have to thank everyone who played at my tourney table for putting up with my newbie-ish play. I have played very few live tourneys for real money, and it showed. But eventually I settled down and the poker gods looked favorably on me in the second half of the game, especially when I caught a runner-runner boat over boat to triple up and stay alive. Of course, I was very glad to meet everyone there, and I feel like I have some real, live, not-invisible Internet friends now.
I can't wait to read everyone else's reports on Okie-Vegas 2007. I'm pretty sure everyone had fun, and might possibly have a story or two to tell.
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