I'd had a good run recently at Canterbury so I can afford to play higher limits then what I have been playing, but have been conservative on purpose because I have a "plan" so to speak. That being said, I have allotted myself $1000 a month to play in events of my choosing. I was watching a friend cash in 3 of the big events simultaneously and was craving some action myself so I decided to just play some higher buy in heads up matches. I started with a $50 heads up match, flopped the nut full house and lost to runner runner quads. Fun! Saw a $200 heads up match going and thought why not... yea, I have a bit of gambler in me... I am a poker player after all. The match lasted two hands. If I woulda lost to quads again I think I woulda quit poker. OK, not really, but I would have for at least a day!
Had to hold my breath for a second on this one, had just lost to runner runner quads in a $50 match.
PokerStars Game #xxxx: Tournament #xxx, $200+$10 Omaha Hi/Lo Pot Limit - Match Round I, Level I (5/10) - 2007/11/05 - 00:13:33 (ET)
Table 'xxx 1' 2-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: ronpraha (1395 in chips)
Seat 2: ME (1605 in chips)
ME: posts small blind 5
ronpraha: posts big blind 10
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [Qc Qs 6c 7c]
ME: calls 5
ronpraha: checks
*** FLOP *** [5d 5c Qd]
ronpraha: checks
ME: checks
*** TURN *** [5d 5c Qd] [2h]
ronpraha: bets 20
ME: raises 60 to 80
ronpraha: raises 180 to 260
ME: raises 540 to 800
ronpraha: calls 540
*** RIVER *** [5d 5c Qd 2h] [9c]
ronpraha: bets 585 and is all-in
ME: calls 585
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ronpraha: shows [4h 2c 2s Jh] (HI: a full house, Deuces full of Fives)
ME: shows [Qc Qs 6c 7c] (HI: a full house, Queens full of Fives)
ME collected 2790 from pot
No low hand qualified
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Sometimes I suck...
A former student of mine wanted to back me into the Sunday Million today... I've done ok with people backing me in the past so I decided to go ahead and do it. I busted with about 1/2 the field gone after an up and down beginning... the key hand, in hindsight, was a mistake. Initially I analyzed it as just being unfortunate timing but in hindsight I think the better play would have been to call pre-flop and lead out on the flop. Here's the hand:
n
Seat 1: ShankingYou (10800 in chips)
Seat 2: GoldGame (15175 in chips)
Seat 3: Pilu1978 (11700 in chips)
Seat 4: joetrapper (21295 in chips)
Seat 5: He_simply (42275 in chips)
Seat 6: ME (23100 in chips)
Seat 7: Great Baisen (13200 in chips)
Seat 8: finalvision (9964 in chips)
Seat 9: tucisloose (11986 in chips)
He_simply: posts small blind 300
ME: posts big blind 600
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [Ac Qh]
Great Baisen: folds
finalvision: folds
tucisloose: folds
ShankingYou: folds
GoldGame: raises 1800 to 2400
Gold had not been completely out of line over the course of the tournament but he was definitely a liberal user of the Gap Concept. As such I thought his range of hands included small pairs, smaller aces then mine, and dominated hands like KQ, QJ.
Pilu1978: folds
joetrapper: folds
He_simply: folds
He has 12.7 left after his raise, definitely enough to fold, so I do have folding equity. I don't like calling out of position because then what do I do if I miss the flop (as I said, looking back at it now, this would have been a better play because he'd been fairly solid post-flop... I made his decision easy for him)... definitely can't just make a regular re-raise because if he pushes, I have to call. An argument can be made for folding but given the fact that the hand is heads up and the action has been fairly normal, I think that would be playing too tight. So I push... he thinks for a bit but finally makes the correct call (if you have AK in his place you HAVE to call).
ME: raises 20700 to 23100 and is all-in
GoldGame: calls 12775 and is all-in
*** FLOP *** [2d 9s 6d]
See if I had just called and led out on the flop, I very likely would have won the hand if he is not one of those overvalue AK idiots.
*** TURN *** [2d 9s 6d] [Ts]
*** RIVER *** [2d 9s 6d Ts] [9c]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ME: shows [Ac Qh] (a pair of Nines)
GoldGame: shows [Ad Kc] (a pair of Nines - Ace+King kicker)
GoldGame collected 30650 from pot
Lost with 9's a bit later and that was that. I'm usually my harshest critic... was not happy with the end of my tournament because there was no reason to put myself in a position to cripple myself. I could have called and risked another 2500 on the flop instead of an additional 12K.
That being said my tournament wasn't ALL bad... I had put myself in decent position with a couple of key hands... I never had a pair bigger then tens the entire tournament. Here are a few of them:
Seat 1: Pickles7 (9500 in chips)
Seat 2: GoldGame (12425 in chips)
Seat 3: Pilu1978 (12650 in chips)
Seat 4: Sooners (4725 in chips)
Seat 5: jc_bluej (11725 in chips)
Seat 6: ME (8875 in chips)
Seat 7: Great Baisen (13575 in chips)
Seat 8: finalvision (9700 in chips)
Seat 9: Pokerpablo7 (6825 in chips)
finalvision: posts small blind 50
Pokerpablo7: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [Jh Th]
Pickles7: folds
GoldGame: folds
Pilu1978: folds
Sooners: folds
jc_bluej: folds
ME: raises 200 to 300
Pretty standard play for me.
Great Baisen is disconnected
Great Baisen is connected
Great Baisen: calls 300
finalvision: folds
Pokerpablo7: calls 200
Not necessarily the result I wanted... Great has been very loose and called me down earlier with nothing but a draw and hit a weak pair on the river and called with it to win the pot (I was bluffing... I don't typically bluff calling stations but I didn't know at the time that's what he was)
*** FLOP *** [8c 9h Ac]
Pokerpablo7: checks
ME: checks
Not a terrible flop for me but I decide to see if I can get a free card or at least an inexpensive card... the last thing I want to do is bet and get forced off of my draw with a big raise. I think many people make this mistake of betting automatically if they raised pre-flop when they hit a draw.
Great Baisen: bets 500
Pokerpablo7: folds
ME: calls 500
I can call that, especially against him since I think I have great implied value.
*** TURN *** [8c 9h Ac] [7s]
ME: checks
Bingo, gonna go for ye olde check raise.
Great Baisen: bets 1000
Thank you for cooperating. Now I want to make a bet that I think he will call... I think a bigger one will look more like a bluff then a smaller one, and I want to set up the all in river bet by relatively committing myself with my turn bet. Normally I'd raise 2000 to 3000 but I up it a little more against this guy because I think he'll call.
ME: raises 3000 to 4000
Great Baisen: calls 3000
I know he's not folding the river now... the rest is going in.
*** RIVER *** [8c 9h Ac 7s] [2c]
ME: bets 4075 and is all-in
Great Baisen: calls 4075
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ME: shows [Jh Th] (a straight, Seven to Jack)
Great Baisen: shows [As Ks] (a pair of Aces)
ME collected 18100 from pot
Great obviously should have folded on the turn to the check raise, but some people just can't get over top pair, top kicker. Those players are the bread and butter... the ones that pay my bills.
Seat 1: ShankingYou (14045 in chips)
Seat 2: GoldGame (14175 in chips)
Seat 3: Pilu1978 (20125 in chips)
Seat 4: joetrapper (16325 in chips)
Seat 5: jc_bluej (9100 in chips)
Seat 6: ME (9900 in chips)
Seat 7: Great Baisen (15800 in chips)
Seat 8: finalvision (10264 in chips)
Seat 9: tucisloose (19186 in chips)
ME: posts small blind 200
Great Baisen: posts big blind 400
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [6h 6d]
finalvision: folds
tucisloose: folds
ShankingYou: folds
GoldGame: folds
Pilu1978: folds
joetrapper: raises 800 to 1200
jc_bluej: folds
I'd lost a pretty big pot earlier to joe (took 1/2 my stack) with AQ against AK on a A65A2 board. He was very active... raised a lot first to act and bet the flop anytime someone checked to him. Many players would push all in here, but I wanted to give him the opportunity to bluff the flop and was willing to take the chance. Obviously if the board comes AKJ, I fold, but if he has a hand that fits that board he's not going to fold pre-flop anyway.
ME: calls 1000
Great Baisen: folds
*** FLOP *** [2c 7h 4d]
ME: checks
joetrapper: bets 1600
Got the flop I wanted and the bet I wanted. I remember with the AK vs AQ hand that he continued to be aggressive after I called him on the flop, so I decide to take a different line here and give him an opportunity to make one more bet on the turn.
ME: calls 1600
*** TURN *** [2c 7h 4d] [7d]
ME: checks
joetrapper: bets 4000
This is tough. A good card for my hand but I'm not sure I have any folding equity here... still I think I have the best hand so I gotta go with it.
ME: raises 3100 to 7100 and is all-in
joetrapper: folds
Personally I think if you're gonna bet 4K here, you might as well bet 7100. I really can't see folding here... if he has two overs he has 6 outs or about 6:1 to improve and is getting nearly 5:1 with no threat of an additional bet on the river. But to each their own I suppose.
ME collected 14000 from pot
Joe wins a pretty big pot off of me later in this hand:
Seat 1: ShankingYou (11900 in chips)
Seat 2: GoldGame (13775 in chips)
Seat 3: Pilu1978 (9600 in chips)
Seat 4: joetrapper (25595 in chips)
Seat 5: jc_bluej (12900 in chips)
Seat 6: ME (17100 in chips)
Seat 7: Great Baisen (14400 in chips)
Seat 8: finalvision (10864 in chips)
Seat 9: tucisloose (12786 in chips)
ShankingYou: posts small blind 200
GoldGame: posts big blind 400
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [Ts Th]
Pilu1978: folds
joetrapper: raises 400 to 800
jc_bluej: folds
ME: calls 800
I know he's weak... he raises more with his better hands, so I just call here because like the previous hand I feel like I can outplay him post-flop.
Great Baisen: folds
finalvision: folds
tucisloose: calls 800
ShankingYou: folds
GoldGame: folds
*** FLOP *** [5d 4d 3h]
joetrapper: bets 1200
ME: raises 2800 to 4000
tucisloose: folds
joetrapper: calls 2800
I figure he's on some type of draw here... either has a 6, an ace, or diamonds. Any safe card on the turn and I'm gonna pop it.
*** TURN *** [5d 4d 3h] [2d]
joetrapper: bets 4000
That might very well have been the worst card in the deck that could have come... now any ace or 6 beats me... even if I'm still ahead I don't have any redraws. Maybe I'm the one getting "outplayed" now... but I can't call. Well I can but I'm not going to.
ME: folds
Then shortly before the AQ vs AK crippling hand I get this one... really don't get the JTs call but I was glad to see it. I actually said "shit" when he called until I saw his hand.
Seat 1: ShankingYou (11700 in chips)
Seat 2: GoldGame (15175 in chips)
Seat 3: Pilu1978 (11700 in chips)
Seat 4: joetrapper (30595 in chips)
Seat 5: jc_bluej (10800 in chips)
Seat 6: ME (11400 in chips)
Seat 7: Great Baisen (13800 in chips)
Seat 8: finalvision (10864 in chips)
Seat 9: tucisloose (12886 in chips)
Great Baisen: posts small blind 300
finalvision: posts big blind 600
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [As Jc]
tucisloose: folds
ShankingYou: folds
GoldGame: folds
Pilu1978: folds
joetrapper: folds
jc_bluej: raises 1800 to 2400
ME: raises 9000 to 11400 and is all-in
Great Baisen: folds
finalvision: folds
jc_bluej: calls 8400 and is all-in
*** FLOP *** [Kd 4c 5s]
*** TURN *** [Kd 4c 5s] [5h]
*** RIVER *** [Kd 4c 5s 5h] [9d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
jc_bluej: shows [Js Ts] (a pair of Fives)
ME: shows [As Jc] (a pair of Fives - Ace kicker)
ME collected 22500 from pot
On a more positive note, the heads up matches went smooth today. I went 9-3 and won the $100 in 4 hours and 16 minutes. In 4 days I am 39-19 and only twice have I lost more then two in a row. There was one match that took 55 minutes... my opponent literally timed down every single hand. Not sure if he was just trying to tilt me or had a terrible internet connection. At one point he had me outchipped 2700 to 300 and I thought about just throwing it all in and moving on to the next one, but since I'd lost the previous one I didn't want to just concede in order to play a $50 heads up match, so I fought back, put up with his annoying time outs, and came back to win. Definitely a testament to how much my game has changed. 5 years ago I would have said fuck it and just gave up.
n
Seat 1: ShankingYou (10800 in chips)
Seat 2: GoldGame (15175 in chips)
Seat 3: Pilu1978 (11700 in chips)
Seat 4: joetrapper (21295 in chips)
Seat 5: He_simply (42275 in chips)
Seat 6: ME (23100 in chips)
Seat 7: Great Baisen (13200 in chips)
Seat 8: finalvision (9964 in chips)
Seat 9: tucisloose (11986 in chips)
He_simply: posts small blind 300
ME: posts big blind 600
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [Ac Qh]
Great Baisen: folds
finalvision: folds
tucisloose: folds
ShankingYou: folds
GoldGame: raises 1800 to 2400
Gold had not been completely out of line over the course of the tournament but he was definitely a liberal user of the Gap Concept. As such I thought his range of hands included small pairs, smaller aces then mine, and dominated hands like KQ, QJ.
Pilu1978: folds
joetrapper: folds
He_simply: folds
He has 12.7 left after his raise, definitely enough to fold, so I do have folding equity. I don't like calling out of position because then what do I do if I miss the flop (as I said, looking back at it now, this would have been a better play because he'd been fairly solid post-flop... I made his decision easy for him)... definitely can't just make a regular re-raise because if he pushes, I have to call. An argument can be made for folding but given the fact that the hand is heads up and the action has been fairly normal, I think that would be playing too tight. So I push... he thinks for a bit but finally makes the correct call (if you have AK in his place you HAVE to call).
ME: raises 20700 to 23100 and is all-in
GoldGame: calls 12775 and is all-in
*** FLOP *** [2d 9s 6d]
See if I had just called and led out on the flop, I very likely would have won the hand if he is not one of those overvalue AK idiots.
*** TURN *** [2d 9s 6d] [Ts]
*** RIVER *** [2d 9s 6d Ts] [9c]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ME: shows [Ac Qh] (a pair of Nines)
GoldGame: shows [Ad Kc] (a pair of Nines - Ace+King kicker)
GoldGame collected 30650 from pot
Lost with 9's a bit later and that was that. I'm usually my harshest critic... was not happy with the end of my tournament because there was no reason to put myself in a position to cripple myself. I could have called and risked another 2500 on the flop instead of an additional 12K.
That being said my tournament wasn't ALL bad... I had put myself in decent position with a couple of key hands... I never had a pair bigger then tens the entire tournament. Here are a few of them:
Seat 1: Pickles7 (9500 in chips)
Seat 2: GoldGame (12425 in chips)
Seat 3: Pilu1978 (12650 in chips)
Seat 4: Sooners (4725 in chips)
Seat 5: jc_bluej (11725 in chips)
Seat 6: ME (8875 in chips)
Seat 7: Great Baisen (13575 in chips)
Seat 8: finalvision (9700 in chips)
Seat 9: Pokerpablo7 (6825 in chips)
finalvision: posts small blind 50
Pokerpablo7: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [Jh Th]
Pickles7: folds
GoldGame: folds
Pilu1978: folds
Sooners: folds
jc_bluej: folds
ME: raises 200 to 300
Pretty standard play for me.
Great Baisen is disconnected
Great Baisen is connected
Great Baisen: calls 300
finalvision: folds
Pokerpablo7: calls 200
Not necessarily the result I wanted... Great has been very loose and called me down earlier with nothing but a draw and hit a weak pair on the river and called with it to win the pot (I was bluffing... I don't typically bluff calling stations but I didn't know at the time that's what he was)
*** FLOP *** [8c 9h Ac]
Pokerpablo7: checks
ME: checks
Not a terrible flop for me but I decide to see if I can get a free card or at least an inexpensive card... the last thing I want to do is bet and get forced off of my draw with a big raise. I think many people make this mistake of betting automatically if they raised pre-flop when they hit a draw.
Great Baisen: bets 500
Pokerpablo7: folds
ME: calls 500
I can call that, especially against him since I think I have great implied value.
*** TURN *** [8c 9h Ac] [7s]
ME: checks
Bingo, gonna go for ye olde check raise.
Great Baisen: bets 1000
Thank you for cooperating. Now I want to make a bet that I think he will call... I think a bigger one will look more like a bluff then a smaller one, and I want to set up the all in river bet by relatively committing myself with my turn bet. Normally I'd raise 2000 to 3000 but I up it a little more against this guy because I think he'll call.
ME: raises 3000 to 4000
Great Baisen: calls 3000
I know he's not folding the river now... the rest is going in.
*** RIVER *** [8c 9h Ac 7s] [2c]
ME: bets 4075 and is all-in
Great Baisen: calls 4075
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ME: shows [Jh Th] (a straight, Seven to Jack)
Great Baisen: shows [As Ks] (a pair of Aces)
ME collected 18100 from pot
Great obviously should have folded on the turn to the check raise, but some people just can't get over top pair, top kicker. Those players are the bread and butter... the ones that pay my bills.
Seat 1: ShankingYou (14045 in chips)
Seat 2: GoldGame (14175 in chips)
Seat 3: Pilu1978 (20125 in chips)
Seat 4: joetrapper (16325 in chips)
Seat 5: jc_bluej (9100 in chips)
Seat 6: ME (9900 in chips)
Seat 7: Great Baisen (15800 in chips)
Seat 8: finalvision (10264 in chips)
Seat 9: tucisloose (19186 in chips)
ME: posts small blind 200
Great Baisen: posts big blind 400
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [6h 6d]
finalvision: folds
tucisloose: folds
ShankingYou: folds
GoldGame: folds
Pilu1978: folds
joetrapper: raises 800 to 1200
jc_bluej: folds
I'd lost a pretty big pot earlier to joe (took 1/2 my stack) with AQ against AK on a A65A2 board. He was very active... raised a lot first to act and bet the flop anytime someone checked to him. Many players would push all in here, but I wanted to give him the opportunity to bluff the flop and was willing to take the chance. Obviously if the board comes AKJ, I fold, but if he has a hand that fits that board he's not going to fold pre-flop anyway.
ME: calls 1000
Great Baisen: folds
*** FLOP *** [2c 7h 4d]
ME: checks
joetrapper: bets 1600
Got the flop I wanted and the bet I wanted. I remember with the AK vs AQ hand that he continued to be aggressive after I called him on the flop, so I decide to take a different line here and give him an opportunity to make one more bet on the turn.
ME: calls 1600
*** TURN *** [2c 7h 4d] [7d]
ME: checks
joetrapper: bets 4000
This is tough. A good card for my hand but I'm not sure I have any folding equity here... still I think I have the best hand so I gotta go with it.
ME: raises 3100 to 7100 and is all-in
joetrapper: folds
Personally I think if you're gonna bet 4K here, you might as well bet 7100. I really can't see folding here... if he has two overs he has 6 outs or about 6:1 to improve and is getting nearly 5:1 with no threat of an additional bet on the river. But to each their own I suppose.
ME collected 14000 from pot
Joe wins a pretty big pot off of me later in this hand:
Seat 1: ShankingYou (11900 in chips)
Seat 2: GoldGame (13775 in chips)
Seat 3: Pilu1978 (9600 in chips)
Seat 4: joetrapper (25595 in chips)
Seat 5: jc_bluej (12900 in chips)
Seat 6: ME (17100 in chips)
Seat 7: Great Baisen (14400 in chips)
Seat 8: finalvision (10864 in chips)
Seat 9: tucisloose (12786 in chips)
ShankingYou: posts small blind 200
GoldGame: posts big blind 400
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [Ts Th]
Pilu1978: folds
joetrapper: raises 400 to 800
jc_bluej: folds
ME: calls 800
I know he's weak... he raises more with his better hands, so I just call here because like the previous hand I feel like I can outplay him post-flop.
Great Baisen: folds
finalvision: folds
tucisloose: calls 800
ShankingYou: folds
GoldGame: folds
*** FLOP *** [5d 4d 3h]
joetrapper: bets 1200
ME: raises 2800 to 4000
tucisloose: folds
joetrapper: calls 2800
I figure he's on some type of draw here... either has a 6, an ace, or diamonds. Any safe card on the turn and I'm gonna pop it.
*** TURN *** [5d 4d 3h] [2d]
joetrapper: bets 4000
That might very well have been the worst card in the deck that could have come... now any ace or 6 beats me... even if I'm still ahead I don't have any redraws. Maybe I'm the one getting "outplayed" now... but I can't call. Well I can but I'm not going to.
ME: folds
Then shortly before the AQ vs AK crippling hand I get this one... really don't get the JTs call but I was glad to see it. I actually said "shit" when he called until I saw his hand.
Seat 1: ShankingYou (11700 in chips)
Seat 2: GoldGame (15175 in chips)
Seat 3: Pilu1978 (11700 in chips)
Seat 4: joetrapper (30595 in chips)
Seat 5: jc_bluej (10800 in chips)
Seat 6: ME (11400 in chips)
Seat 7: Great Baisen (13800 in chips)
Seat 8: finalvision (10864 in chips)
Seat 9: tucisloose (12886 in chips)
Great Baisen: posts small blind 300
finalvision: posts big blind 600
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [As Jc]
tucisloose: folds
ShankingYou: folds
GoldGame: folds
Pilu1978: folds
joetrapper: folds
jc_bluej: raises 1800 to 2400
ME: raises 9000 to 11400 and is all-in
Great Baisen: folds
finalvision: folds
jc_bluej: calls 8400 and is all-in
*** FLOP *** [Kd 4c 5s]
*** TURN *** [Kd 4c 5s] [5h]
*** RIVER *** [Kd 4c 5s 5h] [9d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
jc_bluej: shows [Js Ts] (a pair of Fives)
ME: shows [As Jc] (a pair of Fives - Ace kicker)
ME collected 22500 from pot
On a more positive note, the heads up matches went smooth today. I went 9-3 and won the $100 in 4 hours and 16 minutes. In 4 days I am 39-19 and only twice have I lost more then two in a row. There was one match that took 55 minutes... my opponent literally timed down every single hand. Not sure if he was just trying to tilt me or had a terrible internet connection. At one point he had me outchipped 2700 to 300 and I thought about just throwing it all in and moving on to the next one, but since I'd lost the previous one I didn't want to just concede in order to play a $50 heads up match, so I fought back, put up with his annoying time outs, and came back to win. Definitely a testament to how much my game has changed. 5 years ago I would have said fuck it and just gave up.
Saturday, November 3, 2007
And this is why I play PLO heads up matches
Today was a bit quicker. Only took 2 hours and 46 minutes to get to the $100 mark. 8-5 overall, longest losing streak was 3. I thought I'd post a couple of hands to show you why these HU matches are so +EV.
First, a bad beat (I still came back to win the match, but this one was kinda funny):
Table '66047511 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: ME (2280 in chips)
Seat 2: cardsBgood (720 in chips)
ME: posts small blind 10
cardsBgood: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [Td Kh Ad 9c]
ME: calls 10
cardsBgood: raises 40 to 60
ME: calls 40
*** FLOP *** [3d 6d 8d]
cardsBgood: bets 120
ME: raises 120 to 240
cardsBgood: raises 420 to 660 and is all-in
ME: calls 420
1 out... the 4 of diamonds.
*** TURN *** [3d 6d 8d] [8h]
2 outs... the 4 of diamonds and the 8 of clubs.
*** RIVER *** [3d 6d 8d 8h] [8c]
Heh.
*** SHOW DOWN ***
cardsBgood: shows [2d 8s 5s 5d] (four of a kind, Eights)
ME: shows [Td Kh Ad 9c] (a flush, Ace high)
cardsBgood collected 1440 from pot
He did at least say "man that was lucky" afterwords. LOL.
Seat 1: ME (1190 in chips)
Seat 2: 8fox8 (1810 in chips)
ME: posts small blind 15
8fox8: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [7h 6d 4h Js]
ME: calls 15
8fox8: raises 60 to 90
ME: calls 60
There are about 15 hands I'll fold in a PLO heads up match pre-flop... quads and the lower end 3 of a kind hands. Everything else, I'm calling. I'd say 90% of people in PLO heads up matches raise pre-flop every hand. It's so predictable and honestly I don't mind it because it helps me build pots when I have really good hands pre-flop, and let's me win bigger pots post-flop when I hit.
*** FLOP *** [4c 8h 6s]
8fox8: bets 180
I don't think he has 75, more likely an overpair that he thinks is the best hand ever.
ME: raises 540 to 720
8fox8: raises 540 to 1260
Well I ain't folding now, if you have 75, I still have outs to a 6, 4, or 5.
ME: calls 380 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [4c 8h 6s] [Tc]
*** RIVER *** [4c 8h 6s Tc] [2d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
8fox8: shows [Kh Kd 9s 5c] (a pair of Kings)
Yep. Common mistake in these... can't fold the overpairs. This isn't hold'em kiddies. At least he had gutshot outs too.
ME: shows [7h 6d 4h Js] (two pair, Sixes and Fours)
ME collected 2380 from pot
This one was interesting, very first hand of a $10 heads up match:
Seat 1: Ramjurobon (1500 in chips)
Seat 2: ME (1500 in chips)
Ramjurobon: posts small blind 5
ME: posts big blind 10
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [Td 8s Ks Tc]
Ramjurobon: raises 20 to 30
See... raise every time.
ME: calls 20
*** FLOP *** [Qs Js Kh]
That's a pretty strong flop for my hand. Top pair, open ender, flush draw, I'm gonna check raise his predictable flop pot bet.
ME: checks
Ramjurobon: bets 30
Hmmm less then pot, that's weird. Well I'm still gonna raise and build this pot up for when I hit.
ME: raises 120 to 150
Ramjurobon: raises 360 to 510
Uh oh. He has AT. I have about 40% EV in this situation. I'm not going to just call here because if I hit the flush on the turn, he's going to put me all in. I either fold or push. It's a $10 heads up match (although I'd probably make the same play at the $20 and $50 level too) so I decide to make the gamble.
ME: raises 960 to 1470 and is all-in
Ramjurobon: calls 960 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [Qs Js Kh] [3s]
Sucking out occasionally is fun!
*** RIVER *** [Qs Js Kh 3s] [7s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ME: shows [Td 8s Ks Tc] (a flush, King high)
Ramjurobon: shows [Kd Ac Ts 4h] (a straight, Ten to Ace)
First, a bad beat (I still came back to win the match, but this one was kinda funny):
Table '66047511 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: ME (2280 in chips)
Seat 2: cardsBgood (720 in chips)
ME: posts small blind 10
cardsBgood: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [Td Kh Ad 9c]
ME: calls 10
cardsBgood: raises 40 to 60
ME: calls 40
*** FLOP *** [3d 6d 8d]
cardsBgood: bets 120
ME: raises 120 to 240
cardsBgood: raises 420 to 660 and is all-in
ME: calls 420
1 out... the 4 of diamonds.
*** TURN *** [3d 6d 8d] [8h]
2 outs... the 4 of diamonds and the 8 of clubs.
*** RIVER *** [3d 6d 8d 8h] [8c]
Heh.
*** SHOW DOWN ***
cardsBgood: shows [2d 8s 5s 5d] (four of a kind, Eights)
ME: shows [Td Kh Ad 9c] (a flush, Ace high)
cardsBgood collected 1440 from pot
He did at least say "man that was lucky" afterwords. LOL.
Seat 1: ME (1190 in chips)
Seat 2: 8fox8 (1810 in chips)
ME: posts small blind 15
8fox8: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [7h 6d 4h Js]
ME: calls 15
8fox8: raises 60 to 90
ME: calls 60
There are about 15 hands I'll fold in a PLO heads up match pre-flop... quads and the lower end 3 of a kind hands. Everything else, I'm calling. I'd say 90% of people in PLO heads up matches raise pre-flop every hand. It's so predictable and honestly I don't mind it because it helps me build pots when I have really good hands pre-flop, and let's me win bigger pots post-flop when I hit.
*** FLOP *** [4c 8h 6s]
8fox8: bets 180
I don't think he has 75, more likely an overpair that he thinks is the best hand ever.
ME: raises 540 to 720
8fox8: raises 540 to 1260
Well I ain't folding now, if you have 75, I still have outs to a 6, 4, or 5.
ME: calls 380 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [4c 8h 6s] [Tc]
*** RIVER *** [4c 8h 6s Tc] [2d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
8fox8: shows [Kh Kd 9s 5c] (a pair of Kings)
Yep. Common mistake in these... can't fold the overpairs. This isn't hold'em kiddies. At least he had gutshot outs too.
ME: shows [7h 6d 4h Js] (two pair, Sixes and Fours)
ME collected 2380 from pot
This one was interesting, very first hand of a $10 heads up match:
Seat 1: Ramjurobon (1500 in chips)
Seat 2: ME (1500 in chips)
Ramjurobon: posts small blind 5
ME: posts big blind 10
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ME [Td 8s Ks Tc]
Ramjurobon: raises 20 to 30
See... raise every time.
ME: calls 20
*** FLOP *** [Qs Js Kh]
That's a pretty strong flop for my hand. Top pair, open ender, flush draw, I'm gonna check raise his predictable flop pot bet.
ME: checks
Ramjurobon: bets 30
Hmmm less then pot, that's weird. Well I'm still gonna raise and build this pot up for when I hit.
ME: raises 120 to 150
Ramjurobon: raises 360 to 510
Uh oh. He has AT. I have about 40% EV in this situation. I'm not going to just call here because if I hit the flush on the turn, he's going to put me all in. I either fold or push. It's a $10 heads up match (although I'd probably make the same play at the $20 and $50 level too) so I decide to make the gamble.
ME: raises 960 to 1470 and is all-in
Ramjurobon: calls 960 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [Qs Js Kh] [3s]
Sucking out occasionally is fun!
*** RIVER *** [Qs Js Kh 3s] [7s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ME: shows [Td 8s Ks Tc] (a flush, King high)
Ramjurobon: shows [Kd Ac Ts 4h] (a straight, Ten to Ace)
Friday, November 2, 2007
Finally playing
I was finally able to get some money online and have been playing the past two days... because of my other committments with mentoring and writing articles I have modest goals of making $100 a day when I play. Once I've reached that goal, my day is complete. I plan on playing some tournaments here and there but for the most part I am going to stick with my newest method of grinding... PLO and PLO8 heads up matches because they work pretty well for me. I use a blackjack betting system to play these, I'll explain in a bit, and it's pretty relaxed. I play one at a time and usually am watching some tv, listening to some music, or something else that I enjoy at the same time. Yesterday it took me 3.5 hours to hit the $100 mark, today it took 5.5. I had a bit of a bad run today, which is why it took me so long, but as is usually the case in heads up matches (and why I use the blackjack betting system), I prevailed eventually.
During the bad run today I actually lost with two nut full houses to straight flushes. Much more likely to happen in PLO then in NLHE but still, that sucked. :)
So anyway, the blackjack betting system is the Martingale system, and basically what I do is start with a $10 (or somewhere close to there) heads up match. If I win it, I play again at that level. If I lose at that level, I move up to the next higher level ($20 for example). If I win, then I move back down to $10. If I lose, then I move up to the next level. The reasoning behind this is I believe my skill level is good enough in these (especially at PLO and PLO8 where the play is fairly bad/predictable) that I will seldom lose more then 3 or 4 in a row. I start the day with a cap. If I lose that cap, then I'm done and consider the day a loss. The cap is $500. I almost hit that cap today... only the 2nd time I've been playing a heads up match with all my daily cap on the line. Basically for me to get to this match I would have had to lose 4 in a row. If I lose the 5th one in a row, I'm done for the day.
I tested this out last month by starting at the $2 level with a $100 cap and managed to turn $300 into $600 relatively easily. I never lost 5 in a row and I think my W-L record over the month was 110-45. Yesterday was a good day... I was 12-3. Today was a bit tougher, I finished 10-8 and I'm going to show you how the system works using today's results as an example (it's possible to make a profit even finishing less then .500).
Start Time Buy in W/L Profit (Loss) Daily Profit (Loss)
10:23 11.50 L -11.50 -11.50
10:44 21 W +19 +7.50
10:54 10.50 W +9.50 +17
11:26 10.50 W +9.50 +26.50
11:58 11.50 W +10.50 +37
12:19 10.50 L -10.50 +26.50
12:31 21 L -21 +5.50
12:51 52.50 L -52.50 -47
1:10 105 L -105 -152
1:27 230 W +210 +58
Break
7:11 10.50 L -10.50 +47.50
(at this point I am 5-6 and have made a profit)
7:21 21 W +19 +66.50
7:30 10.50 L -10.50 +56
7:42 21 W +19 +75
7:57 10.50 L -10.50 +64.50
8:20 21 W +19 +83.50
8:38 10.50 W +9.50 +93
9:09 11.50 W +10.50 +103.50
Done for the day at 9:17
Now obviously you have to be able to stop at a certain point, this system could cause someone to tilt off a large bankroll... but I know my limitations. Basically if I hit the $500 cap (which I imagine will happen sometimes) it just means I am using my profits from previous winning sessions to cover for it.
I'll keep you all up to date on how this goes, I've allotted $2000 for this, so it would take 4+ cap loss days to bust me... I don't see it happening. Anyone want to bet against me? :)
During the bad run today I actually lost with two nut full houses to straight flushes. Much more likely to happen in PLO then in NLHE but still, that sucked. :)
So anyway, the blackjack betting system is the Martingale system, and basically what I do is start with a $10 (or somewhere close to there) heads up match. If I win it, I play again at that level. If I lose at that level, I move up to the next higher level ($20 for example). If I win, then I move back down to $10. If I lose, then I move up to the next level. The reasoning behind this is I believe my skill level is good enough in these (especially at PLO and PLO8 where the play is fairly bad/predictable) that I will seldom lose more then 3 or 4 in a row. I start the day with a cap. If I lose that cap, then I'm done and consider the day a loss. The cap is $500. I almost hit that cap today... only the 2nd time I've been playing a heads up match with all my daily cap on the line. Basically for me to get to this match I would have had to lose 4 in a row. If I lose the 5th one in a row, I'm done for the day.
I tested this out last month by starting at the $2 level with a $100 cap and managed to turn $300 into $600 relatively easily. I never lost 5 in a row and I think my W-L record over the month was 110-45. Yesterday was a good day... I was 12-3. Today was a bit tougher, I finished 10-8 and I'm going to show you how the system works using today's results as an example (it's possible to make a profit even finishing less then .500).
Start Time Buy in W/L Profit (Loss) Daily Profit (Loss)
10:23 11.50 L -11.50 -11.50
10:44 21 W +19 +7.50
10:54 10.50 W +9.50 +17
11:26 10.50 W +9.50 +26.50
11:58 11.50 W +10.50 +37
12:19 10.50 L -10.50 +26.50
12:31 21 L -21 +5.50
12:51 52.50 L -52.50 -47
1:10 105 L -105 -152
1:27 230 W +210 +58
Break
7:11 10.50 L -10.50 +47.50
(at this point I am 5-6 and have made a profit)
7:21 21 W +19 +66.50
7:30 10.50 L -10.50 +56
7:42 21 W +19 +75
7:57 10.50 L -10.50 +64.50
8:20 21 W +19 +83.50
8:38 10.50 W +9.50 +93
9:09 11.50 W +10.50 +103.50
Done for the day at 9:17
Now obviously you have to be able to stop at a certain point, this system could cause someone to tilt off a large bankroll... but I know my limitations. Basically if I hit the $500 cap (which I imagine will happen sometimes) it just means I am using my profits from previous winning sessions to cover for it.
I'll keep you all up to date on how this goes, I've allotted $2000 for this, so it would take 4+ cap loss days to bust me... I don't see it happening. Anyone want to bet against me? :)
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Moving sucks but the end result is usually worth it
I've spent the better part of the last three weeks packing, moving, and unpacking. I always hate moving, it is one of the reasons I don't do it often (I spent 6 years at my last place even though I didn't really like it all that much). Well I'm done, and getting a new start is both exciting and somewhat scary.
Some difficulties I've encountered is setting up a bank account to fund my online poker accounts. I was fortunate enough to have a couple of nice cashes before I moved out here... I bought some new toys for my room (a HDTV, playstation, mini-fridge, and other misc. accessories) but I have no way of playing online poker right now until I get a bill sent to my new address so that I have verification of my new address. Seriously, since when did banks get so picky about taking people's money? I actually closed my old bank account and since I am creating all new poker accounts (to take advantage of the bonuses and to be somewhat anonymous... for now) I am spending the majority of my time right now setting up things at my new mentoring site, writing articles for InsidePoker, and playing Tiger Woods on my PS.
So that's what is up. Soon I'll be talking poker here, but for now that's what is going on here.
Some difficulties I've encountered is setting up a bank account to fund my online poker accounts. I was fortunate enough to have a couple of nice cashes before I moved out here... I bought some new toys for my room (a HDTV, playstation, mini-fridge, and other misc. accessories) but I have no way of playing online poker right now until I get a bill sent to my new address so that I have verification of my new address. Seriously, since when did banks get so picky about taking people's money? I actually closed my old bank account and since I am creating all new poker accounts (to take advantage of the bonuses and to be somewhat anonymous... for now) I am spending the majority of my time right now setting up things at my new mentoring site, writing articles for InsidePoker, and playing Tiger Woods on my PS.
So that's what is up. Soon I'll be talking poker here, but for now that's what is going on here.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Living for today
I was sending an e-mail to a good friend of mine explaining why I make some of the choices I do (i.e. quitting a good job to go to Vegas for two months to report on the World Series of Poker). Here is what I said:
Life without hope... well it's not much. We have to have something to look forward to the next day... something that makes us dream and wonder... something that excites us or angers us... something that gets our minds thinking, our hearts racing...
I've always lived life with that in mind. When an opportunity comes, I seize it. I'm not a believer in planning for the future... I believe in living in the moment. I laugh at all the people my age who scrape their pennies so they will have money when they are older. What kind of life is that? Live now I say! I'm not saying that I make bad choices... I don't... I'm just saying that the choices are make are with today in mind... not ten years from now.
Life without hope... well it's not much. We have to have something to look forward to the next day... something that makes us dream and wonder... something that excites us or angers us... something that gets our minds thinking, our hearts racing...
I've always lived life with that in mind. When an opportunity comes, I seize it. I'm not a believer in planning for the future... I believe in living in the moment. I laugh at all the people my age who scrape their pennies so they will have money when they are older. What kind of life is that? Live now I say! I'm not saying that I make bad choices... I don't... I'm just saying that the choices are make are with today in mind... not ten years from now.
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Don't know much 'bout...
Golf. But that's a whole lengthy dissertation.
I've been spending the past two weeks with my boys and my Dad. It's been an interesting experience to say the least, 95% enjoyable, but 5% reminding me of why I doubt I'd ever have kids again (I'm much too old anyway). Although I think if I had just one child that could not fight with their siblings that I might enjoy that. Love my boys to death but man their fighting with one another gets old and frustrating and try as I might to contain/control it, I just don't know if it's possible considering I only get them one month a year. We're having fun though and I know that they are enjoying their time with me... as they usually do since I pretty much spoil them rotten for a month and send them off to their evil (well in my eyes) mother (and no I don't talk bad about her in front of the kids).
My Dad lives in a retirement community (55 and over) on a golf course so we have been golfing 4-5 times a week since we've been here. I. Suck. At. Golf. I'm getting better though but it is a challenging game for sure. Many similarities to poker if you think about it, especially when it comes to dealing with your emotions. As with poker and taking a bad beat, you have to be able to move on to the next hand calmly and rationally... same with golf and a bad shot.
Anyway, that's all I really have time for right now. Playing cards/games/golf with the boys keeps me busy... I'm sure once I get back to Minnesota in three weeks I'll start playing more poker and have more things to write about.
I've been spending the past two weeks with my boys and my Dad. It's been an interesting experience to say the least, 95% enjoyable, but 5% reminding me of why I doubt I'd ever have kids again (I'm much too old anyway). Although I think if I had just one child that could not fight with their siblings that I might enjoy that. Love my boys to death but man their fighting with one another gets old and frustrating and try as I might to contain/control it, I just don't know if it's possible considering I only get them one month a year. We're having fun though and I know that they are enjoying their time with me... as they usually do since I pretty much spoil them rotten for a month and send them off to their evil (well in my eyes) mother (and no I don't talk bad about her in front of the kids).
My Dad lives in a retirement community (55 and over) on a golf course so we have been golfing 4-5 times a week since we've been here. I. Suck. At. Golf. I'm getting better though but it is a challenging game for sure. Many similarities to poker if you think about it, especially when it comes to dealing with your emotions. As with poker and taking a bad beat, you have to be able to move on to the next hand calmly and rationally... same with golf and a bad shot.
Anyway, that's all I really have time for right now. Playing cards/games/golf with the boys keeps me busy... I'm sure once I get back to Minnesota in three weeks I'll start playing more poker and have more things to write about.
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