I knew statistics would eventually pay me off. I buckled down my playing style and entered a few more $20 sit-n-go's.
The results:
2nd, 7th, 1st, 1st
The 7th place finish was due to a KK getting squashed by JQ when the flop came JQ and the turn brought another Q. Oh well, I'll still take KK over JQ any day :)
Anyway, very pleased with my decisions AND my results.
Sunday, July 11, 2004
Premium Hands Getting Destroyed
I've been playing some Sit N' Go's to break up my NL ring game woes, wherein I've tried moving up to the $100 buy-in ranks.
In my 2nd one, I've made the money and am 2nd in chips when I'm dealt the Hiltons. I raise up T300 and the short stack goes all-in. I call to see his AJo. Well, the board is garbage until the A spikes on the river. I don't see another playable hand and am blinded away to 3rd place.
In the 3rd one, it's the 3rd or 4th hand and I'm dealt AA. A K-high flop and I bet the size of the pot, about T250. I get called and decide to push all-in at that point. The other guy shows me KJ and a deadly J spikes on the river for him, eliminating me in 10th.
None of that hurts as much as the 8's I'm dealt in a ring game where the flop makes my set. After all is said and done, the $325 pot goes to my opponent who rivered a 10 for a set over set victory. That one hurt a lot, and as such, my bank roll has taken quite a hit this weekend based nearly on the results of that one single hand.
I'm hoping not to dwell too long on these bad results as I'm still making correct decisions which is all that I can control. But sometimes it hurts, I tell ya, it hurts.
In my 2nd one, I've made the money and am 2nd in chips when I'm dealt the Hiltons. I raise up T300 and the short stack goes all-in. I call to see his AJo. Well, the board is garbage until the A spikes on the river. I don't see another playable hand and am blinded away to 3rd place.
In the 3rd one, it's the 3rd or 4th hand and I'm dealt AA. A K-high flop and I bet the size of the pot, about T250. I get called and decide to push all-in at that point. The other guy shows me KJ and a deadly J spikes on the river for him, eliminating me in 10th.
None of that hurts as much as the 8's I'm dealt in a ring game where the flop makes my set. After all is said and done, the $325 pot goes to my opponent who rivered a 10 for a set over set victory. That one hurt a lot, and as such, my bank roll has taken quite a hit this weekend based nearly on the results of that one single hand.
I'm hoping not to dwell too long on these bad results as I'm still making correct decisions which is all that I can control. But sometimes it hurts, I tell ya, it hurts.
Wednesday, July 7, 2004
Anti-CJ Hand
So, I'm graciously allowing my mother-in-law access to my laptop so she can check her email from the campground. An HOUR!!!! later, I log on anxiously awaiting the tables at Party Poker.
Compounding the overly long wait for my own laptop is a run of garbage cards that I can't rightfully play. Until I get CJ's favorite, 9,9.
I of course pre-flop raise to $3 and am called by one player. I see a very good flop when you're holding 9's: 3s, 4s, 8d. I bet out $4 and am raised to $20. I call. The turn is a Kd. Other player goes all in and I call. The river is a 7d. Get this....
Other player wins holding Q,10d. Thou art shitting me.
Raising and going all in for a runner-runner draw. Good Lord.
Let me remind you I'm at a recreation center at a camp grounds in North Carolina where the average age is about 60 years old. So I guess it's really no surprise that I get a couple of looks when I yell "You fucking dildo!" and toss my World Champion New England Patriots hat into the ceiling fan.
Compounding the overly long wait for my own laptop is a run of garbage cards that I can't rightfully play. Until I get CJ's favorite, 9,9.
I of course pre-flop raise to $3 and am called by one player. I see a very good flop when you're holding 9's: 3s, 4s, 8d. I bet out $4 and am raised to $20. I call. The turn is a Kd. Other player goes all in and I call. The river is a 7d. Get this....
Other player wins holding Q,10d. Thou art shitting me.
Raising and going all in for a runner-runner draw. Good Lord.
Let me remind you I'm at a recreation center at a camp grounds in North Carolina where the average age is about 60 years old. So I guess it's really no surprise that I get a couple of looks when I yell "You fucking dildo!" and toss my World Champion New England Patriots hat into the ceiling fan.
Tuesday, July 6, 2004
On Vacation
Well, I'm off camping this week with the wife, both kids, and the in-laws. Up here in a camp ground in North Carolina, there is incredibly enough a wireless access point. And with me being the genius that I am, I've brought my laptop. So you know what that means...
Anyway, been swimming, miniature golfing, eating, and drinking the last 2 days and anticipate much of the same for the next 3. Poker? Perhaps. If you see me on Party, shout out!
Anyway, been swimming, miniature golfing, eating, and drinking the last 2 days and anticipate much of the same for the next 3. Poker? Perhaps. If you see me on Party, shout out!
Saturday, July 3, 2004
More Bubble-icious Action
Well, just got home from the Up For Poker boy's 4th of July weekend poker tournament. Another fantastically run tournament featuring 23 players and a $50 buy-in. Let me set the stage for you early and mention that the top four players would be paid $125, $175, $275, $575.
I drew table 3 and saw only one familiar face, known in these parts as Greenwood Phil. The other 5 players at the table were all unknowns to me, so I had no idea what their style would be. Best to play it safe during these early rounds. I brought along two of my home game buddies, Teddy Ballgame and the Rankster, each of whom drew table 1.
Luckily for me, the early rounds saw me get a decent number of starting hands to play, including A,A twice, and Q,Q once. Neither of those monsters lost and I soon found myself at about T1700 by the first break, up from the original starting T1000.
Meanwhile, over at table 1, the Rankster managed to be the first eliminated. Good thing he drove the hour drive himself as he would have had to wait about 3 more hours if he wanted to wait for the rest of us to finish up.
Early in round 4 after the 1st break, I'm dealt 9,9. The flop is K,J,9 and I have position on the only other player in this hand. He bets out T100 and I simply call for now, fearing a straight draw. When the turn brings an A and he checks, I put him on K,X with a good kicker. So I bet out T200 and he calls. The river is a rag and I bet out T400 at which point the other player raises me all-in. I'm a bit nervous not knowing these players, but I really wasn't thinking that he was slow playing a straight. I call and he shows K,Q. My trip 9's take a rather big pot, giving me roughly T3000 in chips and I became chip leader at my table.
After the tables condensed to two, I was moved to another table with all new players. I was immediately dealt J,J and saw a K,10,4 flop. One player bet, and another raised all-in. I'd have to lay down these J's for sure. The all-in raiser showed A,A and I turned out making the obviously correct call on that hand. The very next hand I'm dealt J,J again but only smooth call and see a 4-handed flop. I'm not generally aggressive twice in a row since I tend to think that raising pre-flop two hands in a row dilutes its effect. That may be a flaw in my playing style though. The flop this time is 8,9,10 and I bet out. I get one caller and the turn brings a Q. I bet out again and the other player folds. Now I'm about at T3700.
Next comes the hand of the tournament for me. I'm dealt A,10 and see an A,Q,J heart flop. I'm holding the 10 of hearts and at this point believe nobody's got a flush. I bet T400 and get called by one player. The turn brings a 3 of hearts and I've now got the 2nd highest possible flush. The other player goes all-in. Here's my dilema: I'm not sure how good or bad a player he is. An all-in bet here by a decent player is to me an attempt to buy the pot, because if they are holding the K of hearts, there's no reason to bet me out of the pot. But I didn't know anything about him, and have seen earlier play where other people went all in with the nuts and were actually called. So I decide to lay the hand down having plenty of chips to work with later on. Turns out the other guy was holding the 6 of hearts and I would have won. This would have given me about T6000+ and an easy ticket into the money.
After we get down to 10 players, I'm moved to another table where it's 5-handed. I get some cards, including a set of 7's and finish at the break with T3300.
The final table of eight is roughly even with nobody holding a huge dominating stack. The only problem here is that the blinds are 300/600 and the next level they go to 500/1000. Unfortunately for me, the deck goes cold on me at the final table. But not before three players go out leaving me right on the bubble. My last hurrah is an all-in with T1000 holding 9,10 hearts. The big blind is my only opponent holding J,2 spades. There's no help for me and my tournament is over in 5th place, just out of the money......AGAIN.
Here's a quick summary of the 7 live tournaments I've played in:
11 players, paying 4 - 6th
16 players, paying 4 - 4th
19 players, paying 3 - 4th
19 players, paying 4 - 5th
13 players, paying 3 - 7th
33 players, paying 5 - 5th
23 players, paying 4 - 5th
As you can see, I've always made the final table; but in 5 out of 7 tournaments, I've been eliminated either on the bubble or just at the first money position. A very disturbing trend indeed, not to mention the WBT tourney where there were 30 players, paying 3 - 4th.
At some point this needs to improve and I'll need to do some analysis of my tournament play to figure out why this happens so often.
I drew table 3 and saw only one familiar face, known in these parts as Greenwood Phil. The other 5 players at the table were all unknowns to me, so I had no idea what their style would be. Best to play it safe during these early rounds. I brought along two of my home game buddies, Teddy Ballgame and the Rankster, each of whom drew table 1.
Luckily for me, the early rounds saw me get a decent number of starting hands to play, including A,A twice, and Q,Q once. Neither of those monsters lost and I soon found myself at about T1700 by the first break, up from the original starting T1000.
Meanwhile, over at table 1, the Rankster managed to be the first eliminated. Good thing he drove the hour drive himself as he would have had to wait about 3 more hours if he wanted to wait for the rest of us to finish up.
Early in round 4 after the 1st break, I'm dealt 9,9. The flop is K,J,9 and I have position on the only other player in this hand. He bets out T100 and I simply call for now, fearing a straight draw. When the turn brings an A and he checks, I put him on K,X with a good kicker. So I bet out T200 and he calls. The river is a rag and I bet out T400 at which point the other player raises me all-in. I'm a bit nervous not knowing these players, but I really wasn't thinking that he was slow playing a straight. I call and he shows K,Q. My trip 9's take a rather big pot, giving me roughly T3000 in chips and I became chip leader at my table.
After the tables condensed to two, I was moved to another table with all new players. I was immediately dealt J,J and saw a K,10,4 flop. One player bet, and another raised all-in. I'd have to lay down these J's for sure. The all-in raiser showed A,A and I turned out making the obviously correct call on that hand. The very next hand I'm dealt J,J again but only smooth call and see a 4-handed flop. I'm not generally aggressive twice in a row since I tend to think that raising pre-flop two hands in a row dilutes its effect. That may be a flaw in my playing style though. The flop this time is 8,9,10 and I bet out. I get one caller and the turn brings a Q. I bet out again and the other player folds. Now I'm about at T3700.
Next comes the hand of the tournament for me. I'm dealt A,10 and see an A,Q,J heart flop. I'm holding the 10 of hearts and at this point believe nobody's got a flush. I bet T400 and get called by one player. The turn brings a 3 of hearts and I've now got the 2nd highest possible flush. The other player goes all-in. Here's my dilema: I'm not sure how good or bad a player he is. An all-in bet here by a decent player is to me an attempt to buy the pot, because if they are holding the K of hearts, there's no reason to bet me out of the pot. But I didn't know anything about him, and have seen earlier play where other people went all in with the nuts and were actually called. So I decide to lay the hand down having plenty of chips to work with later on. Turns out the other guy was holding the 6 of hearts and I would have won. This would have given me about T6000+ and an easy ticket into the money.
After we get down to 10 players, I'm moved to another table where it's 5-handed. I get some cards, including a set of 7's and finish at the break with T3300.
The final table of eight is roughly even with nobody holding a huge dominating stack. The only problem here is that the blinds are 300/600 and the next level they go to 500/1000. Unfortunately for me, the deck goes cold on me at the final table. But not before three players go out leaving me right on the bubble. My last hurrah is an all-in with T1000 holding 9,10 hearts. The big blind is my only opponent holding J,2 spades. There's no help for me and my tournament is over in 5th place, just out of the money......AGAIN.
Here's a quick summary of the 7 live tournaments I've played in:
11 players, paying 4 - 6th
16 players, paying 4 - 4th
19 players, paying 3 - 4th
19 players, paying 4 - 5th
13 players, paying 3 - 7th
33 players, paying 5 - 5th
23 players, paying 4 - 5th
As you can see, I've always made the final table; but in 5 out of 7 tournaments, I've been eliminated either on the bubble or just at the first money position. A very disturbing trend indeed, not to mention the WBT tourney where there were 30 players, paying 3 - 4th.
At some point this needs to improve and I'll need to do some analysis of my tournament play to figure out why this happens so often.
Friday, July 2, 2004
Not A Worry Cause My Wallet's Fat
There was a massacre at my home game last night. And it was delivered by yours truly to the rest of the players. A six-player event where I dominated to the tune of +$197. After last week's craptacular performance where my play could easily have been described as loosey-goosey, I vowed to tighten up and let the other players call me down to keep me honest.
And was I ever honest. Didn't bluff a single time and had the goods when I needed them.
I hope to parlay this winning trend to Saturday's tournament with the boys at Up For Poker.
And was I ever honest. Didn't bluff a single time and had the goods when I needed them.
I hope to parlay this winning trend to Saturday's tournament with the boys at Up For Poker.
Thursday, July 1, 2004
Some Beat Downs
Not to bore the readers with bad beat stories, but last night's events put a hurt on the old bankroll. Dropped $79 in only about 90 minutes; three hands really stand out as contributing factors to the overall results.
Holding A,A, the flop is A,Q,4 rainbow. The dumbass in me checks thinking slow play all the way. Well I gave away a free card and the turn brought the K. I eventually get all-in to my opponents J,10. These straights are absolutely killing my sets the last week.
Holding K,10 and I limp in to see a 10,10,4 rainbow flop. I'm not slow playing this, so I bet. I'm called. I'm eventually all-in again against 3,5 spades and see runner-runner spade for the loss. Yay.
Last hand of the night and I limp in with 9,10 suited. The flop is the majestic J,Q,K. I don't put anyone on A,10 and I'm right. I'm eventually all in after the turn against someone holding K,J. The river is another J. Joy.
Those three pots were a combined $140+ so to say that I was subject to some variance would be a bit of an understatement.
I logged out after the last loss knowing full well that in the past I'd have continued to throw money away with very bad play in an attempt to make back my losses quickly. After all, $79 isn't really all that much and I hope to regroup again tomorrow in my home game.
Holding A,A, the flop is A,Q,4 rainbow. The dumbass in me checks thinking slow play all the way. Well I gave away a free card and the turn brought the K. I eventually get all-in to my opponents J,10. These straights are absolutely killing my sets the last week.
Holding K,10 and I limp in to see a 10,10,4 rainbow flop. I'm not slow playing this, so I bet. I'm called. I'm eventually all-in again against 3,5 spades and see runner-runner spade for the loss. Yay.
Last hand of the night and I limp in with 9,10 suited. The flop is the majestic J,Q,K. I don't put anyone on A,10 and I'm right. I'm eventually all in after the turn against someone holding K,J. The river is another J. Joy.
Those three pots were a combined $140+ so to say that I was subject to some variance would be a bit of an understatement.
I logged out after the last loss knowing full well that in the past I'd have continued to throw money away with very bad play in an attempt to make back my losses quickly. After all, $79 isn't really all that much and I hope to regroup again tomorrow in my home game.
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