Friday, July 28, 2006

Almost a week without poker???

I left town Thursday night, and yesterday (one week later) I got so desperate that I played on-line poker for 2$ an hour at the internet shop. I no longer have the shakes. I was fourth in a sit n go because this one guy pushed almost any high card and beat my AJo with his KQs.

This coming Tuesday I´ll be here for almost 24 hours:
http://www.aviationclubdefrance.com/poker_uk.html

I hope I won´t get my butt kicked, but we gotta give it a shot in any case.

Monday, July 24, 2006

Hello from Spain

No poker to relate today, but I did put in 20 hours plus of casino last weekend between Tunica, and Mt. Pleasant Michigan, which is smokey, and poorly managed, but at least has competent dealers and plenty of fishy players. I moved up to the 6-12 table for the first time, and found the play to be almost as bad as the 3-6 table. I left about two big bets to the good, but overall I lost money playing in Michigan. If I hadn´t bankrolled my nephew in exchange for a cut, I would have been way behind, but the 19'year'old kid, after minimal instruction, proceeded to go on a tear and triple his buy in over 5 hours.

I don´t expect any poker updates for at least a week. Hanging out at the in-laws, and there´s no poker around here.

Friday, July 14, 2006

Profitable overnighter in Tunica

Had a 6:30 am flight out of Memphis, so instead of dealing with an attempted night of half-sleep, I played poker all night after an 11 hour shift of work.

First two hours were 7 stud 1-5 spread at the Horseshoe. It was my first ever profitable session (9 bucks) but I owe most of my profit to one hand were I chased with a pair of queens and caught my trips on 7th street to beat the other guys rolled-up fourst. Not my finest moment. Otherwise I tried to play sensible and not chase without odds.

Then I played a 5 hour 1-2 NLHE session at the Gold Strike with a very friendly crew. Everybody was funning it up, and I was the only one not drinking. I doubled my buy-in and would have done even better if I hadn't been rivered twice on biggish two-way hands where I was way ahead on the turn and betting heavy to protect. The two players respectively called my big turn bets with an under pair to my top pair, and with an inside straight draw, and they both hit. One checked to me in the hopes that I would bet, and I didn't. The other made a pot-sized bet, and I stated that I'd credit him w/AJ for a straight and I folded, and he exposed J9 for the low straight.

My play was very ABC all night long, with a random supply of bluffs at orphan pots, but I never got myself in trouble with the bluffs, and I didn't catch a single monster hand, except for a pair of aces heads up where I put in 1/4 of my stack preflop, half my stack on the flop heads-up, and the remainder on the river, and he only had a pair of jacks at that point.

Sunday, July 09, 2006

Ohio Poker Roundup (Overdose)

Finally something nice to write about. Had a three-way chop for first in a field of 36 last night at JB's place. The two other players were playing heads up well, but I had a nice rush of cards to come back from distant third place to (marginal) chip leader. I was in three all-in showdowns that night in which all my chips were at stake (AA narrowly beats K8s in which K8 has a pair, a flush draw and an outside straight draw on the turn - 19 outs!; AA v A5s and an ace flops with no flush draw; JJ v KJ with no king ruining the party) but otherwise made a lot of laydowns to ABC players, and even to frequent bluffers when I didn't want to risk my chip stack on Q-high etc. I was down to 4M before my first double-up w/AA. Both of my AAs were against LJ, who was kind enough to call my push after betting half my stack the first time, and was kind enough to put me all-in when I reraised him with a healthy stack.

It's tough to beat players who think Ace-low offsuit is a pretty good starting hand and bet accordingly, but if the blind structure gives me enough slack, sooner or later they will overestimate their strength.

Last Sunday and Monday I took my brother to a couple more games.

We played an apartment game Sunday with 7 players total, 3 of them quaffing beer and playing any two cards. One player reraised me w/32s, and when I pushed with QJo, he called and hit a wheel on the flop. I failed to runner-runner KT to win that one. Another memorable all-in I had AQo and came over the top short-handed. He calls w/A9o and hits his nine to knock me out for third place. Feh. After that we played the paper and plastic floating game, where I had a very cold run of cards, with a nut-job at the table who was clearly working through personal issues via poker. I left in disgust when he declared two misdeals in a row. That's the dealer's job, right? If I had been running a little warmer, I might not have gotten upset, but it was a decent excuse to leave.

Then we played Monday at E's tourney, special Holiday Weekend edition. It felt like a family reunion, with players I rarely run into. Preacher, OEM, the Suit and others. I played some bad, bad poker that night. Here's my excuses first, then my bad plays:

1) Physical Exhaustion - I had a log splitter that weekend, and between my brother and I, we split and stacked a four-story elm tree and a two-story elm-tree.
2) Poker overdose. My brother showed up Friday night, and we played Friday night, then I gave him some on-line pointers for a couple hours (he took first at a 45-player $1.20 tourney on Stars), then we played Saturday night at a big tourney, then Sunday I gave him pointers for a while on Stars, and we played the Apartment and the paper/plastic game. At the all-you-can-eat buffet, I had consumed all I could eat.
3) Mental exhaustion. In addition to the log splitting, I ended up working a full day Sunday on work-work, putting together some design documents that couldn't wait.
4) Nostalgia-Goofiness. Preacher was on my left, and I was funning it up instead of playing tight-agressive poker. I lost a few chips that way.

Now here's the ways I screwed up.
1) Self-defeat with pocket cowboys.
I had KK and made a position raise early on and both the SB and BB call. The flop is something like 6TJ with a flush draw, and I make a 1/2 pot bet and get two callers. The turn is another ten and I bet and get two callers. On the river Q I haven't improved, and the second player bets into me about 10% of the pot. I muck in disgust with only an overpair to the very dangerous board. I asked him a few days later what he had, and he tells me top-split pair. Whether that's true or not, I still should have made the crying call with my overpair. Again, I was in a very pessimistic frame of mind and neglected the math.
2) Self-defeat with a pocket pair when an ace flops.
My brother makes a raise in steal position, and I've been tutoring him on this so have some idea what he might be up to. I reraise with pocket nines. The flop is AJx and he makes a continuation bet, and I muck my nines face up. He shows me pocket threes. Good play bro! In retrospect, my best option would have been to push pre-flop.
3) Not paying attention to what my opponent might have. I'm goofing it up with preacher and make a steal raise with J-8o, and flop trips. I neglect the board on the turn, assuming I'm golden with my trips and an inside straight draw on the turn. When he reraises my all-in on the turn I happily call, and he's got the made straight. I fill my inside straight draw to chop, and feel like an ass for not considering that he might actually have a hand.

4) Bad timing. I'm at 2M and push from early position with KJo at the final table. There are pockets eights, tens and Aces in that order behind me with progressively bigger stacks. The aces and tens are blocking my straight draws, so it's the thinnest draw ever four-way. D'oh!

Sunday, July 02, 2006

Charity Tourney July 1

Went to a charity tourney last night with my brother and made it one past the bubble, getting my buy-back plus 10$. If I had bought the add-on, I would have been behind 10$.

I had a really hot run of cards at a table of very readable players, and only slowed down when I had three decent hands broken in short order. My AA v QQ and 66 lost to a six on the flop for a quarter of my stack. My AQ in the BB found AK in the SB and didn't improve for a quarter of my stack, and there was one other hand I got slaughtered on in similar circumstances. I was all-in w/K3 suited in desperation, and came up against 44 who flopped the set. I was already walking away when somebody said 'hey, you rivered a straight!' Then I was able to bully, slow-play and somehow find my way back to 4M when we got to the final table.

First hand at the final table I'm UTG w/JJ with 25K in chips, and blinds are 2K, 4K. I make a raise to 15K and a player halfway down puts me all in. There is now 46K in the pot and it costs me my last 10K, so I'm getting 4 to 1 odds. Even if I'm behind, it's reasonable odds, and I certainly don't have enough chips left to play if I fold, so I push my last chips and he turns over KK. Somebody else says they mucked a jack, so I've got one out, and it doesn't come.

There are 3 larger pocket pairs than JJ, and each has a 1/221 chance, and eight players yet to act with cards, so the chance of my being that far behind was 24/221, or just under 11%. I'd play that hand in that chip count and position the same way every time.

Saturday, July 01, 2006

Crazy Omaha

Went to the paper and plastic game last night with my visiting brother, and tried my luck at the 3-6 high-only omaha. Luck held, and I did very well, taking down pots with hands as weak as a set of sixes and even chopping a pot with two pair.

The betting structure was crazy. Let's see if I can explain it.

1) The button is the only poster, and can post anthing between 3 and 6.
2) The button states whether all are dealt 3, 4 or 5 cards. Omaha rules apply no matter how many cards.
3) On a kill pot, 6-12, any better can raise by 12 pre-flop or on the flop. They can also raise or bet by any amount between 6 and 12 as they see fit. (spread)
4) Action starts pre-flop one to the left of the button. On the flop action starts two to the left. Then three. Then four.
5) No checking on any street. Bet or fold only.

Starting to see this? It was wild.