Haven't been playing a ton lately; being that its the holidays and all and plenty of other stuff going on. But I have done some, and I have come to a couple of realizations (or more accurately, confirmations of things I knew). They can be summed up in one word each.
One: FOCUS. The other day I tried playing poker and working on some other stuff at the same time. BAD idea. There are levels of focus, I've found, and I can get away with paying a bit less attention online than on the felt. But the level I had on this day was terrible, and I could feel it. As a result, I knocked off until I got my other stuff finished, and by then, I didn't even feel like playing any more. Which is fine - sometimes, it's just not your day.
The lesson: make sure that when I play poker, I am there to play poker and nothing else
Two: INSTINCT. I've never put too much stock into players who say they "had a feeling" regarding a hand, whether it be how well one in their hand would perform against others, or as a read against another player. But, I'm coming around on that. I still don't think it's some kind of mystical ability given by God; I think it's more along the lines of subconsciously processing all of the information available and narrowing down possibilities. When these possibilities are narrow enough, players get a "feeling". At least, I think that's how it works for me. Last time I played, I called down on a river push while saying to myself, "I know you have the ace". Like an idiot, I didn't trust my gut, and got burned because guess what, he did have the ace. NOT FANCY.
The lesson: in the absence of overriding evidence, trust your gut. It just might mean something.
On to the latest results. About a week ago, I played four games on Full Tilt, with awful results. My best outcome was 21st in a 90 person, 2000 chip tournament, which is so far from cashing as to not be worth mentioning. Three other attempts were just as worthless, and after the last, I decided it just wasn't my day (see above) and packed it in.
Most recently, things got better. I decided to play in another 90 person SNG to start off, before multi-tabling. I didn't get that far, but for good reason. After treading water for a while, taking down a couple of pots to keep me in the bottom third of the rankings, I made it to the final table in sixth. It was obvious the two short stacks were sitting out, and soon two others were KO'd. Long story short, I got down to three-handed, by which time it was obvious the second-place player was sitting out as well.
I stole a few blinds and small pots before a nice double-up right before the break. I was still behind about 3:1, so not feeling too confident, but I was back in the race. After the break, the sit-out was finally eliminated, and I went to work. I'm not sure what to make of it, because my opponent seemed very conservative - even more than me. For once, I made a read and took advantage, with many pre- and post-flop raises winning pots. Another big double-up on a showdown hand put me in the lead, and soon it was me who was up roughly 3:1.
Again, I tread water for a while, despite a number of pushes that didn't get called. Finally, I was victorious: two pair J/9 (nine in the hand) after the river, and I pushed all-in. My opponent called and flipped pocket sixes - not a bad move on their part at all; again, I think their conservative play was a bit too much.
(You have NO idea how odd it is for me to call someone else overly conservative.)
I won, but I'm most happy with HOW I won - I made reads on my opponent, and had the guts to take advantage.
Now, the big question: can I bring that same approach to the felt?
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Becoming an Expert, Per the Experts
This is going to take a lot of time and tracking, but I think it will be worth it in the long run.
It is commonly believed that in order to become an expert at something, one must practice that particular thing for 10,000 hours. For poker, I believe that can be a bit misleading, because 10,000 hours doesn't necessarily mean actually playing - for all the time spent at a table, a good portion of it is in hands that are folded pre-flop.
I was about to go into a calculation of how many hands I would actually need to play to reach the magical mark, but the more I think about it, I realize there is plenty of value in those hands that are folded pre-flop. As long as the player concentrates on how the hand plays out, there is still plenty of value to be had. This could come in the form of seeing how other players act, and/or how you could have played the hand differently.
This brings me back to the comment I mentioned previously about Greg Merson having seen over 7 million hands during online play. I didn't realize it at the time, but the key word there is "seen" - not "played. So, that makes my calculations a bit easier going forward, as I try to reach 10,000 hours.
However, I don't want to completely ignore what I have already done. While it is an understatement to say I play differently now than when the SFPT first started in 2004, it can't be completely discounted. After all, those tournaments and the hands therein are what helped get me where I am now. I want to keep things as conservative as possible with my estimates; if I end up having actually played over 10,000 hours when I say I've reached that mark, that is to my benefit.
That being said, if I say an average of 1 hour per SFPT tournament, I will credit myself with 91 home game hours. In the future, I will be more accurate with my estimates. If I'm out first, it might be an hour (or less); but if I make it to heads-up, it could be 3 or more.
I also don't want to discount the hands I've seen online, though I don't have any records for those prior to this year's FTP re-launch. So, I will go only by this year and beyond, and again, make a conservative estimate. Call it 5 online hours.
Perhaps my best experience thus far (in terms of value to my game) has come in actual casino play, in a grand total of two sessions: one each cash and tournament. I'm going to call it 1 hour live cash and 1 hour live tournament, and I think that's pretty accurate.
So, that makes the grand total 98 hours. Wow - lots of work to do until 10,000. But that's good, because I have a lot of improvement to make.
It's funny, and also a little eerie: for a long time I have felt that the best way to learn something was to just do it, dating all the way back to when I played Little League baseball. Now, I have a chance to do just that. Combine that with continued reading and research, and I'm excited to see where this leads.
UPDATE: I played some online this afternoon, and was pretty successful: a win in a 27 person SNG (first victory in that size tournament), and a second in a 9 person, 2000 buy-in (highest buy-in yet). I also played a 6 person turbo and finished 5th, thanks to my pocket kings losing out to Ah/10c when the board played out to quad 10's. What was cool about that was the reaction of the winner: an obviously sarcastic "in your face :P, after which we chatted for a moment and wished each other good luck. I like that - a bit of the live game, brought online.
Today's totals: 2 online hours
Running totals: 7 online hours, 100 total hours
It is commonly believed that in order to become an expert at something, one must practice that particular thing for 10,000 hours. For poker, I believe that can be a bit misleading, because 10,000 hours doesn't necessarily mean actually playing - for all the time spent at a table, a good portion of it is in hands that are folded pre-flop.
I was about to go into a calculation of how many hands I would actually need to play to reach the magical mark, but the more I think about it, I realize there is plenty of value in those hands that are folded pre-flop. As long as the player concentrates on how the hand plays out, there is still plenty of value to be had. This could come in the form of seeing how other players act, and/or how you could have played the hand differently.
This brings me back to the comment I mentioned previously about Greg Merson having seen over 7 million hands during online play. I didn't realize it at the time, but the key word there is "seen" - not "played. So, that makes my calculations a bit easier going forward, as I try to reach 10,000 hours.
However, I don't want to completely ignore what I have already done. While it is an understatement to say I play differently now than when the SFPT first started in 2004, it can't be completely discounted. After all, those tournaments and the hands therein are what helped get me where I am now. I want to keep things as conservative as possible with my estimates; if I end up having actually played over 10,000 hours when I say I've reached that mark, that is to my benefit.
That being said, if I say an average of 1 hour per SFPT tournament, I will credit myself with 91 home game hours. In the future, I will be more accurate with my estimates. If I'm out first, it might be an hour (or less); but if I make it to heads-up, it could be 3 or more.
I also don't want to discount the hands I've seen online, though I don't have any records for those prior to this year's FTP re-launch. So, I will go only by this year and beyond, and again, make a conservative estimate. Call it 5 online hours.
Perhaps my best experience thus far (in terms of value to my game) has come in actual casino play, in a grand total of two sessions: one each cash and tournament. I'm going to call it 1 hour live cash and 1 hour live tournament, and I think that's pretty accurate.
So, that makes the grand total 98 hours. Wow - lots of work to do until 10,000. But that's good, because I have a lot of improvement to make.
It's funny, and also a little eerie: for a long time I have felt that the best way to learn something was to just do it, dating all the way back to when I played Little League baseball. Now, I have a chance to do just that. Combine that with continued reading and research, and I'm excited to see where this leads.
UPDATE: I played some online this afternoon, and was pretty successful: a win in a 27 person SNG (first victory in that size tournament), and a second in a 9 person, 2000 buy-in (highest buy-in yet). I also played a 6 person turbo and finished 5th, thanks to my pocket kings losing out to Ah/10c when the board played out to quad 10's. What was cool about that was the reaction of the winner: an obviously sarcastic "in your face :P, after which we chatted for a moment and wished each other good luck. I like that - a bit of the live game, brought online.
Today's totals: 2 online hours
Running totals: 7 online hours, 100 total hours
Friday, November 9, 2012
Does Play Money Have Value?
Full Tilt is back up and running, and I had a chance yesterday to play a little. To start, I multi-tabled with two SNGs, a 90 person and a six-handed single table. It had been since well before Black Friday since I'd played online, but it didn't take me long to remember one of the reasons I had started to shy away from it.
Put simply, people play like idiots.
There's no question that people play differently when it's not real money on the line. I see that on Full Tilt, I see it on the WSOP app we have on the Kindle, and I'm sure its the same everywhere. For a long time, even at the beginning yesterday, I wondered if it was worth it for me. Should I spend my time on the play money sites, or would that time be better served reading, watching videos, and doing other research?
Ultimately, I decided it IS worth the time. For one, with my vast inexperience, I just need to see hands. I remember hearing during this year's ME final table that Greg Merson had seen 7 million hands of poker, online. Staggering. The discussion went on to emphasize how beneficial this was in Merson's improvement as a player. Obviously, I'm never going to see that many hands, but there is value in seeing as many as I can - knowing when to get involved in pots and when to get out, how to play relative to my position, raising patterns, etc.
For two, despite the fact that there are people who play like idiots, it doesn't take long in one of the SNGs for those people to be weeded out. Invariably, there are three or four people who go all-in on the first hand, but by about five hands are so, things have calmed down a bit and it resembles something more like a real tournament. This was the case with the 9-handed SNG I played to end my session: it didn't take long for it to get down to five players, counting myself, all of whom seemed like they were playing, for lack of a better term, "normally".
I finished second in that tournament, and was proud of the way I played: no stupid decisions, and I lost heads-up when I pushed short stacked in the small blind and my opponent's Jc/7c beat my Qh/Jh thanks to a rivered 7.
That was my best result; I was out 20th in the 90 person and actually dead last in the six-handed, though I didn't play poorly there either. I also played around with some PLO and found it interesting; I wasn't very successful but I think I could be in the future. But first things first - to get to a point where my NLH game is more respectable, both in tournament and cash games.
Put simply, people play like idiots.
There's no question that people play differently when it's not real money on the line. I see that on Full Tilt, I see it on the WSOP app we have on the Kindle, and I'm sure its the same everywhere. For a long time, even at the beginning yesterday, I wondered if it was worth it for me. Should I spend my time on the play money sites, or would that time be better served reading, watching videos, and doing other research?
Ultimately, I decided it IS worth the time. For one, with my vast inexperience, I just need to see hands. I remember hearing during this year's ME final table that Greg Merson had seen 7 million hands of poker, online. Staggering. The discussion went on to emphasize how beneficial this was in Merson's improvement as a player. Obviously, I'm never going to see that many hands, but there is value in seeing as many as I can - knowing when to get involved in pots and when to get out, how to play relative to my position, raising patterns, etc.
For two, despite the fact that there are people who play like idiots, it doesn't take long in one of the SNGs for those people to be weeded out. Invariably, there are three or four people who go all-in on the first hand, but by about five hands are so, things have calmed down a bit and it resembles something more like a real tournament. This was the case with the 9-handed SNG I played to end my session: it didn't take long for it to get down to five players, counting myself, all of whom seemed like they were playing, for lack of a better term, "normally".
I finished second in that tournament, and was proud of the way I played: no stupid decisions, and I lost heads-up when I pushed short stacked in the small blind and my opponent's Jc/7c beat my Qh/Jh thanks to a rivered 7.
That was my best result; I was out 20th in the 90 person and actually dead last in the six-handed, though I didn't play poorly there either. I also played around with some PLO and found it interesting; I wasn't very successful but I think I could be in the future. But first things first - to get to a point where my NLH game is more respectable, both in tournament and cash games.
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
The First Day of Being More Serious
Some time ago, as you can see from the posts I have replicated below, I decided to track my "poker career" on my personal blog. Like many of my writing endeavors, it quickly faded. Not only did I lose interest in writing and summarily forget about it, there was also Black Friday, which ruined my online playing as it did for countless others. Since I was already writing about the SFPT in its own place, I didn't feel the need to duplicate the same information in two spots. (This became even more true when I started writing SFPT recaps in the first person.)
Since then, some things have remained the same: online poker is still forbidden, and I still write the same recaps. But other things have changed. Namely, I now feel like I could actually have a future in this game. I've been playing for eight years, and though I have played in casinos a couple of times (one tournament, one cash session), I'm now, finally, at the point where I feel like would I not only not embarrass myself, I could actually be successful.
Part of my reason for saying this is tangible; I have had my most extended success on the SFPT this year with three wins (and with a couple of exceptions, I have played very intelligently). I liken this to a college sport program which wants to move up from, say, Division III to Division I. In my opinion, in order for this to be a smart move, they have to have proven they are consistently better than their current competition over a long period. It's somewhat the same in my situation; I wouldn't say I'm BETTER than the rest of the field, but I have proven I can be consistently competitive.
However, I admit, part of it is intangible. Maybe it's confidence because of my play, maybe it’s because of the clip viewing/reading/research I've been doing make me feel like I'm learning, but I feel as though I know a lot more about the game itself than I did even a few months ago. Probably a little of both. In any event, that confidence makes me feel like I'm ready to take it to the casinos and play against strangers.
With that in mind, I came back to the idea of tracking my progress, which lead me to the idea of a dedicated blog for the topic. I'm hoping my poker playing family and friends can contribute their thoughts as well, so here we are. My plan is to not only write about my progress, but also have a place to post my thoughts on everything poker-related. This could be anything from happenings in the pro world, to ideas, to the past and future of the game. So, I see it as an intellectual exercise at least as much as a home for recaps.
Trying to go back as far as possible, I copied the other posts I had done, which I wanted to be sure to do because 1) they contain some thoughts about the game itself which still hold true today, and 2) I can already see how my play has changed and the progress I've made in the last two years. Hopefully, over the course of time, re-reading my past follies can educate for the future.
Do I think I'll ever be good enough to go pro? Highly doubtful. But any idiot can go on a heater, and the more knowledge and experience I have, the better the likelihood of that happening.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Climbing Back Atop the Horse
Original Posting Date: June9, 2011
For now, I want to look back to May 12 – the day I played in my first live poker tournament.
For now, I want to look back to May 12 – the day I played in my first live poker tournament.
The occasion surrounding the event was Ray's bachelor party*, attended by six of us, on the US side of Niagara Falls. On purpose, we left most of time we were there open (or as Cuffe likes to say, "we'll see what the night brings"). Only two specifics were planned: dinner the night we arrived, and the tournament the next morning.
* - Which really deserves its own blog post. It didn't come close to Cuffe's goal of "writing the script for the next Hangover", but it was still pretty damn entertaining in spots.
Going in, I had but two realistic goals: don't be the first out of our group*, and don't be nervous. I thought I had pretty good shots at each, and though it took me a minute to find my seat and figure out what the blinds were, I settled in quickly.
* - Given my recent history, this wasn't assured by any means, but I planned to play conservative and make it happen. I was also hoping that I would get to sit at a table with one of my buddies, but the luck of the draw wasn't on my side. I just figured it would be more fun if two of us were seated together. Of course, my idea worked against Cuffe's hopes; he wanted all of us to sit at separate tables, plow through the field, and all end up at one "epic final table". I don't think it's a spoiler to say this didn't happen.
Just trying to get the feel of the table, I folded the first few hands. These were mostly easy decisions thanks to the all-too-common combination of crappy cards and pre-flop raises by my opponents. I did get to stay on my first big-blind hand, but when I missed the flop and the first man to act raised, I again got the hell out of the way.
Actual game play aside, I was having a good time. The other guys at my table (the ones who talked, anyway) seemed friendly and chatty; we talked about the game itself, and the NBA playoffs. Maybe because of this, I wasn't in the least bit nervous*, so that goal was quickly accomplished.
* - Honestly, I didn't expect at all to be nervous, for a bunch of reasons. One, the tournament cost $40. Two, I like to think I'm one of those "people persons"; I'm forever striking up conversations with random people, and this was no different. Plus I had the experience from the cash game at Terrible's, which in itself was more nerve-wracking because of the combination of playing with strangers and playing my first cash game. So if I got through that, there was no reason to think I couldn't do this.
My strategy going into the game, aside from "play so you're not first out", echoed my most recent home games. For a long time, my problem early in tournaments was that I would either take too many small chances, and kill my stack almost chip by chip trying to hit flops; or I wouldn't take big enough chances when I was in good position. So, I looked to continue to try to correct that problem, and to that end called along with one other player when I had four to the straight after the flop. It was open-ended, meaning I had plenty of outs, but wasn't meant to be – I didn't catch anything, and his pair of kings took most of my stack.
That left my stack pretty much decimated, and I went into full-conservative mode, looking for good pocket cards. In the meantime, I glanced around, and it looked like everyone else in our little traveling party was still alive. Great. Tables were breaking apart all around me, and when some dude sat down next to me in a recently-vacated seat (hey – I wasn't the first one out from my table!*), the first thing he noticed was my (lack of) chips.
* - In fact, I was fourth from my table when it was all said and done, which was nice. For my own ego, anyway.
"What happened, kings versus queens? Jacks versus kings?"
It took me a moment to realized but he was referring to, but when I answered, I was sure to make the truth as good, and casual, as possible:
"Nah, chasing a straight," I shrugged, in my best "happens to the best of us" voice. He nodded, so I guess I was pretty convincing. I folded a few more hands until I finally had something worth playing – king of diamonds, queen of spades.
My all-in push, despite being modest, reeled in but one caller – who also flipped over K/Q off-suit. What the hell. I was busy calculating how much I would make from the split pot when the turn hit and revealed a flush draw for my opponent. Wouldn't that just be fancy? Well, at least I'd have a good story. That wasn't meant to be either – the river was a club, not the heart he needed, and we split the pot.
It was delaying the inevitable, as I was gone but a few hands later. This time, I was down even further thanks to the blinds, and figured K/8 spades was the best I was going to do. My all-in gained two callers this time, including the guy who commented on my stack when he sat down. This guy was pretty chatty, but not in a conversational way despite his earlier demonstration. More along the lines of ruthless. When the third guy in the pot was debating raising post-flop, he repeated at least twice, "our objective is to knock him out". Which it was.
I resisted the urge to stand up before my fate was sealed, but casually exited as soon as it was. On the way out of the poker room, I prepared myself to face the later assault of mocking I knew would be coming.
Only, it wouldn't – sitting on a nearby bench smoking a cigarette and looking none too happy was Matt, who'd been knocked out only a couple minutes before. Bad for him, good for me.
It wasn't long before Cuffe joined us on the sidelines, and a few minutes later, Oscar and Ray were out too. That left Anthony as the winner of the "Longest Lasting Player" title, and he didn't eke it out either – his top 12 finish in his first live tournament was impressive by anyone's standards. Unfortunately for him, only the top 6 places were paid.
Recapping my own game, I don't really have a lot to complain about. Obviously, I wish I'd played the one hand differently, maybe re-raising instead of just calling after the flop? I doubt that would have worked though; he had me covered by a pretty good margin and with a pair of kings, it would be a good gamble for him. Maybe I shouldn't have chased the straight? Well, that's easy to say in hindsight, and not doing so would have made me feel like I violated one of my own goals. In summary, it's hard to be upset.
Improvement and Introspection
Original Posting Date: March 29, 2011
My latest foray into the poker world produced a much-improved result over the last two outings. Again, eight people sat down to play, and I managed to fend off numerous challenges and finish squarely in the middle of the pack in fourth place. Not bad, but it could have been better. Witness the following:
On the hand that ended up spelling my doom, action was down to Corrye and I after the turn. I was first to act, and looking at his chip stack, I knew we were very close. I thought about it for a moment, and realized I had a straight flush draw, and 13 outs. I moved all in, and Corrye debated only for a moment before calling. Not good – I figured he would fold. Even so, I was in good shape with my outs when he flipped over K/Q. Now, not only would any heart or seven give me the winning hand, but so would any six or five to pair what was in my hand.
So what comes on the river? Four of clubs, and Corrye wins with a king high. Unreal. Had I won that hand, I would have knocked him out, and easily had more chips than my remaining two competitors (Anthony and Tina) combined. I had 60 cents left and was all-in on the small blind on the next hand. I was leading with a pair of eights going to the river, and what happens? Yep, Mike gets slapped again by the poker gods when Tina spikes a king to give her a higher pair and knock me out.
Corrye ended up winning the whole thing for the second time this year, increasing his lead in our 2011 Points Championship. My five points helped get me back in the conversation, but if Corrye doesn't start finishing in the lower half of things soon, it's not going to matter. At this point he controls his own destiny. To the surprise of no one, Tina is entrenched in second place, five points off the lead.
***
I was thinking the other day (probably in the car; with the monotony of my commute, it happens a lot) about poker. Specifically, why do I like playing? It's certainly not because of the money – 10 bucks a tournament an average of once a month isn't going to get me rich, or make me poor, and I've played a grand total of one cash game in my life for a profit of $8.
I've determined two things. First and foremost is hanging out with friends. While all of my friends don't play, most do, and we always have a good time despite the occasional meltdown or disagreement. (The latter is extremely rare; the former slightly more common but always humorous to everyone but the orator.) Those that don't play (usually Bert, Danielle, and Heather), always hang out, and no matter what, we have a good time.
The second determination: I like the intellectual challenge poker provides. I am still in my infancy as a student of the game, and therefore, there is a LOT I still have to learn. For example, the math of the game – calculating percentages, pot-odds, value betting, etc. I'm no John Nash, but I'm not an idiot either, and I like to think I can figure it out in time.
However, the most intriguing part of the game is the psychology. I love trying to keep my emotions under control, adapting to the table dynamic and the mindset of other players, and trying (often unsuccessfully, but trying nonetheless) to outsmart people.
I had to laugh during our last game when Tina looked at me after I moved all-in at one point and announced "Mike has a tell. I just can't tell if it's when he has something, or when he doesn't." Perfect! A long time ago, I thought that there's no way I will able to be stoic with any kind of success (even though I thought I did well doing just that during my cash game at Terrible's), so my best option might be to flood my opponents with potential tells. The best part about this situation is that I wasn't consciously trying; it happened naturally.
My overall point: I look at people like Doyle Brunson and Dan Harrington, older guys who have been playing for a long time, and I think to myself, this is something I can do for the rest of my life.
I love baseball, but I'm not going to be out there making diving catches on the center field grass when I'm approaching 80 years old. It's hard enough now and I'm barely 30. Poker is something that challenges me, provides a great deal of entertainment, and will last me, presumably for the rest of my life.
Poker: A Game of Skill AND Luck
Original Posting Date: March 6, 2011
Hey, just because I said I hadn't written about poker in a while, doesn't mean I would never write about it again. Although after last night, it's not exactly something I want to relive.
We had one of our usual tournaments last night, with 8 people sitting down to shuffle up and deal. The game was one of our longest in a while, almost four and a half hours. Congrats to Kim for her first ever victory. Too bad I wasn't at the table to see it, because for the second tournament in a row, I was first out. So much for my early season success.
Once again, it was a calculated risk - this time, I had pocket sevens and two pair after the flop. I moved all in; Matt folded, Oscar called. When we flipped the cards, Oscar showed four to the nut flush, and what happens on the turn? Another spade for the flush. I still had 4 outs, but no such luck.
I had Oscar covered so I stayed alive for one more hand, and got decent cards: A/2 diamonds. There were two callers so I had a chance to triple up and get back into things, and I was feeling pretty good about my chances when two diamonds came on the flop. Could I get a little of the same luck in my favor?
Of course not - no more diamonds, and no more Mike at the table. Despite the results, I can't be upset with the results. Once again, math did me in. Really, I only made one bad move all night, raising when I didn't have a strong position. Still, I didn't lose much that hand, and it didn't impact the final result.
So it's on to the next time, in about three weeks.
Hey, just because I said I hadn't written about poker in a while, doesn't mean I would never write about it again. Although after last night, it's not exactly something I want to relive.
We had one of our usual tournaments last night, with 8 people sitting down to shuffle up and deal. The game was one of our longest in a while, almost four and a half hours. Congrats to Kim for her first ever victory. Too bad I wasn't at the table to see it, because for the second tournament in a row, I was first out. So much for my early season success.
Once again, it was a calculated risk - this time, I had pocket sevens and two pair after the flop. I moved all in; Matt folded, Oscar called. When we flipped the cards, Oscar showed four to the nut flush, and what happens on the turn? Another spade for the flush. I still had 4 outs, but no such luck.
I had Oscar covered so I stayed alive for one more hand, and got decent cards: A/2 diamonds. There were two callers so I had a chance to triple up and get back into things, and I was feeling pretty good about my chances when two diamonds came on the flop. Could I get a little of the same luck in my favor?
Of course not - no more diamonds, and no more Mike at the table. Despite the results, I can't be upset with the results. Once again, math did me in. Really, I only made one bad move all night, raising when I didn't have a strong position. Still, I didn't lose much that hand, and it didn't impact the final result.
So it's on to the next time, in about three weeks.
A Victory!
Original Posting Date: November 26, 2010
Played one tournament so far today, and brought home the bacon in a two-table SNG. Partway through I was getting ready to write about how I was distracted and should stop playing when I can't focus what I'm doing, but it turned out okay. Obviously.
The top 4 places cashed, and once it got down to four, I started playing more aggressively. It helped that I got a nice run of cards, 4 0r 5 straight hands with A/K, A/8, K/J and the like. I made a huge move with pocket kings and knocked out the third place finisher when he couldn't hit his flush draw.
I forget what happened on the final hand, but I know the other guy had pocket 7's and I had gone all in with a pair of queens, one on the board, after the flop. He needed a seven and only a seven, and couldn't get it.
So, what went right? I made aggressive moves when I had the cards. And of course, luck was on my side in that people couldn't draw to what they needed. The only halfway sketchy move I made was when I knocked someone out before the final table, by going all-in with A/J diamonds. Post-flop, I had an open ended straight draw as well as a nut flush draw and the ace as an over card. At the time I moved in, only one other player remained, and I had him covered about 2-1. It worked out when he had exactly nothing when he called.
Another thing that went right was that I was smart in getting out of the way when the odds weren't in my favor. Sometimes this meant folding in the big blind, but every single time, it worked out, because I would have lost. (Not that it matters - you can't be mad at yourself if you fold 2/10 off suit and the flop comes 2/10/10.)
I might play some more tonight, depending on how early Jules goes to bed.
Played one tournament so far today, and brought home the bacon in a two-table SNG. Partway through I was getting ready to write about how I was distracted and should stop playing when I can't focus what I'm doing, but it turned out okay. Obviously.
The top 4 places cashed, and once it got down to four, I started playing more aggressively. It helped that I got a nice run of cards, 4 0r 5 straight hands with A/K, A/8, K/J and the like. I made a huge move with pocket kings and knocked out the third place finisher when he couldn't hit his flush draw.
I forget what happened on the final hand, but I know the other guy had pocket 7's and I had gone all in with a pair of queens, one on the board, after the flop. He needed a seven and only a seven, and couldn't get it.
So, what went right? I made aggressive moves when I had the cards. And of course, luck was on my side in that people couldn't draw to what they needed. The only halfway sketchy move I made was when I knocked someone out before the final table, by going all-in with A/J diamonds. Post-flop, I had an open ended straight draw as well as a nut flush draw and the ace as an over card. At the time I moved in, only one other player remained, and I had him covered about 2-1. It worked out when he had exactly nothing when he called.
Another thing that went right was that I was smart in getting out of the way when the odds weren't in my favor. Sometimes this meant folding in the big blind, but every single time, it worked out, because I would have lost. (Not that it matters - you can't be mad at yourself if you fold 2/10 off suit and the flop comes 2/10/10.)
I might play some more tonight, depending on how early Jules goes to bed.
Poker Update 11/24
Originall Posting Date: November 25, 2010
Played two tournaments last night, a two-table and a 10-table SNG. Neither turned out that well, (9th and 18th respectively), and in the second one, I wasn't really into it mentally. At least in the first one, I got my chips in with good cards: Kh/Jh. One caller, who flipped As/10c. He caught an ace on the flop, but it was a heart, and another heart came on the turn. But the river was a blank and I was out.
Still, not too bad - I played it right, and made my move with enough chips left that it forced all but one person into folding. If I can make moves like that and get people underneath me to call, it would be even better. Something to work on.
Played two tournaments last night, a two-table and a 10-table SNG. Neither turned out that well, (9th and 18th respectively), and in the second one, I wasn't really into it mentally. At least in the first one, I got my chips in with good cards: Kh/Jh. One caller, who flipped As/10c. He caught an ace on the flop, but it was a heart, and another heart came on the turn. But the river was a blank and I was out.
Still, not too bad - I played it right, and made my move with enough chips left that it forced all but one person into folding. If I can make moves like that and get people underneath me to call, it would be even better. Something to work on.
Tracking My Poker "Career"
Originally posted: November 24, 2010
The other day, I had a thought: maybe it would be a good idea to have a diary of my poker "career". This way, I would not only have a record of what happened, but I could go back and read my results to spot trends, and hopefully make changes to the parts of my game that are lacking (which at the moment is pretty much all of them).
I ran the idea past Corrye, who thought it a good idea and said he may do the same. When he mentioned he might keep his on his blog, I thought, hey, good idea. My blog has been dormant for a long time, might as well get some use out of it. Plus, if I can make it entertaining, maybe it will give people something halfway interesting to read. So, here we are.
This year in the SFPT (Seneca Falls Poker Tour) has been one of highs and lows. At one point, I rattled off four straight wins, but our most recent tournament at Matt and Danielle's house saw me finish in last place out of 7. It was a devastating blow not only because of the loss, but because it ruined any hopes of winning the 2010 Points Championship. Making it even worse - I played like an absolute idiot.
If I had to choose, I would say the part of my game which is the worst right now is my lack of aggressiveness. Far too often I don't take chances when I should. Then I look down and see myself short-stacked and forced into making moves when 1) the odds aren't really in my favor, and/or 2) I don't have enough chips left to scare anyone. At that point, I need to be lucky by getting good cards, and lucky some more by hitting something in the community cards. Generally, not a good way to win.
So, there's one thing I need to work on. Our next tournament is December 11, which is the SFPT World Series. It's the last one of the year, and likely the last one until mid to late January. In the meantime, I may play some online just to keep from getting rusty. I'll update this blog whenever I get the notion.
The other day, I had a thought: maybe it would be a good idea to have a diary of my poker "career". This way, I would not only have a record of what happened, but I could go back and read my results to spot trends, and hopefully make changes to the parts of my game that are lacking (which at the moment is pretty much all of them).
I ran the idea past Corrye, who thought it a good idea and said he may do the same. When he mentioned he might keep his on his blog, I thought, hey, good idea. My blog has been dormant for a long time, might as well get some use out of it. Plus, if I can make it entertaining, maybe it will give people something halfway interesting to read. So, here we are.
This year in the SFPT (Seneca Falls Poker Tour) has been one of highs and lows. At one point, I rattled off four straight wins, but our most recent tournament at Matt and Danielle's house saw me finish in last place out of 7. It was a devastating blow not only because of the loss, but because it ruined any hopes of winning the 2010 Points Championship. Making it even worse - I played like an absolute idiot.
If I had to choose, I would say the part of my game which is the worst right now is my lack of aggressiveness. Far too often I don't take chances when I should. Then I look down and see myself short-stacked and forced into making moves when 1) the odds aren't really in my favor, and/or 2) I don't have enough chips left to scare anyone. At that point, I need to be lucky by getting good cards, and lucky some more by hitting something in the community cards. Generally, not a good way to win.
So, there's one thing I need to work on. Our next tournament is December 11, which is the SFPT World Series. It's the last one of the year, and likely the last one until mid to late January. In the meantime, I may play some online just to keep from getting rusty. I'll update this blog whenever I get the notion.
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