I played another Poker After Dark game. Well, technically a few. In the first couple I just didn't have any patience. I played while tending my three year old daughter, so there were a lot of interruptions, and I just plain played too aggressive.
After my daughter went to bed I got in another game. Again, I got sloppy and lost. I just pushed too hard. Granted, I was chip leader at the table for awhile, but I ended up blowing it in situation where I knew the "What an idiot. I should never checked the call box. I'm wasting chips!" But then, before my call was thrown in, the guy before me made a raise, so it asked what I wanted to do. Of course, I called the raise! Ugh.
I decided to join a 10k, 9 player sit & go. Since I only had 50k I figured that the threat of a 10k loss would be enough to keep me on track.
It was, at first.
I got close to 6k in chips with about 5 people left and got aggressive. I was dominating the table and got cocky.
I ended up finishing in 4th, one spot shy of the money.
I have this habit of being over aggressive towards the end of tournaments. It's killing me. The next Dan Harrington book covers the latter parts of tournaments, so maybe I should get it and read it to improve my end game strategy.
My end game used to be better, because I'd stick to my overall strategy more. I think I need to get back to basics.
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Next night
I entered another Poker After Dark game in Saturday night. I was tried before starting, so I don't even know why I started.
Nothing spectacular happened. I think I was in 5th or 6th place in chips by the first break.
By the time there were 15 or so people left I had about half the average chip stack. I was aching to go to bed, so I decided to gamble.
I had an open ended straight on the flop and went all-in and lost to someone's two pair, putting me out in 13th place.
It was a relief to be rid of the game, and under normal circumstances it was a move I'd never make.
Well, I'm tired now so I'll shut up and go to bed.
Nothing spectacular happened. I think I was in 5th or 6th place in chips by the first break.
By the time there were 15 or so people left I had about half the average chip stack. I was aching to go to bed, so I decided to gamble.
I had an open ended straight on the flop and went all-in and lost to someone's two pair, putting me out in 13th place.
It was a relief to be rid of the game, and under normal circumstances it was a move I'd never make.
Well, I'm tired now so I'll shut up and go to bed.
Friday, April 27, 2007
Poker After Dark
Tonight I tried and tried to play some of the Poker After Dark entry tournaments on Full Tilt. I actually got into about 4 of them.
Here's the first game I was eliminated from:
They guy to my right went all-in pre-flop, and I called. He won with a pair of fives!!! Ugh!
In the second game, here's the hand that crushed me:
I called the blind with my A/A in early position (planning on re-raising if someone raised) and this maniac went all-in. Of course I called. The flop was scarey, and the hand ended in tragedy.
I don't remember how my third exit ended. I'd remember if it was a stupid play, so I probably had the odds to play an underdog hand and lost.
I played pretty good in the 4th game (which was really the second game I started). I was patient, waited for opportunities, and exploited the betting pattens I witnessed in others.
Mid-way through the tournament I made a big bluff for all my chips on the river and because I knew my opponent was weak, and he/she called with third pair to the board! I had made a standard bet every street anda big one on the river and he/she called. Ugh!
So I knew he/she was exploitable. When I was dealt K/Q and the flop was 5/Q/5 I checked, because the schmuck was in the hand. He/she had 4/4.
The guy to my left went all-in early, and I worked my way to all-in on the turn. Of course I was called, and won a ton of chips.
Everything went right this game. When I saw a weakness I was able to exploit it.
Here's my standing at the first break:
With around 25 players left I gambled hoping to triple up, and lost. I went from 75k to 700. Ugh! My friend saw it and said he thought I had 264. I'm pretty sure it was a number in the low 700's.
Anyway, it was barely a big blind's worth of chips.
Then I got a lucky streak. My first had I had trips, and one of the guys who split my chips was all-in. I could have crushed him if I had chips. Doh!
I went all-in about four hands in a row and won them all, tripling up the first two or three times. It was sweet.
I brought that up to around 55k, about average my table (we were down to two tables at that point).
For my final hand there were 5 people at my table, and three of us were active in the hand. It was me (the big blind), the small blind, and the guy under the gun. I had A/3 clubs and bet pre-flop, one raised, the other called, and I called.
The flop had two clubs, with a Jack for the high card I think.
I bet (hoping to steal) the guy to my left called, and the guy to my right raised a bunch.
The guy's bet put me all in, but at this point I had roughly three-to-one on my money, so I called. I was overjoyed when the other guy called. I'd either be the tournament leader, or I was going home. All I needed was a club for the nut flush.
The turn failed to produce a club.
The river failed to produce a club.
I was out.
I think the two players both paired their Jack. They both ended up splitting the pot.
I was eliminated in 10th place, out of 640 (I think) players.
I was incredibly lucky to get that far after getting down to 700. Or, I guess you could say that I was unlucky that I had the incredibly good cards the moment I had very few chips.
In my opinion I was on borrowed the moment I had 700 chips. I did what I had to do, it worked, and I got in with the correct odds at the end.
Good game. I hope to do more of these Poker After Dark games.
Here's the first game I was eliminated from:
They guy to my right went all-in pre-flop, and I called. He won with a pair of fives!!! Ugh!
In the second game, here's the hand that crushed me:
I called the blind with my A/A in early position (planning on re-raising if someone raised) and this maniac went all-in. Of course I called. The flop was scarey, and the hand ended in tragedy.
I don't remember how my third exit ended. I'd remember if it was a stupid play, so I probably had the odds to play an underdog hand and lost.
I played pretty good in the 4th game (which was really the second game I started). I was patient, waited for opportunities, and exploited the betting pattens I witnessed in others.
Mid-way through the tournament I made a big bluff for all my chips on the river and because I knew my opponent was weak, and he/she called with third pair to the board! I had made a standard bet every street anda big one on the river and he/she called. Ugh!
So I knew he/she was exploitable. When I was dealt K/Q and the flop was 5/Q/5 I checked, because the schmuck was in the hand. He/she had 4/4.
The guy to my left went all-in early, and I worked my way to all-in on the turn. Of course I was called, and won a ton of chips.
Everything went right this game. When I saw a weakness I was able to exploit it.
Here's my standing at the first break:
With around 25 players left I gambled hoping to triple up, and lost. I went from 75k to 700. Ugh! My friend saw it and said he thought I had 264. I'm pretty sure it was a number in the low 700's.
Anyway, it was barely a big blind's worth of chips.
Then I got a lucky streak. My first had I had trips, and one of the guys who split my chips was all-in. I could have crushed him if I had chips. Doh!
I went all-in about four hands in a row and won them all, tripling up the first two or three times. It was sweet.
I brought that up to around 55k, about average my table (we were down to two tables at that point).
For my final hand there were 5 people at my table, and three of us were active in the hand. It was me (the big blind), the small blind, and the guy under the gun. I had A/3 clubs and bet pre-flop, one raised, the other called, and I called.
The flop had two clubs, with a Jack for the high card I think.
I bet (hoping to steal) the guy to my left called, and the guy to my right raised a bunch.
The guy's bet put me all in, but at this point I had roughly three-to-one on my money, so I called. I was overjoyed when the other guy called. I'd either be the tournament leader, or I was going home. All I needed was a club for the nut flush.
The turn failed to produce a club.
The river failed to produce a club.
I was out.
I think the two players both paired their Jack. They both ended up splitting the pot.
I was eliminated in 10th place, out of 640 (I think) players.
I was incredibly lucky to get that far after getting down to 700. Or, I guess you could say that I was unlucky that I had the incredibly good cards the moment I had very few chips.
In my opinion I was on borrowed the moment I had 700 chips. I did what I had to do, it worked, and I got in with the correct odds at the end.
Good game. I hope to do more of these Poker After Dark games.
Friday, April 20, 2007
81 player live tournament
I had a good time at the tournament last night. There were 81 players.
I played super-tight. I was active in two hands up until the first break. In the first hand I was the big blind, it was checked to me, and I hit top pair on the flop (9's) so I bet and everyone folded.
Then, I raised with 6/6 just as they announced the break. (This is my favorite hand by the way.) I raised.
Some of people called me.
The flop had my third 6. The other two cards were a rainbow, I think maybe a Jack or Queen high, with a rag.
Anyway, I bet again and everyone called.
The flop was the fourth suite/rag.
I bet again and only the newbie at the table called. (An old lady who had never played a tournament before).
Now, this lady had made a comment a few minutes earlier, something along the lines of, "It seems like all you have to do in this game is bet at the end and everybody folds to you." So, I checked the river. I was pretty certain he just had something like Ace high, and was pretty sure she'd follow her own advice.
She did.
She put me all in, and I raked in the chips. I went from 720 or so chips to 2,400 that hand.
During that hand the guy across from me said (in front of everybody). "I've been watching you. That's the first hand you've played all night, huh?"
I smiled and told him it was the second. I smiled because, that comment of his was going to beat "don't mess with this guy" into even the thickest of heads.
the icing on the cake was that my two friends were on break so they were there to witness me rake in the large pot.
When we got back from break I went on a bluffing streak that tripled me up. (At one point I literally paused and thought to myself, "I'm robbing these people blind.") On the second hand after the break I was able to isolate the newbie old lady, firing away each time. I was bluffing all the way, firing a shot each time. When the fourth diamond hit I could tell she missed it (as did I) so I bet on the river and raked in another big pot.
She asked, "Did you have it?" and I just shrugged. I worked hard to get to the point where I could steal, so I wasn't going to admit to any bluff.
The crucial hand of the game was maybe 10 or 15 minutes before I got knocked out. I was dealt King/King and only called (I know... bad move. I threw the wrong number of chips out.)
The I-watch-too-much-TV-poker guy on my left thought my call was weakness, and moved all in for an additional 2,200. Everyone else folded.
(I'd like to note that Mr. I-watch-too-much-TV-poker had a poker ball-cap and sunglasses, but they did nothing to disguise his tells)
I always lose with "Ace Magnets." Whenever I have A/A or K/K I always lose to a straight. Not trips, not two-pair, but a straight.
Thinking about it logically I knew I had to call. He wouldn't have bet like that if he wanted to be called, so I was guessing A/Q or A/J.
I called.
When he showed his King/Ten I was relieved. I was 90% to win!
The flop was a 2/9/Q.
On the turn he shouted, "Jack!" but it was another 9.
On the river he shouted, "Jack!" and it was the %$#! Jack, giving him the straight and the $6,200 (or whatever) pot.
If I would have won that hand I'd have gotten to the final table (barring any other bad beats).
Shortly after that the blinds went up to 400/800 and I couldn't catch any cards. I was down to 1,500 when I was the big blind. Normally I'd go all-in but I had 8/3 off suite. Bleh!
When I was small blind I had 10/4 off suite, so I went all-in. A few people called, but I didn't hit anything and was out in 18th (or so) place.
We were down to two tables at that point and people were dropping like flies. Pretty much if you were in, you were all-in.
Again, if I had that additional 6,200 in chips I could have stolen, easily, another 2,000 chips and it would have been a different story.
I'll get'em next time.
I am impressed with my ability to read though. Only one player, an old black guy named Charlie, had me stumped. Everyone else I could put on a hand, or not.
Well, the guy to Charlie's right I misread once (in a big way), but I wasn't involved in the pot at the time so it didn't burn me. I just filed his tell under "iffy."
I played super-tight. I was active in two hands up until the first break. In the first hand I was the big blind, it was checked to me, and I hit top pair on the flop (9's) so I bet and everyone folded.
Then, I raised with 6/6 just as they announced the break. (This is my favorite hand by the way.) I raised.
Some of people called me.
The flop had my third 6. The other two cards were a rainbow, I think maybe a Jack or Queen high, with a rag.
Anyway, I bet again and everyone called.
The flop was the fourth suite/rag.
I bet again and only the newbie at the table called. (An old lady who had never played a tournament before).
Now, this lady had made a comment a few minutes earlier, something along the lines of, "It seems like all you have to do in this game is bet at the end and everybody folds to you." So, I checked the river. I was pretty certain he just had something like Ace high, and was pretty sure she'd follow her own advice.
She did.
She put me all in, and I raked in the chips. I went from 720 or so chips to 2,400 that hand.
During that hand the guy across from me said (in front of everybody). "I've been watching you. That's the first hand you've played all night, huh?"
I smiled and told him it was the second. I smiled because, that comment of his was going to beat "don't mess with this guy" into even the thickest of heads.
the icing on the cake was that my two friends were on break so they were there to witness me rake in the large pot.
When we got back from break I went on a bluffing streak that tripled me up. (At one point I literally paused and thought to myself, "I'm robbing these people blind.") On the second hand after the break I was able to isolate the newbie old lady, firing away each time. I was bluffing all the way, firing a shot each time. When the fourth diamond hit I could tell she missed it (as did I) so I bet on the river and raked in another big pot.
She asked, "Did you have it?" and I just shrugged. I worked hard to get to the point where I could steal, so I wasn't going to admit to any bluff.
The crucial hand of the game was maybe 10 or 15 minutes before I got knocked out. I was dealt King/King and only called (I know... bad move. I threw the wrong number of chips out.)
The I-watch-too-much-TV-poker guy on my left thought my call was weakness, and moved all in for an additional 2,200. Everyone else folded.
(I'd like to note that Mr. I-watch-too-much-TV-poker had a poker ball-cap and sunglasses, but they did nothing to disguise his tells)
I always lose with "Ace Magnets." Whenever I have A/A or K/K I always lose to a straight. Not trips, not two-pair, but a straight.
Thinking about it logically I knew I had to call. He wouldn't have bet like that if he wanted to be called, so I was guessing A/Q or A/J.
I called.
When he showed his King/Ten I was relieved. I was 90% to win!
The flop was a 2/9/Q.
On the turn he shouted, "Jack!" but it was another 9.
On the river he shouted, "Jack!" and it was the %$#! Jack, giving him the straight and the $6,200 (or whatever) pot.
If I would have won that hand I'd have gotten to the final table (barring any other bad beats).
Shortly after that the blinds went up to 400/800 and I couldn't catch any cards. I was down to 1,500 when I was the big blind. Normally I'd go all-in but I had 8/3 off suite. Bleh!
When I was small blind I had 10/4 off suite, so I went all-in. A few people called, but I didn't hit anything and was out in 18th (or so) place.
We were down to two tables at that point and people were dropping like flies. Pretty much if you were in, you were all-in.
Again, if I had that additional 6,200 in chips I could have stolen, easily, another 2,000 chips and it would have been a different story.
I'll get'em next time.
I am impressed with my ability to read though. Only one player, an old black guy named Charlie, had me stumped. Everyone else I could put on a hand, or not.
Well, the guy to Charlie's right I misread once (in a big way), but I wasn't involved in the pot at the time so it didn't burn me. I just filed his tell under "iffy."
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Tournament: 1042 players (free)
I played my second big torunament last night.
I enjoyed it a lot more than the last one, because I decided beforehand that I would just quit if I got tired. The game was earlier, and I was out before 11:00, so that didn't become an issue.
Here's an interesting hand (that I folded pre-flop):
How often do you see someone with a pair of Aces, vs Kings, vs Queens? In this case, getting that 4th King wasn't good luck, as it killed the action.
Nothing spectacular happened during the beginning of the tournament. In fact, I don't think I played to the river more than once that first 90 minutes. I was down to a dozen big blinds and one point and my friend told me I needed to double up. I still had plenty of time though, stayed the course, picked my spots, and grew gradually while taking as few risks as possible.
After 90 minutes I had some good opportunities, exploited them.
By the third break I was doing well. I was in second place, with 130k chips, twice the average.
After the break I got some good cards and challenged what I believed to be steal attempts by the leader. He'd bet, everyone would fold to me, then I'd call. Then on the flop I'd raise and he'd fold. I did have a hand each time. I wasn't bluffing, but it must have *looked* like I was picking on him.
After that break I must have taken 120k from the tournament chip leader in about ten minutes. I had about 275k and the game leader had about 350k when this happened, to bankrupt me:
There wasn't much that could have beaten me (the last ace, pocket Kings, or pocket Queens), plus I thought he was finally pushing back out of frustration for me taking so many of his chips without ever me having to show my hand.
1) If someone else had called his raise before me I'd have folded my 8/J.
2) If that Jack didn't come on the flop I would have folded.
3) If I hadn't been taking a ton of his chips in the last few hands without showing (so he thought I was stealing) I would have folded early (putting him on an Ace).
4) If it was against any other player in the game I'd still have a at least 100k in chips.
5) If it was against any other player at my table I'd have most of my chips remaining.
6) If he had anything but the one remaining Ace, or KK, or QQ, I couldn't lose.
So anyway, I finished the game in 25th place because I couldn't fold my hand.
I don't think I sucked out on anybody the entire tournament. I pretty much always got my my money in good. I stole a lot of chips. I got sucked out on a few times, but nothing too damaging.
I enjoyed it a lot more than the last one, because I decided beforehand that I would just quit if I got tired. The game was earlier, and I was out before 11:00, so that didn't become an issue.
Here's an interesting hand (that I folded pre-flop):
How often do you see someone with a pair of Aces, vs Kings, vs Queens? In this case, getting that 4th King wasn't good luck, as it killed the action.
Nothing spectacular happened during the beginning of the tournament. In fact, I don't think I played to the river more than once that first 90 minutes. I was down to a dozen big blinds and one point and my friend told me I needed to double up. I still had plenty of time though, stayed the course, picked my spots, and grew gradually while taking as few risks as possible.
After 90 minutes I had some good opportunities, exploited them.
By the third break I was doing well. I was in second place, with 130k chips, twice the average.
After the break I got some good cards and challenged what I believed to be steal attempts by the leader. He'd bet, everyone would fold to me, then I'd call. Then on the flop I'd raise and he'd fold. I did have a hand each time. I wasn't bluffing, but it must have *looked* like I was picking on him.
After that break I must have taken 120k from the tournament chip leader in about ten minutes. I had about 275k and the game leader had about 350k when this happened, to bankrupt me:
There wasn't much that could have beaten me (the last ace, pocket Kings, or pocket Queens), plus I thought he was finally pushing back out of frustration for me taking so many of his chips without ever me having to show my hand.
1) If someone else had called his raise before me I'd have folded my 8/J.
2) If that Jack didn't come on the flop I would have folded.
3) If I hadn't been taking a ton of his chips in the last few hands without showing (so he thought I was stealing) I would have folded early (putting him on an Ace).
4) If it was against any other player in the game I'd still have a at least 100k in chips.
5) If it was against any other player at my table I'd have most of my chips remaining.
6) If he had anything but the one remaining Ace, or KK, or QQ, I couldn't lose.
So anyway, I finished the game in 25th place because I couldn't fold my hand.
I don't think I sucked out on anybody the entire tournament. I pretty much always got my my money in good. I stole a lot of chips. I got sucked out on a few times, but nothing too damaging.
Monday, April 16, 2007
Chip trouble
I earned a bit over 100k in chips with my old account.
Then I earned a bit over 120k in my new account, which has a cooler name.
I wanted to close my old account and transfer my chips to the new account, so I had a friend login with my old account. We played a 100k heads up game. On hand one I made a big raise, with junk, and told him to call. My plan was to bet the turn or river and have him fold.
Then we'd wait until I had the best hand at the river before he went all-in and I'd call.
Well, after I told him to call, he went all-in. The idiot I am, I called. Doh!
My junky hand failed to connect and suddenly my old account had 200k and my good account was left with 20k. Great! Now I'd have to work my new account back to 100k to try it again.
Psychologically I shouldn't have continued playing, but I did. I tried to get even and burned through that 20k really quickly. I think I did it to punish myself.
When I had to reset my account to 1,000 I went into kamikaze mode. I entered a 10/20 game and stuck it all in hoping to triple up. I won the first one, but spewed that money away before I could hit 4k. (My goal was to get 4k, the minimum buy-in for the 100/200 tables, where I can really make money) Then I lost the next eight or ten of those in a row and quit for the night.
The next night I decided to play different. I played smart. I popped onto two tables, buying in for only 500 each. I also waited for good hands rather than rolling the dice with iffy hands. I found that with 500 chips I got called by more people. I think it's a mix of them assuming I'm desperate, and the fact that it's "only" 480 or so more after posting the blind.
I ended up making about 12k in those two games before moving to the 100/200 tables. My head was in the game and my chip stack showed it.
When I hit the 100/200 tables I didn't do so well. I was watching TV, and my head wasn't in the game. I was up to 20k at my peak before quitting at around 5k. I wasn't at a good table and should have come back when the fish were biting.
The next day I worked my chip stack up to around 22k. It took hours to do that.
My biggest problem was that my heart just wasn't in it. I wasn't making desperate/wild moves, but I was still watching TV.
I was a bit mad at myself for not making more at that time, so I did another self-punishment thing. I entered a 9-player, 10,000 chip sit & go. If I didn't finish in the top three half of my chip stack would be flushed down the toilet.
Losing hours of work would have sucked, so I forced myself to pay attention and play my best. Lucky for me I was dealt KK the first hand, and ended up breaking the guy on my left. I never lost the chip lead after that. I busted the second person out a couple rounds later, and after that point nobody got so much as half of my chip stack.
When there were three of us left the remaining players had about 700 in chips left. I noticed that one of them was away. A lot of people enter sit & go's and set their account to "away," thereby folding every hand. A lot of the time they can get to the money. I've done it myself a few times.
I told the guy that I wanted him to get second place, and advised him wait for her to get blinded out before making a move. Since he was actually playing I thought he deserved the chips for second place. That didn't stop me from stealing blinds though. But I never bet enough to put him all-in.
When I was big blind or she was big blind and she was small blind, I bet and took the pot. When he was big blind and I was small blind I bet and took the pot. But when I was dealer I folded every hand, allowing him to take her blinds.
One time he went all-in and I folded. He had pocket Kings.
Anyway, when she left he put on a pretty good fight, working his way up to 2,500 or so, before I took him out. The payout was something like 50k.
I played another 9-player sit & go last night, because I felt myself getting sloppy. This time it was only a 2,000 game. Again, I dominated through most of the game.
At one point two of us (I sort of felt like we were a team, since I assumed we'd be going heads up) had most of the chips (I was chip leader though) and two people only had about 700 each. They both ended up doubling up twice through us. Then one of them knocked the guy who I had assumed all along I'd go to the final table with.
I worked the guy on the left down to 1,000 and he went all-in. If the dealer called I'd have bailed, but the dealer folded, so I called with crap. Assuming he had two big cards I figured I was a 1-2 underdog. Not bad.
He showed Ace/8, unsuited. (The Dead Man's Hand)
I had 5/3 unsuited.
The flop was 6, Ace, Ace. That give him trip-aces and me pretty much nothing. He was a 97% favorite, so I even typed in a "NH" to congratulate him.
I didn't even look at the flop or turn... until the chips were pushed into my account.
"What???"
It ends up I made a runner-runner to fill a straight. That was a sick suck out on my part!
I had a substantial lead on the remaining guy. He as too passive, and I could steal most pots. I got in trouble when I tried to get tricky and ended up doubling him up. I never quite caught up after that, and he ended up winning. I still got a decent payout though.
So anyway, I'm well on my way back to 100k. My head's back in the game so I think I'll continue to do well. Once I hit 100k though, I fear that I'll get wild again.
Then I earned a bit over 120k in my new account, which has a cooler name.
I wanted to close my old account and transfer my chips to the new account, so I had a friend login with my old account. We played a 100k heads up game. On hand one I made a big raise, with junk, and told him to call. My plan was to bet the turn or river and have him fold.
Then we'd wait until I had the best hand at the river before he went all-in and I'd call.
Well, after I told him to call, he went all-in. The idiot I am, I called. Doh!
My junky hand failed to connect and suddenly my old account had 200k and my good account was left with 20k. Great! Now I'd have to work my new account back to 100k to try it again.
Psychologically I shouldn't have continued playing, but I did. I tried to get even and burned through that 20k really quickly. I think I did it to punish myself.
When I had to reset my account to 1,000 I went into kamikaze mode. I entered a 10/20 game and stuck it all in hoping to triple up. I won the first one, but spewed that money away before I could hit 4k. (My goal was to get 4k, the minimum buy-in for the 100/200 tables, where I can really make money) Then I lost the next eight or ten of those in a row and quit for the night.
The next night I decided to play different. I played smart. I popped onto two tables, buying in for only 500 each. I also waited for good hands rather than rolling the dice with iffy hands. I found that with 500 chips I got called by more people. I think it's a mix of them assuming I'm desperate, and the fact that it's "only" 480 or so more after posting the blind.
I ended up making about 12k in those two games before moving to the 100/200 tables. My head was in the game and my chip stack showed it.
When I hit the 100/200 tables I didn't do so well. I was watching TV, and my head wasn't in the game. I was up to 20k at my peak before quitting at around 5k. I wasn't at a good table and should have come back when the fish were biting.
The next day I worked my chip stack up to around 22k. It took hours to do that.
My biggest problem was that my heart just wasn't in it. I wasn't making desperate/wild moves, but I was still watching TV.
I was a bit mad at myself for not making more at that time, so I did another self-punishment thing. I entered a 9-player, 10,000 chip sit & go. If I didn't finish in the top three half of my chip stack would be flushed down the toilet.
Losing hours of work would have sucked, so I forced myself to pay attention and play my best. Lucky for me I was dealt KK the first hand, and ended up breaking the guy on my left. I never lost the chip lead after that. I busted the second person out a couple rounds later, and after that point nobody got so much as half of my chip stack.
When there were three of us left the remaining players had about 700 in chips left. I noticed that one of them was away. A lot of people enter sit & go's and set their account to "away," thereby folding every hand. A lot of the time they can get to the money. I've done it myself a few times.
I told the guy that I wanted him to get second place, and advised him wait for her to get blinded out before making a move. Since he was actually playing I thought he deserved the chips for second place. That didn't stop me from stealing blinds though. But I never bet enough to put him all-in.
When I was big blind or she was big blind and she was small blind, I bet and took the pot. When he was big blind and I was small blind I bet and took the pot. But when I was dealer I folded every hand, allowing him to take her blinds.
One time he went all-in and I folded. He had pocket Kings.
Anyway, when she left he put on a pretty good fight, working his way up to 2,500 or so, before I took him out. The payout was something like 50k.
I played another 9-player sit & go last night, because I felt myself getting sloppy. This time it was only a 2,000 game. Again, I dominated through most of the game.
At one point two of us (I sort of felt like we were a team, since I assumed we'd be going heads up) had most of the chips (I was chip leader though) and two people only had about 700 each. They both ended up doubling up twice through us. Then one of them knocked the guy who I had assumed all along I'd go to the final table with.
I worked the guy on the left down to 1,000 and he went all-in. If the dealer called I'd have bailed, but the dealer folded, so I called with crap. Assuming he had two big cards I figured I was a 1-2 underdog. Not bad.
He showed Ace/8, unsuited. (The Dead Man's Hand)
I had 5/3 unsuited.
The flop was 6, Ace, Ace. That give him trip-aces and me pretty much nothing. He was a 97% favorite, so I even typed in a "NH" to congratulate him.
I didn't even look at the flop or turn... until the chips were pushed into my account.
"What???"
It ends up I made a runner-runner to fill a straight. That was a sick suck out on my part!
I had a substantial lead on the remaining guy. He as too passive, and I could steal most pots. I got in trouble when I tried to get tricky and ended up doubling him up. I never quite caught up after that, and he ended up winning. I still got a decent payout though.
So anyway, I'm well on my way back to 100k. My head's back in the game so I think I'll continue to do well. Once I hit 100k though, I fear that I'll get wild again.
Friday, April 13, 2007
Big tournament
At 8:20 the other night I started playing in a 1,200+ person tournament. I was tired to begin with, so it was a mistake to start the game.
I started off doing pretty well, then my friend started sweating me and I had a bad run of cards. (Sweating me is basically just watching and rooting for me).
He said he was bad luck, then I got the following hand:
A full house to break a guy who made trip-Aces. Pretty sweet.
The very next hand was this:
Awesome! I made a ton of chips that hand as well, making me the tournament chip leader.
I busted another player a short time later with this hand. He went all-in on the river and I thought, "If he has the fourth ace then he deserves to double up."
I slow played this one.
People kept playing into me, though only one guy went all-in. I assumed he had a Q, so the 8/8 surprised me. I'm sure at least one person was smart enough to fold his King (or A/K or two pair). I'm surprised I didn't see anybody play with a Q though.
I did have a few hits, like this one. The guy went all in (12k) pre-flop with 5/5:
I was chip leader at the first break and the second break. I was exhausted and wanted to quit, but I was doing so well I couldn't just leaved.
By the third break (at around midnight) I had slipped some, but I was still in contention:
At around 12:40am (I know because Jimmy Kimmel Live was on) people were playing really tight, trying to get a bigger payoff. I was the small blind, and everyone folded to me.
I raised with 4/6 off-suit to attempt a steal.
The big blind called my fairly obvious bluff.
On the flop I hit middle pair and bet. He called.
On the turn... beautiful! I hit trip-fours! I made another bet.
He responded by going all-in. I called...
He had a full house and I was eliminated. Whew!
I finished in 22nd place, not bad for a field of over 1,200. The good news was that I could go to bed. I was playing to win, not to for the 50k in first prize chips.
I ended up getting 920 chips I think. It cost 250 to play. That's a terrible profit for all those hours of play. I usually play in the 100/200 games, so an average pit is usually quite a bit more than that.
I started off doing pretty well, then my friend started sweating me and I had a bad run of cards. (Sweating me is basically just watching and rooting for me).
He said he was bad luck, then I got the following hand:
A full house to break a guy who made trip-Aces. Pretty sweet.
The very next hand was this:
Awesome! I made a ton of chips that hand as well, making me the tournament chip leader.
I busted another player a short time later with this hand. He went all-in on the river and I thought, "If he has the fourth ace then he deserves to double up."
I slow played this one.
People kept playing into me, though only one guy went all-in. I assumed he had a Q, so the 8/8 surprised me. I'm sure at least one person was smart enough to fold his King (or A/K or two pair). I'm surprised I didn't see anybody play with a Q though.
I did have a few hits, like this one. The guy went all in (12k) pre-flop with 5/5:
I was chip leader at the first break and the second break. I was exhausted and wanted to quit, but I was doing so well I couldn't just leaved.
By the third break (at around midnight) I had slipped some, but I was still in contention:
At around 12:40am (I know because Jimmy Kimmel Live was on) people were playing really tight, trying to get a bigger payoff. I was the small blind, and everyone folded to me.
I raised with 4/6 off-suit to attempt a steal.
The big blind called my fairly obvious bluff.
On the flop I hit middle pair and bet. He called.
On the turn... beautiful! I hit trip-fours! I made another bet.
He responded by going all-in. I called...
He had a full house and I was eliminated. Whew!
I finished in 22nd place, not bad for a field of over 1,200. The good news was that I could go to bed. I was playing to win, not to for the 50k in first prize chips.
I ended up getting 920 chips I think. It cost 250 to play. That's a terrible profit for all those hours of play. I usually play in the 100/200 games, so an average pit is usually quite a bit more than that.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)