Ya rly. It exploded.... upwards. Hell yes mothertucker. BR stands at 1100. It jumped from 720 to 1000 last night when I was on a heater of epic proportions. I haven't actually told you what I am playing have I? Well I've been playing 25NL, up to 15 tables (yay for being one of those people that can do that) and it's gone really well. Anyway, last night I went on 13 buy in in 3k hands heater. My BR hit $1K (well 1066 in 20 hands from under 1k) and I was off to bed.
I'm happy with how I am playing at the moment too, generally. Still do the ocassionally stupid thing (calling usually) but I am working on that.
My goal is to hit 2k by the end of this month, to do that I suspect I will have to dabble in 50NL I suspect but I think I will be OK, and it'll be useful for when I decide to move up to there full time. 25NL will obviously be the main focus though.
I shall report back shortly!!!
Wednesday, 23 January 2008
Sunday, 6 January 2008
The Ride Continues!
Well, we'll start on the 4th. Wooooops! For whatever reason I played 25NL and dropped some bucks. Couple of buy ins, one was my AA all in on the flop (me having reraised preflop with position). Flop was 4c8d9c, he bet I raised he just went all in and I called. Damn it! Then I entered some SNGs but I didn't run well and I ended up at $430 for the day.
The 5th however was a much better day, I got down to it and just grinded out some SNGs and ended up at $480. Profit is profit.
The 6th has been an up an down day, I got up to 505 but then ran a little dry in the SNGs (eg all in with AK vs 6T in a 20 SNG and he rivers a straight, with a K!) , QQ vs AK twice AIPF, TT vs QK, 44 vs Q7 lost all times. We'll see how the rest of the day goes.
The 5th however was a much better day, I got down to it and just grinded out some SNGs and ended up at $480. Profit is profit.
The 6th has been an up an down day, I got up to 505 but then ran a little dry in the SNGs (eg all in with AK vs 6T in a 20 SNG and he rivers a straight, with a K!) , QQ vs AK twice AIPF, TT vs QK, 44 vs Q7 lost all times. We'll see how the rest of the day goes.
Thursday, 3 January 2008
Rollercoaster Dayz...
The last couple of says have seen me break even (although today has been different). Pretty simple, I was just playing SNGs ($5 and $10) and didn't finish too well at first and then results picked up, on the 2nd day I dropped a bunch playing 25NL. You have to love it when your AA gets beaten by trip 9s right? But my SNG results were good and I broke pretty much even that day too.
I hope everyone had a good New Years; personnally I was out of my face at 10:30pm (also partly due to life tilt inducing drinking of cataclysmic proportions) and proceeded to pass out politely in the bathroom. Thanks to the drinking game for putting that DIRTY pint in front of me and playing me to drink it.
I hope everyone had a good New Years; personnally I was out of my face at 10:30pm (also partly due to life tilt inducing drinking of cataclysmic proportions) and proceeded to pass out politely in the bathroom. Thanks to the drinking game for putting that DIRTY pint in front of me and playing me to drink it.
Monday, 31 December 2007
First Day of Blogged Poker!
In short, bad day.
Sundays are a good day for poker, any online poker enthusiast knows that. As well as your regular tourneys you are blessed with events with guaranteed prize pools for every entry level. I am no exception to the rule and had already satellited in to the 100k. Lucky because the entrants is capped at 20k and otherwise I would have left it too late.
I was playing well (Play deteriated later on in the day I think) and ended up at 24K when the average was about 10, the triple up in the 3rd hand did help though QQ>JK>A10. Then came the hand where I took a brutal hit to my stack. Blinds at 400/800 (I think), I raise to 2.4k in early MP and get reraised by a guy in MP. He shoved in his 10K, this was the 3rd time I'd seen him do this. 1st time his villan folded and the second time he had TT. My odds were 3 to 1 on my money (even if it doesn't work out like that in the way i've described it, I know thats what the odds were), I figured I was 50/50 but perhaps up against AJ/AT. I call and he flips over JJ. I don't improve. The blinds go up and hit me. In the BB, it's folded round to a limer in MP, the SB also folds. Holding Q5 I figure I can take it down now and raise 4x the BB. He calls and flop is 478 rainbow, I check knowing I am probably facing over cards but more likely a mid PP. It goes check-bet-fold. I'm at 9k, A few hands later, I pick up 22 and am about to get minced by the blinds. I push and am called by TT. I don't improve. GG me, overall. It was great talking with the FCP guys the whole way through.
I had also been registered in the 3r but that totally wasn't my day and after double rebuying twice and being whittled down, I busted out of that, likewise with the $5 5k GTD.
Now, slightly frustrated at my lack of cards and coin flips heading my way, I entered a couple of $10 SNGs. In one, 3rd hand I pick up AK in MP, 2 limpers before me and I rase to 150. Two callers in LP. Flop is 56K rainbow, I lead out for half the pot and am raised by one of the players in LP. I call, maybe thinking 666 but its more likly I am facing a weaker king. Turn is a 8 and lead out, committing myself. LP puts himself all in, committed, and fairly confident in my hand, I call. He flips over 79. Standard.
In the other SNG I am dealt queens in MP in the 5th or 6th hand. I raise 4x BB and am reraised for half my stack, I gotta call, early in a $10, more often than not I am facing JJ down to 88 and AK (although I'd like to hear your thoughts). Flop is a rainbow of low cards. Ugly. I am already committed with half my stack in the pot and put the rest in. he calls and has AA. How delightful.
During this fun I've entered the next rebuy and 3 $4 180 mans (I love multitabling). The rebuy also starts well and I find myself at 9K, I get a great start in 2 of the 180 mans but bust out of the 3rd in an ugly AQ situation. Not long after, I am dealt queens in late position in the rebuy, the action is heavy before me, but it's still the rebuy period an i'm not missing my chance to hit 20+K when the average is 5K(!). I shove and get 2 calls from the original raisers, one of them having me covered at 11k. I'm facing KK (big stack) and A9 (positioned after the KK, lol)! Queen on teh floop please? I'm out of luck and the flop lands with an ace, then to add insult to injury turn is an ace and the river is a brick. SHIP!!!.. it to someone else :( I double rebuy and am pretty much card dead. I come out of the add on period at average chips but I pick up absolutely nothing and end up pushing eventually with 33 (blinds be a coming!) and get called with TT. End of that. I admit though I think my rebuy play is less than optimal and would love any tips.
In that mayhem I've become a chip leader in both the $4s. Because QQ > KK and AT, obviously. I enter the 10pm(? you'll have to excuse me, I'm English) $5, but it's the most card dead run I have ever experienced and in 60 hands I don't get one hand over A7 and no PPs (!!!!!). I'm out of that when I have to push with A3 and come up against A7. By now I am deep in both the $4, 4/21 and 10/21. I screw up though and go out in 20th in the 2nd one when I pick up TT in EP and there is a raise UTG of 2x the BB from a player that hasn't raised much, I call (with the intent of getting away if the flop doesn't hit me or is high cards) and there is one call after me. The flop is a rainbow with a 6 being the highest card. The player on my right insta-pushes. I cringe, his AF is low and he has a good hand, but I can't let my over pair go and mae the crying-call. He flips over KK. Woops, ISAP. I
In the other $4 we get down to 11 players, I'm at 22K and the average is 29K (I think). I pick up AJ clubs, UTG +1. The table has been weak and although I've had no hands recently I've raised in position and taken down blinds and antes. Anyway, the raise is 3200, twice the BB from a player who had been short stacked but had recently doubled. I figured he range was maybe quite tight and call (although I wish I'd raised), a short stack that I hadn't notice in the BB pushes for the rest, an extra 4K, original raiser calls and I do too. Flop is Ks5c9c, the original raiser instashoves for 17k, which is now my stack. It's obvious he has a king, but I feel if I fold now I may make the FT but I'll be short stacked with an M under 7 and be under a lot of pressure. I figure I am drawing to any ace or club to go into the FT with a chip lead (where my play has been strong in the past), I call but the turn and river come 5 and 5. UTG +1 raiser shows KT (this is why I wish i'd reraised and got him off the hand preflop) and BB shows 77. I'm out, but I think I'd make that call again (thoughts on that?).
By now it's almost 4am (stupid rebuy starting so late in GMT!) and I'm tired and down $60 on tourney entries. Though up $20 in 2 NL10 tables I had running in the background (I have had one losing cash session in 4 weeks roughly). I end the day and go off to bed, questioning some of my plays and thinking I need to reread HoH1 and 2. Tomorrow is another day, well not entirely, it's New Years Eve. No tournaments for me, just getting immensely drunk, drowning my small loss (and break up of my relationship) in sweet sweet Dublin nectar (read for you Americans: Guinness Draught). Have a good night guys.
Sundays are a good day for poker, any online poker enthusiast knows that. As well as your regular tourneys you are blessed with events with guaranteed prize pools for every entry level. I am no exception to the rule and had already satellited in to the 100k. Lucky because the entrants is capped at 20k and otherwise I would have left it too late.
I was playing well (Play deteriated later on in the day I think) and ended up at 24K when the average was about 10, the triple up in the 3rd hand did help though QQ>JK>A10. Then came the hand where I took a brutal hit to my stack. Blinds at 400/800 (I think), I raise to 2.4k in early MP and get reraised by a guy in MP. He shoved in his 10K, this was the 3rd time I'd seen him do this. 1st time his villan folded and the second time he had TT. My odds were 3 to 1 on my money (even if it doesn't work out like that in the way i've described it, I know thats what the odds were), I figured I was 50/50 but perhaps up against AJ/AT. I call and he flips over JJ. I don't improve. The blinds go up and hit me. In the BB, it's folded round to a limer in MP, the SB also folds. Holding Q5 I figure I can take it down now and raise 4x the BB. He calls and flop is 478 rainbow, I check knowing I am probably facing over cards but more likely a mid PP. It goes check-bet-fold. I'm at 9k, A few hands later, I pick up 22 and am about to get minced by the blinds. I push and am called by TT. I don't improve. GG me, overall. It was great talking with the FCP guys the whole way through.
I had also been registered in the 3r but that totally wasn't my day and after double rebuying twice and being whittled down, I busted out of that, likewise with the $5 5k GTD.
Now, slightly frustrated at my lack of cards and coin flips heading my way, I entered a couple of $10 SNGs. In one, 3rd hand I pick up AK in MP, 2 limpers before me and I rase to 150. Two callers in LP. Flop is 56K rainbow, I lead out for half the pot and am raised by one of the players in LP. I call, maybe thinking 666 but its more likly I am facing a weaker king. Turn is a 8 and lead out, committing myself. LP puts himself all in, committed, and fairly confident in my hand, I call. He flips over 79. Standard.
In the other SNG I am dealt queens in MP in the 5th or 6th hand. I raise 4x BB and am reraised for half my stack, I gotta call, early in a $10, more often than not I am facing JJ down to 88 and AK (although I'd like to hear your thoughts). Flop is a rainbow of low cards. Ugly. I am already committed with half my stack in the pot and put the rest in. he calls and has AA. How delightful.
During this fun I've entered the next rebuy and 3 $4 180 mans (I love multitabling). The rebuy also starts well and I find myself at 9K, I get a great start in 2 of the 180 mans but bust out of the 3rd in an ugly AQ situation. Not long after, I am dealt queens in late position in the rebuy, the action is heavy before me, but it's still the rebuy period an i'm not missing my chance to hit 20+K when the average is 5K(!). I shove and get 2 calls from the original raisers, one of them having me covered at 11k. I'm facing KK (big stack) and A9 (positioned after the KK, lol)! Queen on teh floop please? I'm out of luck and the flop lands with an ace, then to add insult to injury turn is an ace and the river is a brick. SHIP!!!.. it to someone else :( I double rebuy and am pretty much card dead. I come out of the add on period at average chips but I pick up absolutely nothing and end up pushing eventually with 33 (blinds be a coming!) and get called with TT. End of that. I admit though I think my rebuy play is less than optimal and would love any tips.
In that mayhem I've become a chip leader in both the $4s. Because QQ > KK and AT, obviously. I enter the 10pm(? you'll have to excuse me, I'm English) $5, but it's the most card dead run I have ever experienced and in 60 hands I don't get one hand over A7 and no PPs (!!!!!). I'm out of that when I have to push with A3 and come up against A7. By now I am deep in both the $4, 4/21 and 10/21. I screw up though and go out in 20th in the 2nd one when I pick up TT in EP and there is a raise UTG of 2x the BB from a player that hasn't raised much, I call (with the intent of getting away if the flop doesn't hit me or is high cards) and there is one call after me. The flop is a rainbow with a 6 being the highest card. The player on my right insta-pushes. I cringe, his AF is low and he has a good hand, but I can't let my over pair go and mae the crying-call. He flips over KK. Woops, ISAP. I
In the other $4 we get down to 11 players, I'm at 22K and the average is 29K (I think). I pick up AJ clubs, UTG +1. The table has been weak and although I've had no hands recently I've raised in position and taken down blinds and antes. Anyway, the raise is 3200, twice the BB from a player who had been short stacked but had recently doubled. I figured he range was maybe quite tight and call (although I wish I'd raised), a short stack that I hadn't notice in the BB pushes for the rest, an extra 4K, original raiser calls and I do too. Flop is Ks5c9c, the original raiser instashoves for 17k, which is now my stack. It's obvious he has a king, but I feel if I fold now I may make the FT but I'll be short stacked with an M under 7 and be under a lot of pressure. I figure I am drawing to any ace or club to go into the FT with a chip lead (where my play has been strong in the past), I call but the turn and river come 5 and 5. UTG +1 raiser shows KT (this is why I wish i'd reraised and got him off the hand preflop) and BB shows 77. I'm out, but I think I'd make that call again (thoughts on that?).
By now it's almost 4am (stupid rebuy starting so late in GMT!) and I'm tired and down $60 on tourney entries. Though up $20 in 2 NL10 tables I had running in the background (I have had one losing cash session in 4 weeks roughly). I end the day and go off to bed, questioning some of my plays and thinking I need to reread HoH1 and 2. Tomorrow is another day, well not entirely, it's New Years Eve. No tournaments for me, just getting immensely drunk, drowning my small loss (and break up of my relationship) in sweet sweet Dublin nectar (read for you Americans: Guinness Draught). Have a good night guys.
Sunday, 30 December 2007
First Entry
Guess this will be my first entry in my poker blog.
I'll go over some background and the last few days.
History
I'm a young guy, 19, with a love for poker ever since I was 16/17 when my dad introduced me to the game. I would spend my days in school just playing 10c/20c cash games with a few friends (mostly when I should have been in lessons), I, along with my friend were probably the best in the place and would talk about poker whenever we had the opportunity.
It wasn't long before I signed up to an online site: PokerRoom on the OnGame Network. I got $20 from a friend because he wrecked my edition of 'Play Poker Like The Pros'. Very generous of him. Being a rookie, with no real idea of the game (and certainly bankroll management which didn't come for a while), I started playing $5 SNGs, which were the lowest available limit at the time. I guess I got lucky playing very TAG and built it up to $100, where I decided to dive into NL25, the lowest cash game they had. I built that up to $200 odd and moved up to NL50 and as soon as I hit $400 I dove into NL100. Oh yeah! High roller baby. Within 100 hands I won a AIPF, 100 BBs deep, and that was that. I reached my peak at $850, where I dabbled in NL200, in my first 20 hands I saw AA vs. KK, AIPF, a $400 pot, which to me was an awful lot of money. That was that I moved back to 100NL and basically ended up losing my entire roll in a day. You could say I was susceptible to tilt, lol. In all that time I cashed out nothing.
I'm happy that I lost my entire roll. I'm pretty sure most you you people are pretty confused about that statement, but I have an addictive personality and not losing my entire roll would have lead to me trying to build it up again, doing the exact same thing as before.
Going busto made me realise I had just been lucky in getting where I did and I certainly wasn't ready in skill to play at the levels I did. I needed to learn. I couldn't play poker because I had no money at the age of 17/18 in full time education to re-deposit, but I still loved the game. I borrowed a frieds copy of Harrington on Hold 'em and read it, at least 7 times. Then I bought The Theory of Poker, which was absolutely enlightening.
Not long after finishing TToP for the 15th time I had some money to deposit, $60, I played $5 SNGs, 25NL and 50NL. Needless to say I still had no idea about bankroll management and quickly lost that $60. Bummer. Unfortunately I had money (I had finished my school education and was in a full time job), I deposited $200. In the space of a couple on months I was down to $15 and almost distraught at the situation: I loved the game and I wanted to make money. I thought I was good enough to do so and thought I was just unlucky, but deep down I knew I was wrong. I let my heart and soul out on the Full Contact Poker forum (http://www.fullcontactpoker.com/poker-forum) and they recommended I posted some hands, so I did. Some of the guys there are GREAT players and gave me some great analysis on them. They pointed out all my blatent weaknesses. I went back to the tables, now with an idea of bankroll management and a new approach to the game. This was about a month ago.
I started at NL2 and $1 SNGs with a $20 BR (which is still pushing it obviously), my bankroll began to rise and in a week I was at $50 where I took a shot at 5NL. My win rate rocketed at this level and I made $150 in a couple of weeks. I then took a shot in a $4 180 man (a love of us FCP boys) and I won it. My bankroll stood at $380. A few days later I moved up to NL10 and in 4k hands (not a good sample size I admit) I have a win rate of 13BB/100. I've played a few $1 and $2.50 MTTs and cashed here and there, not had the luck to get really deep.
Present Day
That pretty much brings us to the present day, yesterday I came 6th in a 180 man (having failed to cash in 15 in between the win), I was destined to win but my KK ran into JJ, obviously he rivered a straight. Shortly after, under pressure, I pushed 99 and ran into TT. That was that. Night before that I was on the bubble of the FCP barraged $5, when my AA came up against the bigstacks 44. He flopped the trips. Standard? Now I'm sitting at $580, multitabling NL10 (up to 9 tables at once, half of them being fast) and playing in low buy in MTTs.
My Plans
I plan to build my bankroll up to $1000 and move to NL25, where I'll hopefully build my BR up to $2000 and move up to 50NL. I would like to play 50K hands at the level too. Eventually, 2 years from now, I would like to end up at 400NL, not having moved up to the levels before that without having 40 buy ins and having played 50K hands. I'd also like to have some success in MTTs too, reaching at least 1 FT a week in the 20 odd MTTs I play a week.
I intend to sign up to an instructional site pretty soon, Card Runners or PokerXFactor. Undecided so far.
I would perhaps like to end up as a known and respected MTT and cash game player. I would really like to give something back to the FCP community who have helped my game so much. I currently rail every FT a FCP member reaches I can.
Would I like to live off my poker winnings? I guess so, but as someone once said "It's a hard way to earn an easy living".
Anyway, here I'll post how my poker grind is going, post interesting hands and my dilemmas in life perhaps. I hope I provide some insight and some entertainment to the poker community I owe so much.
I'll go over some background and the last few days.
History
I'm a young guy, 19, with a love for poker ever since I was 16/17 when my dad introduced me to the game. I would spend my days in school just playing 10c/20c cash games with a few friends (mostly when I should have been in lessons), I, along with my friend were probably the best in the place and would talk about poker whenever we had the opportunity.
It wasn't long before I signed up to an online site: PokerRoom on the OnGame Network. I got $20 from a friend because he wrecked my edition of 'Play Poker Like The Pros'. Very generous of him. Being a rookie, with no real idea of the game (and certainly bankroll management which didn't come for a while), I started playing $5 SNGs, which were the lowest available limit at the time. I guess I got lucky playing very TAG and built it up to $100, where I decided to dive into NL25, the lowest cash game they had. I built that up to $200 odd and moved up to NL50 and as soon as I hit $400 I dove into NL100. Oh yeah! High roller baby. Within 100 hands I won a AIPF, 100 BBs deep, and that was that. I reached my peak at $850, where I dabbled in NL200, in my first 20 hands I saw AA vs. KK, AIPF, a $400 pot, which to me was an awful lot of money. That was that I moved back to 100NL and basically ended up losing my entire roll in a day. You could say I was susceptible to tilt, lol. In all that time I cashed out nothing.
I'm happy that I lost my entire roll. I'm pretty sure most you you people are pretty confused about that statement, but I have an addictive personality and not losing my entire roll would have lead to me trying to build it up again, doing the exact same thing as before.
Going busto made me realise I had just been lucky in getting where I did and I certainly wasn't ready in skill to play at the levels I did. I needed to learn. I couldn't play poker because I had no money at the age of 17/18 in full time education to re-deposit, but I still loved the game. I borrowed a frieds copy of Harrington on Hold 'em and read it, at least 7 times. Then I bought The Theory of Poker, which was absolutely enlightening.
Not long after finishing TToP for the 15th time I had some money to deposit, $60, I played $5 SNGs, 25NL and 50NL. Needless to say I still had no idea about bankroll management and quickly lost that $60. Bummer. Unfortunately I had money (I had finished my school education and was in a full time job), I deposited $200. In the space of a couple on months I was down to $15 and almost distraught at the situation: I loved the game and I wanted to make money. I thought I was good enough to do so and thought I was just unlucky, but deep down I knew I was wrong. I let my heart and soul out on the Full Contact Poker forum (http://www.fullcontactpoker.com/poker-forum) and they recommended I posted some hands, so I did. Some of the guys there are GREAT players and gave me some great analysis on them. They pointed out all my blatent weaknesses. I went back to the tables, now with an idea of bankroll management and a new approach to the game. This was about a month ago.
I started at NL2 and $1 SNGs with a $20 BR (which is still pushing it obviously), my bankroll began to rise and in a week I was at $50 where I took a shot at 5NL. My win rate rocketed at this level and I made $150 in a couple of weeks. I then took a shot in a $4 180 man (a love of us FCP boys) and I won it. My bankroll stood at $380. A few days later I moved up to NL10 and in 4k hands (not a good sample size I admit) I have a win rate of 13BB/100. I've played a few $1 and $2.50 MTTs and cashed here and there, not had the luck to get really deep.
Present Day
That pretty much brings us to the present day, yesterday I came 6th in a 180 man (having failed to cash in 15 in between the win), I was destined to win but my KK ran into JJ, obviously he rivered a straight. Shortly after, under pressure, I pushed 99 and ran into TT. That was that. Night before that I was on the bubble of the FCP barraged $5, when my AA came up against the bigstacks 44. He flopped the trips. Standard? Now I'm sitting at $580, multitabling NL10 (up to 9 tables at once, half of them being fast) and playing in low buy in MTTs.
My Plans
I plan to build my bankroll up to $1000 and move to NL25, where I'll hopefully build my BR up to $2000 and move up to 50NL. I would like to play 50K hands at the level too. Eventually, 2 years from now, I would like to end up at 400NL, not having moved up to the levels before that without having 40 buy ins and having played 50K hands. I'd also like to have some success in MTTs too, reaching at least 1 FT a week in the 20 odd MTTs I play a week.
I intend to sign up to an instructional site pretty soon, Card Runners or PokerXFactor. Undecided so far.
I would perhaps like to end up as a known and respected MTT and cash game player. I would really like to give something back to the FCP community who have helped my game so much. I currently rail every FT a FCP member reaches I can.
Would I like to live off my poker winnings? I guess so, but as someone once said "It's a hard way to earn an easy living".
Anyway, here I'll post how my poker grind is going, post interesting hands and my dilemmas in life perhaps. I hope I provide some insight and some entertainment to the poker community I owe so much.
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