November 2008 Recap

11/29/08
i end the month on a downer. after commanding a chip lead due to set-over-set-over-set, a shove monkey over-pushes his AKs over my JJ and flops an A to cripple me.



11/21/08
BORGATA TRIP
busted somewhere around 100/291

11/19/08
2/18 ITM not much more i could do - villain got red hot down to 3 players.

11/18/08
1/45 ITM back-to-back victories in this tourney - sweet!

11/17/08
HOME GAME TONIGHT
got rivered in game 2 (3 outer) and game 3 (2 outer).

11/3/08
1/45 but don't remember the details

October 2008 Recap

10/8/08
3/27 ITM played well.
1/45 ITM played well and things went my way.
35/395 ITM for peanuts, but a straight flush helped me get there. ultimately QQ < AA to cripple me and JJ < 9Ts to finish me. multi-table tourneys don't really fit my life-style. i think they're for the younger guys who don't need sleep and don't have commitments. why should i play for 4 hours to earn a free trip to WaWa? just not worth it.
multi-tabling did me in on a rebuy though where i was deep but made a bad call all-in while concentrating on the above tourneys. it was a little-known site and i was suprised to see sheets & johnnybax playing.

10/7/08
2/111 ITM. small buy-in so not much of a brag. a long heads up battle ended with me getting it in with 44 up against A2o. flop 39J turn 4 (a set and i'm good!) but river 5 sends me to the rail.

basically september and so far october are cold-deck months. i'm losing nearly all my races, my AK < A7 time after time, and river beats are "beating" me down.

September 2008 Recap

9/22/08
Main Line Poker Club Home Game
We had a prominent player absent due to a pre-season hockey game, and another top player was ill, which means that everyone else wanted to benefit from the softer table and finish ITM. In the end, the deck was very kind to I.B. and me.

Game #1: 1) ITTPlaysYa 2) bdd67 3) KingPrussia
Game #2: 1) WillyPhilly 2) KingPrussia 3) ITTPlaysYa
Game #3: 1) Squasher/KingPrussia 3) ITTPlaysYa

I had a plethora of nice pocket pairs: AA 3 times (stacked off nicely vs KK, AKs), KK 2 times (once no action), TT 2 times, JJ 1 time, 99 1 time. Also AKs 2 times and AQ 2. My premium hands held up and I won every race except one: in game #3 I have squasher against the ropes after my TT holds up to his JQo and ITTPlaysYa as the short stack. I inflict more damage when he runs AKs into my AA. So luck seemed on my side, especially one orbit later when I look down at KK and he raises without shoving, showing strength. I reraise him all in, he calls with A6s, and flops the better pair. When we got heads up, I accepted his offer to chop, bringing the long night to a close.

WillyPhilly filled in for DoyleB and took first in game #2. In game #1, I foolishly called all-in with K2o against ITTPlaysYa, thinking he was messing with me. He tabled AA and I busted out. Should have been more patient and smarter than that.

My live play for this month has been profitable.

9/13/08
4/26 ITM in the Fall Conshy Classic. ran A8 into KK down to 4. played pretty straight-forward. made some mistakes. ultimately i think i played the short stack and final table bubble better than my foes. i didn't get one key draw against shorty down to 4 which would have gotten me 3 handed and from there i think i have a decent chance to get the bracelet.

our home game did well, having 5 at the final table. WillyPhilly took 3rd, daozi 7th, DoyleB 8th, ITTPlaysYa 9th if memory serves me.

9/12/08
8/82 ITM at Showboat 11am
Preparation went well. Had the obligatory hot tub soak, a good night sleep,relaxing drive watching Odd Couple reruns.
Break #1 20.5K. Played 2 hands from blinds too passively. Prolly should be up more.
Break #2, 66K nearly trippled up (QQ > AKs > A4s). 82 started, down to 24 i think.
Break #3 i have 1.5 bb down to 12. Card dead is an under-statement.
BUSTO: managed to survive until 8th (the last paid position).

9/10/08
1/18 ITM nice win here. quad tens to finish it off.
busted 3 other tourneys, 2 on horrible beats.
retiring from SBOP since i'm -EV there.

9/9/08
2/27 ITM
6/45 ITM AJs < QQ
another winning session on PokerStars

9/8/08
3/27 ITM another PokerStars finish. AQ < Q3 of course.
?/90
9/45 ran into a limped AA


9/7/09
1/18 ITM like i said, on PokerStars, a win is a win!
7/18 guy hit runner runner to hit a straight that left me crippled with maybe 155 very early on but i fought back. got it in good but it didn't hold.

9/6/08
0-fer-9 in tourneys tonight. got rivered a few times, ran into monsters a few. i'd like to forget this night.

9/4/08
2/27 ITM woohoo i actually won something on PokerStars
23/180 88 < AQo just missed ITM. i don't run good on PokerStars

9/2/08
2/45 ITM the curse still lives. played heads up for what seemed like forever, with swings back and forth. i eventually got it in with trip 8s but was called by A5s and villain hit his flush on the river. i played this tournament well, was VERY patient, and not afraid to get my chips in.

August 2008 Recap

8/31/08
3/9 ITM shove A9 into AQ
3/9 ITM
7/9 but pokerstars doesn't count
ok so i finish the month with a winning session.

8/30/08
lost every race, lost every dominating showdown, lost every tournament. not how i wanted to end the month.

8/29/08
3/18 ITM august ending ok. i have just one other session planned.
?/45

8/28/08
2/45 ITM called all in too wide heads up K4s < ATo
20?/90 shoved too wide at 10bb, prolly should have been more patient.

8/27/08
HOME GAME
it's the morning after and i've already forgotten almonst everything that happened, so i can't offer much detail. i did win game #1, and i got lucky to stay alive on the bubble in game #2 and ended up winning that one too. game #3 i flopped a wheel but lost to a better straight to deny me the hat trick. a good, fun night for me to help counter the goose eggs i've been accumulating online. we were short handed the whole night, playing 6-handed twice, and notables bdd67 and I.B. were absent.

i think one interesting hand from the night involved VCDuke vs daozi. the lack of stack sizes are gonna kill the analysis here, but at the time i was thinking that this hand should have been played quite differently. VCDuke flatted pre and daozi raised to 750, VCDuke called. flop comes 9sTs5c. VCDuke shoves (more than a pot-size push), daozi goes into the tank and calls. Does VCDuke want a call? If he wants daozi's chips, does he shove? Is there a draw in play here? If so, who and what?

I have some thoughts on this hand, but can't show my playbook with the upcoming Conshy Classic local tournament. What say my readers?


8/19/08
haven't been blogging much and haven't been recapping my playing.
3/45 ITM busto as the favorite but not a bad run
12/45 really played well but an accomplished player got the best of me by making a play on my BvB steal then stacking off on me next hand with a real hand JJ > AQ. i normally don't stack off with AQ but he seemed to be accumulating to make his run. he eventually took second.

8/17/08
2/18 ITM should have won this one
44/45 AA < QJo of course

8/16/08
1/9 ITM small stakes just killing time

8/7/08
2/9 ITM hey a cash is a win on pokerstars. played a solid heads up player with a 11% ROI. lost a key hand and never recovered.
5/45 ITM really wanted more than this as i am making a nice run on fulltilt. ran 55 into TT to bust
?/180 busto KK cracked of course

8/6/08
12/27 still 0-7 in the SBOP private tournament on PokerStars. had AA,AA,AK,QQ and got absolutely no action. yet if i start to open wide, then i get called! i evenually shoved 88 into 99 to bust.
2/9 ITM played a very successful, very skilled player heads up. obtained a slight lead but then lost a hand to a better kicker and from there it was over.

8/4/08
2/9 ITM
1/45 ITM the long awaited win. i published this as a goal back in December 2007 and have a number of second and third place finishes. it's not THAT big of a deal but it's always nice to hit a goal. it's a little anti-climactic though since i did get a 1/90 win a few weeks prior. i still want to take 1/180 on PokerStars though.


8/1/08
THE DATE FOR THE FALL CONSHOHOCKEN CLASSIC HAS BEEN SET TO SEPTEMBER 13 2008.

I am VERY upset I will have to miss the EPT Barcelona Open due to this tournament. Spain is very near the top of the list of places I'd like to visit next. This is a very tough decision for me, but I believe the Conshy Classic wins out for the following reasons:
1. Buy-in for: Barcelona Open: 8,000 EURO, Conshohocken Classic: $75 including food and drinks.
2. Distance to: Barcleona Open: 3900 miles, Conshohocken Classic: 3.9 miles
3. Odds of winning: Barcelona Open: 0, Conshohocken Classic: 8:1
4. Players I want revenge on: Barcelona Open: 0, Conshohocken : 39

I also will miss the Borgata Poker Open but that I can play anytime.

BTW 8/27/08 home game hand, daozi: AdKh, VCDuke: 5s5d

July 2008 Recap

7/29/08
i continue to run bad on PokerStars, getting rivered 4-flush to bust two tourneys. one tourney i got AA, AA, KK in a row and saw no action (one of them improved to quads). later i pick up 77 with a board 663 and lose to a slow-played AA. so i bad night for me.

7/27/08
2/9 ITM rare for PS, but busted 3 others on crazy hands. did i mention that players at this buy-in on pokerstars are really bad?

7/26/09
1/18 ITM
3/9 ITM
both tough final tables. play on FullTilt is so much better than PokerStars and it's not even close. i haven't posted my numerous bust outs on PokerStars so don't get the impression i'm crushing the online scene.

7/25/08
1/9 ITM maybe i should stick with STTs for a while...

7/22/08
2/9 ITM
3/9 ITM
but still running bad. busted one or two others, don't remember.

7/20/08
an exact replica of last session. i have concluded that i cannot play poker at the smaller buy-ins. the play is just too bad. i have not seen play this bad in a while, and it's hard to beat a table that has multiple opponents playing any two cards.

7/18/08
11/90 bubble boy
10/45
14/45
I played great poker tonight. didn't matter though. first losing session in maybe two weeks.
one busto hand hurt particularly bad. i just can't hit AK for my life.

Click here to view a larger version.

7/17/08
5/45 ITM but whiffed 4 others. ran into brick walls on FTP, ran into donks on Stars. might take more time off for video review.

7/16/08
2/9 ITM but uber-donked off two other SnGs (one of which I played very well and am disgusted over how I gave it away. Just happy to finish slightly up on the night.

7/15/08
1/9 ITM
only had time/energy for a SnG. played a long, difficult heads up battle against th/\rchitect, a successful player at these buyins. also down to 4 were 2CardReaPeR and RVR_KNG1, both profitable players. this felt like a genuine win.

7/12/08
3/45 ITM
donk sucked out on my KQ < KT same old same old.
donked away two other 45s though. AK hasn't hit in at least the last 4 showdowns i can remember.

7/11/08
13/180 ITM
SB raised half my stack so I come over top from BB with AKo, he calls and his 55 holds up. not a bad run but I did play more passively than usual since I was reviewing some teaching videos at the same time.

7/9/08
4/90 ITM
busted by calling a donk who was shoving T5 into my A9. Flop JTT. LOL donkaments.

7/8/08
been tired lately but managed to play some SnGs tonight.
2/9 ITM
3/9 ITM
8/9 AA cracked by K8.

Sheets, Loretta8, and M.B. playing day 2b in the main event.
EDIT: everyone busted on day 2B. nice run and good luck next year guys.

7/6/08
1/18 ITM
busted a 27,180,180 though.

7/5/08
1/9 ITM fought back from low stack. played this sng very well.
2/45 ITM lost a 2:1 chip lead. should have taken this one down.

rooting for my online heroes playing the main event.

let's try out the pxf hand replayer...
last hand before break - do i want to get involved here?

Click here to view a larger version.

June 2008 Home Game & AC Update

Hosted the home game at my house for the first time. Some of the guys took advantage of the hot tub, and everyone loved the Thumanns dogs imported from New Jersey. Our two guests cashed, which is an accomplishement in this game. Overall a fun night.

Game #1: S.M. M.B. R.W.
Game #2: R.W. B.D. J.S.
Game #3: J.S. S.M. W.E.
Game #4: M.B. B.S. S.H.

AC was a disaster.
Trop: Busted A5 < AK down to 3 tables.
Showboat: new poker room is nice. Congrats to the SB donk who called with 25s against my A7 shove from BB and turned a 5 to bust me in 12th. With 8 places paid, I can't see how he makes that call blind vs blind and near the bubble, having me outstacked by only a few BBs.
Borgata: busted a SnG 88 < KK when bigtime bluffer wakes up with a hand.

June 2008 Recap

6/30/08
20/180
I was 1/60 and playing well. Was slightly overtaken in a tightly clustered leaderboard but then took a horrible beat to knock me to 33. Never really regained any momentum. Table was aggressive and didn't have hands to push back with. AK lost to 99 when I needed it to. Ultimately at 5BB ran KJ into JJ to bust.

0-3 in FTP 45s, all due to beats. What's the use of trying to improve if it doesn't result in wins?

6/29/08
whiffed 0-3. got floated by a kid to kill my stack. ruined my night. meanwhile homeys continue to get rich off the donks and i'm left behind.

6/28/08
1/18 ITM returned from vacation looking forward to playing online again. got a confidence boost after a disasterous showing in Atlantic City. Shorty down to three, I fought back to take it down.

9/27 pretty card dead. as shorty, ran QJs < 55 to bust.

6/18/08
ITM but so what. river busts me again. i am really on a bad run of beats. think i need some time away.


here's one hand that worked in my favor - can't see how he makes this call with no part of the draw.



6/16/08
3/45 ITM
anyone that does not believe that i lose every dominating hand, just watch this. poker is a waste and all of us that play are waste products.


6/15/08
I was riding a 90KO and a 45 to the final table when the bad beats started really hurting me. I can't go through this like I did in Jan-Feb. I don't need this right now.


6/14/08
I'm losing every 70/30 domination just like a prolonged period I recently came through. Not making for happy times.

6/12/08
11/45 my AT < A5. yeah i'm ill.

Played the FullTilt Daily Double for the first time in a while.
I bust Tournament A when villain turns a better flush.


48/914 ITM
I get off to a nice start in Tournament B, and ironically I'm briefly ahead of one of my online heroes.


Longer tournament, more opportunities for mistakes. Made a couple. Ultimately run A9 into AK.

6/11/08
6/45 ITM a rivered flush busted my straight
6/45 ITM a better rivered straight busted my straight
these two really hurt, as i was multi-tabling on different sites. one right after the other is just brutal.

6/10/08
3/45 ITM played well, some minor mistakes, no regrets.
13/180 ITM made one big mistake that cost me. also heavy preflop action prevented a good open-shove strategy from taking hold. no action with KK in SB at 13/31.

6/7/08
1/90 ITM
I finally have a first place to my name, and it was a nice cash considering all the KOs I netted. Probably my biggest cash to date. A real blogger would post some key hands and talk about the tournament, but I'm tired. I did flop quad Jacks and had AA and KK hold up when I needed them to. The big difference was my shove/fold strategy. Ultimately, it looked like the curse was going to overtake me yet again when lost a hand HU on the river when I was way ahead preflop. But irony of ironies as huge stack I call a shove with T3 FTW.


6/4/08
SBOP V private PokerStars tournament. the three highest average finishers among players having played all four prior tournaments are bdd67, daozi, and KingPrussia, yet neither of us has cashed. i do believe we are do to do some damage this month. check back for results.

EDIT: daozi bailed, bdd67 bubbled, and KingPrussia shoved 99 into AA. Not one of our homeys has cashed this after VCDuke won the first event. What's up with that?

6/1/08
21/1574 ITM in the 8pm on PokerStars. i usually beat myself up for poor decisions, but i think i played this tournament really well. i picked my spots, and most of my premium hands held up. i lost KK to AQ in a crucial spot (see below), and i busted AQ against 77 but the guy could have easily been weaker. if i win that race, i make the final table.

played with a guy from sydney, but he claims to not know P. Sherman from 42 wallaby way. i think he was either lying or just has good teeth.

here are some highlights:

it amazes me how people value top pair no kicker


set fills up nicely. back in 7th place


KK holds up nicely - 24/198 now


77 holds up to AK. this is a read-specific shove because i percieved my opponent to be weaker than AK.


KK loses to AQ at a crucial moment deep


another nice pot, but why does this guy call here? http://www.pokerhand.org/?2698884

May 2008 Recap

So I leave behind the month of May, a month in which I showed down 3 quads and a straight flush. I lost an AK "nut" flush to a straight flush (QTs called my 3xBB raise so go figure), and I folded a flop that hit runner-runner straight flush. There is no normal distribution in poker - variance is the operative adjective. Overall i'm up a bit for the month, but I gave too much back in the last few days and have been running bad - so much so that I literally said outloud "if i don't cash tonight, i'm quitting." well the hemoraging continues but i managed to cash one tournament (woohoo), so the ball and chain remains at least for another week. there are just too many people i know that are doing well, and although i've definitely improved in the last year, i just don't see the results and doubt if i really have what it takes to be a profitable player. i definitely fall on the side of intelligent, yet when i submit hands for review, i always ask myself "why didn't i see that?". so somehow i still can't process all of the information available to me to make wise decisions. i'll be adding some reading and video reviews to my schedule next month.


5/31/08
An unorthodox way to play AA on hand #2 in the 8pm. I only limped because I raised 88 from EP on hand #1 and hit a set. At least it worked out for me - wonder what the original raiser had.



5/27/08 Main Line Poker Club (aka our local home game)
I made a world-class call against bdd67 which induced tilting, the likes of which have not been seen since Action S.H. stormed out of the kitchen dropping the F-bomb on the entire neighborhood. Here is a recreation of the magical moment. Be aware that this play is read-specific, against a particular player. I do not recommend you try this move at your local home game.



Results:
Game #1: 1) MB & IB 3) SH
Game #2: 1) JS 2) IB & RW
Game #3: 1) JS 2) IB, MB & RW

5/23/08
1/18 ITM I'm usually weak heads up but I managed to overtake and outlast my opponent. I'm playing well at 2 & 3 table SnGs of late. Would like to resume my nice string of cashes in the 45s that I enjoyed a short while back.

Been playing with the WSOP steps and have found that it is exremely easy to get to step 3, but the problem at step 3 is making the assumption that the level of play is much different than levels 1 & 2. It is not, so all kinds of hands go to showdown and the suckouts are quite numerous.

5/20/08
i lost all my 70/30s and my big pairs ran into flopped Aces numerous times. almost quit after tonight - got slammed disproportionately.

a straight flush for no chips


5/18/08
18/306 ITM
i entered just to have a chance to play against lilholdem954 and shaundeeb (sat to his left for a while). i busted running 88 into AK. probably my best finish for a rebuy. i only posted the entry fee and the add-on. i admit to playing too passively near all three cash bubbles (folded 99, 77, AQo just to advance). when finishing ITM happens more frequently for me, i'm taking a stand in some of those situations.

made one key mistake here. i think i need to shove over the top (hand replayer seems to have a problem with this hand): http://www.pokerhand.org/?2631588

who is shoving this flop, and who is betting for value? leave a comment.


5/11/08
2/18 ITM had a 2:1 chip lead HU but lost it, then ran into AA.

6/180 ITM
i held the lead for a decent amount of time but entered the final table in second. this was my first final table for a tourney this size. key hand i lost: i pick up AQ and raise 3bb, get 3-bet from an Opp that 3-bet the hand before and showed 84o when all folded. here he bets the same amount and shows AA. next hand i get AA so bad timing for me - it may have catipulted me to a nice lead, and would have been my best cash by far. very frustrating, as i humbly think i was one of the two better players of those remaining. all i can say is, after this empty feeling of being so close to a win and having to try to sleep after such an effort, thank God i can walk into my kids room and know there's more to life than poker.

some nice flops




apparently he doesn't know my 3-bet range:


another hand holds up nicely:


AA holds nicely:


5/10/08
2/27 ITM but the curse lives on. i gain a huge lead on the following turn against a dude overplaying small pairs and flops a set (don't know what's up with the replayer):


then i fight my way to the final table and get heads up against a successful player. the curse prevents me from getting a first on this beat:


5/9/08
6/27 bubble boy. in 2nd place i shoved JJ into CL AKo and of course lost the race. thought he would fold but he woke up with a hand. methinks the streak is around 15 or so now - i'm curious what my results will be when these start to hold up. hopefully they'll propel me ITM.

94/~1200 ITM played ok but not great.

5/7/08 SBOP IV
8/24 played OK, played 2 hands poorly but not much damage. story here tonight is that pp < AK twice to cripple me and bust me.

63/180 a total of 7 pp < Ax tonight. sickening.

5/3/08
1/18 ITM the river is your friend
got out to an early lead tripling up with AA and some other nice hands, held on for the win.



5/1/08
51/315 RB+AO
I'm growing more and more critical of the skill level of many players that have huge ROIs and yet get so lucky late in tournaments. Tonight I got busted by a guy playing 22 that hit a set against my two pair. He's won tens of thousands of dollars online but in my opinion he's a donk. Most players at my table had winnings in the high five figures and 3-bet what seemed to be ATC. Do people really win that way? This new generation fears nothing.

April 2008 recap

4/28/08 Home Game
A chip and a chair - that's all you need. Oh, and a lucky shirt. That's what host B.D. aka bdd67 needed to put on his SnG clinic, coming back from a meager 175 chips to take down first place with his lucky shirt hanging in the backdrop. Kudos to him for keeping up with the laundry and kids while his wife tends to business. B.D. went on to take a second and another chopped first, continuing the trend of first time hosts dominating all three games and sending his so-called welcomed guests home with nothing. bdd67 is also a multi-table SnG specialist online and continues to post a nice ROI on the virtual felt. He recently launched a monthly private tournament on PokerStars dubbed the Super Bowl of Poker (SBOP). When he's not pilfering blinds and antes, he can be heard on his weekly sports podcast at http://www.dilsmusings.blogspot.com/.

I'm happy with my results, although I can't take much credit for them. I was the underdog in some key showdowns that propelled me ITM, helping me take a first place and a chopped first. J.S. aka daozi cashed twice, and I.B. and S.H. cashed once each. The results for all three games are as follows:

Game #1: 1) B.D. 2) J.S. & I.B.
Game #2: 1) R.W. 2) B.D. & J.S.
Game #3: 1) B.D. & R.W. 3) S.H.

Next up is the SBOP on May 7. I'm 0-fer-3 but have a few tricks up my sleeve for this one. Come rail KingPrussia.

4/24/08
after a bit of a dry spell on PokerStars, I return to my home felt and cash two for two in some late night action.
5/45 ITM
24/434 ITM - a deep finish for me, but i gave it away on an overly-aggressive stand. unfortunate after having achieved 4th place on a major luckownage suckout:




4/14/08 Home Game
I arrived in time for games 2 & 3. We strayed from Holdem tonight. Game #2 was called Omaha Hi-Low. This was a blast and we got some good instruction from resident pro M.B. on starting hands and showdown rank. Down to 3 I was chip leader but we chopped due to the prolonged length of the game. Somehow I got the same as second place (a 25% reduction in payout) and short-stacked third got a 33% premium. In general I'm opposed to chopping, but at a home game I'm in favor due to those waiting to play the next game. However that said, I believe chopping should be fair, and only done heads up. The third game was an unknown variation in which you only need to use one hole card. Don't know the name for this but I bubbled. Fortunately the social aspect makes up for the money lost.

4/13/08
busted 2 tourneys deep set over set. bleh.

4/8/08
3/9 ITM nothing noteworthy here
31/1885 ITM my best MTT finish to date, will write more later.
no forum railbirds
I became aware of the few hands I was playing and started to wonder about my tournament statistics. Here are some notes I made during the session:


1885 entrants, pokerstars 10pm $11. i rebuy when i busted on a bad beat, 1 add on after first break.
my stack 200,052. blinds going to 3000/6000/600 Stack: largest 284680, smallest 9450, average 90560
Your current position is 12 out of 182
Time bank balance is 60 seconds
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 190 hands and saw flop: - 10 out of 22 times while in big blind (45%) - 8 out of 22 times while in small blind (36%) - 10 out of 146 times in other positions (6%) - a total of 28 out of 190 (14%) Pots won at showdown - 9 of 11 (81%) Pots won without showdown - 15

2:20am me 379,016 blinds going to 10,000/20,000/2000 Stack: largest 1293012, smallest 66888, average 374590
Your current position is 18 out of 44 During current Hold'em session you were dealt 270 hands and saw flop: - 12 out of 32 times while in big blind (37%) - 8 out of 31 times while in small blind (25%) - 16 out of 207 times in other positions (7%) - a total of 36 out of 270 (13%) Pots won at showdown - 12 of 14 (85%) Pots won without showdown - 21

Here is a read-specific play I made late:
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t20000 (8 handed)

MP2 (t267410)
CO (t840033)
Button (t287258)
SB (t614470)
Hero (t417016)
UTG (t375672)
UTG+1 (t266108)
MP1 (t799012)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 6d,6h .
6 folds, SB completes, Hero raises to t65000, SB raises to t614470, Hero calls t350016 (All-In).

Flop: (t1041486) 5s, 7h, 9h (2 players, 1 all-in)
Turn: (t1041486) 6c (2 players, 1 all-in)
River: (t1041486) Kd (2 players, 1 all-in)
Final Pot: t842032

SB has 3d Ac (high card, ace).
Hero has 6d 6h (three of a kind, sixes).
Outcome: Hero wins t842032.

I busted with this hand, a good play but unlucky to run into a monster behind me:

MP1 (t232388)
MP2 (t935033)
CO (t213258)
Hero (t519838)
SB (t574672)
BB (t809548)
UTG (t999505)
UTG+1 (t744358)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 7s, 7h.
4 folds, CO raises to t210258, Hero raises to t516838, 1 fold, BB calls t486838.

Flop: (t1231934) 4s, Ad, Jd (3 players)
Turn: (t1231934) Ac (3 players)
River: (t1231934) Kh (3 players)
Final Pot: t1231934

BB has Qd Qh (two pair, aces and queens).
CO has 5d 6d (one pair, aces).
Hero has 7s 7h (two pair, aces and sevens).


4/3/08
7/27 busted on a retarded move http://www.pokerhand.org/?2380056 after having achieved second place. i could have picked a much better spot against a weaker stack. it would have been easy to finish ITM in this one. i fit the definition of an idiot: someone who does the same thing over and over yet expects different results. i keep whining about how i'm just as good as these guys, but when it comes time to make good decisions, i blank. i'm just not a good player and that's the way it's gonna be.

2/8 ITM luskeament. it was student against teacher HU when I ran JJ into A4 and, well, gg NYRambler.

4/1/08
SBOP III private tourney had 26 entries - a very nice showing. Some players got off to great starts due to donations being made via all-in bluffs. Only one MLPC member at the final table, daozi, who finished 7th. SBOP I champ VCDuke ran QQ into KK, and SBOP II champ njnick busted relatively early. Host bdd67 finished 10th on the TV bubble. BulletsBL made an early exit despite admitting "i love my seat". 11:37pm idog27 took it down.

I frantically pulled things together to sit down for the earlier start time after a brutal day at work. I finished 13th after getting some strong hands down the stretch, but ran into better hands (KQ vs QQ, KQ vs AK, AJ vs JJ, 66 vs 99). The last three were against the same short-stacked opponent, so he benefitted greatly from my aggression. I couldn't get anything going in the middle levels, but I think I played well otherwise.

It was good to chat with the homeys since we missed our home game last month. Kudos to M.B. who dialed in from Puerto Rico to play.

I don't think this tournament is +EV for me, so I have to figure that into how I use my online time. Might feel differently if I play at Stars more and bump up the BR.

The next morning I noticed an extra bounce in my step due to the extra 15 minutes of sleep, so who knows, after three more of these tourneys I should recover all that I lost to daylight savings time.

Congrats to Home Game Captain

Congrats to home game captain M.B. "DoyleB" on PokerStars for his WSOP main event seat. He satellited in the old-fashion way. I was railing but couldn't even show my support as, alas, you can't chat at PokerStars unless you can cover the buy-in. I lasted until 12:40am down to 26 with 22 getting the seat.

Look out Vegas - here he comes!

GoGoGoGoGoGoGoGoGo M.B.