Not bad. My bankroll flew over $120 at PKR.com today after I decided to experiment playing on a NL$10 table. I noticed the players were a little better (naturally), and were much more aggressive pre-flop. There's usually some twit raising 3-5BB with crap like ATo, meaning I had to tighten up more than usual. Unless I was BB/SB/Dealer, hands like KQ and AT are automatic folds. 20% of the time there'd be some idiot going AI with top pair.
Still, I managed to turn a half-decent profit by playing only two hands in my hour-long session (KK and JJ).
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Doing well at PKR.com
I've been reading Doyle Brunson's Super System and followed his suggestion of being super-aggressive today. And got burnt horribly in the process.
Aggression in a micro-stake game is very misplaced, as it's very aggressive to begin with. I found myself paying through the nose trying to draw cards that I miss most of the time.
By the afternoon I was down over $10, at which point I decided to tighten the fuck up and only play quality hands, seeing the flop cheaply with suited connectors / gapped connectors, and folding whenever I miss. Real ABC poker.
I managed to turn my fortunes around, reclaimed my losses and made a tiny profit today (around $1). It's not much, but it's microstakes.
Aggression in a micro-stake game is very misplaced, as it's very aggressive to begin with. I found myself paying through the nose trying to draw cards that I miss most of the time.
By the afternoon I was down over $10, at which point I decided to tighten the fuck up and only play quality hands, seeing the flop cheaply with suited connectors / gapped connectors, and folding whenever I miss. Real ABC poker.
I managed to turn my fortunes around, reclaimed my losses and made a tiny profit today (around $1). It's not much, but it's microstakes.
Monday, January 28, 2008
First impressions of PKR.com
I finally withdrew my cash from PartyPoker and registered on PKR.com today with a rakeback program through Rakeback.org (30% rakeback).
My first impressions?
I *raped* the absolute shit out of the PKR.com in my first few hours. For some reason PartyPoker seems like a tougher gig than PKR.com. I've played the NL$5 tables at PartyPoker, the lowest you can go, and still ended up in the red.
In PKR.com, I'm up over +$15 after just a few hours. Perhaps it's just good luck, but I'm not complaining. The downside is that the NL$5 games on PKR.com have a 10% rake, rather than the 5% on PartyPoker. I guess this proves to be a huge disincentive for serious poker players who want to minimise their rake. But that also means whoever's willing to play at this level are bigger donks than I am. It's not uncommon to see two-thirds of the table call to see the flop with junk. With the rakeback deal, I'm only paying 2% more rake than PartyPoker, so the rake is certainly not fatal.
What I also like about PKR.com is that it is *fun* to play. With 3D graphics coupled with excellent avatar customisation, it's almost like playing an RPG. You can customise everything about your avatar from his clothing to the mood he's in. And you can also use emotes to taunt your opponents, etc. As you play, you also accumulate bonus points which can be spent on new clothing and accessories. It's pretty neat.
For now, I consider PKR.com to be my "base" poker site.
My first impressions?
I *raped* the absolute shit out of the PKR.com in my first few hours. For some reason PartyPoker seems like a tougher gig than PKR.com. I've played the NL$5 tables at PartyPoker, the lowest you can go, and still ended up in the red.
In PKR.com, I'm up over +$15 after just a few hours. Perhaps it's just good luck, but I'm not complaining. The downside is that the NL$5 games on PKR.com have a 10% rake, rather than the 5% on PartyPoker. I guess this proves to be a huge disincentive for serious poker players who want to minimise their rake. But that also means whoever's willing to play at this level are bigger donks than I am. It's not uncommon to see two-thirds of the table call to see the flop with junk. With the rakeback deal, I'm only paying 2% more rake than PartyPoker, so the rake is certainly not fatal.
What I also like about PKR.com is that it is *fun* to play. With 3D graphics coupled with excellent avatar customisation, it's almost like playing an RPG. You can customise everything about your avatar from his clothing to the mood he's in. And you can also use emotes to taunt your opponents, etc. As you play, you also accumulate bonus points which can be spent on new clothing and accessories. It's pretty neat.
For now, I consider PKR.com to be my "base" poker site.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
PartyPoker bonuses cleared
I finally cleared the last bonus on Party Poker.
Sadly despite the bonuses I finished in the red, primarily due to having a few goes at NL$25 and wiping out at the hands of experienced players.
The statistics:
BONUSES
Play-money bonus: $10
Sign-up bonus: $60
Reload bonus: $9
Bonus total: $79
WINS/LOSSES
Limit $0.05/$0.10 (63 hands): -$0.42
Limit $0.10/$0.20 (1729 hands): -$20.89
Limit $0.25/$0.50 (8 hands): -$0.85
NL $5 (2829 hands): -$9.53
NL $10 (2440 hands) -$7.35
NL $25 (97 hands): -$46.79
Total wins/losses: -$85.83
Net total: -$6.83
Do I suck or what?
Total rake: $38.79
Sadly PartyPoker doesn't have any rakeback deals in place. Even with 30% rakeback, I would've finished positive.
Alas, until PartyPoker introduces a new bonus, it's adios to them!
Sadly despite the bonuses I finished in the red, primarily due to having a few goes at NL$25 and wiping out at the hands of experienced players.
The statistics:
BONUSES
Play-money bonus: $10
Sign-up bonus: $60
Reload bonus: $9
Bonus total: $79
WINS/LOSSES
Limit $0.05/$0.10 (63 hands): -$0.42
Limit $0.10/$0.20 (1729 hands): -$20.89
Limit $0.25/$0.50 (8 hands): -$0.85
NL $5 (2829 hands): -$9.53
NL $10 (2440 hands) -$7.35
NL $25 (97 hands): -$46.79
Total wins/losses: -$85.83
Net total: -$6.83
Do I suck or what?
Total rake: $38.79
Sadly PartyPoker doesn't have any rakeback deals in place. Even with 30% rakeback, I would've finished positive.
Alas, until PartyPoker introduces a new bonus, it's adios to them!
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Raped by the Big Blind with AA
I was playing on a six-hand NL$5 table in the small blind. Since it was a new table, I had little info on the other players.
Everyone folded before me. Since I had K7o, I felt I had a half-decent hand to steal the blinds and so raise 2.5BB. Big Blind re-raises 11BB, and I interpreted the raise as disrespect and so call.
Flop misses. BB raises 25BB. I felt he was bluffing. But I should've folded here.
Turn is a King, and I hit a KK pair. I now feel I've got the Big Blind trapped, as chances are he's playing a crap hand being BB. I go all-in. BB calls.
BB has AA pair. I die.
I should have folded on the flop. At that point I had nothing, but the BB was still confident enough to raise. I had assumed he hit a low pair on the flop...
Live and learn...
$5 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Thursday, January 24, 07:51:22 ET 2008
Table Table 127739 (Real Money)
Seat 1 is the button
Total number of players : 6
Seat 1: HaWi_25 ( $5.42 USD )
Seat 5: Shvetsman88 ( $5.47 USD )
Seat 7: ShaoLindaPKR ( $1.86 USD )
Seat 10: gibsonhase ( $6.22 USD )
Seat 4: floyd_gehrig ( $5.41 USD )
Seat 6: LukasJay ( $4.96 USD )
floyd_gehrig posts small blind [$0.02 USD].
Shvetsman88 posts big blind [$0.04 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ 7c Ks ]
LukasJay folds.
ShaoLindaPKR folds.
gibsonhase folds.
HaWi_25 folds.
floyd_gehrig raises [$0.10 USD]
Shvetsman88 raises [$0.44 USD]
floyd_gehrig calls [$0.36 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ 6d, 5h, Td ]
floyd_gehrig checks.
Shvetsman88 bets [$1 USD]
floyd_gehrig calls [$1 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ Kh ]
floyd_gehrig bets [$3.92 USD]
Shvetsman88 is all-In.
floyd_gehrig is all-In.
** Dealing River ** [ 9c ]
floyd_gehrig shows [ 7c, Ks ]a pair of Kings.
Shvetsman88 shows [ Ac, As ]a pair of Aces.
Shvetsman88 wins $0.06 USD from side pot #1 with a pair of Aces.
Shvetsman88 wins $10.28 USD from the main pot with a pair of Aces.
Everyone folded before me. Since I had K7o, I felt I had a half-decent hand to steal the blinds and so raise 2.5BB. Big Blind re-raises 11BB, and I interpreted the raise as disrespect and so call.
Flop misses. BB raises 25BB. I felt he was bluffing. But I should've folded here.
Turn is a King, and I hit a KK pair. I now feel I've got the Big Blind trapped, as chances are he's playing a crap hand being BB. I go all-in. BB calls.
BB has AA pair. I die.
I should have folded on the flop. At that point I had nothing, but the BB was still confident enough to raise. I had assumed he hit a low pair on the flop...
Live and learn...
$5 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Thursday, January 24, 07:51:22 ET 2008
Table Table 127739 (Real Money)
Seat 1 is the button
Total number of players : 6
Seat 1: HaWi_25 ( $5.42 USD )
Seat 5: Shvetsman88 ( $5.47 USD )
Seat 7: ShaoLindaPKR ( $1.86 USD )
Seat 10: gibsonhase ( $6.22 USD )
Seat 4: floyd_gehrig ( $5.41 USD )
Seat 6: LukasJay ( $4.96 USD )
floyd_gehrig posts small blind [$0.02 USD].
Shvetsman88 posts big blind [$0.04 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ 7c Ks ]
LukasJay folds.
ShaoLindaPKR folds.
gibsonhase folds.
HaWi_25 folds.
floyd_gehrig raises [$0.10 USD]
Shvetsman88 raises [$0.44 USD]
floyd_gehrig calls [$0.36 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ 6d, 5h, Td ]
floyd_gehrig checks.
Shvetsman88 bets [$1 USD]
floyd_gehrig calls [$1 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ Kh ]
floyd_gehrig bets [$3.92 USD]
Shvetsman88 is all-In.
floyd_gehrig is all-In.
** Dealing River ** [ 9c ]
floyd_gehrig shows [ 7c, Ks ]a pair of Kings.
Shvetsman88 shows [ Ac, As ]a pair of Aces.
Shvetsman88 wins $0.06 USD from side pot #1 with a pair of Aces.
Shvetsman88 wins $10.28 USD from the main pot with a pair of Aces.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Venture into negative territory
I'm steaming at the moment. My BB/100 has just ventured into negative territory after a handful of bad plays. A King-high flush gets beaten by an ace-high, a 7-high straight gets beaten by 9-high, and my top pair of Kings gets beaten by a set of Kings (I had put my opponent on a King-pair with perhaps Q/J kicker, but with an Ace-kicker I felt I was ahead). I'll post details of the carnage below.
The bright-side, if any, is that I'm getting better at reading my opponents and guessing their hands.
King-high flush killed by Ace-high
Honestly, who'd lay down a King-high flush?
$10 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Sunday, January 20, 23:07:31 ET 2008
Table Table 126081 (Real Money)
Seat 7 is the button
Total number of players : 10
Seat 1: NutsOmulator ( $9.95 USD )
Seat 4: Azevedo113 ( $15.15 USD )
Seat 10: floyd_gehrig ( $11.62 USD )
Seat 8: msfukiool ( $6.10 USD )
Seat 7: DrFreud888 ( $2 USD )
Seat 5: luceunit ( $3.09 USD )
Seat 6: salgene ( $8.63 USD )
Seat 3: nijenhoff ( $2 USD )
Seat 9: ABOCb ( $10 USD )
Seat 2: dr_sash ( $1.90 USD )
floyd_gehrig posts small blind [$0.05 USD].
NutsOmulator posts big blind [$0.10 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ Kh 8h ]
dr_sash folds.
Azevedo113 calls [$0.10 USD]
luceunit calls [$0.10 USD]
salgene calls [$0.10 USD]
DrFreud888 folds.
floyd_gehrig calls [$0.05 USD]
NutsOmulator checks.
** Dealing Flop ** [ 6h, Qh, 9s ]
floyd_gehrig bets [$0.30 USD]
NutsOmulator folds.
Azevedo113 calls [$0.30 USD]
luceunit folds.
salgene folds.
** Dealing Turn ** [ Ts ]
floyd_gehrig bets [$0.60 USD]
Azevedo113 calls [$0.60 USD]
** Dealing River ** [ 4h ]
floyd_gehrig bets [$5 USD]
Azevedo113 raises [$10 USD]
floyd_gehrig is all-In.
Azevedo113: A 2 H
Azevedo113 calls [$0.62 USD]
Azevedo113 shows [ Ah, 2h ]a flush, Ace high.
floyd_gehrig doesn't show [ Kh, 8h ]a flush, King high.
Azevedo113 wins $22.54 USD from the main pot with a flush, Ace high.
7-high straight killed by 9-high
I think you need to have an exceptionally good read of your opponent to confidently drop a straight. I personally had put the guy on a low set. His VP$IP was 33.33, so I assumed he'd limped in with a low pocket pair.
$10 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Wednesday, January 23, 05:46:51 ET 2008
Table Table 130757 (Real Money)
Seat 2 is the button
Total number of players : 8
Seat 2: HelloToYou8D ( $6.08 USD )
Seat 5: Carpe_Diem77 ( $9.36 USD )
Seat 8: Delpor ( $1.65 USD )
Seat 9: crowler_281 ( $1.75 USD )
Seat 10: DanTheMan093 ( $8.30 USD )
Seat 4: floyd_gehrig ( $9.90 USD )
Seat 6: Remmie118 ( $9.90 USD )
Seat 3: lancelot443 ( $1.90 USD )
lancelot443 posts small blind [$0.05 USD].
floyd_gehrig posts big blind [$0.10 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ 3s 7h ]
Carpe_Diem77 calls [$0.10 USD]
Remmie118 folds.
pipapo01 has joined the table.
crowler_281 folds.
DanTheMan093 folds.
HelloToYou8D calls [$0.10 USD]
lancelot443 folds.
floyd_gehrig checks.
** Dealing Flop ** [ 5h, 6s, 4s ]
Uluuu has joined the table.
floyd_gehrig bets [$0.10 USD]
Carpe_Diem77 calls [$0.10 USD]
HelloToYou8D raises [$0.35 USD]
floyd_gehrig raises [$1.30 USD]
Carpe_Diem77 folds.
HelloToYou8D is all-In.
floyd_gehrig calls [$4.58 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ 9d ]
** Dealing River ** [ Js ]
floyd_gehrig shows [ 3s, 7h ]a straight Three to Seven.
HelloToYou8D shows [ 7c, 8h ]a straight Five to Nine.
HelloToYou8D wins $11.79 USD from the main pot with a straight, Five to Nine.
King Pair killed by Set of Kings
This was probably a stupid move on my part, but the pot was big and I only contributed 33% to it... I guess greed took over. With just a pair on the turn, I was probably asking to get beaten.
$10 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Wednesday, January 23, 04:37:38 ET 2008
Table Table 126174 (Real Money)
Seat 4 is the button
Total number of players : 9
Seat 1: foxmulder222 ( $11.29 USD )
Seat 2: hitchheike ( $24.13 USD )
Seat 4: TxasRichard ( $10.69 USD )
Seat 9: DerMarv86 ( $3.20 USD )
Seat 10: blkstallion6 ( $7.04 USD )
Seat 5: floyd_gehrig ( $9.90 USD )
Seat 3: vs84sa ( $2.60 USD )
Seat 8: KleinerRsv ( $1.90 USD )
Seat 7: Karo2008 ( $2 USD )
floyd_gehrig posts small blind [$0.05 USD].
Karo2008 posts big blind [$0.10 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ As Kh ]
KleinerRsv folds.
DerMarv86 folds.
blkstallion6 raises [$1.50 USD]
foxmulder222 calls [$1.50 USD]
hitchheike folds.
vs84sa folds.
TxasRichard folds.
floyd_gehrig calls [$1.45 USD]
Karo2008 folds.
** Dealing Flop ** [ 8s, 2s, 2h ]
floyd_gehrig checks.
blkstallion6 is all-In.
foxmulder222 calls [$5.54 USD]
floyd_gehrig: good luck
floyd_gehrig calls [$5.54 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ Ks ]
Bazi007 has joined the table.
floyd_gehrig bets [$2.85 USD]
TxasRichard: big pot
foxmulder222 is all-In.
floyd_gehrig is all-In.
** Dealing River ** [ 3c ]
floyd_gehrig shows [ As, Kh ]two pairs, Kings and Twos.
blkstallion6 doesn't show [ Jh, Qh ]a pair of Twos.
foxmulder222 shows [ Kc, Kd ]a full house, Kings full of Twos.
foxmulder222 wins $1.39 USD from side pot #2 with a full house, Kings full of Twos.
foxmulder222 wins $5.72 USD from side pot #1 with a full house, Kings full of Twos.
foxmulder222 wins $20.22 USD from the main pot with a full house, Kings full of Twos.
The bright-side, if any, is that I'm getting better at reading my opponents and guessing their hands.
King-high flush killed by Ace-high
Honestly, who'd lay down a King-high flush?
$10 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Sunday, January 20, 23:07:31 ET 2008
Table Table 126081 (Real Money)
Seat 7 is the button
Total number of players : 10
Seat 1: NutsOmulator ( $9.95 USD )
Seat 4: Azevedo113 ( $15.15 USD )
Seat 10: floyd_gehrig ( $11.62 USD )
Seat 8: msfukiool ( $6.10 USD )
Seat 7: DrFreud888 ( $2 USD )
Seat 5: luceunit ( $3.09 USD )
Seat 6: salgene ( $8.63 USD )
Seat 3: nijenhoff ( $2 USD )
Seat 9: ABOCb ( $10 USD )
Seat 2: dr_sash ( $1.90 USD )
floyd_gehrig posts small blind [$0.05 USD].
NutsOmulator posts big blind [$0.10 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ Kh 8h ]
dr_sash folds.
Azevedo113 calls [$0.10 USD]
luceunit calls [$0.10 USD]
salgene calls [$0.10 USD]
DrFreud888 folds.
floyd_gehrig calls [$0.05 USD]
NutsOmulator checks.
** Dealing Flop ** [ 6h, Qh, 9s ]
floyd_gehrig bets [$0.30 USD]
NutsOmulator folds.
Azevedo113 calls [$0.30 USD]
luceunit folds.
salgene folds.
** Dealing Turn ** [ Ts ]
floyd_gehrig bets [$0.60 USD]
Azevedo113 calls [$0.60 USD]
** Dealing River ** [ 4h ]
floyd_gehrig bets [$5 USD]
Azevedo113 raises [$10 USD]
floyd_gehrig is all-In.
Azevedo113: A 2 H
Azevedo113 calls [$0.62 USD]
Azevedo113 shows [ Ah, 2h ]a flush, Ace high.
floyd_gehrig doesn't show [ Kh, 8h ]a flush, King high.
Azevedo113 wins $22.54 USD from the main pot with a flush, Ace high.
7-high straight killed by 9-high
I think you need to have an exceptionally good read of your opponent to confidently drop a straight. I personally had put the guy on a low set. His VP$IP was 33.33, so I assumed he'd limped in with a low pocket pair.
$10 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Wednesday, January 23, 05:46:51 ET 2008
Table Table 130757 (Real Money)
Seat 2 is the button
Total number of players : 8
Seat 2: HelloToYou8D ( $6.08 USD )
Seat 5: Carpe_Diem77 ( $9.36 USD )
Seat 8: Delpor ( $1.65 USD )
Seat 9: crowler_281 ( $1.75 USD )
Seat 10: DanTheMan093 ( $8.30 USD )
Seat 4: floyd_gehrig ( $9.90 USD )
Seat 6: Remmie118 ( $9.90 USD )
Seat 3: lancelot443 ( $1.90 USD )
lancelot443 posts small blind [$0.05 USD].
floyd_gehrig posts big blind [$0.10 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ 3s 7h ]
Carpe_Diem77 calls [$0.10 USD]
Remmie118 folds.
pipapo01 has joined the table.
crowler_281 folds.
DanTheMan093 folds.
HelloToYou8D calls [$0.10 USD]
lancelot443 folds.
floyd_gehrig checks.
** Dealing Flop ** [ 5h, 6s, 4s ]
Uluuu has joined the table.
floyd_gehrig bets [$0.10 USD]
Carpe_Diem77 calls [$0.10 USD]
HelloToYou8D raises [$0.35 USD]
floyd_gehrig raises [$1.30 USD]
Carpe_Diem77 folds.
HelloToYou8D is all-In.
floyd_gehrig calls [$4.58 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ 9d ]
** Dealing River ** [ Js ]
floyd_gehrig shows [ 3s, 7h ]a straight Three to Seven.
HelloToYou8D shows [ 7c, 8h ]a straight Five to Nine.
HelloToYou8D wins $11.79 USD from the main pot with a straight, Five to Nine.
King Pair killed by Set of Kings
This was probably a stupid move on my part, but the pot was big and I only contributed 33% to it... I guess greed took over. With just a pair on the turn, I was probably asking to get beaten.
$10 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Wednesday, January 23, 04:37:38 ET 2008
Table Table 126174 (Real Money)
Seat 4 is the button
Total number of players : 9
Seat 1: foxmulder222 ( $11.29 USD )
Seat 2: hitchheike ( $24.13 USD )
Seat 4: TxasRichard ( $10.69 USD )
Seat 9: DerMarv86 ( $3.20 USD )
Seat 10: blkstallion6 ( $7.04 USD )
Seat 5: floyd_gehrig ( $9.90 USD )
Seat 3: vs84sa ( $2.60 USD )
Seat 8: KleinerRsv ( $1.90 USD )
Seat 7: Karo2008 ( $2 USD )
floyd_gehrig posts small blind [$0.05 USD].
Karo2008 posts big blind [$0.10 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ As Kh ]
KleinerRsv folds.
DerMarv86 folds.
blkstallion6 raises [$1.50 USD]
foxmulder222 calls [$1.50 USD]
hitchheike folds.
vs84sa folds.
TxasRichard folds.
floyd_gehrig calls [$1.45 USD]
Karo2008 folds.
** Dealing Flop ** [ 8s, 2s, 2h ]
floyd_gehrig checks.
blkstallion6 is all-In.
foxmulder222 calls [$5.54 USD]
floyd_gehrig: good luck
floyd_gehrig calls [$5.54 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ Ks ]
Bazi007 has joined the table.
floyd_gehrig bets [$2.85 USD]
TxasRichard: big pot
foxmulder222 is all-In.
floyd_gehrig is all-In.
** Dealing River ** [ 3c ]
floyd_gehrig shows [ As, Kh ]two pairs, Kings and Twos.
blkstallion6 doesn't show [ Jh, Qh ]a pair of Twos.
foxmulder222 shows [ Kc, Kd ]a full house, Kings full of Twos.
foxmulder222 wins $1.39 USD from side pot #2 with a full house, Kings full of Twos.
foxmulder222 wins $5.72 USD from side pot #1 with a full house, Kings full of Twos.
foxmulder222 wins $20.22 USD from the main pot with a full house, Kings full of Twos.
Monday, January 21, 2008
Experiment with multi-tabling NL$5 with four tables
This afternoon I decided to experiment with multi-tabling by stepping down from NL$10 to NL$5 on PartyPoker and play four tables simultaneously. PartyPoker currently has a reload bonus that can only be released within a seven day frame, so playing many hands quickly is essential to extract the most out of that bonus.
The results of my experiment? Not so promising. Since I was multi-tabling, it was impossible to be clever with my plays and so I stuck to aokrongly's generic 19 starting hands, and played aggressively whenever I had top pair on the board or there was a hostile flush draw.
I had initial success trapping a few people with +ve all-ins, but because I was playing so conservatively consistently, I guess everyone folded whenever I raised. In the end, the pots I won were small, and the blinds were silently nibbling me to death.
I only played around 600 hands, but I don't see much value in continuing this experiment. When I do reload (hopefully tomorrow), I'll probably just aim for a modest amount and just play two tables, one NL$10 for the cash and one NL$5 for the bonus points.
Here are the BB/100 graphs for NL$5 and NL$10 respectively.
NL$5
NL$10
The results of my experiment? Not so promising. Since I was multi-tabling, it was impossible to be clever with my plays and so I stuck to aokrongly's generic 19 starting hands, and played aggressively whenever I had top pair on the board or there was a hostile flush draw.
I had initial success trapping a few people with +ve all-ins, but because I was playing so conservatively consistently, I guess everyone folded whenever I raised. In the end, the pots I won were small, and the blinds were silently nibbling me to death.
I only played around 600 hands, but I don't see much value in continuing this experiment. When I do reload (hopefully tomorrow), I'll probably just aim for a modest amount and just play two tables, one NL$10 for the cash and one NL$5 for the bonus points.
Here are the BB/100 graphs for NL$5 and NL$10 respectively.
NL$5
NL$10
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Killed a maniac with TPTK
This was a sweet hand. I was dealt AKo, raised 5BB early-middle position, and was raised by a maniac zenzato (VP$IP 62 AF 3.19) 9.5BB, which I called. Judging by the raise, I put him on a face card with at least a half-decent kicker, or pocket pair.
The flop comes (4d, Kh, 4h), and I hit KK with top kicker.
zenzato raises 30BB. I put him on a KK pair, but with my Ace kicker I feel confident I have him beat. I suspect he didn't hit a set or quad of 4s as raising 9.5BB with an A4, K4 or Q4 would be extremely bold, and quad 4 was just unlikely.
I raise 60BB, which he calls.
Turn is 2h, making a possible backdoor flush draw for zenzato. To be honest I didn't pay attention to this until someone pointed it out to me when reviewing the hand history. But even so I still had odds.
zenzato raises 60BB. This smelt more like a desperation bet... if I was in his position and someone called my pushes both pre-flop and on the flop, I'd be very cautious. He was probably banking on hitting his flush on the river, which would've been an uneconomic move, IMO.
I raise all-in. zenzato calls.
River comes in with Kc, giving me a full house.
Pot is won.
----
$10 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Sunday, January 20, 10:20:39 ET 2008
Table Table 127909 (Real Money)
Seat 3 is the button
Total number of players : 10
Seat 4: zenzato ( $25.01 USD )
Seat 7: SumOfAllFart ( $9.83 USD )
Seat 9: floyd_gehrig ( $17.35 USD )
Seat 1: DeBons555 ( $1.61 USD )
Seat 10: deL0rd ( $21.66 USD )
Seat 5: DerDude1977 ( $10 USD )
Seat 3: safran123 ( $1.92 USD )
Seat 6: L4dyAnna ( $1.89 USD )
Seat 2: talisman64 ( $9.68 USD )
Seat 8: Kardosex ( $11.04 USD )
zenzato posts small blind [$0.05 USD].
DerDude1977 posts big blind [$0.10 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ Ac Ks ]
L4dyAnna folds.
SumOfAllFart calls [$0.10 USD]
Kardosex folds.
floyd_gehrig raises [$0.50 USD]
deL0rd folds.
DeBons555 folds.
talisman64 folds.
safran123 folds.
zenzato raises [$0.95 USD]
DerDude1977 folds.
SumOfAllFart folds.
floyd_gehrig calls [$0.50 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ 4d, Kh, 4h ]
zenzato bets [$3 USD]
floyd_gehrig raises [$6 USD]
zenzato calls [$3 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ 2h ]
zenzato bets [$5 USD]
floyd_gehrig is all-In.
zenzato calls [$5.35 USD]
** Dealing River ** [ Kc ]
zenzato shows [ Ad, Th ]two pairs, Kings and Fours.
floyd_gehrig shows [ Ac, Ks ]a full house, Kings full of Fours.
floyd_gehrig wins $33.90 USD from the main pot with a full house, Kings full of Fours.
The flop comes (4d, Kh, 4h), and I hit KK with top kicker.
zenzato raises 30BB. I put him on a KK pair, but with my Ace kicker I feel confident I have him beat. I suspect he didn't hit a set or quad of 4s as raising 9.5BB with an A4, K4 or Q4 would be extremely bold, and quad 4 was just unlikely.
I raise 60BB, which he calls.
Turn is 2h, making a possible backdoor flush draw for zenzato. To be honest I didn't pay attention to this until someone pointed it out to me when reviewing the hand history. But even so I still had odds.
zenzato raises 60BB. This smelt more like a desperation bet... if I was in his position and someone called my pushes both pre-flop and on the flop, I'd be very cautious. He was probably banking on hitting his flush on the river, which would've been an uneconomic move, IMO.
I raise all-in. zenzato calls.
River comes in with Kc, giving me a full house.
Pot is won.
----
$10 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Sunday, January 20, 10:20:39 ET 2008
Table Table 127909 (Real Money)
Seat 3 is the button
Total number of players : 10
Seat 4: zenzato ( $25.01 USD )
Seat 7: SumOfAllFart ( $9.83 USD )
Seat 9: floyd_gehrig ( $17.35 USD )
Seat 1: DeBons555 ( $1.61 USD )
Seat 10: deL0rd ( $21.66 USD )
Seat 5: DerDude1977 ( $10 USD )
Seat 3: safran123 ( $1.92 USD )
Seat 6: L4dyAnna ( $1.89 USD )
Seat 2: talisman64 ( $9.68 USD )
Seat 8: Kardosex ( $11.04 USD )
zenzato posts small blind [$0.05 USD].
DerDude1977 posts big blind [$0.10 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ Ac Ks ]
L4dyAnna folds.
SumOfAllFart calls [$0.10 USD]
Kardosex folds.
floyd_gehrig raises [$0.50 USD]
deL0rd folds.
DeBons555 folds.
talisman64 folds.
safran123 folds.
zenzato raises [$0.95 USD]
DerDude1977 folds.
SumOfAllFart folds.
floyd_gehrig calls [$0.50 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ 4d, Kh, 4h ]
zenzato bets [$3 USD]
floyd_gehrig raises [$6 USD]
zenzato calls [$3 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ 2h ]
zenzato bets [$5 USD]
floyd_gehrig is all-In.
zenzato calls [$5.35 USD]
** Dealing River ** [ Kc ]
zenzato shows [ Ad, Th ]two pairs, Kings and Fours.
floyd_gehrig shows [ Ac, Ks ]a full house, Kings full of Fours.
floyd_gehrig wins $33.90 USD from the main pot with a full house, Kings full of Fours.
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Bad call - calling all-in with 2nd best pair
Tsk tsk. I went all-in with the 2nd best pair on the board and lost. Unfortunatelly in these situations, when someone goes all-in, the rational part of your brain seems to shut down and you're overcome by simple greed, knowing you can potentially double your stack with a click.
I was in middle position, and was dealt QdJd. I've started to hate these marginal hands as they tend to cost me alot when I lose, and gain little when I win.
hesantiwoota, under the gun, raises 2BB, which I and a few others call.
The flop comes (7c, Qc, As), and I hit a QQ pair. I'm thinking it was probable that someone hit an AA pair as well. hesantiwoota raises 10BB. This should've sent alarms ringing, but this guy had a very high VP$IP (~75%) and very high aggression (4.17). I assumed this guy was playing a Queen with a shitty kicker, judging by his low pre-flop raise of 2BB.
Feeling a little confident, I re-raise to 20BB to rattle him. hesantiwoota re-raises himself to 82BB, giving me the option to either call all-in or fold.
Being an idiot with 2nd best pair, I call.
My initial suspicion of him playing QQ was correct, but he also had an Ace with his starting hand as well and paired AA. I was beat and lost my stack. I should start a new rule: only call all-ins with a set or better.
$10 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Saturday, January 19, 09:44:50 ET 2008
Table Table 128112 (Real Money)
Seat 9 is the button
Total number of players : 10
Seat 3: hesantiwoota ( $52.79 USD )
Seat 5: NoWayOut_007 ( $4 USD )
Seat 7: MantaRay888 ( $4.30 USD )
Seat 8: m_sorensson ( $13.51 USD )
Seat 9: floyd_gehrig ( $9.40 USD )
Seat 6: Mike84Q ( $3.40 USD )
Seat 4: grzehu22 ( $9.90 USD )
Seat 10: CFCLanger2 ( $2.90 USD )
Seat 1: bertace ( $2 USD )
Seat 2: csibeszke111 ( $5 USD )
CFCLanger2 posts small blind [$0.05 USD].
bertace is sitting out
csibeszke111 posts big blind [$0.10 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ Qd Jd ]
hesantiwoota raises [$0.20 USD]
grzehu22 folds.
NoWayOut_007 folds.
Mike84Q calls [$0.20 USD]
MantaRay888 folds.
m_sorensson calls [$0.20 USD]
floyd_gehrig calls [$0.20 USD]
CFCLanger2 folds.
csibeszke111 calls [$0.10 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ 7c, Qc, As ]
csibeszke111 checks.
hesantiwoota bets [$1 USD]
Mike84Q folds.
m_sorensson folds.
floyd_gehrig raises [$2 USD]
csibeszke111 folds.
hesantiwoota raises [$8.20 USD]
floyd_gehrig is all-In.
** Dealing Turn ** [ 3s ]
** Dealing River ** [ 8d ]
hesantiwoota shows [ Ac, Qh ]two pairs, Aces and Queens.
floyd_gehrig doesn't show [ Qd, Jd ]a pair of Queens.
hesantiwoota wins $18.48 USD from the main pot with two pairs, Aces and Queens.
I was in middle position, and was dealt QdJd. I've started to hate these marginal hands as they tend to cost me alot when I lose, and gain little when I win.
hesantiwoota, under the gun, raises 2BB, which I and a few others call.
The flop comes (7c, Qc, As), and I hit a QQ pair. I'm thinking it was probable that someone hit an AA pair as well. hesantiwoota raises 10BB. This should've sent alarms ringing, but this guy had a very high VP$IP (~75%) and very high aggression (4.17). I assumed this guy was playing a Queen with a shitty kicker, judging by his low pre-flop raise of 2BB.
Feeling a little confident, I re-raise to 20BB to rattle him. hesantiwoota re-raises himself to 82BB, giving me the option to either call all-in or fold.
Being an idiot with 2nd best pair, I call.
My initial suspicion of him playing QQ was correct, but he also had an Ace with his starting hand as well and paired AA. I was beat and lost my stack. I should start a new rule: only call all-ins with a set or better.
$10 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Saturday, January 19, 09:44:50 ET 2008
Table Table 128112 (Real Money)
Seat 9 is the button
Total number of players : 10
Seat 3: hesantiwoota ( $52.79 USD )
Seat 5: NoWayOut_007 ( $4 USD )
Seat 7: MantaRay888 ( $4.30 USD )
Seat 8: m_sorensson ( $13.51 USD )
Seat 9: floyd_gehrig ( $9.40 USD )
Seat 6: Mike84Q ( $3.40 USD )
Seat 4: grzehu22 ( $9.90 USD )
Seat 10: CFCLanger2 ( $2.90 USD )
Seat 1: bertace ( $2 USD )
Seat 2: csibeszke111 ( $5 USD )
CFCLanger2 posts small blind [$0.05 USD].
bertace is sitting out
csibeszke111 posts big blind [$0.10 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ Qd Jd ]
hesantiwoota raises [$0.20 USD]
grzehu22 folds.
NoWayOut_007 folds.
Mike84Q calls [$0.20 USD]
MantaRay888 folds.
m_sorensson calls [$0.20 USD]
floyd_gehrig calls [$0.20 USD]
CFCLanger2 folds.
csibeszke111 calls [$0.10 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ 7c, Qc, As ]
csibeszke111 checks.
hesantiwoota bets [$1 USD]
Mike84Q folds.
m_sorensson folds.
floyd_gehrig raises [$2 USD]
csibeszke111 folds.
hesantiwoota raises [$8.20 USD]
floyd_gehrig is all-In.
** Dealing Turn ** [ 3s ]
** Dealing River ** [ 8d ]
hesantiwoota shows [ Ac, Qh ]two pairs, Aces and Queens.
floyd_gehrig doesn't show [ Qd, Jd ]a pair of Queens.
hesantiwoota wins $18.48 USD from the main pot with two pairs, Aces and Queens.
Shouldn't have won this hand
This is pretty funny, and an excellent example of what NOT to do. Fortunatelly I emerged the victor and doubled my stack, but under most situations I should have lost.
I was in the small blind and everyone before me folded. I called with A2s, and the big blind La_Sepiarda raised. I assumed he was attempting to steal the blinds. I called his raise, which was probably a mistake, but I believed La_Sepiarda was bluffing with junk as he had a very high VP$IP (around 80%) and aggression factor (5+), and A2s wasn't too bad in a heads-up situation.
The flop misses ( Qh, 4s, 7d ), and the Queen on the board is a little concerning but I still feel a little confident with my Ace. I raise 8BB to see where I stand and bluff that I hit my Queen. La_Sepiarda check-raises. A very aggressive move. But the statistics tell me he's probably bluffing with junk. A mistake, I now know.
At the time, if he had something I had put him on a low pair (perhaps 4 or 7) and so go all-in to intimidate him and suggest my QQ pair is real. To my horror he calls, and reveals he had two pair (QQ and 44), versus my A2s junk hand.
Turn comes in with 5s.
River comes in with 3s.
I made a backdoor straight (A2345) and won his stack.
Lessons:
Fold to blind-stealing unless I have a good hand. In NL ring games, the blinds aren't worth as much.
If someone check-raises and you have nothing, fold.
----
$10 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Saturday, January 19, 07:22:35 ET 2008
Table Table 126081 (Real Money)
Seat 7 is the button
Total number of players : 10
Seat 5: vekado ( $5.44 USD )
Seat 6: sasha1551 ( $4.06 USD )
Seat 9: KT001 ( $9.90 USD )
Seat 10: La_Sepiarda ( $7.92 USD )
Seat 8: floyd_gehrig ( $11.05 USD )
Seat 2: Tsunami24 ( $1.70 USD )
Seat 4: crushka ( $9.79 USD )
Seat 1: Kalenka6 ( $2.68 USD )
Seat 3: Serega181 ( $9.40 USD )
Seat 7: Beatfiend111 ( $1.85 USD )
floyd_gehrig posts small blind [$0.05 USD].
La_Sepiarda posts big blind [$0.10 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ 2h Ah ]
Kalenka6 folds.
Tsunami24 folds.
Serega181 folds.
crushka folds.
vekado folds.
Beatfiend111 folds.
floyd_gehrig calls [$0.05 USD]
La_Sepiarda raises [$0.40 USD]
floyd_gehrig calls [$0.40 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ Qh, 4s, 7d ]
floyd_gehrig bets [$0.80 USD]
La_Sepiarda raises [$1.60 USD]
floyd_gehrig is all-In.
La_Sepiarda is all-In.
** Dealing Turn ** [ 5s ]
** Dealing River ** [ 3s ]
La_Sepiarda shows [ Qc, 4h ]two pairs, Queens and Fours.
floyd_gehrig shows [ 2h, Ah ]a straight Ace to Five.
floyd_gehrig wins $3.13 USD from side pot #1 with a straight, Ace to Five.
floyd_gehrig wins $15.05 USD from the main pot with a straight, Ace to Five.
I was in the small blind and everyone before me folded. I called with A2s, and the big blind La_Sepiarda raised. I assumed he was attempting to steal the blinds. I called his raise, which was probably a mistake, but I believed La_Sepiarda was bluffing with junk as he had a very high VP$IP (around 80%) and aggression factor (5+), and A2s wasn't too bad in a heads-up situation.
The flop misses ( Qh, 4s, 7d ), and the Queen on the board is a little concerning but I still feel a little confident with my Ace. I raise 8BB to see where I stand and bluff that I hit my Queen. La_Sepiarda check-raises. A very aggressive move. But the statistics tell me he's probably bluffing with junk. A mistake, I now know.
At the time, if he had something I had put him on a low pair (perhaps 4 or 7) and so go all-in to intimidate him and suggest my QQ pair is real. To my horror he calls, and reveals he had two pair (QQ and 44), versus my A2s junk hand.
Turn comes in with 5s.
River comes in with 3s.
I made a backdoor straight (A2345) and won his stack.
Lessons:
Fold to blind-stealing unless I have a good hand. In NL ring games, the blinds aren't worth as much.
If someone check-raises and you have nothing, fold.
----
$10 USD NL Texas Hold'em - Saturday, January 19, 07:22:35 ET 2008
Table Table 126081 (Real Money)
Seat 7 is the button
Total number of players : 10
Seat 5: vekado ( $5.44 USD )
Seat 6: sasha1551 ( $4.06 USD )
Seat 9: KT001 ( $9.90 USD )
Seat 10: La_Sepiarda ( $7.92 USD )
Seat 8: floyd_gehrig ( $11.05 USD )
Seat 2: Tsunami24 ( $1.70 USD )
Seat 4: crushka ( $9.79 USD )
Seat 1: Kalenka6 ( $2.68 USD )
Seat 3: Serega181 ( $9.40 USD )
Seat 7: Beatfiend111 ( $1.85 USD )
floyd_gehrig posts small blind [$0.05 USD].
La_Sepiarda posts big blind [$0.10 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to floyd_gehrig [ 2h Ah ]
Kalenka6 folds.
Tsunami24 folds.
Serega181 folds.
crushka folds.
vekado folds.
Beatfiend111 folds.
floyd_gehrig calls [$0.05 USD]
La_Sepiarda raises [$0.40 USD]
floyd_gehrig calls [$0.40 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ Qh, 4s, 7d ]
floyd_gehrig bets [$0.80 USD]
La_Sepiarda raises [$1.60 USD]
floyd_gehrig is all-In.
La_Sepiarda is all-In.
** Dealing Turn ** [ 5s ]
** Dealing River ** [ 3s ]
La_Sepiarda shows [ Qc, 4h ]two pairs, Queens and Fours.
floyd_gehrig shows [ 2h, Ah ]a straight Ace to Five.
floyd_gehrig wins $3.13 USD from side pot #1 with a straight, Ace to Five.
floyd_gehrig wins $15.05 USD from the main pot with a straight, Ace to Five.
Welcome
The main purpose of this blog is to chronicle my exploits (and disasters) at playing poker. I am still a n00b to poker. The description "donk" is probably apt, but I seriously hope to change this in the coming months!
How did I become attracted to poker? The strange thing is, I honestly can't remember. What I do know is I only began learning about Texas Hold Em last month, and since then I've dedicated around 10 hours to poker every week.
At the moment it is a hobby, but I hope to one day become a champion. The glitz of the professional poker player makes me envious!
How did I become attracted to poker? The strange thing is, I honestly can't remember. What I do know is I only began learning about Texas Hold Em last month, and since then I've dedicated around 10 hours to poker every week.
At the moment it is a hobby, but I hope to one day become a champion. The glitz of the professional poker player makes me envious!
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