An update

Hey guys,

Wow, I haven't updated this in forever. I guess it's because it's been the same old story: losing, losing... It's hard to get inspired to write about getting repeatedly crushed. Looking back at the last couple of months, I think I haven't been playing super well, but also I have been getting into extremely unlucky situations, always on the bad side of things.

I've decided to take a step back and move down to $.5/$1 for a little while this week. Apparently that did the trick, since in my last two sessions, I'm up 11 buy-ins. I've been running extremely well, and playing pretty well too. I think I've been getting full value for my hands. I don't imagine that there's such a huge difference in the level of play between $.5/$1 and $1/$2, just how I've been running. Over a reasonably large sample, I've been running at > 12ptbb/100 at $.5/$1 and ~1ptbb/100 at $1/$2...

Well, hopefully I've hit a turning point and am pulling out of this downswing I've been in. When I'm winning, updates will be more frequent I'm sure... Chances are slim that I will hit my goal of $20K for the year, but I'll keep on grinding and see how close I can get!

• Up $5602.93 on the year (28% of the way to goal, about 69% of the way through the year)

• Damn downswings...

Sir Meow says mao btw...

Very quick update

Hey guys,

I've been slacking on updating, mainly because I've only played three sessions since the last one and the results have not been great. I took another big hit on the first of the three sessions: -$1680.95, new biggest single session loss. Hurrah. Again nothing went right. I lost at least $200 on each of several hands:

• KK vs. TT, T on river for a $450 pot.

• KK v. AA and AsJs when an idiot in the BB shoved for $150 after I raised the button and the SB reraised. I called with KK and the SB shoved and turned over the aces. Goodbye $240.

• AA v. KK in a 4 bet pot when the guy with KK flops top set. If I had gone with my gut here, I would have just check folded the turn and saved the last $300, but I didn't...

• AcQc in the SB against a late position raiser and a complete idiot on the button who had been catching great cards. I 3-bet, both players call. Flop comes Kc-Jd-4c. I bet the flop, cutoff calls, idiot on button raises. I am never folding but I want the money to go in 3 ways so I just call. Cutoff moves in, idiot calls, I call. I'm up against KJo from the cutoff and 9c6c for the button (he's drawing almost stone cold dead). I miss my 40% shot. Goodbye $400...

• I have JhTh against the same idiot with the 96s from the previous hand. I call his raise on the button behind two other players. Flop comes down AhKx4h. He leads, I raise, he calls. Turn is a blank, he checks, I bet most of the pot, he calls. River checks through when I brick and his AQo is good. I actually don't mind my turn bet, since with my big draw I would have had odds to call the bet I made if he had bet instead. I can play my hand perfectly on the river with one pot sized bet left back while he cannot.

• I flop the bottom end of a straight against a guy who is playing almost 50% of his hands in the small blind. I have 4h5h. Flop is 678 rainbow with one heart I think. He leads, I raise, he 3bets the minimum. At this point I probably should have just called and tried to show down my hand (although he could have easily gotten all-in given that there were still two rounds of betting left). Instead I raise and get it in and he turns over the 9s5s. I don't know if I could have gotten away from this hand, but given his aggression level (very low) I think it's possible.

The next session was a down one as well: -$560.40. No huge hands, just nothing going my way again.

My most recent sessions I played well and was up $521.30. I hope that this downswing is over and I can claw my way back up towards my $20k goal.

Big hit

I played for a while last night (not particularly well either...)

I did get very unlucky in a couple of pots against the same guy for two full 200bb buy-ins.

In the first pot, I flopped a set and he called my check-raise and turned a bigger set. End of story.

In the second, I flopped top pair and turned top two against the same guy who had squeezed from the small blind with 99. I had QsJs, flop Jx9x4x, turn Q and we get all the money in after he checks it to me. Booo. Overall:

•-$1259.25

• +$8319.94 on the year (41% to the goal, well behind schedule).

Not the post I thought

Hey guys,

I know I said I would update the blog last Friday. I lied... This is a quick update. I bought Small Stakes No-Limit Hold'Em by Ed Miller, Sunny Mehta, and Matt Flynn. I have liked their previous books a lot, so I thought I would give this one a try. So far it seems interesting, although it focuses on beating the $1-$2 games online, which I am already doing very handily, so I'm not sure how much I will learn. In any case, it will probably be useful in cementing concepts already forming in my head.

I promise I'll write an update about my Vegas trip at some point. It was definitely fun, although next time I want to stay for longer in order to do some other things besides poker...

My biggest pot to date

Played a little bit today and had great results. I played well and ran well too:

•+$1113.30

•+$9317.94 on the year (46.5% of the way to my goal, pulling ahead of schedule)

This will be a quick update (longer update to follow tomorrow while I'm bored at WWDC), but I'll just say that I played my biggest hand so far tonight (and won!)

The villain's line makes almost no sense from start to finish. The river check-raise is just beautiful, laying me 10-1 odds on my call. What was he trying to represent? Jacks that had rivered a full house and then checked (???) with the betting lead and only 1/2 pot left to play? Sevens full? A2 suited? None of these hands would ever check the river given the way the hand was played and I find it hard to believe that any of these hands would re-raise before the flop so small when out of position and deep-stacked against an almost UTG raiser...

In any case, my opponent gifted me $550 for no reason. After the hand, he called me a donk and left the table. He must have subconsciously been saying that to himself. I think I played the hand perfectly to induce spew. I just wish I had snapped off his check-raise instantly rather than thinking about it...

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $2.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB ($604.80)
UTG ($106)
Hero (MP) ($553.50)
CO ($200)
Button ($398.70)
SB ($410.35)

Preflop: Hero is MP with K, K
1 fold, Hero bets $6, 3 folds, BB raises to $16, Hero raises to $49, BB calls $33

Flop: ($99) 2, 2, 7 (2 players)
BB bets $62, Hero calls $62

Turn: ($223) 6 (2 players)
BB bets $160, Hero calls $160

River: ($543) J (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $180, BB raises to $333.80 (All-In), Hero calls $102.50 (All-In)

Total pot: $1108 | Rake: $3

Results:
BB had A, K (one pair, twos).
Hero had K, K (two pair, Kings and twos).
Outcome: Hero won $1105

Well if you're going to lose...

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $2.00 BB (4 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG ($198.25)
Hero (Button) ($611.55)
SB ($501.30)
BB ($322.95)

Preflop: Hero is Button with A, 5
1 fold, Hero bets $6, SB calls $5, BB raises to $20, Hero calls $14, SB calls $14

Flop: ($60) J, 9, 6 (3 players)
SB checks, BB checks, Hero bets $35, SB calls $35, 1 fold

Turn: ($130) 4 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $90, SB raises to $200, Hero calls $110

River: ($530) Q (2 players)
SB bets $246.30 (All-In), Hero calls $246.30

Total pot: $1022.60 | Rake: $2

Results:
Hero had A, 5 (flush, Ace high).
SB had 10, K (straight flush, King high).
Outcome: SB won $1020.60

Grrr, stupid google

Well, I just had a relatively detailed description of how I almost died tonight, but wouldn't you know it, Google done gone lost it. Dammit Google, you owe me a blog post. Here is a somewhat shorter and less enthusiastic version:

I was driving down South 101, minding my own business and being awesome. Sir Meow was in the car as well. He was also being awesome, as he has a reputation of doing. As I was coming up on my exit, I noticed what looked like a police blockade. Not wanting to plow through it with my relatively new car and cat and somewhat less new but more valuable head, I slowed down and pulled over towards the right lane of the highway.

The big-rig truck that I had been tailing was apparently not as observant and noticed the upcoming obstruction significantly after I did. No slow deceleration for him, no sir. Lots of burnt rubber and fishtailing instead. Thankfully, I was far enough behind the truck that all I had to deal with was the fumes (they were probably full of carcinogens) and the vague awareness that this could have been much, much worse.

As I followed the truck past the obstacle, I could see that it was in fact a wreck that was blocking the three left lanes of the highway. I saw what looked like the remains of a Honda Civic and whatever else it had kissed at 75 miles an hour, along with a collection of people who did not seem to realize that lights are often helpful in indicating obstructions to oncoming traffic at 2 AM in the morning...

I'm just glad my brains are not splattered all over 101 right about now...

Oh, on a side note:

• +$333.30

• +$8428.09 on the year (very slightly ahead of schedule!)

Nite nite.