Some straight flushes

Alrighty, I'm finally going to write these down...

Super epic hand numbar one:

Adam, Ethan, Debby and I are playing 4 handed. I have $50, Adam has $20 and Ethan covers. Debby folds the cutoff, I raise on the button with 4c 6c to $.3. Ethan 3bets from the small blind to $1.50. Adam cold calls in the big blind, I call and we see a flop:

3c 7c 5s

I think that qualifies as a pretty good hand for me. Ethan checks, Adam bets $5, I call, Ethan raises to $22.50, Adam calls all-in, I move in and Ethan calls.

The hands:

Ethan: 7h 7s (top set)

Adam: Ks Kd (overpair)

We run out the hand...

The turn is... the 5c! I make a straight flush, Ethan fills up, and I have both of them drawing stone dead.

Just for good measure, Adam rivers the Kc for kings full...

All skill? Must be...

The carnage:

Supar epic hand numbar 2:

Details on this one are a little fuzzier. Lindsay raises the button to $.30, Edwin calls in the SB, I call in the BB with Tc 7c.

Flop comes down:

2x 8c Jc

We both check to Lindsay who bets $.50. Edwin calls and I check-raise to $2.25 or so. Edwin calls. The turn is...

9c

And my goodness, is that Edwin leading into me for half his stack for almost a pot sized bet? Yes. Yes it is...

I raise enough to put him all-in. He calls, I table the stone cold immortal nuts and he starts muttering something about not putting me on that...

Running good feels good...

Some more cold decks coming

Damn, I haven't updated in forever. I've been meaning to put up a post on some ridiculous cold decks that have happened recently, but haven't gotten around to it yet...

They are coming soon!

Coldest of cold

Most of you guys have probably already heard about this hand, but since it's the coldest of cold decks that I have been personally involved in, here it is.

Last hand of the night, we are down to 4 players. I raise the button and Leyan calls in the big blind.

Flop comes down:

Kh8h8x

I bet $.3 into $.65 and Leyan calls.

Turn is 2x

Leyan checks, I bet $.75 into $1.25. Leyan check-raises to $2.25, I call.

River is 9x

Leyan bets $5, I raise to $18, Leyan moves in for $6-$7 more. I call. Here is a picture of the carnage:

(Hands in case you can't see from the picture: Leyan KK, me 88. Yes, that's quads vs. top full house. Flopped.)

All. Skill.

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...