Posted Thu Apr 13, 2006 3:32 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
4/13/2006 Entry
Well boys and girls, I know I said I was going to lay off Poker for a little while after that tournament, but you know and my inability to stay away from a table, either real or computer-generated. I have confined my play the last few days to online and I haven't been back to the house (which I have said I won't go back to until I finish this damn History paper) to play in the Mixed Game or the supposedly new "Big" No-Limit Game (which now has a $500 max buy-in instead of $300). I saw on my PS account that I only needed about 100 more FPP's to make SilverStar, so like the sucker I am I had to go for it.
SnG's are still the big story for me. I've been playing mostly 1- and 2-table $30 tournaments, and have garnered a new record for me... 61% ITM finishes. I know there's no way I can sustain this, but I'm still fairly proud of myself. I've tried to stay away from the $20 20-table tournaments, though, as it's been much harder to cash in those events (so far I still only have 2 cashes). I've also decided that when I have time, I need to play a lot more of the DeepStacks events to practice for major tournaments I hope to play in the future.
Cash games are a story of ups and downs. I had one day in Stud when I won over 40 BB, and the next day lost about 35 BB in Stud 8... overall, I've been maintaining a constant stream of small profits in the Stud games of about 1.7 BB/hour, though my sample size is still not nearly large enough to make any judgments about my game. Omaha High is a different story... I can't tell you how many times now I have gone bust with second set--someone will sit there and just call with top set the entire way until my chips are gone; I lost $400 last night in two hands playing at the $200 PLO tables, both times when I held second set when someone else flopped top set (I had JJ and QQ to someone who held QQ and KK, respectively)--it was even worse because there was only one raggy straight and no flush possible, so I was happy to keep making Pot-sized bets.
For today though, now that I've made my silly SilverStar, I really need to get cracking on that paper... I think I prefer Poker, if only a little. 
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Posted Fri Apr 14, 2006 6:45 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
14 April 2006
Bleh, yesterday was awful. 4 SnG's played, and only one cash... and it was a 3rd Place. :x
Once again, Omaha gave me a swift kick to the nuts, but that's Omaha... I almost never have a moderate session in Omaha--I either win big or lose big, and the last 3 buy-ins I've lost big. I sat down at another $200 table, and once again went broke with a set, but it wasn't to a higher set this time.
I'm the BB with 6  6  9 10 . I get 5 callers around to me and I check.
Flop comes 6  K A . This is a very good flop for me. Although I only have bottom set, in this game, if someone held AA or KK he would have raised. Additionally, there is only one straight draw and I'm blocking the club flush draw well. I decide to go straight-forwardly and make someone pay for a wrap draw, so I bet the pot. 3 people call me--an unusually high number. I might me facing AK, a flush draw, and a wrap, so I need to play carefully.
Turn comes the 2  . Fantastic. That card could not have helped anyone. SB now does something very weird--he bets half the pot into me. Well, with the set of 6's and all these probable draws out there, it's no time to mess around; I'm going to protect this hand--I raise the pot. The two LP players fold, and the SB sits there and thinks for a few seconds, and then re-raises me all-in. I consider my options. Now, the SB had been playing aggressively pre-flop all day with AA and KK, and with 4 limpers to him, he certainly would have raised preflop to protect his hand. Other than AA or KK, no hand can beat me at the moment, and I've nearly killed a club draw. So it was a fairly easy call.
River comes the 8 and the cards get turned over. He has A J 5 2 . I'm stunned how badly he played a non-nut flush draw with a possibly dead re-draw to Aces full... simply stunned. I had him covered slightly, so I didn't actually lose $200--closer to $175, but enough to make me leave the table and shake my head plenty.
Stud had its ups and downs as always. I was down about $100 in 7-Stud high, mostly because of good busted draws and a lot of 3rd street prizes that amounted to crap come 4th street. Stud 8-or-Better turned out much better--I was up about $165 for the day there. I beautifully trapped 3 high hands into capping 6th and 7th street when I had them board-locked for low. The guy with the big high hand wasn't complaining, because we chopped up a big pot with lots of profit.
It was a losing day, but that's Poker. Now I REALLY need to take a break until after the paper is finished.
8)
Posted Tue Apr 18, 2006 2:25 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
17 April 2006
Slow days, slow days. I finished my History paper, so it's time to play some Poker, right? Well, Stud is as slow as ever, but I posted one interesting hand in the non-Holdem section. Between that and tournaments, I was up a whopping $5 until tonight (better than being in the red I guess, but I was down about $150 at one point).
Emily called me tonight and told me to get over to a soft seat at the house in an $8/$16 Limit Hold'em game. I saw a lot of new faces there, most of them older (coworkers of Steve), and very looose. Emily was right, but I simply wasn't getting the cards. Limit Hold'em is a very boring game, I've decided. In the span of 4 hours, I won $48, a little less than one BB/hour. Emily had made off like a bandit through the course of the night though, and was probably nursing a $400 win. My girlfriend called me a little before 12 and told me she was on her way home from work, so I decided to come home too and just wait for her.
Maybe I need a little time off Poker, because it's become very mechanical to me as of late.
Posted Tue Apr 18, 2006 8:26 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
18 April 2006
I hit the $5000 mark after trying for a week!
Well, today I played 3 tournaments, lost all 3, and promptly made it back in Stud... that's become a creppy pattern lately, as my SnG success seems to have cooled a little. I find myself desperate for chips by the start of Level 4 way too often now.
Anyway, I cashed out $1000 from Stars... I'm going to combine that with $1200 I've saved from live Poker and buy a trip to Hawaii for five days for my girlfriend and I.
Might be taking a short break from Poker, although I may play the $30 DeepStacks tournament on Saturday and enter a qualifier for the $1M guaranteed on Sunday.
Posted Thu Apr 20, 2006 1:29 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
19 April 2006
Ugh... Good thing I cashed out that $2200 the other day, because today brought a dose of crappy situations. I played in 7 SnG's, and garnered only one 2nd and one 3rd... that's a lovely little net loss. The worst part was, I was involved in a total of 9 races. Races won = 0. Zero! I'm not exaggerating or complaining like "I never win a race," but it's amazing. That's like guessing a coin flip correctly 9 times in a row, which happens about 1 in 1000 times. Yuck--amazing I got any cashes at all.
Stud can be summed up with one hand today (thank God I dropped down to $3/$6 today after those SnG's). I get 999 and just limp in. 4th Street, there is nothing that threatens my trips out there, and so I just call one bet. There are 3 people in the pot besides me, and a lot of them have counterfeit each other's cards. On 5th Street, I have a lot of outs to a house. One bet and a call before me, so I of course decide to raise now. One call and two folds follow. Now I'm heads up.
The boards on 6th Street look like this:
Me: (99) 9J78
Villain: (xx) T7QK
2 Aces had also been folded, but he raised me on 6th. I re-raised, and he smooth called.
On the river I missed my house and check-called. Well, he of course hit the case 9 on the RIVER and made a K-high straight after raising on 6th street with KK and a 3-out straight draw. Bleh!
Edit: I just won a 30+3 Sng to recover some losses, so at least I can end the day on a semi-high note.
Cheers.
8)
Posted Fri Apr 21, 2006 2:51 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
20 April 2006
My comment today is, I now MUCH prefer spread limit games to fixed limit games. It's so much easier to maximize your advantage early in a hand of, say Stud or Omaha High-Low, against amateur opponents when you can bet $1 or $2 on the early street and then fire in a nice $6 bet on the later streets when they get semi-committed.
So today I got myself back to the mixed game for a few hours. I have two midterms tomorrow, but they're both in History classes I'm very familiar with so I'm not all that worried. We played an awesome 5-handed rotation of Hold'em, Omaha-8, Stud, Razz, Stud-8, and 2-7 Triple Draw. We played a format of $1-$4 spread on the early streets, and $2-$8 spread on the later streets. It was a great format in my opinion and one I'd like to see more often at the game. The game consisted of me, Steve, Emily, Katie, and Mark--fairly experiences players by any standard, but I feel like I had the best advantage in the Stud games, which is where I made most of my profit.
I am actually really starting to enjoy playing short-handed lowball games; it becomes very psychological. I remember that I figured Emily had stood pat on a perfect 9 in 2-7 Draw, and when I drew a crappy 8 on the river, I called her $8 bet because I was reasonably sure that with an 8, she would have tried to extract more value; it turned out I was right, and I raked a nice pot there. I think I won almost every pot in Razz that I entered on 3rd street, mostly by utilizing scare cards--my competition still isn't especially experienced on the ins and outs of Razz.
Short-handed Omaha-8 is also a very good game with the right crowd--you can't wait for the nut low in that game, because you'll leave a lot of money on the table if you don't pursue a 2-4 low or something else that's normally fairly marginal. All-in-all, I made about $100 for the session, which I thought was pretty good considering the competition as well as the fact I only got about 5 hours of play.
When I came home, I played 2 SnG's while I was taking a study break, and finished 2nd in both of them... regrettably, I had the chip lead in both games when we got heads-up. The first game I just played HORRBLY heads-up, but the second game I basically got unlucky when my A6 got cracked by J6 who got a third Jack to fill up on the river; then I lost two consecutive races with 55 and I was gone. Oh well, 2nd is still better than 3rd, or worse, 4th.
Posted Sat Apr 22, 2006 12:28 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
21 April 2006
You gotta love Poker on days like today!!! :D
First, Party offered me a 20% reload up to $40, which I easily redeemed in a few hours of $2/$4 limit Hold'em, where I also earned a nice tidy $110 ($150 profit total).
Then, while my girlfriend was at her sister's, I played in a 20-table SnG and won it all for a cool $1080. Tomorrow, I'm taking her out for dinner, so no DeepStacks for me, but I'll play it another time.
Posted Mon Apr 24, 2006 6:42 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
24 April 2006
Cash games, cash games, and more cash games were on the agenda for the weekend, or Friday night and Sunday-day anyway.
Friday night I played a lot of different games online. I went back to play a little more on Party to run up a new stake to move to a new site if I feel like whoring, or I could just leave it there and concentrate on some Hold'em games there. I played in a full ring $200NL game, and a short-handed $2/$4 limit game, which is the inverse of what I usually do. Short-handed limit is a tough game, because you can get great odds and usually have a lot more marginal situations than in a full ring (especially a loose full ring). I may post some hands and ask for some general suggestions, but even at the $2/$4 level there seems to be a lot of variance and some difficulty evading the rake. The NL game went well, and I won about $320 in a few hours. When I'd had my fill of Hold'em, I went back to Stars to play in some Stud games, which usually have decent action on the weekends. I had some pretty wild times there, losing once with 777 rolled up, catching quads twice in a span of 10 minutes (and only making about 5 BB total for both  ), and winning a huge pot with a AK-flush vs. an AQ-flush and two suckers who made bad two pair and didn't fill up. Overall it was a big session, about 24 BB total (that's $240, not too shabby). Total winnings for Friday were around $600, which is definitely one of my top-10 days of Poker (at least when I haven't won a tournament).
Saturday I spent the whole day with Erica, which was great. I'm so happy she stayed with me through the tough days where my BR was constantly on empty, but she definitely likes Poker a little more since it means we get to go out for Steak Dinners and take trips to Hawaii.
Seriously though, she's great and I'm glad I have her support--emotional support is crucial for life, and especially if you play Poker.
Sunday Erica was out with her sister most of the day, so I decided to head over to the house to see what the action was over there. I was shocked to see all 4 tables running. I sat in on a $400 Mixed Pot-Limit game (blinds were actually $1 and $2 though) to start with, which was actually quite a lot of fun, but not very profitable. Usually, I'm a decent Pot-Limit player, but I didn't quite get the right run of cards in the session. For the first cycle we played PL Hold'em, and I got myself in a nice little $200 hole when someone flopped a set over my set. I got in another little pickle when I flopped two overs and the nut flush draw to someone's top pair and straight draw... I had to fold a big pot on the river when I came up short and knew they'd made their straight. Next was Pot-Limit Omaha, which was mostly uneventful. I ended up playing a big pot with a wrap and flush draw against top set--we ran it twice and ended up chopping the pot, so no biggie there. That was about all the action I got. Then there was PL 5-Card Draw... wow, now that's a game. One memorable hand, I slowplayed a set of Jacks and drew one to represent a draw, only to run into 3 Kings that had played the exact same way! Sigh, that was another nice $150 debacle.
Later, when the Pot-Limit game broke up, I turned to the mixed Spread-Limit game, where we played Omaha-8, Stud-8, and 2-7 Triple Draw. I must share one hand of Triple Draw. I got dealt 22223 on the button... easy fold right? Nope... it was time to pile on the snow, since I'd just crippled the deck of it's precious deuces. Two players limped as did I, and I threw away 3 deuces just as I normally would... but I didn't really care what I got... I knew I could maneuver everyone else out of the pot. I actually ended up drawing two 7's and a 3--now the deck was almost entirely crippled. I decided to raise after a bet, and got it down to 3 players. I took one card and was up against 2 players drawing 2 each. They each checked, I bet (I think I caught a K or something), and one called. They drew one and I stood pat, knowing they would never catch the card they wanted. They checked, I bet, and they mucked their hand. When someone asked what I had, I half-lied and said "quad deuces". Everyone laughed, but I know at least one player suspected what I had done. Overall for the session, I was still down about $160, but at least I'd recovered some of my dough, and I'd had a good time.
Cheers.
8)
Posted Mon Apr 24, 2006 9:48 pm GMT by kainARGH
| Quote: | | I got dealt 22223 on the button... easy fold right? Nope... it was time to pile on the snow, since I'd just crippled the deck of it's precious deuces. Two players limped as did I, and I threw away 3 deuces just as I normally would... but I didn't really care what I got... I knew I could maneuver everyone else out of the pot. I actually ended up drawing two 7's and a 3--now the deck was almost entirely crippled. I decided to raise after a bet, and got it down to 3 players. I took one card and was up against 2 players drawing 2 each. They each checked, I bet (I think I caught a K or something), and one called. They drew one and I stood pat, knowing they would never catch the card they wanted. They checked, I bet, and they mucked their hand |
Now that is a fantastic situation to be in ...... on the button even......even drew a couple 7's on the first draw lol. Well played 
Posted Tue Apr 25, 2006 12:30 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
24 April 2006
Nothing like a nice 18 BB downswing to put a damper on a nice weekend. Fortunately, there was no $5/$10 action so I had to play $3/$6 Stud, but man, was tonight brutal. I had 88A to start and made a third 8 on 4th street which I waited to raise until 5th street. A guy cold-calls 2 bets with a gut-shot, then calls again on 6th, only to make one of the case two 7's (which were both on the board for everyone to see, by the way) for a rivered straight. Another time I hit the broadway straight on 5th street to a guy with 3 hearts, who runner-runnered a low flush. Third, I made 3 tens on 4th street another time (2 tens exposed), only to have a guy with one pair of Aces hit aces up and then 8's full of aces on the river... man there were some shenanigans at the table tonight.
Maybe a nice tournament will cheer me up...
Posted Wed Apr 26, 2006 2:16 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
26 April 2006
Today (which was actually April 25), I really didn't play very much Poker. One 3-table $10 tournament (in which I placed 3rd), one 1-table $30 tournament (in which I placed 2nd), and one 20-table $20 tourney (in which I placed 13th). The most significant thing is that I felt like I did well in all three tournies despite what I would consider to be a below average run of cards. In the bigger MTT, I was on the short stack for the majority of the later stages, and was on the verge of the FT but couldn't outrun a guy who played pocket Kings absolutely HORRIBLY... on the flop, I actually had a nut flush draw, and overcard, and an open end straight draw, but hit squat... c'est la vie.
I got invited to the house today to play in the mixed game there, but just didn't really feel like it, and I actually spent some time catching up on some reading and school work.
3 tournies, 3 cashes makes for a good day, but I would have liked to win at least one.
Posted Thu Apr 27, 2006 12:34 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
26 April 2006
Oh the PAIN today... just read the posts in the Non-Hold'em section and you'll get a feel for how bad today went. I lost 26 BB and change today, a little over $260 in all. Although I've been doing well lately, swings like that still HURT. What makes it worse was the guy who rivered the ultra-concealed full house on me was an absolute and complete donkey who gave away $400 to the rest of the table... 40 BB, of which I got absolutely none. One guy was SHOWING three 8's, and he called all the way with a pair of Jacks... then he RAISED when he hit two pair on the river!!!! People like that should NOT be allowed to get a hand as good as a full house. 
I think it may be Poker-break time again. I made that nice cash-out and a good Friday run, but I lost most of what I made last week, and that shit just gets me so depressed sometimes. Could be worse, and I know that's Poker, but shit man, I hate runs of crappy cards.
Also, I was thinking today, that the $20 20-table tournaments are really not worth the price... unless you cash in the top 3, the pay-out simply is not worth the time it takes to get there. I played yesterday for 3 hours, basically to double my money. That's awful. If I'm going to play in tournies like that, I need to get a much bigger pay-out. That's probably why I would never (unless I was very wealthy) buy-in directly to any of those big tournaments. I could not imagine plunking down $10k, playing for 3 days, only to double my money. If you do it once, that's a great $10k profit, but if you're on the tourney circuit, you just cannot afford to double your buy-in... it simply will not keep you alive.
Maybe cash games really are the main way to go. I've done well in the SnG's, but profit there is so slow, and MTT's by and large seem to be a waste of money unless you make a BIG score. Even that nice $1k win a week back only comes along once in a very rare while. What I really need to do is play something like the WSOP $160 double-shootout, get into the ME, and cash for a few hundred grand... that is the only way I can see the return being worth it.
But maybe I'm just rambling because I'm depressed about today's results, and this is an indicator I need a break. But meh, one SnG win will reel me back in like the fish I am I'm sure... thank god I cashed out for that Hawaii trip...
Cheers.
8)
Posted Fri Apr 28, 2006 1:48 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
27 April 2006
Poker today consisted of one 2-table tournament, which was only for $5. 
What can I say? I was in a kooky mood, and I couldn't handle any more big losses. So I signed up for a low-stakes tourney and won it for a coo, $36. Hey, $36 is $36, and I call it a moral victory. I almost forgot how bad people at the $5 level usually play.
Posted Sun Apr 30, 2006 8:10 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
30 April 2006
Yeah, it's definitely looking like a break from Poker is in order. I did ok the last 2 days, but I'm more or less even (I think I came out ahead about $115). But on Friday and Saturday, I had virtually no fun, and that's really bad. Poker is supposed to be my hobby, and I'm treating it like a job. That's a recipe for disaster.
Friday night, I decided to try some PLO8... what a fantastically awful game. Playing on the $50 PL tables, we had people all in on literally every other flop. I'd win a big half or a scoop, then lose a huge pot when I'd have all 3 of my draws go bust... the only "skill" to that game is essentially waiting for suited A2 and hoping you hit low on the flop, with a FD if you're lucky. I hate games where I'm just sitting back and waiting for hands, but this is the new age of Poker where nobody folds, so that's all I can do online. Later that night, I qualified for the PS $1M guaranteed in a $39 satellite.
Saturday, I played almost every form of online Poker imaginable, trying to make something work. NL Hold'em, PL Hold'em, Limit Hold'em, PL Omaha, Omaha 8, Stud and Stud 8, but nothing was working... I just wasn't enjoying myself. The wins just weren't getting the endorphins going, but every loss definitely stung. I decided at long last to cash all my money off of Party Poker, and gave serious consideration to cashing out of Stars as well. I talked a lot with Erica that night, and she agreed that I probably ought to take a break. Still, I knew she was going to work on Sunday, and I still wanted a chance at the $1M guaranteed on Stars.
Today, I was ignominously and unceremoniously knocked out on Round 3 when, you guessed it, my Aces got cracked, and in such a crappy way. UTG raised to 150, and the guy on his immediate left re-raised to 450. The guy on his left called. I'm in the CO with AA, and I decide to make a nice stuff re-raise to 1300. The first two players folded, and the last player re-raised me all-in (for about 2600 more I think), and I of course immediately called. He's holding AJ. AJ???????? First of all, why in the hell was he calling a raise and re-raise? Then, I virtually declared my hand, and he goes over the top... anyway, here's what happened.
Flop comes 10-3-2. Looking good so far... then the turn is a J, and I start thinking... no, not like this, please. River is, well, you know it...
That virtually sent me through the roof, and really got me thinking. I now know I probably will not be going to summer school, so I could try to qualify for the WSOP. But I was thinking, if I couldn't even handle the beat in the $1M guaranteed, what kind of mental breakdown would I have if I busted out of the Main Event? I simply couldn't handle that at this point in my life.
So I cashed out everything from Stars, and I'm taking some serious time off.
Posted Sun Apr 30, 2006 8:36 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
Long story short... I quit for now. I may never play online Poker again, because it just isn't fun. Live Poker with entertaining people is always great, but I can't just sit in front of a computer grinding it out against a bunch of donkeys, maniacs, and nut peddlers anymore.
I'll pick it up again when it looks like I'm going to enjoy it. Maybe I'll try playing live on Tuesday, maybe not. I'll be lurking the boards, but my "career" is on indefinite hold.
Posted Mon May 01, 2006 6:09 pm GMT by Gunslinger
Good luck, Dave. Keeping your head on straight off the tables is just as important as when you're on them. You earned yourself a great hawaiian vacation, and poker will always be there if you ever decide to come back. I, for one, have always enjoyed and appreciated your posts and insights on this forum, and it seems like you're thinking clearly about needing a break, and that it will do you good.
Posted Wed May 03, 2006 12:56 am GMT by Phil14312
Don't stop posting Diamond, your analyses are spot on and stories always make me want to read more.
Posted Fri May 05, 2006 2:50 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
4 May 2005
So yeah, I played Poker today. Live Poker, with decent players, playing Mixed Games = g00d! :D
I went over to "The House" at about 11:30 this morning (with a case of beer as a guilt offering because I hadn't been there in a week or so... and everyone there always loves to get beer), and predictably, there was only one table going (most players still asleep or in class), with all but one of the guys having been there since about 12am. The game was $1/$2 NL with a $300 max buy-in. I decided to buy-in for the full amount, but never had to put it all on the line for the few hours I was in the game. It was fairly boring, with most of the guys playing fairly tight, and I ended up stealing a lot of small pots, building my stack up about $40 in the 2 hours the game went on. Around 2 pm, a lot more players started arriving, and I got together 3 other people interested in forming a table for a rotational game. What we finally decided on was a rotation of 3 Pot-Limit games: Hold'em, Omaha High, and A-5 Draw with a $100 cap on betting. This was an interesting little structure, and I decided to make 3 stacks with the my chips to keep track of my progress at each game. For Hold'em, after gauging each of the opponents' strengths, I decided to go with the "crazy" approach. I was betting hard on a lot of flops and turns, many times with nothing (but who ever gets dealt a real hand 4-handed anyway?). This came in handy on one particular hand where Jeremy forgot to re-raise pre-flop with AK, forgot to raise on the flop with TPTK, and let me turn a straight that cost him $100. For Omaha, I decided to play relatively straight-forward, but we ended up with a LOT of $100 "let's run it twice" bets that ended up in a lot of stalemates and split pots. A-5 Draw can be a very fun game with the right group. One situation came up with poor Jeremy again, where I stood pat with a perfect 6, and he drew one, only to make 6532A, costing him another $100. Jeremy was the big loser for the game, unfortunately, but by the time the table broke, I found myself up $120 at Hold'em, up $22 at Omaha, and up $121 at Draw.
The next game I got into started after Emily and Katie arrived, and along with John-Boy and Steve, we started the "Hold'em Haters" table, drawing a chorus of boos and slurs from the other tables... we occasionally fired back statements like, "we play Poker over here, not that shit you guys watch on TV." It really was quite hilarious. We agreed on a spread-limit structure, $3-$6 on the early rounds, and $7-$10 on the later rounds. We played a lot of games in our rotation: Omaha-8, Stud-8, Stud High, Razz, and 2-7 Triple Draw. We had a lot of fun for about 5 hours on the table. My advantage in Razz is decreasing, and a lot of the other players are wising up to my thieving tactics... time to try something new. Hi/Lo split games are really fun when you play short-handed with a lot of tricky players... you really have to know the ins and outs of the game or you can quickly get buried. John-Boy has a bad habit of chasing lows in Stud-8 when he's heads-up, and that cost him about $140, divided among the rest of the table--I frequetly punished him by betting the max on the later streets, and 2 out of 3 occasions he had to muck the river when he misses. Emily got him worse, though, when she back-doored a low to go with her Aces up and crushed John-Boy's weak 7-low. She can be so heartless when she's winning.
All-in-all, I finished up a little over $430 for the day... not bad for my first trip back to the grind. My girlfriend laughed at me plenty though... "I knew you'd be back at a table in about 72 hours," she said. Can you believe she acually laughed at me!
Also, since I'm not going to summer school and I have too many FPP's, I figure, why not enter the WSOP freeroll satellites? Who knows, maybe I can score another nice trip.
8)
Posted Fri May 05, 2006 6:46 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
5 May 2006
So today I accepted a job to be tournament director for a charity tournament--woo hoo!!!  This should be a lot of fun.
PS offered me free SilverStar status for another month if I play the $1M guaranteed this weekend. Still not really feeling the online Poker thing anymore, but I plan on playing at least a few of the FPP satellites for the WSOP. I can afford to enter a lot of 40-FPP tournaments when I have over 3,000 FPP's. :D
Posted Sun May 07, 2006 5:34 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
7 May 2005
Just got back from my second committee meeting/dealer training for the tournament I've been asked to direct (this one). Fortunately, we agreed on most of the standard tournament rules and on a decent structure for the players. I was pleasantly surprised by the dealers, all of whom at least have some experience playing Texas Hold'em. I went over a lot of the finer parts of keeping order at the tables, what to do with exposed cards, making rulings, and dividing side pots and the like. I also got a first look at the software we'll be using for the tournament, and it should work fine.
I'm looking forward to the tournament on Saturday--I think it will be great experience being a Tournament Director.
As for actually playing Poker, Tuesday will probably be the next time I get over to a game, although if I finish my work today and my girlfriend is out at work tomorrow night, I may get over to a game as well.
Cheers.
-Dave
8)
Posted Tue May 09, 2006 12:24 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
8 May 2006
Today I entered my first 40 FPP satellite for the WSOP. For the first few levels I was doing pretty well. I doubled up the first hand when I flopped two pair with K3, then doubled up again a while later with QQ. Then a yucky hand came up with J7.
I was in the BB, and one player in MP limped in, the SB called, and I checked. Flop was J 7 3 . SB checked, I bet 100 (2/3 the pot), and MP raised to 200. SB folded and I decided to smooth call. Turn came the Q . I checked, planning to check-raise (I am not putting him on a flush at this point). He overbets huge, about 1k into the pot. I have about 5.5k behind, and he has me covered. At this point, I think maybe he has the A , but not much more. But considering the huge overbet, I almost folded, not wanting to play a big pot so early. But then, like an idiot, I went against my instinct and re-raised all-in. He called immediately and showed Q Q . Bleh. Drawing dead, and I don't think the guy could have played 2 black queens much worse. Oh well, that's what I get for going against instinct. To add insult to injury, the river was a J.
I may set aside a portion of my roll for the big $350 tournament on Stars in July where 150 seats for the WSOP are guaranteed. I know there will probably be over 5k players, but that's a pretty huge guarantee, and $350 really isn't that much if I can save it up. I don't think I will be playing any other cash satellites for the WSOP, though, as the odds are long and I don't want to invest a lot into just GETTING to a major tournament (I remember my painful experience with the Bay 101 Shooting Star that destroyed my roll). Still, I gotta use the FPP's for something, so why not at least TRY to freeroll into the Main Event?
Tomorrow, I'll be going to over the "The House" to play some mixed game, and maybe the big NL game in the evening, if they have it.
Posted Wed May 10, 2006 3:45 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
9 May 2006
Today was a good day, because I made the $350 I want to use for the big PS WSOP tournament in July. How, you may ask? Because I ran into a hot headed fish.
I went to play in the mixed game around 1pm today, and we got a pretty good little group going for a spread limit game. We played for about 3 hours, with few of us making much progress (I think I was up about $25), but we had a lot of fun. I did stay out of one multi-way pot that was HUGE during the 7-Stud rotation. On 6th and 7th streets, the betting went insane because we had an AKQ-flush vs an AKJ-flush vs a super-concealed Tens-full. That was really the only interesting hand worth noting.
About 4pm, a big NL game started forming, and I was in the mood to play NL. The game was $1/$2 blinds with a $0.25 ante, $300 max buy-in. I really like this structure because it allows me to get better odds on a lot of hands I couldn't play in a more tightly structured game. I decided to go nuts in this game, and I warmed up to a great run. A few of the players didn't know me very well, so I played VERY loosely at first, losing almost $200 in the first hour. It didn't matter though, because I started making very well-concealed hands against people who just could not lay down TPTK, and I recovered that loss in the span of two hands, once with small two pair, and the other with a mid-straight. A hand came up soon after where I had AQ on the button, and a player in MP had raised to $8. I decided to punch it up to $20, because the guy had shown a lot of weakness and willingness to lay down in the past. He stewed for a minute and then called me. The flop came A-Q-8. He looked at the flop for about a second, looked at his chips, and then stared at me--for whatever reason, I knew at that moment that he had AK. He checked, putting one hand over his mouth. I bet $30 to induce his check-raise. He puts on his best "oh what should I do?" act and then decides to raise to $100. I look back at him, mentally count his chips, and then push in the rest of my stack. He calls instantly, shows AK, and gets no help from the turn or river. He curses the world, complaining that I had to pick up a real hand "for once" and how bad of a beat he just took. About 2 minutes later he launches into a tirade about how awful a player I am and how much of a fish I am. I say directly to him, "if that's how you feel, maybe we should play heads-up. You can get back all the money you shouldn't have lost to me." He turns red and agrees.
We get our own table and decide on $100 matches with $1/$2 blinds, agreeing to let each other reload at any time. Pushing this guy around was as easy as pie. It took him 2 more buy-ins to learn his lesson after I took about $70 from him in the first 8 hands. Finally, he ended yup quitting, complaining to his buddies about his shitty run of luck. I didn't complain too much about the nearly $600 he had donated to me.
I ran out after the game to buy two very nice steaks from the store to cook for Erica and I for dinner. When I came home with two T-Bones, her only comment was, "good day at Poker?" Yes, I would say it was indeed.
Posted Fri May 12, 2006 2:02 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
11 May 2006
Ok, now I know the true meaning of a bad beat. When a player has to hit an exact sequence of two cards in the deck, and there are only two of them left in the deck, that's a bad beat. 22 beating AA? Please. Runner-runner flush? Bring it on. Try this one...
The $1/$2 NL live game with $0.25 ante. We're 8-handed at that moment.
Everyone folds to the CO, who raises to $8. I had seen this guy go after a lot of blinds and antes and position raise frequently, and he usually continuation-bet, so I knew what to expect. I'm in the BB, and everyone folds to me. I look down to find K K . Oh joy! I decide to just smooth call for several reasons.
1. I'm prepared to let the flop hit; if an ace hits, an ace hits. He probably would call with a good ace anyway, and he is in LP and known to steal, so there's really no need for him to have a great hand anyway.
2. If he has nothing, he will fold to my re-raise. If I check the flop, I am 98% sure he will continuation bet, so I can earn more money anyway.
3. The pot is guaranteed to be heads-up.
Flop comes K 9 4 .
Hey, this flop was even better than I expected. Now I'm hoping he has a PP or maybe even a K and I can trap him for a big pot. Or maybe I'll just win a small pot. That's ok too.
I check.
He bets $20. Wow. More than I thought I would get.
I entice him with a little raise to $52. If he has nothing, he'll fold. If he has something, this should get him in a pretty pickle.
To my surprise, he pushes in for his remaining $220.
I of course immediately call.
"Set of 9's, huh?" he says. I shake my head and say "Kings." He winces, and flips K 4 . He needs the 4 and 4 EXACTLY or he will lose.
Turn comes the 4 . I giggle a little, thinking the Poker gods are giving me a little sweat.
Then the river hits. 4 .
No way. I didn't go on tilt or anything, surprisingly. I just laughed a little bit, stacked up the $220, and slid it over to him in two stacks. He was positively giddy. I thought he could have been classier, given that he just delivered the statistically worst beat possible in Hold'em, but I didn't really care, much to my surprise.
Between that and a short time at the mixed game, I'm actually only down about $175 for the day. Not what I like to see, but not horrible, considering I lost about $250 in the worst beat of all time.
In other news, tomorrow I'll be finishing the pre-tourney dealer training, and Saturday is the big charity tourney I'm directing. I think I'm mostly prepared, but I'm sure some complications will arise. Also, the guys over at the House are starting up a Heads-Up League, which should be fun, and they've talked about trying to get 100 guys to put up $100 each to send someone to the Main Event. Needless to say, if this happens, I am definitely in.
Posted Sun May 14, 2006 2:45 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
14 May 2006
Friday night there was no Poker. My girlfriend's roommates went out of town, so obviously there were better things to do than play cards...
Saturday of course was the big charity tournament, and I was pretty happy with the way it turned out. The dealers actually handled things pretty well, although we did of course have the occasional dispute I would have to come over and settle (mostly people who did not understand what string bets were). Amazingly, play was so loose at first that we were down to just 80 players out of the original 200 by the time we finished level 4. After that, the reasonably big stacks and tight players dictated a slower pace of the tournament, but overall things ran smoothly. We got down to heads-up play around midnight, and the very first hand of the last level, the tournament ended when Ben (the winner) picked up pocket Queens against Mason's pocket Jacks. The winner received a gift basket with coupons for free stuff to a lot of local vendors, and everyone at the final table got T-Shirts and two decks of very nice playing cards. We also gave away 500 chips each to the 1st and 2nd Place finishers. It was a very fun time and a great experience as tournament director. The best part of my night though came when a few of the better tournament players told me they really enjoyed the tournament structure and the way it was being run; that made me feel great.
More to come later.
Posted Mon May 15, 2006 7:44 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
15 May 2006
Just got back from my first session at the Heads-Up Poker League. The format is 4 "divisions" (Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs, Spades) comprising a total of 86 players, each of whom put up $50 entry for the league (prizes TBD). Each of us is going to be allowed to play 8 "matches" that will consist of 3 games each. At the end of the regular season, the top 4 players from each division will start in part of a tournament bracket system that will pit the 16 players in an elimination tournament that will be matches of best 2 out of 3, and best 3 out of 5 for the final.
Anyways, I'm off to a great start, as I won all 3 of my games against my opponent. The first match ended on the very first hand. We each started with 5000 chips, blinds 25/50 to start (plenty of play). I was on the button with AK. I raised to 200 to open, and my opponent re-raising to 1000. I thought for a moment and decided he didn't have AA or KK, but this pot was too big to risk not hitting a flop, so I re-raised all in. He called, showing AQ to my surprise. I hit a King right off the flop, and that was the end of game 1. Game 2 was an endurance match that went on for over an hour. We postured back and forth at each other, but overall he was getting better cards. By the end of level 4 (20 minute rounds each), the blinds were getting fairly steep (150/300), and I was down about 2-to-1 in chips. Fortunately, I got all my chips in on the next hand with JJ, and he doubled me up with his TT. I stole the blinds on the next five hands, which cost him about half of his remaining stack. He ended up pushing all-in when he was down about 4.5-to-1, and I called with A3. He showed QT, and my hand held up to win. Game 3 didn't go past level 3 (75/150). I switched strategies that game, limping into a lot of pots rather than raising. I let him steal a few pots during level 1 just to look like I was trying to let him steam off. he just got more confident, and his bets got more reckless. Once level 2 hit, I took back all my chips and then some when I slow-played a flopped pair of aces and made him fold a big pot on the river. The pivotal hand came about half way through level 3. He raised from the button, and I called with T9s. The flop came 7-8-J. Bingo. I checked, and he bet double the size of the pot. Figuring this was as good a time as any, I re-raised all-in, and he called, showing 9 6 (I was a little puzzled by this play). I was a little nervous when the turn came a fourth diamond for him, but the river blanked and I finished my clean sweep.
Tomorrow I'll probably be playing with my usual Tuesday group, and I know Friday of this week I'll be heading over to play/direct a low-stakes game wth my Dad and his co-workers. Should be fun.
Posted Tue May 16, 2006 7:12 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
16 May 2006
Today was what we call a "card-dead" day... my runs of hands was so bad that it's a miracle I didn't go bust. I had to fold a lot more than I like to, and I had to fold a lot on later streets when big draws never came in... this is in the Mixed Game by the way. On one hand of Triple Draw, I started with 2345, and drew one. I caught a K. Draw one again. Catch an A. Draw one again, catch a 3. *Sigh* A similar phenomenon cost be a big pot in Razz when I started off A234, only to catch K-Q-J in succession. The pot was so big I couldn't fold, and somehow I always seemed to be getting JUST good enough odds to call, but not good enough to make me feel good about it. In Stud, I lost twice with Aces to people who caught a second pair on the end. Bleh.
I was happy with the way I played one hand. I was last to act with 5 6 7 (the 6 was the up-card) . One guy had called the bring-in, and Emily had raised it to $3. I decided to call, since all my 8's, 4's, and diamonds were live. The other limper called also. I ended up catching the 10 on 4th street, and John bet out $4 with the Ace he caught. Emily called with K-high, and I decided to go for the free card route. I raised to $10, and both called. 5th street brought the 8 for me, adding an open-ended draw for me. Both players checked. If I checked, I would have announced my hand, so I decided to just go ahead and bet. I figured my equity was pretty good at any rate, and I wanted to keep people in, so I decided on a modest bet of $8 rather than the maximum $10. Both called. 6th street gave me the 4 . Bingo, I made my straight. Both checked to me, and I bet $10. John, showing AQJ7, raised it $10 more, and I thought, crap, he's got broadway, although I knew it might also be Aces up since I suspected Emily had 2 Kings. Emily folded, and I called $10 with my flush re-draw, planning to call on the river if I didn't improve. On the river, however, I did catch the A and raised John another $10 when he bet $10. He called and showed broadway, and I took a nice pot to pad my losses for the day.
Posted Mon May 22, 2006 2:19 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
21 May 2006
Whew! What a couple of days!
Thursday: Usual mixed-game experience. This time, however, we got some new blood and actually managed to play an eight-handed game! The mix was $1/$2 NL Hold'em with a $100 cap, $1/$2 PL Omaha with a $100 cap, $4/$8 Stud, and $4/$8 Stud 8-or-Better. This was a great mix of games to play, and it gave me a chance to try a new strategy for Omaha high, which I think worked pretty well. Essentially, I played the game much like I prefer to play Hold'em--very loose and aggressive. I would often make pre-flop raises from late position, and make a lot of small continuation bets on the flop and turn. Most of the time, this is not seen as a very good way to play PLO because people hold premium hands more often, but I was determined to lay down if I faced resistance, and I've heard that Sam Farha has had great experience with this style. Now I understand why. If you're constantly bullying the table, they won't give you credit for a hand until you take out their stack with a huge concealed hand... I had to give away about $100 first, but I was sorry there was a cap; otherwise I might have made out with about a grand on the session. If you can learn to lay down trap hands and not worry about giving away some money to set up opponents, this strategy is fantastic, although I do plan on giving it a few more runs to make sure. Also, during the Hold'em rotation, I cracked Aces with 64s. I rule. :D
Friday: Played Poker with some of the worst players in the world. I lost, not because I played bad or got unlucky, but because I got bored and stopped caring about a stupid $10 game. Also, people who watch too much Poker on TV, think they're good, and like to slowroll because they think it's dramatic PISS ME OFF. There is no excuse for slowrolling ever. Bottom line. Just show your goddam cards and be done with it. /rant
Saturday: Erica and I decided to make a little getaway, so we went up to Reno for the weekend (hence why I haven't been posting much). This turned out to be a great trip. I got a chance to show her how to play Poker in a card room, and although she was nervous gambling with some of my money, she actually won about $80 in the 5 or so hours we played at the $2/$4 table. It was a great time. We went out for an awesome dinner and a show over at the El Dorado (which is where we stayed, thanks to a nice discount they offered). Then we kicked back at the pool for an hour or so, went back to the room to watch a movie... and stuff... and after she went to bed, I went downstairs to get back into a Poker game.
Every Saturday night, the El Dorado hosts the biggest game in town--a $2/$3/$5 NL game with no max buy-in. There was over 10 grand on that Poker table. After doing an obligatory hour or so over at the $1/$5 Stud table (fun little 4-handed game), I sat down with $650 in the NL game... the most I've risked in quite awhile, which made me a little nervous, not to mention the caliber of players in the game. But I had a Mike McDermott moment--I just had to know. I sat down at that game and I knew the other players were sizing me up as some kid who was going to be easy money. I let them labor under that delusion by playing extremely tight to start with. Then about an hour into the game, I made a score--not Mike McD style, unfortunately. I was in the BB with TT. A player from EP made it $20 to go, the button called, and I called $15. The flop came A-T-5. I checked, the pre-flop raiser bet $25, and the button called. I decided to smooth call to feign a draw. The turn came a 5. Again I checked. The something happened--I looked to my right and noticed the button was reaching for his chips. Then the MP bettor checked, and the button moved his hand back away from his chips and checked, and I notice he swallowed a little. I was almost 100% convinced he had a 5 and would bet the river. The river came a J. I checked, hoping to draw them both into the pot. The MP player overbet--$150 into the pot. The button checked his hole cards again, and min-raised to $300. I saw the hand in my head: A5. That's what he had; a full house, a weaker full house. I looked at both of them and waited about 5 seconds before I put in my whole stack, about $600 total. The MP player frowned and mucked his cards after about an agonizing minute. The button immediately called. He indeed showed the A5 and irrately paid up his $600. The MP player claimed he laid down KQ, and I actually believed him. Now I was up to almost $1500, but the night wasn't over. I actually got lucky in another big pot (about a $700) when I filled up on the river when the board was K-K-5-9-Q (I was up against 55). Another hand, I won a nice pot when I flopped a straight with T8. When it rolled around to about 8 am, I decided to go back to the room to catch a few hours' sleep after cashing out for about $2600 total.
Sunday: I decided to go over to the Reno Hilton to play in the Pot of Gold tournament for $125, mostly at Erica's encouragement. I was very displeased with the structure, as it was barely better than the crap shoots most local card rooms sponsor. I busted out in the early afternoon after playing about 2 hours, then Erica and I caught an early dinner and drove home. It was fun, and I wanted to give the tournament a shot, but there just are not very many decent structures out there for tournaments with less than about a $2000 entry. Oh well, it was still a very profitable trip and was a good getaway for my girlfriend and me.
Posted Mon May 22, 2006 1:54 pm GMT by Phil14312
NP on the TT hand
Posted Mon May 22, 2006 9:08 pm GMT by kainARGH
| xDiamond_CutteRx wrote: | | Also, people who watch too much Poker on TV, think they're good, and like to slowroll because they think it's dramatic PISS ME OFF. There is no excuse for slowrolling ever. Bottom line. Just show your goddam cards and be done with it. /rant |
Agreed
*edit
Keep living the dream diamond, my dream at least . Wish I had more time to dedicate to actually playing VS stopping by the casino for 1 hour here, 1 hour there.
Posted Wed May 24, 2006 8:42 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
24 May 2006
The mixed game today was another SHOE rotation, slightly lower stakes. $1/$2 NL Hold'em with $100 cap, $1/$2 PL Omaha with $100 cap, and $3/$6 Stud and Stud-8. After losing $100 getting all-in pre-flop with AKs in Hold'em, I went back to trying my new ultra loose-aggressive PLO style. On the 2nd trial, it worked even better. I raised it up from the CO with 4 5 6 8 . The button called me and the flop came 3 5 9 . I got aggressive and just bet the pot. The button called again. Turn was the 8 . I checked, hoping to check-raise, but the button checked behind me. The river was the 7 !!! I decided to test him to see if he had a flush and bet the pot again. He looked at his cards and said, "well I know you wouldn't bet the straight flush, and I don't think you got the A-high, so I'll cap." I instantly called and he slapped his forehead.
Have to go... more stories later.
Posted Fri May 26, 2006 6:31 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
26 May 2006
Ok, so I never finished my story from last time. In NL Hold'em I got mixed up in a very interesting pot. I had 9 8 , and I had raised from MP to $6. The button called and the BB min-raised to $10. I called, as did the button. Flop came 10 7 K . The BB bet out $15, and I raised to $45. The button thought, then called. The BB in return raises up another $45 to the $100 cap. I of course call, since I know the button will be calling also and I'm getting huge odds. The BB flips K K for top set. Button showed A K , killing two of my outs and leaving me vulnerable to re-draws (not sure what the button was thinking, although he claimed he thought he had the A K ). With 13 outs though, I was still in very good shape. The BB asked me if I wanted to run it twice. I said sure, fully expecting the button to comply, which he did. A horror story ensued. The first turn/river came J 2 , giving me the winning straight and assuring me at least a $50 profit in the hand. The second turn came the 3 , and I thought I was about to win big, but the river came the 4 and all of a sudden the AK guy wound up with half the pot, sending the BB into a fit of melancholia. Sucks for him. I just thought it was interesting because it was the first time I'd ever run it twice with 3 players, and because it's slightly funny that the BB figured by running it twice he'd be nearly guaranteed at least $50, and wound up losing $100.
Thursday, I spent the day at the house making up 6 heads-up games, 3 for last week's missed games, and 3 for this weekend's games because a lot of people will be out of town. My first opponent was Ray, who I was not looking forward to playing because he's known to be very tricky. Our games were actually pretty straight-forward though. He won the first game when I pushed with a flush draw plus an overcard, and he called and won with top pair. I won the second and third games fairly quickly though, once when he went all-in with AQs only to run into my AK, and the other when I flopped a straight and trapped him into pushing... it was a somewhat Rounders-esque moment, and he was rather embarassed when he bet it all on the river.
My second opponent was a guy I'd never played against before, although I'd seen him in the big tournament we had a few weeks ago. He was clearly not experienced at heads-up play, because he was tight as a virgin gymnast. I mostly just whittled his blinds down in all our games, although two of the games took awhile because I had to wait until round 3 or 4 for the blinds to actually mattering enough. He often muttered something about me never calling his bets when he had a hand, but the guy was playing 9-handed ring game strategy, not heads-up strategy, so he was easy as a book to read. After I'd won the third game, he said, "you're tough, but you're lucky I never picked up a real hand." I doubt it, because he would have earned maybe 5 BB on his "real hand." With an 8-1 record, I'm in very good shape. Rick hopes to have the prize information for the heads-up league done by this weekend.
Posted Mon May 29, 2006 7:40 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
29 May 2006
"Interesting" weekend for Poker. On Saturday, my girlfriend went home for a few days, which of course left me little to do but play Poker. For most of the day, I was actually at a graduation party for a friend's brother. I logged onto the net for a few hours in the evening, and once again I'm going back on my word, because I deposited again at PokerStars. I played in another big 500 FPP WSOP freeroll, and then went into a $11 + rebuys tourney, where I finished 28th (which sucked, because one place higher would have been about $100 more). So I invested $55 to win $281. Not horrible. I was reasonably tired and decided not to continue, so I went to bed.
Sunday, a friend and I went to go see the "new" Poker room up at Cache Creek. I will never go there again. They have some of the most retarded policies I've ever seen. The worst of them by far was the automatic $3 rake on every hand if even just one person called the BB. They would be raking $3 out of $10 pots! That's simply inexcusable in my book. The other retarded policy was their $100 NL tables, which featured blinds of $2 and $4. That's right, a 25BB max buy-in. After losing 3 buy-ins to some of the worst players I've ever seen, I decided to cool off and go play in the $4/$8 kill game. My cards went dead for the 2 or 3 hours I played, and after that I was too tired to continue. My other gripe about this Poker room was that it was in the middle of the whole casino surrounded by slot machines and exposed to cigarette smoke from every direction. I could not take more than 6 hours in that environment. So there was a nice little -$300 excursion. I am never going back there again.
Today I didn't feel like leaving the house, so I played a bit on the net. I was in the mood for some tournament action, so I fired up PS and was ready to go. I played in another $11 + rebuys and wasn't nearly as successful. I spent $99 just to bust out shortly after the second break. I was not especially happy with how I played. I also played a $20 180-man SnG, and finished just before the bubble, losing in a set-over-set confrontation. Bleh. Finally, I played in a Silver FPP satellite to a $100k freeroll, and was not successful there either. *Sigh*
Not the best weekend, but my bankroll is still in good shape, as I haven't been stupid enough to push my limits too high. Yet.
Posted Wed May 31, 2006 3:18 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
31 May 2006
Bad bad bad news... the game at the house got shut down by the cops. I went there on Tuesday and played in the mixed game for a couple hours with very few hands of note (though I did win about $100), but later that night I got a call from Emily that the cops had come to the house and told everyone to leave the game, as there would be an investigation pending. Not sure on what actually happened, as I was not there, but from my understanding, the guys at the house could lose their lease, and face fines and possibly criminal charges.
Good things in their favor: they never charged rake and they never cheated anyone, so it's not as though they were an unchartered casino.
Bad news: there were also incidents of underage drinking  as well as drug use reported on the premises.
I feel so bad for Steve and the other guys, because all they did was provide a nice, welcoming, safe environment to come play Poker with no rake charged, only an unspoken agreement to help provide beer, soda, snacks, etc. for the players to share. It was like a fantastic Poker co-op. I called Steve today and told him that if he needs help with the legal fees, he is welcome to use the money I put up for my WSOP seat and the heads-up league ($150 total), because that's the least I could do to repay all his hospitality.
The other part of me is super-pissed off. I don't know who reported this, but it's total bullshit. We were just a bunch of people who liked to play Poker who put up our own money with our own free will, and that's somehow seen as degenerate... guess that's what happens when your country was first settled by Puritans who hated fun... I've heard and read mixed things about the legality of gambling in one's own home in CA, but I know they can't be in huge trouble because they didn't charge any rake. I just worry about the underage drinking (probably wasn't the smartest idea to allow that) part of it, because that could get them in fairly serious trouble, and the fact that two of the tenants had marijuana is also bad because at the very least they could lose their lease.
All very sad. This is a terrible turn of events for me and my fellow college players.
Posted Fri Jun 02, 2006 6:40 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
2 June 2006
Well, fortunately no one got into real serious trouble at the house. Fortunately, the cops didn't find any marijuana and didn't see any underage drinking, so no one got arrested. They may still be fined for the gambling Steve told me, but he is confident that they will probably just get a warning. The landlord was not as happy... they will have a hearing to see if they get evicted.
Steve told me not to worry, but the landlord was very explicit that the tenants should not host large gambling events anymore, so that is probably it for the big gathering at the house, which sucks. Steve did return everyone's money for the WSOP satellite and the heads-up league, which was very generous of him, and told everyone he was sorry for the incident. I have the phone numbers of most of the players who played in the mixed game, so at least I may be able to arrange some games with them in the near future.
In better news, I of course got back into the online Poker scene and had a pretty good day yesterday. I played some $10/$20 FL Hold'em, some $10/$20 Stud, a $50 SnG, and a $11 rebuy tourney. I won about $140 in Hold'em, about $100 in Stud, I took second in the SnG, and I cashed for about $250 in the tournament... that was a very nice day, although the stakes still make me a little nervous, so I may drop back down to the $5/$10 level (why can't they have $6/$12 or $8/$16 on Stars... grrrr). This weekend, I probably need to finish a paper and study for finals a bit, but if I have time I may get into the DeepStacks event on Sat or Sun, or possibly play in the $1M guaranteed on Stars on Sunday.
Also, I will probably move some money to Pacific and start qualifying for the THP WSOP freeroll.
Posted Sat Jun 03, 2006 2:39 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
3 June 2006
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! My computer just died! Fried! Dead! Argh! That piece of shit better still be under warranty...
This is just what I need before finals... grrr.....
Posted Sat Jun 03, 2006 5:37 pm GMT by crack
Just been reading your diary. I have only just found it. It was a good read, Keep Up The Good Work.
Posted Sun Jun 04, 2006 8:09 pm GMT by LeafsFan1122
Yeah awesome read...Some of those stories were amazing. Too bad about your comp Diamond, I know how that feels as my laptop just died a few days ago. Lost all my damn PT info. Ohwell, life goes on. Keep on posting.
Posted Mon Jun 05, 2006 12:38 am GMT by Phil14312
Oh it was me who told on you guys at the mixed game. Sorry about that.
Posted Mon Jun 05, 2006 2:32 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
| Phil14312 wrote: | | Oh it was me who told on you guys at the mixed game. Sorry about that. |
Dick.
5 June 2006
Good news: computer still under warranty.
Bad news: have not had time to get it fixed yet.
Bad news: I played no Poker over the weekend.
Good news: I'm done with my course assignments, so as soon as I finish finals and get my computer back on line, I'll be playing a lot more, and hopefully winning that WSOP seat.
Posted Thu Jun 08, 2006 9:51 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
8 June 2006
Computer is back online, and I plan on depositing over at Pacific as soon as I finish my final tomorrow morning.
As I posted a few days back, I did play some 6-max $200 NL on Stars and made about $500 in the course of 4 or 5 hours... a $240 straight flush helps along the way.
Posted Sat Jun 10, 2006 2:51 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
10 June 2006
Back online... I desposited my obligatory $400 on Pacific to claim the bonus and what-not. I don't especially like their SnG structure with how many chips they give you, so I'm just going to play 20 of the $11 tournies to minimize the rake I give away.
First tourney I took 2nd... I was behind the whole game though, so 2nd suits me fine.
Second tourney I took 2nd to THP's own TxShadow. He nailed me heads-up, once with A8 against my A7, and then finally when I flopped crappy middle pair and he flopped crappy top pair (10-7 vs 6-3). GG to you, sir.
Now I'm hoping to improve to a win in the next game.
As for their ring games, I must say I found the $100 NL very juicy and loose.
Question for anyone who reads this: my account already shows the $100 bonus I received. Do I actually have it, or do I need to play X hands to cash it out when I'm done here?
Edit: nm the question, I found the answer.
Edit 2: One week until Hawaii!!! :D
Edit 3: Won the next SnG... boo ya!
Posted Sat Jun 10, 2006 7:59 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
10 June 2006
Tournaments 4, 5, and 6 on Pacific mostly went well.
Tourney 4: 5th Place
Tournies 5 and 6: 1st.
So all in all, I'm up about $250 on the site, which means I should be freerolling into the... freeroll. Just need to finish those 14 more tournies, hopefully before I leave for Hawaii.
Edit: Tourney 7: 1st again. I'm raping this site, w00t!!! :D
Posted Mon Jun 12, 2006 4:36 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
11 June 2006
Tournies 8, 9, and 10: a 7th, a 3rd, and a 1st.
I've won 5/10
Cashed in 8/10
Sadly, I have not had the chance to play anything else as it is Finals week.
Posted Mon Jun 12, 2006 5:46 pm GMT by TxShadow
Damn man, you're tearin' it up. Keep up the good work.
Sorry I busted out and didn't let you get payback last night . I didn't want to hurt your ego too bad so I thought I'd get outa the way.
Posted Tue Jun 13, 2006 12:16 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
In tournaments 11-14, I got two victories and two losses... one game, I made an absolute donkey play, going all in on a race when one player was down to 2 BB. I guess we all have lapses from time to time. Now that I've cashed in 10 tournaments, I'm going to have at least a 50% ITM rate before I qualify. Man, I wish I'd come to this site sooner.
Edit: Tourney 15, I got all-in early in a 3-way pot with AA against AK and JJ. Unfortunately, the Jack caught 4 clubs to win the whole pot. *Sigh*
Edit: Tourney 16, I got redeemed with another win... this time AA won me the whole tounrnament. Man, the Poker gods have a messed up sense of humor.
Posted Tue Jun 13, 2006 8:45 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
13 June 2006
The last 4 tournaments were a story of bad beats and missed races. I lost KK to AK, TT to QT, had AA outrun first by QT and then by 94. *Sigh* So much for finishing strong.
2 days until Hawaii, and tomorrow I'll be done with finals. Thankfully I finished my tourney requirement before I had to leave, and I cashed everything but my bonus out of Pacific. The rest I'll just try to play out, and if I lose it I lose it (I've played maybe $450 of the $2k I need to cash out the bonus, and there are other sites I prefer to play).
Posted Thu Jun 15, 2006 3:38 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
15 June 2006
I messed around a little bit with a small deposit on Stars to play some little tournies (moslty $3 rebuys), and hit a cold run of cards. C'est la vie.
Those Pacific fellas are tricky bastards though... I thought that by leaving the bonus amount in my account I could cash out the rest, but it appears not. So it looks like I'll be playing on Pacific until I've wagered 2 grand... but that's ok, it's not too bad of a site.
I'm leaving for Hawaii tonight and I'll probably be MIA until Monday, so best of luck everyone.
8)
Posted Sun Jun 18, 2006 7:24 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
18 June 2006
Greetings from Hawaii!!!
I'm online here for a few minutes so I thought I'd share some good news.
Before I left for the islands on Thursday, I played a little over at Lucky Derby, and wouldn't you know it, while I was on the table, they hit the Bad Beat Jackpot! I took down the table share, which added up to about a grand ($823 after taxes, tips, etc.). Always nice for doing nothing. :D
Here's the story. I folded pre-flop. 3 players went to the flop, which was 6 7 J . There were two checks and then a bet from the button, followed by two calls.
The turn came the 6 . There were two checks, a bet, and two calls again.
River came the 8 . Then came a check, a bet, a raise, a re-raise, a cap, and a reluctant call. I figured there were maybe two flushes vs. a full house, or a full house, a bad full house, and a good full house. But nope. Button shows A 2 . The EP player says, "straight flush" and turns the 4 5 . Then the other guy says, "me too," and turns the 9 10 !  Crazy, no?
In Hawaii, meanwhile, Erica and I have been enjoying the sun and the surf. Friday, we mostly just hung out around the hotel and beach, recovering from some jet lag. Saturday, we went hiking up on the volcanoes... did you know Poker doesn't always get you in the best physical shape? Amazing. That night we went to a fantastic barbeque and went to a great club on (well, practically on) the beach. Today, we went scuba diving earlier, which was fantastic. And after all this fun, we still haven't exhausted my bad beat money.
I'll be home tomorrow, see you all then!
Posted Mon Jun 19, 2006 4:57 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
19 June 2006
I'm back! After a great Hawaii vacation, I'm home. Time to give you guys an update on recent Poker activity... mostly, it's not good news.
Although I hit the bad beat jackpot at Lucky Derby on Thursday, the rest of my play was not that great. In the $6/$12 Omaha-8 game, I really screwed the pooch one hand. I got dealt A 2 4 9 in the BB. 5 limpers to me and I raised it up. Everyone called. Flop came 5 2 2 . I bet out $6. MP raised to $12, and LP raised to $18. I called (mistake #1), and so did MP. Turn came the A . I checked, knowing this probably wasn't a good card. MP checked, and LP bet $12. I called (mistake #2). This was a major donkey move, because the Ace actually killed my low and gave me an under-full house, because it should have been obvious LP had 55. But I somehow couldn't lay this down, and I ended up losing more. MP called. River was a blank, and I check-called, walking into 55 like I expected. Bleh. That was an amateur mistake.
I played some Stud and some Hold'em today, and I got one beat I can't even begin to describe the ugliness of. I had three 8's SHOWING on 5th street, and got called down by 10-10-5-5 that was hoping to spike a house (a 5 was already dead, so he had 3 outs max, 2 if I'd already had a house)... and this is in $5/$10 mind you. What an awful play. I missed quite a few other draws, and so far it's turned out to be a losing day... I'm down about $150 so far.
Posted Wed Jun 21, 2006 4:51 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
20 June 2006
Well, after my debacle the other day in which I lost $150, I improved greatly today. Played 3 tournaments, two $10 and one $20. I won the $20 and a $10, and made second in the other $10 for a tidy profit. Then it was off to play some $5/$10 Hold'em, but I was also in the mood for some Omaha-8, so I sat down at the $1/$2 table (sadly that's about all Pacific had going ). But oh my god, let me tell you guys, this was by far one of the juiciest Omaha games I've ever seen. Anyone else ever made 60 big bets for a session? Well I just did, and it was easy as hell. Anyone who knows two beans about Omaha-8 would do well to get himself to the Pacific tables, if you want to make some quick cash, that is. At Hold'em, I won $40, whoopy-doo, but I'm happy to be improving my Limit game. This week I plan on getting back to the Derby to get in on their $6/$12 Omaha game, because it's still ripe for the picking, and Poker is my only job at the moment.
Looking forward to next weekend's shot to win my WSOP seat. If I don't make it there, I'll probably be shifting to WSOP mode over at Stars, and I'm willing to invest about $1000 to try and get there.
Posted Thu Jun 22, 2006 2:55 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
21 June 2006
Well, I finally played enough hands to cash out my bonus on Pacific. I played a variety of games today: $2/$4 Stud, $5/$10 Hold'em, $1/$2 Omaha-8, $200 NL Hold'em, a $54 tournament, a $33 tournament, and an $11 tournament (all NLH STT's).
Stud, not much interesting there. $34.71 profit.
Limit Hold'em, not the best day. $22.19 loss.
Omaha-8, I took a very nice pot when I got the high half of a pot that was capped 6 ways on the river. I held AA35 (with A3 suited in hearts) under the gun. Normally, I would just call to invite other players, but these guys didn't need any extra convincing, so I just raised for value. Everyone called (yes, all other 9 players). The flop came A Q Q . Awesome, I already have Aces full, only QQ beats me, and there is little possibility of a low. The blinds checked, I bet, and 5 people called me. The turn was the 6 . I liked this card, but it might get flush draws to stick around, and I may win an extra bet from low draws if they don't hit on the river. So I bet again, and everyone called. The river brought the 5 . Sure there was a low, but the third club was great for me, as it might convince some flushes they had it good. The BB checked, and I bet. Then a player raised, another made it 3 bets, and the button capped before it got to me. I of course called, as did the other five players. One guy had K J for a losing flush, one had Q6 for a lower house, another had Q5 for an even lower house, and the other two had 32 for the nut low, good for 1/4 of the pot each (so they actually still made out pretty well). That was a pretty sick pot. $49.26 profit total.
No-Limit was pretty interesting. I splashed around with a lot of marginal hands, which induced some fairly loose calls. T7 was a great hand for me on two occasions. In one instance, I flopped an open-end straight, made it on the turn, and won a big pot from a set of 8's (I would have won his whole stack, if he hadn't been so damn passive). In the other instance, I won a big pot from someone who failed to re-raise with Kings before the flop and let me hit two pair. Unfortunately, an Ace hit the river, preventing him from going completely crazy. Still, that was a nice $100 pot or so. Overall, $236.41 profit.
The tournaments were a mixed bag. I lost the $54 tournament by bubbling, thanks to an awful beat. I held AA to a guy's A7, and he flopped trips. *Sigh* I ended up taking second in the $33 tournament and third in the $11 tournament. So I guess I about broke even.
Also, I picked up Harrington on Hold'em Volume III. It's full of useful information and interesting hands, so I'll go ahead and plug it. I decided on that over Sklansky and Miller's new NL Theory book, mostly because I plan on playing a lot more tournaments in the near future.
Also, now that I've completed my business on Pacific, I will be moving about $1000 onto Stars for tournaments and probably about $1000-$2000 onto Party to attack the cash games. I also plan to get back over to the Derby sometime this week, and there may be a few big home games in Davis in the next few days I'll be looking to scout.
Posted Sat Jun 24, 2006 3:14 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
23 June 2006
Whew, what a day. The early hours were spent at the Derby, checking into their juicy Omaha-8 game. And believe it or not, I hit another jackpot... not the big one, mind you, just a Royal Flush jackpot, good for an extra $175 (yet still always helpful). I was on the button with A J 3 5 and I raised for value. Flop was K Q 3 . Killed one low, but I had a huge draw, and still a backdoor low. It got bet to me, and I raised, as there were a bunch of callers out there. With no low draw on the board, it got 3-bet before it got back to me, which got a few more people out of the hand. We went 3-way to the turn, which was the 6 . Now, I was pretty sure this didn't give me the best low draw, and I ended up just calling one bet with my draw, as I was still getting good odds on the high side of the pot. The out of the blue hits the 10 on the river. The original bettor checked, the original caller bet, and I raised. The OB grudingly called, and regrettably the other player just called (I'm glad he bet a small flush). One guy had KK for a set, and the other had a small flush. That was a nice scoop to go along with my jackpot. How one bets a small flush or calls two bets with a set on that board is beyond me, but I'm not complaining.
A few hands later I got a sick 3/4 of a kill ($8/$16) pot. I had A 2 4 K and I 3-bet out of the blind, following a raise and 5 cold callers (yes, that's right). The betting was capped, and we went 7-way to the flop (already $224 in the pot). Flop was awesome: 3 5 10 . Nut low draw (with back-up), nut flush draw, and backdoor flush draw. I of course bet, and sadly no one raised (Still, a cool $280 in the pot). Turn was a fantastic card for me, the A , which gave me a second nut flush draw and a wheel. I bet again, and the person immediately left raised, which prompted four folds and a call. I re-raised, he capped, and the third bettor called ($472 in pot now). River came the Q , giving me a nut flush. I checked, the second guy bet, the button called, I raised, UTG re-raised, button folded, and I capped. He called, showing 24xx, giving me 3/4 of an enormous pot ($612 in pot after rake, meaning $460 for me, a $292 profit in one hand!!!). Overall, I think I made off up about $550 (including bonus) for the day there, cracking the top 10 list.
In the evening, I went to an apartment in Davis to get in on a big NL cash game a friend told me about. There were two tables going, and I saw a lot of old faces from the games back at the House. The table I ended up getting on wasn't one with a lot of familiar faces. The game had a $500 cap on buy-in, with a $2/$4 blind structure and a $0.25 ante. The game turned out to be extremely LAG, so I spent the first few rounds learning the players and the table. One hand I saw was absolutely hilarious. There was a raise to $20 and a call. The flop came A-K-9. There was a bet of $40 and a call. The turn was a Q. Now came a $60 bet and a call. The river was a 3, with a rainbow board. The action went check-check. The bettor showed 7-5, and the caller showed 10-8, winning with 10 high! The guy said, "I thought you had shit on the flop, and no way I was folding a straight draw on the turn." Now THAT's funny.
After I'd adjusted to the game, I started gambling with the table a bit. I made a pretty nice semi-bluff with 75s in a multi-way pot. I was in LP, and there had been a raise to $16 and 3 calls. I decided to splash around. The flop came 2-4-6 with one of my suit. There was a bet of $25, a raise to $60, and I came over the top for $175, inducing two folds. To tell you the truth, I wouldn't have minded getting all my money in right there, because I was sure I had plenty of outs against the jokers in that pot. Another hand I squeezed the table hard with AA. I was on the button, there had been a raise to $20 from early position and 3 callers. I decided I could either make a reasonable raise, or an enormous raise. I decided to go with the latter to mix up my game. I raised to $200. 3 players folded, and one guy said, "AK huh?" I was pretty sure he had a small pair at that point. I was praying he'd want a race and put in all his chips (He was stacked to about $800, and I had about $680 at that point), but he just smooth called. The flop came J-10-5, and he exclaimed, "you missed," and tossed in a bet of $200. I sat there for a minute, not really trying to act per se, but I wanted him to be fairly sure I was uncertain about putting in all my chips. I was somewhat legitmately worried he might have 55 or TT, but I thought that possibility was remote. In any case, I decided I was on a freeroll from earlier anyway, so I declared "all in" after a 30 second delay or so. Then HE went in the tank. "Set of Jacks?" he wondered. He hadn't insta-called, so I was pretty sure he didn't have a set. "Maybe you went crazy with AJ," he mused. "Or tens, too, I guess.... God, I know you have AK, but I guess you got some balls, too." He flipped his 66 and tossed it in the muck. I winked at him, showed one Ace, and scooped the pot. Now that was mean of me, because I KNOW that ate at him the rest of the night. From there, I actually lost a fair amount because I kept bricking on the flop. Still, I probably got out of there with about $450 in profit, raising my total for the day to a lovely $1000, beating my table share for the bad beat jackpot.
Tomorrow, I plan on logging some tournament hours on PS in prep for next week's big freeroll. Also, now that my BR has swelled again, I think I may try the $10/$20 Limit tables over at Party, and I may start venturing into $400 NL as well. Doubling the stakes is a big move for me though, and it will probably take some getting used to... I'll probably move down if I get uncomfortable, and I may actually wait to raise the BR to $10k (if possible) before making that big jump.
Harrington V3, Sklansky's NL book, and WPT Season 1 should be arriving at my place sometime next week, and I look forward to sinking my teeth into those.
Posted Sat Jun 24, 2006 9:32 pm GMT by Gunslinger
Keep these posts coming, they're fantastic!
Posted Mon Jun 26, 2006 12:32 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
25 June 2006
Well, it wasn't the best weekend. I played nothing but tournaments, and had nothing but losses (unless you count qualifying for the Sunday million).
Saturday, I played the $33 Deepstacks tourney on Stars, and couldn't catch a hand. Literally 4 rounds went by before I saw one instance of suited paint or a pocket pair of any kind. I was already way below the average stack by the end of Level VI, but I had my shot to double up when I caught AK, reraised before the flop, and hit K-K-Q on the flop. What sucks is that my opponent had KQ. So much for 3.5 hours there. After Erica got home, we just had dinner, hung out for awhile, and I played a qualifier for the $1M PS tourney today, which I actually got into. I also played a $22 180-man SnG, and busted out about 80th. Bummer.
Today, I busted out of the big tournament in a very painful way. I had been doing fairly well in the early rounds, and I was actually on the leader board after level V, with only one hand that went to showdown (my AA vs. JJ all-in pre-flop). I busted another guy with a set, and when we were down to about 260, it looked like I might actually make the money, which would be a nice $1k payout at least. But then it all started going wrong. Twice I got into a race situation with a smaller stack and got burned on the river, which is always painful (especially since they had to hit a 2-outter in both cases). Then, I picked up a decent hand, QQ, and put in a nice re-raise, but we still went to the flop 3 ways. When the board came A-K-8, and there was a bet an all-in in front of me, I had to fold. Turns out I was up against AK and 88, and the AK sucked out an A to win on the river. Guess it was a good thing I didn't call, but it sucked that I lost a large amount pre-flop with the best hand, only to wind up in 3rd on the flop. We were down to 230, and all of a sudden I found myself below the average stack without enough room to make sophisticated plays with stuff like suited connectors. A lot of sudden aggression on my table froze me up, and every time I tried to steal the blinds I met a sharp reraise, which made life suck. When we were down to 220 (top 180 got paid), I became desperate with a short stack, and ended up pushing in with ATs from LP after a small raise from a known stealer. But the BB reraised with AK, and I was out after 5 cards hit the board that didn't help me. I felt crushed, because it seemed like so much went wrong in such a short amount of time, but I guess that's how tournaments can be sometimes.
Weekend total: -$255. Yuck; I'll need to start the week in a hole and try to climb out. *Sigh* That's Poker.
Posted Tue Jun 27, 2006 1:59 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
26 June 2006
Well, today was an interesting day to say the least. I was playing some $100 PLO on Stars (won about $180 at that ), and I registered for what I thought was a $22 180-person SnG. But, as it turned out, I was in a $4.40 SnG... oops! But what a story, gents. After the first break I was down to 1700 in chips, but then I doubled up. And then again, and then again. Before I knew it, I was 3rd in chips. Then, before I knew it, I made the money. Then, before I knew it, I was at the final table. Then, before I knew it, I was heads-up against a total donk and I pulled out the win. A nice little mistake that netted me $216.
Then I played in the 2 THP heads-up tourneys, and boy did I donk out on those. But I do want to give props to my opponents. Johny and crack played very well, but if I had to do it again, I might not have pushed all-in with that 44 against crack. Oh well, I needed the education if I'm going to play you guys in the freeroll next week.
Winning a tournament always feels so good. That win today actually felt better than winning $1000 in cash games last week... call it a moral victory I guess, but nothing beats a MTT win.
Posted Tue Jun 27, 2006 7:39 am GMT by crack
You are right, it's one of the best if not the best feeling in poker. I have won significant amounts at tournaments and cash games, but nothing has given me as much pleasure as winnig a MTT, even though it was for a lot less money.
It's the addiction I crave I suppose. In some extent, I can get that from horse racing when I predict exactly how the race is going to turn out and watch my horse switch to the inside and then pull the trigger 2 furlongs out to bolt up and win by 8 lengths.
For some reason I blew hot and cold in the HU tournies. I played great the first two rounds then really poorly in the next. I am not sure if it was a concentration issue or not. Anyway, it's something I need to fix for next time.
Keep up the good work!
Posted Fri Jun 30, 2006 1:12 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
30 June 2006
Sorry I've been basically MIA the last few days, guys, but I've been fairly busy. My roommates have been driving me crazy, and I'm moving out soon, but I decided to just move a bunch of shit over to my girlfriend's place, including my computer. Tuesday and Wednesday I pretty much took days off when it came to Poker (needed a little time to savor my MTT win and clear my head). Yesterday, though, I ventured back to Party to check out the action.
I gave the $10/$20 tables a shot, but I found the games a bit tougher than some of the other players here. We all have bad days, and after losing about $180, I thought it might be time to try something else (stakes are still a little scary for me). Losing $100 or $200 doesn't alarm me, as I'm used to playing $200 NL, but the thought of putting up that much almost every hand is a little worrying--I think I may wait until the BR hits $8k-$10k before I try stakes like these so I have some breathing room and time to "educate" myself. After that, I wanted to move to NL. The $200 tables were all full for some reason, so I got a $100 table while I was on the waiting list.
I proved to at least one player at $100 NL why you don't limp with Aces. He only had about $46 at the start of the hand, so stacking him wasn't nearly as sweet, but it was still damn cool. I was in the BB with 63o, he was on the button with AA, everyone had folded to him and he smooth called. The SB folded, and I went ahead and checked. Flop came 6-6-3, giving me the nuts. I decided that if I wanted to stack this guy, he was going to need some kind of hand, and that I needed to get some "sweetening" money in there, so I bet $4, pretty sure that he would call with overcards (after all, I would check a 6 here for sure, right? ). He instead raised, which made me pretty giddy--his raise was small, only to $10 (leaving him with $35 behind and $22 in the pot after my call). I decided to call and put in another little bet on 4th, enticing him to commit more of his stack with poor information. My suspicion here was that he probably had 88-AA, or maybe AJ-AK, although he could have made this move with 54 as well. The turn brought a Q, and I bet out $10 (the old donkey play). He then moved all-in at me, and I called quickly. No A came to save him on the river, and he learned why we limping in with AA in cash games (if you can't play well post flop) is just dumb.
Later, I got involved in a 3-way all-in at $200 NL with A K on a Q 10 6 flop. I was up against Q-10 and 66, so I needed a spade or a J, but I was getting huge odds on my money (over 4-to-1), so it was an easy call with two nut draws. But the Poker gods didn't smile on me, and I lost a buy-in there. I decided to try my luck at PLO instead, but I ended up losing another $100 there when I got all my money in on the flop with the current nuts (three kings), but getting less than 2-to-1, an opponent called with a 3-spade nut flush draw, which I didn't think was a very good play. But players love to chase, and sure enough, he hit his draw on the river and I couldn't pair the board, so there went another buy-in.
Not the best day. But I can still draw enough morale from my tourney win that I'm doing ok. I'll probably play a bit today in prep for the big freeroll tomorrow, which I'm very much looking forward to.
Posted Fri Jun 30, 2006 2:00 pm GMT by Cricket_Fire
I love reading this log.
How have you found HoH 3? I got it a little while ago, but got the Sklansky book with it (deal from Amazon), so haven't gotten around to HoH yet. Any good?
Good luck in the freeroll!
Posted Fri Jun 30, 2006 8:03 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
30 June 2006
Cricket, I too used that deal from Amazon and I can tell you that both books are very good, well worth the price (which turned out to be only about $16/book if I recall, not bad for Poker books).
Funny incident earlier, I was playing PLO ($100). I raised with AAJJ (2x suited), and I got three callers. Flop was 10-10-6 offsuit. I bet about 1/3 the pot, and the shortest stack on the table raised less than the pot all in, which I called, given that there was a good chance he was getting desperate, and I still had 4 wins in the deck, plus backdoor straight and flush possibilities. But he had a 10, I didn't get help, and I lost less than 1/4 of my stack. He spent the next 15 minutes telling me what a donk I was, and then I stacked him... he called me a choice name and then left the table. Damn, I love it when the cards do all the talking for me.
Posted Sat Jul 01, 2006 3:31 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
30 June 2006
Jesus, some days variance can be a real rollercoaster, and a real bitch.
In limit Hold'em, I was down as much as 14 BB, then I ended up 22.5 BB's.
PLO, I lose half a buy-in, re-buy, then double up minus a little.
Stud, oh god don't get me started, minus 15 BB to some of the most retarded f*cking players on the planet. Let me describe to you in detail some of the bullshit these two donks were pulling, and they were winning literally 2/3 of the pots between the two of them.
Example One (all cards are in sequence dealt)
Me: A-7-A-Q-J-7-4
Donk 1: 3-6-10-A-7-8-9
Example Two
Me: K-K-Q-Q-9-K-5
Donk 2: J-6-4-7-J-J-J
There's a nice f*cking one outter we capped on 6th and 7th.
Example Three
Me: Q-Q-A-A-T-T-3
Donk 1: 5h-7-10-2h-Kh-Jh-3h
Runner runner runner runner flush, which he called with me having open pairs the entire way.
Example Four
Me: 10-10-10-7-2-A-J
Donk 2: 5-2-3-J-K-6-4
Woo Hoo! Another gutshot! Also, he called 3 bets cold on 3rd with this hand. Lovely.
For the first time in months I was put on actual tilt by these shenanigans. Few things get under my skin more than donks who win win win, and just when it looks like I've got a hand to break them, the deck hits them out again. I was PISSED. But I'm better now.
The Poker gods are some sick f*ck some days.
Posted Sun Jul 02, 2006 1:42 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
2 July 2006
Well, as most of you know, I did not win the WSOP entry yesterday. Damn. I did have some favorable situations, and got lucky on some hands, but got kinda screwed in the late goings.
Early on, I lost half my chips with 99 to Roy the donk, and I felt like I was hurting. But then he doubled me up with AQ vs his QJ, and I was about back to even. Then I got a 3-way all-in with my AA vs. a smaller pair vs. Roy's J5 that actually gave me some chips to work with. I won a big pot vs. Sheila69 when she tried the all-in bluff against my KK with her Q3... Zinn and crack ripped her a new one in TeamSpeak for that. From there, it seemed like I was cruising. I got into another big confrontation when I held the A 5 on a A T 8 flop. Ice01 and another player had bet/called, I raised enough to endanger their stacks, and we got a three-way all-in--I believe Ice01 had the AT for the lead (the funniest thing was, I heard him say "I have two pair" in chat ). But I was lucky enough to spike a diamond on the turn and knock them both out, which put me in 2nd chip position. Then something crappy happened. When we moved tables again, I was put directly on Roy's right, preventing me from stealing any blinds or making any big stack plays. I honestly believe my position really decreased my chance of winning, because I was forced to pick up a hand, which I couldn't do. The blinds whittled me down to a little over the average stack. Then I raised from MP with AQ, and the aggressive DaveB raised me out of the blind, so naturally I committed my stack, and naturally he took me out in 11th place with KK. *Sigh* Oh well, I'm pretty happy with how I played, and if I'd been on Roy's LEFT, things might have been very different.
Other than that, I'm taking a short break from Poker to decide whether I want to commit any more time/money to trying to qualify for the WSOP.
Posted Mon Jul 03, 2006 1:01 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
2 July 2006
I knew I should have stuck to not playing online.... another bad day cost me a few hundred bucks. I don't really want to get into specifics right now, but I got frozen for cards like you wouldn't believe, especially at the hi/lo games.
So I've made somewhat of a decision. I've made enough money to get me through the summer: food, rent, bills, etc. I do NOT want to risk losing that money. So I've decided to lock up a few grand in a bank account, especially since I am moving soon and need extra money for security deposit and such. I am keeping about $1200 to play Poker, which means I'll have to drop down some levels from where I've been playing (although I can probably still hit up the $6/$12 game at the Derby, as it is VERY loose, VERY soft, and extremely profitable, especially with only one blind). The rest of the money I am putting aside for expenses and into a general "enjoyment" fund, where I think the money will be better spent anyway. I've given up on the WSOP for this year, for the one big reason of I'm just not ready to play at that level yet.
But this does mean I've done well enough the rest of the year (mostly the last few months) to get myself through the summer without having to get a "real" job, and that makes me happy. I have enough now to pay my bills and stay relatively comforably with my girlfriend.
See you at the kiddie tables.
Cheers.
-Dave
8)
Edit: also I should mention I cashed out all my online money to try and redistribute. I'm thinking I may go back to Pacific to beat up the fishies there, because competition was always notoriously bad. Maybe I can hit up the $2/$4 limit tables on Party as well... I've decided to start focusing a lot on my Limit Hold'em game, and probably won't play much NL except in tournament or against the fishies up at Jackson.
Posted Mon Jul 03, 2006 4:22 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
3 July 2006
Bleh, July is off to a terrible start. But I'll be honest, it's a combination of bad cards and bad play. My mind is not where it should be, so it's definitely time for a break, at least until the weekend. I guess I'm not doing horribly, only down $25 from my new $1200 stake, but I've already messed with my Poker mojo.
Posted Thu Jul 06, 2006 2:19 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
5 July 2006
Getting back on the horse slowly. Just played some Poker today, two $11 SnG's on Stars. In the first tournament, I got a humiliating 4th place bubble. I was second in chips, the short stack pushed all in with AJ and I called with AK. He hit his Jack. Nuts. Next hand, I get KK. The button raises to 800, I push all-in for my last 1800, and he calls showing A7. Board comes A-9-A-8-7. *Sigh* Missed out on two hands as a 3-to-1 favorite... I must be turning into huskie. The other tournament went better, as I finished in first place with ease.
Saturday, I'm headed to my Dad's to get in on a $10 tourney with his coworkers. Should be some easy money, maybe a $60 or $70 first prize. Sunday I'm headed to Jackson to play in the $100 NL games, and Monday I'm probably off to Lucky Derby to play the juicy $6/$12 Omaha-8 game (assuming I don't get cleaned at Jackson). To keep myself thinking positive, I probably try to keep my Poker to a minimum tomorrow and Friday, although I may play a few more tournaments. Maybe I'll try my luck in another $4 MTT.
Posted Fri Jul 07, 2006 4:16 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
7 July 2006
I've been playing some SnG's the last few days and I've been having an ok run. A couple firsts, a second or two, and a third account for about half the games I've played so far. Also, my girlfriend and I played a $5.50 SnG together last night and with some coaching she got third. Look how proud I am.
Right now I'm getting deep into a $3 tourney, and should be starting anither Stud tourney pretty soon.
Posted Sat Jul 08, 2006 12:41 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
7 July 2006
Topsy-turvey few days of Poker. On Monday, my roll was $1200. Today, it's $1202. *Sigh* I guess Poker's like that sometimes, and being even is better than being down. Still, there's been an alarming trend for me lately. Every big win is accompanied by a big loss, so it's been tough to get my roll shooting in the right direction. I hope to change that this weekend with some easy games and casino fishies.
Ok, so today I played a $3 tourney and I was doing pretty well for awhile. Then, in the 200/400 level (I had about 12k at this point), I donked off all my chips on a miserable bluff. I raised to 1200 from the CO with A9, and the SB called. Flop came 6-4-3, he checked, and I bet 1500. He min-raises me to 3000, and for some reason I interpret this as a steal bluff (of course, at the $3 level I forget that people always bluff all their chips and bet as little as humanly possible with super hands). So I pushed all-in to get him off the hand, and he slowrolls me with 66. Stupid of me, but I HATE ass-hats who slowroll. Made the money, earning all of $2 for my efforts. Moron.
I also played in a $3 Stud tourney, and was card dead the entire time. I really don't like Limit tournaments because the action eventually forces too much gambooooling. Stud-8 tourneys are ok due to the high number of fish, but Limit Omaha-8, Stud high, and Hold'em tournaments have all been awful for me (save for the one Omaha-8 I won, more through lucky flops than anything else).
Party Poker offered me a 15% July bonus, which I decided to go for, but as we all know, Party Poker is rigged, and I lost more than the bonus made me, ending on an especially horrible run at the $2/$4 table. Here's what I hate about Limit (at least tight limit games). In NL, any one hand might get you even or in the black, but in limit, after losing 3 or 4 pots, it's very tough to see your balance get back to even--of course it's all long term, but the psychological effects of having a losing session are still there. Also, the $1/$2 limit tables on Party we tough! Much harder than the $2/$4 tables--there were a lot of pots that went to 3 and 4 bets before the flop, and these guys would not slow down.
I also played some SnG's on Stars today, and I've been doing pretty well at them on Stars. Played 3 today so far, with 1 win, 2 cashes, and only one bust, where I went out holding KK to AK.
Back to the grind, friends.
Posted Sat Jul 08, 2006 5:14 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
8 July 2006
I'm not playing online today so I can stay psyched up for my small stakes tourney tonight (but it has been months since I won at my Dad's, and I need this to maintain my rep). I did spend most of today though having a look at Kill Phil which I got for free with my FPP's. I must say, it is a VERY enlightening read. For Snoogins, suitedaces, or anyone else who likes a formulaic, mathematical approach to the game, I recommend you take a look at this book. I don't plan on using the formula exactly in tournaments, but it will open you up to a lot of new plays and give you a new way to think about a lot of situations. I've always known big bet Poker was very strong, especially with high blinds, but this book reinforces jusr HOW powerful it is.
Also, I've been enjoying my Season 1 WPT DVD's. Man, that show used to be so much better.
I'll have a tourney report tonight when I get back.
Posted Tue Jul 11, 2006 5:11 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
11 July 2006
Downswings suck.... really bad.
Saturday night, went to the tournament, and ran into the worst luck against some truly awful players. 10-10 went in the flames against a runner-runner flush, and I committed the rest of my stack on a semi-steal with A7 from the SB after 4 limps. One limper calls, showing A3??? And wouldn't you know it, the 3 peals right off. This has been an awful week for hands where I'm a dominating favorite. The night was not all bad, though, as my girlfriend ended up winning the entire tournament. I couldn't have been prouder.
Sunday, Jackson trip. I sat in on $3/$6 for 4 hands, made $31 off AQ, and then caught a frozen wave of cards like you wouldn't believe at the NL. I got 2 pocket pairs the entire 6 hour session. 55 and 22. Only one true suited connector (76s which received an offsuit flop of 2-K-Q), one instance of AK, and very few interesting hands. I ended losing a little at the NL after hours of sheer boredom, but finished up a whopping $16 for the day. That doesn't even cover gas.
Then there's today, at Lucky Derby, where I will probably never play again. Oh my dear Lord, there is so much collusion and the management did NOTHING. That is more than enough to convince me never to come to your club again. I'm sorry, but when I see a husband and wife raising and re-raising to knock a third player out of a pot, and then see them both flip over total garbage, I know something fishy is going on. In Omaha-8, I had the most atrocious assortment of hands I've ever seen, which was doubly frustrating because some of the pots were enormous. Finally, I picked up A23K double-suited, flop nut low draw with nut flush draw, turn a second flush draw and a broadway straight draw, and then whiff on the river. Pot gets taken by a set of 7's... what kind of idiot plays 9-7-7-5 in Omaha-8 from under the f*cking gun? Then I got quartered in one pot against a player who never had anything only to wake up with a nut low the instant I enter the pot. After the game broke up and I was down $130, I went to play $4/$8 Hold'em, where the collusion was even worse. They had 3 schills sitting the game, capping every pot before the flop, and somehow one of them would always win. Maybe I need a tinfoil hat, but that's damn suspicious. When I picked up QQ, I ended up losing $80 with it on a board of all undercards because one schill had rivered a straight with 86 after cold-calling 4 bets pre-flop with it. Lovely. And enough to send me home fairly certain that Lucky Derby will no longer receive the business of either myself or my friends.
Tonight I played two SnG's, lost one and got 3rd in another, both ending in ridiculous beats. First one I busted with KK against AJ (happens from time to time). Second game I get it all in pre-flop with AT vs A9. Flop 10-9-4. Sweet, just have dodge a 2-outter and I take a 10-to-1 lead over the last player. Turn 9. You're joking. I'm crippled and get knocked out the next hand, hoping I have two live cards with 96 only to be called by K9. And of course, I can't win when I dominate, nor when I'm dominated.
So the once mighty bankroll is down to a humble $1017. I think I'm going to stick to $11 SnG's and small stakes tourneys for a little while until I get my bearings. But yeah, downswings suck. I could really use a MTT win to cheer me up.
Posted Thu Jul 13, 2006 5:07 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
13 July 2006
Not a lot to report, as I didn't play much in a way of Poker lately. Two SnG's, where I garnered one 5th and one 2nd (and wanted the win oh so badly, but variance when you only have 10 BB is a killer). I also stepped onto the Stud table ($1/$2, as there was no $2/$4 game running on Stars at the time) and made a quick $30. Were the tournaments down on Stars tonight or something? None of them seemed to be in "registering" state.
Also sent out an e-mail to both my Senators regarding the new bogus internet gambling law.
Tomorrow (well, later today after about 8-10 hours of solid sleep), I plan on logging some tournament hours and maybe some time playing $25 or $50 NL. I've just about finished reading Sklansky, Harrington, and the Rodman/Nelson book and I'm interested in taking some of the new strategies to the bank.
BR is $1050, and I'm praying for no more downswings.
Posted Sat Jul 15, 2006 10:31 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
15 July 2006
I feel as though I've been on a downward spiral as of late. I simply have not been doing well, either in cash or in tournaments. Some of it is bad luck, but I also do not believe I've been playing well as of late.
I have not won a SnG in over a week.
I have not cashed in my last four SnG's.
I have lost money in 75% of my cash game sessions this month.
I have cashed in only one MTT this month.
I am down $240 for the month, although $210 of that is from a single debacle at Lucky Derby. So maybe it's not as bad as it seems.
As for bad luck, I've been losing a lot of times I've been a 3-to-1 favorite in an SnG and had Aces cracked on 3 different occasions against a very well concealed hand.
As for bad play, I chased a few Stud and Omaha 8 hands I shouldn't have, and also threw away what would have been a huge hand in NL Hold'em last weekend. I had 85s on the button, 5 people limped, and I limped. The SB raised to 10, 3 people called, and although I was getting over 5-to-1, I folded for some reason and berated myself for calling with 85s (although I routinely made this move when I had a bigger BR). Anyway, the flop came 6-7-9, and the SB had AA and got stack by someone who rivered 2 pair. That was a nice little $250+ pot I missed out on because I wasn't willing to call $8. Stupid. Last night, I called two all-ins with TT in an SnG, something I don't usually do. Of course, I was up against AJ and KK and lost everything, but that's what I deserved.
Not sure what I should do to retool, as I'm down to $1000 in my BR, which isn't horrible, but I'd like to get it back up. I may just continue to try my luck at the $1/$2 limit games, $25 NL, $11 SnG's, and tournaments $20 and under. I need to do SOMETHING to shake this funk, so I'll probably take it easy for the next two days.
Posted Sun Jul 16, 2006 5:39 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
16 July 2006
*Sigh* Yeah, well, downward spiral continued with two more SnG losses, which led to some very serious thinking. My head simply is not in the game right now. I realized that when I told myself to take out what I need to live for the summer, I was telling myself much more.
Bigger picture here: last year, I was convinced if I could just get the right run going, I would really "make it big." Ie, win a major tournament, find myself rolling in cash, and never ever worry about finding a job or using my college degree. I'd be living the great life as one of the pros, and I'd win my first bracelet by the time I was 25. Yeah, right. Truth is, 99% of the "pros" live awful lifestyles and have to grind out a meager living and praying against variance. The more successful "pros" have their hands in a lot of things to keep themselves financially secure. Phil Gordon, Paul Phillips, Eli Elezra... these guys play Poker for the thrill because they can afford it. If they lose, it's not big deal. But for most players, this isn't the case. So I'd be better off getting myseld financially secure doing a real job and then playing when I'm comfortable, and maybe, just maybe, I can get some satellite action and tackle a major tournament someday, when winning won't seem like everything.
That's why my game has suffered tremendously. My need to win is keeping me from winning, if that makes sense. So for now, I'm taking an extended leave from Poker to think about the other things I have going in my life. I have vowed not to hit a table for at least a week, but that's just step one. I highly doubt I will be playing much more Poker until after I have a real job, when Poker isn't my only source of income. I have the money I need for the summer, so I should just be happy I scraped by for two years in a row without needing a real job. By next year, I'll be graduated and can take a job that doesn't involve using a cash register, so it won't seem like such a big deal to "beat the system." Plus, I won't be sitting there thinking, "I could make more per hour playing $4/$8." Only when I'm not afraid to lose will I be able to play more solid Poker.
I'm proud of what I've accomplished in Poker, but I realize there's still a huge gap between my theory and my performance. I feel that I understand the game (or games) at a very high level, but when my money's on the line, I've been freezing. That's what this break is all about.
Don't worry, I'll still be around the forums, because I want to keep sharp with Poker, because I love this game too much to give it up forever. I just need some time to step back is all.
-Dave
8)
Posted Mon Jul 17, 2006 10:34 am GMT by Gunslinger
Dave, you're always looking at yourself outside the game, and making sure your head is on straight, which is a very important quality in a successful poker player. This kind of smart thinking will always help you in the long run. Good luck!
Posted Sun Jul 23, 2006 2:58 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
22 July 2006
Well, depending on your perspective, I'm either back on the horse or off the wagon. I played a variety of tournaments today, a 20-table $4.40 tournament (went bust holding AQ vs. a donk who called with QJ and spiked a jack), a $1.10 No-Limit tournament (where I went bust round 2 with KK vs. AA, d'oh), three $5.50 3-table tournaments (where I got a 3rd, a 4th, and an 11th), two $10 SnG's (a 2nd and a 4th, grrrrr, all because some idiot limped with AK), and a $3.30 Limit Hold'em tourney. I must say now, I'm not sure I really understand or like Limit Hold'em tournaments--it seems like so much less skill and so much more luck than No Limit. In ring games with big stacks, I think Limit is a fine game. But played in an environment where everyone has 15-20 BB or less, losing one BB pre-flop, missing the flop, and wasting another on a continuation attempt can really hit you hard, because it's very difficult to get someone off a hand. I may need to study the format more or just stay away from Limit tournaments, because I did not enjoy it.
So the total is up a whopping $17 for the day... but I had intended to get back into the swing of things slowly, so that's ok.
Posted Mon Jul 24, 2006 2:41 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
23 July 2006
I've decided that at least for awhile, I want to focus exclusively on tournaments, because I seem to be doing best at those lately, and the truth is I'm finding it pretty boring to play cash games nowadays. Cash games involve just sitting there and grinding it out hour after hour. Tournaments have a beginning, a middle, and an end, and appropriate strategies for each stage--I like this a lot more, and there's a lot of money in tournaments these days.
Today, I played a 3-table tournament for $5, busted out in 11th when my AK failed to outrun JJ.
I then played in another $4 180-person tournament, where I cashed, but finished in a heart-breaking 10th place just shy of the final table. The blinds were 600/1200 with a 100? ante, and I had about 13k left, only 5 people at the table. UTG and UTG+1 folded, and the button called. I had KT and of course pushed in. The BB folded, and the button called, showing AJs. I really don't understand his move of limping on the button with AJ; I just thought it was a horrible play, but it worked. C'est la vie.
And, I finally managed to pull my head out of my ass and win a $10 SnG. I was down 4.5-to-1 as we went to heads-up, but the amount of pushing I'd done 3 and 4 handed convinced my opponent I was a donk who never held a hand. So naturally, I doubled off AK, and then knocked him down low when I slowplayed 3 Jacks. He got back to even when we got it all in with my KQ to his A3, but I picked up 33 2 hands later, pushed, and he called with K6 (why?). He hit nothing, and I got him down to 180 chips. The next hand he was all-in blind but had AA! I doubled him up 3 times before the crucial hand, where I helfd A4, pushed him in, and he called with KK--he was picking up some hands! Fortunately, the board came 2-3-5-8-J and he was eliminated. Hooray for me.
The next few weeks will involve really honing my SnG and tournament skills, and I plan to try and get into the Sunday Million on Stars most weeks; hopefully that will give me some bigger tourney experience.
Posted Tue Jul 25, 2006 3:39 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
24 July 2006
Today there wasn't much action; just three $11 SnG's.
The first one gave me my "donkey moment of the day." I held AQ from MP, and the short stack (~650) min-raised to 60. I called, and the button called, along with both blinds. Flop came QTT. The blinds checked, the short stack pushed all-in for about 600 (I had about 1400 at this stage). I decided to call. The button also called, which should have set off alarm bells in my head, but I missed the signal. The blinds folded. The turn was an offsuit 6. For some ridiculous reason, I convinced myself the button had a had like KQ, so I pushed all-in. Of course, he quickly called and showed me AT. Short stack had 77. That wasn't my finest moment, and it never would have happened if I'd just re-raised pre-flop like I'd originally planned.
Fortunately, I won the next two. I posted one crucial hand from the first SnG, where I tripled up with TT when I flopped a set on a queen high board--I got every chip from the guys who held AQ and AA, respectively. That'll learn him to re-raise AA pre-flop, especially when he's one of the first to act after me. The second game, 3 people got knocked out on level 1, getting the play short-handed fairly early. I posted another hand from THAT tournament where I doubled up with a set of deuces. When I got down to heads up in the game, I once again lost as a 3-to-1 favorite, holding AQ to his AT only to have him river a 10. About five hands later, though, I limped with KK, he doubled the blind, I re-raised to 600 (blinds 50/100 at that stage), and he called. He pushed immediately on the A-K-6 flop, and I couldn't call fast enough. The 6 on the turn gave him 2 outs, but no such luck for him and I took my second victory.
Also after my entry last night, I played a heads-up tourney, which I won against an incredibly passive player. I'm embarassed to say this, but my record for heads-up matches online is a shameful 4 and 12. Live I've done much better, and I've won the majority of the tournaments I've played where I've gotten down to heads up, but the actual matches online I seem to do poorly in. Fortunately, that felt like another monkey off my back last night.
BR is almost back up to $1100, and hopefully the sky's the limit from there.
Posted Wed Jul 26, 2006 5:14 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
25 July 2006
Well, if you didn't read about it in the tournament section, I had a fantastic run in the Stud 8-or-Better tournament tonight on Stars. I really felt like I was in the zone tonight: reading hands, value raising, getting away when I needed to... it was fantastic. Before I knew it, I found myself in the chip lead, mostly by playing selectively, punishing low draws in heads-up pots, bluffing and utilizing scare cards carefully, and by not overvaluing lows (I was amazed by how many people thought 87 or 86 are good lows). I got some great scoops, and before I knew it, I was chip leader going into the final table. One hand then came up against the 2nd leader. He had brought it in with a deuce, a 7 called, and I raised with (QQ)T. The bring-in then re-raised. I was somewhat worried about Aces, but there was one Ace out and he could have been re-raising with a good three low or a pair worse than Queens (Jacks maybe since he re-raised my 10). I caught a J on 4th street, the bring-in hit a blank, and the 7 hit a 4. I led out, got raised by the bring-in, and then the 74 cold-called two bets. With that much money in the pot I had to take one off. I called. I caught a K, the other two caught babies. I checked, the bring-in bet, and the low draw called all-in. I decided I was going to call down, because this pot was getting huge. I caught a 4th diamond on 6th street, giving me more outs if I was in fact behind, and I check/called again. I got a Q on the river, and noticed the bring-in had only a little more than a big bet left, so I led, he raised all-in, and I called. He showed (AA)2 with a bunch of blanks, and he was out. I took the entire side pot and half the main pot to give me a commanding stack. The guy then proceeded to chew me out about what an idiot I was for the next hour... seriously, read the dialogue I posted on the tournament forum. He claimed I couldn't lay down QQ when it was so obvious I was beat, but three points:
1. It was not obvious I was beat.
2. I had re-draws galore.
3. He was the one who went all the way with one pair, unimproved, with no low draw.
He complained I'd hit a 2-outter, which was also incorrect, since I had any 9, the other Ace, and any other pair as well as a Q to beat him. But I let him rant--he was a total idiot.
As we got down, the stacks evened out a bit. When it got down to three players, I doubled up the short stack, giving us all a similar number of chips (no more than two BB difference at this stage). I didn't feel like taking a crap-shoot for the $360 difference in the top 3 places in the prize pool, so I suggested a 3-way even chop, which both players accepted. Then we contacted support and waited. And waited... and waited... and waited. Over half an hour passed, and no one came to the table. The other players got tired and suggested we play it out with the winner transfering funds to the other two. I wasn't crazy about this, as I had no idea who was trustworthy, but they were ready to play, so I had to go with it. The short stack obviously had more faith than I did, and promptly busted the next hand. Now it wasn't a big deal. Even if I got screwed out of the deal, I would only make $13 less, so I wasn't too worried. Because the antes had been chopped unevenly (based on who was the bring-in) when we all sat out waiting for support, I was down 4-to-1 in chips at this point, and went out in second. The winner was indeed an honorable player, though, and transferred me my extra $13.
So that was a nice little $400 day! :D
Tomorrow, or whenever I get money from my cashout, I plan to write PokerStars a very nasty e-mail, because their lack of response literally could have cost me $360 if I'd gone out in third and the winner decided to screw me.
BR back up to $1500. 8)
Posted Wed Jul 26, 2006 9:42 am GMT by supafrey
Did you put "urgent" in the subject line?
Posted Wed Jul 26, 2006 2:14 pm GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
| supafrey wrote: | | Did you put "urgent" in the subject line? |
Yup, on 6 different occasions.
Here's the response they sent back to me an hour after the tournament ended:
| Quote: | Hello David,
I sincerely apologise for not responding to your emails. We are having an
email problem, and have only just received them. I reviewed the chat and
see that you managed to resolve things between yourselves.
Again, I apologise for the lack of response, and thank you for playing on
PokerStars.
Regards,
Steve C
PokerStars Support Team |
Posted Fri Jul 28, 2006 2:14 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
27 June 2006
I haven't played much since the big win the other day, as I'm still giving it some time to "digest." Yesterday, I donked a SnG horribly. Today, I played another, with better results. I won it, but not before cracking pocket Kings on three different occasions. Some might say I donked it up, but my opponents played it badly on all three occasions.
1. We were down to 4 players, with the top 3 having moderate stacks, and the short stack having 1200. The SS raised minimum (to 300), leaving him with 900 chips left. I was in the BB holding Q5. And although I was sure he was planning to move in on the flop no matter what, I felt compelled to call in case he was doing something stupid like min-raising with AK. The flop came Q-6-5. I could have just checked, but I figured since he was planning to move in anyway, I'd do it for him and make it look like I was pushing him off a hand. He called, showing KK, and failed to improve. Score one for the Donk Prophet!
2. The third hand of 3-handed play, I picked up 97s from the BB, and the button (the big stack), limped in. The SB folded. I checked. The flop came J-9-9. I checked, and he checked. The turn came a 6 (and a second diamond, giving me a FD as well). I decided to try and make some money and test him--I bet the pot, 500. He smooth-called. The river came an offsuit A. I bet 900, and he called. I showed my trip 9's and he mucked. The HH said he had KK.
3. The big stack for some reason sat out when we got to 3-handed play, which made for a very odd dynamic between me and the other player, since we knew his blind was up for grabs any hand he had money at stake. The logical thing to do would be to blind him out by always folding the button, but the two of us were far too brash and aggressive to do something like that--instead, we started stealing and re-stealing from each other as well! He had limp/raised on 3 separate occasions from the button or the SB, and I didn't believe he had something that good every time to risk going bust. I had AJ in the BB, and the button was still sitting out. The SB limped, I raised to 600 (3x the BB), and he min raised to 1000. I was suspicious, but I decided to call. The flop came A-9-5. He checked, and I put him all in for 1900. He thought for a moment and called with KK.
He made two cardinal mistakes: he called all in with KK with an A on board, and he went bust while one player was sitting out.
I won the game on the very next hand with 44 when the other player returned to the game and called my all in with Q2.
8)
Next month I will probably be moving up to the $20 SNG's.
Posted Sat Jul 29, 2006 1:32 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
28 July 2006
Well, last night I did play one other tournament, which I won, but it had some of the most bizarre plays I'd ever seen. There was one move in particular I did not understand. We were down to 4, and one player was sitting out, and the blinds had eaten him down to about 800 (blinds 100/200 at this stage). I'm sitting with about 6000, and the shortest opponent not sitting out has 2000 or so. Twice, I had seen him make an all-in raise before the flop--this alone seemed foolish, because he could have folded every hand and probably still made the money if the short stack didn't return. Anyway, I had AQs on the button, and I raised to 600. The guy with 2000 goes all-in, the BB folds, and I ask for time. I'm not willing to believe he has Aces here. And even if I lost this hand, I would still almost certainly make the money, and I wanted to send a message to this guy that he was being an idiot by risking all his chips, so I decided to call 1400 more, fairly sure I was sacrificing the chips, but strategically so.
He had AK. But the board came Q-3-2-9-7, and he exited on the bubble, busting while another player was sitting out. That play made no sense to me, at all. If I had been in his seat, that AK would have been an easy fold to me. Sure, I hate going to the final 3 short-stacked, but making 3rd is so much better than making 4th, it's worth it... but especially when the last guy in the game is short-stacked and dead money because he's sitting out! 75% of the time, he would double up, and make the money by getting called with that AK. 25% of the time he would be out. But, if he folds, probably he will make the money 95% of the time, maybe 100%. I don't get why he'd risk want to risk losing $11 instead of making at LEAST $7.
I ended up winning that game. The last pot baffled me too. The game was pretty even, about 7k chips a piece. I limped with J7, he raised to 600, and I called 400 more. The flop came J-9-5. He bet 500. I decided to swap a mistake with him and just call, hoping he would fire again at the turn, as any overcard would be bad, but it wasn't a draw-heavy board. The turn was a 7. Bingo. Now my goal is to stack him. He bet 800. I decided to put a decision on him, because there was already a lot in the pot. I raised to 2800. To my surprise, he re-raised all-in, and I called. He showed Q9. Q9??? River was no help, and I won the game.
Today, I survived a brutal SnG. I was down to 600 chips, and the blinds had just gone to 25/50. But from there, I built my stack up to 4500. Without showing one hand down. Not one. All pot steals, almost all before the flop, and almost all with only one bet: all-in. Thank you, Harrington on Hold'em. I ended up finishing 2nd to the game-long chip leader, having got my money in with the best hand. That's a moral victory in my book.
Posted Mon Jul 31, 2006 1:51 pm GMT by Phil14312
Hey Diamond have you thought about moving your journal to the blog section of THP?
Posted Mon Jul 31, 2006 9:57 pm GMT by Gettin_gone
| xDiamond_CutteRx wrote: |
I hate going to the final 3 short-stacked, but making 3rd is so much better than making 4th |
I always play to make 3rd in an SNG. That's my meat and potatoes. 2nd or 1st is the gravy that makes the win more tasty.
Cam
Posted Tue Aug 01, 2006 12:52 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
| Phil14312 wrote: | | Hey Diamond have you thought about moving your journal to the blog section of THP? |
Good idea. I keep meaning to do that and then forget. Thanks for the reminder, Phil.
Look for future updates in the blog section. I will post a link once it's up.
(I've been taking another short 2-day break from Poker after a day where my judgment was cloudy... still have over $1500 in the BR going to August).
Posted Tue Aug 01, 2006 2:30 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
Done. All official entries will now be at the following address.
http://thpblog.com/blogs.php?blog=6400
Posted Sat Aug 12, 2006 3:17 pm GMT by Loonbat
Dave - I just started and finished this whole series of blog posts. Impressive ... i expect to see you at some WSOP FT in 2007. Given the variety of games you seem fluent in, this may very well be the $50K HORSE event. Keep blogging and I'm sure several of us will keep reading.
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