New Champion This Month!

After the horrendous disaster in January with that Empire Bonus Chase, I am happy to announce that this time, there is a new champion on the street. Final numbers:

$134 profit
$150 Bonus
+8bb over 1500 hands
18 hours


Not bad at all I'd say.

Since Party Poker is offering me a 15% bonus till Feb. 11th. Think I might press my luck and try them out.


Till Next Time!

The Bell Rings..Final Round

The crowd rises to its feet. Anticipation at a crecendo, will the champ answer the bell. The challenger rises, a little bruised but you could hardly tell he had been toe to toe with the champ all night. The challenger knows, there is no question, the champ will answer. He is ready.

The champ sits, dazed and confused over the last rounds. Eye swollen, nose bleeding, and looks like he has been fighting two men instead of one. In the corner of his mouth though, there is a smirk, almost a smile. He knows he has the power still to take this guy out. So with extreme pride and arrogance, he stands. Ding. Ding.

Thats how it has been so far at Empire Poker. 200 hands left to go and I am way ahead. I can fold my way to profit + bonus from here. I have taken my punches, some unreal draws have come in on the river. I have landed some wicked punches myself though. I will clear up those 200 hands today. Declare myself the victor and consider the demons exised.

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North Dakota trying to step it up it seems. Got this off Poker Gazette.

A Bill currently under discussion in North Dakota could lead to the US state becoming an online poker jurisdiction.
The proposal, contained in House Bill 1509, aims to see poker played over the internet to be defined in the state Constitution as a game of skill rather than gambling.

And the proponents of the Bill want to use the law change to encourage poker operators to set up in the state.

Jim Kasper, a member of North Dakota’s House of Representatives, said North Dakota would be prepared to fight the US government if it sought to block the state law.

He said the Bill could bring up to US$500m of new revenue to the state.

Under his plan, Kasper would use 60% of the poker revenue for property tax relief, 20% for public education and 20% for the state's general fund.

The Bill would need to negotiate several hurdles to become law, not least of which is a public vote in 2006 to change the definition of gambling.

But politicians in the state said they were not afraid to take a risk and confront the US government head on.

"I believe that for the people of North Dakota and for the state, we need to be strong and take on this challenge and not be afraid to step out of the box," Mark Dosch, a North Dakota Representative, said.

Be an interesting battle I think. Will keep an eye out on this one.

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Not a bad game last night really, seemed like the Eagles gave up though, taken so long to score at the end buy glad they did score.....they covered. I guess my only question is why? Why did Cleveland ever let Bill Belichick go??


Till Next Time!

New Stuff and Empire Losing!

I have added two new sites to the 4Flush calendar. Check N Raise with a daily freeroll and 100% 1st time deposit match up to $500 (Till Feb 14th) and Full Tilt Poker with 2 daily freerolls and 100% first time deposit match up to $600. If you haven't been to my site...GO! Vote on the calendar page on what you would like to see next!

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Empire is losing the rematch! I am $76 ahead at half way point in bonus chase. In January, I was so far down by now I had given up. On the advice given by Chris Halverson in one of his posts, I switched to NL to chase this bonus. Was up $10 multi tabling the limit games in 405 raked hands. So you can see the NL is working out. I can be patient and still get more raked hands in playing this way. Thanks Chris! One side note, I did it again. Limped with QQ in MP2 and 6 people see the flop. It was a very passive table with any ace seeing the flop so I thought the limp would let me get away from it easier. Flop comes Q33(r). Checked to me and I bet .50. 3 call and turn is a J and putting two suits on the board and I bet $2...get two callers. River is an ace and I bet $4 and get raised. I slide the slider to All-In BUT I AM AT POT LIMIT TABLE! I need to pay more attention! I raise pot, he reraises all in and I call, he rivered straight. So it worked out. For all you paying attention, I did this at Party when I hit the full house on the turn!

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Have fun at the Super Bowl Parties tomorrow. Hope your team wins.

Till Next Time!

So Far So Good

I cashed out of True Poker and here are the final numbers: $325 in, $98 in bonus, 63% won at showdown and $629 cashed out in 1600 hands! The best though was that I cashed out at 10:00 am EST and the money was in Neteller at 11:39 am EST. Thats right, LESS THAN 2 HOURS!

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Have 200 hands at the evil Empire and so far so good. Up $8 and been sucked out bad in 3 hands. Worst: KK down to Q4 soooted when he called a 3 bet pre-flop, hit bottom pair and call to river only to hit a 4 and win. No other draw on board.

850 more hands to go and I'm holding my breathe. (HeHe)

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Come on..admit it...we all secretly do this while folding hands!


Till Next Time!

Returning to Scene of the Crime

First off though: I railed the WPBT Event last night at Poker Stars. It was a great tourney and from the chat, a lot of fun was had by all. Next time I'll be there.

I started with Al and soon, too soon, saw his JJ called by TT with a 277 flop only to see the dreaded two out T on river and he was gone. Where was the hammer!

I watched April, who wasn't going to play, finish in the top 40 and play real well. Way To Go!

I saw the ultimate! "The Hammer" played to perfection, "all in" and cracking AA and KK at the same time! Way to go Dr. Pauly Though I am pretty sure the other players feel differently (hehe). Sorry, didn't get screen shot.

All in all I witnessed good play and maybe even better camaraderie. With all the complimentary comments in the chat about everyones blogs, HDoubles's new career and Otis with his new gig, it almost seemed like celebrity poker.

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At the last Empire Poker reload bonus I got beat to a pulp. I posted about how I couldn't win and for the first time, withdrew less than I deposited AFTER the bonus. Well, now I am going to return to scene of the crime. 25% up to $150 and off I go. You know the saying, "If you fall of the bike, get right back on it". Well, maybe it is time to get back on it. That spiral cumulated into me going to NL for a while, winning, getting to the next plateau in my learning of the game and a killer run at the True Poker. (Getting bonus and doubling my deposit)

So I am risking it all to go back to the Evil Empire. I will consider getting out even + bonus as successful excise of my demons! Should be good to go there by this weekend and Party is giving me a 15% bonus till the 11th so maybe I can get both in before the Interpoker monthly bonus.

Till Next Time!

Courage is being scared to death - but saddling up anyway.
John Wayne

Live Play

Played in the local Holdem Tournament last night. I must admit that playing live is fun. To be able to sit there and see the tells that you read about and then see them flip the hand you put them on is mind boggling at times.

First off game 1. I got down early with this hand and then limped to fourth place. I misplayed this badly trying to get cute. I have AQo in cutoff and I limp with 3 others. Flop is Q high, 2 suited and I bet T600 into a T800 pot and only get called by BB. Turn completes the flush draw and BB check/raises me all in after another T600 bet. Now at this point I am positive he does not have the flush draw, he would have slowed played it some more, I fold. I was right, he hit 2 pair. My question is, why check raise all in when the only hand that would call you beats you? I don't think that is worth the chance but I am new at NL and maybe I am missing something. The guy is better than average player and I asked him about it at end of night and he said that the flush never entered his mind, and added "Maybe it should have". It's not like I was not betting it like a flush...who knows.

Ironically, I go all in blind after 5th place went out with T600 and a T400 BB. I wait till end to see if I won, I lost....AQ.

2nd game. This table had a few that were new to the game. Lately, these guys have been killing it. The expressions "Beginners Luck" and "Better lucky than good" come to mind. Jsaw and I ride down together, its about 30 minutes from my house, and usually play at the tables together. As a side note his game 1 was bad and topped off by is pretty sizable all in bet with KK called by a little bigger stacks A9s who hit his ace. That will become a bitter theme you will see. I'm hanging in, with a couple small wins and right before the break Jsaw raises twice the BB UTG with 88. I look down to see the Hilton Sisters and double the raise, he folds to the dismay of everyone and at first break I am chip leader by a few. This time it seems luck was on a break and shortly after resuming play, it was down to five "regulars".

At this point I would like to introduce you to player 1, lets call him "Phil". An over aggressive 22 year old who has watched to much poker on TV and "Tilt" probably isn't helping either. By the way, he just started playing NL at Party and I will have to get his screen name. A little on the obnoxious side and loved to showboat. Played with his blue mirrored sunglasses and liked to claim to all who would listen how he preferred to play his "reads" on people over the cards he actually had. It was all about the reads! Funny thing is, he was the most readable of them all. Jsaw is still in when he raises big again with KK. "Phil" calls and well, lets just say I saw the most unbelievable flop with the most unlikely of hands to call the raise with. I’ll let Jsaw write about THAT one. "Phil" and I are about even and there are 3 left.

The set up.
I call in with 33 on the button, SB completes and "Phil" checks BB. Flop comes Jxx and I go all in instantly. SB folds and "Phil" starts to chatter. He actually shows the table his hand! JTo and looks hard for a reaction from me. He asked if he is out kicked...I said I don't need a kicker! He asked if I wanted a call, I looked him in the eyes and said "Please". He then announced he had a good read on me, counted out the chips, and folded. I showed the 33. Got a pretty good reaction on that one!

I knock down third place when I go all in with KQs on a flop of Q68. 3rd places calls with 22 and spikes a 2 on the turn...I hit RR flush and he is down to one BB left. He doubles through twice when this hand happens.

The knock out.
Though outwardly there wasn't much in the way of change in "Phil", I know inside he was fuming. I am still stacking chips from the RR flush miracle and I am in the BB. "Phil" completes in SB and I check blind. Flop comes Qxx. "Phil" bets T1000. I look down and see JJ. Now "Phil", being the astute poker player he is would have raised my BB with any face card. So I just call. I feel pretty good about this. Turn is a rag and again T1000 and I called. River is Q and he thinks for a minute and reaches for all his chips. I realize instantly he is buying the pot. As he says "ALL IN" I say call and flip over JJ. He is flabbergasted that I called him down and he mucks. I see the cards as dealer takes a peak...95o. Complete bluff. As he goes on a little about how unbelievable he thinks that call was I was thinking how easy it was.

I now take the extremely small stack 2nd place guy all in next hand with J8 vs. Q4. I flop a jack for the win. It was my second win but I felt in control over this one from the break on.


Well, got to get busy. $18 left on True Poker bonus to go(Still killing it over there), Party Poker has a reload bonus about to expire I want to get, Empire Poker annouced a reload bonus good till Feb. 8th. 25% up to $150 with bonus code Feb150. It's posted on there site so know it is good, and it is time to reload at Interpoker for there monthly 100% up to $90.

Some much bonus....so little time.

Till Next Time!

Stop/Loss and Winning

I knew he knew but why did Chris Ferguson tell every one else in his commercial! Check them all out here.

I don't know why but unlike some other players I have talked to lately, I am running hot! I wish I could extend January for a couple more weeks! My limit game is on cruise control for the last 12 sessions. Only posted 2 losing sessions so far and I have won far more than I lost. This is part of the reason:

Notice 93o is UTG!!




How long is a winning session? I know this may sound dumb, and I know some of you are saying "Duh! When is enough enough?" but I know a lot of players who have stop loses and I too play with that in mind. Someone on ITH wrote Howard Lederer about bankroll requirements and he wrote back and said,

Money management is very important. You should never let yourself lose more
than 30 big bets in limit or 50 big blinds in no-limit in one day. That way
you can't steam off too much of your bank roll in one day. The game isn't
going anywhere. You can always play the next day after you have had a good
night's sleep.

I think you should have at least 300 big bets before moving up. You should
also be willing to move down quickly if you start to lose. Best of luck,

Howard Lederer

Now I know this might be a stock answer but it made for a nice discussion

What about an above average hot streak? An example: I could only get an hour in this AM because I had errands to run and already decided I would get another session in this afternoon before my regular evening one. I post in CO and get 63o and flop OESD. I hit on turn for 6 bb's. Two hands later QQ for 8 bb's. 4 hands later 77 flops set for 10 bb's and then the ultimate AA in BB with 7 people limping and flop of KKA, two suited, flush hits on turn and I get river capped between 3 people. 28 bb's!

I am up about 45 bb's (No, I didn't win every time) in about 34 minutes. After another orbit and a half of no cards, I left, even though I had only about half a session in. I felt that that was it for cards and I gave a few bb's back at the end with good cards not hitting. Not sure if that was right or wrong play but I decided that it was an above average streak to hit and I wanted to save the profit. As we all know, luck plays a factor also. If it wasn't for luck, Phil Hellmuth would win everytime! I think I got lucky and took the profit and ran.

There is no mathmatical formula for when a winning session is over. I just think when you run above average hot for a while and you profit is healthy...stop. Like Howard says "The game isn't going anywhere. You can always play the next day..."


Enjoy the commercials!

SSSHHH...Don't tell anyone

True Poker is like Party but with only 5000 people. Ever wonder how much money you could make if you played the same people over and over again at Party? Well you can at True Poker.

It is unreal the amount of times I have seen 4-5 handed pots and someone shows down ace high or how many times I have seen someone have "A""crap" and hit the ace on river and win with the three outer. Passive? You would think that only a select few actually have a raise button they can see!!! Now when they do find the raise button...FOLD!! They have hit or slow played a monster.

I have only ventured into the $1/$2 games so far. I’ve been doing so well, no need to push my luck. Never had trouble finding a game and I have looked at the $2/$4 tables and have always seen 2-3 of them going. They have special SnG tourneys for new players daily, and will look into them Monday and see how they are.

I am up over 40 bb's in three days plus cleared $30 of bonus(which is going pretty fast).

So for those of you that may have missed it, I am back grinding again. The NL was fun, profitable and most of all different. It was a much needed break and it has elevated my game in a way that at this time I can not articulate. I just have a better understanding; maybe I can post on that later.

One thing I can comment on is that my game now has an aggressive patience about it. I posted about this a few months ago about trying to break the weak/tight mode. I had read SSH and was going through it the second time. I was trying to pick my spots and implement the book as it started to sink in this thick head of mine. It was working until I hit that real bad run and looking back at it through Poker Tracker I see that I had, very quickly, reverted back to my weak/tight tendencies.

This is where NL helped me the most. It reinforced:

Patience – Waiting for the right hands is something that I do not have to elaborate on. I am not suggesting top 10 hands or anything like that but playing the right hands in the right position and playing them hard when the time warrants.

Aggressiveness – Be aggressive when you have the opportunity. Sometimes it will cost you, sometimes it will pay off. That’s part of the game and I am trying to learn that controlled aggressiveness is the way to go.

Reads – I don’t think that my ability to read other peoples betting patterns and putting them on a hand would be were it is at now without the NL experience. I have always been a note taker and really never tried to learn reading hands and just relied on my notes. Now I see were they work together and it really progressed that part of my game.

So I am back to grinding and hopefully I can maintain and build on this new found “wisdom”.

Till next time!

A Good Poker Player

There have been a couple of well written posts about the insights of a poker session. It got me to thinking about what a good poker player is. This has been discussed at all the popular forums and there are as many different views as there are posts. Like many poker questions the answer can be summed up as “it depends” but to me, there is a quantitative value that helps define a good poker player.

The two post that I am referring to are from -EV and from Mean Gene

In tournament play, you can measure how good you are by how many final tables you are in. You can conceivably make money and never be in a final table but to measure greatness, which has to be part of the equation, how many final tables is an important measuring stick. Let’s be honest, if it wasn’t for back to back final tables there would be no Dan Harrington book.

What about us grinders, ring gaming “x” hours a day, “x” days a week. How do we know we are a good poker player? We all have read over and over that you shouldn’t be results oriented and should concentrate on making the right decisions and playing the right cards in the right position and making the most of it. There has to be, in the break down of things, a quantitative value that proves you are a good poker player. Basically a good poker player is a winning poker player over time and that boils down to money.

A respected poster at the ITH forum once said the size of your bankroll has nothing to do with how good a poker player you are. I believe that whole heartedly. Case in point is bonus chasing. A good bonus chaser can expand is bankroll on a monthly basis and be a break even or even a little worse poker player. Going from site to site, reloading and chasing monthly crypto’s could find a player with a roll big enough to play at higher limits but not be good enough to survive there. I’m not saying bonuses are bad, as a matter of fact, I believe –EV hit it on the head when he said they are an important part of the game. To a good poker player, a bonus is just that, a bonus….free money. It not only adds to a winning session but also lessens the effect of a bad run. It’s like a safety net, you don’t want to use it, but glad it is there.


I believe, for us grinders, a good poker player has to have the stats to back it up. The most useful stat to show you are winning would be BB/hour. That’s were a program such as Poker Tracker comes in handy. Numbers don’t lie and if your BB/hour is not where it should be you have an issue that needs to be addressed. No matter were your bankroll is. In my opinion, ~2 BB/hour is a good number for low limit games and 1 BB/hour for the higher limit games. I do not emphasis this number on a monthly basis buy I do track it quarterly to try to identify trends in my game and it helps me spot a leak that may be creeping up. (There are many). This number keeps me honest. If it is extraordinarily high, I am running well, I have to watch for overconfidence and make sure that I am still playing the right starting hands and making the right decisions. I do not want to bleed off any of my profit because I start chasing the good run. The same goes with extraordinary low bb/hour numbers. Is it time for a break, or am I chasing good cards I know I should be folding, forcing my hands and the like.

Though it may seem like it, I am not focusing on the results here but tracking trends to make sure my game stays on track and moving forward. Poker, as it has been said many times, is two steps forward and one back, you just have to keep the step back smaller than the steps forward.

It seems that all things great have some sort of measurement with them. Good players have their records, good teams have their championships and good poker players make money.

The other thing they have is longevity. The stand the test of time and are still talked about year after year. Marino, Elway, Montana, Gretzky, Jordan, Magic, Byrd, Ruth, Mays, Williams, Yankees, Braves, 49’ers, Steelers, Cowboys and the list could go on and on. A good poker player is also measured by time. A good poker player understands the variance and concentrates on the long haul. Not session to session or even month to month. To come out on top, in the positive, year after year….now that is a measure of greatness.

New "To Me" Site

If you ever dreamed of owning a drunk, color blind hippie....here is your chance. Go Al Go!

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New look for site. Check it out and email me comments. I did it all by myself with no outside help except for dreamweaver "help" section. So if you don't like it, keep it to yourself! (hehehe)

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One of the advantages I have with the freeroll calendar is that I get to see a lot of sites. Currently listing 80+ freerolls from 23 sites. So as I await all my money to consolidate into Neteller, I went to True Poker which offers a 30% bonus up to $100 ($333 to max).

It has a 3D table view and some neat avatars and options. The dealer talks, "dealing flop", "dealing turn" and announces winning hand. Players talk "call","bet","raise","reraise" and also laugh when you type in "lol" and say thank you when you type "ty". The avatars look at their cards,make jestures,some smoke and some drink . Of course most of these option you can cut off and after a while they do get annoying but it was fun to play at first because it was different.

You can choose from a regular or high definition download. I chose high definition and the software is still pretty fast. Understandably not UB fast buy not AP slow either. I played about a hour last night after I decided to go and had all the options on and it played at a normal speed with no lagging or delays. Smallest limit tables were $1/$2 and smallest NL was $25 buy in. There were 6 $1/$2 tables and 5 $2/$4 tables going at 1:00am so traffic was good. Out of the 6 $1/$2 tables a got a seat at the tighest one I could find (47%!). After just a very little sample I would say the tables are pretty loose. (Example: I raise pre flop with KK, 6 see flop, I hit set on flop with rags and 4 call me to the river. I won.)The other thing different about this site is that the SB and BB are both $1 and there are no buttons to pre-make your decision, you have to wait your turn. I don't use these buttons to bet but I do use it to auto fold in turn, but I can live with it.

Bonus is $10 for every 100 raked hands and I got 42 raked in a hour last night. Their freerolls are all point buy in freerolls for members and True Poker gives you 100 bonus points for signing up and depositing. That is enough for one $500 freeroll or 2 $250 ones. These freerolls have good overlays and I will try a couple before I go.

Only time will tell but my initial reaction to the site is very positive (finishing up $30 in a hour did not sway my opinion). For you bonus chasers, this site is more than adequate to chase the $100 bonus.

Odds and Ends

Go check out the stories in the new edition if Truckin'. Great stuff and also a new contributor.

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Also there is a great new movie post from HDouble

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Added Noble Poker to the calendar and it is now over 80 freerolls listed on most days. Thanks to all who have emailed suggestions and freerolls. Keep them coming and I will keep adding!

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A part of my youth past away this week with Johnny Carson. I used to beg and plead to stay up and watch him. I know I only saw the twilight of his career but he was a very funny man.

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My money is in cyber land waiting to show up in Neteller. Going to reload at Party Poker as soon as it shows up. Probably not much in the way of poker tomorrow. Can play the NL tables at Bet 365 but also have to clean the upstairs of the garage. Wife home next two days so I can't put it off any longer.

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I also have to commend The Gaming Club today. I thought I was missing $20 of my bonus that never showed up in my account. I gave them a call and they verified that I should have gotten the last $20 and had it fixed in no time. No hassle, No yelling.....just good service.

OK! OK! I'll Play!

Watched the movie "I Robot" with family last night. It was entertaining and overall a pretty good movie. Pretty typical man builds computer, computer tries to take over man, man beats computer movie but with a thought provoking twist. Well worth the rental.

Afterwards I'm checking email and surfing a little when I get an IM from Jsaw telling be about a $1 buy in tourney at Ultimate Bet getting ready to start. I said no, no money in UB right now. Then I get "it is only 250 points to enter" (He knows I have that). I said no, then I couldn't play the $5 I wanted to play. Jsaw is one of those sneaky persistent people. Nothing for about a minute and I get..."It's a $1000 guarantee" in the IM box. Still sticking to my guns I say no. A little bit later I get this link from a recent Scott Fischman article in card player. He talks about online tourneys and

Playing a few online tournaments per day can provide you years of experience in a short span of time. I believe this is part of the reason that so many young players have been very successful on the live tournament scene lately. The Internet is a tool that is available for the growth and improvement of your poker game. I have used it as a strategy to improve my game, and have found myself possessing a great feel for the technical aspects of poker tournaments.

OK! OK! I'm in. (Alright, I'll admit it. Doesn't take much to get me to play. Hell, it was free!)

Start with T1500 in chips and after the first hour of 1 played hand I am at T965. So I have successfully practice folding all cards that equal to 9!

Almost looking forward to my first playable hand getting cracked and crawling into bed, the second hour begins and for 48 minutes I continue to practice folding. I get one BB special and amazingly I am at T965 with about 12 minutes to go in second hour. I look down to see JJ and go all in and double up. With about 150 players left Jsaw surmises that T7500 gets me in the money. I've played toooo long not to try now even though the cards are crap. 9 minutes till break I look down to see AKo. I go all in from LP and get called by BB's 88. Spike a K and now sitting at T5020 with about 138 left. Close enough to taste that $1.51 now!

3 minutes left till break and EP minimum raises, I look down and see the rockets! Folded to me in CO and I push BB and EP call with AK and AJs and I triple up. T15500 and the next hand I call a minimum raise with ATs and flop two pair, push and get called by AJ, turn a full house and at second break I am in 4th with T25000!

What a wild rush in the span of about 12 minutes! Top 80 pay out and 97 left. WOOT! Jsaw gets a bad beat when his flopped trips get run down by flush but is at T6500 at break. Beginning of third hour back to what I was doing best...folding. Jsaw gets QQ in BB and pushes, only to see other player with AA and is out in 95th. He brings up my table and starts sweating me. Its nice to have someone there to ask about a hand and get support...thanks! I build to T31000 but that’s as high as I get.

I end up going out with AA in the CO. Folded to me and I limp trying to get it to pay. SB completes and BB raises. I call as does SB. 9 high flop, BB bets and I go all in, SB folds and BB calls and flips 99. I get no help and out 32nd for $4.01. I don't feel bad about how I played it, would have been all in no matter what with the board being all rags, he may have folded 99 if I had pushed pre-flop but who knows.

I counted about 5 hands I misplayed that all ended up winners. So I have some more practicing to do. I now have $4 to do so.

Enjoy the games today. Being I have no favorite in this fight, I am hoping for Steelers and Falcons. What could be a better Super Bowl story line: "The Rookie" vs. "The Best Show on Turf"

See You at the Tables!

5 for 5

Monied in Bet365 $5000 freeroll again this week! 5 Weeks in a row! Can't get into the big money yet, always seems to be 1 bad beat away from finishing well. This week was at 300/600 blinds, I raise 1K from MP2 with KK, get 1 caller and rides me to the river with QTo and rivers gut shot. So I limp into money at 248th and $6. Gives me a grand total of $28.50. Going to start tomorrow two tabling the $10 max NL tables or 1 $25 max NL table. This bankroll was totally brought together through this freeroll, will see how far it will take me.

Had a little tough run at Party Poker and that free $20 needs about a $9 push to get to $50 and cash out.

Not a bad couple weeks for free money. Turned $25 from my 40th place fininsh in The Gaming Club's new player freeroll into $52, got Party Poker's free $20 the sent me to $41 and my Bet 365 account is $28.50! Not bad for probably 500 hands total in all.

Got the 72os Freeroll Tour Sunday night which is a real fun time. It's a freeroll league that runs over 6 weeks with a Championship event in week 7 for top 20 finishers and money prize. Good play and nice practice for real MTT's.

Time with the family tonight and back to the grind in the AM. Need to start early so I can get both football games in!

Till next time:

It is a great community that we have here: Read HDouble and his comments.

Without a sense of caring, there can be no sense of community.

Anthony J. D'Angelo

Did I mention I love Party Poker

Last night was another blast playing live. Again it is a SnG type tourney. It wasn’t a spectacular evening, finished 4th in one and 7th in one. I was chip leader in first one then ran card dead and lost when I went all in with TJs and was called by Jsaw with K8 of the same suit. He was in the BB and only 1200 more to call. He went on to win that one.

2nd tourney was Party Poker only with real avatars! 100/200 blinds, folded to MP2 who raises 1500! UTG limps with 92o and hits trip 2’s on the flop. It was a family pot with only 1 of 10 opting out of the limp. SB had 72s and was pissed to see 92o! We’ll skip to final hand. I am UTG with KQ and only T2000 left. I decided anything equaling 20 would be good enough for a go. I limp, knowing it will get raised, it does and I go all-in over top. Get 3 callers: Big stack(played the 92o earlier), MP2, and Jsaw(TT) with only T600 left. Flop comes xxQ. Turn was another Q! Woot! Now MP2 bets on turn. I figure he wins side pot and I’m back in this thing. River was a J. MP2 bets again, flips over JJ and I am riding home. At least I beat Jsaw!

SO, to all you conspiracy people…..2 outers hit in live events too! And PP’s come in clumps. In 2 out of 3 hands during event 1, I was dealt QQ. (Won both)


Did I mention I love Party Poker.

Sat this morning at a $25 NL table and was at about $26, just bidding my time. Limped in MP1 with 99. 5 people see a flop of 9xA(r). Checked to me and I bet the .50. I was immediately raised to $2 then CO all-in for $12 and I am now at $44! So by their count I have played 70 hands and turned their $20 into $66.75. I have to play 130 more hands by the 29th to get my $20. If all works well I am going to cash out and redeposit for their reload bonus. I have till Feb. 11th for that.

Everything you have heard about Party Poker is true. People play any two cards, you get sucked out a lot, bad beats are a norm and you make a ton of money! If you haven’t tried Party Poker yet … Give it a try. Bonus code 4Flush.

These non poker stories caught my eye this morning so I have to link them:

16.7 lb Baby

"Hard" Up!

Enjoy and see you at the tables!

WOW! I like Party

OK, I haven't posted a hand in a while and your gonna love this. I get a free $20 from Party Poker and sit at a NL table. OH CRAP! No its not, its a PL table. Oh well, I'll play until a NL opens up. Then I get this:

Party Poker Pot Limit Hold'em, $0.5 BB (8 handed)

Preflop: Hero is CO with 2c,2d
UTG folds, UTG+1 calls $0.50, MP1 calls $0.50, MP2 folds, Hero calls $0.50, Button calls $0.50, SB completes, BB checks.

Flop: ($3) Js,3s,2h (6 players)
SB checks, BB checks, UTG+1 checks, MP1 checks, Hero bets $0.5, Button calls $0.50, SB calls $0.50, BB folds, UTG+1 raises to $2, MP1 folds, Hero raises to $5, Button folds, SB calls $4.50, UTG+1 calls $3.

Turn: ($18.50) 3c (3 players)
SB bets $3.5 (All-In), UTG+1 calls $3.50, Hero raises to $16.2 (All-In), UTG+1 calls $12.70.

River: ($54.40) Th (3 players, 2 all-in)

Final Pot: $54.40

Results below:
SB has 8s Ks (one pair, threes).
UTG+1 has Jc Kh (two pair, jacks and threes).
Hero has 2c 2d (full house, twos full of threes).
Outcome: Hero wins $54.40.

You got to love it! I figured the SB for flush draw and maybe it was worth the $3.50 to try to hit it. Had UTG+1 on AJ and I thought I would push him out with my all-in. When he called I had a brief vision on pocket 3's in my head but it turned out. $20 into +$54 in 40 hands.

I'm playing live tonight so will post results tomorrow.

I'm Worthless and Weak!

I cannot leave the NL tables alone. I did, as I promised, and played limit yesterday.....for about a hour. Two tables open and going OK, SLOW but OK. After about 30 minutes there came a small, almost unnoticable voice from deep within, saying "Wonder how NL is going"?. The voice kept getting loader until it became unbearable. I reached a compromise with this inner beast and closed one table and opened a NL one. After another 30 minutes the evil voice mentioned how well I was doing at the NL and just up so little at the limit. Since you can't argue with good logic,no matter how evil, down went the second limit table and up came another NL.

I am up so far this week. I will clear the Poker Room today I hope, 60 more points to go and I will finish ahead of the bonus even after starting with that horrid -$135 start. Not sure I will chase another bonus till next months Cryptos so will continue here until "next big thing".

Since I won that $25 at The Gaming Club, I will go there after Poker Room is cleared and try to pick up the last few dollars of that bonus. Think I have till the 23rd. Already turned it into $42 in a session there over weekend. Maybe I can continue to get good cards and cash a little more out. Atleast enough to be able to reload and start over.

I will not be playing Wednesday night because I am going back to the poker league that I wrote about last week. Good practice, I am about 2 1/2 hours from Harrahs in Cherokee, NC. They are opening tables sometime between now and June, so I see at the minimum playing the tourneys down there.

I have to play 500 hands, I think, to get my $20 out of Party Poker so I see a NL free for all coming up over there soon. I got the advice to wait till you get a top 5 hand and go "all-in". Repeat this process till broke or cashed out. HAHA might have to try that.

Till next time:

Don't be so fast to ignore the voice inside you.

-Me

Uneventful Weekend

As far as poker is concerned it was uneventful. Limped into the money in The Bet 365 $5k freeroll. Which means 4 out of 4 in the last 4 weeks.

Still playing NL and was an even weekend. Still trying to clear the Poker Room bonus. I will finish this week I'm sure. Going back to limit Monday at least at Poker Room and knock out this bonus.

Turn the $25 (For finishing 40th in the New Player freeroll) at The Gaming Club into $45 and cleared some more of the little bonus I have left there.

Thats about it. Watched a lot of football. Some good games. I know Mean Gene and Iggy are breathing easier that the Steelers pulled it out.

I would like to also thank Pauly for the link and look forward to your input. Sorry about the Jets!

Was reading some of Chris's posts on his trip into NL at TGC. I must admit it is night and day different than Poker Room. People at TGC will bet bottom pair like the nuts and after being moved off a couple winners, had to adjust to that. Poker Room is so much more passive and you can move people off pretty easy post flop.

Its been a nice diversion this week playing NL. I have to devise a plan to work into my schedule on a more regular basis. Back to the grind on Monday and I'm actually looking forward to it.

The biggest part of my game that has impoved this week is "Patience". I thought I was before but seeing it in action in NL, waiting and folding and waiting some more, then getting paid off, did wonders for me. This was something I knew but was really hammered home this week. I think I took a small step into making my game better and feel like I accomplished something other than the monetary gain.


Till Next Time:

A handful of patience is worth more than a bushel of brains.
Dutch Proverb

All Good Things

It $25 NL streak is over. Lost my buy in Friday AM session.
It was a great run.
I'll miss it.

Numbers:

678 hands without a rebuy
+129.55
38.22 bb/hour

Highlights:

All started with .05 win
Finished 4th in 72os Event 1
Had 3 double-up buy in sessions
Finished 40th in TGC $5k New Player Freeroll
Won 1 Live event SnG
Ended with JJ vs. 55 with a 275(r) flop

Not as sad as finding out about Santa
Not as sad as waking up to find no underwear
Not as sad as "Tilt"

But a sad day still the same.

Before I had time to fully mourn the passing of a great rush....I have started another. PM Session win! Lets see how long I can have this one last.

It's fun to win and beleive it or not it is OK to lose. I now its frustrating and horrid and whatever other words you can think of. I get caught in the emotions when it gets really bad and like to rant myself. If you really sit and think about it though, if you never lost, you would never learn. Sometimes I forget that,in poker, no lessons are free. I also forget that the reason I am still playing is that my gains always out run my losses in the long run.

Here's an Iggy quote from today:

But I'm used to losing. That sounds funny to write, but it's true. I don't get overly excited when I book a big win and I don't get upset when I suffer through extended losses. I obviously wasn't born this way but I taught myself this attitude through experience. Surely, like me, you know some poker players who have the biggest problem in the game are the ones who almost "demand" something from it. It's as if they feel it owes them something or they 'have something coming.'

That's a poor attitude to have in poker, imho. A certain measure of indifference is required to succeed long-term. Impatience in a poker room, especially online, will destroy your bankroll quickly.

Its fun to hype up the winning streaks though, keeping in mind that one day it will end and start again. "A certain measure of indifference is required to succeed long-term. Impatience in a poker room, especially online, will destroy your bankroll quickly." That should be required print in the start of every poker book. Swings are an uncontrolable part of this game; how you handle them emotionally could be the difference in a positive bankroll and negative one.

So tonight I toast another streak....just not sure which way it will go yet!


Till next time ponder this:

Why are there braile instructions on a drive up ATM?

Good Week So Far But ......

nothing like the sites are having. Check this out from Poker Gazzette:

UNITED KINGDOM –In the two years since online poker first tempted punters, the industry has grown from $100,000 in gross rake per day in January 2002 to between a staggering global $2m and $2.5m While online gaming itself continues to grow at a dramatic pace, the online poker industry has more than tripled in the past year according to statistics provided by PokerPulse.com.

"The top operators are earning around $200m per year, while an estimated $16m was wagered at online poker sites in the last year. In that time many gaming companies, web and lifestyle brands have entered the poker space, particularly in the UK. There are now some 300 sites, around 20 networks or stand-alone rooms, and there are still more commercial and gaming brands planning to launch a poker room.

Watched "Tilt" last night. I found a well written, insightful review that about sums it up for me....."It's bad, folks."
I'm afraid I have to jump on the bangwagon on this one.

Now on to poker:

I have been on a great run this week that has continued through yesterday. I played NL at Poker Room and the AM session was up. Since I had the $5K New Player Freeroll at The Gaming Club I slipped in a late afternoon round and finished that up also! After an uneventful start to the $5k freeroll and got on a run and ended up finishing 40 out of 740 for $25! Last hand I was in better than average shape and made a push for the final table. I was 20th out of 40 when I get ATs in EP2. Blinds are 1500/3K. I have a friend sweating me and coaching along the way. He's last comment was "No limping now" so I raised the minimum. I get one caller and see a xTx flop rainbow. I go All In and he calls with AQs...proceeds to hit RR flush and I am gone! I was dissappointed but hey, I won $25 from $0. I guess my luck was used up on this hand!

Blinds were 500/1000 and I get JJ in the SB. Folded to me and I raised the minimum hoping for a call from BB. He does. Flop if X4X. I bet half his stack, I have him about doubled in chips. He calls. Turn is a 4 and I go all in and I am instantly called. DAMN! He flips over KK. I am toast! What a great slowplay. Wait! The chips are coming my way! The river was the improbable 2-outer J! I have been told that to finish well in a MTT you have to win a few coin flips, play well, pick your spots, and get a little lucky. Guess I had all them going last night.

On top of all that I get the "we want you back and here is the free money to prove it" email from Party Poker. COOL! Its only $20 but it is with this money I will break into the blogger NL table! But so far, this table has alluded my grasp. Maybe I need to learn the secret hand shake or something. :) Maybe the sound of a NL Wanna-Be Newbie Fish with $20 will be enough to get me in!!! Only time will tell.

Till next Time:

The one serious conviction that a man should have is that nothing is to be taken too seriously.

Nicholas Butler

NL Run and Live Play

I must first take the time to show my solidarity with my fellow bloggers and let it be known that 72os is a powerful hand! There are still "doubters" though. My God have mercy on your souls.

There has been a lot happening in our community lately and since Maudie captured it all, I’ll be lazy and let her tell it.

Still playing NL and loving it. I know that all will not stay right in my little world for long buy for now I will live in the blissful happiness. (Up 41 BB’s or $11.70 an hour) The only complaint I have so far is that if you play a hand correctly, hit that hand and make some money…..the table breaks up.

I’ve only played 606 hands so obviously the reverse effect will come soon. That’s why I am cramming myself with as much NL info from books and forums as I can. A correction in the numbers above is inevitable I just want to be prepared to keep as much of my winning as possible.

Jsaw found a web site for a Texas Holdem league near our homes. We went there last night and played. The tournaments were run in a SNG type fashion with dealers provided. Was a superb set up and we played over top a bar…what could be better! I played live for only the 3rd time in my life. There were 20+ people there and we played two tournaments. Its $6 to play per tourney and your rewarded points, top point winners get a special tournament at end of season. Start with 3500 chips.

1st tourney had a guy there, had been drinking a “little”, playing every hand to the river and had a horseshoe up his ass. I was card dead and just folding my way around. Was four of us left when the horseshoe fell out and one of the regulars took out the drunken guy. Down to three - Jsaw in third with ~T2000 chips, me in second with T2200 and the leader with a bunch of chips. Jsaw goes all in next hand and is taken down by the leader. They want to set up another tourney so me being behind over 15 - 1 and go all in blind and tell them to deal one more and lets start over. I was more than happy with 2nd and my cards really were crap.

I doubled up. Ok I said, do it again. I doubled. Blinds went up to 800/1500 and I had some chips. Won the next two hands and game on! Next couple hands were folded by me. Then I call BB with QTs and see a flop of QJx. He goes all in, I call and he shows AJ. No help and now I am the chip leader! Next hand he goes all in again with KQo, I call with 55 and he spikes a Q and we are about even again.

We swap hands a few times and the final hand has me go all in with AKs and getting called by his KQo. I have him covered and we share a K on the flop. No more help and I complete the miraculous comeback. What a time to get a rush of cards and also for lady luck to wake up and shine her light on me.

In the 2nd game. Jsaw doubles up on first hand by hitting his OESD on the river against the now really drunk guy. That was all she wrote. He plays great anyway but with a big stack he is murder. I found that I had used up all my power for the evening and bowed out unceremoniously 6th. Jsaw went on to win and hopefully will write about it soon.

Going to be a busy evening because I am still trying to clear Poker Room bonus, have a Gaming Club New Player freeroll and “Tilt” is on ESPN. I know all about the reviews but want to see for myself.

Till next time I leave you with a point to ponder:

How much deeper would the ocean be without sponges?

NL = Patience

I am happy to report that I am up over $100 in less than 10 hours of my NL playing. That would be 3 sessions in two days. I bring this up because:

1) I am proud of it

2) I am not on a good run of cards


Now, my cards have been OK and I have had some good pay off hands but not anything I would consider abnormal. Every PP hasn’t been a set; every draw has not come through, ECT.

Patience does pay off though, maybe better than limit. Now before everyone thinks I have jumped off the limit bandwagon, I have not. I still strongly believe that limit is where you can make your best money per hour. NL is a profitable diversion though. I have begun wondering if the $25 “Minor League” NL tables are more worthwhile to play than the lower limit tables. I have a ways to go in hands and experience to decide that.

Before I hammer home the patience theme with my experience from last night’s table, I must admit that my search for the NL “Holy Grail” table of bloggers failed last night. I will never give up the search though!

Now last night’s table. There was a player there ironically with “nut” as part of his name. Now Nut was playing 100% of the hands and 100% of the time would raise the minimum pre flop. If it was raised before him he would reraise .25 and kept reraising .25 till you gave up. Of course he was getting lucky as his $2 pre flop call with T5o hit two pair and his 36o UTG turned a straight. He busted a couple people and the ranting began! He was up about $40 at this point.

“I can not believe you played that!”, “What an Idiot!”, “Moron” and all the rest we have heard. Now, I’m sitting there wondering why these people want to run this guy off and the strangest thing happened. Nut replied “HeHeHe” and “You’ll never know what I am playing”. Instead of leaving, he was giving it back in the chat and kept playing his game. Now the people he beat left! I couldn’t believe it. The table was down to 6 and I feared it would break up but in a few seconds it was full again and all was well. I was folding a lot waiting for the right time. See ….Patience!

While I was waiting to pounce, with the chat now buzzing with the new player’s comments, a fellow player chimed in “If you want to bust this moron you have to play more hands!” Now, normally I would guess that this was a shark trying to set the whole table up and keep one eye on him but, he was down half his buy in and not playing the most stellar poker I have ever seen so I just figure that was tilt talking and forgot about him. At .35 a round in blinds why not just wait for the big payoff! Patience again!

As you can see I am not getting an over abundance of great hands here but then I look down to see TT in MP1. I limp knowing that Nut will raise and also I needed a set to win because at this point, if you were in, you were end to the end because Nut was playing everything to the river. My first break came preflop when only 4 people saw flop after Nut’s minimum raise. The flop came A6T two suited. WOOT! An EP checks, I check, ready to unload the fury of my whole stack. Nut makes a pot size bet, which was no surprise had done that the last few hands, 1 fold and the EP goes all in for around $18. Now EP was a decent enough player so far and I now he either had AT, A with good kicker or maybe flush draw. I also know he wanted to be heads up with Nut, I almost felt sorry for him as I went all in over top of him. Nut wasn’t going to call, he folded 9-10 times if you raised over top of him on the flop, and the new guys just didn’t know that. Sure enough, EP was on flush draw and my set holds out. So 1 hand in an about 30 minutes and I double up.

I notice now that there must be blood in the water, a few more people leave and a few more sit down and everyone now wants Nut one on one. The sharks have arrived. I see Nuts stack go from a high of $65 down to $25 in a few hands. He gets on another run to build it to $40 but in less than 1 more orbit he is busted. A chant of “Reload” “Reload” reverberates in the chat box. He obliges and the race continues. I get a few more unspectacular hands and leave up $36. Our hero? At last look he was down to $8. Let the chants begin.


Till Next Time,

Some people are angry at the thorns among the roses...others are happy that there are roses among the thorns.

More NL Observations

Generally in limit play I believe the top three things to keep in mind are:


1) Position – Most important in any HE game


2) Your starting hand – Tight is right


3) Type of player you are playing – Helps with those marginal calls



Example: AA in the BB in limit with 4 limpers and SB completes. Your raise here will generally not run anyone out and sometimes give the odds for the draws to chase you.

You’re out of position and any board could be scary.


In NL I have found the top three things to keep in mind are:

1) Position – Still most important to me


2) Type of Player – Will he buy a pot, does he over bet a bluff, under bet a monster, ECT.


3) Starting Hand – Tight is still right but with 5+ people seeing the flop you can take more chances late




Same Example: AA in the BB in NL with 4 limpers and SB completes. Your 3-5x BB raise here will generally run out some. Now with a read on the type of players left, make bets and take down the pot or even fold on later streets if necessary with a little more confidence.

I’m hoping this is a solid foundation to build on.

The biggest difference (obviously) that I have to deal with is that there could be any amount bet at any time. I was run out of 2 QQ hands today when an A fell on one flop and an AK fell on other. Both times I raised pre-flop and both times I was bet into (about ½ pot) on the flop. Maybe showing too much respect I folded both. The bettors showed down 88 and JJ respectively. The first hand for sure I would have at least checked/called to the river if it was limit. So I still have a lot to learn about betting strategy and reading bets.

Trying to spend as much time as possible between sessions reading as many of the 2+2 threads on NL as I can and going to railbird the blogger table at Party Poker also. At least take notes on successfully playing “The Hammer”.

This leads me to pulling off a bluff. At the $1/$2-$2/$4 limit tables I have played at mostly these last couple months, a pure bluff by me was rare. I would raise from LP to Button like most but if I missed the flop or turn, would give it up to any resistance. You rarely could get heads up with anyone and it just wasn’t a profitable play. Now I see were I can get away with it from just about anywhere on the table with a properly placed raise. I now have to figure out with what frequency I use this technique; once a session, once an hour or more frequently. I have heard and read about some people picking a card and a suit and every time they get that combination they raise it “x” times the BB. I guess the key will be to keep not only my game from being predictable but also my betting.

So this is a little of my learning curve so far. As you see I have a long way to go but so far it has been successful and have gotten back almost all of my limit losses from last week.

Till next time:

Never argue with and idiot, they will drag you down to their level and beat you with experience

Finally!!

Nice to get away from limit for a while and the $25 NL was good today. Surprised to see how passive the tables were. Sat at three tables today that seemed like it was limit. Minimum bets, minimum raises, checking down, no one tried to buy anything. It was crazy. I raised QQ $2 twice and everyone folded, limp in, 6-7 would see the flop.

Did run into one guy today that liked to see flops. Played anything face, but would bet big when he hit. Caught on to that real quick and I guess the others did too, he ran it up a little then re-bought twice and left.

Found a quote today that sums up my last few days of poker:

Just remember... if the world didn't suck, we'd all fall off

It was fun playing again today. I realize that I missed that the last few days. Iggy brought that up somewhere in his uber-post. Got to keep it fun. My wife even noticed that I was cussing at the computer a lot more lately, so I will work on some poker diversions and keeping the game fun. Some NL will become a staple to keep the diversity in. I have read everywhere lately it seems about people getting beat up. Even some of our fellow bloggers are having it ruff.

I remember reading a lot last year at this time about bad runs also. I guess it could be expected. All the Christmas money pouring into the sites, dreams of there minimum deposit becoming retirement, quitting their jobs and going pro, ect. Its interesting thinking of this now because I know that eventually with good play and solid decisions they money will come my way.

In reading some of the blogs and posts on forums, there is a quite confidence in the "good" players that you can see in there posts and writing. Even when they are complaining about this beat or that beat, you get the feeling that they are a moving closer and closer to the kill. Just a matter of time and the luck will run out and all will be right with the world again. I know, I'm rambling again. It is just even during the downward struggles of my limit game lately, I remember telling my wife, just need more hours. I guess there is a quite confidence in my game also.

Time for a change

Limit is still in the downward spiral mode so I an going to switched to a little $25 NL action for a while starting today. I need a change of pace and the NL is not new to me, I have played it before. Going to play a couple MTT's and then go back and maybe limit will seem better. May even try some .05/.10 NL on Bet 365 with my new found freeroll gain.

Well the 72os Freeroll Tour started last night and I finished 4th out of about 140. I was third and went all in with 99, really didn't want a caller but BB called with QTs, spiked a T on flop and I was done.

Since the 72os was the only game I played yesterday, not much to report. Up $8 so far at the NL table! Better than last week already...maybe I should take my winnings and run!!!!

See Ya At The Tables!

I Can't Win

This has been the second worst losing streak I have had in by short 1 year poker career. Horrendous doesn't even come close to describing it. I have dropped 100 bb's in two days with no end in site. The only reason it hasn't been worst is that I have ended my sessions early.

Some examples:

AQ has lost to AK with A on board 11 times

28 PP's = 3 sets that have all lost

Can not remember last flush or straight I have hit


Some detail:


KTo in sb - 4 people see flop of KT8..I bet-BB calls as does 1 other. Turn=8 I bet BB raises and I check down to see his 82o. Not a bad beat just the fact that his 2 outer hit. Then I watched as he gave all his money away in the next 2 orbits. None back to me.

QQ in mp-I raise. 4 see rag board and I lose to slowplayed KK

NEXT HAND: QQ-Capped Preflop. Qxx board and 2 hearts. Capped Flopped Turn is heart checked around. River is heart and I lose to J8o!!! and the J of hearts.

Rivered 12 times in a SB/BB showdown and lost.


I know it will turn and the cards will start hitting but it doesn't help with the frustration and anger I feel when someone flips over crap to beat you over and over and over.

I think even worst is the guy at the table playing 85% of the hands, over betting every face card and getting bailed out on the river time and time again and you see him up over $100.

Then everything comes full circle when you start misplaying hands and folding winners to over betting fish with any ace and the frustration level blows through the top.

As half my brain is focusing on venting as I write this, the other half is telling me all the things I would say to someone if it was written by them. Even knowing the answers is frustratiing.

So before tonights session I am going to review my play and make sure I am making the right decisions and then continue on hoping the poker gods will take pity.

Right now, at this moment, I hate this game.

3 for 3

Well, my limit game is in a little slump. Poker Room went ok last night, down 10 bb's for session. Was never up but was down almost 25 bb's at one point. So maybe the turn around is near. Let’s hope so.


Did play a freeroll at a new site last night. Poker Host is a nice site with fast software and some neat extras. About 100 people registered so far and a very enticing 110% first deposit bonus.


Now for the best news of the week. Bet365 $5000 freeroll. 3 weeks ago I backed into 300 for $4.75, last week I finished 253 for $6.00 and this Saturday I finished 158 for $7.50. So that’s $18.25 with a starting bankroll of $0. So I decided I will try the .01/.02 NL tables and see how far I can go. Of course I will keep playing the Saturday Freeroll , since I am 3 for 3 in last 3 weeks. Now I suck at NL so if I can money, anyone can, so check it out next Saturday. Everyone else is: 1800 3 weeks ago, 2200 last week and 2505 this week.

Not playing tonight. Will play my normal schedule on Sunday. I am being patient and waiting for right cards and then playing half of them all wrong. So I am watching football today and relaxing. My aggressiveness is all messed up....to be honest is missing entirely, so I will take this time to straighten up and get back in gear. I know a lot of people think freerolls are a waste of time and a crap shoot, but they are good for getting your game right for no risk. Once you get past the break, they usually end of playing pretty good. So I feel better about my game a little and look forward to a Sunday turn around.

Till then:

Play Well!

Another Day...New Attitude

There are far more greater things in life than poker and far more important things than a good run or bad. If you will, support the events at you favorite site for the Tsunami Relief effort. If you would like to help the American Red Cross directly... here is the link.

Tsunami Aid

The worst sin toward our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them: that's the essense of inhumanity.
George Bernard Shaw (1856 -

Now for poker:

What a bad couple days for me. Empire was what I expected except none of my cards were holding up. Day two was more of the same and add I wasn't getting cards on top of that and it was frustrating.

So out with the old and in with the new. So on to Poker Room with a new attitude and we will get this ship turned around.

I noticed some interesting trends at the Evil Empire. (Part of the horrid play)

1) Call no matter what with any A. They limp in and call any raise with any A. I saw many of showdowns were it was called down with one person holding A high and losing.


2) Any two suited will due. That is a trend I see everywhere.


3) Slow play preflop. I must say that this was more prevalent here than I have seen anywhere else. Many of time I saw people "wake up" on the turn, or must likely river, and flip over AA, KK or something.


4) Check the flop/turn and river and then bet 1 bb into a 1.5bb pot. Either with top pair/a piece of some kind or the nuts. The risk/reward here is a little askew.


5) No draw is too remote to see if you hit. Just keep calling no matter how much it cost for your gut shot, or 2 outer, or miracle card.


These are all trends as a good poker player you want to see, recognize and take advantage of. Now I was on a bad run and was only their two days so I got creamed but in the long run I could have made out for sure. One of the big negatives of bonus chasing is that it is a form of hit and run. If you get hot it can be very profitable and if not, go to the next bonus.

Hopefully a good report after tonights play!

I SURRENDER!Empire 2 4flush 0

I SURRENDER!

First time I ever cashed out with no bonus. Lost it all. The play at Empire was at best horrid and at worst mind dumbing.

I have had every possible combination of cards cracked my the most horrendous play I have ever seen. No need for details.

I know as a poker player I want people 3 betting their gut shot and rivering their 2 outers but in the last two days THEY ALL DID! No long shot I played against missed. I will of course take some time off as my funds are transfered and lets hope Poker Room is better.

I really have nothing else to add. Glad there are no sharp objects close by.

Round 1: Empire1 4Flush 0

Ok round one goes to Empire last night...down 25 bb's. It was crazy! QQ goes down 6 times, KK goes down twice, sets go down to straights and the list goes on. People playing any two cards all night and hitting like crazy. I don't mind the any two cards part but damn, all were hitting. Just one of those nights. Played with first maniac in a loing time. 100 hands before he left: 95% VPIP, 35% PFR and 5+ aggression on all streets. He went from $50-$80-broke. Got two hands against him and he folded on flop both times.

Not much in the way of good news but did play 3 tables all night and did get 1/2 the bonus cleared. I just have to adjust to the loose play and move on. Currently in the middle of round 2 and I am in the lead! So hopefully it will continue to grow.

Both Barrells Loaded!

Best quote so far this year: Poker Penquin...

"idiots have to be lucky, or natural selection would have got rid of them by now"

Sorry about the 1 out beat!

OK, lock and loaded for Empire Poker. Will start this evening clearing this bonus. Now, low and behold...Poker Room has stepped up to the plate with a re-load. 15% up to $150 through Neteller.

So this is the plan. Empire for two days, Poker Room for 3 days and then..Full Tilt. Yep, I'm going. Jsaw, a friend of mind from ITH, who deposited last week, says that the bonus could be clearable in a months time playing at the rate I am playing. So, that being possible, can't pass up a free $600.

I will be using my new found "talent" for 3 tables. My goal is to clear 1/2 of Empire bonus tonight and 1/2 tomorrow during the day. Been a while since I have been to Poker Room but I think the bonus is a little slower there so I will go with 3 days to clear it. Then I will allow 6 weeks to clear Full Tilt just in case. Unless something amazing happens in the next week, I will be breaking a rule I made a few months back and playing at a non-pokertracker site. Guess rules were made to be broken.

I hope that this doesn't happen. Sorry Iggy!

Hopefully, next post will contain a positive experience with the "Evil" Empire.


Till Then,

I wish people who have trouble communicating would just shut up.
Tom Lehrer (1928 - )

Off to evil Empire

What the world needs is more geniuses with humility, there are so few of us left.
Oscar Levant (1906 - 1972)

Sometimes I can't believe what I read. Check this out from F Train. Some interesting 15/30 hands.

Also Otis is reporting from the Caribbean. Keep up with all the action.

Well the schedule is working well, so I am taking my first break. Not on purpose though. Cleared InterPoker today and cashed out. Going to Empire Poker for their reload now. If you haven't heard, the Empire reload is in the newletter. You have to play 7x's the bonus in hands and have 14 days to complete it.

A side note here for all you conspiracy theorists: I called InterPoker to see how many more hands I needed to clear. (My morning session was over) They said 39. I cranked up two more tables and NEVER won another hand. Dropped 18 bb's getting those 39 hands. All quality hands, all went down in flames. Including QQ at both tables at the same time! Hmmmmmmm.

I added muti tabling to my arsenal towards the end of last year. Two tabling mostly and found it not only profitable but also as fun as everyone told me. It took me a while to get use to but during the InterPoker bonus I opened three tables and it wasn't that much more to do. With Poker Tracker and Game Time + running, it isn't as ABC poker as some have said. Now, don't misunderstand, it isn't critical analysis but it does allow for a quick peek of the type of players in the hand before you decide to play. I'm looking forward to Empire and auto importing hands and auto updating Game Time +.

With money transferring around, I won't play tonight; InterPoker is usually fast so hopefully will be at Empire tomorrow.


See you at the tables!

All Clear!

Well, all bonuses are cleared so time to start a new. Going to knock out Interpoker today and tomorrow. Crypto's are great monthly bonuses.

On the freeroll calendar you will notice we are up to over 70 a day and 125+ on Saturday. Thanks to every one who has helped this grow above and beyond my expectations.

Since I mentioned freerolls, Saturday I won $6 in the Bet365 $5k freeroll finishing 205 out of 2000. Had an ok stack this time and my all in with flopped two pair got called by 4 flush and he rivered. I've seen a lot of this calling all ins with only a draw, quess in the long run I will not be complaining.

I have set my schedule for Day: 10am to 1pm and then 9pm-1am at night. Now lets see if I can keep it up! That lets me play when the kids are at school and after they go to bed. Also gives me the bulk of the day and evening to spend with them. Its harder than I thought to keep a strict shcedule. Mainly because I know I can play anytime so it's hard not to get distracted. I am really going to concentrate on keeping this one and tracking the results.

Until then:

Go console Iggy on a terrible Pitts sports weekend (Except Steelers)and check out Scurvydog's for a great bonus chase article

See You at the Tables!

Nice Ending

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2004 ended with a 13 bb gain. The whole year was profitable for me and look forward to 2005.

Must be a lot of Christmas money on deposit, at least at Absolute Poker. 45% flop rate was as low as I could find and that was with 3 full tables. Playing tight waiting for a hand because we had 2 people calling all raises and going to the river with any piece. I got AA in SB and was salivating when it was folded around to me. LOL, maybe they all knew! Had KQo in BB and hit TP on flop and got called down by AKo and he hit RR straight, KK went down to TT when he flopped set (Folded on turn though which was hard to do with J high board but he was pounding hard, good fold for me)and I was down $30, so much for tight!

Was thinking about early New Years celebrating when I get 33 in BB. I get free play and 5 see the flop of T73(r). I bet out figuring nobody will fold, I get raised, I 3 bet and 5 see the turn. A ten. Yahoo! I bet again, 1 fold and rest call. River is a J and all 4 left cap! I win $59 pot ($1/$2) against:

EP T8 sooooted
MP1 AJ ???
MP2 89 soooted and rivered straight
LP 89o rivered straight
ME Full House!

Next hand I get KK in SB...Slow Play and pick up a small pot when I check/raise the turn against 2 players. Down 15 bb's to up 17 bb's in 2 hands! I left soon after and called it a day.


Added Check N Raise to the calendar which puts us at 20 sites. 124 freerolls on Saturday alone! We are averaging about 60 freerolls a day. I also added a whats new section that scrolls at the top of the home page. There you can find links to good bonuses and an article on Poker Trackers Game Time window and at the end of article, downloads to auto rate numbers and a excel spreadsheet to track sessions if you do not have PT.

After 4 days "off", I have to get back to my schedule. It was a poker free break, I didn't even take a poker book with me. (I did watch celebrity black jack on my grandfathers satellite...worst than celebrity poker) My 2 hour session yesterday felt odd and refreshing at the same time. I have learned one thing from the last few months that I will implement this year, I am going to stick to a set schedule for my poker playing. Spend the down time on non-related poker stuff. My play towards the end of the year was unmotivated at best and I feel it was mostly due to a lack luster schedule and overplaying. I'm looking forward to a great 2005!

Off Topic: Best Christmas gift....Rounders DVD!

Until then!

Whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it.
Mahatma Gandhi (1869 - 1948)