I Am Royalty!

It is good to royalty. I think Prince 4Flush would be nice….King 4Flush makes me sound too old. It’s been a long time since I have worn the crown and this one was special. This one was all heart!

.25/.50 PL Omaha H/L with flush, straight and 2nd best low draw on the flop. The turn gave me the flush and still no low, I bet pot and get one caller and on the river I look down and see Royal Flush! So undecided what to do, I decide to bet half of pot and see if I get caller. I didn’t but you know I showed anyway!! At least this Royal Flush netted me $15.

Till Next Time!

My Poker Quest

I thought this was a great idea and then came to the conclusion that time restraints would not allow me to do it. So, I got a friend to play and I will help with the blog and promotion. Here is the general idea:

He will start with $100 and build that bankroll online till he gets to $100,000 or go broke trying. Impossible? Maybe but plausable. We have set about 4 guidlines as to how we are going to move up and down limits and decided to count bonus money in bankroll as well. The blog is set up here: My Poker Quest if you want to check it out and keep up.

Good Luck!

Till Next Time!

Cards Suck? Play Hi/Lo

OK, I have no real scientific data to support that claim. LOL.

Been playing some Hold'em and getting squashed. Playing OK poker just getting a bad run. So I figured if my cards are going to suck, might as well try to win with it. Funny thing is when I first started playing Hi/Lo, my cards kept coming middle of the road junk. Then it happened, the bad cards came back and I started splitting pots, then I started hitting some straights, next thing I knew I am about even for the week after being down for must of it.

I had the kind of week that KJ turned a straight but lost to AJ for higher straight on river....flopped a set with low to mid pairs, lose to a straight, just been that kinda a week. So I decided to turn to a different game and see if a change of scenery would work. It did, but also had a lot to do with most players don't know how the game works and overplays just about every hand. Bottom line is it works for me!

I will be posting again soon on a special project going up by a good friend. I am helping set it all up and though I think we are ready, he wants to sit on it a little longer and make it is exactly how he wants it. Stay tuned, it's coming!

Till Next Time!

Poker Growing?

Even as our great American Gov't is trying to ban onling poker....I see signs of it getting stronger.

Celebrity Poker Showdown last night.

Yea, I watch it!

It is new in New Orleans and lets just say there were three noticable changes.

First, Phil Hellmuth sucks but hey, most everyone new that. Of all the poker players they had to chose from, they picked him. Best part was the interview/introduction in the beginning. He says, they call be the brat. Then goes on to say, I don't know why I act that way, I look back and I'm embarrassed, I just get caught up in the moment. I guess most people watching celebrity poker would except this and move on. We all know the truth though! I watched a re run of the $1 million dollar championship event that The Mouth won, even his dad told him to sit down, shut up and play cards!


Second, the prize pool is now the Party Poker.net $1 million prize pool. Let the count begin how many times they can slip that in. You have to admit though that Party Poker's commercial are pretty neat. (Just wish they would do new ones)

Third, it is no longer the losers lounge, it is the SoCo Lounge. No more do we have to wonder what they are drinking there!


I have a big announcement comming up on the poker front that will/may be of interest to all of you. Though I will not be directly involved in the playing aspect, I know the person who is and will be directly involved in getting the word out. It is, to me, a very interesting challenge he is going to undertake. More details later!

Till Next Time!

Don't Ever Forget

As we stand here looking
At the flags upon these graves
Know these flags represent
A few of the true American brave

They fought for their Country
As man has through all of time
Except that these soldiers lying here
Fought for your country and mine

As we all are gathered here
To pay them our respect
Let's pass this word to others
It's what they would expect

I'm sure that they would do it
If it were me or you
To show we did not die in vein
But for the red, white and blue.

Let's pass on to our children
And to those who never knew
What these soldiers died for
It's the least we can do

Let's not forget their families
Great pain they had to bear
Losing a son, father or husband
They need to know we still care

No matter which war was fought
On the day that they died
I stand here looking at these flags
Filled with American pride.

So as the bugler plays out Taps
With its sweet and eerie sound
Pray for these soldiers lying here
In this sacred, hallowed ground.

Take home with you a sense of pride
You were here Memorial Day.
Celebrating the way Americans should
On this solemnest of days.

by Michelle R. Christman


Thanks Dad, I miss you Grandpa

Im Hooked!

My name is Steve and I have a problem...

It is the Dirty Dozen SnG at CD Poker.

Just $2.40 and if you win 4 in a row....$2,000!

I haven't won 4 yet, but have monied in about 85% of them though. Have won 2 in a row though and I just can't stop playing them. The format is two 6 player tables and of course a 6 player final table. Play is bad to say the least and a patient person makes final table almost automatically.

I will post I won 4 in a row! One Day!

Matter of fact, I am in one now. Have played one hand, won a little but in 5th place with 8 left.

Till Next time!

Watch What you say!

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washing...tm?POE=NEWISVA

AMAZING!

I am all for security and anti-terrorist but isn't there a line here?

The National Security Agency has been secretly collecting the phone call
records of tens of millions of Americans, using data provided by AT&T,
Verizon and BellSouth, people with direct knowledge of the arrangement told USA
TODAY.The NSA program reaches into homes and businesses across the nation by
amassing information about the calls of ordinary Americans — most of whom aren't
suspected of any crime. This program does not involve the NSA listening to or
recording conversations. But the spy agency is using the data to analyze calling
patterns in an effort to detect terrorist activity, sources said in separate
interviews."It's the largest database ever assembled in the world," said one
person, who, like the others who agreed to talk about the NSA's activities,
declined to be identified by name or affiliation. The agency's goal is "to
create a database of every call ever made" within the nation's borders, this
person added.

The good and the bad....

First the GOOD:

CD Poker and Party Poker has giving me some money. Even though I am not a HUGE fan of Party, money is money so I will go :).

So with birthday coming up on the 11th, I will go try and make my fortune. LOL

Now the BAD:

HeadHunter at JetSet: Blinds are 10/20. I have QQ and I raise to 80...1 caller from BB. Flop Qxx two diamonds. I go all in and get called by Ad4d..A DRAW and I have the player covered! He hits and I go home shortly after very steamed. Calls a huge overbet with A4 SOOOTED.


Another MTT: I have KsTs in SB and folded to me. I call and BB raises. I call raise and flop comes all spades. I go all in and instantly called by.................As9s!

Welcome back to the tables!!!


Till Next Time!

RANT!

Rant 1:

I went away this weekend from Virginia to South Carolina. Gas in VA when I left friday at 9 am was $3 a gallon. Gas in South Carolina (6 hours away) when I arrived was $2.73 a gallon. I have to ask what the hell made it 30 cents cheaper there than here.

Rant 2:

There was an imaginary line coming south from VA. that we crossed when gas automatically dropped down. Going North on way back, right at this "line", there was two exits within 1 mile of each other and all had gas at $2.73 cents. Literally ONE exit up after that (about 10 miles) ALL 4 STATIONS were at $2.94 a gallon and it never got below $2.85 from around Durham NC. to Richmond, VA. Come on, this is getting down right crazy. I can see some difference in gas from SC to VA but not 30 cents and there is no way you can justify a 21 cent jump in prices over 10 miles! Yes, the 4 stations at $2.94 were the big ones: Exxon, Shell, BP and Citgo. We have no one to blame but ourselves though.

Rant 3:

If we would get off our asses and start to get vocal with our gov't reps, vote and actually start to give a damn in this country, things would change. There is no reason to have Senators and Representatives in this country in office for longer than I have been alive! There are people in this country and reading this post that blindly vote Republican or Democrat year after year with no consideration for whom might be best for this country REGARDLESS of party affiliation.

I am not an activist, just a man with a family trying to get by. It's time to take a stand and draw a line in the sand and just say NO MORE! It is time for "We the people" to do what our founding fathers intended for us to do. Have a voice in our Gov't and start taking some action and showing some concern.

Geting off soup box now.

Till Next Time!

A Few Things and POKER!

When is enough enough....ethanol anyone? Funny thing is, GM makes an ethanol car and sells it to Brazil who runs almost exclusively on ethanol. I am all for Hybrids but come on, are lobbyist in the US Gov't that strong? Probably, so the next thing will be how high will it go I guess.


Just a small note, been working out in the yard, LOVING IT STILL! Will let you know when it gets old (LOL)

Played in a couple events. A tournament put on by a friends forum, finished 5th! Then last night I played the 72os freerolltour event, skipped a season so been a while, finished 12th! So with some of the rust off I was really considering the Dirty Dozen Jackpot Sit N Go at Titan Poker.
Only $2 and win 4 straight you get $2,000. They have higher Jackpot Sit N Go's but hey, have to start somewhere. I am not much of a tournament player, rather sit at a cash game and grind it out for my money but some of these are getting tempting and look fun, so its worth a try!

I got Dan Harrington's second book. I really like it, just as good as the first one. Of course now I am re-reading first one so it all makes sense again. This time reading is a little better. I get a drink, lay out in hammock, read three or four pages, fall asleep, wake up in time to get kids from school, repeat next day. At this rate, be done by Christmas! I LOVE SPRING TIME!

I have a couple new projects on the horizon, non poker related and I am still finding it hard to focus on poker. Last night was fun though, I did find out I missed it. There has been much written about playing online poker for a living. I have even posted a few words on it.

It's a job, and like must jobs it gets boring, tedious and just not fun anymore. There is no sick leave, vacation plan or 401K. If you don't play, you don't get paid. I knew that going in though, and I deal with it mostly.

I think my main problem is "getting back to work". I haven't play for any consistant amount of time in months and I need to. It is a mental hump I need to get over. Something always is coming up but I use to work it around playing, now it is the other way around and I time runs out before I get to play. Maybe I need Theory of Poker under my pillow for support will I sleep. HAHA may try that.

Anyway, I will start seeing you at the tables!

Till Next Time!

Fun and Sun

Just got back from a week at the beach! That was gooood relaxing. LOL!!


Beach was nice - ocean was COLD!
Room was great with jacuzzi tub and ocean front view.
Heated swimming pools and hot tub to boot.

I was looking forward to coming back though. There is truly no place like home. (Minus the pool, hot tub and ocean)



Above you will see "Sandville" (Yep, 7 of us and that was the best name we could get)
This was our first family vacation in about 3 years I guess. I even impressed my 13 year old, and for those with kids, you know that is not easy! So I will mark this one down as a successful outing.

I am still real busy with freeroll site, PFT and WAC and the emails are piled up so will spend next day or so sorting them out but really want to concentrate on Titan Poker's bonus. (100% up to $500 using code TeamPFT)

So, there is poker in my future right after Easter. I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful holiday and see you at the tables!


Till Next Time!

I need some blogger help!

OK, it all started with some friends needing help with some forums and ended up as WAC.

We are offering some free services:

Forum Builders
Article submissions for back links
SEO Tools
Link exchanges
and have more ideas coming


Here is were I need someones help here in the blogger community. I you can tell by old posts and lately, lack of posts, I use this media to express ideas, get things off my chess and is mainly for release and some of my poker learnings along the way. Of course with three websites now and managing a 4th and very active in a 5th, time will be dwendling but I beleive that this blog will help me maintain some sane"ness".

Since WAC is not a players forum, I would like for someone to contact me at support@webaffiliatecreators.com about submitting an article about successful marketing and profiting from a blog. I want to be able to offer bloggers a voice in the forum directly to the affiliate programs.

Besides the obvious linking process, how else would a site like mine help bring affiliates and bloggers in the same circle. How can we help? Since I have had this experience here, would a thread in the marketing category for just bloggers be a benefit? Would it get used?

Let me know. WAC had not been officially launched yet but will be this week or beginning of next. Already getting great participation.

Bloggers....let me know IF this is something that might help!


Till Next Time!

P.S. Me - Playing Poker - LOL!

Sun and Done!

Cleared it.

By my calculations it was 12 hours and I only played 1 table at a time mostly. did open up a second when the tables got tight, but less than 2 hours of two tabling.

I'm was impressed by the speed in which it went. My first time playing at Sun Poker and I liked it. It's cryptologic so pretty much the same as all the others so it is probably because I won and cleared bonus that I liked it so much! I will be going to Titan next and get the 100% up to $500 (Bonus code:TEAMPFT500). I haven't played too much there (couple freerolls) so really not sure of the game selection.

Hopefully some PL Omaha H/L, really is a raked hand consumer of a game! Look me up at the tables!

I guess I will now continue to wait for the pin from Ecash for Sun Poker. Thats about the only part I really hate but at least it is a one time deal. Then wait for the calendar month to turn and go at it again.

I will keep eveyone informed about how the Titan bonus clears.

Till Next Time!

Poker Poker Poker

I'm playing regular again. Since Poker Freeroll Tour is having their tournaments at Sun Poker and Titan Poker , I thought I would start clearing the bonus and qualifying for the big freerolls.

Sun Poker won the coin flip and I am clearing bonus there now. Been real easy so far. It is a cryptologic site so it is $40 a month bonus for 200 MPP's and $50 first deposit for $250 MPP's. SO $90 for clearing 250 MPP's on first deposit. I have played this weekend for about 7 hours all together and have 175 MPP's already. Will clear $40 tonight and rest tomorrow I am sure.

Playing mostly $25 PL Omaha H/L. Find that Omaha H/L clears bonuses a lot faster because of the tendency to limp more; it gets more raked hands in. Also good game because no one plays it right but most think they do! Just clearing bonus and making money!!!

The forum has a bonus code for Titan (TEAMPFT500) that will get me 100% up to $500 so I will be there a while longer I am sure. The Titan forum freeroll is in April but this month if you clear 250 raked hands at Sun Poker you qualify to play a $500 freeroll at end of March. I'll be there for that.

It is hard to explain but I feel comfortable again. I'm in the house, everything is settled down and I'm more relaxed. Moving back home was a good move but when we first came back we stayed with my mom in her apartment. It wasn't to cramped but tight all the same. I knew all along we were going to move again as we were all looking for a house. The plan was to find something big enough for all of us and mom would stay with us. So never really felt comfortable at apartment. Just never seemed settled because the "other" move was always looming I guess. Now, everything seems right again. Hopefully this will turn into better playing time.

To be such an easy conceptual game, poker has a lot of idiosyncrasies. (DUH!) Being comfortable in the environment you play in never was at the forefront of my mind playing online. Your home mostly playing poker, pretty relaxed and comfortable environment. Now I realize that even though I didn't consciously experience it, I wasn't really comfortable at the apartment so I never felt like playing. The computer was upstairs, in the bedroom, away from everyone and isolated. Now my wife would say that was the perfect environment for me but that is another story all together. I am in the living room now and the den is next door and everyone is in the same area at night when I play. It makes a difference that I didn't think was possible. I guess it was just more obvious to me playing live that being uncomfortable and nervous in your surroundings could cost you money, just never related it to online. I told you it was hard to explain!

I will be a Sun Poker for next couple days and then off to Titan. Let you know about the Titan bonus when I get there.

Till Next Time!

WOW

Been a long time since I have had anything to say. Well, not true but has been a while since I have taken the time to write it down. Pretty sure no one is interested in my "other life" besides poker, but I will get to it all in due time.

The new house is great, it is now getting to be warmer and I am beginning to do a little yard work. I know for some it is a dread and by the end of the summer it will be for me also but for now, after apartment living for 6+ months, having a yard is great! This one was vacant for a while before we came so have some (a lot) of raking to do. Just having an excuse for Lowes and Home Depot is good enough for me!

Recently came back from Atlantic City. Played poker mostly at the Sands. Arrived Friday and they had a $20 + $10 tournament. I finished 60ish out of 135 and don't feel I played to badly in my first live tournament. Went card dead BAD and nothing ever came around.

Went to a $1/$2 NL cash game and made a killing. I had a friend who came back from Vegas and said the table play was worst than anything you would see online. If you just sat there till you got THE hand you could make money. I thought that was a bit of an exaggeration but come to find out..NOT! Of course there was exceptions and you saw who they were pretty quick but for the most part, the fish were biting. One weekend doesn't make for a solid scientific defense of this theory I know. If I hadn't made money ALL weekend, maybe I would chalk it up to an anomaly but it was the truth all weekend. If I could have stayed away from the other games, would have brought home a lot more money! As it was I had a great time, and brought home money. Since there are little junkets from here going about every other weekend, think I will make it a habit to keep going up. Besides, if Congress has its way, maybe only way to go real soon!

So to put this in chronological order for those trying to keep up: I moved, went to Atlantic City, got the flu, gave it to the kids, took care of the kids and now everyone is back to school and work. So let’s play poker! I still think I am going to stick to my guns this time and stay with the NL end. With my new forum getting busier, I will start this at Sun Poker and Titan Poker since most of my tournaments will be held there over the next few months.

Funny how time has a way of dulling goals and motivations. It wasn't long ago I was talking about my schedule and sticking to it and the problems I was having staying focused and working all them out. Now, it is getting back into the routine that is the big issue. I am finding it easier to come up with the "Why I can get started tomorrow" excuses than actually doing something. I think once I finally start, i will be OK. Of course I got the estimate on getting the side door fixed on my Van today so that just might be enough to get me motivated again...OUCH!

Not enough to start now though! I am going to hit some golf balls on this first fabulous day of the year here. 70+ degrees! I will do better with the posts from now on that will also help me get going. Can't have a very good poker blog if there is no poker to write about. (As you can see)

Till Next Time!

And the Journey Begins...

I remember a while back, a long while back, a promised myself a walk on the no limit side. I think that time has come.

Moving on the 6th of February, so until after the dust settles, I am going to read the Harrington book's and SS2. Then I am going to the $25 NL tables and see if I can make it. Of course along with that come the tournaments. I do real well till it comes close to the end and either finish at the bubble or just inside the bubble. I have an apparent flaw and I am bound to find it.

So, I am off to learn and then try the NL side of the game. I have dabbled before but this will be my first real attempt to play more than just a few sessions. I hope it doesn't turn into a painful lesson.

Let's see....page 1

Till Next Time!

Got to Believe!

See, sometimes even giant creatures need a change in scenery. Doesn't mean you stop believing!!

Well, you guessed it. I have been real busy trying to get the forum off the ground but it seems to be working. I have another site interested in becoming a sponsor so will be expanding at the end of March. Thanks to all that have visited, it looks like I have some good members that are knowledgeable and willing to help so far.

Have added a few things to 4flush and the freeroll calendar and they have gotten a good response so far. It amazes me that I sit here with a goal to do this and update that and make sure this is posted and then look and the day is over. I even bought a digital recorder to keep track of everything. I like it! I even remembered my wife’s birthday!!

Good thing 72os Tour is on hiatus between seasons. If you haven’t signed up for Season 8 there is still time!

So that leaves my poker time and I can wrap that up pretty quick…NADA! Well, not exactly nada. I have played about 4 Omaha H/L SnG’s at AP. Won 1 and moneyed in two more…not bad ratio huh!! Nothing really big on that front but I have a good reason other than the above.

We have found a house to rent and come to find out she would like us to move Feb. 1st! Not a lot of time to think about it. We sign the lease Sunday. It is right down the road, I made an agreement that I would stay close to town if we can buy some land and move to the country upon our “Golden Years”. All agreed, but some how I think I will get screwed here.

So don’t stop believing, I will get to poker soon again. In the mean time, stop by the forum and say Hi! $100 members only freeroll Feb 28th just for doing so!

Till Next Time!

A Lot Happening!

I (4Flush.com) have teamed up with a new forum. You can find it at Poker Freeroll Tour and the forum directly here. What they have established is a forum that will reward your play at the sponsored sites by having big reward tournaments each month. The more players they get the better the monthly tournaments. Like pooling money for a big game, they are trying to pool players for bigger rewards.

Right now Sun Poker is the first sponsor and is offering a $100 freeroll for all new members on Feb. 28th at 20:15. Just sign up and you qualify. Next month there is a bigger freeroll planned with raked hands as a requirement for forum members. Pretty low requirement also. I like the idea, anyone can qualify each month for tournaments that you might not normally get a chance to play in.

Anyway, visit, comment, sign up and support. My freeroll calendar is linked as well as my site, hoping it will be something good.

Between that and 72os, guess I will be busy playing poker. What a great season 7 there this time. First and second seperated by 27 points. Play is for the most part great and the final tables are tough! I have been a part of that league since the beginning and it is fun to see the players getting better and better. I can see my tournment play getting a lot better also. Tournaments are not my bread and butter but playing at 72os had greatly increased my skill in them.

Yep, gonna be busy...this blog, 4Flush, PFT, 72os and oh yea, I have to play some poker also!

At least I will have plenty to talk about!

Till Next Time!

Thank You Interpoker

Back in Sept. I beleive, Interpoker ran a contest that for so many racked hands I got a cap and Super System 2. I like the cap, I were it occasionally but onto the book.

It is great. I am reading the limit section written by Jennifer Harman. It is not earth shattering as far as information about play. Tight is right! It is interesting to here her point of few on some situations as well as hands to play and how far to go with them. A small example is that she may one of the first I have seen that says lay down AKo on the flop MOST of the time in a multi way pot if you miss. As in everything poker "it depends" and she covers that but I like her approach here and with other examples that vary a little from popular views.

I haven't finished this section yet much less the whole book, but I like it so far. Get it, read it, you won't regret it.

Again I find myself having to concentrate on the aggressive side of my limit game. I have let that slide a little lately and it is showing. Have had some bad sessions in a row as of late but that it to be expected. I have been running extremely well. To the tune of about 7 bb's/hour over the last 3 1/2 weeks or so. It's about time for a variation swing I just don't want to introduce bad habits and losing aggressiveness is definately one I don't want to start messing with.

One of my goals this year is to stay on top of my poker. I had a lot going on towards the end of last year with moving back home, new computers, growth in my site and of course grandpa dying. It took a lot out of me as far as competitive spirit and drive. I want to stay on top of that this year and really work on progressing up the food chain a little. I am working on something that may help me do that by posting a starting dollar amount here and making myself update it daily. Of course I have done this before and it lasted about a week. Not real good at keeping up with stuff like that. I know it will not make for good reading so I will keep it in a small section and try not to make a big deal out of it.

Guess we'll see if I can keep up with it.


Till Next Time!

It's Up

I wrote this as a guide for beginners as well as a guide for players to "get back to basics". 72os thought enough of it to post it.

72os.com

Here is a sample:

PAY ATTENTION

There are only two things you have to pay attention to while playing limit holdem; yourself and the other players. That’s it, that’s all the
information you will need to play good limit holdem. So let’s start with the easy one first…..yourself.

Are you mentally ready to play the game?
Are you focused?
Have you set enough time to play a solid session?
Are there any distractions?

As you know, emotionally, poker is tough. The suck outs, unreal
calls, luck and just bad play can stress you to the maximum level in a short time. You have to be prepared for the inevitable and try to stay on as smooth an emotional level as possible. You never know when that next opportunity will arise to take advantage of bad play.

That is a lot easier said than done. Hand after hand of losing to pure dumb luck can work on a person. So during a session, re-evaluate yourself and make sure you are still emotionally “in the game”. If not, sit out a few hands, take a break, switch tables or whatever it will take to calm you enough to play solid poker again. Be honest with yourself, whether you have played 2 minutes or 2 hours, if you are getting emotionally out of control QUIT! From our example above, if you can lose an hour of profit from one misplayed hand, imagine what tilted play will cost you over the long term.

Till Next Time!

Ready to Go!

Holidays over and kids back to school. All things calming back down and normalizing again. Had a great Christmas. Got an Ipod Shuffle, new computer (FAST) and the WSOP PS2 game. My shuffle is full, my computer is humming and I have had some good finishes in the game BUT no bracelet! Still working on that one.

WOW - What a college football game last night. That is what the BCS has wanted for a loooong time. Finally a game that lived up to the hype. Helped I had a little money on Texas. Mr. Young is my new hero :), I ought to send him half.

NAAAAH

I am also writting a little article on limit poker that may get posted at 72os.com. If it does I will link it up. I am not a great communicator but I hope it is received well. As some of you know that have been around some, I like to ramble. Should be done with it this weekend, so we will see.

There has been a wrinkle introduced in my calm and cool waters of poker lately. I hope it is just the odd occurance but it seems that my $3/$6 game is getting creamed as soon as a sit down and I can't loose at $2/$4. As far as my Poker Tracker numbers go to the unreal good side at $2/$4 there are polar opposite at $3/$6. Uncanny and to be honest a little disturbing to see this numbers that are so out of norm being so consistent. So I fixed it, I quit playing $3/$6.

I know, not exactly a permanent fix. I will dive into the numbers and try to see if it just the way the planets are aligned or if I am doing something terribly wrong at $3/$6. Right now I am just enjoying the feeling of Superman at the $2/$4 tables. We all know that will not last so I am basking while I can.

Looking forward to a great 2006. Plan on a couple trips to A.C. and hopefully at least one to Vegas to meet some bloggers. Playing live at a weekly home game now and though it may not be the big time, I am practicing on staying calm and keeping my tells down to a minimum. Thats is when I haven't started taking shots and continue to do so every 1/2 hour till the game is over. Man, that next morning sucked. Been a long time since I have had a night or morning like that.

Till Next Time!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year All!

Just to keep mine on a positive note I am quitting poker for the rest of the year.

Last day of 2005 SUCKED!

45 minute session:

KK four times in 7 hands - Won 1
Best hand on flop 8 times - Beat on Turn 7
Best hand on Turn 16 times - Won 3

All in all, 2005 was a great year for poker. Made more this year than last which is always good. Think I have made some strides in the understanding of the game and thankfully there are still plenty fish in the sea and I am not the smallest one. Granted I am not the biggest either but I am growing.

I hope everyone has a great and SAFE New Year's Eve and see ya next year!

Merry Christmas

Hope everyone has a great Christmas. For some neat stories about the Vegas blogger trip, read some of the people on my blog roll. Looks like all had another great time.

I have had a couple downturns where variance has caught up with me but overall still up good and playing good poker. I must pause and pat myself on the back for some great patience shown lately after what was an abnormally great run of cards started to get caught on the river by some not so abnormal bad play. The best was when one player called three bets blind versus my AA with 64 sooooted and hitting runner runner flush to beat my set. I could only laugh though and ended up getting even with him later with another set that busted him so all was right in the universe again.

The holidays have consumed most of my time lately. I love Christmas time but I hate shopping, go figure! I have done well this year, I'm done with all the shopping and I haven't given one early gift yet! That is a weakness of mine. Go get the perfect gift and end up shopping again at the last moment because I cracked and gave it early.

The only "down" about this year is that my 8 year old finally figured out Santa. Damn school system. It was a good run though huh? 8 years old before he figured it all out. He was cool though, he still sent a letter to Santa and told me he was just "making sure". I about died laughing. I can't wait, I think I am worst than the kids. I know I am getting an Ipod (I picked it out) and the new Chris Ferguson WSOP game for PS2. With my son getting the PSP, I might just sit down Christmas day and shuffle me up some tunes and win a bracelet!

Speaking of winning, I play at what is turning out to be a regular Friday night game with some family and friends. $10 tournament with anywhere between 9-16 players on any given night. I have had numerous third and second place finishes and finally broke through with a win Friday. I told them about the Head Hunter tournaments at JetSet and everyone brought $2 extra for their bounty. I ended up taking out 5 and winning it all. Not a bad little pay day.

Well I guess that is it, maybe till after Christmas.

Happy Holidays everyone and Be Careful!

Till Next Time!

What a Run!

Ok, while must of you were living it up in Vegas (hint of jealousy), I have literally been doing no wrong for about a month. I am up HUGE!. What do I contribute it to?

A little bit to the fact that I understand what I am doing better, a little bit more because I am playing well, a bit more because I am getting hit in the face with the deck every other session and A LOT more because of luck.

Understanding - I am laying down second best hands and rarely been wrong.
Playing Well - Hammering strong hands on missed flops and forcing folds.
Hit with deck - Unbeleivable starting hands holding up over and over.
Luck - Me (KsQh) Opponent (KdQs) both flop a inside straight draw and the 4th spade hits on the river. :)

In the same vain as not boring you with bad beat stories, I will not bore you with top pair holding up on flush boards. I will leave you with this joke my mother-in-law sent me:

The Bridge


A man walking along a SanFrancisco, beach was deep in prayer. Suddenly, the sky clouded above his head and, in a booming voice, the Lord said, "Because you have TRIED to be faithful to me in all ways, I will grant you one wish." The man said, "Build a bridge from SanFrancisco to Hawaii, so that I can drive over anytime I want." The Lord said, "Your request is very materialistic. Think of the enormous challenges for that kind of undertaking. The supports for the bridge required to reach the bottom of the Pacific! The concrete and steel it would take! It will nearly exhaust several natural resources. I can do it, but it is hard for me to justify your desire for worldly things. Take a little more time and think of something that would honor and glorify me."

The man thought about it for a long time. Finally he said, "Lord, I wish that I could understand my wife. I want to know how she feels inside, what she's thinking when she gives me the silent treatment, why she cries for no reason, what she means when she says nothing's wrong, why she is sniping at me for no reason, why she is all anger one moment and all love the next, and
how I can make her truly happy?." The Lord replied without pausing for a moment, "You want two lanes or four on that bridge from SanFrancisco to Hawaii?"

Till Next Time!

Winning and Losing

Winning ang losing is a constant battle for poker players. Running bad or good, playing well or not, is it just variance, all come up in one way or another. This is a VERY good read in my opinion on the subject posted on 2+2. I like some of the points this player makes:

We poker players always think we are better than we actually are. We think we are farther along than we actually are. That is why losses hit us so hard. We think we are invincible. We don’t “deserve” to lose. Well guess what, everyone deserves everything they get in poker. Luck doesn’t exist in the long term. If you lose over a proper sample size it’s because you didn’t have the edge you thought you had.

I think this was well said and overlooked must of the time by most players. Everyone seems to understand "the long term" but most miss the point about losing over a sample size. This is where varience seems to catch the most flack. Variance is a part of poker life but you can still work to control how big a swing it is.

Winning at poker is dangerous. Very dangerous. We are all more results oriented than we think we are. We think if we win its because we were supposed to, and when we lose its because of variance.

The fact is that good and bad runs will come and are you good enough to take advantage of them both. It takes a lot of study time for both. Did I get the max value out of my cards during the good run and did I lose the minimum amunt during the bad run.

Losing is a part of winning. Throughout the long streaks, where the right-most column in your spreadsheet will keep reading “0,” you have to be able to be objective. Don’t assume you are playing bad, but don’t assume its only variance. The only way you can know what it is, is to be super critical with yourself. Even when you are playing well, you will make stupid plays, but how often?

This is where I need the most work at. Studying my play during the good runs. I think we all tend to take too much credit in the good run and forget to look back and see the tiny mistakes that missed us a bet here and a bet there. Maybe the hand that we made a "good fold on" that had the pot odds to go on with and we would have won with on the river. Didn't matter much at the time because we where up big but when the ugly end of variance raises its head, those bets here and there and pots dropped will make a difference. If you stop and think that 1-2 BB/hour is the average, it doesn't take that big a mistake to wipe out a whole hour of work.

Studying during the bad runs is probably what most players do normally. Even then I think we sway towards studying the unbeleivable draws that came in against us and trying to figure out where it went wrong. Not only will that happen but I am glad it does. That's how money is made. I need to study harder the hands that I played wrong altogether and start working on those areas.

I could probably ramble about this forever. Most subjects that hit close to home I can ramble on about. Go read the article, it was a great look inside a poker players summer.

Till Next Time

Peaceful Easy Feeling

….and I feel better about my limit hold'em game now than I ever have, and I know I'm learning again, which is fantastic.

-EV

In a zone, focused, on a run or whatever you want to call it, I’m there. I’d like to think that –EV nailed it though. Though I have had more winning sessions than losing, I can not honestly say I am winning more than my fair share. I am winning at an alarming BB an hour rate that will eventually level itself out for sure. There is a difference though in my game. What do I think it is? I have come to an understanding.

I am not as articulate as Hank, or a good communicator like Pauly, or the master of the uber-post or even good under So-Co. That’s why I like this blog. It makes me try to put into words what I have learned and I think I am getting better at it.

I have reached another plateau in my poker career. This one came quietly and without much fan fair or fireworks. I didn’t wake up and say “A HA!” or shout from the mountain top. To be up front about it, I missed it all together. I can not tell you when it happened but ironically can tell you it happened while I was not playing poker a lot.

All the information I have put into my head has finally gelled together into a usable mass of information. I finally have a solid foundation of the poker basics I can call on when I need it. I found this out over the last couple weeks when I would not only make a certain play but I caught myself explaining to myself why this play was the right play. I found that the hands I would put my opponents on were getting more specific and I am getting more accurate.

It as taken me over a year to confidently write this and get to this comfort level but I can now say I am top 1 or 2 at every limit table I sit at in my level. Looking back, I can see that I pushed limits a little to fast. Though I am not sure anyone could have told me any different at the time, but I will agree that money is not the only reason you move up limits.

I wish I could say that is that but we all know it doesn’t work that way. I believe now I am ready for more information and to expand my horizons a bit more. I know I have higher limits to obtain. As –EV said, I am learning again, which is fantastic!

Till Next Time!

Dynamically Speaking

I started my time back to poker at Pacific Poker like I said before, because it was new to me and I wanted to come back to something new and different. Having no Pacific hands in Poker Tracker and starting fresh, I bought the $10 Hand Grabber program for Pacific and started to go to work. Also found out I could data mine with the Hand Grabber program which came in real helpful!

I started at $1/$2 and had a big winning streak right off the bat. I then decided to move up to the $2/$4 tables and my winning streak continued until recently and the “leveling off’ begun. I was at a ~7 BB pace for 700+ hands so I knew it was coming. After studying my play, I decided that it was still solid and improving so I moved up to $3/$6 which I was at before I took my hiatus. Currently up at the $3/$6 level.

I am telling you that story so I can tell you about this observation. While playing and data mining at the $1/$2 level, I would play with 3-4 auto rated “fish” at every table. Sprinkle in a couple Taz’s (Loose/Aggressive), a good player and the rest calling stations.

Moving up to $2/$4 I expected a little better play and got just that, a little. Take out a Taz and add an eagle and that was it. Fish population seemed to stay the same. The last table had 6 auto rated fish at it! That was tooo many. Everyone was drawing at something at that table. I should have left….’nuff said.

Moving up to $3/$6 I really expected a bump up in play. I just left a table with 3 fish, 2 Taz and a calling station. Made good money and the reads are easy.

Funny how there was an exponential rise in table minimums and table pots but the table dynamic stayed the same through 3 levels. Every now and then a thread will pop up or article will appear that suggests the boom is over and poker is diminishing in numbers. I’m no expert and can not argue either side of that point. I can comment on my little sample and say that there are still plenty of people out there willing to throw away money to a decent player with a little patience.

For all those mired in the micro limits working there way up and saying, “Can’t wait to play higher so people will not call my raises with crap”, wish on. It is happening here also. By the way, that is terrible logic, but that will be another post. There are plenty here willing to call $6+ on any two soooooted and ANY draw. That’s why we play poker though.

So tonight as I close the books and tally up the score (in my favor this time), I raise a glass to all of those that called my value raises versus my nut hands and called me down with ace high. I salute you for missing that gut shot though you paid dearly for it and just falling short with that bottom pair. I know tomorrow is another day and you will be armed and ready to battle again, so until then………Thank You!


Till Next Time!

Empire Strikes Back

I can sum up last nights session like this:

Fold 25 straight hands
Get a hand and miss flop
Fold 25 straight hands
Get a hand and miss flop
Fold 25 straight hands
Get a hand and get sucked out
Win a small pot
Repeat for 4 hours


So to not bore you to death, looks like Empire wants to strike back!

Empire Online sues PartyGaming
By Miles Costello

Internet gaming website Empire Online has acrimoniously cancelled takeover talks with PartyGaming and launched a legal action against the operator of PartyPoker after it ringfenced its customers from rival sites.

Empire Online, which runs Empirepoker.com, said it had "terminated discussions" with PartyGaming after the group came back to the company with a second takeover proposal "at a level that cannot be recommended".

Having initially tabled an all-share offer that valued Empire Online at 10 per cent of an enlarged group - approximately £400 million - Empire said PartyGaming "made a revised proposal that is significantly different both in terms of the price and structure".

Although Empire did not state the level of PartyGaming's offer - which it said came after "a protracted due diligence process and continued delays in the timetable" - the second tilt was almost half the first and also contained a cash element.

PartyGaming later confirmed its offer for the business and assets of Empire Online was worth roughly 60p a share, valuing the company at about £175 million.

Of the proposed legal action it said: "To the extent that any action is forthcoming, PartyGaming is highly confident of a successful outcome."

John Shepherd, director of corporate communications at PartyGaming, added: "They're clutching at straws."

But as it pledged to investigate "commercial strategic opportunities" and reiterated its profits targets after the collapse of the talks, Empire said it planned "to institute and vigorously pursue legal proceedings" against PartyGaming.

This comes five weeks after PartyGaming took steps to end its formal links with its "skins" - the websites such as Empire Online that make money by directing gambling traffic to its group websites.

"The directors of Empire Online have explored whether legal action might be taken ... in relation to damage caused to it by the conduct of companies within the PartyGaming group in separating the poker system used by PartyGaming players from that of its skins," Empire said.

"Having received legal advice, the directors intend to institute and vigorously pursue legal proceedings as soon as possible."

It has already warned that profits for the full year will fall by 10 per cent as a result of PartyGaming's move.

Empire, led by chief executive Noam Lanir, said it has received several "commercial strategic approaches" over the past few months and said it would pursue talks with the parties involved, which it did not name. It said its strategy in relation to Empirepoker.com would depend on the outcome of any legal action against PartyGaming.

It said that its businesses that have no relationship with PartyGaming, including Club Dice and Noble Poker, are on course to make profits after tax of about $37 million (£21.5 million).

It said profits at Empire Poker, which as a poker website does have a relationship with PartyGaming, "could be impacted" by the commercial changes and by the outcome of the proposed lawsuit.

Just last week, PartyGaming redrew its relationships with its other skins - parting company with Coral Eurobet and effectively buying out Multipoker.com and IntertopsPoker.com.

Shares in Empire Online dropped nearly 5 per cent (down 3p) to 60.5p in early deals. PartyGaming lost 1.5p (a fall of more than 1.5 per cent) to 96.5p

Till Next Time!

Still Going!

Just like the bunny.

Pacific has been great so far. I am about half way through with the wagering requirements and really have nothing bad to say about the site other than you can not multi table.

I have had the losing sessions and the bad beats (One two outer on river and one 94 sooooted calling my three bet cold vs. AA only to flop 4x4) All in all though I am up and the site is paying off well. You will definately need the stomach for it though. I must say I like my little fish bowl!

Bet365 is having a $25K freeroll on the 26th of November at 15:00. Entry is free, there are no raked hands requirements and there are cash prizes for the top 1000 places. 10,000 max entrants but the winner gets $3,000. Probably a huge crap shoot till first break but how do you not try this for free!

Saw this this weekend...hmmmm, someone is getting fired!

Coupon Misprints Could Cost Casino Millions

JOLIET, Ill. -- A misprint may end up costing an Illinois casino millions of dollars.Harrah's Joliet Casino said there was a mistake in about 11,000 coupons mailed to customers last week. Instead of being worth $15 or $20 apiece, each had a face value of $525 in cash. The company blames the error on a third-party vendor.Dozens of gamblers crowded Harrah's customer service desk on Friday, and got angry when the casino refused to redeem the coupons. Customers were encouraged to trade the coupons for reward points. Some did, but others decided to keep their slips of paper.The Illinois Gaming Board ruled that Harrah's must honor the coupons. All told, the company could be liable for as much as $5.8 million.

Hope all had a great weekend!


Till Next Time!

What a Difference

I use to give advice that a couple days away from poker was a good thing and we all needed it. I still whole heartedly agree with that concept but now begin to wonder if it isn't long enough.

I have been away from constant poker now for over 6 weeks. I have continued my work on the site as well as play in the weekly 72os freeroll league but for the most part haven't sat down to "grind it out" for a while. Now with the family getting back to normal operations after grandpa's passing and kids back in school, I have gotten back into a daily routine of playing.

I picked Pacific Poker to start mainly because I haven't been there and just felt like starting something new would be a good way to get back into things. I bought the handgrabber for Poker Tracker to get the Pacific hand histories and also had to reload it from the hard drive crash and reset the auto rater. See, I had done nothing to prepare for this.

I started back at $1/$2 just to get my feet wet again and figure I would rapidly move back up after I cleared the bonus and felt comfortable. Well, I must say I fell back into this smoothly. I am not saying my game isn't a little rusty, I'm a little slow reading other peoples hand's as well as reading betting sign's but I am soooo relaxed.

I have had one losing session out of 4 and my three wins have been big and the losing one rather small. I am enjoying the game much more as well as being very patient. Of course the patience is rather easy when you know you will get paid off when the big one comes around. I am a lot more on top of the emotional side of the game now and can see clearer the burn out I was starting to experience.

I had written before about losing my patience and I was not really in the moment when I played. A losing hand or session would quickly put me on edge and I started to second guess my game as well as poker as a whole. I guess it took me this long to realize how far gone I had gotten and now I feel sharp again and ready to deal with the inevitable's.

I know enough to realize that there will be losing sessions and suck outs and bad beats. I think I know enough now to see when a break will be needed and hopefully smart enough to make that break long enough. I never considered weeks away from the game to be a good thing. I guess I was wrong. My advice to everyone from now on will be "Take as much time as you need to actually forget about the game and then return"

Pacific Poker

Man, welcome back!

$1/$2
BB/100 hands - +25.75
Went to Showdown - 11.11%
Won at Showdown - 100%
First hand won - KJo late with a K on flop and J on turn and Ax calling me down with ace high :).
Worst beat - AA to 86o

Ok, it was only a small 1 1/2 hour session but it was my first session in over a month! So a quick reveiw of Pacific Poker since this is my first time there.

Likes:

Bonus - It is $100 which in now a days standards may be low but they give it to you up front like the casinos do and you can use it. Must wager $2000 before cashing bonus. Not a bad deal.

Comp Points - Every 100 comp points gets you $1. May not be a lot but I like the concept of loyalty = money.

SnG's - Ok, I am no expert at these and they do start you with only 800 chips BUT they have low limit 4 table tournaments that pay well. I played in a $2.50 one that payed 1-3 $50 - $30 and $20 respectively. Not bad and no breaks so they play rather quickly. (I finished 5th)

Software - I like that the chat is totally seperate and you don't see it unless you want to. Software is OK fast and I never had connect problems. (I am on DSL)

Layout - This will go in both lists. Very user friendly. Don't have to go searching through tabs to find what you are looking for. All right there in lobby. Tables on one side, tournaments on other.

Play - So far seems very fishy. No draw to remote or pair to low to call you down with. Good tight aggreesive play will win a lot of money but just be prepared for the suck outs to take a big pot or two.

Dislikes:

Multi table - you can not multi table at Pacific. Trust me, you can make just as much at one table (LOL)

Layout - For me the tables are too dark. I know that is minor but it bugs me.

Pop Ups - There are not a lot of options to customize the look and feel of the site and like must sites now a days have little pop up announcements for there tournaments that just irk me. To me it is like a fly that will not go away. They were few and far between but still a pet peeve of mine.

There you have it folks....POKER CONTENT!!

Till Next Time!

Poker content to Come

Funny thing. I haven't got any money anywhere right now and for the life of me can not decide where I want to play at. Like Professional Poker Player™, I also don't want to download all those sites again and would like to stay with about 5.

After the recent hard drive crash I haven't had any reason to download many sites. I know I am going to stick to Poker Tracker sites from now on with Absolute Poker, Pacific, and UB being three of the five. Since I have not been to Pacific Poker, I'll will try it next. I have set Monday as my "Get Back to Reality" day and hope to have full poker content of aces being cracked and long draws coming in on the river to beat me real soon.

Have a Great Weekend!

Till Next Time!

Goodbye

At around 1:30pm on Sunday, my grandpa died. It was peaceful and for that I am grateful. I am 38 years old and in the last two weeks have have learned a lot about the human spirit. Over the last two weeks when he was able, he would ask how granny was doing and was she ok, all the whilel taking morphine every hour for his pain. Grandpa was 78 years old and by his own admission, didn't have any regrets. He lived his life to the fullest and did what he wanted.

He will me missed and will always be a hero.

Again I would like to thank everyone for the emails, IM's and comments. They are appreciated greatly.

~~~~~~~~~~

It is time now to get back in the saddle. Since the Pokershare fiasco, I guess I have to find somewhere else to play. Good thing about this is that I haven't played anywhere for so long it will all be new again. Maybe I will go with who ever offers the next re-load bonus. Odds on favorite for that will be Absolute Poker!

TILL NEXT TIME!

New Job

Not really but I am now on the morning grandpa watch. I go over at 9am and stay till 3pm. I can't understand how a man that sleeps more than is awake can tire me out so. That 2 hours time he is awake is non stop action.

He gets real confused when we keep giving him medicine. He asked today that since he doen't hurt any more, why does he need medicine? I tried to explain to him that it is because of the medicine that he doesn't hurt. I try hard not to lie to him any when he is in a coherent state. He understands that he has cancer and is not going to be around much longer (when the medicine isn't messing with him). So after a rather lengthy explanation by me today as to why he was taking the medicine, he just looked at me and said "Oh" and went back to sleep.

I realized today that there is a good chance I will be there when he passes away. That bothered me for a moment. Not sure why.

I'm not playing any poker right now. Don't think I could concentrate. I am taking books with me and re-reading them though. Small Stakes Holdem now. Trying to stay as sharp as I can.

Thanks to all that have emailed their support and I will be getting back to poker real soon.

Till Next Time!

Life Catches Up

Atlantic City for me has been called off. A call from hospice saying that family members should stay close. Everytime the phone rings now, we look at each other, hoping this isn't the last call.

You think you are prepared but not really. The family has known for a while that grandpa was going to die. The experts said he had till the summer. The experts didn't know grandpa. Grandpa is a Man. I knew that there was no way he was leaving this earth until everyone, especially grandma, was taken care of. Since we found out the diagnosis, he had sold his house, re-done my aunts house, moved in with her, made sure grannnie has no financal needs ever again and kept a promise to see a grandson graduate from boot camp. All this with pain. Enough pain at times to cause tears in his eyes.

He was the main reason me and my family moved back home. He was a rock in my life and you could always count on him to be there. I am very close to my mother and my father but they split and eventually divorced when I was thirteen. So over the years there was a lot of firsts with grandpa. We shared my first bike, fish, mini-bike and go-cart. He loved to hunt, so my first BB-gun, pistol, rifle and shotgun experience came from him. My only new car I ever owned came with his help. Then he preceded to teach me how new cars are a waste of money and I have never had one since.

My visits now have gone from once a week to once a day. He is getting to much for grannie to handle. Today finding him across the house when I got there and too tired to get back to his room. We walked together back to his bed, all the time talking about something. With all the drugs, you never really know where his mind is anymore. When we got to his bedside he looked at me and said thanks. No grandpa, Thank You.

I am closer to 40 than 30 now. Hell, I'm closer to 40 than 35 now. I have my own family and responsibilities. I can only hope that we my time comes, I will be half the man he is.


Till Next Time!

I Did It!

After 6 events of NL tounraments, I held on to finish FIRST in the 72os Freeroll Tour. 6 weeks in a row of solid poker. Who knew I had it in me! With over 100 people a week, I consider this a good accomplishment.

I am not much of a tournament player. Actually, other than these tournaments, I play about 1 other tournament and/or SnG a month. Well, not this month I guess with trying to qualify for the Pacific Poker $50K tournament but usually thats the case. Needless to say I am proud of myself.

~~~~~~~~~~
Not sure if this is real or a hoax, it was emailed to me. If it's real...DAMN!



This crocodile was found in New Orleans swimming down the street. 21 FT long, 4,500 lbs, around 80 years old minimum. Specialists said that he was looking to eat humans because he was too old to catch animals. This crocodile was killed by the army last Sunday at 3:00 pm, currently he is in
the freezer at the Azur hotel. The contents of it's stomach will be analyzed
this Friday at 2:30pm



~~~~~~~~~~

Atlantic City FRIDAY! Yahooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Till Next Time!

I am NOT implying that these people are not pros or that they are not VERY good at what they do but is the full time poker player, playing for a living, becoming extinct?

Lets see, Howard Lederer, Phil Ivey, Chris Ferguson, John Juanda, Jennifer Harman, Phil Gordon, Erick Lindgren, Erik Seidel, Clonie Gowen, Andy Bloch (Team Full Tilt); Phil Hellmuth Jr., Annie Duke, Antonio Esfandiari, Dave Ulliot, Jim Worth, Russ Hamilton, John Vorhaus (Team Ultimate Bet), Gus Hansen (Team Poker Champs), Mark Seif (Team Absolute Poker), Chris Moneymaker, Greg Raymer, Tom McEvoy, Wil Wheaton, Isabelle Mercier, Evelyn Ng (Team Poker Stars, Josh Arieh (Team Bodog), Doyle Brunson (Doyles Room) and the list could and does and will go on and on. Congrats to these guys also. They have stuck to the grind and now it is finally paying off. Close to being household names.

Who can blame them? Jumping on the poker popularity bandwagon only makes since. We all realize poker is not an easy living so if you can find a way to make a little (or a lot) of money on the side…..why not right?

Then again maybe I have toooo much time on my hands this Sunday!

~~~~~~~~~~

Everyone I am sure has the last bullet loaded in the chamber and ready to fire at me tonight. The last event before the championship in the 72os Freeroll Tour. I have been near the top all year and my lead going in is shaky at best. This is the Wild Card Event. It will replace a missed event or a bad showing in an event and can really shake up the standings. Just need to have one more solid game and it will not matter. Wish me luck.

If you want a relaxing 6 weeks of tournament play with not only some real nice people but some very good players, come join us for Season 7. It is a learning experience playing these tournaments and doesn’t cost a dime.

Til Next Time!

I got this from my 7 yr old from arts and crafts at school. Kinda wonder how the conversation went with his teacher.

Son: That's my daddy
Teacher: Whats he doing?
Son: Playing poker.
Teacher: Do you watch him?
Son: Yep, all the time. My dad is always playing.
Teacher: Oh really now!


I expect a call from Social Services any day now. I'm glad my kids know what I do. Neither has shown a strong interest yet. My 13 year old daughter has boys and my son still see's it more like a Playstation 2 game than anything else. I'm not sure either of them understand what poker is doing though. I am talking about the good things poker has done.

The season passes to the amusement park, the new school clothes, Playstation 2 games, contacts for daughter, eating out and all the other little extras I can do now with the extra income. Of course the big picture like college and extra savings and retirement account now that my wife is working is a big plus also. I never tell my kids "poker paid for this" or "poker allows us to do that". I don't think it matters much or that they really care how we do these things, as long as we can keep doing them. That's fine with me. If an interest ever develops, I will be more than happy to show them "the ropes". I just hope they show an interest AFTER they get jobs and have their own money! (LOL)

Till Next Time!

Time's They are a Changin'

So Party Poker has decided to keep its players (pdf) to itself it seems. Wonder what will happen to all the rest of the skins now. Empire should be fine with Noble Poker( that deal makes sense now).

Not sure if I talked about it hear but I told some friends a few months back that it will not be long before the big will start eating the small. I think this is just the beginning. Rumors abound about who is buying who and who is switching to what network. Will just be one big poker family before long.

Speaking of the family, after 6 events I am still leading the 72os Freeroll Season 6. One more shot to take me out will be Sunday's Wild Card event. This event can be used to replace a finish in the previous 6 events or make up for a missed event. Funny how I thought this was a needed game to allow for people to miss an event and still have a chance. Now I wish it was never created...LOL. My worst finish so far has been 49th. Best thing I can do is make another final table and put it away. Top 40 make the $100 Championship game but like I posted earlier, so close now, really don't want to lose it. Finished 8th in last one and I have put together 6 weeks of some good poker. Hopefully can put in one more good night.

Haven't played a lot of poker lately. Have a few side projects going and taking up much of my time. Going to Atlantic City on the 21st-24th and I am getting stoked about that. Going to be a fun time and hope to get atleast one live MTT in before I leave. Maybe by the time I have freed enough time to play again there will be only one big poker room to choose from..LOL!

Till Next Time!

Interesting proposal

Interesting way to get turned around fast. Found it on Yahoo. Yea, could have linked it but have no other news :).

NEW ORLEANS - Mayor C. Ray Nagin on Friday said he wants to allow Las Vegas-style gambling in the city's larger hotels as a way to jump-start the economy after Hurricane Katrina.

The plan calls for a large-scale gambling area in the city's central business district, stretching from Interstate 10 on the west to the Mississippi River on the east.

"Now is the time for us to think out of the box. Now is the time for some bold leadership, some decisive leadership," Nagin said.

Nagin said gambling should be allowed in hotels that have more than 500 rooms, the majority of which are near the city's famed Canal Street. The plan will require legislative approval.

Gambling is already allowed using video machines in roughly half of Louisiana's 64 parishes, but there's only one full-scale, land-based casino, operated by Harrah's Entertainment Inc., in New Orleans.

Harrah's downtown casino has been closed since shortly before Katrina hit and the company has not given a timetable for possibly reopening the gambling hall.

Also, three dockside riverboat casinos operate in the New Orleans area.

Nagin made his proposal after Katrina virtually destroyed all 13 dockside casinos on the nearby Mississippi Gulf Coast. A bill to allow operators to rebuild land casinos close to shore has been passed by both the Mississippi House and Senate. Gov. Haley Barbour has said he will sign the measure.

There are currently nine hotels in the city with more than 500 rooms; Nagin said he thought five or six hotels would add casinos.

Nagin would not speculate what would be involved in getting his casino plan passed, but said he hoped Gov. Kathleen Blanco — who has campaigned against additional gambling in Louisiana — would include it in a recently announced special session, which is scheduled for November.

"Right now we're a cash-strapped city," Nagin said.

Nagin said he is not fond of gambling, and that he wished he had another solution, "but I know of no other way."

He said Harrah's would obviously have to agree to give up its exclusive rights and acknowledged he did not think the company would "do it for free."

Harrah's spokesman Alberto Lopez declined to comment on the proposal.

"I believe it would be completely inappropriate for me to comment at this time because it's the first time I've heard of it,'" said Lopez.

Dan King, general manager of the city's Sheraton hotel, would not discount the proposal.

"I can't speak for my company. I guess all ideas are worth investigating. I don't really have a comment because I haven't studied it," he said.

Nagin said he sent a letter to Blanco earlier this week with his "out of the box" ideas.

The letter asked for a 50 percent income tax credit for any worker in the city. Nagin also asked the governor to eliminate the tax on manufacturers' debt in the city and for an income-tax-free zone for manufacturers in the city.

Till Next Time!

Well, Well

I'm delighted to say that by playing in account XXXXXXXXXX you achieved the required number of hands to qualify for an InterPoker Cap and a copy of Doyle Brunson's Super System 2 !

But not enough to clear the $90 bonus! OK, still mad at Interpoker for the way the screwed up the monthly bonus BUT I like getting the book!!

Though I am still not sure how I did this I am not complaining. They said I should be getting both by November. I really can't wait to get my hands on that book.

Only poker for me today was watching the rerun of Doyle winning number 10 on ESPN. I love to watch him play. Only Doyle could win with T3o vs. KQo, If that was me a K or a Q would hit on the river like clock work. Lets not forget the 53o and raising 13K heads up only to see trip 5's on the flop.

Till Next Time!

Blank

Cut on the computer and it says Windows XP....then blank. Over and over and over.

RIP - Hard Drive. Thanks for the memories.

Had most everything backed up but my saved emails. There were a view that I really wanted to keep and my address book is gone. Not to bad in the way of devastation, just time consuming to get lap top back up and running. Not sure if i want to rebuy or re-build. Might be just beyond my realm of patience to re-build.

If I do I will keep case and power supply and go from there. Will have to price it out. $900 and I can get a new HP built for gaming. Guess we will see.


Finished 16th (I think) in the 72os event Sunday. May have retaken the lead with just the wild card event to go before the championship event. Points are SO close. The wild card replaces your worst finish (mine was 49th) so still can be anyones series. Nice to play consistant poker again though.... want to win it now that I am so close.

Still trying to qualify in the Pacific $30K Tournament through the freeroll and the $1 qualifiers. If I may make one comment, Damn the play there is bad. I only played one so far plus a couple SnG's but wow I can't beleive what the players there will risk there whole tournament on. Hopefully can avoid the short term luck and move on.


Till Next Time!

Puppy Dog Close

As some of you know who regular read this here blog, I have been in sales all my life. There are not to many sales techniques I haven't used or read about. The Puppy Dog has probably been used on everyone at least once in there life. They get you to use the product or service and then you want it. There are many variations and it is most successful.

AOL - 3 months free.
Car Dealer - Take it home tonight
Cell Phone - Make a call

Why do I bring this up? I got one today at Pacific Poker. A simple email: We have deposited $5 in your new account. Come play!"

It all started when I was forwarded an email by a friend about this tournament:

A new tournament has been added to the poker tournament lobby in the $50/100K tab.
It is the $50,000 Guaranteed tournament. Satellites for this tournament are currently running.
The specs of the tournament are as follows:

Name: $50,000 Guaranteed
Buy-in: $65 + $5
Date: Fridays at 20:00 PPT/8PM ET starting on September 30^th
Daily Freerolls and satellites start as low as $1 + $0.10

I have a dream to win a big prize starting out with a freeroll. Stupid and a long shot but heck, it's free. Knowing this, he sent me this email and I downloaded the site last night and signed up for an account. Within 24 hours, I get $5. After two 20 man $2.50 SnG's I am at $12. When I get to $1,000 I am cashing out (LOL).

This is twice this month so far...Turned a free $25 into $110 and cashed out earlier this month. Lets see if I can duplicate that!

Enough rambling, going to play in the 72os Omaha tournament tonight. This will make one time I have ever played Omaha. Better watch out, got luck going for me!


Till Next Time!

Pure Luck?

I played in the 72os event again and this time I lasted till top 25. I am in second place overall and really am happy with my play as of late. Got all my money in pre flop with AQ vs TJ and he hit runner runner straight to take me out. Not to bad losing to pure luck, that will happen every once in a while.

Speaking of pure luck, this is to all those having a ruff go of it lately. Come on, if she can, ANYONE can!

Mariah Carey won $27,000 at a poker game in Las Vegas last Friday. Carey, 35, invited at producer Jermaine Dupri's birthday party at the opening of the Tao restaurant from Venetian Hotel, visited a nearby casino to play some poker.

The Diva, who won $27,000 after just three rounds of the game, confessed she's not a poker player, so the winning was not on account of her skills.

Contactmusic.com quote her as saying: "I used to play poker with my sister. But I think my low-cut dress put some of the guys off."

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Planning a trip tp Atlantic City in the end of October. Starting to get stoked about it. Some of the guys from 72os will be there. I know it's going to be fun! Haven't played in a casino in a while now. Hopefully can make a tournament or two while we are there.

Racing went well this weekend. Did manage to tear the ^$%#%^ out of it in the last qualifier before the main event so I didn't get to finish. That sucked. In the last post I said it was like getting AA every hand, well, I got cracked!

Till Next time!

That sucked

Played in a 72os $2 tourney last night at Poker Host. This was our first group of buy in tournaments we are trying. Not a bad turn out of 16 people. This one was holdem. Next ones will be Omaha, Omaha H/L and 7 card stud. Should be fun. Never played Omaha or Stud.

For me, it sucked. Finished 12th. KK in BB and got folded around to. AA won a little, KK was being called down with an A on flop and I folded to river raise. He had ace. (duh) AK, 99,55,44 and 66 all lost before the first break and all in with AQ lost to 55 when I flopped a Q and he flopped a set.

Great cards, and never hit a flop. Just one of those nights that just plain sucked.

I am off the next couple days to go to a race in NC. I'm not sure anyone will recall the pics I posted a while back on the remote control car racing I do but thats where I am off to. I usually race battery powered cars but thanks to a poker withdrawal I will be purchasing and racing a gas powered car this time. I guess in the world of RC racing it equates to looking down and seeing pocket aces EVERY time in a session. (To me anyway)

I wish those in TX and LA the best. Hope Rita does as minimum damage as possible.

Till Next Time!

Hero

First a little background.

My grandpa was a gunner in WWII. He hung out the back of bombers and shot at enemy plans. Upon his return he got a job. He retired from that same job 45+ years later, working up from basicly clean up boy to maintainence supervisor of the paper mill plant. That job that had provided him and his family a decent living and retirement is now killin him. All the pipes at the plant were well insolated, with esbestos. My grandpa is dying.

The doctors said he had till the end of the summer. In death as in live, my grandpa is doing it his way and is still fighting it. I have always felt that the best way to honor a persons life is to share it with generations to come. In this case, to have a piece of grandpa remembered in my kids.

This is a school project by my 13 year old written just the other day.

A hero is a person noted for courage especially ones that have risked or sacrificed his or her life. My hero is my great grandpa who did risk his life for our country and is now fighting against cancer for my family. He is brave, strong, and a fighter.

Great grandpa is as strong and solid as a rock. Even Though he is facing cancer he isn’t scared of death he just lives day by day enjoying the life he has. Rather than sitting there, and letting himself slip, he fights to see our faces the next day. Fighting the pain he is in and smiling up at us and talking to us like we the most important people in the world. However, the most important trait of my hero is his willingness to give and help in whatever way he can, trying to contribute whenever needed. Sometimes giving just because he is willing and he can.

Heroes are people noted for courage and strength, and not giving into weakness. Personally I adore my great grandpa for enduring all he does everyday just to be with us and hold this family together. No matter what doctor’s say about how long he has to live, he never gives up. Courage, strength, and giving is what makes my great grandpa my hero.

Do me a favor, honor a memory today.

Till Next Time!

I Surrender

WOW - after 2 straight days of unrelenting two tabling at Interpoker I still needed a few more hands this AM to clear their bonus. Forget about the book, cheaper to buy it and faster too!! I played Omaha H/L so I could get the most bang for my raked hand bucks and still didn't clear it. I use the cryptocounter (the new one) to count the "qualifing" raked hands and I played over 1200 raked hands and still needed a few more to get the "qualifiing" raked hands to 450.

I haven't been to the crypto's in a while and will not be back to Interpoker anytime soon. I don't like the site THAT much. I guess though it works for them. If you are an all the time player there it makes for a nice bonus and you are gong to be there anyway. If not, hardly anyway you can play lower limits and clear this bonus in a months time without mutli-tabling and putting in a lot of hours. I'm not convinced you can do it part time playing there everyday at the lower limits. I guess it works for someone though. I find it strange that they offer a bonus and make it easier to clear for people playing the higher limits who don't need the bonus to begin with. I realize it is a profit thing but I would think some marketing genious would come up with a way to appease both sides. Who I'm I to argue with success.

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Got knocked out fairly early (top 50ish?) in the 72os event Sunday. Limped with AQo UTG+2 and got caught when I hit a Q and BB hit 2 pair. I was screwing with the Interpoker torture and not paying close enough attention. Still in second place overall though. Have 3 events left and one of those is a Wild Card event so I can replace this one if I am close to winning the overall tour.

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Turned on news and another storm headed to Gulf Coast. MIGHT be headed to Houston and is projected to be a catagory 3 by the time it hits land but they keep saying it may turn north. Right now possibly touching western New Orleans. That would suck. Bad enough it is headed towards Houston. Keep safe everyone.

Till Next Time!

Always learning...

I read somewhere, I really don't remeber, that once you read one poker book, the rest start to run together. I agree to a point. Good basic strategy is good basic strategy no matter how many different ways it is presented but I also think that reading a few different books is helpful because each author will present that strategy differently and maybe one will click with you better than the other.

I have recently pilfered my stash of players points on various sites to order:

High - Low Split Poker by Ray Zee (Just got here)

Internet Poker by Lou Krieger and Kathleen Keller Watterson (Just got here)

Poker Aces: The Stars of Tournament by Ron Rose

and an Absolute Poker cap. (Not real sure why)

Really looking forward to Ray Zee's book since Omaha H/L is a game I am trying to pick up and everyone said this is the book to read. Krieger's book I hope to pick up something I may have missed over the last few books I have read. Besides, it comes with a CD and I have to see what it does! Poker Aces has come from all the fellow bloggers talking about it back during one of the Vegas trips. (A little slow to react I know)

A little more reading never hurt anyone. Still a few I want to get. Funny thing is that there were maybe 70 books I listed under my book section of my site when I first started it about a year ago. Now I get them fed in and there are over 1200! I particularly like the How to Win at...(insert game) by someone I have never heard of.

Lastly I will be getting Super System 2 courtesy of Interpoker's Septmember Special. $90 bonus, $30 extra this weekend and 700 hands to get book and another cap. (Cool) I REALLY hope this book doesn't end up costing me an arm and a leg!

I should be pretty much educated by the end of the year, or thoroughly confused and in a padded cell.

On a non-poker related subject, I am currently wireless keyboard and mouse courtesy of Wal Mart. Went in at 11 am for tires and came out at 2 pm with 4 tires and a wireless keyboard and mouse. How can you not stay there that long and not spend money.

So I am going to spend a few days at Interpoker. I haven't been there since I moved and thought I was being polite when I updated my address for them. They promptly sent me an email and thanked me and proceeded to tell me a new pin is being sent by snail mail do to my change of address. DANG! If I knew that I would have waited till after I was done.

Till Next Time!

New Career?

So what if I missed the over/under. My first ever public pick was a winner! Maybe I should be prudent about this and quit while I am ahead and tell everyone I have a great football sense and just say that I was 100% picking games this year. Yea, right. Might as well be a donkey about it and throw out another pick next week. Who knows, might be the start of a bigger and better career!

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Three weeks and I couldn't hit water if I fell out a boat. I hated poker, people who played poker, thinking of poker, you get the picture. A few weeks off later, a little lite reading, kids back in school, normalcy back in schedule and presto! My KK holds up to a river ace, the guy thats calls with any ace is missing and losing, my flopped set wins after the flush card hit on river in a multiway pot, and I don't need 18 outs to win a hand. Some of the monsters under the bed are gone. Who knew?

For the moment I think poker and I have patched things up again in our love/hate relationship. I'm not sure if this relationship is healthy but it will make a grown man cry one moment and feel invincible the next. Kinda like being married and having kids and that hasn't killed me yet.

So let it be known, "I Love You Poker!" (until you make me curse you again)

Til Next Time!

Good Night and Good Morning

Good Night

I played in the 720s Tour last night. Its a freeroll tour my buddy started that has grown into some very good and fun seasons. This is season 6 and not only has the play gotten better and better but the people are great.

About 200 meet each Sunday at 20:00 at Jetset. Need to be a member of 72os to play (free registration) Great learning experience if you are just starting out and great competition for those more experienced.

This is week two of season 6 and after a final table 5th last week I follow up with a final table 2nd this week. Maybe good enough for overall lead with 4 more to go! Thought I had taken the lead when I get HU and find JJ. Flop was all low and I go all in and get called with bottom pair. 4 hearts hit by river and I am done. Had a great time though.

Good Morning

Then I get up this morning and upon reading some of my favorite blogs find that DoubleAS found a pic that shows two of my favorite things have finally come together!

Life is good.

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Some say the best thing for a hangover is a drink. I feel the same way about MNF. After overindulging in everything pigskin all weekend, I'm glad I have a little left for tonight. Should be a good game. My buddy from above really likes the Eagles so what kind of friend would I be if I didn't go on record as rooting for the Falcons tonight?

Bodog says.....

	Philadelphia Eagles	-2½		42 Over Under
	Atlanta Falcons	+2½

Im taking the Falcons and over!

Falcons win 24 - 21

(NOTE: I suck at this.)

Till Next Time!

Always Remember

Where were you when the world stop turning?



We have moved on but we must NEVER forget