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!