High On Poker

I wrote a week ago about the Shame component of poker, namely that terrible shame I feel after fucking up a play or losing a tournament. In the past, it was enough to get me to rethink online poker. I’m not at that point, but after bubbling the Hoy yesterday, I’m pretty damn close.

This, of course, is my own personal battle. In the past, I’ve prattled on about why blaming others is no good for your game, but this sort of self-shame is useless energy too. After all, there should be no shame in failure, but rather a lesson to be learned. If there was one lesson yesterday, it was…well, I’m not sure. Truthfully, I had some luckbox moments earlier in the tournament, usually when I was so short that I had to push and my opponent was priced in. It was less donkey-play than situational, so I do count my blessings that I made it to the bubble. But still, once there, I would’ve prefered at least cashing. It was really between Columbo and I for the bubble, and he was kinda passive (I mean that in a constructive criticism sorta way, but for all I know, he was getting terrible cards). In the end, I was pushing pretty much whenever I was in the SB and Columbo was in the BB, but he eventually called my all-in when I had KT and he had A5 or A6. I don’t know what took him so long, either. After all, I was pushing every freaking time in that spot, regardless of my two cards, so he must’ve realized my range was wide.

So, I guess if there is anything to learn it is (a) be cognizant that you cannot keep going aggro when you get to the bubble because eventually, your opponent will either wake up with a hand or make a call that he would’ve otherwise folded because you’ve ruined your image, and (b) enough with the shame already. Truthfully, I don’t know if (a) would’ve helped me make the money, so I guess this may be one of those times when the lesson is really hard to find.

At least I won a $26 token while I played the Hoy.

Oh, and lest you think that the Short Stack Specialist line was a load of crap, I entered the final table in a distant 9th place. I was able to chip up slowly, but usually remained near the bottom of the standings. Ironically, I was in first place for the first half or three-quarters of the tournament, due in large part to Fluxer. Fluxed pushed all-in on the first hand after two limpers, then raised big the second hand to take down the uncontested pot. A hand or three later, I was dealt AT, and when Fluxed led out with a bet, I called, figuring him to be loose. The flop was JQK for a flopped Broadway Straight, and I bet pot, about 600, a lot for the early goings. Hoy, who was also in the hand, folded, and Fluxer raised all-in. It was an easy call, and he showed AQ, gifting me his 3k stack. Fluxer and I chatted about the hand afterward, and he was admittedly donking around. He pointed out that only 3 players paid, and I joked that I wanted to be one of those three, since the payouts would obviously be juicier without more spots paying. I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.

Even so, I love my post-flop play there. It would’ve been easy to check the nuts, but with Hoy and Flux, both smart players, I thought a straightforward bet-the-nuts would work, since one of them likely hit a piece of the board and would think that my pot-sized bet was weak. I guess it worked.

While I played yesterday, I also copied and pasted a random hand history and then accidentally hit “Publish” on Blogger. If you are reading this through the RSS feed, you’ve probably seen the hand history already. If not, I’m about to discuss it here, even though I don’t remember the hand at all. For all of you, though, I will include the full hand history below. I HIGHLY recommend other bloggers to write narratives when they keep hand histories. I can read a hand history, but its is just so much easier to read and comprehend when its in a narrative form. But that’s just my two cents. So, here goes:

We are at 40/80 blinds in the Hoy, and I’ve got 6670 chips, a complete lock as chipleader. The nearest competition has 4230. In the SB, I’m dealt AJo. It folds to AcesKing (2605), who raises to 280 in the Hijack (one spot off of the cutoff). It folds to me and I call 240, mostly because I can afford to call with this potentially dominated hand. I have enough chips where I can afford to figure out where I am post-flop.

The flop comes down AK9, with two clubs. I check my top-pair. He bets 640, which is probably pot. I raise to 2480. Why? Because I can afford to lose that amount if I’m wrong (I’ll still have about 4k), and the only cards I fear are a set, AQ or AK. This is really an exercise in big-stack poker. I put the pressure on AcesKing because my bet puts him all-in. He folds and I take down the pot.

In hindsight, I wonder if this is a foolish play. I only get called if I’m behind. If I’m ahead, he folds. But overall, I think its okay, since I’ll have enough to survive if I’m behind, and I got him to commit an extra 640 by inducing the bet.

Inducing the bet is crucial here. I could’ve bet out. After all, I thought I was ahead. However, the pot was still relatively small, and it didn’t make sense to try to take it down right away. Also, if I’m raised, I’d be hard-pressed to lay it down. By checking and letting him bet, I’ve given myself a good chance of profiting. Sure, a superior hand might bet out here, putting me in the same spot as if I had bet out myself, got re-raised and called. HOWEVER, I now add the possibility that he is going to bet out with a weaker hand like 99-JJ or even KQ or KJ. I basically change the dynamics. If I bet out, the choices are (a) win the 640 pot outright, (b) face a re-raise and have a tough decision, or (c) get called and have a tough decision on the turn. By checking, I now face (a) a freecard for him AND me which would in any event indicate that my Ace is good for the time being, (b) a bet from a dominating hand who is trying to milk some action [likely a smaller bet, so I get info too by checking] and (c) a bet from a weaker hand that I can exploit in any number of ways.

I’m not sure what the end-all-be-all is from this hand. I just liked the pressure and the timing of the pressure I laid on AcesKing. The fact that I had him outchipped is crucial. This allowed me to ‘gamble’ a bit more by check-raising. He could’ve had a better hand and I could’ve been gifting him my stack, but I had enough chips to give that gift and still survive.

Wow! After typing that out, I feel a little bit better about yesterday. After all, there is no doubt in my mind that the blogger tournaments have some of the toughest fields. There is a lot of skill out there, and on top of it, we all have our “its just a fucking blogger game” moment, so you never know what mood a particular player is going to be in. I also am happy to say that I still enjoy hand analysis and game analysis in general. To me, this separates the weekend players and the serious players. If you are willing to analyze plays and figure out what works and what doesn’t, and almost more importantly, why something works or doesn’t, you MUST have an advantage over the masses. And therein is the reason why poker bloggers are better poker players. We actively think about the game on a daily or semi-daily basis.

Until next time, make mine poker!

Since the minor issue at work last week, I took it upon myself to follow some friendly advice and review all of my cases this weekend. I arrived at the office before 11am today (Sunday), and finished at about 1:30. I was wearing my blue Superman t-shirt and cargo shorts with lots of pockets, listening to my iPod, with my backpack filled with my poker wallet and copper buddha card cap. As soon as I was done with work, I had a quick errand, and then I was off to NiceLook for their juicy $1/2 NL game.

First, I made a detour to Commerce Bank. If you don’t have a Commerce by you, I’ll fill you in why they are a great bank. Besides their very reasonable hours, every Commerce has one or two “Penny Arcades”, machines that you can feed change in exchange for a ticket telling you the full amount. Bring it to a bank teller and they’ll give you cash. Not a member of Commerce? Me neither! They’ll take your change anyway, without charging any fee, as opposed to the Coinstar machines found in many supermarkets that take over 8% of your hard-earned coinage.

Wifey Kim and use a glass pitcher from my fraternity days as a bank. Whenever I get home, I dump out any change into the glass pitcher. When its full, I harvest it at Commerce. The result today was a whopping $189.12. Easy money! Its to the point where I generally am glad to get change back. I’ll avoid using it as a means of building up the pitcher full of change. It’s my own forced micro-savings. I figure we probably take down near $800 a year on change alone. Without the pitcher, it’d probably end up as loose change in a random drawer.

But enough of that. Back to the poker. I hopped on the yellow line and took it down to 34th Street and 6th Avenue, where I walked the several blocks to NiceLook. NiceLook was raided several weeks ago, but within about three weeks, rumor had spread that the room had re-opened with the same location and same staff. Makes you wonder. Whatever the case, I just hope it had the same juicy players.

When I arrived, a 2/5 NL game was going, and there was an interest list for 1/2. I’d never seen the room so empty, but I suppose it was still relatively early and I’m not certain that the word fully got around that NiceLook was operating again. Fortunately, when I arrived, the 1/2 table was called, and we started 5-handed. Yes, 5-handed.

For many of you, playing 5-handed in a poker room is just not ideal. In fact, I don’t think it a stretch to suggest that most players prefer a full table. Not me! If a table is playing 11-handed, I’d rather not play at all. If it’s 10-handed, I’ll play, but I’d rather have less. If we are under 9, I’m itching to go. At 5, I was downright giddy, at least internally. On the outside, I was all business.

Within the first 20 minutes, it became clear who was running the show. The table consisted of dealer/floor person Joe in the 1s, a tall, thin Asian man in his early 30s wearing a red shirt in the 2s, a younger, rounder, shorter Asian in the 3s wearing a white t-shirt, me, and a Caucasian guy about my age to my immediate left. I was in the 7s, perfect for full table viewing.

In the early goings, I raised to $8 with some random suited Ace. I was re-raised by Joe to $35. I was happy to fold and he showed QQ. After that hand, the red-shirted Asian took over as table captain. He was constantly raising and betting people off of hands. He seemed intelligent, as opposed to a pure maniac, so I was somewhat cautious when it came to tangling with him.

Within the first 20 minutes, I am dealt two red Aces in the BB. The button and SB call. I bet out $15 and the button (red-shirted Asian) calls. The flop was J54. I bet out $20 and he called. The turn was another 4, and I bet out $40. He pushed all-in and I asked for a count. While I asked, the dealer was chatting with Joe, looking at a picture on Joe’s Blackberry. “I hate to interrupt, but can I get a count?” I asked in a obviously annoyed way. The bet was $136 to me. I was unsure of what to do. I knew that the red-shirted Asian was loose, but did he possibly have a 4 for a turned trips or even two pair with the 4 for a full house? I wanted to fold, but I just couldn’t do it. He was trying to run over the table, so his all-in bet just seemed like a way to get me off of a hand. I showed my cards while I worked out the situation, but got no read from my opponent. I eventually called and after the inconsequential river, the red-shirted Asian said, “I didn’t think you were THAT strong,” as he mucked his cards.

After the hand, the dealer tossed me the Blackberry. It was a picture of Joe smiling and giving the camera a thumbs-up right next to the big ass of the masseuse who was working on the back of the guy behind Joe. I laughed. Funny enough, especially since I won the pot.

I entertained the thought of walking. I wouldn’t really walk right away, but if I had chipped up and took about $200 profit really quickly, why not lock it in and get the fuck out. It wasn’t as though I was over-confident in my table. Joe is a wily player, and the aggressive red-shirted Asian was getting annoying. That was 50% of my competition. I decided to play a little more and leave the option to walk open.

After I busted the red-shirted Asian, he rebought and then started talking shit to me. He busted the guy on my left in a hand when the guy on my left assumed wrongly this time that the red-shirted Asian was making a play at a pot with crap cards. He actually had a full house. Whatever the case, when the guy to my left stood up to take a walk, the red-shirted Asian looked at me and said, “You are next.” I was glad to play along. I busted out a John from Cincinnati line, “I got my eye on YOU.” He said he was going to get his chips back from me. “If its going to be like the last time you came after me, I’m not too concerned.” “Oh, we will see. There can only be one captain at this table.” I responded, “Yeah, well, you can be the captain, I’ll just be the banker.” “Did you see what I did to the guy in the last hand?” “No, I was too busy stacking your chips.”

At this point, I was getting a tad annoyed. I was far from tilting, but I also didn’t want to give up the upper hand. “Listen, man, I’m just sitting here politely, but if you want to make this personal, then thats on you.” He paused. “Do you know why lions and tigers don’t fight in the wild?” I kid you not. That’s what he said. “No, why?” “Because no matter who wins, when a lion and tiger fight, they both get seriously injured.” “Then keep out of my way, tiger.” “Oh no, I’m the king of the jungle.” “Just as long as you keep out of my way, you can be whatever you want. I’m still going to maul you if you come after me.”

At this point, we were both having fun with it. We went back to the action and I lost some of my early winnings, folding to re-raises. On one such occasion, the raise came from the Red Lion (i.e., red shirted Asian). I didn’t want to fold my AQo, but I failed to connect with the low flop and I refused to give away any of my chips on a vendetta. Folding sucked, though.

The table filled up to around 8 players, with the guy on my left returning. He was grumbling about the Red Lion, and I was just happy to be playing well. I noticed that the rest of the table was playing very tight, aside from Joe and Red Lion, so whenever Red Lion went for a stroll (this happened about 4 times), I would ramp up my aggression against the weak players. I straddled also at one point, but there were so many preflop callers and my cards were so weak (48o) that I checked my option and folded on the flop.

I kept some of the aggression up and eventually straddled when everyone was sitting (Red Lion included). I believe I won the hand before that with a preflop raise. By the time it got to me, there were 5 callers for the Straddle, and I raised $25 on top. I think I had K5s. My cards didn’t matter though. If none of them were willing to raise the straddle, they were invariably weak. The $25 bet was enough to scare them off, probably coupled with the fact that I merely checked the last time I straddled.

In the very next hand, I was dealt JJ. I was definitely on an aggro run, so when the action got to me in the BB, I raised $15 on top. I didn’t want a lot of players seeing the flop. I got two callers, including the Asian with the white t-shirt who was largely quiet for the day. The flop was K88. I checked, the other guy checked, and the Quiet Asian bet out $20. I flat called and the other player folded. The turn was a blank. I checked and he checked. The river was another blank. I checked, and he put out $45 before going to his stack for another $5. I called string bet and the bet was reduced back to $45. I was slightly concerned that he had the King or even the Eight, but after his checked turn, I was less sure that I was beat. I opted to call and waited for him to show. He tabled 96o, for a complete stone cold bluff. The pot was pushed my way. I think my aggression for the preceding hands set this up. This is why it is crucial to keep up with your table image and act accordingly.

At about 3, the hot dealer with huge cans sat down. I love playing when she deals, because thanks to my sunglasses, I can stare at her puppies for a full 30 minutes. I’m not even a breast guy, but this chick has some of the nicest cans I’ve ever seen. Of course, I rarely win money when she’s dealing because my reads are limited to how deep her breath is…and she’s not even in the action.

I had enough of poker even though I had only played 90 minutes or so. It felt odd leaving so early, especially when I had no other obligations, but I decided that it would be best to lock in my win. That alone builds a great amount of confidence. I was happy with my $275 profit, almost doubling up my buy-in, and I didn’t feel the urge to play so I racked up. The chick dealer asked for time ($5 per half hour) and I decided to play my one free hand and leave. I was in the SB when I was dealt 95o, a perfect throwaway hand. There was a bunch of limpers when it got to me, so I called and we saw an all club flop of 763. I checked, as did the rest of the table. The turn was an 8, giving me a 9-high straight. I was confident that no one had the flush based on the action on the flop. I bet out $10 and only the guy on my left called. The river was an offsuit 2, and I bet $20. He made a crying call and showed Q8 for top pair. I took down the pot and packed it up to leave.

$275 profit. Its not huge, but it feels great. I am above my yearly goal and I’m contemplating the next step. Whatever the case, I’ve been winning consistently lately and I hope it keeps coming.

Until next time, make mine poker!

If you’ve ever played a blogger tournament at the same table as me, you probably have heard me mention that I’m dangerous on a short stack. Lately, I’ve gone with the term short stack specialist, and while I usually announce my short stack superiority in a tongue-in-cheek manner, I sincerely mean it. I consider myself a short stack specialist.

But what does being a short stack specialist mean and how does it help me win? I’m glad I asked.

The key to being a short stack specialist (or SSS) is all about timing and attitude. First off, when a tournament starts, no one is a shortstack. That much is invariably true. However, being a shortstack specialist, I can run plays that would appear dangerous to people worried about losing hands early. The key here is to only make plays that I can get away from. Obviously, if I have AA, I’m ready to go all-in on the very first hand. And obviously, that doesn’t always work. But beyond playing premium hands hard, I’m constantly looking for situations where I can see a cheap flop or take advantage of position. A more conservative player would play tight early on. An aggressive player without my shortstack specialty skills would likely play lots of hands aggressively until he is down to the felt and unable to come back. I strive for that middle ground. I’m playing pots, but also keeping the pots manageable. When I do tangle, I am always conscious of my stack size, my opponent’s stack size, and the pot size. Why? Because I want to be able to mix it up with my SSS as a backup. If I fuck up and make the wrong play, at least I get to rely on my greatest skill.

As a SSS, I will explain a bit of the art and science behind shortstack play. Ideally, when you get below 10x the BB, you are merely trying to pick up blinds. You can do this by pushing all-in more often than not, as long as you wait for the right moment. Eventually, players will see that you are constantly pushing all-in. Once this happens, you need to continue to push all-in, but tighten your hand requirements. The closer you are to 10x the BB, the tigher you get, unless you see that opportunity to steal. As you get closer to 5x the BB, though, you have to go balls to the wall and start pushing in a myriad of situations.

This, of course, is nothing new to anyone who has read Harrington on Hold’em. It’s essentially the concept of M, where you compare your stack to the blinds and figure out how many orbits you can survive. The lower your M, the more you need to gamble.

So, if I rely on simple concepts of M, how do I consider myself a SSS? Because being an SSS takes more than just knowing your M or the amount of big blinds left in your stack. It involves paying attention to your opponents, learning which ones will gamble, and which ones won’t. It’s about having the fearlessness to push all-in with T7o in the SB because you desperately need the BB. If anything, I would suggest that it goes back to the concept of Ebb & Flow Poker, something that I usually apply to heads-up play. My theory of E&F poker states that in any heads-up game, there is a natural rhythm to the plays. Once you can find the rhythm, you can take advantage of your opponent. For instance, if he is folding a lot, you can keep betting out with crap cards and collect lots of blinds. But be ready for changes (i.e., from the flow to the ebb), because at any moment, momentum can change and you’ll suddenly have to start folding every hand. Even then, you can induce your opponent to get into an overaggressive stance and then prepare to pounce with even marginal cards if you are able to read your opponent right.

In shortstack poker, you are essentially doing the same thing, but widening up your read to the entire table. Usually the table gives off a general vibe. More specifically, the players to your immediate left and right will have thier own rhythm, and these are the players you can attack with glee. That involves raising all-in with crap cards when everyone is in fold mode, and pushing all-in with your KK when everyone is in call mode.

The beautiful thing about being comfortable with a shortstack is that it allows you an aire of fearlessness that can be especially useful in the beginning and end stages of any tournament. This is also why you rarely see HighOnPoker going out around the 50% mark. I’m playing fearlessly early, comfortably relying on my shortstack skills if I lose a few hands. Once you are the shortstack, you run the risk of getting busted fairly early. Even with all of my SSS, it doesn’t mean I don’t run into hands on steal attempts, suffer suckouts, or lose cointosses. Hence, going out early can and does happen. But likewise, I can also gather a large stack early because of my backup SSS and my ability to accumulate chips when others are playing tight early-MTT poker.

Eventually, though, the blinds get so high in tournaments that a majority of the players become shortstacks. This is where I really shine. Steal, steal, steal. Sometimes I have the cards, sometimes I don’t. The key is to, once again, read the table and know when to do what. I’m comfortable gambling with a cointoss if the read is right, and I’m just as comfortable pushing all-in with two low cards, merely because of fold equity combined with the chance of having two live ones if my opponent does call. All of this usually lets me chip up in late stages, literally raising 4-5 hands in a row at times without the slightest hint of resistance. This is again part of the Ebb & Flow, that ebb part when the whole table is just folding away and leaving all sorts of money on the shore, waiting to be grabbed.

This is all stream of consciousness, of course. I definitely am not explaining myself as clearly as I would like. The point is, though, that if you can learn to love the shortstack, the simplicity of shortstack play and the simultaneous importance of reads when using those limited option plays, your game can excel in areas that might appear to be completely unrelated. My confidence in my shortstack abilities allowed me to gamble early last night. When it didn’t work out, it allowed me to crawl my way back when I was down to barely over 1100 within the first half-hour. It also allowed me to make a great to second from 7th out of 9 when we reached the final table (and even before then 14th out of 15, and a slew of other low places I visited during my ascension to 2nd).

So, want to learn how to play shortstack poker? Here’s what you do: play turbo SNGs. That’s it. Get used to being in situations when you have to push with ATC and pray. Get used to getting the feel for when its the right time to steal or the right time to push all-in for value.

But in the end, I don’t recommend this style of play. I’ve watched a lot of the great poker bloggers do their thing, and many have styles that I absolutely envy (in a positive way, naturally). But this is my way. Its a gambler’s style, but its not a gamble. Its all about my intuition on how people are going to react, and my prayers that the players I’m pushing into (usually in the blinds) do not have monster hands. It works for me, but it probably wouldn’t work for 99% of the people out there. And when I say it works for me, I mean it. My dominance at Salami is due to this style. My dominance in most homegame tournaments is due to this style. My great run in the BBT Freeroll last night is due to this style.

Until next time, make mine poker!

“I dance on your grave.” -Big Brother Keith, Joust for the Atari victory, 1985

Booya, people! It’s another beautiful day in HighOnPokerville, with the weather expected to remain 75 and sunny for the rest of your weekend! In local news, work continues to pile up causing the need to return to the office on Sunday. Reports coming in state that Jordan is “non-plussed” and hopes to “get out in time for some Nice Look cash games.” Stay tuned for more coverage on that spectacle this weekend. Now, onto sports with everyone’s favorite sports guy, Sporty McGuyerson. Sporty?

Yes, thank you Diane. In sport news, Jordan still throws like a girl, but is able to take down 54 competitors for a second place finish in the BBT Freeroll.

“I was just really focused. Focused on having a good time,” Jordan was quoted as saying after his second place victory to the crowd of empty furniture awaiting his comments in the living room. “I always dreamed I could come in Second and now its a reality. I’d like to thank Jesus, first of all, for not helping the competition. He may not play on my team, but he sure as hell stood neutral on the sidelines. Way to go, Jesus!” Jordan went on to thank his wife, mother, and desktop computer.

“At the final table, it was a little touch-and-go there, Sporty. You don’t mind if I call you Sporty, do you? Oh. Sorry, Mr. Guyerson.”

Jordan suffered a terrible scare when his laptop froze up at the final table. Luckily, his trusty old, slow desktop was waiting for him, like an ex-girlfriend with low self-esteem getting a 3am booty call.

“Once I got onto the bare bones computer, I felt like I had no choice but to go deep. I mean, I was already at the final table down to 6, but I knew that the lack of distractions was an opportunity to continue my stellar rise.”

Jordan amazingly outlasted all five of his $10 last longer bets and a last minute $5 last longer bet with Instant Tragedy. “The only Tragedy is that we didn’t make that bet for more,” Jordan was reported as saying as he headed into the lockerroom. For his troubles, Jordan earned over $400 from the event, as well as $55 in side last longer bets.

“It really feels like a victory, Mr. Guyerson. I mean, I know I’m great and all, but everyone else doesn’t know that.”

Jordan took an unusual trip to the final table, dropping down to the bottom three players within the first hour and remaining in the bottom pack for most of the tournament. As Jordan explained, “I didn’t want to play super tight just because I had these side bets. I wanted to play my game, and that meant getting into lots of pots. In this case, it turned out for the worse early on, but a cornerstone to that style is always keeping enough chips for the inevitable comeback. I was able to do that today, Guyerson, and I’m a happy man for it.”

Jordan does admit, however, that last longer bets affected his game. “Actually, Guyerson, I do admit, however, that last longer bets affected my game. There were a couple of spots where I fought off the awfukkits with visions of prop bet money dancing in my head. Essentially, they made me play better, and got me to fold in situations where I may have just called out of frustration or shortsighted thinking.”

Jordan faced his biggest disappointment heads up. “There were a couple of times, I think at least two, that I got NumbBono all-in when I had the best of it. In one case, I hit middle pair 7s on the flop and he got all-in with his unimproved AK. He hit his K on the turn. I know there was at least one other time when he sucked out on me, but that’s poker.”

That’s poker indeed, Jordan. Jordan eventually lost after he flopped trip Kings with his K2. Unfortunately, NumbBono had K7 for trip Kings with a better kicker and the low cards ensured that the 7 played.

After winning second place, Jordan had this to say, “The competition is always great at these things. As soon as I made it to the final table, I was proud. I’m just glad that I played my best, had some great results and got to enjoy some great company before I crushed them with my boots of poker skill. The level of competition says a lot, mostly about how amazing I am for coming in second.”

Jordan plans to use his money to build a school in Gabarone, Botswana. “I figure this $400 is enough, and if it isn’t at least I get to spend some time at the Botswana beach. They have beaches in Botswana, right? Right?”

And that’s all for sports. Back to you, Diana.

Thank you, Sporty. When we return, find out what common household item may be permanently eating your child’s brain. Also, what new flavor premiered at Starbucks this week? Find out after the break!

Until next time, make mine poker!

In another effort to give back money to the gamblin’ community, I issued an open challenge for a last longer bet up to $10 in the BBT Freeroll tonight. I got the following takers:

• Schaubs
• Drizz
  
• Julius Goat
• Smokkee
  
• New in Nov

I found a way to lost $50 in a freeroll. Whoopee! Wish me luck. (or at least wish them bad luck)

Once upon a time, there was a magical place filled with ogres and talking donkeys. Hidden in plain site on the mean streets of New Yorkia, this magical place flourished, adding new ogres and donkeys to its peaceful population. And then one fateful day in 2006, a man entered this magical realm, and over the course of the next two years, he brought that realm to its knees, crushing the donkeys and ogres and forcing them to pay homage in the form of little clay discs. I am that man, and Salami is my kingdom.

Picture a dictatorial kid transported to Candy Land and you’ll get an idea of the fun I have at Salami. I have mentioned the crazy action on more than one occassion, but its more than just that. The $60 tournament with $40 rebuys and a $40 add-on is the exact type of tournament where I excel. It has a homegame feel, most players are gambling it up, and I’m able to take advantage of my precisely timed aggression. The results are actually quite impressive.

In the eight sessions I’ve played at Salami this year, I moneyed four times. I also bubbled on two out of the four occassions where I lost. And when I money, its usually a chop for the first few spots, if not an outright win. Overally, I’ve profited over $1000 from those 8 sessions, not an astounding amount, but impressive nonetheless when everything is taken together. I haven’t checked my 2006 stats, but I expect them to be as good, if not better. After all, I can rarely remember a time when I felt like I couldn’t get a grip on the Salami game. Sure, there was one occassion when I rebought three times (at the time, each rebuy was $60, for $180 total) within the first 30 minutes before giving up, but that was simply bad luck. I accepted it and realized in most of the occassions, I was getting my money in ahead.

So, let’s get down to specifics. I arrived at Samali last night after a long hard day at work. I grabbed a PB&J on the way from Peanut Butter & Company and called Skidoo as I neared the poker room. He was still uptown, so I entered the room to get out of the blazing heat.

To my amazement, a full cash game table was already under way. Following the recent busts around NYC, it seems that a slew of players, mostly fellow ‘Brew (you know, members of the Tribe), started going to Salami starting at 1pm on the weekdays for a 5/5 NL game. I toyed with the idea of playing. After all, my roll is larger and I imagined that it played similar to a 2/5 game. As I watched (the table was full, but I would have sat back and watched anyway) I realized that Salami was as loose as ever. In a 5/5 game, a preflop open raise of $75 should not be called five ways. But here, $75 was seemingly standard, so I decided that I would be crazy to bet more preflop than my entire tourney buy-in. As I waited, I watched some crazy hands, including a straddler who raised to $80 after he got a few callers. One guy called his $80 raise, and they saw a 37T flop. The straddler was first to act and bet out $125. I took that to be a weak bet after the straddle raise, so I put him on a steal attempt. I figured he was stealing preflop when he raised his straddle (that’s how I would’ve played it and explained his high raise preflop), so he missed the flop and threw out a weak continuation bet. The opponent picked up the same read and flat called. The turn was another 7 and the straddler checked. It was clear that his steal attempt was thwarted, so the other player said, “all-in”. Straddler called quickly and tabled T7o, for a full house. Growns all around. That hand was worth at least $400 in pure profit.

Skidoo arrived before the tournament started. I also received a text message from LJ, who was escaping the office to join us. By the time we were seated though, she was nowhere to be seen. Luckily, Salami allows late buy-ins and I think she was there within the first two hands.

The game started out fine. I played tight-ish, calling from the SB with A7o. The flop was A4T, and I checked. Someone bet out $300 into the $300 or so pot, and another player raised to $800. By the time it got to me, I was happy to fold, since someone had me outkicked. The turn was a 7, and I silently damned myself as both players got all-in and showed A4 and A5. The river was a 5, allowing the A5 player to suckout. It could’ve been my hand, but who the hell re-raises on that flop with A5. Oh yeah, ogres and donkeys.

I was eventually moved to the second table once we had enough players. We played 7-handed, which is great for me. One player was playing horribly (Mr. A5) but constantly getting lucky. There was an all-diamond flop with a King and Jack and he bet out and called someone else’s all-in with 79, with the 9 of hearts. The other guy had flopped two-pair, KJ, but the turn was a 6h, and the 79o won the hand. He called with nothing but a 9-high flush draw. The guy to my left was getting annoyed, but I was happy to see the donk get the chips. It’d be easier to get it from him later. I played mostly tight, laying down a hand to Mr. A5 after I bet preflop (I don’t remember the cards) and he took the lead on the low flop. He could have anything and I missed, so I decided to save it for a better spot. A little while later, in the CO, I call with J9c. To my left, the player who was steaming from watching Mr. A5 chip up raised from 150 to 450. We were just outside of the rebuy period, during which I rebought once I was 25 chips short of a starting stack and took the addon for $140 total (including the $60 buy-in). Mr. A5 in the BB called, and I decided to call and take my chances, especially with A5 in the hand. The flop was a beautiful J9X, with two diamonds. It checked to me, I checked, and Steamy bet out 1200. Mr. A5 folded and I raised 2500 on top. He grumbled and then said all-in. I called. He showed AJ and I took down the pot. He was somewhat miffed, but seemed consolated by the fact that it was me and not Mr. A5 that busted him. He did ask, “How can you call my preflop raise with J9c? I barely played any hands.” “It was mostly because he was in the pot.” I motioned to Mr. A5. The truth was, his preflop raise was too small to push me off. After that, he hung himself (I did, however, supply ample rope).

I don’t remember any other major hands until the final table. When I arrived, Skidoo and LJ were still plugging along. I, meanwhile, had amassed a stack of chips from pushing around the players at my first table. Once I busted Steamy, I was relentless. This is where I do my best work in tournaments.

At the new table, I was maybe covered by one other player. I was also placed on the immediate left of Guy, my number one nemesis in these games. If I money 1/2 of the time, he moneys 3/4, or so it seems. Whatever the case, I was glad I had position, and played fairly tight early, hoping to get wait for my shot. It was at this point that I started to chuckle to myself. For all of my hard work, I had not had a single pocket pair, nor AK or AQ. I was playing well with crap cards, a hallmark of my experiences at Salami. Skidoo went out around 8th, I believe against Mr. A5, who was in constant flucuation between a big stack and near felt. I eventually took out LJ in a hand that, later in the night, she texted, “I can’t wait to see your post about how bad I played it.”

Here’s the hand. I had AQ UTG+1. A player only has 200 left and the antes alone are 100. The blinds were probably 300/600. I raise to 1800, hoping to isolate the desperate player on the button. Oddly, when it folds to him, he FOLDS! Crazy, I know, but I guess he really wanted to hold onto that 100 chip. Whatever the case, it folded to LJ in the BB and she pushed all-in for about 2500 more. I felt priced in, and regardless, I had great cards, so I was happy to call. She showed T8d and after I flopped a Queen and she failed to hit, I won the hand.

Do I think LJ played this hand poorly? No. Actually, I like her play. Here’s why. When I raised to 1800, it definitely could’ve looked like an isolation steal. In other words, it looked like I bet into the hand merely to steal the 700 in blinds and go heads up against the random two cards of the shortstack for an additional 1k or so that constituted the antes and the amount of the blinds he could cover (100). I wasn’t raising a lot, but when I was, LJ was in the blinds, purely by happenstance. But to her, it probably seemed intentional, especially since I refered to her as my play thing (in a purely cat and yarn sense) during the Hoyazo home game about a month ago. So, LJ, thinking that I was on a mere steal, made a very logical play pushing all-in. It was likely that I had crap or at least was weak enough to balk at LJ’s push. After all, she wasn’t playing aggressively, so the push had extra potency. As it turned out, I actually had a decent hand AND enough chips to take a chance. But I don’t knock LJ for her play at all. With the information available, I think it was probably the correct play. Even if she was wrong and I had AK or AQ, her low suited cards would be live. She was really only worried about a high pocket pair.

So, no, LJ, I won’t write about how poorly you played the hand. Even though the results weren’t good, I still give you credit on making a smart play. After she was gone, I continued to plug along. Guy had amassed a tower of chips by Mr. A5, who called Guy’s all-in with J90, after hitting top pair, 9s. Guy had K9s, for top pair and a better kicker, which told me that (a) Guy was being aggressive, and (b) he’s a lucky mofo for getting so many chips gifted to him. But I was making waves too, betting more preflop to take down the juicy antes and blinds. In the hand after busting Lana, Guy and I tangled in the SB and BB while going after the tiny 100 stack. It folded to Tiny Stack who was already all-in with the antes. It folded to Guy and he called. I checked with T5o. The flop was T5X. Guy checked and I checked my two pair. I would’ve liked to get more money into the pot, but it wasn’t happening on this flop. The turn was some random card. Guy checked and I bet out 1200 or so. To my surprise, he called quickly. The river was a Queen and Guy bet out 2500. I flat called and showed my two pair. He had a Queen and some sorta double-belly-buster-inside-straight-draw. That got me above Guy and brought him down to size. The fun was that we were ostensibly playing for the side pot. When I checked the flop, I figured, what was the point. On the turn, though, I saw that the side pot was as big as the main pot, so why not go after it. As you see, it all worked out.

We were down to four and someone mentioned a save for 4th. I don’t get this. Unless I’m in 3rd or 4th, I’m saying no. Why would I give away my money to some spot I most likely won’t get. At this point, I was the big stack, against a dark skinned Hispanic guy named Anthony in close 2nd, Guy in 3rd, and a kid on my left in 4th. Thankfully, 4th place didn’t think it was necessary, so I didn’t have to object. I eventually busted the kid after constantly pushing all-in preflop when it folded to me. His stack was so low, I’d be okay with any two cards.

Three way, Anthony eventually busted Guy, and we were heads up. The payouts for 2nd and 1st were $400 and $800. I had about 45k in chips to his 30k, so I offered $500 to him and $700 to me. He denied it, saying that he felt good about his chances. He eventually offered $550 and $650, but I didn’t think that it was worth it to me. We began heads up play.

I whooped ass to start. He was folding to any raises, so I raised literally 5 out of 6 hands, regardless of what I had. He finally got annoyed and won a hand, bringing him to 30k again. Finally, I was dealt KK and raised 5000 on top of the 500/1000 blinds. He called. The flop was all spades. I didn’t have a spade. I pushed all-in, he called with J9s, and I lost the hand. I was trying to push out any loose spades out there, but he had the one thing I feared. The way he called me preflop (mostly he folded to those raises) didn’t make me place him on suited spades, but it is what it is. From there, he had 60k to my 15k or so. I wasn’t catching cards, and eventually got all-in on the dog end of a cointoss. I lost and took my $400.

I really consider the KK v. J9s to be the losing hand. I wish I could’ve pulled back from it, and I should have been able to, but it is what it is. I still have a great record at Salami, and I expect great stuff in the future.

Until next time, make mine poker!

Hey beeches and beechettes. It’s cocky Jordan here, and I’m here to tell you that no matter how humorous some of you silly little bloggers are, I will truly be the champeen of the BBT Freeroll tournament. But since a Freeroll just ain’t my style (too free, man), let’s make it a tad more interesting.

Who wants to join a last longer bet?

I’m taking all comers up to $10 cash, and I’ll consider any bets higher than $10. Aside from that, I highly encourage other currency for the bet. Perhaps the loser has to buy the winner a new deck of Copag cards, or a t-shirt, or maybe post something in homage to my, um, I mean, the winner’s victory.

Any takers?

*****This post sponsored by the fine folks at the GNUF poker room. *****

Let’s start off with the wrap up from Monday’s Which is True and then I’ll share my interesting run in the Monkey Tourney, the zombie-like remains of the ole WWdn tournaments.

This is True #4

For the fourth version of Which is True, we took a look at the seeming conflict between these statements: (A) A great poker player must be able to adapt his style to the table conditionsl; and (B) To play poker optimally one must stay true to their own personal style of play and not imitate another person’s style or another general style of play.

Not surprisingly, if there was a clearcut winner it was (A). I am a huge proponent of the idea that a great player can beat any table, regardless of the players sitting around. They may be MORE profitable with a loose or a tight table, but they can beat any table because they have the ability to adjust to the table conditions. I’m not alone in thinking that either.

So, let’s go with the A Team, led by the first A-Team commentor, JamyHawk. While he explains why he thinks A is true, I find his analysis of B even better: “Statement B is False. Eventually someone will adjust their play to yours and find a way to beat you, no matter how successful your style of play is (or was).” Drizz agrees: “If you don’t adapt, better players will pick “your style” apart.”. I like the logic, but it assumes a regular game or at least regular players. I suppose that is a fair enough assumption though, especially with things like blogger tournaments and weekly homegames.

Jamy got Poker Slut Gadzooks64 to agree. She added, “Learning to adapt to and take advantage of all scenarios is the only way to become a truly winning player.” But is adjusting really the “only” way to become a winning player? I would suggest, no, but the statement posed doesn’t ask about becoming a “winning” player, but rather a “great” player. Hoy picked up on the distinction and stated that while B is a good point, A is “always true.“

While Carmen sticks with (A), she makes a great point: “…when I am at a particulary agressive table, or at too tight of a table, I get up and move.” This brings up the question, can’t a great player be great at table selection rather than adjusting to the table conditions? Its definitely a great thought, and maybe the subject for another Which is True, but in the end, I think adjustability trumps table selection skills. There will be times that the juiciest games require adjustments, so table selection may get you to the best table for your style, but maybe not the best table for profit. Other (A) fans include Matt and NewinNov.

Now, if you want to be a “noncommital pussy”, the line forms behind CzechRazor. I kid, Czech! The truth is, here at Which is True Central, we expect noncommital pussies. In fact, they are often right. In any of these apparent conflicts, you can find a way to resolve the two statements. And that’s fine. I’m not here to tell you that one is true and the other is false, even though that may be what some conclude and it may even be the RIGHT conclusion (although not necessarily so with Which is True #4). So, let’s examine some of those noncommital pussy answers, because there is a lot to their analyses.

Czech states: “While Statement A is definitely true if you want to maximize your possible expectation, Statement B is also true because your own personal style should have (and really needs to have) more than one gear.” I don’t agree entirely, to be honest. I think A is true to maximize the potential for profit, but not necessarily profit itself. It allows a player to play whatever is available, even if he may be more profitable in another game. He does, however, correctly hint that (B) is true IF a player’s natural style has multiple gears.

I think 2DollarJack did a great job with his comment. Essentially, he states that one’s personal style should be adaptable. Even though he is an aggressive player, he’ll change how he uses that aggression, depending on table conditions. 2DJ is getting the This is True Star of Approval for this one, because this is essentially my belief. Your style SHOULD have multiple gears, akin to Czech’s second statement, and you should use YOUR STYLE in different ways depending on the competition. In this way, a loose aggressive player may run over a tight table by playing lots of hands with lots of raising, whereas the same loose aggressive player will run over a loose table by playing lots of hands cheap and being aggressive post flop. They may appear to be different “styles” of play, but if your style consists of mixing it up with lots of hands and you have the ability to adjust to conditions, you can still remain in your wheelhouse while taking advantage of particular table conditions.

As an extrapolation of this idea, I would suggest that the best STYLE is one that is entirely adjustment dependent. As stated by Surflexus, “Optimal play from a “great player” encompasses the ability to adapt or change gears while remaining true to your “core style”.” If you are able to effectively always adjust to table conditions, then this, in and of itself, may be the optimal style of play. Under this scenario, we satisfy (A) by adjusting to conditions, and (B) because, well, adjusting to conditions is the cornerstone of our style. Of course, that’s the difference between being a master pianist and being a master musician who can play many instruments. Both are huge accomplishments, but once you become that master pianist, you still have a ways to go before you can add “master oboist” or “master trianglists” to the resume.

And finally, an honorable mention goes out to Schaubs for his choice of “Eh” (is that (A) in Canadian?), and Raveen and DP for constructing a response that just left me confused. I will give Raveen this, though. According to Raveen, “Statement A is more so true in tournaments, while Statement B is true with poker in general.” Its an interesting angle, and I agree. After all, in tournaments, table selection is nullified.

So, in conclusion, MY opinion, and only MY opinion, is that one should have an adaptible personal style of play. If you can only play like a rock, then you will not be able to excel. However, if you play as a rock who can adjust his rockness (i.e., tighten up at loose tables, and see opportunities to use your rockness to steal pots in a tighter game), then you are essentially using your personal style while adjusting to table conditions. I would also argue that the BEST personal style is one that is completely adaptable. If you can easily adjust to any style of play, then you can have the best of all worlds. But this is not easy. Once again, its the difference between the master pianist and master musician. And right now, I can barely read sheetmusic.

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So, if you made it this far, I’ll just quickly recap last night’s play. After convincing slb159 and GCox25 to play in the Monkey Tourney, I played all of one hand before busting. In the very first hand, I was dealt AA. A player in MP raised from 20 to 80. There was one caller. I raised from 80 to 180. He pushed all-in. I called. His KK vs. my AA, preflop. 6896K. After the rivered King, I was slightly miffed, but also a bit relieved. After all, you will eventually suffer suckouts, so its better to happen in a $10 tournament in the first hand than in a $300 max cash game for your whole stack.

After, I opened up Full Tilt and entered several SNGs for random non-Hold’em games. The first one to get started was a $10 HORSE single table tournament. After a long heads-up battle, I own the damn thing. So, in the end, I was able to recover for the night and win my first SNG in a while. I love them non-holdem games.

I’m off to Salami Club tonight with 23Skidoo. If you care to join, email me or leave a comment.

Until next time, make mine poker!