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I don’t want this to turn into a “bad beat bitching session” blog, but I played a couple of hands this weekend that I just have to relay.  It was a small game (6 handed) with a very aggressive blind schedule (double the blinds every time around the table).  We had been drinking quite a bit so it was a pretty loose table to begin with.

The poker Gods were laughing at me this night and continued to give me Seven/Three off suit.  As I stated before we were playing 6 handed and I must have had it 4 times in the first 3 rounds of the table.  Well I finally decided that I was going to take a stand (against who I have no idea) and make a raise with my garbage.  I looked down and saw the aforementioned Seven/Three in first position and bumped it up to three times the big blind.  Only the button called and we were off to the flop.  As it should, the flop came down:

The blinds had folded to my pre-flop raise so I was first to act.  I led right out and went into my standard “I’ve just made a bet” mode where I’ve got my head down so I can see the cards and my opponent’s hands but he can’t see my eyes.  I obviously didn’t think I had the best hand but figured I could represent a big hand with my pre-flop raise and if he hadn’t caught anything I’d be good to go.  He had the call in his hands and I was already determining how much I was going to have to bluff off on 4th street when he folded his hand.  Whew.  VERDICT: Good play for the wrong reason.

The second hand of note was once again Seven/Three (this time suited in diamonds).  I decided not to press my luck and checked this hand in the big blind.  Someone made a comment a hand earlier about how Seven/Duce and Seven/Three where such crap hands and why would anyone ever play them.  The flop came and I couldn’t believe my eyes:

The player in the small blind fired out at this pot and I just called hoping he’d hit a flush on the turn.  The turn came a non-heart ten and he checked.  Not sure why but I moved all in on this street and he immediately folded.  I showed my hand and got a big “oooh” from the players at the table.  He ended up having nothing so my play here wouldn’t have mattered (as he said he was checking it down and folding to any bet) but in retrospect I should have given him another free card.  VERDICT: Bad play that didn’t matter.

The third hand of note came when we were heads up.  I had built up a small chip lead and was prepared to grind it out playing pretty straight forward poker.  I looked down and saw Seven/Ten on the button and just called.  My opponent checked and we were off to the flop:

Pretty much a dream flop unless I was up against a set.  Opponent bet and I moved all in over top of him.  He picked up his hand and said “I’ve got a sucker hand”.  I figured he had something like King/Ten and was loving life.  He called off all his chips and showed Ace/King.  The turn came a Queen and put me WAY behind.  The board unfortunately didn’t pair up and I was down to the felt.  We made a deal here and started the next game. VERDICT: good play – bad result.

About 3 hands into the second game I woke up with Queens on the button.  There were two callers and I put in a standard size raise.  The big blind moved all in on me and the guy to his left folded.  I immediately called figuring that in a 6 handed game I had to be good.  He of course flipped up Aces and ended my night.  In retrospect I probably should have thought about it a bit more but I don’t see how I could have gotten away from my ladies in that spot.  VERDICT: good play – bad result.

See you after the flop!

Poker is a game of decisions.  Sometimes you make good decisions and sometimes you make bad ones.  Many times the decision not to play is the best decision you can make.  Unfortunately there are also times where you decide not to play a hand and it turns into a monster – that you let get away.

At the start of the hand I was by far the short stack at the table though I wasn’t in the “all in or fold mode” quite yet.  We were four handed at this point in the night and I was under the gun.  I limped in with Queen/Ten off-suit and the guy behind me who was third in chips moved all in.  The big stack at the table thought for a few minutes and called and the guy to my immediate right folded.  This left me with a pretty difficult decision.

One one hand I could potentially triple up if I put my money in the pot and won.  On the other hand I was pretty sure that my hand was not good at this point and I’d need to improve to stay in the tournament.  There was already one person in the hand at risk of being knocked out by the big stack which would theoretically move me from 4th to 3rd place (and into the money).

I decided to play it safe and fold my hand.  As I’m sure you can tell, the flop was an interesting one.

followed by a turn of and a river of leaving me looking down at what could have been.  Looking back it was a hand that would have tripled me up as the original raiser showed JJ and the big stack at the table showed AK.  I still think that I made the correct play in this situation but it just goes to show that watching a flop after you’ve folded can give you quite a bit of heartburn from time to time!

See you after the flop!

So I was watching ESPN’s coverage of the World Series of Poker last night and ran across this hand.  It’s the final table of the $1,500 No Limit Hold’em event and Grant Hinkle and James Akenhead are heads up.  Hinkle holds a slight chip advantage of $6,515,000 to Akenhead’s $5,320,000.

Hinkle is on the button and raises to $350,000 (which is just over a minimum raise) with a:

Akenhead raises to $1,200,000 with: .  Hinkle thinks about it for a moment and moves all in with his ten high!  Akenhead calls immediately and we’re off to the flop.

I suppose I can justify a raise from the button with a suited T4 heads up, but when your opponent comes over the top there I’m thinking you’ve got to let it go or at the very least just call.  Moving all in when you’re a slight chip leader is just crazy here in my opinion.  Now I will say that I obviously wasn’t at the table and I didn’t see all the hands being played so maybe there was something more to Hinkle’s raise here, but it seems REALLY risky.

The Flop

Talk about a perfect flop for you hand.  When they turned over their cards prior to the flop Akenhead asked if Hinkle had a pair — Hinkle kind of dropped his head and he flipped over his cards showing that he’d been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.  After this flop you could just see the defeat on Akenhead’s face and Hinkle immediately apologized.  At this point Akendead needed running Aces or running Kings to give him a victory.  Unfortunately neither would come.

The turn came the and the river came a giving Hinkle four Tens and his bracelet.

I suppose this is an example of how being aggressive at the poker table can pay big dividends.  Personally I would have gotten rid of my T4 long before all the money went into the middle — perhaps that why I’m blogging about it and they’re playing???

See you after the flop!!!

Hit a barrier last night for some reason. Played quite a few $20 SNGs. Really wasn’t getting anywhere with them and losing a little ground. Became frustrated at the end of the session and down a little $$$$. But I really didn’t want to stop playing.  Concerned about the bleeding.  Solution – Drop down to the $10 SNGs for my last two tables of the night.

Holy freakin crap. I was in shock. I kept thinking this can’t be happening. It was like a freakin free roll or a play money game. Everyone was betting like they had the nuts. 3rd hand, some lady first in from EP raises 5X. LP goes all in. We all know what that means. She apparently did not. She called his AA with K 7 off. He flopped trip rockets and she got pooft. I thought, Okay she may have been on tilt or misclicked. No No No. First ten hands, there were probably seven all- ins. Sometimes three and four way. All with mostly crap hands. To tell the truth, I sat in the corner cowaring and folding like a little girl ( no offense ladies). My other table was a little better but not by much.

I folded ALL my crap and picked a few spots to stay in it. About 20 hands in, we burst the bubble. 20 HANDS and the BB is still 30. I was short stacked and started the shoving routine. It worked for a very short time and I crapped out third. Came in first on the second table. It was actually kinda fun. I knew what to do. I might try a few more now and then. Sure got the blood pumping.

At one point, I typed in the chat, “This entire SNG has been very disturbing” and ” I think I will need therapy after this” To which I got a few LOL and agrees.

I had fun. And that’s good.

Done Rambling, GL at the tables.

So if you’ve been reading my stuff lately you know that I’m really down on my game.  I just don’t feel like I’m playing very well and I’ve lost a lot of confidence that I had last season in the CPL.  Going into Saturday’s tournament the best finish I’d had was 9th – and I’d been playing bad (read My Final Hand from the last tourney).

Hand #1 – Get In There And RAISE!

In any case the tournament started and I was in the big blind on hand #1.  I normally don’t like to play the first couple of hands at all just cause I’ve got so much going on at the beginning of a tournament (taking pictures, getting people bought in, etc.) that I’m not ready to “think” just yet.  So of course, when I look down at my hand I see:

There were 3 limpers in front of me and everything in my mind told me that I should be in there raising, but for some reason I didn’t.  Like I said, I just don’t feel ready to play those first couple of hands (which is a HUGE leak that I need to plug).  The flop comes out and things don’t get any better:

I figure that with all the limping someone’s got a piece of this flop but I figure to make a feeler bet to see where I’m at.  I bet the big blind and I’m quickly called by two players.  The turn comes a rag and the action is checked around.  The river comes and I’ve got a decision to make:

Do I make a bet and represent a hand or check and hope to show it down?  I can’t imagine that my par of Tens is good here and I don’t want to donk off a big chunk of my stack early so I check.  Of course the next guy makes a bet and I’m forced to fold.  I got out of the hand losing the minimum but I can’t help but wonder if I’d started off with a raise there what would have happened (and how it might have changed my day).   Verdict: BAD PLAY

Hand #2 – Another Round With Jacks

A few rounds later I look down to see:

.  I’ve got a history with this hand and it’s not good.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve fallen in love with Jacks only to have them be second or third best come river time.  That being said, I think back to the first hand of the tournament and force myself to make a raise here.  The table folds around to the player on my right who makes a call.  She’s a good player who always seems to have the goods when it gets to a showdown.  I don’t have a great read on here but I figure her for a medium pair or a decent Ace.  The flop comes out Ten high:

I figure that this is a great flop for my hand unless she’s flopped trips with Eights or Duces.  I make a bet and she calls immediately.  The two sets are possibilities at this point as are Ace/Eight and Ace/Ten.  The turn comes a blank and we both check.  Either she’s slow playing set here or I’m in great shape.  I figure her for Ace/Eight.  The river comes and I couldn’t be more pissed off.  The final board reads:

Everything in me says that my Jacks just got rundown on the river.  She bets and I make a crying call and sure enough to flips up Ace/Ten for two pairs.  At the very least I read it pretty well and looking back I’m not sure that I could have done much better.  Ace/Ten is one of her favorite hands and I wouldn’t have been able to get her off the hand once she flopped top pair.  Verdict: GOOD PLAY

Hand #3 – Scary Flop For Aces

There are few things that look prettier than bullets in the hole.  They look ever nicer when you’ve got the button in front of you as well.  I make a raise with my bullets to get one caller (the big blind).  The flop comes:

and I figure I’m in pretty good shape.  The big blind checks to me and I make a pretty strong bet hoping that he doesn’t have his favorite hand (Fours) or a pair of Eights.  He calls and we’re off to the turn which is a blank.  Another bet and call and we’re off to the river where the final board looks like this:

Talk about a card that I didn’t want to see.  Now I’m worried about Fours, Eights, Ace/Four & Ace/Eight.  He makes a bet but I just have to see what he’s got at this point.  He flips up Ace/King and my Aces take it down.  In retrospect that Four was just about a perfect card for me as he figured to be good if I wasn’t holding an Eight or a Four.  I suppose that a King would have been better but I won’t complain.  The result was good but I’m playing scared… at least I recognize it.  Verdict: GOOD PLAY

Hand #4 – My Day Is Done

The blinds had just gone up again and people are starting to drop.  I’m hoping to make it to 5th place so that I can get a jump up in the Player Of The Year points.  I look down at King/Jack and decide that it’s time to make a move.  We’re at $50 antes with $250/$500 blinds so there’s already a good size pot out there.  I move in for $2,150 and get called by a good buddy of mine (who I consider the best player in the field).  I know that I’m up against a pair and I hope it’s not Kings.  Sure enough he flips up Jacks and I’ve got three outs.  Sure enough the Kings are absent and I’m on the rail.

I ended up in 7th place which is my highest finish this season.  I’m not happy with it, but I’m making progress.  I think my game is starting to come around and I’m hoping that a couple of high finishes are right around the corner.  As they say… “that’s poker”.

See you after the flop!

I play this game for fun and to make money (Still working on the making money part). I would prefer to do both at the same time. Sometimes I get trapped in an SNG with an Assclown. You know the type. They can’t stop telling everyone how poorly you are playing and what a poker god they are. I know some people do this as a tactic to get others on tilt, it works on some people. It still does not change the fact that it ruins the game for me. I personnaly do not engage them as this normally makes one a target. I find it is best when people do not know who you are until it’s too late.

Yes, there is the option of turning off chat. I pay attention to the chat to gain information. When I turn it off, I feel awkward, like I’m missing something in my game. I should not have to turn it off because of someone’s lack of civility.

In one of my games, the Assclown hooked a guy into getting into a pissing contest with him for the entire game, That is until he got kicked in the junk with one of his horrid plays. He did have about 70% of the table shakin in their boots. It just made for a miserable game. I don’t like that. (I won it by the way.) The guy who engaged him in the pissing contest came in 2nd. He was a good player and apoligized for losing his cool. We went 148 hands to finish it, normally these are over in 80. He was good.

The only thing worse than having an Assclown at your table is when they turn into a RailTurd after they are kicked to the curb.

Moving along.

The weekend report;

Speed bump. 5 4 off is the new nuts. Or so I have been shown. Some crazy play this weekend. No, not all of it by me. Stuck to the $20 SNGs, Good me. Rarely saw a cheap flop this weekend. Which means TAG, survive, bubble shove, coin flip, oops I lost. Had too many go the other way. I did not play great but I did not play poorly either.

P.S. I have noticed a pattern. I usually donk off the first two or so SNGs. Then I reel myself in and concentrate. Then I take down some pretty good wins at the end of a session. (Looks like it takes me a few to get the engine warmed up) I think I may have stumbled onto a major leak of mine. possible solution; I am going to try to play the first several games at lower buy-ins. My concern is that the play is slightly different between the buy-ins and this may also hurt me if an adjustment period is needed.

Done rambling.

GL at the tables.

Anyone who has read TalkFlop.com knows that we’ve got a variety of categories that we put our posts into. One that I feel I need to define/address is the Questionable Plays category. This by NO MEANS is a negative term in my opinion. Let me explain.

There are literally thousands of poker books, blogs & websites out there that talk about the “numbers of poker”. If you’ve got top pair and a flush draw then you’re X percent to win the hand after the flop blah blah blah. While I’ve certainly read a lot of poker material I’ve always maintained that poker is a game of not only knowing the numbers but knowing who you are playing against. It’s been said time and again but in poker many times you’re playing the man just as much as you’re playing the cards.

Everyone buys into a poker game the same way. They put their hard earned money down and buy into the game (be it a cash game or a tournament). I will NEVER talk bad about someone’s decision to play a hand. I might wonder why they’re playing the hand the way they are but they’ve paid their money and they can play any two cards they like. Hell, one of my favorite hands is 74 suited. It’s garbage but I’ll play it just about every time I get it. It’s infuriating to other players but it’s my hand and I’ll play it however I like.

I guess that’s my point – The term “questionable play” is questionable to me only because I wouldn’t play the hand the same way. It’s either cause I don’t have the guts to make that play, don’t see the genius in the play or just plain don’t agree.  The other time that I may classify a play as “questionable” is when I’m reviewing my own play and just plain don’t agree with it.  I tend to analyze the hell out of myself and I find that I make quite a few “questionable” decisions at the table.  I’m trying to get better… day by day.

Everyone has the right to play their cards anyway they see fit. I may bitch about the result and wonder why they play the way they do, but when I take an objective look at it (normally after the fact) I come back to one thing — that’s poker. And quite frankly, that’s part of why I love the game.

See you after the flop!

So the other night I was playing in a super tight game (6 handed) at my place. I was sitting in the big blind where it was limped around to me (I.E. tight game). I looked down and found:

Not too bad for an unraised big blind hand. Off to the flop we went which looked like this:

Now based on the way the game was being played I wasn’t too worried. I was obviously not in the lead here but I figured if I made my flush I’d be in great shape. The small blind checked to me and I decided to try and take a free card to catch my flush so I checked. The next player checked. He was followed by a small bet, a call and a call from the button. The small blind folded and I thought for a moment before calling. The only reason I thought for a moment was because this was SUCH a tight game that any betting was out of the ordinary.

The turn came a and the betting was on me. I decided to make a bet to see just where I stood in this hand. The player to my left folded followed by a call and a raise! (remember, I’m surprised by this only because of how tight the game was). I immediately threw my hand away knowing that I was up against either a bigger flush draw, trips or at the very least a Q making my J no good if I hit it. The player who had called my original bet called the raise and we were off to the river.

The river came a making me feel very good about my laydown and VERY interested to see the cards that remained in play (2 players). The first player bet (very small bet in relation to the size of the pot) and the next player called.

I simply could not believe my eyes when the cards were flipped…

for a flopped quad 3s and for a flopped full house.

Remember that this hand was LIMPED AROUND TO ME IN THE BIG BLIND!!! I really can’t fault limping with a pair of 3s but for my money I’d be in there raising with a pair of queens in a 6 handed game. Not sure that a raise would have forced the threes to fold before the flop and there wasn’t anything in hell that was going to get them to fold after flopping quads. The best thing that I can say for the gentlemen with the queens is that he didn’t lose his entire stack on this hand which I definitely would have.

Just goes to show why I love this game… you never know what you’re going to see!

So I had just dropped a monster pot a few minutes ago after bluffing into the chip leader at my table who was on a rush like I haven’t seen in quite a while. This was a doubly difficult situation cause not only was she on a rush, but she’s a very good player as well. I figured that she just COULDN’T have a hand again and I proceeded to donk off about half my stack to her flopped full house – ARGHHH!

In any case, I looked down in first position to find one of my favorite hands

I’ll admit that I was steaming a bit but I decided to put my stack at risk to pick up the blinds and antes (and to hopefully get myself back on some kind of roll). Well it would have worked if it weren’t for that same chip leader’s CONTINUED streak.

As you can probably tell from my tone, she of course had

and promptly ended my day.

Looking back I was pissed at the beats that I’d taken, I hadn’t caught any cards in over 2 hours (don’t think I saw one pocket pair) and I was trying to make things happen. I’ll take this as a lesson in how NOT to get a streak going.