We actually played a poker tournament Monday night at my apartment. I played ridiculously loose, leading to Ian busting me twice and Derek once. I dropped $15 and went to McDonald's.
Full Tilt offered me a $75 bonus that I could redeem over a span of ten days, so late in the evening I sat on the couch between Ian and Derek and played some .25/.50 NLHE. It is important for me to note that I NEVER play at stakes this high in an internet cash game. I have played higher stakes live, but on the internet I feel that competition in these games is above my level. I was wrong- at least tonight. I can't lie though, I caught cards CONSTANTLY, allowing me to make plays and build an image.
I made over $60 in less than an hour. This hand was the highlight of my night. Can you dream of anything working out more awesomely?
Feeling invincible, I moved on to .10/.25 PLO. I took over $30 in a very brief session, a lot of it coming from this wet dream of a hand.
I'm sitting at a .25/.50 Stud table right now. I'm up 4 big bets. Can I lose money tonight?
Who knows.
One thing is for sure; I'm having fun playing poker again.
-The Gerk-
Showing posts with label omaha. Show all posts
Showing posts with label omaha. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Through the Muck
I would like to post some hands, but it's not worth your time or my own.
I've won a couple of 5.50 9-players the last few days.
I finished 22nd in a 180 person when I couldn't get my KJ to hold up against JT all-in preflop for 7 BBs.
I played decent in a 90-person HORSE SNG but got coolered twice immediately after the first break, and I couldn't make my money back despite getting it all-in good in hold'em.
Last night I finished 2nd in a SNG where I thought I played about as close to perfect as ever, then got my money in facing three outs with two pulls against A4. Turn 4, river A. Heartbreak.
In the last week I'm up a small amount online, but I think I'm playing tremendously. When I'm in the zone, the decisions make themselves- abstract concepts become crystal clear and it feels like play slows down to the point that I become attached to no hand. I think a lot of this has been because of some extra aggression I've instituted in my play since my last bad run of cards. If you asked Paul the poker player a year ago whether he would bet out with two pair in the SB on a ragged flop, he would give a resounding "no." Today... ABSOLUTELY.
But despite what I consider solid play, I've been taking some rough beats lately. Not unexpected beats, but tough ones that cost me my tournament life in many cases. I can't race or win a 60/40 to save my life, and it seems like every time I get my money in facing three outs the dude turns or rivers his miracle. Since I started playing five years ago, I've never cared all that much if I was beaten as the result of being outplayed. In fact, that's the way I want to bust, knowing I can improve and fix something in my game. But over the last year it feels like most of my beats and bankroll drainers have not been the fault of getting outplayed, but rather getting outdrawn. Like I said, usually those outdraws fall under the category of "expected variance," but it still sucks when you're making a solid push with your bankroll and you hit a series of speed bumps when AK can't hold against AQ and JJ can't best AJ.
Either way, I'm happy with my play. In hold'em, anyway. I took too long of a break in Omaha and my game has suffered noticeably. It sounds funny, but I am really fond of my razz game. Stud... er, not as much.
I'm gonna end the blog here because I'm in a big Omaha pot that I should actually win!
-The Gerk-
P.S. I did win that pot, but didn't get the action I anticipated. I apparently don't have the reads I thought I did.
I've won a couple of 5.50 9-players the last few days.
I finished 22nd in a 180 person when I couldn't get my KJ to hold up against JT all-in preflop for 7 BBs.
I played decent in a 90-person HORSE SNG but got coolered twice immediately after the first break, and I couldn't make my money back despite getting it all-in good in hold'em.
Last night I finished 2nd in a SNG where I thought I played about as close to perfect as ever, then got my money in facing three outs with two pulls against A4. Turn 4, river A. Heartbreak.
In the last week I'm up a small amount online, but I think I'm playing tremendously. When I'm in the zone, the decisions make themselves- abstract concepts become crystal clear and it feels like play slows down to the point that I become attached to no hand. I think a lot of this has been because of some extra aggression I've instituted in my play since my last bad run of cards. If you asked Paul the poker player a year ago whether he would bet out with two pair in the SB on a ragged flop, he would give a resounding "no." Today... ABSOLUTELY.
But despite what I consider solid play, I've been taking some rough beats lately. Not unexpected beats, but tough ones that cost me my tournament life in many cases. I can't race or win a 60/40 to save my life, and it seems like every time I get my money in facing three outs the dude turns or rivers his miracle. Since I started playing five years ago, I've never cared all that much if I was beaten as the result of being outplayed. In fact, that's the way I want to bust, knowing I can improve and fix something in my game. But over the last year it feels like most of my beats and bankroll drainers have not been the fault of getting outplayed, but rather getting outdrawn. Like I said, usually those outdraws fall under the category of "expected variance," but it still sucks when you're making a solid push with your bankroll and you hit a series of speed bumps when AK can't hold against AQ and JJ can't best AJ.
Either way, I'm happy with my play. In hold'em, anyway. I took too long of a break in Omaha and my game has suffered noticeably. It sounds funny, but I am really fond of my razz game. Stud... er, not as much.
I'm gonna end the blog here because I'm in a big Omaha pot that I should actually win!
-The Gerk-
P.S. I did win that pot, but didn't get the action I anticipated. I apparently don't have the reads I thought I did.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Tilt Talk, A Huge Hand
My PLO excursion over the last week has been filled with ups and downs. Some days I felt like I was playing pretty well, given my relative skill level, and I would squeeze out a buy-in or two profit. Other days, I would be tilting pretty hard, without ever taking a beat to encourage such bad play, and I would drop 2, 3, maybe 4 buy-ins before I finally signed off in shame.
Let's talk about tilt for a minute. "Tilt" is a word generally used to describe the frustration of a player due to any number of causes, and the resulting effect on the way he plays. Most times, a particularly bad beat will send a player into tilt mode, causing him to try to recoup his losses as quickly as possible, by playing more hands and pushing all-in with very modest holdings. Sometimes, when a player is tilting badly, he just wants to bust and get away from the table. It is important for a successful player to understand who at his table is steaming so that he can adjust his play against that player. When a bad beat doesn't tilt a player, any number of things might alter the way he plays- fatigue, boredom, hunger, frustration, table talk, or the need to be somewhere else are just some of the factors that can cause tilt.
Back to my talk about PLO. In Hold'em, I find that I only tilt when I'm frustrated or take a big bad beat that would've greatly changed my chances of winning a tournament/ making money in a cash game. However, in Pot Limit Omaha, I sometimes find myself tilting IMMEDIATELY upon sitting down at a table. I'm playing too loose, making too many crying/hero calls, and just all around not playing the game the way I need to play it in order to win. I'm unsure what causes this- maybe it is the huge emphasis on draws as opposed to legit hands like in Hold'em. When I sit down, I feel like the best way to make money is to get my stack in with the nut flush draw and suck out- but clearly that is not the best way to profit in Omaha. It feels like I'm tilting in one way or another 75% of the time at a PLO table. But that other 25%, I don't think I'm a bad player, just inexperienced.
I had worked my roll on UltimateBet up to 105.00, from the 75.00 I started with. I have played almost exclusively .10/.25PLO, but I have also sat down at a .25/.50 NL Hold'em table and a .01/.02PLO table (While I was waiting for a .10/.25 to open up). I lost a couple buy-ins Wednesday, a couple buy-ins Thursday, a couple buy-ins Friday, made a little on Saturday, and lost 2.5 buy-ins Sunday before making a push. I was down to like 20.00 in my account besides the 10.00 I took to the PLO table. I had about an hour to screw around, and before long I had doubled up. Then, just like that, I turned a set and completed my full-house to bust a guy and was up to 35.00 at my table. Common sense told to me to just leave the table- I had to be at my parents at 7:00 for my dad's birthday and I hadn't even gotten him a card yet. It was 6:15 and I needed to shower, but I felt like I was running well so I didn't leave the table. Then a monster hand came up, an incredible only-in-Omaha hand... that I will break down in it's entirety during my next blog posting. :)
(A CLIFFHANGER ENDING?!?!? WTF?!?!?)
-The Gerk-
Let's talk about tilt for a minute. "Tilt" is a word generally used to describe the frustration of a player due to any number of causes, and the resulting effect on the way he plays. Most times, a particularly bad beat will send a player into tilt mode, causing him to try to recoup his losses as quickly as possible, by playing more hands and pushing all-in with very modest holdings. Sometimes, when a player is tilting badly, he just wants to bust and get away from the table. It is important for a successful player to understand who at his table is steaming so that he can adjust his play against that player. When a bad beat doesn't tilt a player, any number of things might alter the way he plays- fatigue, boredom, hunger, frustration, table talk, or the need to be somewhere else are just some of the factors that can cause tilt.
Back to my talk about PLO. In Hold'em, I find that I only tilt when I'm frustrated or take a big bad beat that would've greatly changed my chances of winning a tournament/ making money in a cash game. However, in Pot Limit Omaha, I sometimes find myself tilting IMMEDIATELY upon sitting down at a table. I'm playing too loose, making too many crying/hero calls, and just all around not playing the game the way I need to play it in order to win. I'm unsure what causes this- maybe it is the huge emphasis on draws as opposed to legit hands like in Hold'em. When I sit down, I feel like the best way to make money is to get my stack in with the nut flush draw and suck out- but clearly that is not the best way to profit in Omaha. It feels like I'm tilting in one way or another 75% of the time at a PLO table. But that other 25%, I don't think I'm a bad player, just inexperienced.
I had worked my roll on UltimateBet up to 105.00, from the 75.00 I started with. I have played almost exclusively .10/.25PLO, but I have also sat down at a .25/.50 NL Hold'em table and a .01/.02PLO table (While I was waiting for a .10/.25 to open up). I lost a couple buy-ins Wednesday, a couple buy-ins Thursday, a couple buy-ins Friday, made a little on Saturday, and lost 2.5 buy-ins Sunday before making a push. I was down to like 20.00 in my account besides the 10.00 I took to the PLO table. I had about an hour to screw around, and before long I had doubled up. Then, just like that, I turned a set and completed my full-house to bust a guy and was up to 35.00 at my table. Common sense told to me to just leave the table- I had to be at my parents at 7:00 for my dad's birthday and I hadn't even gotten him a card yet. It was 6:15 and I needed to shower, but I felt like I was running well so I didn't leave the table. Then a monster hand came up, an incredible only-in-Omaha hand... that I will break down in it's entirety during my next blog posting. :)
(A CLIFFHANGER ENDING?!?!? WTF?!?!?)
-The Gerk-
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