Weekend

I know weekends are high variance times. I had a little bit of that. I remember some nastiness on the tables today, but overall I feel good. I was a little out of sync playing with some of the completely aggro players on the weekends...pushing their stacks preflop when there is not even a raise ahead of them. Lots of overplaying hands and I was up against quite a few of these people. Unfortunately, I did not get a chance to double up against them as they twice beat me on the river...runner runner is lots of fun :) I just keep reminding myself that without these players the game wouldnt be worth playing!

I had a stretch today where I had pocket pairs a TON! Mostly smallish pairs that i was able to play for set value and I hit a few. One of the hands I got in against a donk that hit top pair, a 9, and played it like the nuts. I hit a set of 3s and he hit a 9 on the turn and the board paired on the river...bad news for me. I had AA on one of the 4 tables about 3 times in 10 mins and never got any action. I did get a few sets and even flopped quads, but couldnt get much value out of many of my hands.

So far today, down a little about $15-20...I hope to get another session in later.

Played 600 hands so far today...hope to get in another 600-1000 tonight.

Taking tonight off...

I am taking tonight off to get a good night's sleep and be ready for work tomorrow. I am pretty tired and two long sessions this week kinda did me in. I plan on playing quite a bit tomorrow and also logging some hands on Saturday. My second lesson is saturday afternoon and I would like to put in some time before, after, and on sunday.

April goals...

Well, I just realized a new month is upon me. I think it would be appropriate to lay out some goals for myself. The following are my goals for the month:

25,000 hands - yes this is modest for many players, but this is a lot of time for me as I 4-table and have a full time job.

$1,500 profit, including rakeback. If I can accomplish this, I should be ready to move up to .50/1.00, so this is also a very important goal for me. I need to move up to continue improving my $$/hr. My time is very valuable and I need to make the most of it. I really hope to be close to being rolled for moving up at the end of the month...that is my focus.

April could be tough as my wife and I are expecting our second son. So, I will have a week off of work and will be taking some additional time off from work as I am able. I am sure I will be busy, but hopefully I can find some time to log an extra session or two. Then again, I might not be able to log any time. So, my goals for April are very fluid at this point.

Reading hands...

I am pretty decent about getting away from hands when I have 1010-QQ and the board gets a little scary. I am ok with that. Where I get a little lost and believe I am giving up significant value is when I have a good hand on a drawy board and the river is scary. For instance, say I have QQ and the board is 456J with 2 to the flush. There are straight and flush draws all over. The river brings an A completing the flush draw. If I am OOP, how do you proceed? I have been playing it weak and checking which usually leads to someone making a big bet at me. I fold and often end up dropping half a buy in as I try to bet them off the pot on the flop and turn. I guess by them calling they are either telling me they hit a set or are drawing and their river bet should tell me they got there...maybe that will be a good line for me if playing OOP. If i hit a big hand bet, bet, check because it almost always seems to induce a large river bet...

I am expecting to play some more tonight...Need to focus on playing only good starting hands in the right position and be patient...

Getting started...going to 3-table while I focus on hand selection and discipline.

Had AA cracked by a very short stack, so in a way got lucky. I am up over a buyin by getting a nice rush of cards and never getting it all in...Just steady with a few big hands here and there...the way it's supposed to be! :)

I was shutting down tables and was almost done and ran KK into a gutshot draw and he hit of course...gonna play a little more. I should have let it go...

just had KK cracked again in like 5 hands by QJ. time to win it back.

what an up and down ride tonight. I ended up right about where I was when I was going to quit the first time, it just took me about 2 hours longer. :)

Poker is such a rollercoaster, but I am 4-tabling profitably so far and had a much more disciplined approach tonight. Up over a buy in.

1218 hands tonight.

Took Monday Off...

I was not planning on taking Monday night off, but I fell asleep and figured I should just get some rest. I do not want to kill myself playing this week as I have my next session on Saturday with my coach. I will be playing tonight...stay tuned for updates.

About to fire up some tables...

Wow, what a long session. I played 4 tables and found myself being undisciplined preflop again. I think I start to get impatient when I do not get action on my good hands. I tread water for a while tonight, getting a little too fancy and burned at least 1-1.5 buy ins being stupid and running 3 barrel bluffs that didnt work out. I need to be more disciplined. I am up on the night thanks to cracking KK with my set of 66s. A few hands later on the same table I had AA up against KK and it held up. So, lets see the numbers for tonight...

I logged 1766 hands tonight...a new record for me! :)

A few thoughts on my first month...

I had my first session with my coach on Saturday, March 7, 2009. The following Monday I went out of town and did not start playing until March 16, 2009. During this two week period, I have logged about 9700 hands with a winrate of approx 5.31PTBB/100. Pretty solid I think for just getting started. Sure, not even close to having enough hands for my numbers to be significant, I understand that. However, I like how everything is going. I feel comfortable at the tables, I am able to select pretty solid tables, and I am starting to learn to get a feel for how hands play out and how to avoid spewing a stack here and there. As I wrap up my first 2 weeks and as March comes to a close, I wanted to document a few things.

1. I need to focus on hand selection and do not allow myself to start getting too loose
2. A good laydown is better than a hero call...
3. HANDS, HANDS, HANDS!! Log as many as you can!!
   
4. Learn to maximize the value of each hand. I am getting lazy and hitting pot or not getting in a final value bet...I need to determine the best way to extract value.

Those are my observations of my play thus far. It has only been two weeks, but I feel like I have a lot of experience at the tables. I think my stats up to this point will be sustainable for me, which means I need to log tens of thousands of hands and grind away. I want to get slightly over-rolled for .50/1.00 before I move up because I never want to come back down. Once I am a winning player at .50/1.00 I will try to start adding tables until I am at least 8-tabling. Once I start 8-tabling I will weigh the options of rakeback at FT or VIP club at Pokerstars. If I can make some solid points at Stars, that might be the way to go, but rakeback is optimal when in bankroll building mode!

It's been a fun start and my next session with my coach is Saturday. I am looking to log another 3-5k hands or so before we get together. Wish me luck!

Nice Weekend...

I played a solid session on Saturday, logging about 1200 hands and ending up a few bucks. I could tell I was pushing things a bit too much and started to take chances and gamble. I didn't get lucky and spewed quite a bit of cash. I could have had a nice day but donked off my profit.

Today, my big hands caught a lot of action. I had AA a few times and got action each time, the first time I opened and was reraised. I didnt know if I should reraise again, but i just called and flopped 4 aces. SHOULD HAVE RERAISED! :) I think I should be reraising AA preflop rather than just calling when I get popped. I got it all in with KK when UTG+1 opened and I reraised to $7, player to my left called and UTG+1 raises to $21, I instapush (a little worried about running into AA), player to my left folds and UTG+1 calls with QQ. He only had $25 behind, but I would have folded that if I were in his position. Player to my left folded AK and was a little ticked when the flop came with 2 aces.

So, my hands held up and my short session was a good one. I only played 3 tables and it seems like I do very, very well with a few tables open. I also made a VERY CONSCIOUS effort to only play solid hands. I didnt limp a lot from the SB and raised just about every time I entered the pot. I need to play more disciplined. Today, my hands finally got action and held up...beautiful when it works that way. Another thing I focused on today was avoiding the big meltdown and spewing off a stack. i had QQ early and had to let it go on the river after investing about $20 into the pot. I like the laydown a lot, but was a little ticked at the time. The river brought an A that also completed the flush draw...easy fold, but still dont like it. So, solid day all around...Let me upload my hands and see where I stand.

Only played 231 hands today.

5.31PPTBB/100

Listen to your gut!!

I am still not listening to my gut and probably donked off a buy in because of making calls I knew I shouldnt have. I have been able to find strong hands against the bad players, but they seem to hit miracle flops and draws. Ok thought...up a tiny bit today. about 1200 hands so far. Hoping to get some more hands in later...gonna take a break.

Gettng too cocky...

I have been 5 and 6 tabling, but I think I should start by 2-tabling and then open it up to 4. I am not quite where I need to be to 5- and 6-table yet. I am close. I am identifying the very weak players and playing a little looser to get involved in pots with them. Tonight, i just got unluck y that they had hands when we got involved...

I need to slow down a bit, this is a marathon, not a sprint. I still won a little for the night, but definitely had some bad play.

took last night off...

I was tired last night and fell asleep while trying to help get my son to sleep. So, I didnt play. I feel kinda guilty for not playing because I am so focused and excited to get my bankroll to where I want it to be. I do realize taking these breaks is good for you though. Definitely can help with burnout, obviously.

I think I am also going to start stepping up the amount I play on the weekends. I realize it is probably higher variance overall, but I also believe it is a more profitable time to play over the long run. I think an attainable, yet ambitious, goal for myself will be around 30,000 hands per month. I would eventually like to add a 5th and 6th tables and maybe even more, but most of the people that I see 24-tabling are playing full ring. I should take a look at how many hands they are getting in per hour, but i bet it has to be a third less, so if I get up to 8-tabling that would be a very solid feat for me. I have been checking out other blogs and a lot of people have some pretty cool hot-keys set up for playing large amounts of tables. I might start looking into that.

I am excited to play tonight...Updates to follow.

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Getting coolered a bit...hot and cold...AA vKK holds up, but QQ v AA is not something you want to run into :)

Dude sucked out AQ v A9 and trash talked me...was funny. So, playing well just need to have hands hold up and not run into monsters.

had JJ and had set over set v 99 and lost to the 9 on the river...it was kinda surreal to get it in on the turn and have the case 9 show up on the river...

up and down night...fighting my way back!

ran into a cooler heads up...flopped a flush, but so did he...got stacked. If i get back to even i am going to call it a night.

2 of my tables went down to two players and it really threw my game off...need to get off of tables that break down. i also got a bit too focused on getting involved in pots with one dude that it threw my game off...just play my game and i am fine!

Learned a lot tonight. I had a nice, long session and made a few mistakes. My biggest mistake was messing around heads up when I was playing 5 other tables. The amount of hands you need to play heads up is just too crazy and that craziness started to affect my other tables. I will not play tables with less than 4 people...thats my new rule.

So, i had to have logged near 1000 hands tonight at break even...so not too bad. I have been running hot and tonight definitely put a stop to that. I made some bad call and had some bad luck, but also had a little good luck tonight. Still need to work on my game, but I was 6-tabling for a while...lets see where we stand.

1750 hands of breakeven poker tonight. Not too bad and considering some of my play and two nasty beats I took I am pretty happy. I admit I need to maintain my discipline. There are hands where my gut is screaming to fold, but my head says call and it is a bad move...I need to start listening to my instincts and just accept that solid folds, even if you are ahead, are better than trying to make hero calls all the time.

4.94PTBB/100

Encouraging...

I had a good night. It is hard to start a set of 4 when you are trying to be somewhat selective about your tables. I have my "system" for selecting them and I must say I dominate 3 of the 6 tables I played. I also avoided getting hammered early. I did get mixed up and lost about 30 on a KK v JJ hand, but I was able to maintain my composure and had another excellent day.

I only played about an hour and a half. I know I need to play more. I would love to be able to play at least 2 90 min sessions. I think I get tired of playing and need a short break after 90 mins. However, I am very happy so far with my results 4 tabling. Way too early in my challenge to determine anything, but if comfort-level means anything I am feeling great at the tables.

I had a chat session with my coach today...I caught him on IM and thought I would give him a shout. I look forward to our next session in 2 weeks...in the meantime, I will continue grinding!

Overall +6.6PTBB/100

Sunday

I am excited to log some hands. I have a friend playing in a freeroll for me and he is doing well...i just called him and he is in first with 64 left. Once he finishes up I will open some tables...

I am excited today because I am starting to fully understand what I need to do and am starting to gain confidence that I can do it. There were some bitter players that would talk trash after I stacked them and it kinda hurts my confidence because I know I am working on my game and I am not the best player. However, I am right around break even or better and improving. So, I hope to see that dude again...he pushed KQ over the top of me on an A high board and he completely whiffed...so i guess I shouldnt let someone that plays like that get to me.

Poker is such a solitary game. I have no friends that are interested in playing so I have no one to talk about it with. People think you are crazy, a problem gambler, and just do not understand that poker is such a powerful money making tool. That is why I am so excited to log more hands because it gets me closer to having a more reliable winrate...I just need to keep it in the green!! going to get going here in an hour or so...

Props to my boy Devin for smokin the freeroll tourney for me and taking 2nd and netting us a nice 450...i was going to split it with him and he only asked for 100, so i sent him 150. nice job dev!!

Not too sure how much I have played tonight. Joaquin hasnt been feeling well and it was tough to put him to bed tonight. I have 2 tables going while I write this. I need to tighten up, but I am getting playable hands and I start to get too loose. I flopped a few sets tonight..which is sweet.

I think this is turning out to be a solid set. I did get stacked early, but came on strong. Table selection is key. When the table fills up with some names I have seen and had some troubles with, I try to find a new one...i need to work on the start of my sessions because that is when i get hurt the most. One thing I have been doing is really playing passively if I open the pot and get called by someone that has position on me. I mix it up with continuation bets, but I get into trouble when I go after and build pots OOP. So, I try to avoid those situations. I have about 2 more hands to go and will quit and upload my HHs for session stats...

514 hands 21.25PTBB/100

Overall 5.5PTBB/100

SUPER SMALL sample size, so I wont even bother posting it.

About to get started...

I am going to fire up a few tables in a few minutes. gonna do my best to remain in control early instead of digging a hole and digging out.

2-tabled for a bit and felt good...so I opened up 4. I accidentally opened a few Pot Limit tables and shut them down and opened up the NL tables. I had a nice little rush taking down a few hands. I got stacked with 99 v 66 but i doubled up when I hit the flush when I had JJ on a board that had 4 spades, including the A and Q. My jack was good. I also had a nice hand with AQ vs KQ where the dude thought i was putting a move on the button and pushed at me when the board was 668A4 or something. So, a nice quick 275 hand session.

2.39PTBB/100

I do find it hard to play hands OOP. Also, I have a hard time when I open the pot and get callers and then I either fire and get raised or someone puts the pressure on me. What do i do there?

I have also had a lot of hands where my PPs 99-QQ get to the flop, miss and at there are 2 overcards or a very coordinated board. I usually fold them, but realize I am probably giving up a lot of value...how do i approach these hands?

Just finished up another session. 3-tabled and had an amazing heater. I had KK probably 4-5 times, AA about 3 times. I kept my cool and only lost one pot where I invested over $20 when I hit the straight on the river and he hit a flush. Great session and finally tasted a bit of positive variance. I never came from behind and sucked out, but my hands held up...

today's sessions stats: 399 hands 32.11 PTBB/100 :)

I still have only a few thousand hands, but I am beginning to feel like I am staying out of trouble and have a better feel for the tables. I think weekends are a good time to play...I know they are higher variance, but man I saw some craziness and thankfully was the recipient of some frustrated shortstack play. I really took it to a few players. I did get involved with a player I knew was pretty weak and he ended up catching some cards on the turn and river to make it quite a scary board and I had to let the hand go, but I am happy that I followed my gut and let the hand go rather than flush a buy in trying to make things happen. That is the theme of some of my previous posts and I am glad it is finally starting to sink in...when you dont dig yourself a hole you can have great results like I did tonight. Had I made a couple of extra stupid call, like I was tempted to do, I would have had an average session...

My game is improving, but I still have a long way to go.

A few thoughts...

I think I have been pushing things a bit because I know how much time poker takes up. I have a full time job and a family and it makes it tough to take time away from them when I am not making any real money. Not that money would ever replace family.

A few reminders for myself the next time I sit down

• read my starting hand guidelines that I set up for myself
• center yourself and relax
• be disciplined
• listen to your gut
• do not try to make things happen
• be disciplined
• BE DISCIPLINED!

Grinding...

up and down night...frustrating that i keep making the wrong decisions. when i decide to take a chance i get a good hand to lose a lot on the river but when i get lucky on the river i bust a short stack...when i take a chance preflop, i whiff...when i dont, i woulda doubled up.

i am getting decent PPs too, but overcards and coordinated flops come and i have to let them go...tough. sigh, just not my night. ive had 1010 a LOT tonight and every time two overcards and flush or straight draws...same for my QQs. My AA hasnt gotten any action other than to be cracked by 4.

I have been playing well...picking my spots and had my JJ cracked by 77. so, I am down about a buy in after a lot of hands...I would say I have to have logged at least 1000 tonight. For me, thats a lot.

I need to consult my starting hand notes before playing. I get a bit loose...when I sit down I need to play slowly and let the game come to me.

It is weird though...you really can get a feel for players and how they play hands. I can call sets more often these days, but now it is just trusting that instinct and not blowing my stack.

Table selection is also important. If I am not playing well or running the table, I am going to move. Overall tonight, not a bad session. I did lose, but I should have shut down a while ago and would have been right about even...lets see if PT is done uploading.

WOW, i played 1700 hands tonight.

.72PTBB/100 overall now...need to work on it.

Took a night off...

I took Wednesday night off. Usually I start to play after my son goes to bed, but I fell asleep with him and decided not to wake up.

Will be back at it again tonight.

Overcoming Gambler's Mentality

I have been slightly consumed by poker thinking since I woke up. In the past when I was playing sngs, very profitably I might add, but I still had the issue of getting in enough table time to really start making some cash. In college, I would have bought a 12-pack, sat down, logged on, and played for days. Now, I just cannot do that and even if I had the time I dont know if I could. I am encouraged that I am finding the game much easier now and feel completely in control at the table. I think that will help encourage me to play more because I do not feel such a sense of, well, doubt. I know it is so important to log hands and generate a large sample in which to base any conclusions regarding profitability. It took me a long time to do that with sngs and I believe I just never turned the corner and had the confidence in myself to say, yes you are a winning player so continue to grind because the more tables you play, the more money you make.

I wrote about this previously, but I call this the gambler's mentality. I enjoy games of chance, mainly blackjack. However, I understand the house has an edge and over time I will loose all my money. So, when I run hot in poker, I get the urge to leave and take my money. While in poker, that urge to leave is counterproductive. If you are on a heater, you should stick it out. Either your play is very good, your luck is turning, or whatever it is stick with it! This is my next obstacle that I plan on addressing.

Recap:

1. I am a winning player
2. I need to log hands to generate enough hands to determine an approximate winrate
3. I need to log hands to build my bankroll and move up
4. I start by 2-tabling and add a third as I learn about my first two tables
5. I am developing a solid TAG style. I feel the aggressiveness of my style now more than ever. I am putting the other players in the positions that I hated when I was playing previously. I put in the raises against the OOP players and find how powerful it is making others make the tough decisions.
6. I need to learn to extract the maximum value on hands. I think that will be the subject of my next lesson - Extracting maximum value.

The next several months I will be logging as many hands as possible to determine my winrate. Keep on checking in. This is the start of my journey and I would like to share it with as many as possible. I started out with a lot of jumbled ideas that I needed help organizing. In one session I feel I went from a slightly losing player to a winning player. The fundamentals/foundation is the most important part of your game and I believe I am showing that with every post. Follow along and leave comments...I will be playing tonight, so stay tuned for updates.

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Update.

Just fired up 2 tables and getting situated.

I stacked myself...pushed too hard trying to make things happen...need to slow down.

What I am struggling with is how to balance aggression with maximizing the value of each hand. Seems when I bait them to play, they hit. However, when I bet my made hands they fold. So, it makes me want to bet more so they dont draw on me, but then I feel like I am not getting the most out of every hand. How frequent would you say stacking someone is?

I can see how poker is completely a game of playing the rushes. I was hitting nicely last night and tonight i felt like not enough action was coming my way...so I was trying to force things, but you have to fight that urge because the cards do come, you just have to wait and not dig too deep a hole while you do!

There was a 5 mins stretch where I was getting at least one playable hand on one of my tables, my small PPs were hitting sets, I was getting solid prospective hands folded to me in late position...it all comes together for a few mins and you must capitalize and recognize when it slows back down.

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I started 2-tabling tonight and tried to get a feel for my first 2 tables. I never got into the groove really as other things are weighing heavily on my mind lately. I used some pretty bad logic and figured I was trying to push things too hard and decided to fire up another table. That lead to quickly firing up 1 more. So, I was 4-tabling about half of my set tonight. I believe I started at 7:40ish and will be finished up here just around 10. I am anxious to see how many hands I logged tonight as well as my return. I think my heater came at just the right time and I was cooling off as I closed down my tables. Was fun to go from down about a buy in and a half to two buy ins to being positive on the night I believe. I am really regretting that decision I made to get involved with TPTK. I knew it was screaming fold, but I pushed too hard. It is taking me far too long to get someone to commit their stack when I have a monster...I need to make sure that when I do get a chance to stack someone that I am not just digging out of a hole I created for myself with a stupid play earlier!

I almost proved I didn't have what it takes to be a constant winner by playing to recklessly. I recognized it and settled into a comfort zone. For me, it will be a key to start my sessions in a more centered mindset as I do not have the ability to sit down and play my A game immediately. I also folded a speculative early in the SB and would have stacked 2 players had I called...That might have frustrated me a bit.

Regardless, here are the stats for tonight:

580 hands in about 2 hours, so 4-tabling was a nice way to boost my number of hands considerably. I won a little, but not much. My PTBB/100 dropped a little to 3.63BB/100, but I would have a much better return had I just listened to my gut.

Back at it!

I am back at work and will be focusing on poker for the next 3 weeks. I have put off my next lesson because I did not log any time while I was in New Orleans for the conference. Penny, Joaquin and I made it a short vacation and had a really nice time. It was fun to get away. Now, I am going to turn my focus to logging hands and learning where I stand. I am excited because Penny and I have had some discussions about how to free up the time that I need. It is very important to get her on board with this because we are going to be sacrificing some quality time to see if I can develop my poker game. Plus, I will have some extra time on my hands here in about a month as we have a new child...yes, I realize I will have less time, but I will not be working for a good week or two and we will have help from both of our mothers.

Stay tuned for an update tonight. I might review a few hand histories and my notes before getting started. It has been a while!

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The night started off very nicely with a quick double up and some solid upward trending. After my double up, every big hand went against me on the river...so this is encouraging because if any of those hands go my way I am up a very solid amount. Overall, I am still up but gave back a lot of what I had won earlier. I am still playing and trying to continue playing solid poker. I had about 4 nasty suckouts against me...but I believe I am keeping my composure.

I was anywhere from 2 to 4 tabling tonight...I honestly believe 3 tabling will be optimal for me at this time. Ok, going to wind down my set and run the numbers in the next few orbits.

I finished up my set with a few good hands. I feel really good because the part of the game where I struggled the most, trending upwards between big hands, is now looking like my strength. I can feel how my game has taken on a much more aggressive feel. That is what I was after but was never comfortable executing it. Now, I feel like it is my comfort zone to be aggressive and I have to pull myself back at times. There were a few hands where I wasn't quite sure where I stood...I documented them and will review with my coach. Overall, I am really happy with tonight's session. I need to stack a few more people, but my big hands went the wrong way...very, very encouraging!!

Pokertracker Stats:
I was up over a buy in tonight over just under 600 hands...
4.25BB/100

March 8, 2009

I am heading out of town for a conference and did not have a lot of time for poker today. Actually, I did have time, but I wasted some of it and ended up playing less than 60 hands. I won about 20BBs in those 60 hands, so I had nice results, but I need to log more hours at the tables.

I guess I used to sit down at the tables knowing I was a long term losing player and was hesitant to even play. I knew if I worked on my game I would be a winning player, but I just didnt know if I was heading in the right direction, if i was focusing on the right information, interpreting it correctly, and making the right plays. Now that I have a better understanding, I need to separate those feelings of hesitancy and start sitting down like I have the edge. I believe 100% that the leaks I have plugged have transformed my game to a profitable one, so I need to sit down and start to grind!

I will start posting my winrate after I log some more hands. I realize these winrates will be completely meaningless for months, but it will be fun to track my progress. Just for fun, I will start to post them.

Pokertracker Stats:
1.94BB/100

March 7, 2009

My first session was today. Really, really good stuff. I have a lot of information on poker in my head, but i needed someone to hold my hand and spoonfeed it to me to start putting it all together. I got that today and the light started to go on. During my session, my coach sweated me for just over an hour. I ended up about .6 buy ins, which was awesome, but I learned so much about what i should be doing and how I was ignoring some of the very basic rules of 6-max play. when you start to obey some of these rules, the game become much more straightforward. I see it like blackjack - but no, poker isnt gambling like blackjack! What I mean is if you have ever played and understand blackjack, there really isnt too much thought into it other than how much you are g0ing to bet. when the cards are dealt the decisions are fixed based on basic strategy. then, you find the guys that think about every situation without considering what the statistics say. the game is quite a bit more difficult when you approach each situation without considering the odds. the same holds true for poker. I was breaking a few rules and not considering all the information at my disposal.

Before my first session, I was a slight losing player at the low stakes NL tables. Let's see if I can turn that around and start churning a profit and move up!

I will be posting more this week as I log some hands. Stay tuned.

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Quick update. I played 2 tables for a while tonight...logged about 172 hands and won about a buck! :) I did get in against a short stack with KQ on a K high board but he rivered the flush. If that hand holds up I am up 53 bucks. however, i am not going to be that concerned with results because that isnt what is important. I knew I could play poker profitably, but i was always second guessing myself and just not developing a game I could tweak because i was being too undisciplined. tonight, i never felt more comfortable at the tables. I used to not want to play because it was too stressful, but right now i feel like I am the puppet master. Yes, I am playing the very low stakes games, but you have to start somewhere. I hope to log a few thousand hands and reassess, but as we speak I feel like I plugged enough gigantic leaks to truly wonder if I am break even or even profitable at this point. Very excited.

Pokertracker Stats:
.84BB/100

March 5, 2009

Tonight was a good learning opportunity for me. I logged quite a few hands and lost about $60. I am going to take a look at my play the rest of the week because i will be busy and will wait to log more hours until I chat with the ole coach.

March 2, 2009

I have been logging some time, not much, but I have been playing the low stakes cash tables. I am just trying to find a comfort zone before my first session with my coach. I am looking forward to it because I think some solid advice can quickly push me up the learning curve.

Tonight, I played decent, but I think I am being too passive post flop and maybe a bit too loose preflop. Loose passive is not the type of player to be...so I need to tighten up preflop and work on my aggression. What I have been shooting for is to slowly trend upwards in between big hands. from my limited experience, you try to win a little money here and there, but the hands that you get all your chips in are the ones you really need to win, so you do not want to get it all in with marginal holdings. There have been a few hands where I was a bit frustrated with myself because in retrospect I was trying to make things happen. It is a bit frustrating when you lose your focus and find yourself pushing the action trying to double up. In doing so, you end up losing your stack and regretting the decision - even though as you were playing the hand you knew you were pushing the edges a bit too hard. There are very few instances where I get my money in and am surprised that i am behind. Usually, I just lose discipline and flush my stack.

I think that will be the lesson that I need to learn first...play smart and just be patient. tonight was a good example. I was fortunate that I had AA twice. The first instance I was down about half my stack already and ended up losing to J6s when he rivered the straight AND the flush...either way you look at it I was toast. The second time AA came around I was on the button and had been a little more aggressive on my button raises. I put in the 3.5xbb raise and was reraised by the BB. I paused for a minute and called. the flop was 269 rainbow and the BB lead out for just over half the pot, I potted it with my AA and he pushed. I called and he showed JJ. No J on turn or river and my AA held up :)

It is fun learning to play poker again and learning the same lessons over and over. I just need to stick with it and keep plugging away. I am looking forward to Saturday and getting my education underway!

The Journey is about to begin...

To those of you that are new to my blog, I have been playing poker for 15 years. The majority of that was during my younger days and we would play a ton! I dabbled the past 3 years playing online with pretty solid success. I was a sit n go player and made some decent cash and had decent results in MTTs as well. My transition to cash has been up and down, but I haven't logged enough hands to really make any conclusions. I do beleive I am a slight loser in cash. Currently, I have a young son and another due in 2 months. If I want to play poker, I need to make the time I devote count because my time is very valuable to me and my family. My first lesson is set for March 7th. I am excited to get grinding...

Poker-wise, here is where I stand:

I have dabbled in cash, mainly $1/2 NL and sit n go tourneys up to the $77 sngs on Party Poker before they stopped allowing US-based players on their tables. I made decent money playing sngs, but I want to transition to cash. My goal is to move along the learning curve as quickly as possible with the help of my coach and start becoming a winning player. I am not looking to become rich or get myself on TV, but I am looking for a solid supplement to my income.

So, please come and visit and read my blog. This is going to be a fun journey and I have a lot of confidence that I can make the jump from being a casual, slightly losing player to a solid winning player. I think a little direction and a good coach will get me over the hump. I am really excited about it.

If my description of myself sounds at all like you, stay tuned and check in on my progress. See if I can make it happen!

February 18, 2009

I played a quick 30-40 minute session and emailed off my hand history to my new coach. I am looking forward to working with him and starting to work on my game. I think I just need a few preflop pointers and little more confidence. I need some help with my postflop thought process and want to make sure I am considering everything that I need to...I know I am very raw, but with some very focused direction I believe it will not take long for me to be a winning player.

While I wait for the response from my coach, I will not log any time at the tables. I have been away from poker for a while, so I want to get back into it with the proper guidance. Stay tuned, but the ball is rolling.

STAY TUNED!

Today is an exciting day for me. If you look at my last post, it was last year in late October. I was getting back into sngs and was just not progressing the way I wanted to. I didn't want to "gamble" and start playing over my bankroll to make decent money, but I was not getting the results I wanted. I was getting frustrated and impatient and was not giving the game the respect it deserves. That will be changing.

I have been following a prominent poker pro's blog for a few years now. Back in December of 2006 I asked him if he was accepting students. At the time he wasn't. Apparently, now he is looking to take on a few. Since my original request, I have focused on my career and had 2 kids. Well, one kid with another due in 2 months. I am lucky to have some money socked away and I forwarded him my email from 2006 asking if he would be my coach. I was excited when he offered me a slot as one of his students!!

I will be starting my NL cash career shortly...and we shall see where it goes. This blog has been a lot of fun for me and has been an excellent way for me to follow the ups and downs i have experienced in poker. I do not know if I have what it takes, but now i have someone that can help me along the learning curve. I am a very quick learner and believe if I have someone like this in my corner offering me advice and critiquing my game it will take me to a new level. This is what I have been searching for and I am excited that I have an opportunity to make my poker dreams come true.

My goal is not to become the next poker pro, but that would be awesome. I am a grounded guy that loved to play poker. I believe the structure a 9-5 provides me is something that I need. but, I would love to make an additional $2,500 per month. I have modest poker goals and ultimately I would like to travel a few times per year and play in some of these tournaments. If poker could provide me some college fund money for my two sons, vacation cash, and occasionally pay the mortgage, life would be grand!

I will be updating periodically and will let you know what the game plan is. This is the start of me trying to go from a slighlty losing cash game player to a winner. Now would be a great time to follow my experience from nobody to, well, still a nobody but with more cash in his poker account. :o)

Please, follow my blog and my progress and leave comments. This will be an interesting ride for me and it would be fun to share it.

ugh

so i am playing a little and lost 2 hands with the better ace...lost 1010 to J9o...so just more of the same...i guess it never ends!

full tilt...just seems so rigged...i would never honestly believe it is because it is too big of a site and to care enough about the outcome of low level sngs is so silly, but statistically speaking, i just dont understand how much longer the variance can continue...

i know if you are a poker player, or even an enthusiast, you might be saying, quit complaining...and I agree. however, this is my sounding board for frustration...plus, i understand variance and statistics, but living it out in real life is another thing...one of the many challenges poker players face. As you can see, some deal with it better than others! :)

Thursday, THE END

For the time being, i am going to quit playing poker. Hit a nasty downswing...i know some is bad play, but just a horrible dose of variance. Poker is an impossible game if you cannot win a race and those are typically 50/50 propositions, but I lose 60/40 "races" lately about 75/25...As i type this, i lost a race for 85% of my stack, then got finished off AQs vs KJs...i didnt even look, just saw i was eliminated...so there are two more in a row...

Just to give a quick update on the final set of sngs i am playing...i have called 2 pushes and got in with the better ace, AK v A3 and A8 v A7 and split both times!! just lost A6 v 55, yet another race. I did just have A10 v A8 hold on the bubble to get ITM...but little consolation. I just lost 66 v AK, yet another race...so far, the only hand that has held up while blogging tonight is a 3:1 favorite...not gonna win much with that sort of luck!!

Poker is no fun when this happens...sure, thats an obvious statement. however, to be properly bankrolled, I need about 400-750 ...so I can deposit that in the future and start playing because it isnt a huge amount of money...but until then, i will take what is left of my bankroll and take my beautful fiance out for dinner...I will be out the money, but it will be well worth it! At least I wont feel like I flushed it down the toilet! We are going to have our second child at the end of April...So, Until I play again, which may be quite a while...peace out!

October 18, 2008

So far played 2 hands...got a dude all in on the turn with a 7 high flop and 8 on the turn...he had 79o and I had QQ. He rivered the 9. I also got a dude in when I hit broadway on the turn, but the river Ace counterfeited my broadway and we split. not a great start...lookin to log about 20 tonight!

not doing well...playing well and making nice moves, but just cant get hands to hold up. these games are super beatable and my cards arent cooperating!

just lost AK v AQ...been like that all night!!

this is getting soo sick...keep losing on the river...fucking BS!

every race on the bubble i lose...just sickening. total, complete BS!

Lee Watkinson just was playing a 36 and busted me on the rivered straight...so sick

just lost on the bubble with AK v j3o...hit the gut shot on the turn...

it has been suck a crappy night...i am definitely hanging it up for poker. i havent flushed my bankroll, but i just dont feel like i want to play anymore. when that happens, whats the point.

for the time being...peace out!

October 15, 2008 My Boy's Birthday

I haven't been playing much this week because my parents are in town and it is my son's birthday! Here is a pic of him at his party!

Found some time to play tonight. Just getting screwed. This taste of variance is lasting far longer than I would like. I have been getting really nasty beats nearing and on the bubble. then, when i do get in behind, usually a 40/60 spot, I cant get lucky. I am considering calling it a career unless I go on a heater before the night is over.

running a little better...have some nice streaks of cashing, but my hands arent holding up once ITM, so lots of 2nds and 3rds.

Well...ended the night on the same note i started it...just nastiness all around. Busted on bubble on a race, which i lost and then would have had the chip lead with blinds creeping up when my AJ lost to KQ. I have lost a ton of those 60/40 hands tonight in critical situations...if i dont go on a heater my next session...i am gonna wrap up poker for a while and cash out. It just isnt worth my frustration, but more importantly, I am not mentally ready and it isnt worth my time...

October 12, 2008

Totally card dead tonight...played ok, but just couldnt put anything together. Not sure how its gonna end up, but I did the best I could with the hands I was dealt...I am definitely gonna take a break until my parents leave...wasnt a lot of fun tonight.

October 8, 2008

Well, I have decided to take the day off. i have been spending so much time playing poker that I need to spend a little quality time with the family. My mom and dad are coming to town for my son's 1st birthday, so i wont be playing too much this week.

My plan now is to put my rakeback into my account and step up. I have experienced a nice little correction, so I think the variance is going to be turning back in my favor. So, I will be making the leap to the next buy in when I get started again. I should have just over 30 buy ins...so by most people's standards I will not be underbankrolled...I am excited because I am definitely a bang for the buck kinda guy, so stepping up and hopefully increasing my earn by 50% is attractive to me!

Stay tuned for updates...just not many this week. Taking tonight off and tomorrow I teach...then Friday my parents are in town.

October 7, 2008

I am far too loose playing Omaha H/L. I donked off more thank I want to admit...maybe 75 bucks or so...no more of that for a while, but remember that my tendencies are far too loose!

On to sngs...

October 6, 2008

Just about to get started here...wish me luck :)

Playing well, just card dead..

Playing well, just getting completely hosed on the bubble and ITM. runner runner style...if this continues i will quit...get in ahead and lose...either side of the race...stronger ace in and lose to runner runner...just tough luck tonight.

tough night...trying to stay positive...

getting hosed tonight...but only down a little...less than 200.

its weird...i had tons of big pairs starting after my first set...and cant seem to hold on...ironic...i almost pushed A6 on the button...sb pushed and bb called, i would have had the worst of it and won...just cant get it right tonight...get itm and get AJ only to run into AK...yet another cooler...but grinding away. my last sng is open...and ran into 1010 on the bubble.

So, amazingly crazy night...horrible luck and only down a few buy ins considering I couldnt win one to save my bankroll or get lucky. I won very few races...encouraging! I feel like tonight was horrible, but I had quite a few 2nds and 3rds...

October 5, 2008

Just finished up my first session of the weekend. I have quite a bit of work to do for the two classes I am teaching. I played for a solid 2 hours. Not quite sure how I did yet, but I had some nasty beats to bubble on 3 of the last 6 sngs I played...so it could have been a great session...but I am sure I am still up for it...I will upload my HHs and get the stats up shortly.

This is the kind of session I like...a few bad beats...a few suck outs...nothing too streaky, just steady progress. If poker was always like this, I would never quit playing!!

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Today's stats for far:

20 sngs
15.5% ROI
35% ITM (4 1sts, 2 2nds, 1 3rd. Another great distribution)

Getting late tonight and played some more. Kept about even...had some nasty beats on the bubble and ITM. If one hand would have held up that was sucked out on the session would have been a winning one for sure. I do not mind the break even sessions...they help bring the ROI back down to a more realistic range without the big downswing. I am thinking about firing up some more, the play is just so bad right now. I am noticing the other people multitabling the same buy ins are quite a bit looser than me. I get in good against them 75% of the time. I should fear no sng player at the buy ins I am playing. I think I should run over the next level as well.

I played 13 more sngs...so 33 on the day. I am optimistic about the number of sngs I am playing. Volume has always been my biggest challenge and I seem to have overcome that for the time being. I even took a nasty downswing when I started and kept powering through. Very encouraging.

My parents come to town on Friday afternoon, so I do not think I will be playing much for the week they are here. Maybe an hour or two here and there, but it would be rude to play while they are in town. So, I am shooting for Gold on Full Tilt and will go for Ironman next month.

As an aside...I have a dual monitor set up I need to get hooked up. I am very profitably 6-tabling, so I think I deserve a raise. I am going to start 8-tabling as soon as I can get a decent workstation set up. That means 33% more tables in the same amount of time...it's all about volume!!

October 3, 2008

So far playing great...the only 2 i busted out of was pair over pair and lost to runner runner straight. I was ahead on the flop on the other and lost again to runner runner straight. playing well...i feel good tonight.

just took down 2 straight and have 6 open.

Playing well...up about 4 buy ins and still going strong.

Very happy with my play thus far...lost 2 heads up matches where i was in ahead, but didnt hold on...looking good tonight!!

The key for me tonight is that i am not forcing things...i am not getting too antsy nearing the bubble...i am not pushing unless i am very, very short. Seems to be working and my patience is being paid of.

Let me clarify what very, very short is. Typically, I get antsy around 10 BB...but I am waiting if the blinds are 120/240. I am holding off until they reach 150/300 and waiting until i have about 4 BBs..

I hold off, tempted to push...get AA the next hand as a reward and get it cracked...playing very well...need to remember the patience...i think i often push too quickly...need to stay patient.

just lost a big one on the bubble with AQ v KJ to the rivered king...still alive though...

I am making big calls on the bubble with middle pairs, 77 & 88. Gone both ways...I guess its a better idea because when i win it, i am in a great position to win the sng...but if i lose and try limpin into the money you are pretty much playing for 3rd.

great night...up about 7 buy ins...

I currently sit at 37 buy ins for the next level. I prefer to have at least 50...so I am inching my way towards moving up!!

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Session stats

20 sngs (5 1sts, 2 2nds, 1 3rd - AWESOME distribution)
36.1% ROI
40% ITM

My ITM %age wasnt super high. I didnt feel like I was winning more than usual, but I knew I was taking 1st a good portion of the time. Very happy with the results!

SEPTEMBER IN REVIEW

I decided to make a conscious effort to play more in the mid part of september. I started to 6-table more and try to log more hours. I am teaching 1 night a week and trying to spend more time with my family, so its tough to make playing a priority unless it starts to pay the bills. So, while I build my roll I need to stay disciplined and really grind away to move up.

September broke down as follows:

239 sngs
8.1%ROI
36.8% ITM

I finished the month on a down note, but still finished respectable. I built a great base for my bankroll and have grown it substantially. As of today, I have more than doubled it since the early part of september.

OCTOBER GOALS

Goals for October:

400 sngs
10% ROI
39% ITM

If I can attain the # of sngs and the ROI, I should be very generously bankrolled to move up in buy ins next month. I should have about 70 buy ins for the next level, which is more than double what many people recommend.

October 1, 2008

So far I have gone to showdown twice. Once with QQ and lost to the rivered flush. the 2nd hand i lost to the rivered straight. time for some hands to hold up!

Now, when i get hands i am getting coolered, but 3 3rds in a row...running into big hands itm. It is all going to come together for a nice run tonight...i can feel it!

Ive played about 10 sngs and havent sucked out once...maybe i am wrong about being a good night :)

Or i could be wrong...2 wins in a row...even with my AA getting cracked...Ive been breaking about even tonight...cashin and donkin off some...im gonna finish this set and call it a night.

Got QQ and ran into KK itm...once again coolered, but at least waited utnil i was itm.

lol, ran 99 into 1010 to take 3rd again. Playing great and getting to the bubble on all of my sngs in my last set...need to finish up in 1st in at least one!!

finished the set 2 and 3...strong finish. Wow, did better than i thought and won about 200...

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Great start to October. Here are the session stats:

23 sngs
8 - 3rdx (horrible finish distribution, but ran into some strong hands with my own PPs ITM!)
4 - 2nds
2 - 1sts

14 cashes in 23 sngs, pretty darn good. I just wish my finish distribution had more 1sts.

Overall, my October stats are:

36sngs
26% ROI
52.8% ITM

Obviously not sustainable, but I like to start on the positive and trend down to where I belong.

September 29, 2008

I didnt play much poker yesterday. I played in a freeroll and won $75. I was getting tilted and pushed hoping for a coinflip, but ended up getting in with an underpair and busted. That's ok though...

My roll is steadily growing. i need to log some hours in october...it would be nice to start to acheive some of the bonuses the sites offer and i just miss making any of them due to not playing quite enough. If i could just play an extra 2-3 hours per week I think I could get there. Most of my play is logged in 2-3 hour increments at night. I play very little during the weekend. I think if I could log at least one session per night, then at least 3 on weekends that I would be just fine.

anyway, not sure if i will get any in tonight...

started up 6-tabling. not much going my way tonight...i hope it changes. playing pretty well. not too much in terms of cards. i hope my luck turns.

Struggling to get any hadn to hold up...getting in better aces and losing...just tough. Fired up a $33+3 by accident...hope to take it down...maybe play a few more tonight.

Truly horrible run of cards...its gotta turn at some point...i just need to keep my head. I am continuing to play well and am in the money on one...still alive in my 36 and gonna take a break and fire up some more.

keep losing the big ones...lost KK to AK when he hit the ace on the turn...playing well with no reward..dropping buy ins!!

well, down about 200...horrible night for suckouts...i cant count the number i lost on the river in critical situations. I was running over tables and getting runner runnered regularly. lost to 3 outters twice heads up...lost to 2 outters twice on teh bubble...infuriating especially when you are working on building the roll...but, i played well and kept my head...One thing that really confuses me is how many people just do not understand bubble play. in the hand where i lost to a 2 outter, i had about 5k in chips, BB had 4500, and the other two were very short. blinds were 200/400 and i was on the button. I potted it for 1400, sb folds and bb calls. I have A2o and the flop comes AK8. He pushes...i called and he shows K9o. I turn the 2 and he rivers the king. stupidity is really paying off tonight.

These sorts of night must be expected. it just doesnt seem right, but they happen...and too often for my liking...but its part of the game and you have to learn to deal with the downs as well as the ups...that is the hardest part about poker. I need to keep it in perspective. i watched some guys drop hundreds of thousands of dollars on one hand and they keep at it...its part of the game from the beginner to the most experienced players and if you want to play poker well, you need to learn to deal with variance. today was a big dose of it and I handled it....well, just ok. my play was solid, but i did get frustrated.

September 27, 2008

Playing great...ok results...about break even. getting roughed up heads up...lost KK to A8 on the river ace, then lost QQ to 96 when he turned the straight...been getting in good, so i am happy. once the cards turn back my way i should have a nice upswing...just being patient and trying to play my A game.

As I was writing this, I lost to runner, runner flush...so it continues. I am going to finish my set, relax and grab a beer, and fire up 4 more. I finished the last sng of the set and took it down. amazingly I am up for the night about 3 buy ins. I am very pleased with my play and the results. including rakeback, my roll is up to over 42 buy ins. Quite a run I am on considering I had my whole bankroll on the table at the beginning of the month.

September 24, 2008

The night started rough...hands werent holding up. however, i kept playing and my luck turned. My hands were holding up and i was sucking out like a champ. In one sng i got it all in with 88 up against JJ and i flopped quads...he hit the jack on the river...so I needed every bit of it. Later in that sng, on the bubble i got it in with 55 v 99 and spiked the 5 on the river. I ended up taking a nasty beat ITM, but that was owed to me...but I took it down. I ended up on a great streak...but need to turn in or I would continue playing. I need to keep playing when I am on a hot streak and shut it down when i run cold...i know it really doesnt matter over the long term, but i guess you are making better decisions when you are winning (most likely).

Anyway, out for the night...teaching tomorrow so no poker...will be a nice day off!

September 23, 2008

Played quite a few tonight and won a little. I am playing well...but my big hands are not holding up lately...once they start to I think I will make a nice run. Been playing well, but my ROI has dropped to a more reasonable level..10%. I need to get my volume up.

September 22, 2008

Playing well but definitely coolered tonight...running into decent hands at critical times and not getting lucky. Lots of bad players getting lucky tonight...still doing ok. had a nasty bubble and am playing pretty well...just need the cards to fall.

Well, rough night. i thought i played relatively well. Races didnt ever go my way and ended losing quite a few hands where i was dominating. Couple that with my big hands getting cracked and there isnt much you can do.

September 21, 2008

I played quite a bit over the weekend. Had a good session on Saturday night, though I lost about $175. I did play a lot of sngs and then had a nice 5 sng session tonight and won back most of what I lost. Bubbled and came in 3rd on sngs that I should have done better in, but still managed to make a little money.

Things sure have been busy lately with work and teaching. I am not sure how many sngs I will be able to play, but I am going to do my best. We are trying to put together a decent workstation at home, but time and space is at a premium. Hopefully in a few weeks things will start to fall into place.

Other than that, nothing too exciting to report...still playing.

September 16, 2008

I havent had a chance to play very much lately. Last night I was not in the mood to play for anything significant, but I burned some FPPs on Poker Stars and qualified for their Million Dollar freeroll at the end of the month. That should be fun. Plus, I almost won another seat, but found out that you lose it if you already have one, so I busted out of the tourney 1 place before the seat was given away and got 1000FPPs, so i pretty much qualified for free.

I hope to log some hours tonight, but I need to head out and run when I get home. I also start teaching on Thursday, so I will be pretty busy this week preparing as I also have a directed study student under my watch...might not get a chance to play much this month.

September 13, 2008

I fired up a set today and had it going early. I got to the bubble in 3 of the 4 sngs i played, but I ran into some tough beats with good hands. I took 1 3rd which was very disappointing, but i knew i was playing well and fired up another set. I played well again and this time the variance was coming my way...a few hands of note...

Blinds were creeping and the 2nd stack was on my left. I was 3rd and i limped A9s from the SB hoping he would make a move, i would push and get 900 chips from him...it happened just as I expected, but he tabled AK and i was nervous. I spiked the 9 on the turn and flushed it on the river. shortly after this hand, on another table I was in A2 v AK and I hit a deuce to take that hand down as well. So, in my last set i took 1, 9, 1, 1. I like that!!

September 12, 2008

I didnt play last night, but I did on the 10th. Played 11 sngs and won just over 4 buy ins...

I am feeling very confident about my starting hand selection early, on the bubble, and ITM. My finish distribution has been excellent with a lot of 1sts. I take 1st more than any other place, which is great. I am coming around and now need to start to log a significant number of sngs. I am easily able to play 12 sngs on any session, so my goal is to reach 300 in a month. that is pretty ambitious considering the load I have on my shoulders and the obligations I have for my time, but I think it is doable. We are looking to set up a home office, which will allow me to add a second monitor and therefore play 6-8 tables more easily. that will make my goal of 300 very attainable and then I can shoot for 400.

My bankroll started at $600 and I lost half of it. Then, I was slowly losing down to about $250. At one point, I had my entire bankroll in play. Now, I am back up to over $600 and looking to make a push for $1000. That will give me over 40 buy ins and the confidence I need to not worry about my risk of ruin. Once over $1200 I feel like I will never have to even consider stepping back down to the $12.

I think the major difference between my game now and the one I was playing a month ago is that I am being more aggressive nearing and on the bubble. I will reraise/push to late position raisers. That is a huge move because it will often add a very substantial amount of chips and you never go to showdown. The second adjustment I made is that I am being more aggressive as the blinds creep up in proportion to my stack. I had gotten lucky a few times pushing marginal hands when I have say, $1000 chips and blinds are 60/120. I will push now in middle to late position and when I get lucky it provides me enough chips to play out the rest of the sng without the urgency and need to push and double again. Both of these adjustments have turned september into a very nice month for me and I look to continue my success and log more tables.

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Played a set of 4 tonight making it to the bubble in each. I took 2, 2, 3, 4. I played awesome. A little loose early and pulled it in. Picked up big hands, many didnt hold up, but played very patient and should have moneyed in all 4. I called a lot of pushes on the bubble and was in ahead every single time. The bubbles were brutal tonight with the shortstack doubling though the big stack several times on a few tables, which means there is a new shortstack, but nothing so short it is only a matter of time before they bust. I got very unlucky on both sides of the race many times to bust people...but feel fortunate to be up a solid amount. I am almost at the 30 buy in threshold which many people use to say that is the number of buy ins necessary to reduce your risk of ruin...I like to be closer to 50 because i do not like to drop down buy ins to win money half as fast as you lost it.

I am excited because i am starting to put together many consecutive winning days like i used to...

anyway, my roll is growing and so is my confidence...not sure if i will fire up another set tonight...but looking to log a lot of tables this weekend. the play on full tilt is just sickeningly bad and i need to play more. i thought/heard the earn on sngs is tough these days, but i am finding them amazingly loose and crazy. hope it continues...

September 9, 2008

As it has always been with me and poker, things are progressing slowly. I am struggling to find the time to play and the short sessions have been very up and down. I am looking to start to make a push for some clarity about the poker situation. I know I am profitable at sngs. My goal is to grind the $22+2s on FT and I have a few hundred in right now. I am going to either flush my entire roll or start building...Let's see where my roll goes!

August 22, 2008

Back to hating poker. it is streaks like these that just get me so frustrated. I played a set and didnt have great results, but played well and in all 4 i lost to a pretty nasty beat. I thought since I was playing well that i would fire up another set because i was in a good frame of mind. more amazing beats after another. I cant tell you how many times I lost to runner runner or the spiked ace on the river. It was really uncanny. So, I am going to play in the freeroll this week and next, but if i dont make any cash from the freerolls i am cashing out and saying FU to poker for a while.

August 21, 2008

Rough start...played one set and had my KK cracked by QQ on the river and just lost my set of Queens to the rivered 4 outter...i guess that isnt bad but it sure sucked.

broke about even in 11 sngs. kinda nasty, but played ok.

played another set...2 $12s and 2 $24s. Just nasty runner runner beats tonight..playing well so need to not obsess, but its getting frustrating.

amazing, just lost a bubble race where i got the better ace in and he pulls runner runner straight...its so bad!

August 15, 2008

I took last night off and watched a movie with Penny...had a nice and relaxing night.

Tonight, I fired up a set of 6 on Full tilt and took 1, 2, 2, 5, 5, 6. Not bad at all and starting to feel more comfortable and in control at the tables. Again, with solid results it is easy to feel that way, so i want to continue to play consistently and not worry about results. The real test will be when variance turns against me and I need to keep my cool and just grind!

Being away from FT for a while and playing on stars, my rakeback account went negative somehow. I am almost out of the hole and will start making some money as well as become eligible for the freerolls. That will definitely help boost my bankroll. I am getting excited at the thought of making some decent cash again playing poker.

On a side note, my boy turned 10 months today. Thought I would throw a pic of my family in here.

August 13, 2008

Played a quick set of 4 and finished 5, 6, 3, 3. Did not get a lot of cards, but was patient and managed to money in 2. No suck outs and no bad beats tonight...just standard stuff.

Just finished up a 2nd set of 4 and had finishes of 3, 4, 3, 3. So I had 5 money finishes in 8 sngs...ALL 3rd!! Terrible finish distribution, but i guess I will take 5 of 8 3rds every single day.

I will need to rethink my ITM play as I know I am just running poorly once i get there, but I also think I could tighten up a bit. I was really pushing my weak aces and just getting drawn out on. Overall, I feel like I am back into the swing of STT play and need to work on my finishes!

August 12, 2008

Fired up 4 sngs. let's see how I fare. I was doing a little reading on 2+2 and plan on doing some more in the coming weeks.

So far I have a 2, 3, 6 and still in another. Played well so far and sitting in a very competitive final sng. hoping to cash to make it a very profitable sng. This last sng had very solid players...too much limping from them early on and no one reraising to make them pay, but we had all 9 until blinds hit 100/200.

Finished my set 2, 3, 6, 2. Not too bad, but had a chance to win the last one. Played very well and found myself wanting sooo badly to play more aggressively. i found that once I was able to control that urge I found the hands I needed when I still had a good enough stack a double up was meaningful. Gotta resist that urge to limp small pairs and even AJs UTG. When I find myself doing that, I lose a BB or two here and there and end up having to get aggressive and take chances earlier than I want to with marginal hands. Finally starting to get the feel back for these sngs...of course, 3 cashes in 4 will make you feel like you know what you are doing...I still need to look at it as though I should be disappointed I didnt take at least one first. Anyway, solid start...feels good to be back!

Quick note...I started out on FT with no $$ but only FTP points. I have turned that into about $576. I am sitting with approximately 48 buy ins. I am very tight with my bankroll, so I will move up to the 22+2s when I have about 45 buy ins.

August 11, 2008

I am surprised by the number of people that have visited my site. I started this to just track my own performance and to make myself accountable. It has been fun, but I have had significant breaks in my play. Poker is fun, but it can really be a grind. I know in the past as I have tried to increase my play it has caused me to burn out relatively quickly. I have never taken a break to flushing my bankroll, however. I have always found a way to be profitable and now i am going to try to find a way to balance poker, a full time job, and a family.

I didn't play any cash games this weekend, but played in the midnight madness tourney on full tilt. I cashed, made about $3. Long day for such a small payout, but I played relatively well. Did not get many hands to play and the ones that I did held up. The more I think about it, the more I think I will not have time to play poker...especially if 2.25 hours of poker nets $3! However, if I can continue to build my bankroll I think positive cash flows will force me to create time. I might have to go back to grinding sngs...I just dont know yet. i think some study time and a few trips to 2+2 will help out with my transition.

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Played cash for about an hour today. I decided to jump into a $24+2 7-card stud hi limit tourney. I havent played stud since I accidentally joined a tourney when I first started playing online poker a few years ago, but I final tabled that tourney. I played a bit poorly early on this tourney donking off half my chips, but just after the first break i was in the top 15. Started with about 120 people and we have about 59 left right now. So, no where near the money. I need to stay disciplined and just play my solid hands. It is fun playing 7-card stud and i am sure there is a lot more equity in these tourneys...anyway, for now its a fun change of pace. Let's see how i fare...

In the second level I played about 2 hands. I got the nut flush draw after 4 cards which hurt my stack a little, but i hit aces up and almost doubled an orbit later...right now, we are 20 mins before the break and i am in about 20th place out of 45. I know I am not the best 7-card stud player...i need to learn a little bit more about starting hands...i am a bit tight, but it seems to serve me well as my natural tendencies seem to do well at stud.

15 mins prior to break, i get dealt 99 10. I call the bring in and 4 of us get another card. I catch a 9 and repop the raise. in hindsight, i should have just called to reraise when the bets increased, but thats just me and my inexperience. I got called down to the river and didnt quite double, but it put me in the top 8 stacks...looking solid going into the 2nd break. 10 mins before the break, the chipleader who has twice the 2nd stack got moved immediately to my right. I lost a big hand on the last hand before break...my 2pr lost to a better 2 pr...need to do some work as I now sit 15th out of 26. If i would have hit my straight, i would have been sitting nicely in 3rd place...had a nice hand, 2pr and an OESD.

Played well, but busted 22nd...all i needed was to hit a 2nd pair...had queens and couldnt improve. lost to aces...solid effort, was fun.

I played a few sngs tonight as well. They are super juicy. I might have to start playing these again...

August 8, 2008

I played a little bit more last night. I believe I made a few bucks...about $15 over the past two nights. I need to get with the poker software to see what my win rate is in terms of BB/100. I realize with the amount of patience I have I will never be satisfied with a reasonable win rate, but as my stakes climb I will be able to pull back on my aggressiveness.

These low stakes are great for learning to feel what the game is like when you are very well bankrolled. You really dont care about losing 25 bucks, but losing a buy in makes me frustrated. the money isnt what makes me frustrated, but it is losing the unit. You do not play scared poker and end up learnign a lot about your game. i was a bit too timid when I was playing before. I think I hit a major heater and built my bankroll, but when I started to come back down to earth I couldnt stomach it.

My bankroll is over $600, but $40 is tied up in tourney $$s, so i will be trying to play a few MTTs here in the next few weeks. Updates to follow as i get more stats and sessions in.

August 7, 2008

I saw my last post and remember making it. I used my Full tilt points and my FPPs at poker stars and generated a good 1400 in cash. I never realized how valuable those points could be.

I have about $600 in my full tilt account and i am going to start playing .10/.25 to see if I can build a bankroll. I want to slowly build and if I find some success I want to start to subscribe to some decent websites for help. I am considering poker x-factor once I am properly bankrolled for .50/1, which will be about $3000...however, if my learning curve at the lower stakes accelerates, then i think i might hold off...At this point, it is all just a guess, but I am hoping to get back to where I can make $1-2k a month. That would allow me to go back to school and get my PhD, which is my 2 year goal...to be accepted into a program.

I played a little last night and was up 2 buy ins at one point but ended up about $5 or a quarter of a buy in. It was fun.

Right now, there is not a lot of time to devote to poker because I am teaching, have my son, my job, and penelope...all needing attention. I am going to have to balance everything. However, i really do hope i can make poker a high enough priority to start building a solid bankroll. Let's see if I can continue this poker ride that started a few years ago and still has my interest enough to be posting here today.

May 26, 2008

Took a break from poker, but the WSOP has me wanting to play. I am using my FTP and FPPs to see if I can start a bankroll. I took 173 FPPs and made it into over $230 over the weekend. Took a long shot and played the 40FPP rebuy where about 270 started and you had to get in the top 9 to qualify. I was in 6th when we broke for the final table. Then, I played another, this time a 400FPP and made the final table as well to get another 4000FPP. Then, i bought into a sng satellite and won an entry into the $215 buy in Sunday Million. I took some of that cash and played some $6.50 sngs. i took a 1st, 3rd, and 5th. I might want to start grinding hard!!!

This is a true freeroll if I get anything started from my 173 FPPs on pokerstars. It will be fun to document if I can grow it to anything substantial.

I have quite a few points on Full Tilt too. I am going to use them to try to satellite into their bigger buy in tourneys.

March 17, 2008

I know I just changed gears from poker to sportsbetting, so I think it would be appropriate to outline my strategy.

I am going to be betting money lines and parlaying them together to add value. My goal is ambitious for investors, but kinda modest when you start talking in terms of poker and gambling. My goal is to return 10% per month. I am starting with $83. Yes, a strange starting bankroll, but I dont want to get into why it is such a weird amount. If I can prove to handle the ups and downs and continue to trend upwards, I will add a few hundred periodically to boost my roll. I think a big bet will be approx one third of my bankroll and I do not want to bet more than that. If i lose a bet of 1/3 my bankroll, I will readjust my bet size so I am always betting 1/3 and therefore reducing my risk of ruin.

A 10% per month goal is pretty ambitious and I like to beat every goal that is given to me, but I am going to try to use this goal as a measuring stick to keep myself on track. No need to break the bank every day and if I can stay on target I will set myself up for a very nice return. Something where you can retire within a few years. So the power is there, now it is time to execute the plan.

I am looking at the games tomorrow and only see one worth considering. I like the Jazz. Toronto is playing late in Sacramento and then flies in to Utah to take on the Jazz. The Jazz have the night off and should be well rested. The Raptors are a stronger team than I would normally like to bet against, but they are without Chris Bosh and are playing the last game of a 5 game road trip. I just dont see Toronto playing well the 2nd game of back-to-back road games. The Jazz proved just how hard that can be by beating Boston on the road, then losing to the Nets the following night. I like the Jazz and believe I can get some solid value from a small bet here. After a nice win tonight, I do not need to make any bets until thursday when the NCAA tournament gives me a ton of great opportunities to parlay some huge money lines...but i think this play is strong enough to warrant a small $5 bet. With my roll being so modest, I only need to make about 25 cents this early on to make my goal for the day.

When I wake up and check the lines, I will make my bet and post the ticket.

Oh, and I forgot about the women's NCAA tourney...this could be a really profitable month, or could bust me...no many upsets in the women's game...so the 1 seeds are pretty much guaranteed to get to the sweet 16.

This morning I got a bit ahead of myself. I saw all sorts of tennis bets, but you cannot parlay them. I guess thats ok because the money line yields a nice 8%, so I made a few $5 bets. I believe a few of them will come in before the Jazz game tips off, so I can always bumps my bet on the jazz. I will copy and paste my picks in here after I get home from work.

I know this is a great time of year to bet money lines with the NCAA Tourney, NIT, and the women's tourney too. I also like that there is tennis going on. I need to figure out what sports are being played and what times of the year so I can figure out where I need to be each month. I know college football will yield some opportunities, I just dont know how profitable they will be.

Change...

Ok, poker is going to take a backseat. I just dont have the time or desire to play right now. It helped me pay off all my debt so I am grateful for it, but I am going to make a small deposit into a sportsbook and track my progress here.

My plan is to grind out a small %age every month. I am going to post my picks here, my wager and return. I wasnt able to fund my account yesterday, but I had a nice bet that would have come in. a 3 team money line parlay which would have yielded me about 36%. That would have been a great way to start my project. I figure if I havef success I can deposit more cash.

Today, I am going to try to get some cash into my account and i will be taking the moneyline on the dallas mavericks and the denver nuggets. I like the western conference contenders right now because they are playing for the playoffs and the teams that are out of the picture dont really care anymore. If anything, they are packing it in because they are positioning themselves for the lottery.

tonight i think I will parlay the two teams and bet another unit on the mavericks money line as well.

AFter much runnign around, i deposited 69 bucks into an account and got a 21% bonus. So, i bet it all tonight on a 2 teamer...i bet 1/3 of my account on a 2 teamer and the 2/3 on dallas's money line..here are how the bets shake out:

Wager Description Wager Amounts Result

Mar 16 4:53pm 2 Team Parlay - Pending 27.83 to win 1.71
1. Basketball - Dallas Mavericks - moneyline (-3400)
for the entire game held on Mar 16 at 5:05pm [pending]
2. Basketball - Denver Nuggets - moneyline (-3200)
for the entire game held on Mar 16 at 8:05pm [pending]

Mar 16 4:54pm Basketball - Pending 55.66 to win 1.64
1. Basketball - Dallas Mavericks - moneyline (-3400)
for the entire game held on Mar 16 at 5:05pm [pending]

Both my picks came in. My return for today is 4.01%. Not quite the return I was looking for, but I would have added Federer in tennis and bumped up my return a bit. Over the past few days, I have made 2 other bets that I was not able to make because I couldnt fund my account. I would have a nice return on those as well. I normally would not have bet my entire account today, but I was a little frustrated that I wasnt able to make those bets the other night and I was so confident in the games tonight. I could have parlayed them both for my whole account, and probably should have, but i felt that it was a bit too much.

Come tourney time on thrusday, I will probably do a 4 teamer for about half my bankroll with all the number 1 seeds. then i will probably do an 8 teamer with all the #1 and #2 seeds and i will see how that pays...and then bet accordingly. this will be fun.

March 8, 2008

I guess I am finally realizing that there is no room for poker right now. I made some good money playing and it helped me pay off my credit card debt, which now stands at ZERO!! I took some of my bankroll out, paid off my credit card, and lost the little bit that i had left. I have some FPPs on poker stars, but once those are gone I will not be playing poker any time soon.

I just am not cut out for the frustration. Today i played in the freerolls and played well. I was patient and chipped up to 2000 when I get AA, i raise 3xbb to 300 and dude pushes in late position...i call and he shows 77...he rivered the 7 and i was out. shortly after that in the 20k freeroll i get K9 on the button...i catch a K66 flop and bet half the pot...one caller, the BB and i knew he was on a draw...turn was a blank and i raised, he pushed i called and he tables 78d for the flush draw...of course he hits it on the river. later, he catches KK when I have JJ and i am out...so sick!

and, to top it off, i played in the 50k qualifier and i have A8 in the BB. 882 flopped and i bet half the pot and one caller, turn comes a 5, i bet and he calls...river was a blank and we get it all in and he turns over 85...thats the bullshit that drives me up the wall. i am gonna be playing some qualifers with my FPPs, but i am done with poker for a while...luck just not running my way.

February 24, 2008

Got aces and reraised a guy. He called a 40 preflop bet, flopped 3 hearts and called my push with the 10 of hearts and hit a flush...so sick! what a way to start my session.

Well, i had my straight lose to the rivered full house, so that isnt a good way to follow up a bad beat! I did win back quite a bit with a flush...

Lost top set to another flush...fuckin crazy

i flop 2 pair and dude pushes with flush draw, board pairs and he hits a pair on river to counterfeit my 2 pr. even the busted draws are sucking out on me!~

I get 10s and flop top set earlier and cant win, now i run into KK...I had KK on 2 tables and couldnt get action...i hate this game! :)

Right now i just need to remember to keep it cool and not push things...need to let the game come to me and over time I will get it ALL back!

got into a huge pot, my set of kings lost to a set of aces

yet another flush cracks my pocket pair.

man i ran into KK twice on back to back hands with AQ...fuckin unreal

i think I am drawing a little too much today...calling too loose and playing too many hands

QQ ran into AA AGAIN! just unreal bad luck tonight

on top of just bad luck, I am really playing poorly...i am forcing things...need to chill out!

I am more of a calling station...i know its not a positive thing to be called, but the style works for me. i shouldnt mess with it...i was trying to bully people and bet harder than i normally would...i need to play my own game!

February 24, 2008

Got aces and reraised a guy. He called a 40 preflop bet, flopped 3 hearts and called my push with the 10 of hearts and hit a flush...so sick! what a way to start my session

February 23, 2008

Today is the first freeroll I will be playing at Poker Stars. I will be playing in the $100k freeroll and it starts in about 45 mins. I will fire up a few cash tables to get into the swing of things and will just try to make a few bucks...even $50 would be good enough to quit for this session.

busted out of the 20k freeroll when my flopped trips lost to the turned gutshot! I just got involved in a 3 way pot with KK. I hit the king on the river to crack AA...good for about 330! up about 200.

I will be playing in the $100k freeroll and thats it for today. I am up nicely and just want to relax. I honestly did not play well today and even when I got it in with KK, I had a feeling someone had AA. I was in position, raised preflop to 7, got popped to 24, one caller and then me. i called and the flop came 10 high. 52 bet, I pushed for 100 total and there was another push behind and the original raiser folded. turn was a J and the river a K. dude showed AA...I had a feeling someone had AA, but I couldnt fold it. Great result, horrible play and great read by me. Weird how poker is like that...play poorly and get paid. I was definitely pushing things too hard trying to make things happen. I need to work on just relaxing and letting the game come to me. problem is that i get down a buy in or two, tighten up, and win it back and get up a hundred or two, then I quit. I should make my sessions longer and maximize the time I am in "The Zone.

100k is under way...updates to follow.

First break. I have 2345. Was down to about 1000 after getting mixed up with AK and having to lay it down to a push on the flop. I hit a big flush and doubled up later, so I am sitting ok at the break. I need to hit a hand coming out of the first break to do some damage...need to remind myself to be patient...I have plenty of time.

Second break. I have 6764 and the blinds are gonna cut through me for 1k in the first few hands. we get to the money with 40 more eliminations, so it will be fun to get aggressive after the bubble bursts. no really big hands, just solid tight play. The biggest hand was I did double up when I had QJ and limped when there was a player all in, we checked the flop and another person pushed the turn when a J hit. I called and he had A6 and I doubled...nothing exciting after that...a few blinds and antes, but thats it.

Im out...made 40 bucks. I pushed j9s and flopped a gutshot draw and missed.

So, a great night, even though I didnt play very much. I need to log some hours. Next month I think I will be logging hours and not really looking at results because I want to get to Platinum. If I make platinum, I should be close to getting the platinum bonus...so i might shoot for that!

anyway, roll at 2431.24.

February 22, 2008

Bad start to the night. I am playing too loose trying to make things happen. I need to pull back and relax and let the game come to me. missed on a few hands and got a little unlucky on a few, but no excuse it has mostly been due to bad play.

I did hit a huge hand and won a 3 way all in pot with the nut flush, but other than that nothing huge.

I am fighting my way back to even...if i get there i will quit for the night.

Wow, I did have a big AA hand get me up a bit, then a big QQ hand and a big call where i called with QQ on a rivered Ace...so when I checked my balance I was actually up a few bucks. Nights like tonight happen and help correct for the hot runs i had the past 7 days. I didnt lose tonight, but easily could have. I settled down and realized I was trying to make things happen too much instead of letting the game come to me. Lucky to have a winning night, but I did have a good amount of points built up tonight and some FPPs, so all good things.

I am gonna call it a night and go spend some time with my family.

ended tonight at 2200.54. So, I am up like 20 bucks...hey, thats another winning night!

February 21, 2008

Another excellent night. I played 5 tables for the most part. I had a flush take me down, but ended up winning a big hand with a flush myself. I really didnt have any huge hands, but here are two that are standing out in my mind and what i was thinking.

The first hand, I had 87c in the cut off. I raised to 6 and the button called. Flop came 10 high with one club. I put in a continuation bet of about 10 and the button called. the turn brought another club, so I put in another continuation bet of 22 hoping to take it down there. The river came an ace of clubs, I pushed and got a call. Dude was pretty mad, but i would have folded to any aggression on the flop.

The 2nd hand that got me up nicely was 88. I had been getting quite a few small pocket pairs and finally hit a nice one in a 4 way pot. Preflop I called the extra $5 from the SB. Flop came 4 A 8 rainbow. Original raiser bets $22, one fold, I call, one fold. Turn comes Q and I checked, original raiser checks behind. River comes 3 and no flush draw comes through and only 52 would beat me. I dont think AA or QQ would have played their hand this way. At this point the pot is $66 and I have 107.30 left. I thought that since this hand was played so strangely that if I overpush here and bet it all, it might look like a steal attempt. So I pushed and was instantly called and he mucked his hand. Turns out he had AJ.

Roll is at 2180.84, so up 160 in an hour tonight. If I 5-table and play about 90 mins a night on average, that should put me at platinum. If I make up some ground for January, I might even be able to get to supernova before the year is over...exciting times!

February 20, 2008

About to fire up a few tables. Just looking to log some time tonight...if I get up 100 quickly I am going to call it a night and relax.

Aces cracked by a dude that pushed with an OESD...got there on the river of course! that hand if it held up might have put me over 2k!

about 20 bucks shy of 2k...as soon as i get there i am shutting down for the night.

I was UTG and about to leave aND i get dealt AA and had to play it..

Up about 200 and OVER 2K!!!

Man, what a run I am on...won over 200 for 5 out of 6 days and was up over 200 the 6th day but played another session and lost 80. So, my roll is over 2k!!

I was telling Penny that I am now confident at the $1/$2 level that I am hugely profitable. I know, that isnt saying much, but as I 5-table, that equates to a pretty nice hourly rate. I dont have poker tracker, but I will invest in it soon. I need to figure out how many hands per hour I am logging and how many BB/100 I am winning. I put my hourly 5-table earn at about $50-$70 per hour, which I am really excited about. If you can take your cash under the radar, then we are talking a nice 70-100 per hour equivalent...which is a pretty sweet part time job!

I started to 6-table for a bit, but as people pop in and out of the tables, we got down to like 4 people on two of them. It got pretty hectic and I moved back to 5 tables. I no longer care when I play...whether it be right after work, later at night, weekends...whatever. I feel I can and will win whenever I sit down. When I read on 2+2 about players that want to learn and play better, I think they really have it all wrong and I will never go there to learn the game. You have to learn by playing and play 2 tables at a time so you can really watch the action. Then you can devise your own game that you play naturally that is profitable. You have to do what is natural and some people just are not natural card players...the games are soo loose and juicy that you dont need to maximize every single edge...I think I am very tight and leave a lot of money on the felt, but I also take quite a bit!

Anyway, feeling bulletproof and enjoying the ride from $103 refunded Poker Stars money to over $2021!!! FUCK YEAH!

February 19, 2008

I have run into so many flushes today its crazy. At least 5 of them. usually got away pretty cheaply, but cost me a good few hundred...running ok and cant get any action on my monsters...around even.

writing this as i play...i get a straight on the turn and another flush on the river...sick sick sick!!

Mother fucker...my KK just cracked by 89 suited with another fucking flush!

just lost to a rivered gutshot...crazy fuckin night

then i was in a huge 4 way pot with a flopped nut flush draw and cant hit it...woulda been about 300 bucks!

I had about 280 on one table and got KK and into a pot with a dude with 250 chips...deeper than I like to be...and the river ace scared me, but i ended up taking it down!

After one crazy night, i am up a good 200...holy hell i am not cut out for this game!!!

Ok, so i had a chance to decompress and chat with penny about my session. It was just crazy. I lost to soo many flushes and straights and came out with a nice session. Really gives me confidence because I clawed my way back and hit a few big hands while staying away from some pretty nasty situations. I mucked 1010 on an 8 hi board to a big bet, which turned out to be JJ. I really did play pretty well tonight and am feeling so comfortable at the tables. I see a lot of players and many of them are on most of my tables, but I am not worried about them anymore. My game is as good as any and I will not think otherwise. If they were that good, they would be playing 2/4 and 3/6 by now. My roll has grown from just over $100 to well over $1800 now. I am feeling great and have 5 straight winning days, 4 of which were over 200 and am up over 1050 over those days...might be a heater, but also might just be that my game is finally coming around. Let's see what happens!

February 18, 2008

I had another positive session. Was up to over 1700, but ended around 1612. If I would have quit and not played my last session, I would have had 4 straight days of $200+ wins. Still, up over 100 and feeling great! My weekend jinx is over and put together another solid day.

Still, I made a few bad calls, but overall my game is tightening up.

I started to 5 table a little bit, changed some settings on the tables and am feeling great...i think i might even add a 6th table this week...all great things!

February 17, 2008

I hit gold star today on Poker Stars. It is nice because now I will earn FPPs faster and can get myself the $285 bonus when I hit 25000 FPPs. I only have about 6600 of them, but after another month to 6 weeks I should be there. It all really depends on my results. Today, I started off nicely with 160 session. I lost it all back in my next session, but i opened up 4 tables and did well after dinner. Played about half an hour and won back everything I lost. I am up about 140 today so i will call it a night. Was a lot of fun again! Poker is fun!

I was watching a WPT event and daniel negreanu won it. I like what he said. He said that if you play poker for the money, you are playing for the wrong reason. He said he wants to win everything, player of the year, biggest money winner, etc, etc. I love that attitude because it just shows how much you love the game. Poker is a lot like chess in that there are different levels. I hope to progress and learn and improve my game. Right now i would say i am a pretty profitable 1/2NL 6-max player. I need some software to start tracking my results.

Roll is over 1400!

Played one more 30 min session and netted $100. Roll is sitting nicely at $1500! my last 3 sessions have doubled my bankroll from 755! 2 more nice sessions and $2k is in sight...which is my goal for February. I have already attained one of them, which is to make gold! Finally starting to hit some poker milestones that i have set for myself. Looking forward to see what the future holds!