Guess Complaining Works . . .

The session started off looking like it was going to be more of the same.  Cold decks and suckouts galore.  Eventually things turned around, particularly when the game got short handed which is my specialty.  But first things first.

I played a very interesting hand against Armor32, that I posted about here.  I opened with AQo in fairly early position and then David T cold called me in the cutoff and then Armor called in the big blind.  The flop came 66T two diamonds and Armor donked.  This is an extremely peculiar bet, and is both out of tempo and out of character for Armor.  If he did indeed have a big hand, I think it's still better to check/raise and he gets the cutoff trapped in for at least one bet, but by betting if I raise, he loses the cutoff from the hand.  So in my mind his range is very polarized to weak T's, big combo draws 87dd, 98dd, 97dd,  or a made monster 76s, 65s, 64s, or 66.  So I call, David T calls in the cutoff and we see a turn, which is an off suit queen.  Armor bets again. 

Now, I have a real decision to make here.  I can raise and try and blow David T out of the hand, but I am going to get 3-bet here a lot in my opinion by both made hands that I beat, made hands that crush me, and huge draws of Armor.  Given the combined range of hands that beat me plus hands that have huge draws, I'd rather just call and let Armor barrel through.  I should be ahead of David T here, as he doesn't have many sixes in his pre flop range other than 66 exactly, and shouldn't really have a ten here either with the flop action.  He could easily have a queen, but if he does, it's going to be KQ or QJ here every time, which I am clearly crushing.  The one hand that I am a little worried about is KQdd, which would give David T, top pair good kicker and second nut flush draw, and with me just calling both flop and turn, my hand is clearly under represented.

So I call, then the hand gets interesting.  David T now springs in a raise.  As soon as that happens I narrow David T's hand to almost exactly KQdd.  I was planning on 3-betting David T if Armor called or folded.  However Armor now 3-bets, and I have to fold.  David T calls, the river comes a black ace, Armor bets, and David T folds.  I have a sneaking suspicion that Armor had QT, that I have beat on the river, but can't handle the pressure on the turn.  If I raise the turn, unless it somehow gets capped backed to me, I am going to see the river and a showdown.  Now if Armor actually did have 66, he misplayed the turn, as he only get 4 big bets on the turn and river combined.  If he just calls the raise, I am going to call too, and then he can donk the river again, and get at least 5 or 6 or more big bets on the river.  Plus I'm sure Armor's range analysis of both David T's and my hand at game time speed is fairly accurate, and I did agonize over the turn fold, but eventually made it.

Later on Helen continues to run like a god against me.  Just a small smattering of hands.  I cap 99, when she light 3-bet with KTo.  Don't worry flop comes 9QJ with a flush draw, that doesn't get there and I don't fill up.  She played it perfectly post flop and got 5 big bets out of me on the turn and river.  Then I 3-bet her late position open with 77, while she has 87s.  Flop comes A45, and she check calls.  Turn is a 6 and she check raises me.  River is an A, just to insure that I pay off, since now I can beat a counterfeited two pair of 54, 65, and 64.

After this hand, I have to buy more chips and then I am finally allowed to start winning.  As the table got shorter, I kept applying more and more pressure both pre flop and post flop, and kept winning hand after hand. 

I finally got to be on the good side of a cold deck.  I opened with QQ and got called by the big blind with Q5s.  Flop comes QT8 rainbow.  I got check/raised and 3-bet the flop.  Turn comes a 5, I get check/raised-4bet and I just called and J9 is certainly in the big blind's range.  River comes another 5, and I get to raise/4bet and drag a monster.

Bout time, variance runs the other way in my opinion.

And Knowing Is Half the Battle!

In my last approximately 30 hours of play, I am up 76.975 bets, but still down real dollars.  Huh?  Sometimes, it REALLY does matter the stakes you are playing and which games you run well in, and which games you don't.

In the 8/16 and the 20/40 when it goes, I have been running like a god.  But in the 40/80 I have been getting my teeth kicked in.  Now of course there is a difference in the player pools and the caliber of play, particularly when you go from 8/16 to 20/40.  However, the 40/80 player pool and the 20/40 player pool are essentially the same at Oceans-11, with a few extra people who show up to play 40/80, but nobody I can't handle.  I just can't seem to catch a break in the 40 game.

In my last ten 20/40 sessions, I am up 148.325 bets in 28 hours of play.  In my last ten 8/16 sessions, I am up 213.9375 bets in 35.5 hours of play.  In my last ten 40/80 sessions, I am down an obscene number of bets in only 127 hours of play.  Part of the issue with the 40/80 is that it only goes once a week, and so it is difficult to keep any positive momentum or energy flowing easily from session to session, and makes it hard to turn it around, since I have to wait another week before I get a chance to play at that level again.  Possibly, since I have been playing a lot more 8/16 this year bad habits from playing that game are creeping over and causing me to make mistakes that get magnified and punished in the 40/80 game that the 8/16 players are not capable of doing.  So I am going to be much more aware of that this week when I play.

I got out for a rare Tuesday session last night.  The 20 game got fired up around 5:30 starting 4 handed.  The game eventually filled up and we had a ramming jamming chip flinging affair.  At some point in the evening, overs buttons got passed around and everyone at the table took one.  So we were basically playing 40/80 with mini blinds and $20 preflop wagers.  It was a very fun game, and I simply got to run over it to the tune of 92.5 bets ($40 bets).  Not sure exactly how to book this game in my stats, since it was technically a 20/40 game, and I don't remember what time the overs came into play.  Hmmm, I'll figure something out here eventually.

Unbelievable!

Another losing 40/80 session.  Lately seems like I have been having a ton of these and it's really starting to suck.  Last night was no exception, with me never getting more than 800 winner and really for most of the night hovering around even, until I lose two pots, one in the most absurd ludicrous fashion.

I open AQo in early position, Ramzi cold-calls, and then Helen 3-bets with Q8dd the rest clear out, and both Ramzi and I call.  Flop comes AQx 2 diamonds.  Checked to Helen, I c/r, Ramzi calls two cold, Helen 3-bets, I cap, Ramzi calls again.  Turn is a rag diamond.  I bet, Ramzi calls, Helen raises, I 3-bet.  Ramzi calls again, Helen caps, we both call.  River is an off suit king, and I pay off in the massive pot to see Helen's flush.  I actually think I misplayed this hand.  I am not second guessing the turn 3-bet, but the river payoff.  As I thought Helen's range prior to her capping was heavy in large pocket pairs with a diamond, KdKx, AxKd, AxQd, AxJd, etc.  So with me not filling up on the river, and the river being a king, I am now behind a huge portion of her range and can really only beat a bluff which should never be present at this point, so I really need to just be disciplined and check/fold.  I mean really, if she can cap the turn and bet the king river into two players really what can I beat?

Then later in the evening the biggest most passive mega fish ever sits in the game.  I have played with this guy before, and everyone was salivating when he sat in the game and it quickly became obvious that no one was leaving as long as this guy was in the game.  He came over from a short handed no limit game and bought in short into the game for like 600.  Don't worry he proceeds to win like the first 5 pots with powerhouse hands like Q5o, T7s, A2o, 33, and some other cheese.

Then the following atrocity happens.  I post in the cutoff.  Helen opens the pot, mega fish does as mega fish is supposed to do and cold-calls.  Folded to me and I call with pocket 3's.  Button and small blind fold and Ramzi calls in the big blind.  So 4-way to the flop for 9 small bets.  Flop comes 973 all hearts.  Ramzi donks, Helen calls, mega fish calls, I raise, Ramzi calls, Helen now 3-bets, mega fish eats two, I cap, Ramzi eats two, Helen calls, mega fish calls again.  25 small bets going into the turn.

Turn 9.  Ramzi donks again!  Helen smooth calls again!  Mega fish does as mega fish is supposed to do and calls.  I raise, Ramzi calls, Helen now 3-bets again.  Mega fish as he is cutting out chips asks how much do I owe?  How much to cap?  And finally just calls.  I of course cap, and everyone calls again.  28.5 big bets going into the river.

And the dealer burns and turns and brings what?  The ace of spades.  Normally the most beautiful card in the deck, although in this case it is the ugliest card for me.  Checked to the mega fish, who fires right in.  I throw up, wet my pants, cry call and I am prepared to see my destiny.  Ramzi calls and Helen calls for a final pot size of 32.5 big bets minus the $4 drop for a total pot size of  $2596.  Mega fish rolls the A9o for the win of course.  Ramzi had 98 and Helen had the ace high flush of course.  I am told later by the gentleman in the 1 seat that he folded an ace pre flop, so I need to dodge 3 sevens, 3 eights, and 1 ace to scoop the ginormous pot in which I had over 82% equity going into the river.  Our friend the mega fish literally had one out for the scoop and 3 outs for a chop with Ramzi, which ironically also will allow me to save $80 on the river as with a double paired board, my hand will now be trash.  Ramzi has the clean 3 outer with an 8.  But just imagine what happens if the river is 3!  It will be capped again and I will collect an extra 8 big bets on the river.  I am certain Helen will fold the river if the board pairs again with either a 7 or a 3.  I can easily fold to a river 7 as well.

Thanks to this giant pot the mega fish has now run his $600 buy in into well over 3 racks of chips.  He sticks around continues to play the worst possible poker ever, wins in the most absurd fashion, and finally decides to quit, with most of his win intact.  I am disappointed in both myself and my table mates in that we allowed him to leave the table with any chips at all.  Fortunately for him, he realized that he was the chum in the water and that the longer that he stuck around that he eventually was going to lose it all back.  It was inevitable.  I mean he open-limps the button with 52o!  He literally played 90% of his hands preflop, and never raised preflop and rarely post flop unless he had the actual nuts or the stone cold virtual nuts.  Like he didn't even raise pre flop with pocket kings, AK, or AQ which were at least 3 of his actual good hands that I saw him win with.

It was a sight to behold and unfortunately Ramzi and I got destroyed by the mega fish.  I probably should have just quit after he quit around 3 am, but I didn't and it didn't get any better for me.  I think I need a break from playing the 40/80 or something.  It's really starting to bug me and that's not a good recipe for success.