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.

Freaky Friday

Sometimes there are players who just seem to run super good against you.  Andy W, ran super good against me in the 40 game.  Plus there was a surprise visit from the spaceship again, and Armor32 superbly outplayed me on the seat change list, and we had a surprise visit from Persian LAG master Alex, and CC is still running well, too.

Let's start at the beginning.  I went into the office to take care of some work things along with meetings I had, so I wasn't able to get up to Oceans-11 until around 4pm.  Traffic sucked at that time of course and what is normally a 30 minute commute, doubled into one hour.  By the time I arrived I was like 5th up for the 40 game, but got an open seat in the 20 game.  I ran well in the 20 game, when the spaceship arrived.  Here's where the table change games begin.  The spaceship and the 20 game in general was better than the 40, so I decided to roll my name for the 40 when it was called.  Well it turns out, the seat opened because Armor32 was vacating it to get into the 20 game.  So he arranged for his name to put on the 40 game before leaving it, thus when I rolled he would be above me.  Since the spaceship was also on the 40 board, that meant when the spaceship left the 20 for the 40, he would be able to bum hunt him sooner than me.  Seems dirty, but what are you going to do?  Next time, I will need to pay more attention to who left the 40 game and why, and whether or not he relisted himself for the game he is exiting.

In any case, I ran well at 20, the players were generally weak and I won little more than a rack in about 4 hours while waiting for the 40 game.  Eventually I get called over for the 40, but the spaceship has busted.  He eventually comes back, but busts again in short order.  In the 40 game, I actually am getting reasonable hands and flops, but Andy W is again in god mode against me and letting me have it.  Let's see K6 vs A7 where I posted in the cut-off for my first hand.  I opened, he 3-bet, I got to check raise a king high flop, and he proceeds to double bink an ace on the turn and river, just to guarantee that I pay him off. 

Then he beats my KK with QQ that binks a set on the turn.  Then KK versus his AQs, that flops a flush draw and binks an ace on the river.  Then there was AK vs A7, that rivered a pair of 7's against me.  Oh well, what are you going to do?  It happens, and I'm used to it.  I ended up with a little more than a 3 rack loss, so nothing I can't handle, but it gets frustrating that's for sure. 

Oh and Persian LAG master Alex got me with 8d7d on a 763 two diamond board where I held 54 for the flopped nuts.  I got to six-bet him on the flop too.  Don't worry diamond peels off on the river.

I am used to Andy running well against me.  He had a stretch earlier this year where he could do no wrong against me.  When he was behind he caught up, when he was making a move it worked or he caught what he needed, when I was ahead the perfect card for him to fold would show up and he wouldn't pay off, when he would've flopped a monster he folded preflop when I had the bigger monster.  In general he ran good in all the ways one can run good, winning with the hands he should, winning with the hands he shouldn't, and not losing with hands he could've played, etc.  Fortunately, that eventually turned around and I had a good one month stretch where the tables were turned and I ran very good against him.  So maybe there is something to the yin-yang of a poker table and its players.

Rounders

Recognize the player seated to Johnny Chan's right?  Funny isn't it.  The first time I saw this movie, I had no idea that someday I would be playing with that gentleman on a semi-regular basis.

Silly

I didn't get to play the 40/80 at Oceans on Friday, since I spent the day up in Los Angeles with the family getting photos taken.  So apparently I missed the biggest spaceship of all time.  Oh well.

Then on Saturday after mass and taking the kids to the church festival I get informed that the 40/80 has gone over the weekend again and is still full here on Saturday at around 7pm.  I eventually finished up with the family and the kids and get up to Oceans a little after 9pm.  The game breaks down fairly quickly and is 3-handed for a while with me, Helen, and Andy W.  Eventually Helen quits, I am stuck like a rack, and then Andy and I play heads up for a while.  I get unstuck and eventually $892 winner before Andy needs to bail.  He brought his wife with him and he's on a short lease when she says it's time to go home.

I had a couple of beers and want to wait it off, so I sit around for a bit and eventually get into a full 8/16 kill that I proceed to crush.  I lost exactly 2 showdowns in 80 minutes of play.  One with A9, that I really probably should have folded the river and lost to pocket tens.  Then another with AJs against KJo on a QT9xA board.  I 3-bet preflop, but got c/r on the flop and called down, spiked an ace and felt compelled to call, just in case the preflop raiser had KQ or QJ.

I did get to 5-bet the turn with 55 on a TT52 board in which I raised preflop got 2 cold-callers, then the button 3-button, the big blind came along, and everyone else called for a 5-way pot for 3 bets each.  Flop came T52, 2 clubs.  I donked right in, call, call, raise, fold, I 3-bet, call, call, call.  Turn was another T.  I bet, first cold-caller raised, folded back around to me, I 3-bet, he 4-bet, I 5-bet, he called.  Turn was the 7 of clubs.  I bet, he called.  I announced pocket deuces no good sir, and opened my hand.  He of course had ducks, while the button exclaimed he folded pocket sevens on the turn.

Then I played an interesting hand right near the end of my session where I was getting ready to go.  Preflop limper who's a weak player in middle position.  I raise A9o on the button, big blind and limper called.  Big blind has been playing fairly tight and has a fold button post flop as well.  Flop comes A86 rainbow.  Big blind donks,  Danger Will Robinson! Limper calls, I call.  Turn is a 9 still rainbow.  Big blind bets again, limper raises, I tank for a few seconds and 3-bet.  Both call.  River is a jack, for a final board of A869J rainbow.  Both check to me, I tank for a good 10 seconds.  I finally bet, big blind calls, limper folds, and I take the pot.  I think the big blind either had AT, AQ, A8, A6, 86, while the limper had 87s or 67s.  He would have called the river had he made two pair, so he's most likely hand is a suited connector with a pair and a draw on the turn.  I'm not exactly sure what the big blind had, but the jack was definitely a scare card for me, as she easily could have had AJ.  The only possible straights were 75, T7, and QT, none of which were likely given the action on the turn.

At the end of the night, I booked a $768 win in 80 minutes.  I wish I would've run like a god in the 40 game as opposed to the 8 game.  Oh well.

Kick it Up!

What an interesting night this last Saturday evening.  My Saturday was filled with mundane life things.  I got home from my Friday night session around 4am and go to sleep and wake up around 10:30 am.  Wife does her workout with her trainer and I need to drop my car off at the dealership for some maintenance and recall issues to get fixed.  After lunch with the family get home and nap a little while the baby naps and the wife spends some time with the middle daughter bonding.

Dealership service guy is supposed to call me at 4pm to let me know status of my car.  Instead I get roused by my wife around 4:45pm and I realize that the service adviser never called me.  I am of course slightly annoyed and call him instead to find out the status of my car.  Fortunately, my car was done and I was still able to get over there before the place closed.

After picking up my car, the wife and I decide to go to Saturday evening vigil service at our church.  I like going to Saturday evening mass.  It makes Sundays a bit easier to deal with, but my favorite mass is actually Sunday evening, since that's when they have the best music.  But it's tough with the kids, since they have school the next day and it makes dinner unusually late and gets them in bed later than normal.

In any case, I get a text from Andy during mass that the 40/80 game has gone overnight from Friday night well until Saturday!  CC the poker playing animal played well over a 36 hour session and simply cleaned up.  Turns out the game played through Friday evening into Saturday morning until lawyer David showed up and started playing the 40 game with Cecil and I believe it was JA.  As it turns out they kicked it up to 80/160!

Now I don't normally play Saturday evenings anymore since there is usually no game on Saturdays, but after getting this message from my bird, I sweet talked my wife into letting me go.

I did ok in the the 80/160 portion of my night.  I won 1k, was up more, but gave some back after David rage tilt felted quit, playing 3 handed with CC and Andy.  I did get to 5-bet David with the nuts holding QT on a J893 two diamond board on the turn.  He had a set of eights and the river was a the ten of diamonds and he check/called my river bet and then went super tilted and started mumbling to himself.

Eventually he quit, after he short bought for $100 so he could play his button.  He folded and then his under the gun hand, he went all in and I tried to 3-bet the AT but since he didn't have enough for a "complete" raise, I only got to complete the bet, which meant that CC was going to able to come in.  Not to worry I flopped top pair and a gutshot draw on a AKJ rainbow board.  David quit, and the three of us continued to play, as it is bad etiquette to break the game as soon as the fish quits.  Plus David has been known to "quit" and come back within 20 minutes plenty of times.  Playing 3 handed I lose 2 racks of my 3 rack profit to break the game up only 1k.

Cecil eventually succumbed to the bodily need for sleep and went home looking much worse for the wear.  Not sure how that guy can repeatedly do that to himself.  It's really not good for your health and its really hard on your body, particularly your heart.

After Cecil quit, Andy and I kicked the stakes down back to 40/80 and played heads up for about 3 hours.  I won a little over 2k before Andy needed to go home since he had an early am flight this morning.  Was an interesting heads up session, and I ran well and won the first meaningful hand where he raised the button with QQ, and I defended with KJs, and proceeded to flop top pair.  I check/raised the flop and bet turn and bet river.  There were some hands where Andy played a bit unconventionally that I don't necessarily agree with.  Andy for sure defends his big blind a lot more than I do (he got me with 32o on a 764 board when I had 65s, and he check/raised the flop!), and opens his button relentlessly.