I read a lot of poker blogs, a lot of them are pretty dull and i hear many people comment on how it's no fun to see the same old stuff about how someone wins a few buyins, or has a few badbeats. There are some exceptions - (I love Assasinato, Sauce123 & Nanonoko's blogs for example), but this has made me think about the writing in my blog and reflect a bit on if its really worth reading (i wonder if anyone reads it!).

I haven't blogged anything in a while so seeing as we're nearing the end of a poker filled month, and i've busted out of everything i entered tonight except the $6 early double A on Full Tilt, i've decided to get my thoughts out here. I must have played about 15 tournaments today without 1 cash.

This comes at the end of a pretty swingy month which has gone something like this:

• Lose online very early in the month (-£500)
• Grind cash games over a week to win it back (+500)
• Win an extra £500 and have biggest winning day in online cash (+~£500)
• Have my biggest winning live cash game day - very fishy table (+£300)
• The very next day have by biggest losing live cash game day (mainly losing flips) (-£550)
• Win a bit back online (+£200)
• Lose a lot back online - Tilt - move up - Tilt - Worst ever day online (-£1000)
• Feel very sick for a few days
• Have a good grinding session with some friends playing online, i swap 10% of a tourney with Tony who ends up busting $26 torney 14th/~1200 w/KK<AQ for chiplead pot - pretty sick finish, he gets $150 and 1st place is about $8.5k... I get $15!
• I finally work out how to configure pokertracker HUD after using it for a year! lol
• Decide to move down so play some small tourneys, - Chop a $5 donkament 2 ways for $300ish
• Lose most of it back on rush 50NL within an hour
• Last night I played the $26 rush 6max turbo - 3 way chop for ~$3600. (my biggest cash)
• We play for the remaining $150 and I end up winning it!
• Start thinking about trying to win a triple crown and bomb out of a $108 tourney on Ongame w/ATo on T9x flop vs T9 (obv)

This week i've managed to get some experience of deal making which has been pretty interesting and another aspect of playing online for me to work on..

It's easy to say after the event "i should have played it out for the win.." Of course i was always "going" to win and i had an "edge", but the thought of getting sucked out on for $1k or $2k, or flipping for it seemed too sickening so decided to go for the safe option and take the deal.

I lost a chiplead pot with 6 players on the final table w/ AJ<QT Allin Pre, and was short-stached after that, then i sucked out A6s>AJ.. We discussed deal 4 handed but couldnt agree so played down to 3.
When 3 handed me and 1 other guy were about even on 900k chips and chipleader had about 1.4mil - I got all in w AKs vs A3o and the river makes it a split pot.

After that we did a deal which gave $4300 to chipleader and $3600 to me and the other shorter stack.
We discussed it for a long time. I think in future i'll play for the win or push harder for a better deal, but i'm still pretty happy today!

I've not added it all up but due to the last minute tournament score November will be a winning month for me! I've been reflecting on a year of learning cash NLHE and trying to decide whether to continue playing cash in 2011 ?..? hmmm or just stick to tournements.

The work i've done has improved my tournament play a lot, and my cash game has definitley improved, but i just dont know if i will overcome the tilt problem, which doesnt seem to affect me so much in tournaments.

I'll make up my mind over the next month whether to give it a last shot in 2011 or go back to donkaments.

As of right now i'm 44/1718 in the early double A.. 222 players left

This has probably been another boring fucking poker blog with the same old shit, but writing this stuff down helps me to clear out my head & who knows, maybe someone will read and get something out of it!

Goals for August -

[x] Finish the month in profit
[ ] Dont play above 50nl online
[ ] Take at least one 5 min break per 2 hours (preferably more often)

So 1 out of 3, but at least i hit the most important goal, even if it did have to come from a MTT.

I played my last poker for August tonight, a live £15+2 w/£5bounty and was knocked out early.
Played well in general and won a big pot early on when i pick up AA and flop 3-3-A, but it only takes one bad hand to ruin a tourney:

Blinds 100-200
I have KTo with king of spades in the BB
A sharp, aggressive player (Izzy) raises to 600 and i flat.
I have ~7k chips and izzy has about the same.

Flop 952r (2 spades)
I check, Izzy bets 800, i call
Turn A spades
I check, Izzy bets 900, i think for a minute, consider a raise, but decide to call and see if i can hit the nut flush. .. MISTAKE..

I should raise here almost 100% of the time, partly to define his hand, also because he will fold there often with air and if he does call and i hit the flush its easier to get stacks in on the river. Easy to say that now though.

Anyway, i didn't raise, i called. The river was a brick, i raise 1800 with ~3k back, he shoves, i fold and he shows J2 of hearts. which tilts me as i actually folded the best hand.

Next hand Button rasies, i shove KQo and he calls w/KJo - Hits J on the river (obv) so tourney is over.

So to end the month for B&M poker results are:

-£33
+160
-£33
-£17
Total +£77

I thought about sticking around for some cash games but decided to go swimming instead.

Last night i play cash games onine, tired, unfocused and play bad.. (C Game)

Started out ok:

OnGame - $1 NL (5 max) - Holdem - 4 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 3: http://www.pokertracker.com

BB: $150.50
Hero (UTG): $53.60
BTN: $108.35
SB: $101.95

SB posts SB $0.50, BB posts BB $1.00

Pre Flop: ($1.50) Hero has 6s 6d

Hero raises to $4.00, BTN calls $4.00, fold, BB calls $3.00

Flop: ($12.50, 3 players) 2c Qs 6h
BB checks, Hero checks, BTN checks

Turn: ($12.50, 3 players) Tc
BB checks, Hero bets $9.50, BTN calls $9.50, BB calls $9.50

River: ($41.00, 3 players) 3s
BB checks, Hero bets $40.10 and is all-in, BTN calls $40.10, fold

Hero shows 6s 6d (Three of a Kind, Sixes)
Hero wins $119.20

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv vvvvvvvvvv

OnGame - $1 NL (5 max) - Holdem - 5 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 3: http://www.pokertracker.com

Hero (SB): $103.85
BB: $119.45
UTG: $199.20
CO: $120.00
BTN: $98.50

Hero posts SB $0.50, BB posts BB $1.00

Pre Flop: ($1.50) Hero has 7s Ts

fold, fold, fold, Hero raises to $3.00, BB calls $2.00

Flop: ($6.00, 2 players) Ks 6h Js
Hero checks, BB bets $4.50, Hero calls $4.50

Turn: ($15.00, 2 players) 2c
Hero checks, BB bets $11.25, Hero calls $11.25

River: ($37.50, 2 players) 8s
Hero bets $25.00, BB calls $25.00

Hero shows 7s Ts (Flush, King High)
Hero wins $84.50

But then this hand against same villain - This was the beginning of the end:
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

#OnGame - $1 NL (5 max) - Holdem - 4 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 3: http://www.pokertracker.com

Hero (UTG): $143.60
BTN: $98.00
SB: $125.50
BB: $97.50

SB posts SB $0.50, BB posts BB $1.00

Pre Flop: ($1.50) Hero has Ac Tc

Hero calls $1.00, BTN raises to $4.50, fold, fold, Hero calls $3.50

Flop: ($10.50, 2 players) 5h 4d Ah
Hero checks, BTN bets $8.00, Hero calls $8.00

Turn: ($26.50, 2 players) Ts
Hero checks, BTN checks

River: ($26.50, 2 players) Js
Hero bets $20.00, BTN raises to $85.50 and is all-in, Hero calls $65.50

BTN shows Kh Qs (Straight, Ace High)
BTN wins $195.50

I check the turn planning to check raise but he checks behind so i try to get my value on the river and dont even notice that he's hit the flockin' straight. I felt terrible after that hand and proceeded to tilt off some $.
I put this bad play and tilt 100% down to being underrolled for these games. If i had like 30-40 buyins, i beleive it would have been easier to fold that river and reload my stack, and even if i do call, the effect of losing 1 buyin would not be so tilting.

Can't wait to get away on holiday on Friday and chill out with my lovely kids & wife for a few days.
Payday next week & no work for 10 days so i can hopefully grind a nice amount, maybe hit up the dtd in Nottingham, and work on hitting my September goals (not sure what they will be yet!)

Anyway this blogs getting long so i'll stop & leave it with a breakdown of results for the month (more for my own benefit as i've not properly worked it out until now)

Full Tilt tourneys +£782
Brick & Mortar Cash +160
Full Tilt Cash (Rush) +£10

Ongame -£410
PKR -£400
Brick & Mortar tourneys - 83
iPoker -£5

Total £56 profit

Gonna watch the Big Game now, then go to sleep!

I played the early $6 daily doubles on Full Tilt again tonight and beleive i could have comfortably cashed in both tourneys but decided to push for final table places and the bigger $ instead of limping into the money.

It did not work out & i failled to cash in either.
In boith i had built up decent size stacks and was pushing to build chips & be a conentender for final tables.

The first bustout i think was pretty standard, the 2nd not so standard.

Incedentally i busted out of a £33 live tourney very early with a massive bluff last week with 6-3 suited.. Something about those cards seems to have an efect on me and make me spazz out all my chips.

Anyway here are the bustout hands. Im going to bed.
:::::

Full Tilt - 200/400 NL - Holdem - 8 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 3: http://www.pokertracker.com

MP: 18,988.00
MP+1: 6,564.00
CO: 23,598.00
Hero (BTN): 13,177.00
SB: 15,780.00
BB: 14,427.00
UTG: 10,772.00
UTG+1: 11,696.00

MP posts ante 50.00, MP+1 posts ante 50.00, CO posts ante 50.00, Hero posts ante 50.00, SB posts ante 50.00, BB posts ante 50.00, UTG posts ante 50.00, UTG+1 posts ante 50.00, SB posts SB 200.00, BB posts BB 400.00

Pre Flop: (1000.00) Hero has Ts Td

fold, fold, fold, fold, fold, Hero raises to 1,440.00, SB raises to 15,730.00 and is all-in, fold, Hero calls 11,687.00 and is all-in

Flop: (27054.00, 2 players) 3s 5c 7d

Turn: (27054.00, 2 players) As

River: (27054.00, 2 players) 8s

Hero shows Ts Td (One Pair, Tens)
SB shows Ad Qd (One Pair, Aces)
SB wins 27,054.00

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Full Tilt - 250/500 NL - Holdem - 8 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 3: http://www.pokertracker.com

SB: 14,710.00
BB: 5,142.00
UTG: 18,847.00
UTG+1: 7,946.00
Hero (MP): 24,471.00
MP+1: 16,939.00
CO: 6,100.00
BTN: 28,995.00

SB posts ante 50.00, BB posts ante 50.00, UTG posts ante 50.00, UTG+1 posts ante 50.00, Hero posts ante 50.00, MP+1 posts ante 50.00, CO posts ante 50.00, BTN posts ante 50.00, SB posts SB 250.00, BB posts BB 500.00

Pre Flop: (1150.00) Hero has 6s 3s

fold, fold, Hero raises to 1,000.00, fold, fold, BTN raises to 4,150.00, fold, fold, Hero raises to 24,421.00 and is all-in, BTN calls 20,271.00

Flop: (49992.00, 2 players) 2h Jc Ac

Turn: (49992.00, 2 players) Td

River: (49992.00, 2 players) 4s

Hero shows 6s 3s (High Card, Ace)
BTN shows Ah Ks (One Pair, Aces)
BTN wins 49,992.00

I also posted this hand in forum with a bit more detail on dynamic but the villain was pretty aggresive.
Still just a big spaz though and completely avoidable. Ooh well. just got to learn from it i guess.