Online Poker Tournament Rankings

April 2009 - Posts

• A VIP at Mohegan

  By dtools22 - Apr 27 2009, 11:09 AM

  Growing up I was never much for concerts.  In high school my idea of having a great time was heading to my buddy's house with 3-5 other friends, putting on the Celtics game, and playing poker on his pool table.  I've been going to a bunch of shows in the last year, most of them comedy performances, and I've really had a blast at all of them.  However my favorite shows have all happened down in the Mohegan Sun arena where I got to see Lewis Black last summer, Denis Leary last month, and just this past weekend I got to not only see but meet one of my personal favorites, Mr. Dane Cook. A little bit of background is needed here I think.  I'm the third member of an independent movie company called Broken Wall Films.  The company at the time was my friend and classmate Alex and also a mutual friend Nick.  Alex wrote the movie script in May 2008 while at a film internship in South Africa and Nick and I got on board.  During casting calls Alex asked a buddy of his to audition for the movie, Rick.  Rick was the guy we all wanted to cast in the lead role and we just wanted to get the formality of auditioning out of the way.  Once the movie got underway I learned that Rick is the nephew of comedian Dane Cook (and no to answer the obvious question they do not have the same last name).  We have since worked on the movie as well as other projects and I became good friends with Rick.  This past Saturday was the first stop on Dane Cook's new tour "Isolated Incident" and Rick got Alex and I tickets to go see the show. When we got to the arena I stood with Rick in line while he got the tickets on reserve for him.  He then told me that we would get to meet his uncle after the show.  Now I know some people are pretty big haters of Dane Cook but I loved the guy in high school and still think he is hysterical so for me, this was a huge fanboy moment.  Plus it's always sick to walk around Mohegan with the VIP sticker on. The show was sick, we met Rick's family which is pretty cool, and then we got taken back stage to meet his uncle.  We shook his hand, took some pictures, and asked if he got the copy of the movie Rick sent him.  He got it a few days ago, has not yet watched it, but we did get to talk with him for a few minutes about him plugging our stuff (assuming he likes it when he does see it).  The meeting lasted for about 5 minutes but I did get some cool pictures.  It was my first VIP experience and I gotta say, it's fun as hell to have friends with connections. 1 Comments on this post. Click here to post a comment.




• My Claim to Fame

  By dtools22 - Apr 23 2009, 09:01 AM

  I guess I would be remiss if I didn't talk about my LL bet with kyzersosa1 here on P5s.  The thread about it has now reached almost biblical proportions and I would strongly recommend checking it out.  I'm thinking about making the thread into a book because it's just such a hilarious read.  However, it was brought to my attention that how this whole thing got started was never really talked about.  So I figured the best use of my blog this week would be to tell the story of how kyzersosa1 and I became such fast friends. Part of my nightly MTT routine is the $2K Guaranteed $4.40 FLHE MTT on Stars.  Last week I was playing in the event and kyzersosa1 was at my starting table.  On the second level we got into a pretty solid hand. UTG+1 I pick up AA and raise.  MP player 3-bets and kyzersosa1 calls cold.  The BB caps the betting which obviously I'm happy about and I make the call along with the two other players.  The flop comes down: KJ3 rainbow I bet into the flop and again the same actions happens.  MP 3-bets, kyzersosa1 calls cold, BB this time calls and I cap it, calls all around.  The turn comes out: 5 still a rainbow board. BB checks, I bet, MP folds, kyzersosa1 calls, BB folds.  River comes down. 8 I bet and kyzersosa1 calls.  I show the AA and take down the hand. I checked out the HH so see what exactly was in his hand there, thinking it must be something like a KQ and he just got caught up in a spot he shouldn't have been in.  Turns out he had a K.................................................................................................................. ................................................................................................................... .....................................................6 suited in diamonds. This guy called 3 bets cold twice with K6dd and then top pair no kicker on the flop.  I put a note on him saying he'll pay me off with TPNK and moved on with the hand.  About 15 minutes later he proclaims to the table that we are the biggest bunch of idiots he has ever seen play poker and that the deck was just bailing us out. Now normally I let crap like this go.  It's a $4.40 MTT, first prize is a whopping $412 and change, it just doesn't normally seem worth it to get into it with a guy who is clearly the fish at the table.  Let him think he's just getting unlucky, then he continues to play badly, and donks off his stack with another crappy hand.  I still don't know why I decided to get into it with him but I for whatever the reason I felt the need to try and put him in his place and I said something to the effect of, "Buddy, I just 10 mins ago put a note on you saying you were the worst player at the table.  You got money in on two capped streets with K6dd and paid me off the entire way.  Stop talking." Yes I know it's like talking to a wall.  Yes I know that this is never going to shut someone up.  Yes I know this was not the smartest move I have ever made, not that it costs me anything, but it wastes my time and it lets the fish know he's my mark.  What I did not know was that the argument would turn into the 110+ post thread you now can all see and read.  I posted the convo about the bet just to get a rise out of him, my buddy Freewill1978 just responded "expect to just get flamed" which I was strangely ok with because to me the entire thing was a joke anyway.  I never in my wildest dreams thought I would ever hear from this guy again after he busted in the MTT. Sometimes, people really are as stupid as they sound.  Even if he never pays me the $50, I have gotten at least that much in entertainment value reading his posts.  And that ladies and gents is the story of my thread: Last Longer bet with a fish in the $4.40 FL on Stars 1 Comments on this post. Click here to post a comment.




• School's Winding Down, Poker's Winding Up

  By dtools22 - Apr 20 2009, 08:29 AM

  Most of my fellow college grinders are fast approaching the end of another year.  With summer on the horizon a lot of my friends are in a frenzy planning out what they will with their vacation.  Some are looking for part time work, some are planning vacations, and a few are putting resumes in left and right to try and put their degree to some good use.  As for me summer signifies a few other things; time to break out the golf clubs, get the sunscreen ready, an get a solid schedule ready to grind up a storm. Usually I would be among my friends trying to find a job for the summer, however this summer there are a few major differences.  For starters, I'm now 21.  Subtle yes, but that means I don't have to go to Foxwoods and watch over my shoulder hoping the floor manager doesn't card me.  I fully plan on spending more than my fair share of time at Foxwoods this summer.  Also, and this goes out to all the P5ers under 21 in the New England area, there is another card room in New Hampshire called Rockingham Park.  The cash games are not great, however they have a very strong MTT schedule an if I can build up a bit of a BR I'll be playing more of the events up there as well. Now when I said school is winding down it wasn't entirely true.  I will be taking a few classes over the summer, however it will only be two days a week two hours a day.  What that allows me is to stay in my apartment more this summer which will shave an hour off of my commute to Foxwoods.  Also obviously playing online will be there regardless of where I am.  I've already planned out a schedule for MTTs from 5PM-12PM EST on both Stars and FTP, now mix in some cash game action earlier in the day and I feel like I have a great chance to really build up a BR. I've settled on the number I want to hit.  The goal for the end of the summer is $7K for a working BR.  This is a steep goal but I truly feel like I have a chance.  The mission starts up again this week when I make my return to Foxwoods to play some live cash this week.  See you all at the tables. 2 Comments on this post. Click here to post a comment.




• The Official Daily Grind Schedule

  By dtools22 - Apr 16 2009, 05:58 PM

  Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages.  I have sat down for countless hours planning, searching, scheduling, and working my tail off to come up with a flexible schedule for me to play while I'm still in school.  Class gets out for summer in only a few weeks and I want to try and maximize the poker playing by picking not only the MTTs that fit me time wise, but also trying to concentrate my efforts on things I'm good at.  After giving it some thought I have come up with a low-mid stakes schedule of MTTs and Satties on both FTP and Stars that I really think fits me and can be the most profitable options for me. Stars has always been good for finding low stakes gems to play in that turn up pretty solid value for an above average player.  Here are some of the MTTs I pinpointed as great to play: 5:00 $2.75 $10K Guaranteed 6:15 $5.50 6-max $5K Guaranteed 6:45 $11 HORSE $1K Guaranteed Might not be the best value, but I like HORSE 7:00 $11 $30K Guaranteed This one is big for me because I have a 10th and 17th on back to back nights.  Really a thorn in my side. 7:45 $11 Razz $1K Guaranteed Again this one's on here because I like Razz 8:00 $3.30 $50K Guaranteed Rebuy This thing is like the godfather of lowstakes MTTs. 8:00 $27.50 $40K Guaranteed Not really within my BR, but if I've had a good night I might take a shot occasionally. The list actually goes on from here totaling 18 MTTs on Stars that run nightly and I'd be comfortable playing.  Now I would not in one night play all 18.  But on any given night any combination of 5-6 of these is very doable. On FTP I really kind of wrote off their MTT, not because I like Stars better (which I don't) but more because most of the value in FTP MTTs is in there $26-$75 buy in mid stakes Guarantees.  Of those I have my eye on the $35K at 8PM and the $28K at 10PM, not to mention the $11.5K KO at 11 which I recently finished 10th in.  However what I have had success in is the Satties on FTP.  Satellites to the Nightly $75K and $30K I have won multiple seats to which is a nice $109-$163 boost to the BR. Long story short, I've got a schedule in place that I am comfortable with.  I think this is a HUGE step for anyone who takes the game seriously to try and plan out a routine like this.  Something that is not only very profitable, but within your comfort zone so you can play at your peak.  If anyone would like to see the full schedule of MTTs I have tagged (18 on Stars and 28 on FTP) feel free to PM me and I'mm get the in a word doc and ship em over.  Until next time, stay hungry my fellow degens. 4 Comments on this post. Click here to post a comment.