Poker Articles

You always hear about poker players who go on bad streaks.  If you play much, you’ve probably been on one, and if you play for a living, you know what it can do to you psychologically.  I’ve been hovering for months, just unable to pick up a big win, and barely keeping myself afloat.  I felt on top of the world in October, but that was four months ago, and I’ve won hardly anything of note since then.

I’ve struggled to find my game during that time, often losing all confidence in my ability.  I’ve switched from cash to tourneys, from big games to little games, from limit to NL, from Sit-n-Go’s to multis, from Hold ‘Em to Omaha to Stud—I’ve made every switch you can imagine, in every direction you could conceive.  

I’ve come to the conclusion through all this that there isn’t a specific game that I’m meant to be playing, nor a certain direction my poker career should be taking all the time.  I haven’t been a break-even player for these last few months because of being in the wrong games, and it certainily hasn’t been because of lack of ability.  Overall lack of confidence, fear of failure, and the inability to stay focused are the things that have been killing my potential at the tables.

Yesterday, I decided to enter the $30+3 multi-table tournament on UltimateBet.com.  Every remotely major win I’ve had in poker has been in a multi-table tournament, and for whatever reason, I have not had the desire to play them for a couple of months.  I got involved in a big pot in the 3rd level, when a couple players limped in front of me.  I picked up AA and made a pot-sized raise to 165 (blinds were 15-30), and both limpers called.  The flop came K high rainbow, and they both checked to me.  I had a good feeling that one of these guys was the sort of player that would try to make a move on me if I made a weak looking bet, so I bet out 325, which was a little more than half the pot.  I wanted to make a substantial bet, where a check-raise would commit my opponent, but I also very much wanted him to feel he could move in on me.  Sure enough, the first limper folded and the second limper raised me all in for about 1500 chips.  I called immediately, and he showed AQ.  Just like that, I was up above 3000, and things were looking good…

One of the mistakes I’ve made in tournaments recently is not raising enough pre-flop.  I play scared to lose sometimes, and I would raise only 3x the big blind instead of making a pot size raise, when all I really wanted was to take the blinds.  I decided yesterday that I would play with no fear, and that I would play big pots with my opponents if I needed to.  It turned out to be a good choice, as people were generally not wanting to get involved with me when I opened a pot.  One time, I raised in cutoff with K5 and was called by the big blind.  The flop came J high with 2 spades, and my opponent bet out for about 1/3 of my stack.  I pushed in, knowing that if he called, I likely had 12 outs (9 spades and 3 K’s), and after thinking for a while, he folded, showing TT.

This was a big hand for me, both in terms of gaining chips and in terms of getting over the proverbial “hump.”  I have been playing not to lose too often in multis—I wanted to play to win. 

Another hand came up later where a tight-aggressive player limped into a pot from 2nd position.  I was on the big blind with 5 3 offsuit, and I took a 3-way flop with the limper and the small blind.  The flop came 6 7 9 rainbow, giving me a two-way gutshot straight draw.  The small blind checked, I checked, and the limper bet 600 (the blinds were 150-300 with a 25 chip ante, so there was about 1100 in the pot).  The small blind thought for a while and called, and I decided this was a great time to pick up a fairly large pot, so I pushed in for about 4000, knowing that I likely had 8 outs if I was called.  The 2nd position limper thought for a long time and mucked his hand, and then the small blind folded as well, showing 5 5.

I felt great, because I had built a fairly big stack without really getting many good hands.  I was manufacturing pots simply by moving my chips, and that, I believe, is the way to win a multi-table tournament.  In time, I built up one of the biggest stacks in the tournament, and I was in position to be the table bully.  I lost 4000 from my 33000 stack at one point when I called an all in with AQ against a player who had KT, but that was ok—when you have the big stack, you can afford to lose a hand like that, and I showed the whole table that I wasn’t going to fold a good hand to an all in.

I busted a small stack with AQ against his 8 8, and then something amazing happened.  Everyone who knows me well knows that QQ is my worst hand.  I’ve busted out of numerous tournaments with this hand, including the main event in Aruba, and I’ve taken quite a number of bad beats with those ladies.  I always joke that when I see QQ in front of me, I know it’s time for my tournament to end, and with about 15 people left, the ladies showed up at my door.  I made my standard pot-sized raise, and a shorter stack pushed all in for only about 2k more than my raise.  I called, of course, and the short stack showed AK.  I don’t consider this a race—I consider it me having lost the hand.  I can’t remember ever winning a race with QQ.  Well somehow I won it, after seeing a Q on the flop, and I then had an enormous stack. 

With 11 people left, a medium stack sitting directly on my right raised my big blind.  He had been raising my blind a lot, and I felt that the 7 7 I was looking at was more than enough for an all in.  I pushed in for 3 times his raise, and much to my surprise, he called, showing K J.  This was a very bad call in my opinion.  I had been letting him take my blind a lot, and he had no reason to believe that I would be pushing in with a weak hand.  I guess he just values K J a lot higher than I do!  I managed to win yet another race (I didn’t win them all, but I did win 3 key ones!), and just like that, I was taking a second place stack of about 40k to the final table.

The final table was a rough ride, as there was one player who seemed to be involved in every single hand, and I was just never able to hit anything against him.  By the time we were down to 7, I was in a pretty close race with two other guys for last place.  I saw some crazy hands, where the guy on my left busted two different people, with each of them holding AA!  The first one got all in against him pre-flop when he held 4 4, and after an A 6 7 flop, the turn and river were 5 and 8, giving 4 4 a straight.  In the second, they got all in on the flop, and this guy held QK on a Q high flop and spiked a K on the river.  Both times this guy talked a TON of trash after the hand—was this really happening?  I had to restrain myself from saying anything, because I didn’t want to become a target.  I had already pushed in my shortstack on his blind a few times, and I didn’t want him calling me just to get rid of me, especially since he seemed to think any two cards were worthy of being all in!

Somehow, through all this, I made it to the final 3, although I had the shortest stack.  I was moving chips a lot, trying not to let myself get blinded out or ever appear as though I could be pushed around.  At one point, I pushed in from the small blind for about 40k (after a min raise by the button to 8k) with TJ off, and I was called by the button, who held A 2.  A lucky jack on the flop doubled me up and put me in prime position to win the tournament, although I was still behind the crazy chip leader on my left.  I shortly thereafter busted the A 2 guy when he called my all in with Q 5 when I held AK.

These guys seemed happy just to make it this far, and I really thought that if I was careful and didn’t get unlucky, I could win this thing.  In the heads up, my opponent was absolutely crazy, pushing all in preflop almost every hand.  I had a slightly larger stack to start, but that quickly went down as he kept stealing my blinds.  I decided I’d keep trying to limp or make small raises, setting him up for when I had a real big hand—I wasn’t going to tighten up for this guy, which would let him know exactly when I held a monster.

Unfortunately, my monster never came, and I ended up just pushing in from the button with A 8.  He called immediately, showing K 9, and somehow my hand held up!  I was ahead now, and I decided he’d like a dose of his own medicine, so two hands later I pushed in with A 9.  He called immediately showing K J, and somehow, yet again, the best hand held up, and I got a nice pay check of $1,575!

You will undoubtably read through this article and think, “man, he got lucky a lot,” but the truth is, I’ve been very very unlucky of late (and haven’t played well).  I can’t feel too badly about winning a few races—especially when I am the one who pushes in and my opponent is the one who calls.  I lost a few races too, but I was lucky enough, as I said to win a few key hands, and more importantly, I played in a way that enabled me to win if a few things went right for me. 

See the truth is, lucky or not, I wasn’t going to win anything the way I was playing the last couple months.  I was afraid to be the aggressor, and I played in fear of losing.  I believe I turned an important corner yesterday and hopefully shook a few demons off my shoulders.  I’m by no means a rich man because of this win, but I can breathe easier because I have found once again that I have the ability to win against a tough field. 

For players going through a tough run, I hope that like me, you’re able to get a good win soon and get your poker career back on the right track.