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By
silverscull
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Nov 22 2009, 08:01 AM
I've been in San Jose for the past week but have not played any tournaments yet until today. I was given a few hours off by my boss, who was on-site with me (we're observing some funky new satellite system for the Navy at the Lockheed-Martin plant -- I can tell you what it does but then I'd have to shoot you in the face).
So I'm at Garden City. The $150 buy-in will be the biggest single buy-in I ever made. Considering I can't even win a $1 Double-or-Nothing on PokerStars these days, I'm wondering what the Hell I'm doing. But I've been happy with my play; it's the luck component that has not been going well of late. The night before, I went pretty deep in a $3 rebuy on 'Stars. Out of over 4000, I was sitting about 500th of 1000 going into the 200/400 level with 20,000 or so chips. I made a button steal with AsQh and got called by a mega-stack. Putting him on KQ, the flop came down with three under cards and 2 spades. He led out with 1800 and I called him. The turn brought the Js and he bet 4800. With my flush draw, I made the call. The river was a rag. We both checked and he turned over Cowboys. That knocked me down to 8000 chips. Hello short-stack. I shoved an A4o and was called by KJo. I got an Ace the flop, he flopped a straight. A four at the term gave me hope. But the rivew went blank and my 'Stars free-fall continues.
Back to the Garden City.
We start with 6000 chips with 25/50 to start. A decent blind structure (20 minutes per round). I watched the action early on and incredible saw to players bust out on ill-conceived bluffs for all their chips. Near the end of the round, I got A4s and opened for 400. No callers. The very next hand is AA. This time I raise to 300 and get 2 callers. The flop is raggedy and I lead with 500. Another pot for me. Not bad.
At the 50/100 level, I get AKs. My 400-chip raise gets one caller. I flop an Ace and lead out for 500. He calls. The turn puts a second heart on the board. I put in 1000. The dude replies, "I believe you," and I show him my TPTK.
After the Level III Break, I have 7500 chips. Out of 60 entrants, there are 45 left. During Level IV (150/300). I get pocket jacks. A young dude raises in front of my. He'd been stealing a lot, but I just smooth-call. On the flop, it's all black paint with an Ace and a beautiful Jack on the board. He bets 1200; I call. The turn yields a third spade. He checks, I shove, he mucks. "Got the flush," an old gent next to me says. "You nailed it chief," I replied.
I sat back for awhile. At Level VI 300/600. I get pocket Jacks again. A tight player limped. Figuring him for AQ or KQs, I just call. We get a third caller, and then the dude I tuned up on the set, tries a squeeze with a 2000 chip raise. Tight guy folds. I shove. Another fold and the squeeze-dude thinks and folds. He only had 3000 behind him. He seemed pot-committed. So he must have had just Junk or worse.
Another break and I sit at 12,000 chips. We're down to 28 players. I didn't get too much in Level VII, but I made enough plays to maintain my 12K stack. By the 500/1000 Level, I was in the desperation mode. I just made a couple of shoves with A8o and 66 and got some steals. We had some new players as we got to 2 tables. There was an Arab dude who was short-stacked and a dude in a "Tapout" T-shirt with a very big stack who kind of watched the action. Arab dude shoved when I was big blind twice in a row. I noted that.
Blinds are not 1/2. I still got 11.5K but its time to make a move. I'm big blind with QJs. Arab dude shoves for about 8K again. It's folded to me. 'He's got AJ, I'm dominated,' was my rationalization and mucked. It's not that QJs is a winner for me, anyway. The next hand is Pocket Tens. Arab Dude shoves again. Again, the table yields to me. "Call!" I'm happy with my chances. Just need Tapout-Dude to fold. But he plays with his chips and mutters, "I gotta play this." [I'm DEAD].
We flip:
Arab Dude: 77
Me: TT
Tapout Dude: AK
You know how this ends. Ace on the flop. Boink Boink on 4th and 5th street. I go out in 13th place (9 will get paid and the winner would receive $2700).
Man, if the board would have just faded, I'd be sitting at 29K in chips. I'd have had a shot. But all I have going is my oh-for-2009 and my 12th straight Live tourney bust-out. I'm thinking that I may never cash a tournament again.
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By
silverscull
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Nov 20 2009, 02:10 AM
<p>What does the face of SuperTilt look like? Check out this Sharkscope graph and see for yourself.
<p>Beautiful, ain’t it. Pretty soon, I’ll have the little fishbowl beside my name. Wouldn’t that be a real kick in the arse.
<p>This freefall on PokerStars started in early November and continues as I write this. The tournaments and S&Gs all follow a typical pattern: I go card dead right from the outset and get short-stacked by the 75/150 level. When I do get a hand, I shove and duly get called by some hoofed mammal who lucked into a ton of chips when he hit a straight in a big multi-way part. Anywho, my 99 against their A3o invariably boards an Ace on the river to felt me. The other scenario is my AKs vs. their A2 – deuce on the flop, followed by brick, brick. And then there’s the old, reliable my KQ vs. the Villains’ J7. As the flop comes out, I can hear myself say “Here comes the Jack.” And Jack it is. Of course, there’s my usual shove of a small or medium pair that walks into Pocket Aces. I have noted that during this skein, I have been dealt very few big pocket pairs. I’d have to go through my hand histories but I frankly can’t remember the last time I got Rockets or even Cowboys.
<p>This Super-Tilt makes for very boring poker. Fold after fold after fold. Then seeing that tight play is not going to get me anywhere, I try the old button steal that meets a light 3-bet or a call from the blinds. I flop air, try a C-Bet and after I lay’em down and see a big pot go to the villain, BOOM I’ve just spewed a third of my stack.
<p>Last weekend, my wife and daughter went out of town for a Dance thingee. Junior and I were happier than pigs in slop. We ate Colonel Sanders (I took two Zocors that night) and Pizza. He played X-Box until his skull exploded. I played ‘Stars. But by the time I busted out of my twelth straight tournament, all the Poker you can eat wasn’t tasting so good. By 6:30 PM on Saturday, I logged into ‘Stars, gazed at the scheduled tournaments window for a minute, and then shut it down and said, “Fuck it.” I spent Saturday night watching the Pitt-Notre Dame game. I take great pleasure in seeing Notre Dame lose. When I was in the Navy, the meanest captain I ever served with was a huge “Domer.” He had all the Notre Dame regalia in his Cabin. After he chewed me out for the hundredth time, I walked away and muttered, “I hope Notre Dame loses every Fuckin’ game from now to eternity. That was back in 1994. My curse has stood the test of time. After the Notre Dame game, I watched the Final Table of the WSOP. I watched that little pencil-Dick Cada hit sets with crabs and ducks against monster pairs and thought to myself, “This is absurd.” You know what happens when I shove Pocket Deuces and Treys – I lose – to overpairs, overcards, even counterfeits. And the way he was complimenting the dude with the Saints cap while heads up was making me ill. I thought the wife of the dude in the Saints cap was kind of hot. I guess SuperTilt is making me crack up.
<p>You readers must be looking at this graph and thinking, “What a Donk.” But I swear to you, I can’t play much better than I am. Solid stating hands – Check. Position – Double Check. Observe players tendencies and hand patterns – Check again. I guess I must have pissed someone off on the Isle of Man. But anyone who reads my blogs hears me whine about this and PokerStars. They say a chimpanzee will type out a great novel if he types long enough. I’d even venture to say that a chimp would win the Sunday Million if he pressed the Bet/Fold/Call/Raise buttons enough times. Yet I have played over 1200 tournaments on ‘Stars and never cashed for more than the $220 or so bucks you get when you win the $4.40, 180-seat S&G. Hell, I think the 1st or 2nd tournament I ever played on UB (a $20 Limit MTT) over four years ago, I hit for $320. I tell you, unless you are anointed, ‘Stars is unwinnable.
<p>My results on UltimateBet are not great either. But at least it doesn't look like a share of Chrysler siock.
<p>Been in San Jose since last Sunday. My work schedule has not allowed me to get out and play as much poker as I envisioned. I played a couple of 3/6 sessions at Bay 101. Won $16 the first night; lost $23 last night. Loosening up my hand selection under the premise of “I am getting a great price for calling a 7-way raised pot from the Big Blind was a leak in my game that costed me. You’ve heard of “Family Pots.” Bay-101 has “Manson Family Pots” – seven players in a 3-betted pot. If I could have scooped just one of them, I’d have had a nice pay day. I might have snuck out and played a Live tournament, but I’m so Snake-Shiest over my play on ‘Stars, I’m just a basket case these days not wondering what it takes to win, but on how I will lose. I will play one before I leave town.
<p>Wish I had something better to tell you, but it ain’t happening these days.
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By
silverscull
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Nov 10 2009, 03:08 PM
A selection of notes and minutae for your reading pleasure:
1. I see the WSOP 2009 November Nine came and went. With me, the big Philly fan, tracking the Phillies and Eagles, poker was an afterthought. The dude with the Saints cap had a big chip lead going in and ended up finishing second. What was interesting was his admission that 6500 of the 6800 entrants were better better poker players than him. I guess when the deck slaps you silly, anyhing can happen.
2. Lately, the deck hasn't been slapping me silly. On 'Stars, it's been a case of "When I'm ahead going into the flop...I lose; and when I'm behind going into the flop...I lose." When I keep losing and losing and losing, I abandon any current strategy and resort to what I learned from the very first poker book I read, Phill Hellmuth's "Play Poker with the Pros." Today, the book seems very primitive, but I always default back to playing "Phil's Top Ten Hands" when I'm running bad:
AA to 77 AKs AQs AKo AQo
[Normally I exclude 77, as this is a problematic holding against 2 overs]
Today, results have been better -- 2 S&G cashes and 1 win. Of course, while I was running bad over the past few days, I hadn't seen too many of Phil's Top-10 hands.
3. My campaign for a WSOP entry in 2010 is iffy. I am hoping to play in the Seniors 1K NLH next year. However, I am falling short of my two benchmarks:
Benchmark 1 - A live NLH tournament cash. So far Oh-for-seven this year and 11 straight bustouts since JUL 2008. But next week, I'll be in San Jose and hope to enter five or six of the morning tournaments at Bay 101 and Garden City. If I can't cash even once, I'm going to have to go to the mirror and say "Face it, I suck."
Benchmark 2 - Bankroll of $2K or greater. I'm halfway there. Of course, had I just put my money in a hole instead of playing online, I'd be at $1100.
4. Just played the following hand in a $5 S&G on UB. It is representative of how my year is going:
Stage #1989499861 Tourney ID 4822119 Holdem Single Tournament No Limit 60 - 2009-11-10 15:29:25 (ET)
Table: 32529713 (Real Money) Seat #2 is the dealer
Seat 1 - IWILL773 (2,870 in chips)
Seat 2 - BOND__J_BOND (1,780 in chips)
Seat 4 - REALDEAL28 (1,960 in chips)
Seat 5 - REEFDOGG420 (1,380 in chips)
Seat 6 - GIZZYROCK (3,870 in chips)
Seat 7 - VIEJAS46 (1,640 in chips)
REALDEAL28 - Posts small blind 30
REEFDOGG420 - Posts big blind 60
*** POCKET CARDS ***
Dealt to VIEJAS46 [Ac As]
GIZZYROCK - Folds
VIEJAS46 - Raises 150 to 150
IWILL773 - Calls 150
BOND__J_BOND - Calls 150
REALDEAL28 - Folds
REEFDOGG420 - Folds
*** FLOP *** [6h 10s 7c]
VIEJAS46 - Bets 600
IWILL773 - Folds
BOND__J_BOND - All-In(Raise) 1,630 to 1,630
VIEJAS46 - All-In 890
BOND__J_BOND - returned (140) : not called
BOND__J_BOND - Shows [7s Ad]
*** TURN *** [6h 10s 7c] [5h]
*** RIVER *** [6h 10s 7c 5h] [7d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
BOND__J_BOND - Shows [7s Ad] (Three of a kind, sevens)
VIEJAS46 - Shows [Ac As] (Two Pair, aces and sevens)
BOND__J_BOND Collects 3,520 from main pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total Pot(3,520)
What are you going to do!!!
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By
silverscull
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Oct 16 2009, 02:04 PM
I'm on a 10-tournament losing streak, dating back from yesterday. Villains been getting whooped upside the head with the deck. I walk into Rockets pre-flop. My top pair gets set-mined. Forget about protecting your hand with a big shove. They call with incorrect odds and make their draw. They call your shove when you are drawing to 19 outs and all they have is a pair of deuces -- which holds up.
I play pretty tight. But it seems like tight is just not right. You simply sit around orbit after orbit and watch people collect chips waiting for your hand at the right position. Then I finally get pocket queens. I Make a standard raise and get 4 callers. Of course, 2 overs -- all the same suit (and not yours) flops. Playing tight and running bad makes for very boring and uninteresting games. It's a recipe for Tilt. In the end, I'm shoving my last 1100 chips (5 BBs) on A7o and running into AA, AK or if I'm Reeeal Lucky KK (But a King flops).
So the last few games, I tried making some steals. Fughetiboutit!!! Villains will call with ANYTHING pre-flop. No, they really aren't calling; they're shoving. I haven't played a hand in 25 orbits and they 3-bet me heavy when I make a move that indicates strength.
Too be losing like this, I'm guessing I must be mucking winning hands, but making stands when they have the goods.
I'm doing most of my losing on 'Stars. But the games on UltimateBet are just horrible. UB is such a crappy site anymore. Very few tournaments. Absolutely NO Multi-Table S&Gs. And the 1-Table S&Gs just rot. In my last loss, I had the chip lead, but went broke when my big pair got caught by flushes on two consecutive hands. When I go through my last $70 or so on UB, which should be soon, I ain't coming back. And if they give me 10 pity bucks, like they did last summer. I'll just try to cash it.
So Three cheers for the Villains!!! Hip-Hip Hooray!!! Way to go Fritz from Frieberg. Way to go Dolph from Dortmund. Who needs to make studious analysis of hand strength from pre-flop to the river. Why waste your time and money on reading the 20 or so poker books like I have. What has it gotten me over the bast 2 years -- SQUADOOOSH. Just play like the villains and shove with any 2 cards and watch the deck slap you silly.
Villains, please spend my money wisely. I don't approve of you spending it on Roofies to get some dude at the Eurotrash club stoned so that you can go to bed with him.
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