Home add your blog Archives Search Forum Contact RSS FEED

This site is an rss/xml news reader containing our favorite feeds. All articles are the copyrighted material of the blogs that wrote them.

The Top Ten Best - And Worst - Hallmarks Of The
Poker Boom

post from Poker Profs Las Vegas Poker Blog on 26 April 2006 01:25:00 PM. © Poker Profs Las Vegas Poker Blog

Like it or not, poker's boom has spawned a number of high and low water marks since Moneymaker won the World Series. With all the good poker's popularity has brought for the average player, there's plenty of reasons to rue...

Read The Full Article:
http://www.lasvegasvegas.com/pokerblog/archives/002674.php

Digg this

Update

post from Big Slick Nuts! on 26 April 2006 11:35:00 AM. © Big Slick Nuts!

Personal to da? home game player:

With your wife?s secretary?

Douchebag.

-------------------------------

Taking a break until next Monday. Didn?t win a single race yesterday. Not one. Not even the 3-outers. Plus, the one time I get AA in the last week, they got cracked by KK. I?m in a real bad frame of mind right now. 10 losing days in a row.

I withdrew everything to my Neteller account except for $200. When I start back, I plan to stick to the $15 turbos until I get my confidence back. I just can?t take the risk of doing something stupid with the last of my bankroll. I?d rather spend it than give it away to another cold-deck. I?ve steadily moved down in buy-ins the same way I moved up, but we all know that frustration can make a man do stupid things (see above) and since I?ve been solid with regard to managing my bankroll by my original guidelines, I thought I?d better maintain my grip on my sanity and money rather than risk ruin.

Through 642 SNGs, I had an ROI of 33%. By 680, I?m already down to 18%. THAT?S how bad it?s been. I?m 6/38 during this run, with 2 firsts, 3 seconds, and 1 third.

11 6th places.

In general, I?m either card dead early or picking up good drawing hands that don?t get there and don?t even have enough to snap off a bluff, so I wind up very short-stacked with 6 left. When you?re just not winning your share of races in these situations, the burn rate sucks. When you get your money in on the bubble with the best and lose every single time, it explodes. When you?re consistently losing to 2-outers, you?re toast.

It?s also not like everything is wine and roses in my personal life either, as I?ve documented already. Frustrations there and frustrations at the tables make BSN a dumb boy. The only happy side right now is over here.

1000 SNGs is supposedly the magic number to use as a minimum to determine the quality of SNG-player you are. I?m not there yet, so I just want to back off and catch my breath before dipping my toe back in the water. It?s a tough part of the cycle I have to endure right now, but I think it?s prudent that I step back and examine myself and my game and make sure I have solid strategies in place before continuing on this path. As of today, I?ve beaten the game for $6800 (including cashouts) since I started this challenge on 11/1. But, losing almost $1900 in one month is a bitter pill to swallow, especially since I was up almost $2700 at one point in the month ? a $4600 turnaround.

Not g00t.

Read The Full Article:
http://bigslicknuts.blogspot.com/2006/04/update.html

Digg this

Mistakes

post from BadBlood on Poker on 26 April 2006 10:03:00 AM. © BadBlood on Poker

Before I throw up another hand analysis spewage, I?d like to take some time and space to send out a note of thanks.

Over the years, I?ve always been kind of a private person.  I?m not a huge social kind of guy with 8,000 friends to hang around with.  I guess you could say it?s a quality, not quantity type of situation.  So whenever there?s any talk of birthday parties or any kind of celebration where I am the focus, I try to keep things low key.  I?m not sure why that is, but it is.

The biggest ancillary benefit that playing poker has brought me is new friendships.  Sure we?re all out to take each other?s money when we play, but with that stated, at the end of the day, we?re still all friends who respect each other as people.

With that said, I?d like to thank everyone who came to the house Saturday to play poker and hang out with me during my birthday weekend.  Shep, Wolverine, Stina, TheMark, Axeman and AngieAces, Otis, Random101, UncleTed, G-Rob, a remote TeamScottSmith and Frank the Tank ? thanks again for making the weekend extra fun.

Of course, I have to thank mrsBlood for putting up with me and arranging the whole deal.  Like I keep saying, she?s my better half by a mile.

****

Winning at poker is primarily about making fewer mistakes than your opponent.  Recognizing mistakes and capitalizing on them is a difficult undertaking at times.  But sometimes, you can force your opponent into making a mistake.  Here is one such example.

One of the things I do when I sit down at a NL ring game table online is do a quick player search for the players at the table.  Why?  I just want to see if anyone is multitabling.  If they are, I?ll note it; because more often than not they?re going to be playing simple ABC poker and miss some of the subtle clues you need to catch in order to succeed.  These are the players you can actually outplay.

In this hand I was dealt pocket 5?s in MP and limped for $2.  We?re 6-handed, and the table texture was somewhat passive.  A player in the blinds kicked it to $8 and I called for two reasons.  The obvious reason is that stack sizes were large and the potential payoff for a set was large; the other reason is that I will call raises more frequently in position.  The raiser had me covered.

The flop came 267 rainbow and the raiser led out with a nearly pot-sized bet.  I can?t call here, that much is sure.  The question I?m asking myself is how much am I willing to spend on information to see if my hand is good.  I have to raise to find out, so that?s what I did.  The raiser simply calls.  Mistake number 1.

The call of my raise here sheds no light on his hand from my perspective.  Does he have an overpair or simply overcards.  At this point, I?m not 100% sure.  The turn comes and it brings a 9 to the board.  My opponent checks.  Mistake number 2.  At this point, I?m happy to take a free card so I check behind.

The river comes and it?s an 8, giving me the ass-end of the straight.  If my reads are correct on my opponent, I?m trailing only AT and TT.  I think I?m good, especially when my opponent checks the river.  At this point, I fire out a 2/3rds pot-sized bet as more of a value play.  My opponent calls, mistake number 3.  He had pocket Kings.

After he called me a ?fukkin? idiot? in chat, I really had to suppress the urge to reply back, ?Hey, don?t beat yourself up.  We all misplay pocket K?s once in a while.?  But I just kept quiet and let the 6-tabler steam for a bit.  He logged off not soon after probably wondering how he could have misinterpreted my post-flop raise.  Playing 6 shorthanded tables simultaneously probably didn?t help.

Position, aggression, a little luck, and a gross misplay by my opponent netted me a decent sized pot.  Lesson for the day:  Don?t be afraid to re-raise.  Many raises are signs of strength, but often times they are also requests for information.  Give your opponent the information they deserve.  So they will fold.

Read The Full Article:
http://badbloodonpoker.blogspot.com/2006_04_01_badbloodonpoker_archive.html#11460
6020734854539

Digg this

Gah, The Poker Bonuses, They Are Too Strong For
Willie!

post from Sound of a Suckout on 26 April 2006 09:22:00 AM. © Sound of a Suckout

Despite my recent lemur activity in the degenerate challenge, things are cruising right along poker-wise. I'm nearly done with the Bowmans signup bonus, and am pretty solidly in the green. I'm going to try to blast out the TopRankedPoker one I mentioned yesterday, finishing it up in April hopefully, and went on a tear there yesterday, mainly at the baby .50/1 NL tables.

The following hand came towards the end of the run, and I thought was fairly interesting. It's a 6 max .50/1 NL table, and I have ?150 or so. The button is the only player that's been remarkable at all, as everyone else seemed fairly weak/tight and nondescript, but the button has been pretty active, overbetting marginal hands pre-flop (re-raising to ?10 or ?15 pre-flop with hands like 85s or J10o), and bluffing at a lot of pots, especially when he has the button/position.

I'm UTG and get dealt 1010. Which I'm obviously happy to see, but it's got the potential to be problematic, especially with the hyped-up monkey on the button. I'd normally raise to ?3 or ?4, but he's likely to come over the top with all sorts of hands, and I'm not sure I want to invest ?20 with 1010 and bad position, just to see a flop, as I have to fold on lots of flops if he plays back hard at me.

I end up just limping, as does UTG+1. Folds to button, who bumps it up to ?8. Folds to me. I call and, surprisingly, so does UTG+1, who had the habit of limping a lot pre-flop and folding to a raise. I've got around ?140 or so at this point, UTG+1 has ?125, and button has ?70.

Pot is ?25 or so, and the flop comes 4c 5h 7s. I check, planning on check-raising, UTG+1 checks, and button insta-bets ?25.

Hmm. Button is capable of having just about anything, and only has ?50 behind after his flop bet. I'd be more than happy to shove here if it were heads-up with the button, but UTG+1 is lurking, and his smooth-call of a sizable raise pre-flop worries me a bit, as the only other time I'd seen him do that he had QQ.

Shoving here might clear up some outs by folding out UTG+1, as well as generate some fold equity versus the button. But the button's ?25 bet is likely enough to fold out UTG+1 anyway, even if I call and sweeten the pot. If I just call the ?25 bet and UTG+1 does have a bigger pocket pair, he'll likely check-raise, at which point I can possibly (maybe) find a fold, depending on button's reaction.

I end up just calling, as does UTG+1. Damnit.

Turn is 8d, putting 4c 5h 7s 8d on the board. Pot is ?100 or so. I check, UTG+1 checks, and button checks. Hmm.

River is 2c, for a board of 4c 5h 7s 8d 2c. I check, UTG+1 checks, and button insta-bets ?30 of his remaining ?45.

Do you call? Fold? Shove?

I dwelled for forever and finally folded. Yeah, I know, the pot is laying me pretty juicy odds with my overpair and a crazy monkey on the button who loves to bluff at pots, but UTG+1 is still hanging around. I didn't like the size of the button's bet, either (or the check on the turn, for that matter), as he's perfectly capable of having a 6 in his hand, as well as some sort of junky two pair. Heads-up, I probably make the call, clutching my junk. With UTG+1 lurking, though, I'm not certain that it'll just be ?30 to call, and I think I have to fold if I call and he comes over the top for ?70 more.

I fold, and UTG+1 ponders for forever, and finally calls. Button rolls over J10o for jack high and UTG+1 has Q5s, taking down the ?160 pot with a pair of 5s.

Doh.

Still not sure how to play that flop, given the way things played out. In hindsight the easy answer is to check-raise it up, like I planned on, but nothing in UTG+1's play to that point suggested he could have anything like Q5s, so I'm still not sure that lumping in more than the button's ?25 bet gains me much either in the way of position or information.

But, you know, I have the capacity to suck at NL, too, so there is that.

Read The Full Article:
http://suckout.blogspot.com/2006/04/gah-poker-bonuses-they-are-too-strong.html

Digg this

2006 WSOP Circuit Event at Caesars Palace on
Friday

post from Poker Profs Las Vegas Poker Blog on 26 April 2006 07:02:00 AM. © Poker Profs Las Vegas Poker Blog

Courtney Friel, WPT Host, at the WPT World Championship final table Monday night at the Bellagio I'm taking a day or two away from the hustle of the Las Vegas strip and tournament poker so decided to provide a...

Read The Full Article:
http://www.lasvegasvegas.com/pokerblog/archives/002672.php

Digg this

Semi-Miracle

post from The Obituarium on 26 April 2006 05:18:00 AM. © The Obituarium

Well, there's plane fare anyway.

Read The Full Article:
http://obituarium.blogspot.com/2006/04/semi-miracle.html

Digg this

Double fun

In yesterday's (tuesday) 200?+10 NLHE with 28 players we reached the best possible result, getting 2nd (Katja) and 1st (Jan). Nice! This confirms the already nice run we have - last Saturday with 31 players Jan got 6th (bubble boy,...

Read The Full Article:
http://50outs.blogs.com/poker/2006/04/double_fun.html

Digg this

Un-Official Guidelines for Poker Card Protectors

Zuni frog fetish card protector It is common for all Las Vegas visitors who sit down at a poker table to notice the card protectors that other players use to protect their cards. These symbolic ornaments serve both a...

Read The Full Article:
http://www.lasvegasvegas.com/pokerblog/archives/002657.php

Digg this