This is going to be a very philosophical post. I mean, the reason I started this blog was to learn more about the game, write down musings and join the (vastly) more savvy players in the wider blogger community with a view to eventually mixing it up in the BBT and Mondays at the Hoy.
But Saturday night helped crystalize what I already knew. Reinforced it.
Poker is a brilliant passtime to enjoy.
What I'm putting to you is ... "When did you last stop, and REALLY FEEL IT?" I mean, I know I'm not grinding away in online MTTs or cash games, taking bad beats in the arse every day ... but ....
My luv-er-ly lady Suze had a big work function and so did Deerhunter's luv-er-ly wife, Carls. So both off the leash, we hooked up to do what we do best. Run amok, and play poker.
Run amok we did. With feeling! Smashed up and lovin' it. But that's by the by ....
The point of this post is to just explain how much fucking fun it was.
Firstly, The Deerhunter, Zac and myself played til 9pm! (Christ, I hope his mother never stumbles across this blog!!) Two re-buys each. Zac beat us BOTH. Sure he hit a couple of killer suckouts, but he played SO WELL. Even the Deerhunter said it was frightening! And I was the card rack! He's a really, really good little player. Brings a tear to Daddy's eye!
Remember, he's just turned SEVEN!
(Quote of the night - Zaccy said to the Deerhunter. "I wish you were dealt Kings, and I get bullets. The flop comes A, A, K. You flop a book and I flop quads." FUCK, DID WE LAUGH!!!!)
But then after I put Zac into bed, the Deerhunter and I just played hand after hand after hand after hand. We drank plenty, a bong or four and sucked on a fine cuban each. The only thing we could've used was a nymphette peeling us grapes!
But the POKER.... the poker .... just fucking awesome.
No cash. Just pride.
No pushmonkey tilt shit. Just cards.
Getting in ahead. Going down to an unlucky card on the river. It's ok. It's gonna happen.
Laying down great hands to monsters.
Optimizing monsters!
Reads. Tells.
Changing it up. Trying different things. Gambling.
Consecutive pocket bullets! (And playing them the second time like they were presto!)
IT WAS SOUL ENRICHING STUFF.
I woke up Sunday very bloody average, but still buzzing. A couple of hours of poker with Zac was great for us and brilliant for him. Then the cherry on top, about 5 more hours of heads up with one of the very best fellas on the planet. And I fucking told him so too.
THIS is why I love poker.
Monday, 30 July 2007
Tuesday, 24 July 2007
Further to yesterdays NBA post.
Faaaaark. This is going to get REALLY UGLY. Read this peeps.
Donaghy analysis from ESPN
It's also been covered by Hoy and Bayne too. Great blogs too, btw.
Donaghy analysis from ESPN
It's also been covered by Hoy and Bayne too. Great blogs too, btw.
Monday, 23 July 2007
An NBA junkie from afar.
Non poker related post! What the fugg?!
I've been an NBA freek since I can't remember. Look, I'm 36 and have always loved hoops in any shape or form. My 'hometown' Perth Wildcats (Andrew Vlahov, who some of you may remember as a Stanford player, is majority owner) were at the peak of their powers when I was 10 years old. It was a boom sport in Oz back then. (For the record, it's sputtering nowadays. The football codes are just too all-consuming as our winter sports.)
As for the NBA, it was always something I loved, but just couldn't get enough of. There was a weekly (!) highlights package that you could consume, and THAT WAS IT. It's like a world away now, thanks to the wonders of the 'web'. So to explain, I was lucky enough to catch the tail end of the Bird-Magic days ... the ascent of Jordan ... and the first ever Dream Team. Ahhh, those were the days!
The NBA still holds great allure to me. Partly because if it's played the way ... 'it's supposed to be played' .... it's a thing of beauty. Crisp passing, movement without the ball ... love it. And I've finished top 3 in my first (and last) three Yahoo Fantasy NBA leagues. It helps soothe my inner GM!
But THIS is a real concern. To partially quote the incredible MUSE - SUPERMASSIVE. I've provided a few links of articles I've read over the last few days.
Schwarz - Topic overview - NY Times
Lopresti - USA Today
Stein - ESPN
McCallum - SI
Ratto - CBS
and the always readable Bill Simmons - ESPN Page 2.
I'd love some feedback from you Yanks. This is gonna be explosive shizz in the lead up (and probably all the way thru) this NBA season.
And a few NBA asides .... Is Rashard Lewis really worth a MAX DEAL?!!!!! You've gotta be kidding me!
Brad Newley (Rockets 2nd round pick this year) is a serious talent, but I can't see him coming to the States to ride the pine. He's a star in Oz, and would be in Europe too. On mega-bucks, rather than the NBA minimum.
Andrew Bogut is a twat. If he focused on rebounding like he does openning his trap, he'd be much more popular here at home.
If Steve Nash was still with the Mavs, they'd have two rings by now.
The Raptors to be the big improvers this year.
Love to hear your thoughts!
I've been an NBA freek since I can't remember. Look, I'm 36 and have always loved hoops in any shape or form. My 'hometown' Perth Wildcats (Andrew Vlahov, who some of you may remember as a Stanford player, is majority owner) were at the peak of their powers when I was 10 years old. It was a boom sport in Oz back then. (For the record, it's sputtering nowadays. The football codes are just too all-consuming as our winter sports.)
As for the NBA, it was always something I loved, but just couldn't get enough of. There was a weekly (!) highlights package that you could consume, and THAT WAS IT. It's like a world away now, thanks to the wonders of the 'web'. So to explain, I was lucky enough to catch the tail end of the Bird-Magic days ... the ascent of Jordan ... and the first ever Dream Team. Ahhh, those were the days!
The NBA still holds great allure to me. Partly because if it's played the way ... 'it's supposed to be played' .... it's a thing of beauty. Crisp passing, movement without the ball ... love it. And I've finished top 3 in my first (and last) three Yahoo Fantasy NBA leagues. It helps soothe my inner GM!
But THIS is a real concern. To partially quote the incredible MUSE - SUPERMASSIVE. I've provided a few links of articles I've read over the last few days.
Schwarz - Topic overview - NY Times
Lopresti - USA Today
Stein - ESPN
McCallum - SI
Ratto - CBS
and the always readable Bill Simmons - ESPN Page 2.
I'd love some feedback from you Yanks. This is gonna be explosive shizz in the lead up (and probably all the way thru) this NBA season.
And a few NBA asides .... Is Rashard Lewis really worth a MAX DEAL?!!!!! You've gotta be kidding me!
Brad Newley (Rockets 2nd round pick this year) is a serious talent, but I can't see him coming to the States to ride the pine. He's a star in Oz, and would be in Europe too. On mega-bucks, rather than the NBA minimum.
Andrew Bogut is a twat. If he focused on rebounding like he does openning his trap, he'd be much more popular here at home.
If Steve Nash was still with the Mavs, they'd have two rings by now.
The Raptors to be the big improvers this year.
Love to hear your thoughts!
Thursday, 19 July 2007
Pay Per View BABY!!!!
The Main Event final table.
Never done anything like this before! It helps having a juicy broadband internet connection which is able to cope with live video and audio streaming. So I bought the package thru ESPN (which I'm already a member of coz I LUUUURVE my NBA Hoops) and waited for the action to roll around.
I actually woke early yesterday morning Western Oz time (6.30am) and decided to get up, coz I'm not a sleeper-inner. Logged on, and low and behold it was underway, in fact I missed the first few Final Table eliminations. When I logged on, already Hilm, Childs and Watkinson had been eliminated and Yang had a brutal chip stack.
Now I've got to qualify my comments below by saying that anyone who makes it thru a minefield of some 6000+ competitors to make the final table of something like the Main Event HAS to have some serious card knowledge. You just couldn't get thru without it.
HOWEVER .....
There seemed to be some SERIOUS donking going on! I dunno whether it was the pressure of being on the final table and on the telly, but there seemed to be an inordinate number of rediculous plays.
'Rain' Khan pushing with a pair of THREES?!! What a dickhead! You see a flop (and then only sometimes) with threes!
Kravchenko (... who I admire. Typical Ruski tho. Personality of a house brick, but a serious player and played the short stack BRILLIANTLY) pushing all in with 2-3c? Must've been a 'read' situation!!! One he totally fugged up and then got incredibly lucky, flopping two pair!
Yang. Now here's a real tough one. To be honest, he seemed like a very AVERAGE player who couldn't stop getting cards! He was a brutal calling station ... but with cards! Having a gargantuan chip stack seemed to make up for a lot of his inadequacies as a poker player. He called TWO all ins with EIGHTS! Am I alone here? EIGHTS?!!! Must be his 'lucky hand'. And his play was sooooooooo fugging slow. Was it deliberate?! Even his hand movements! It would've driven me batty if I was at the table with him. Keep in mind this man is couselling poor souls in the good ol' US of A!
Kalmar, Lam and Rahme all seemed to be very decent players. Poor Rahme, he totally butchered those pocket Kings, but even then, calling station Yang would've won that hand anyway. And as for Lam, in heads up play, I would've gone to war with A-Q sooooted too. Dunno that I'd be calling with eights! And if you would, I'd love to hear why.
Great to watch most of it over the course of the day. At home and at work. Dunno what I learned from it tho. Maybe that even some really great players make first rate mistakes at times. I'd love to get your thoughts.
And before I go .... I understand that they can't have pocket card cameras operating during the Main Event .... but it definitely took away from some of the theatre of the broadcast. Phil Gordon's comments were good too. Just my two cents!
Over to you.
Never done anything like this before! It helps having a juicy broadband internet connection which is able to cope with live video and audio streaming. So I bought the package thru ESPN (which I'm already a member of coz I LUUUURVE my NBA Hoops) and waited for the action to roll around.
I actually woke early yesterday morning Western Oz time (6.30am) and decided to get up, coz I'm not a sleeper-inner. Logged on, and low and behold it was underway, in fact I missed the first few Final Table eliminations. When I logged on, already Hilm, Childs and Watkinson had been eliminated and Yang had a brutal chip stack.
Now I've got to qualify my comments below by saying that anyone who makes it thru a minefield of some 6000+ competitors to make the final table of something like the Main Event HAS to have some serious card knowledge. You just couldn't get thru without it.
HOWEVER .....
There seemed to be some SERIOUS donking going on! I dunno whether it was the pressure of being on the final table and on the telly, but there seemed to be an inordinate number of rediculous plays.
'Rain' Khan pushing with a pair of THREES?!! What a dickhead! You see a flop (and then only sometimes) with threes!
Kravchenko (... who I admire. Typical Ruski tho. Personality of a house brick, but a serious player and played the short stack BRILLIANTLY) pushing all in with 2-3c? Must've been a 'read' situation!!! One he totally fugged up and then got incredibly lucky, flopping two pair!
Yang. Now here's a real tough one. To be honest, he seemed like a very AVERAGE player who couldn't stop getting cards! He was a brutal calling station ... but with cards! Having a gargantuan chip stack seemed to make up for a lot of his inadequacies as a poker player. He called TWO all ins with EIGHTS! Am I alone here? EIGHTS?!!! Must be his 'lucky hand'. And his play was sooooooooo fugging slow. Was it deliberate?! Even his hand movements! It would've driven me batty if I was at the table with him. Keep in mind this man is couselling poor souls in the good ol' US of A!
Kalmar, Lam and Rahme all seemed to be very decent players. Poor Rahme, he totally butchered those pocket Kings, but even then, calling station Yang would've won that hand anyway. And as for Lam, in heads up play, I would've gone to war with A-Q sooooted too. Dunno that I'd be calling with eights! And if you would, I'd love to hear why.
Great to watch most of it over the course of the day. At home and at work. Dunno what I learned from it tho. Maybe that even some really great players make first rate mistakes at times. I'd love to get your thoughts.
And before I go .... I understand that they can't have pocket card cameras operating during the Main Event .... but it definitely took away from some of the theatre of the broadcast. Phil Gordon's comments were good too. Just my two cents!
Over to you.
Tuesday, 17 July 2007
A quick pat on the back to Astin.
It's a weird feeling starting a blog. Will anyone read the thing? If they do will anyone give a shit?!
Well I'm rapt to say that even some of the more respected Poker bloggers on the web DO take the time and give a shit. Astin stopped by and gave me the (basic) info I asked for to capture some hands on poker sites. The plan is to eventually get my blog to a standard of some of those that I've provided links to. As a technophobe and troglodyte all rolled into one, it might take time ... but that's the plan.
If you haven't been to Astin's site (which is highly unlikely if you're reading this) please take the time and surf on over. It's a top notch blog.
Astin's blog.
I just wanted to say in this public forum, 'Thanks mate'. Your input is greatly appreciated.
And if YOU are thinking about starting a blog, stop thinking about it. Do it! It's reassuring to know that you won't be 'an outsider looking in'. At least, not for very long!
Leave me a note, and I'll pop YOUR name over on my N00Bs link list. I'll try and spread the word for your blog too!
Well I'm rapt to say that even some of the more respected Poker bloggers on the web DO take the time and give a shit. Astin stopped by and gave me the (basic) info I asked for to capture some hands on poker sites. The plan is to eventually get my blog to a standard of some of those that I've provided links to. As a technophobe and troglodyte all rolled into one, it might take time ... but that's the plan.
If you haven't been to Astin's site (which is highly unlikely if you're reading this) please take the time and surf on over. It's a top notch blog.
Astin's blog.
I just wanted to say in this public forum, 'Thanks mate'. Your input is greatly appreciated.
And if YOU are thinking about starting a blog, stop thinking about it. Do it! It's reassuring to know that you won't be 'an outsider looking in'. At least, not for very long!
Leave me a note, and I'll pop YOUR name over on my N00Bs link list. I'll try and spread the word for your blog too!
Sunday mates cash game - FINALLY!
Been FAR too long between drinks! I did mention that it was being kicked around as a possibility late in the week. Well it materialized, and I'm fuggen glad it did.
(Before I get into that, I must quickly mention that the Deerhunter and I managed to get into some impromptu madness on Friday night. After I did a community disco in Boyanup til 8.30, I got a txt from him that a) he was home, b) Carls was out, c) there was Poker on the box, d) there was beer in the fridge and e) he was keen for a shuffle up. Now I've been working like a slave of late, and haven't had a lot of R&R, so I took up the opportunity to 'drop by for a while'.
WHAT A JOKE! Got to his place 9.30pm. Pulled up stumps at 4am after much merriment and indulgences! Even better, saw this guy Tuan (WSOP tourney) be a serious card rack, flopping two pair almost every hand and totally dominating the table from the get-go. As for our cards, we must have played a dozen hands heads up, and we made it so they were pretty short stacks. No cash.... 'just for pride' as The Deerhunter likes to put it. The short stacks made it very interesting, because we were basically shoving after a couple of hands went against us. Or in some cirumstances, when we both caught serious cards, a couple of reraises each and it was push monkey heaven .... just with cards! Great fun. I can't remember any specific hands, but it was a handy warm up for Sundays game. I ended up leaving the van there and walking home!)
So .... Sunday! C-nut was down from Perth and keen for a shuffle, and of course, our money. Deerhunter was returning from a big Saturday night with friends down in Yallingup and happy to get back in time for a game too. (Back 2 back 2 back! Impressive buddy! In saying that, he DID start the arvo with a couple of Sprites. Poof.)
After C-nut got to my joint, we played a couple of hands of Hold'em with Zac. He loved it. One hand which he should've but didn't get away from was when C-nut and I flopped top pair (K), him with J kicker and me with a spade flush draw. Zac called our large post flop action. Turn card comes, rag heart. Even more action. Zac went right with us. River - rag spade which completed my flush. And he STILL didn't get away!!!! He was chasing his heart flush draw on the river. Poor lil bugger! He'll get it one day. Don't go chasing a flush with only one one of your cards on the board after the flop! Or ... at least have part of the board!!!
As for our 3 way game, I'll repeat how we work it. $25 buck buy in, with $10 rebuys for a third of our original stack till we deem 'too late'. Double rebuys allowed. (Hey, we're flexible!) 2nd place gets their money back. First takes the rest. We normally play 4 handed, but had to settle for 3 with this one.
Long story cut short. I started out playing good cards well and bad cards better. This is where reading my books seems to have helped me HEAPS. I really started to build my stack early. A few steals. A few really nice hands I disguised well.
One BAD play I made was with pocket Ladies pre flop. Just didn't raise enough. C-nut called my bet and flopped his K. I knew it straight away, and laid it down. Really pissed off with my play there.
Anyway, I had a commanding chip lead and the other guys were starting to make a stand. Even though C-nut was the shortest stack, the first all in play came from The Deerhunter. On a board of 5 - 6 - 8 rainbow (with me holding pocket 7's which I raised up 3x pre hoping to kill it there) I bet out a pot sized bet. OESD and decent pair. Nice. The Deerhunter jammed! And I'm thinking ... "what has he got?!" Overpair? Possibly, but not paint, based on his call of my pre flop raise. Overcards? Maybe, but unlikey. Bloody brave to jam with that. He had to have some piece of the board. Trips? Praps, but my read was that he didn't. 7 - 9? Nah, he wouldn't have called with that pre. So I figured I was, at worst, being beaten by a pair of 8's. At best I was in front and had a better draw with a massive chip lead. It was going to cost me a third of my stack if I was going down. I figure it's a CALL!
Deerhunter. Ah - 6h. BOOM! I'm in front! He'd have to improve and the flush possibility was runner-runner.
Turn - 6. Ouch. River - A! He fills up?!?! FAAAAAAAAARRRRRK!!!!
Oh well, At least my read was right and I made a good call. I was in front when we flipped 'em over. That's all you can do. So after counting out the chips, I reminded myself that I made the right play, my read was good and I mustn't tilt. Turned out to be a good thing. I just kept playing my cards and my opponents.
I worked my way back into it, taking a few chips from both of them. A couple of periods of card death, but nothing I couldn't get through. The antes were coming every 45 mins, and things were getting pretty dire for C-nut. He plays a short stack pretty aggressively and was openly talking about doubling up soon. Then, this hand rolls around.
I get dealt pocket 3's in the big blind. Cool, not great, but quite ok at this point in the evening. I figure I just want to see a flop, and if I don't spike, I get the f*ck out of Dodge. C-nut raises 3x the BB. It's only $200 more to call, so I do. Deerhunter folds his SB.
Flop. J - 6 - 3 rainbow. Sweet! No flush possibilities. Straight? Nup. And I've flopped my set.
C-nut bets. I raise. And he pushes. Insta-call!
Flip 'em up! C-nut. TPTK. Ha!
DOMINATED!!!!!!!!!! The board bricks out for him and I clean him out. Wicked! He bitched for a while that I should never have called his bet with a low pair, but like I said earlier, it was only $200 more to call. Easy call IMO.
So C-nut rebuys for $20, and get two-thirds of his starting stack. That's a pretty good platform for him. He's a solid player, regularly playing in cash games in Perth and at Burswood Casino. He even had a crack at a Aussie Millions satellite last year and bubbled. He's a more than capable player.
Next hand which I managed to cripple him was a ripper. I'll abreviate it tho. I had A4 off. Limped in pre. Not a favourite hand really. Understandable! C-nut was in the BB from memory. He settled to see a flop. Cool.
Flop came 3 - 2 - 6 rainbow. So I'm all around it, but haven't got a piece of it. But I lead out and STRONG. He pops me and I pop him right back. Our $200 chips are flying around all over the place. It's a serious pot. He ends up calling. Turn card 7. Aaaargh! I've got to lead out strong again, otherwise I'm fucked. $800 to go. He sits there, and says '....I reckon I've got you beat, but I'm laying them down." Thank Christ! He had 3's. I had nadda. W00t!!! That was some sphincter trembling action there. So now I was massive chip leader again and he was steamed.
Two more hands to get through.
Then I bust out C-nut. I led out with a 3x BB bet with pocket 9's. He called, so he had something!
Flop - K - 9 - rag. Set mining ROCKS!
Anyway, a bit of action, a shove, a call and ..... DOMINATED!!!!! I think he had KQ soooooted. He normally wouldn't make that play, but short stacked (and late-ish) he figured he'd push. Once again the board bricked out.
Final hand. Deerhunter and I. He was very short stacked compared to me. No action pre. I had Q3 off.
Flop - 3 - rag - rag.
I bet out the pot. He jammed. Swift call (given his range, he had to be pushing here) and he flips over 9-3 off or similar. Outkicked and dead. End of night, $45 richer. C-nuts $25 buy in and $20 rebuy. Booyah! A great night, and great to PLAY WELL as much as it was to win a little cash! I'm soooo fucking tight financially at the mo!
(Before I get into that, I must quickly mention that the Deerhunter and I managed to get into some impromptu madness on Friday night. After I did a community disco in Boyanup til 8.30, I got a txt from him that a) he was home, b) Carls was out, c) there was Poker on the box, d) there was beer in the fridge and e) he was keen for a shuffle up. Now I've been working like a slave of late, and haven't had a lot of R&R, so I took up the opportunity to 'drop by for a while'.
WHAT A JOKE! Got to his place 9.30pm. Pulled up stumps at 4am after much merriment and indulgences! Even better, saw this guy Tuan (WSOP tourney) be a serious card rack, flopping two pair almost every hand and totally dominating the table from the get-go. As for our cards, we must have played a dozen hands heads up, and we made it so they were pretty short stacks. No cash.... 'just for pride' as The Deerhunter likes to put it. The short stacks made it very interesting, because we were basically shoving after a couple of hands went against us. Or in some cirumstances, when we both caught serious cards, a couple of reraises each and it was push monkey heaven .... just with cards! Great fun. I can't remember any specific hands, but it was a handy warm up for Sundays game. I ended up leaving the van there and walking home!)
So .... Sunday! C-nut was down from Perth and keen for a shuffle, and of course, our money. Deerhunter was returning from a big Saturday night with friends down in Yallingup and happy to get back in time for a game too. (Back 2 back 2 back! Impressive buddy! In saying that, he DID start the arvo with a couple of Sprites. Poof.)
After C-nut got to my joint, we played a couple of hands of Hold'em with Zac. He loved it. One hand which he should've but didn't get away from was when C-nut and I flopped top pair (K), him with J kicker and me with a spade flush draw. Zac called our large post flop action. Turn card comes, rag heart. Even more action. Zac went right with us. River - rag spade which completed my flush. And he STILL didn't get away!!!! He was chasing his heart flush draw on the river. Poor lil bugger! He'll get it one day. Don't go chasing a flush with only one one of your cards on the board after the flop! Or ... at least have part of the board!!!
As for our 3 way game, I'll repeat how we work it. $25 buck buy in, with $10 rebuys for a third of our original stack till we deem 'too late'. Double rebuys allowed. (Hey, we're flexible!) 2nd place gets their money back. First takes the rest. We normally play 4 handed, but had to settle for 3 with this one.
Long story cut short. I started out playing good cards well and bad cards better. This is where reading my books seems to have helped me HEAPS. I really started to build my stack early. A few steals. A few really nice hands I disguised well.
One BAD play I made was with pocket Ladies pre flop. Just didn't raise enough. C-nut called my bet and flopped his K. I knew it straight away, and laid it down. Really pissed off with my play there.
Anyway, I had a commanding chip lead and the other guys were starting to make a stand. Even though C-nut was the shortest stack, the first all in play came from The Deerhunter. On a board of 5 - 6 - 8 rainbow (with me holding pocket 7's which I raised up 3x pre hoping to kill it there) I bet out a pot sized bet. OESD and decent pair. Nice. The Deerhunter jammed! And I'm thinking ... "what has he got?!" Overpair? Possibly, but not paint, based on his call of my pre flop raise. Overcards? Maybe, but unlikey. Bloody brave to jam with that. He had to have some piece of the board. Trips? Praps, but my read was that he didn't. 7 - 9? Nah, he wouldn't have called with that pre. So I figured I was, at worst, being beaten by a pair of 8's. At best I was in front and had a better draw with a massive chip lead. It was going to cost me a third of my stack if I was going down. I figure it's a CALL!
Deerhunter. Ah - 6h. BOOM! I'm in front! He'd have to improve and the flush possibility was runner-runner.
Turn - 6. Ouch. River - A! He fills up?!?! FAAAAAAAAARRRRRK!!!!
Oh well, At least my read was right and I made a good call. I was in front when we flipped 'em over. That's all you can do. So after counting out the chips, I reminded myself that I made the right play, my read was good and I mustn't tilt. Turned out to be a good thing. I just kept playing my cards and my opponents.
I worked my way back into it, taking a few chips from both of them. A couple of periods of card death, but nothing I couldn't get through. The antes were coming every 45 mins, and things were getting pretty dire for C-nut. He plays a short stack pretty aggressively and was openly talking about doubling up soon. Then, this hand rolls around.
I get dealt pocket 3's in the big blind. Cool, not great, but quite ok at this point in the evening. I figure I just want to see a flop, and if I don't spike, I get the f*ck out of Dodge. C-nut raises 3x the BB. It's only $200 more to call, so I do. Deerhunter folds his SB.
Flop. J - 6 - 3 rainbow. Sweet! No flush possibilities. Straight? Nup. And I've flopped my set.
C-nut bets. I raise. And he pushes. Insta-call!
Flip 'em up! C-nut. TPTK. Ha!
DOMINATED!!!!!!!!!! The board bricks out for him and I clean him out. Wicked! He bitched for a while that I should never have called his bet with a low pair, but like I said earlier, it was only $200 more to call. Easy call IMO.
So C-nut rebuys for $20, and get two-thirds of his starting stack. That's a pretty good platform for him. He's a solid player, regularly playing in cash games in Perth and at Burswood Casino. He even had a crack at a Aussie Millions satellite last year and bubbled. He's a more than capable player.
Next hand which I managed to cripple him was a ripper. I'll abreviate it tho. I had A4 off. Limped in pre. Not a favourite hand really. Understandable! C-nut was in the BB from memory. He settled to see a flop. Cool.
Flop came 3 - 2 - 6 rainbow. So I'm all around it, but haven't got a piece of it. But I lead out and STRONG. He pops me and I pop him right back. Our $200 chips are flying around all over the place. It's a serious pot. He ends up calling. Turn card 7. Aaaargh! I've got to lead out strong again, otherwise I'm fucked. $800 to go. He sits there, and says '....I reckon I've got you beat, but I'm laying them down." Thank Christ! He had 3's. I had nadda. W00t!!! That was some sphincter trembling action there. So now I was massive chip leader again and he was steamed.
Two more hands to get through.
Then I bust out C-nut. I led out with a 3x BB bet with pocket 9's. He called, so he had something!
Flop - K - 9 - rag. Set mining ROCKS!
Anyway, a bit of action, a shove, a call and ..... DOMINATED!!!!! I think he had KQ soooooted. He normally wouldn't make that play, but short stacked (and late-ish) he figured he'd push. Once again the board bricked out.
Final hand. Deerhunter and I. He was very short stacked compared to me. No action pre. I had Q3 off.
Flop - 3 - rag - rag.
I bet out the pot. He jammed. Swift call (given his range, he had to be pushing here) and he flips over 9-3 off or similar. Outkicked and dead. End of night, $45 richer. C-nuts $25 buy in and $20 rebuy. Booyah! A great night, and great to PLAY WELL as much as it was to win a little cash! I'm soooo fucking tight financially at the mo!
Friday, 13 July 2007
Bad beat #1.
Crap night on Full Tilt last night. Well, it was ok until this.... 10 handed 100-200.
LIMPED (I love it when peeps let me limp with shit!) from the small blind with 2-3 off. Sure it's crap, but I like to mix it up. Flop comes 2-3-x. I raised to 400. Only two callers. Turn card 2. BOOK! I made it 1500 more. One player folded. Then was RAISED by the last remaining player. I jammed and he called. He showed 4-2.
River card....
... a FUCKING 4.
Un-fucking-be-LIEVE-a-ble.
LIMPED (I love it when peeps let me limp with shit!) from the small blind with 2-3 off. Sure it's crap, but I like to mix it up. Flop comes 2-3-x. I raised to 400. Only two callers. Turn card 2. BOOK! I made it 1500 more. One player folded. Then was RAISED by the last remaining player. I jammed and he called. He showed 4-2.
River card....
... a FUCKING 4.
Un-fucking-be-LIEVE-a-ble.
Wednesday, 11 July 2007
My son is a CARD RACK.
Holy hell. It's been a while! Busy as .... between work, fatherhood and stuff. Poker, in a 'live' sense seems been a distant memory. I've been working even tho the Deerhunter has been keen the last couple of Saturday nights. Since C-nut has gone to Perth it's been quiet. Shame. There is a few emails going around late yesterday and today working on a Sunday arvo shuffle up. Here's hoping it comes to fruition! I'm keen to utilize some of the stuff I've been reading in "Harrington".
(Speaking of, I've finished "Super System 1". Great read, but didn't enjoy it as much as Harrington's stuff. Can't really put my finger on why. Weird. Just Brunson's over-emphasis on aggression pissed me off after a while. I mean, I understand that aggression is essential in poker, but it's got to be controlled, and precise. At times it didn't feel like Doyle made that point clear. I'll end up re-reading it to see if I get something else out of it, no doubt. But Harrington is brilliant. He's probably more consevative than I am in the way I look at hands occasionally, but it's awse. I can't recommend it enough. I will sorta do a review of each of the books as time goes by. It's just a matter of time!!!)
Anyway, on to the topic behind today's title of this post. My son. My brilliant kid, Zac. (I could post about how his mum is supposed to have him for the ENTIRE school holidays to give ME a FUCKING BREAK, and how he's home after THREE FUCKING NIGHTS with mum.... but I won't bore you...! Plus, I love him too god-damn much! There. I feel better already!) Anyhoo .... We went out into The Rumpus after going to see Shrek the Third (Brill flick btw) and played some heads up. He is a certifiable CARD RACK. Unbelievable. He even suggested we play for money yesterday! Classic! 5c buy in. So we did. Winner take all! Oh, the thrill of High Stakes poker!
Anyway, I won't go into minute detail about hands (except for one) but he just couldn't help getting cards. See, the thing is, I don't want to go folding hands that I know are pretty much unplayable, because half ... if not all ... of the fun is seeing the flop and the action that ensues on the turn and river, with him. And he's good. Really friggin good! Classic example on one hand where he just comes across as a very natural player. Flop comes all clubs, and he's first to act. He bets out $200. And I raise to $400, because I had flopped my flush. And he insta-folds. And said to me, "I just wanted to see if you had it". It was seriously eerie. Talk about value feeler bet. Quite happy to lose his chips, but happier to have worked out what I had, and folded.
Keep in mind, the kid's just turned SEVEN. Fark. To quote Eminem "....I've created a monster...."
In the end it didn't matter that he lost those chips. He was virtually unbeatable. In fact, if I didn't know better, he pretty much experienced his first true 'rush'. One of the first hands we played he collared me with Fish hooks. Then about 5 minutes later, I ran Q's into K's. I raised from the small blind, and he just flat called, so I had no real reason to think he had Boys. He ended up busting me when I pushed all in on a rag flop there. Bastard!
Then he caught Boys again when I had something like QJ sooooted. He flopped trips! Only a couple of hands did I have any luck. I flopped a set of 9's which he didn't pick. But apart from that, he just walked all over me, except for the last hand which I'll get to in a tick. Another impressive piece of play he showed was recognition of kickers. We both had an A in the hole. Me with a rag, him with a 9 from memory. We flopped top pair, with me to act, and I put in a good sized bet. He immediately repopped me. I folded, and he said out loud " ... I wondered what your other card was ..." FREEEK!
Last hand .... and it's a ripper. (I took a photo of the cards. Just gotta work out how to get them onto the site!) He's dealt pocket J's. I get AJ off. Flop comes J-A-A. Unreal. I pushed all in and he calls! Classic. Very similar (In fact almost identical to this. Sensational. I feel for this poor bastard! At least he was philosophical!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cixMq97Zo38
That's the sorta stuff you play poker for isn't it?!!
(Speaking of, I've finished "Super System 1". Great read, but didn't enjoy it as much as Harrington's stuff. Can't really put my finger on why. Weird. Just Brunson's over-emphasis on aggression pissed me off after a while. I mean, I understand that aggression is essential in poker, but it's got to be controlled, and precise. At times it didn't feel like Doyle made that point clear. I'll end up re-reading it to see if I get something else out of it, no doubt. But Harrington is brilliant. He's probably more consevative than I am in the way I look at hands occasionally, but it's awse. I can't recommend it enough. I will sorta do a review of each of the books as time goes by. It's just a matter of time!!!)
Anyway, on to the topic behind today's title of this post. My son. My brilliant kid, Zac. (I could post about how his mum is supposed to have him for the ENTIRE school holidays to give ME a FUCKING BREAK, and how he's home after THREE FUCKING NIGHTS with mum.... but I won't bore you...! Plus, I love him too god-damn much! There. I feel better already!) Anyhoo .... We went out into The Rumpus after going to see Shrek the Third (Brill flick btw) and played some heads up. He is a certifiable CARD RACK. Unbelievable. He even suggested we play for money yesterday! Classic! 5c buy in. So we did. Winner take all! Oh, the thrill of High Stakes poker!
Anyway, I won't go into minute detail about hands (except for one) but he just couldn't help getting cards. See, the thing is, I don't want to go folding hands that I know are pretty much unplayable, because half ... if not all ... of the fun is seeing the flop and the action that ensues on the turn and river, with him. And he's good. Really friggin good! Classic example on one hand where he just comes across as a very natural player. Flop comes all clubs, and he's first to act. He bets out $200. And I raise to $400, because I had flopped my flush. And he insta-folds. And said to me, "I just wanted to see if you had it". It was seriously eerie. Talk about value feeler bet. Quite happy to lose his chips, but happier to have worked out what I had, and folded.
Keep in mind, the kid's just turned SEVEN. Fark. To quote Eminem "....I've created a monster...."
In the end it didn't matter that he lost those chips. He was virtually unbeatable. In fact, if I didn't know better, he pretty much experienced his first true 'rush'. One of the first hands we played he collared me with Fish hooks. Then about 5 minutes later, I ran Q's into K's. I raised from the small blind, and he just flat called, so I had no real reason to think he had Boys. He ended up busting me when I pushed all in on a rag flop there. Bastard!
Then he caught Boys again when I had something like QJ sooooted. He flopped trips! Only a couple of hands did I have any luck. I flopped a set of 9's which he didn't pick. But apart from that, he just walked all over me, except for the last hand which I'll get to in a tick. Another impressive piece of play he showed was recognition of kickers. We both had an A in the hole. Me with a rag, him with a 9 from memory. We flopped top pair, with me to act, and I put in a good sized bet. He immediately repopped me. I folded, and he said out loud " ... I wondered what your other card was ..." FREEEK!
Last hand .... and it's a ripper. (I took a photo of the cards. Just gotta work out how to get them onto the site!) He's dealt pocket J's. I get AJ off. Flop comes J-A-A. Unreal. I pushed all in and he calls! Classic. Very similar (In fact almost identical to this. Sensational. I feel for this poor bastard! At least he was philosophical!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cixMq97Zo38
That's the sorta stuff you play poker for isn't it?!!
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