Advice.....

.....from you poor suckers who mite have stumbled onto my blog! (Thanx btw!)

I'm thinking of starting a 'broader' poker career.... i.e. starting to learn the variants involved in HORSE! The reason being that Omaha has really helped me look at hands in a different way. I mean it can't hurt my Hold'em game now can it? Or can it?!

Anyway, is there a site or similar which can not only clue me into the rules of the HORSE variants I don't know, and where I can donk around learning?! HORSE is barely known or understood here in Oz, as far as I know.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated!

It's a long weekend here in Western Australia this weekend. (Queen's Bday I believe, which I'll take, but I'm for an Aussie republic, so I don't really care for it or her!) It's also the start of the school holidays for the kids, and it's AFL Grand Final tomorrow at the MCG. Geelong Cats versus Port Adelaide Power.

Go Geelong! They haven't won a flag since the mid 60's and they finished on top of the ladder after the 'home and away' season, so they would be deserving!

Prediction. Cats by 47 pts.

Add to FUCKING FRIEND!

Jesus! Impromptu Wednesday night shuffle and party with the Deerhunter .... again .... surprize!

He's on a Facebook bender at the moment. I have no idea why. I mean, I'm a 'poker blogger' and that's all I really give a shit about these days! Poker and blogging about it. Nothing else, well ....matters, apart from my gal Suzie, my boy Zac and my work. Anyway, he was on and on and on at me about getting a (fucking) Facebook page, so he could add me to his (fucking) friends list.

Whatever.

My point is that aside from playing poker, he DID NOT SHUT UP ABOUT FUCKING FACEBOOK!

Once again it was a mix of Omaha and Hold'em. Dealers choice. We started off mainly with Hold'em, and I was racking up serious hands on good cards early.

Add to fucking friend .....

About third hand in I was dealt some shite hand in the BB. 8d4s or similar. The Deerhunter just limped and I was just happy to see a flop.

Flop. 7d 9d 10d. Woot! OESFD! Funny. The Deerhunter said out loud "Geez, my 8 of diamonds is looking better now!" Little internal girlie giggle!

Bet, call. Turn - 6d! Double w00t! Bet, call. Meaningless river. Check, check. Show! Ha! My first ever straight flush in a live game! Stoked! He asked why I didn't bet the river, and I said I'm a nice guy! After all, this is the guy who has accused me of being too good and ruthless a couple of weeks ago!

Add to fucking friend .......

Very next hand. I get dealt AKs. Flop. Qs 7s 3s. W00t and w00t again! He had some part of it again and I get paid off again!

Then I go seriously card dead for fucking ages. Got hurt (when I knew I could) with KJ and he had AK. I ended up hitting my J on the turn which gave him the str8, and I knew it immediately. I slowed it down right there but lost some chips prior to that card coming out tho. Shit happens.

Add to fucking friend .....

Dealt KK in the SB and put in a standard PrF raise to which he folded. Fuggit!

No other serious cards to speak of, but still managed to stack him three times before the night was over. The Deerhunter just picks terrible spots to shove, when I'm only going to call him when I'm ahead or drawing two cards to a monster. I turned the nut flush once when he had bottom pair. He was pissed, but I said to him .... "what if I had middle or top pair? You're still dead!!" Mind you, I made some truly sick laydowns when I was probably ahead. Folded trips on a flush board. Dunno if he had it. Folded top 2 on a str8 board. Dunno if he had it! But he didn't stack me once. W00t!

Great night as usual. And in bed by 1am ... ish!

Add to fucking friend!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Stooopid c*nt!

More heads-up fun.

Flicked cards with the Deerhunter a couple more times since my last post (All this since he said he was 'over it'!)

Funnily enough we've thrown a bit of Omaha in the mix, particularly last week. It's always a variant I've enjoyed (as does C-nut) but never really tickled the Deerhunters' fancy. But he really enjoyed the change up. We made it 'dealers choice' as to which game it was. Interesting mix! Hold'em, Omaha, Omaha, Hold'em, Hold'em, Omaha .... Great fun. I play my pocket cards pre a hell of a lot tighter than Deerhunter, but that's probably because he hasn't played a lot of it.

Both times I managed to play some really solid poker. I never really got any cards to work with last week but still seemed to have the Deerhunter's measure. He's always competitive, and knows how to play, but I just seemed to pop him at the right time, and put the pressure on at the right time.

Oh, and here's something I forgot to mention.

We've stopped 'showing'! He said (and rightly so) that he doesn't want his decisions validated. It's very very weird tho, especially when you've been showing for so long. In fact there were still times when I'd accidently flip over my cards!

Wednesday just gone, we did pretty much the same again, minus as many hands of Omaha. The Deerhunter was a veritable card rack! Jesus. The amount of massive cards he had was incredible. Pocket pairs galore. Paint sooooted connectors. The whole 'kit and kaboodle'. Quite scarey.

Incredibly we finished the night absolutely dead even. We play with three yellow chips each which count as rebuys. The Deerhunter started out like a maniac, busting me out twice in the first few hours. It was a combination of him racking up the cards like nobody's business and me being card dead and trying to make shit happen with 'not much'. Mind you, he sucked out on me bigtime on one hand. I think I got in waaaaay in front with trips. Jam. Call. He flips over TPTK. I said, you've got a runner runner flush out. And FUCK ME, it comes. Unrooool.

RUNNER RUNNER NUTZZZZZZZ! We did laugh tho. Despite the fact I felt sick to my guts!

The Deerhunter even commented how well I played with sweet fuck all in the way of cards. In fact I'm still amazed that I was able to draw even by nights end, let alone not get annihilated!

Great fun, and already looking forward to the next time!

P.S. Funny how things work out. Discovered that two loose mates (meaning we know them but not very well) play mates games reasonably regularly, with invites to join in anytime we can. Great to feel like we're building a broader circle. Can't wait to get in on them!

P.P.S. Came fifth (630 ppl) in another Aussie Millions qualifier on FT the other night. Frustrating! All in A 10h versus pocket 7s and didn't improve when the shorty. Bugger bugger bugger!

MTT Satellites

Jumped on Full Tilt last night and for something different, tried to freebie satellite into a few tournaments. As I've noted before, my bankroll is non existant, so I figured I'd try my luck at getting one rolling for nothing. Of course, first I'd have to win a satellite, then cash in the tourney itself!

Oh well. Gotta aim high and allow for some trajectory!

Played 4 tourneys. 3 x 630 player turbo SnG and one other one. 300 odd players? Can't remember exactly!

Out of the four, I played very well in three. As most of you would know, the standard of play is abhorently low. In fact it's downright appalling! That's 90% of the problem for a player with half a clue. It's just too easy to be sucked out on by someone who shouldn't even be in a hand.

Part of 'my theory' of MTT poker (and there's really nothing new in this!) is to just play solid poker. Of course, the earlier you build a stack in a turbo event, the better, but to my way of thinking there's no need to go crazy. And that's what most of the donks on FT seem to think you have to do. Wrong! Three words ... PICK YOUR SPOTS. TAG poker all the way.

One tournament, very early ... my pocket Queens went down after a pre flop all-in. Shit happens. It's alright. Unless you spike another Lady, they're just soooo vulnerable.

The other tourneys I did really well and was (generally) happy with my play. I do like the structure of the turbo events. It puts the acid on players to make the most of their cards, and frankly, most of them can't and don't. It doesn't hurt that I got Big Slick (soooooted) in the first hand of one of the tourneys, so I quadrupled up instantly, but I still felt that I picked my spots really succesfully, using many of the tips I've read (thankyou Hoy) on blogs and other sites. Particularly in terms of stealing, weilding a big stack with feeling and playing small pocket pairs smart.

I did run pretty goooot too, which is handy, but it's never going to last the whole way thru. My use of mediocre cards to win the blinds tho still amazes me. I mean, once you're down to the last 200 of 600+ players (read - a lot of the donks are gone) it's such an effective play. That's where A9 - A5, K10 - K7 sooooted, suited connectors and decent offsuit connectors really come into play. You can still get away from them if need be, but they help maintain the action and create the table image that you're not to be fucked with. Thin the field pre .... see a flop ... and re-evaluate. And the bonus... they can hit you HARD, and when they do, you get paid off.

Anyway. To the point. I spent quite a bit of time as chip leader in two of the games. Up to 100k in chips in one and 80k in another. In the 'other' one, I was short stacked for ages, stayed patient, and then went mad about halfway thru, changing it up according to my stack size, got lucky a few times and built up to 70k.

I made the final table of the table where I had the 100+k Stack and finally went out in 8th. I was severely 'hurt' just prior to the final table when I had top two pair against a mediocre stack post flop, and while not exactly slowplaying it, maybe didn't kill the hand early enough. Another case of runner runner took me down to about 50k in chips. In fact I didn't 'fill up' after flopping two pair all night in any of the tournaments! Bloody frustrating! I then got killed With pocket Jacks which made trips on a paired board, and the other guy had a book. He was playing a hand which I never would've have been in there with, after I put in a hefty pre flop raise, but you get that. Still, it sux BALLZ!

The other two tourneys I made it into the top twenty. Once again a paired board was my undoing in one. I just don't (sometimes) give players credit for holding that 2, 3 or 4 when there's a couple on the board. Pocket threes did me in that instance. I'd definitely consider this a leak, and plan to plug it in the immediate future. Or maybe I just need to slow down at the pointy end. I'm sure I'll work it out.

The other tourney end game, I had to shove my pocket fives when short stacked. Called by one player with KJs and he spiked his card. Easy shove by me, easy call by the biggie. Too bad.

Fucking annoying to get so deep in three MTTs and not get the choccies. Still I proved to myself that I do have the potential to run deep in these things, and maybe, earn some $$$ down the track. Until I do though, according to Blinders, I'll be happily wasting my time!

Peace!

I am a victim....

... of my own improvement.

Weird sorta post today.

I haven't made many posts of late coz, well, it's been quiet on the poker front. Aside from the last mates game, it's been either a) a heads up shuffle with the Deerhunter (twice) or stuffing around at the 300/600 level on Full Tilt. I'm currently at 900+k in freebie money, so I'm doing okay. But it's the heads up game with my great mate Deerhunter that has taken a weird turn.

A bit over a week ago, we played and had a great night. We played for maybe four or five hours and partied hard as well. The Deerhunter was getting pretty much nothing in the way of cards, and I was getting better, but not great cards ... and I ended up beating him convincingly. Just making good reads and changing up my style from time to time. It's very important to remember that we play together A LOT. A hell of a lot, and we know each others games 'intimately'. So I 'won' that night, altho I definitely had the better of the cards.

But the last time we did it (Thursday last week?) has created a dilemma.

The Deerhunter basically said I was too good and it wasn't fun anymore.

Now .....

The first point that I want to make is that the title of my blog, The Poker Sponge, wasn't just for the hell of it. My whole reason for starting it was to improve my play, but I don't just want to be a solid player, or a good player. I want to be a fucking DEMON hold'em player. I want to be able to sit down at any table anywhere on the fucking planet and mix it up with whoever happens to be there. That's the aim. I've read Harrington I and II, as well as Doyle's books. I read other blogs almost daily. I sit on my fat arse at work watching Pokertube clips. I am a sponge, and if I wasn't I wouldn't improve.

But ... I didn't want it to come to this.

Here's (sorta) how it panned out. It boiled down to this, but it's hard to describe. I just sorta play. Smart and hard. I make plays for pots. With cards and without. I'm happy to lose chips to find out where I'm at in a hand. I'm happy to lay down 2nd pair or bottom pair if I feel I'm behind. (I feel) I pick my spots really well nowadays. The Deerhunters reaction kind of reinforces it. He was just flabbergasted by the time he said 'enough'.

A few times I laid down 'halfa' hand when he had a better hand. These hands he was banking on winning some chips off me. He admitted as much. I seemed to be raking lots of small to decent pots thru my shrewd play, whereas the ones he'd win didn't eat into my stack. He commented that 'six months ago' I'd go along for the ride in those hands and potentially spew chips. But not anymore.

Another example. A few times he'd limp in with not much. J6 off and hands like that. I'd be holding J8 off, sense weakness, and raise. He'd fold. In fact I can't remember how often it happened, but happened a fair bit and almost every time my read was right. It didn't matter what he had or what I had, almost every time I was in front. My 'kicker sense' is spot on at the moment. And it really got to the poor bastard.

Now in one respect I'm really proud of the fact that someone else whose 'game' I admire has said "You're too good for me". I mean it's one thing to feel you've improved based on your own assessment, but another thing entirely when someone else gives you that exact same feedback. But I'm kinda crushed that the one guy who I love playing with, and he's the only fella that I can play with regularly, doesn't feel that keen anymore!

I'm sure (well, I HOPE) he'll 'get over it' and we'll play sometime down the track again. The fact that I have improved means a hell of a lot to me, but I don't want it to 'ruin' a good thing.