Solid showing last night for me in limited multi-table play - 2nd in SnG while simultaneously playing the $1 Stud H/L and HORSE MTTs. Was in top 10 for much of the Stud H/L tourney, then ran into a couple of coolers to cripple me before ultimately busting out a couple of tables prior to the bubble.
HORSE, however, went much different - as in a much deeper run:
PokerStars Tournament #355552327, HORSE
Buy-In: $1.00/$0.10 USD
143 players
Total Prize Pool: $143.00 USD
Dear BKrywko1,
You finished the tournament in 4th place. A USD 12.87 award has been credited to
your Real Money account.
3 straight HORSE tourneys making it to final 2 tables, with my deepest run yet - I will win this tourney one day this year!
Some hand histories posted later...
Friday, January 28, 2011
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Good night of poker last night
So I went to Dino's on Monday night - bubbled the final table when my A-J outflopped Donald's A-Q...but then saw Donald go runner-runner clubs to make his flush and send me packing. I'm guessing this portends a deep run next week, as has been happening after an early exit the last few months.
Played in Nik's Poker Palace league game again last night, and had a much better showing than the previous week. Nursed a relatively short stack all the way to the final table, then got a quick double up and 2 knockouts....ultimately busted out 5th when A-10 couldn't improve over 6-6. As I've said before, great group of guys to play with, which ultimately makes for a great league.
While playing the Tuesday league game, played in my WBCOOP satellite, and managed to qualify for the main event on Sunday for finishing in the Top 200. For getting 153rd and higher (138th, I think), I also got a $11 SCOOP ticket to use later on this year. I may take a second crack in the PLO H/L tourney at 10pm tonight - otherwise my ticket goes to waste. Let the Euro donkfest commence!
For some reason my HH option on Stars did not have the box checked to save my HHs to my hard drive, so no real hands to post here. I'll try to rundown as best I can how it went. 1st hour saw me double my chips playing basic ABC poker...ho hum. Got to the 2nd hour and realized that I was "outside the number" as far as positioning goes...wanted to at least make main event, and get $11 SCOOP ticket, so I treated this as nothing more than a satellite from here on out.
Down to 203, laid down Q-Q in the BB when 2 big stacks immediately before me tangled with each other. If we were down to 199, I insta-call here, but knowing the within 2 hands the "sit-outs" would be gone, I put this hand down. Of course, you know what flops out: 9-Q-9...with K-J ultimately pwing 7-7 (?) when a J hit on the river, eliminating a player. Ummmm, yeah - satellite action, it's FAAAAAAAAAANTASTIC - I love this game!
Cleared the bubble about 45 minutes later for the $11 SCOOP tickets - time to donk it up and try to get some chips if I want to get a $16.50 or higher SCOOP ticket. Shove in SB with A-2 against shorty in BB...who instacalls with A-J, oops. Next hand, on the button, put my last 1700 into the middle with 5-4, BB (at 500/1000) calls me solely for flyswatting reasons with 6-4 (@#%@!~), and his turned 6 ends my tourney. Did the minimum of what I wanted, so good work there.
Played a couple of Fifty50 SnGs at micro-levels and cashed in them...seems simpler than the double-or-nothing tourneys, with more potential payout. If you haven't seen them, you get your buy-in back when half the players are gone, but then the other half of the prize pool is paid out proportionate to the chips you have remaining. Big stacks, obviously, get more coin than short stacks...but I found you don't have to be uber-aggressive to make some coin in these games. I think I found a new game to play for a while here.
Played in Nik's Poker Palace league game again last night, and had a much better showing than the previous week. Nursed a relatively short stack all the way to the final table, then got a quick double up and 2 knockouts....ultimately busted out 5th when A-10 couldn't improve over 6-6. As I've said before, great group of guys to play with, which ultimately makes for a great league.
While playing the Tuesday league game, played in my WBCOOP satellite, and managed to qualify for the main event on Sunday for finishing in the Top 200. For getting 153rd and higher (138th, I think), I also got a $11 SCOOP ticket to use later on this year. I may take a second crack in the PLO H/L tourney at 10pm tonight - otherwise my ticket goes to waste. Let the Euro donkfest commence!
For some reason my HH option on Stars did not have the box checked to save my HHs to my hard drive, so no real hands to post here. I'll try to rundown as best I can how it went. 1st hour saw me double my chips playing basic ABC poker...ho hum. Got to the 2nd hour and realized that I was "outside the number" as far as positioning goes...wanted to at least make main event, and get $11 SCOOP ticket, so I treated this as nothing more than a satellite from here on out.
Down to 203, laid down Q-Q in the BB when 2 big stacks immediately before me tangled with each other. If we were down to 199, I insta-call here, but knowing the within 2 hands the "sit-outs" would be gone, I put this hand down. Of course, you know what flops out: 9-Q-9...with K-J ultimately pwing 7-7 (?) when a J hit on the river, eliminating a player. Ummmm, yeah - satellite action, it's FAAAAAAAAAANTASTIC - I love this game!
Cleared the bubble about 45 minutes later for the $11 SCOOP tickets - time to donk it up and try to get some chips if I want to get a $16.50 or higher SCOOP ticket. Shove in SB with A-2 against shorty in BB...who instacalls with A-J, oops. Next hand, on the button, put my last 1700 into the middle with 5-4, BB (at 500/1000) calls me solely for flyswatting reasons with 6-4 (@#%@!~), and his turned 6 ends my tourney. Did the minimum of what I wanted, so good work there.
Played a couple of Fifty50 SnGs at micro-levels and cashed in them...seems simpler than the double-or-nothing tourneys, with more potential payout. If you haven't seen them, you get your buy-in back when half the players are gone, but then the other half of the prize pool is paid out proportionate to the chips you have remaining. Big stacks, obviously, get more coin than short stacks...but I found you don't have to be uber-aggressive to make some coin in these games. I think I found a new game to play for a while here.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Monday Night Madness at Dino's
MLK Day was meant to be a busy day at work, but somehow I was able to get out of the office in time to make my weekly poker game at Dino's the other night. Looking sharp, as always, this time in my orange shirt, black and orange tie...always good for a few compliments from the ladies there.
We had 20-22 players this week, including Jeanette (friend/acquaintance of Andy from World Tavern Poker), who's quite the talkative one at the tables...but a welcome addition to the game.
Opening table was (left to right) me, Jim (Wayne-O's brother), Harry (in a rare appearance due to having night off due to government holiday), Jeanette, and Volcano Ron. Picked up a couple of pots early to go from 2400 to 3000 by end of 25/50 level, including outflopping Harry's big ace with 8-7 (2 pair)...I believe that hand led to me getting my first knockout of the night soon after the 50/100 level started.
Harry limped under the gun, and folded to me in SB and looking at QQ. I did my standard raise of 3BB to 300, and I think Harry was just frustrated with me pushing the table around, and felt he was card-dead...so he reraised to 1000. I figured at worst that I was in a coin-flip when we got it in the middle, I min-raised him all-in, which got a call with....A-9....what? Knowing that Harry usually plays pretty solid, this surprised me. Hit my set on the flop, avoided the runner-runner suckout for the straight, and I'm up to 5500 chips early on.
Pretty much held steady with my chip threw his chips at me after I showed trips, pissed at the suckout...this is why you don't let me get free cards, yo! At some level all of this amused me, but at a bigger level it was annoying...remember, win with class, lose with class!
Got to final table, and I'm sitting at a comfortable 7500 chips - didn't need to get involved in too many hands requiring thought until I was 4-handed...where I decided to call off half my chips to Dan with my pair 3s to his flush, thanks to another stellar read by me . Some days your reads are right, some days, errrr, not so much...and today was one of them.
Shove K-Q into Cheryl's A-Q and hit my king on the flop to double up....then after losing a couple of blinds I doubled through Dan when my 8's flopped a set, then boated on the turn. Soon after, I took Cheryl out when my suited Brunson flopped a flush...which made for an easy call when Cheryl shoved with bottom-pair and a flush draw that was, alas, only a 9-high draw. 9-high flush draws are usually useless when someone already holds a 10-high made flush, heh.
Dan and I finally got Jovan-Donk to "see the light" after about 20 minutes of discussion re: betting into dry side pots - I maintain there are times when it's advantageous to bet into it as a semi-bluff or even a bluff...but usually it's a dumb idea to do it unless you have a big hand. Soon after the light was seen, Jovan's night was done when my K-high took him out one hand after Dan crippled him.
Dan's arguably the best player in this game, so I knew it was going to be tough beating him. Unfortunately, I didn't help myself by making a couple bad calls/plays when he had big hands...I think Dan mentioning I had a couple of tells threw me off a lot there, but that would be making excuses for his good play/my bad play.
Final hand ended as a result of a brain-fart. Dan flopped a boat (10s over 6's), and played it beautifully. I called Dan's shove on the river thinking that I had made a flush...until I realized that, OOOOOOPS, there's only 3 clubs out there, not 4 like I had thought. Obviously, even if I have the flush I am done here - but if I realized that I had, what, only 2 pair, I can get away from the hand.
Without telling me exactly what my main tell is, Dan pretty much told me afterwards what my tell is (Thanks, sir!) - something to work on in future weeks here. I'll gladly take 2nd and another bottle of wine that I won't drink - let's bring on the final, already!
We had 20-22 players this week, including Jeanette (friend/acquaintance of Andy from World Tavern Poker), who's quite the talkative one at the tables...but a welcome addition to the game.
Opening table was (left to right) me, Jim (Wayne-O's brother), Harry (in a rare appearance due to having night off due to government holiday), Jeanette, and Volcano Ron. Picked up a couple of pots early to go from 2400 to 3000 by end of 25/50 level, including outflopping Harry's big ace with 8-7 (2 pair)...I believe that hand led to me getting my first knockout of the night soon after the 50/100 level started.
Harry limped under the gun, and folded to me in SB and looking at QQ. I did my standard raise of 3BB to 300, and I think Harry was just frustrated with me pushing the table around, and felt he was card-dead...so he reraised to 1000. I figured at worst that I was in a coin-flip when we got it in the middle, I min-raised him all-in, which got a call with....A-9....what? Knowing that Harry usually plays pretty solid, this surprised me. Hit my set on the flop, avoided the runner-runner suckout for the straight, and I'm up to 5500 chips early on.
Pretty much held steady with my chip threw his chips at me after I showed trips, pissed at the suckout...this is why you don't let me get free cards, yo! At some level all of this amused me, but at a bigger level it was annoying...remember, win with class, lose with class!
Got to final table, and I'm sitting at a comfortable 7500 chips - didn't need to get involved in too many hands requiring thought until I was 4-handed...where I decided to call off half my chips to Dan with my pair 3s to his flush, thanks to another stellar read by me . Some days your reads are right, some days, errrr, not so much...and today was one of them.
Shove K-Q into Cheryl's A-Q and hit my king on the flop to double up....then after losing a couple of blinds I doubled through Dan when my 8's flopped a set, then boated on the turn. Soon after, I took Cheryl out when my suited Brunson flopped a flush...which made for an easy call when Cheryl shoved with bottom-pair and a flush draw that was, alas, only a 9-high draw. 9-high flush draws are usually useless when someone already holds a 10-high made flush, heh.
Dan and I finally got Jovan-Donk to "see the light" after about 20 minutes of discussion re: betting into dry side pots - I maintain there are times when it's advantageous to bet into it as a semi-bluff or even a bluff...but usually it's a dumb idea to do it unless you have a big hand. Soon after the light was seen, Jovan's night was done when my K-high took him out one hand after Dan crippled him.
Dan's arguably the best player in this game, so I knew it was going to be tough beating him. Unfortunately, I didn't help myself by making a couple bad calls/plays when he had big hands...I think Dan mentioning I had a couple of tells threw me off a lot there, but that would be making excuses for his good play/my bad play.
Final hand ended as a result of a brain-fart. Dan flopped a boat (10s over 6's), and played it beautifully. I called Dan's shove on the river thinking that I had made a flush...until I realized that, OOOOOOPS, there's only 3 clubs out there, not 4 like I had thought. Obviously, even if I have the flush I am done here - but if I realized that I had, what, only 2 pair, I can get away from the hand.
Without telling me exactly what my main tell is, Dan pretty much told me afterwards what my tell is (Thanks, sir!) - something to work on in future weeks here. I'll gladly take 2nd and another bottle of wine that I won't drink - let's bring on the final, already!
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Good impluse move...Friday madness at charity poker
Been working a ton of hours at main job the last couple of weeks (last day off was January 2 - next day off is next Friday, the 21st), so the poker playing has been lacking. The limited time I am playing online, still on the bad side of variance in SnGs, although cash games are going alright...me thinks there is a trend there.
Worked my basic 11-12 hours on Friday, then at 8 headed home, but was trying to decide if I wanted to play in Four Aces 9pm $35 tourney...after hemming and hawing the entire 30 minutes from downtown Detroit to Roseville, I decided to play.
Felt very comfortable at this table from the get-go (58 players), as I was able to see a lot of flops for cheap - whether or not I was hitting on them wasn't necessarily important, because I was able to gather some reads/tells on a few players that would come in handy later on.
Lost about 1/4 of 20K starting stack, much of it when a lady UTG with A-3 limp-called my 3-bet of K-K, and flopped an ace...then told her husband, who wasn't playing, what a great call she made, heh. That's poker...annoying, but part of the game. I took a couple of blinds, then got a loose-passive calling station to pay my A-Q off with her Q-3 when we both flopped a queen, and I get over 24K after this hand.
My big hand that helped set me for a good run happened late at the 100/200 level. Popped to 800 with 9-9 in MP, and got 4 callers. After a flop of K-2-2, checked around to me - feeler bet of 2,200 got 1 caller, and at this point I am about 95% certain I am beat. Luckily, the other player in the hand game me a chance to take a free card when he checked the turn, and the money card of 9 hits the river to give me my boat. With about 8.5K in the pot, and me knowing my opponent paired his King, I am almost certain any bet is going to be called, so I bet out 8K, which gets the attention of a few players at the table. After hemming and hawing for a minute, player makes the crying call and turns over K-10...and is shocked (along with rest of the table) to see me turn over 9-9. Huge pot gets me to 40K, and looking good when the break comes in 20 minutes.
The next round is rags, and the right before the break the craziness ensues. I raise in late position (300/600) to 2.2K with A-J...just really hoping to take down the blinds, but get 4 callers. Flop is 9-2-J (2 hearts), and after it's checked around to me I bet out 5K - this gets 2 people to put the rest of their chips in the middle, then a raise of 1.3K from SB comes. The BB asks he can raise, or if he can only call...based on rule BB and I can only call. I am pretty sure I am ahead, and 2 people are drawing to flush/straight, and the others have flush draws...so I don't like my chances.
Luckily for me, BB and I end up checking it down, and I feel lucky to get out cheap when BB rolls over his flush that he made on the turn, and eliminates 3 players...2nd best hand for me, and I miss out on a huge pot.
After the break the player I hit my boat on was outside bitching to his buddies about the hand...I like being on this end of the "bad beat" story, that's for sure. Mike (BB from previous) hand were talking shop, so to speak, and after he asked why I bet so much with a boat on the river, the conversation went like this:
"Because I knew I'd get a call"
"That's it? You didn't think he'd fold for that much?"
"Do you think that dude can fold 2 pair there?"
I got a laugh and shake of the head that said, "But of course, duh!" Mike stayed away from me at the tables the rest of night - gotta love a little respect once in a while.
Get back from the break, and just played pretty steady poker with the rather crappy cards I was dealing with, and got my one knockout of the night when my A-Q took out a shorty, and won a nice side-pot when a loose-passive player limp-called my pre-flop 3-bet with A-2 and folded after my flop bet. Sitting at about 60K in chips here.
Watch some craziness happen before the 2nd break, watch us get down to 15 players...and then make 2 pretty good laydowns considering the stage of the tournament we were at. Laid down 7-7 and A-K facing early-position all-ins from tight players, and was feeling good seeing 9-9 and A-A flipped up as other players doubled these players up. The problem with me calling here was that I was at risk of busting out, and figuring that I was behind, decided to wait for other opportunities.
Started playing the final table bubble with more aggression, and chipped up to 105K - just under the chip average. With blinds at 10K/20K in a couple of hands, time to look for a double-up. We did a mini-chip so 6th-10th would get their $35 back, and action was on. Before I was required to play a hand, watched 3 players bust out. First 2 hands in the blinds were winners after taking them down post-flop, and soon I was sitting at 165K. After 2 players busted to get us past the original money bubble, the chip leader (with almost 500K) wanted to get out of them, and proposed a 5-way even chop.
I am not the biggest fan of chops, but I am not a big opponent of them - and quickly decided (well, at least after the other 4 players were for the chop) that guaranteed me the equivalent of 2nd place money was good enough for me. $240 for a $35 buy-in is a process I'm happy to repeat again and again.
Not often that I get to go an entire tournament without ever being at risk of elimination at any time during the tournament...whatever my problems are in my online game, they're not there in my live game, for sure.
Worked my basic 11-12 hours on Friday, then at 8 headed home, but was trying to decide if I wanted to play in Four Aces 9pm $35 tourney...after hemming and hawing the entire 30 minutes from downtown Detroit to Roseville, I decided to play.
Felt very comfortable at this table from the get-go (58 players), as I was able to see a lot of flops for cheap - whether or not I was hitting on them wasn't necessarily important, because I was able to gather some reads/tells on a few players that would come in handy later on.
Lost about 1/4 of 20K starting stack, much of it when a lady UTG with A-3 limp-called my 3-bet of K-K, and flopped an ace...then told her husband, who wasn't playing, what a great call she made, heh. That's poker...annoying, but part of the game. I took a couple of blinds, then got a loose-passive calling station to pay my A-Q off with her Q-3 when we both flopped a queen, and I get over 24K after this hand.
My big hand that helped set me for a good run happened late at the 100/200 level. Popped to 800 with 9-9 in MP, and got 4 callers. After a flop of K-2-2, checked around to me - feeler bet of 2,200 got 1 caller, and at this point I am about 95% certain I am beat. Luckily, the other player in the hand game me a chance to take a free card when he checked the turn, and the money card of 9 hits the river to give me my boat. With about 8.5K in the pot, and me knowing my opponent paired his King, I am almost certain any bet is going to be called, so I bet out 8K, which gets the attention of a few players at the table. After hemming and hawing for a minute, player makes the crying call and turns over K-10...and is shocked (along with rest of the table) to see me turn over 9-9. Huge pot gets me to 40K, and looking good when the break comes in 20 minutes.
The next round is rags, and the right before the break the craziness ensues. I raise in late position (300/600) to 2.2K with A-J...just really hoping to take down the blinds, but get 4 callers. Flop is 9-2-J (2 hearts), and after it's checked around to me I bet out 5K - this gets 2 people to put the rest of their chips in the middle, then a raise of 1.3K from SB comes. The BB asks he can raise, or if he can only call...based on rule BB and I can only call. I am pretty sure I am ahead, and 2 people are drawing to flush/straight, and the others have flush draws...so I don't like my chances.
Luckily for me, BB and I end up checking it down, and I feel lucky to get out cheap when BB rolls over his flush that he made on the turn, and eliminates 3 players...2nd best hand for me, and I miss out on a huge pot.
After the break the player I hit my boat on was outside bitching to his buddies about the hand...I like being on this end of the "bad beat" story, that's for sure. Mike (BB from previous) hand were talking shop, so to speak, and after he asked why I bet so much with a boat on the river, the conversation went like this:
"Because I knew I'd get a call"
"That's it? You didn't think he'd fold for that much?"
"Do you think that dude can fold 2 pair there?"
I got a laugh and shake of the head that said, "But of course, duh!" Mike stayed away from me at the tables the rest of night - gotta love a little respect once in a while.
Get back from the break, and just played pretty steady poker with the rather crappy cards I was dealing with, and got my one knockout of the night when my A-Q took out a shorty, and won a nice side-pot when a loose-passive player limp-called my pre-flop 3-bet with A-2 and folded after my flop bet. Sitting at about 60K in chips here.
Watch some craziness happen before the 2nd break, watch us get down to 15 players...and then make 2 pretty good laydowns considering the stage of the tournament we were at. Laid down 7-7 and A-K facing early-position all-ins from tight players, and was feeling good seeing 9-9 and A-A flipped up as other players doubled these players up. The problem with me calling here was that I was at risk of busting out, and figuring that I was behind, decided to wait for other opportunities.
Started playing the final table bubble with more aggression, and chipped up to 105K - just under the chip average. With blinds at 10K/20K in a couple of hands, time to look for a double-up. We did a mini-chip so 6th-10th would get their $35 back, and action was on. Before I was required to play a hand, watched 3 players bust out. First 2 hands in the blinds were winners after taking them down post-flop, and soon I was sitting at 165K. After 2 players busted to get us past the original money bubble, the chip leader (with almost 500K) wanted to get out of them, and proposed a 5-way even chop.
I am not the biggest fan of chops, but I am not a big opponent of them - and quickly decided (well, at least after the other 4 players were for the chop) that guaranteed me the equivalent of 2nd place money was good enough for me. $240 for a $35 buy-in is a process I'm happy to repeat again and again.
Not often that I get to go an entire tournament without ever being at risk of elimination at any time during the tournament...whatever my problems are in my online game, they're not there in my live game, for sure.
Friday, January 14, 2011
It's that time again!
I have registered to play in the PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker! The WBCOOP is a free online Poker tournament open to all Bloggers, so register on WBCOOP to play.
Registration code: XXXXXX 495920
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