Up and down

Just a quickie before heading to the boozer after work...again!
Been grinding at Party since they started the promo offer 'Winning Hand', many, many others have joined me, so traffic has been good.

Overall I have been losing small amounts here and there during the course of the promo, with a couple of big wins.
The promo bonus has netted me $115 clean, so I'm up to $1600 there, on a $950 deposit.

I'm thinking of making another switch soon as I am without a rakeback site (Mansion, despite its new software, still sucks IMO).
Ladbrokes maybe, not sure yet.
Pretty sure I won't get to $4k by the year end, been putting in some solid sessions but remain hovering around $3.5k.

Work is good so pretty content all round.

Running good

Had a couple of days of work so lots of poker.
My last seven SNGs have yielded 3 2nds and four firsts, and I'm running super hot according to Sharkscope.
Also running well on Party and have won $250 on the cash tables in the last three days. At this rate I may hit $4k by the year end...here's hoping!

Recent Results
GameID Date (GMT) Type EntryFee Profit
69507986 7-Dec-07 11:36 TURBO PL Omaha H/L $3 10 $11.60
69464421 7-Dec-07 01:51 TURBO PL Omaha H/L $3 10 $11.60
69459396 7-Dec-07 00:55 TURBO PL Omaha H/L $3 10 $11.60
69453366 7-Dec-07 00:03 TURBO PL Omaha H/L $3 10 $11.60
69399070 6-Dec-07 13:22 TURBO PL Omaha H/L $3 10 $5.60
69241149 5-Dec-07 00:28 TURBO PL Omaha H/L $3 10 $5.60
69136494 4-Dec-07 00:08 TURBO PL Omaha H/L $3 10 $5.60
68979027 2-Dec-07 13:34 TURBO NL Holdem $11 180 -$12

Very Pwetty graph

The run endeth

My mini-run on the tables is slowly grinding to a halt.
I've lost my mojo to play again after most nights over the past few weeks.
I've run my roll back up to $3.3k, this includes sending my mate $250, so I'm pretending its $3.5k.
No big wins, just grinding at the $50 tables, booking wins here and there.
I've been continuing with Party and Stars, with a bit of FTilt thrown in.
Also been railbirding my crazy gambler mate who has no clue but is playing SNG up to $220!
He was down $1500, then scored a big win on a $69 45 man SNG, and is slowly loosing it all again.
Prob do one more update to close out the year.
Byeee

This game is easy...even when I lose

Had a real yo-yo night last night. Four-tabling on Party again and managed to drop $120 in about an hour, nothing hit, my big pairs didn't stand up and I lost my mojo.
I logged off, had some supper, had a quick lie down and came back feeling ready for the fray, and won back $60. I misplayed a couple of nut hands where looking back I think I could have made some more.
At these levels, against these players, I think I can keep eeking out a profit.

Quick update

Poker going really well at the mo, hope it lasts.
Have managed to get my head around 4-tabling at last, and have won $350 in four days on PartyPoker.
Also up to $500 on Stars.

I have a foolproof system to make money....he-he...i wish. But its going well, fingers crossed it lasts.

Blogger tourney

I have registered to play in the PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker!

This Online Poker Tournament is a No Limit Texas Holdem event exclusive to Bloggers.

Registration code: 1682392

Quick update

It's been a month and I'm still alive and stillkeeping my hand in.
I had a little splurge on FT around the time they handed out the reload bonuses.
I owed a friend some $, deposited $500, transfered him $250 (his first real money deposit) and rolled it back up to $450-odd in the two weeks before the bonus expired.
My friend won't tell me what happened to his roll so I think he lost it!

On Stars I've taken my puny $50 deposit up to $250.

I also have a grand total of $564 in Mansion, where the traffic is frankly a joke. I'll withdraw this once I get round to sending them a copy of my passport.

Speaking of traffic I've been seriously considering taking a punt on Partypoker.
I write about the stock markets and speak to professional investors every day. They constantly talk about unloved stocks, and going against the crowd.
Partypoker is seriously unloved by the market.
It is sitting on 30p but was once a member of the FTSE 100 at 150p.
If you check out Pokerlistings.com, it now sits at no.2 in traffic, having disappeared off the radar following the US gaming ban.

Europeans have flocked to the site and when it makes its next trading update, early next year, it may surprise the market.

The key for Partypoker and many other sites is Asia, and the Chinese.
At the moment, the Chinese are going crazy for the stock market. Millions of dealing a/cs are being opened every day so that ordinary people can take a punt.
Inflation is running at 6% and you get 2% by depositing yr cash in the bank.
This is against a 10% gain EVERY MONTH from the Chinese stock market.

Almost every fund manager I talk to is talkign about a bubble.

It sounds simple but these guys like to gamble and if there is a crash, if the Chinese gambling instinct moves from playing the stock market to playing poker, and if Partypoker can get a slice of the pie, it could grow its earnings exponentially.

Lots of ifs, i know, and there is a danger that the Chinese could chose a homegrown site to play.

But on a one year view, I would hope to at least double my money.

I'm also going to invest in an Africa fund, but that's another story.

Holidays

After three months of non-stop work I am now enjoying a two and a half week break.
I'm spending a weekend at a festival in Ireland at the end of the month and then going to Prague again the following weekend.
I think in the last two days I've played more poker than the previous 2 months altogether.
I decided to deposit $500 into Mansion and have made $78 there in a couple of hours play on the NL tables.
I've also doubled up my mini-$50 deposit on Stars.
I went very deep in their nightly $2.50 +25c tourney last night. There were 3080 entrants and I came 20th!
I was third wth 50 left and was sitting 15th when I busted.
The hand that i went out was one of those i could have got away from but it was getting very frenetic.
I won $30 with 1st getting $1300 so v disappointing to spend four and half hours to come so close.
Came in the top 100 this morning in $1 tourney for pittance.
Now playing the same tourney as last night. 2126 entrants and down to last 450. I'm 88th.
Wish me luck!

Long Time

It's been a long time...too long.
What's been happening to me the past couple of months? Have I given up poker?
I think its fair to say I've seriously cut back but am still playing the odd game.

I have realised gambling is not good for me. When I say gambling, I mean playing medium stakes poker. I enjoy playing low-limit SNGs and cash tables, partly because I know I can beat them, and partly because I don't get pissed off when I lose.

When tilt gets me it is not pretty.

Tilt did get me a while ago and I blew about $500 very quickly. After this I withdraw every cent I had from all the sites, dumped the roll in Neteller and planned to take out the lot. $2,300. Poker career over.

I haven't. It is still sitting in Neteller. But I have put $50 back into PokerStars and I'm playing turbo $3 SNGs. I'm winning and according to Sharkscope my ROI is still in the high 30%.

I'm also enjoying playing again.

Work is brutal. For three weeks my editor was on paternity leave and I have to run the magazine which took a lot out of me. I'm also doing a lot of freelance work.
I just don't have the time to devote myself to the game and grind out a 5bb/hr on $100 tables. Nor do I have the time to sit for six hours and play deep into a tournie.

So $3 and $6 SNG it is. And maybe the odd low limit tournie.
I'll try to update a bit as well!!!

Same again

Two hours play tonight and exactly the same story.
Doubled up playing heads-up on FT, then lost it all against different foes.
Logged out at $285, exactly the same as I started the night.
However I did win another $50 on Stars playing full ring $100 NL and my stack there stands at $2800 now.
I'm v. close to releasing my $150 bonus there too.

Wild n' crazy times

Well not quite. But for the first time in quite a while I felt like gambling a bit.
I was spurred on by three pints and reading a heads-up player's blog who had ambitions for becoming BlueScouse.
Played some $100 heads-up. Doubled up my $40 buy-in after two mins with As.
Then lost a $40 buy-in, then won $15 then lost $90 and then won $90.
All against diff players.
The $90 loss was stupid as I could have stacked him a few hands before but got too cute.
The aggression from the foes was pretty unreal.
Bit of a roller coaster ride and my stack is exactly where it started.
At the same time I won $60 on Stars playing $100 NL full ring.
Was planning a proper update but doing this at work and I have shed loads of stories to write.
GL!

Nice run

My three-hour session on Saturday and it was the first time I managed to managed to win a reasonable amount of dosh for a while.

First this happened...

Seat 1: J-Wheezy` ($49.50 in chips)
Seat 2: ChipSoldier ($23.05 in chips)
Seat 3: Wallerwally ($58.75 in chips)
Seat 4: Kinl69 ($34.60 in chips)
Seat 5: Florkins ($69.60 in chips)
Seat 6: eypaul11 ($41.75 in chips)
Seat 7: QuanticFive ($51.60 in chips)
Seat 8: plurals ($10.75 in chips)
Seat 9: pronts ($47.70 in chips)
J-Wheezy`: posts small blind $0.25
ChipSoldier: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [Jd Qh]
Wallerwally: calls $0.50
QuanticFive: calls $0.50
pronts: calls $0.50
J-Wheezy`: calls $0.25
ChipSoldier: checks
*** FLOP *** [8d Th 9s]
J-Wheezy`: checks
ChipSoldier: checks
Wallerwally: bets $1.50
QuanticFive: calls $1.50
pronts: calls $1.50
J-Wheezy`: folds
ChipSoldier: folds
*** TURN *** [8d Th 9s] [4h]
Wallerwally: bets $2.50
QuanticFive: raises $5.50 to $8
pronts: folds
Wallerwally: calls $5.50
*** RIVER *** [8d Th 9s 4h] [6s]
Wallerwally: bets $15
QuanticFive: raises $15 to $30
Wallerwally: raises $18.75 to $48.75 and is all-in
QuanticFive: calls $11.60 and is all-in
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Wallerwally: shows [Ts 7s] (a straight, Six to Ten)
QuanticFive: shows [Jd Qh] (a straight, Eight to Queen)
QuanticFive collected $103.20 from pot

What a wally...

Then this:

Seat 1: Atze Cavallo ($25.40 in chips)
Seat 2: ChipSoldier ($21.65 in chips)
Seat 5: Florkins ($78.30 in chips)
Seat 6: eypaul11 ($38.75 in chips)
Seat 7: QuanticFive ($101.70 in chips)
Seat 9: pronts ($36.70 in chips)
ahlle will be allowed to play after the button
pronts: posts small blind $0.25
Atze Cavallo: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [Qc Qh]
QuanticFive: raises $1.50 to $2
pronts: calls $1.75
Atze Cavallo: calls $1.50
*** FLOP *** [Td Th Qd] - O yes!
pronts: checks
Atze Cavallo: checks
QuanticFive: checks
*** TURN *** [Td Th Qd] [Qs] - Mummy!
pronts: bets $2
Atze Cavallo: calls $2
QuanticFive: raises $5 to $7
pronts: calls $5
Atze Cavallo: calls $5
*** RIVER *** [Td Th Qd Qs] [Ts]
pronts: bets $15
Atze Cavallo: calls $15
QuanticFive: raises $15 to $30
pronts: calls $12.70 and is all-in
Atze Cavallo: calls $1.40 and is all-in
*** SHOW DOWN ***
QuanticFive: shows [Qc Qh] (four of a kind, Queens)
pronts: mucks hand
QuanticFive collected $22.60 from side pot
Atze Cavallo: mucks hand
QuanticFive collected $73.20 from main pot
Florkins said, "nh!"
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $98.80 Main pot $73.20. Side pot $22.60. | Rake $3
Board [Td Th Qd Qs Ts]
Seat 1: Atze Cavallo (big blind) mucked [Ah Jd]
Seat 7: QuanticFive (button) showed [Qc Qh] and won ($95.80) with four of a kind, Queens
Seat 9: pronts (small blind) mucked [Kd Kh]

No-one had a ten!

Got up to $185 before leaving on $165-ish.
Booked more wins that morning and tonight and I'm now back to a stack on Stars of $2,750, with $300 odd on FT and $19 left in Neteller.

Not much progress really but at least its not dwindling away.
Feel reasonably positive about my $50 game, wish the same could be said for my $100!

$100 tables

I've had a few stabs at the $100 tables since getting back from Monte Carlo.
I was doing well, then lost about $50 last night.
Actually managed to play ten hands in Monaco where I managed to double up on a $50 table with As v Ks.
Other than that just grinding away.

Low limit junkie

A quick update:
Moved up to $100 NL and had to move very quickly back down after getting my arse handed to me again in a big way.
Was way too aggressive, had all my bluffs picked off and lost a big pot with trip ks v trip ks, my j kicker losing to his a.
So went back to the $50 tables and slowly grinded it back up.
I'm still down overall but close now to realising the $150 bonus which should put me back in the black.
I'm off to Monte Carlo of all places on Tuesday through work for five days, so prob no play till then, although i'm taking my laptop so may get some hands in if they have wireless.
GL all!

Small win

Put another $600 in Stars from my Neteller a/c to boost my roll to over $1800.
Two tabled $50 NL and recorded small wins on both. I felted a loose short-stack with Qs v his A9o (nine high flop).
Also made a nice move on another shortstack on another table.
He had caught me stealing with position post flop and had shown down 94o for a bluff.
He was still on tilt having lost a $72 when his slowplayed As got rivered by 9s and a str8.
I found Ako in the BB and just checked. Only one caller, my tilting foe.
Flop A,K,J - basically a beauty.
I check, he bets $1, I put it to $3 (almost exactly what he did to me earlier), he pauses, pushes, I insta-call and win another $30 pot (He had j9o).
Anyway, gotta get back to work but I made about $35 in about 90 mins.

Moving up postponed

Got back later than I thought last night so only had about half an hours play.
Also was only able to deposit $600 into Stars, the top of the daily limit.
Will bung another load in tonight and $300 in the day after to make my $1500 limit for the week.
This should be enough to allow me to play the bigger tables.
The play I did have last night saw me make about $3 profit!

I need to move up

After a decent week on the tables and another load of wins on Sunday I feel I've gotta little bit of confidence back.
With my roll I need to at least be playing $50 and $100 NL, but I was loathe to risk my stack.
Tonight the plan is quit being a puss and put my $2,000 odd in Neteller to some use.
Its going in Stars to bolster the $675 I have sitting there so I can play some proper poker.
I built my stack playing $50 and $100 tables on FT since November 2006 before I started going backwards.
I know now after playing the $25 for the past month that I can beat this level easily, and I know from Pokertracker that I can beat $50 and break even on the $100 tables.
I will have another shot at the title this week. Self-motivation speech over.
Wish me luck!

Drunk again

Got home pretty pissed late on Friday night and still managed to win about $50.
4-tabled, $25 tables and logged off at 3am up $40 on one, $15 on two others and down a buy-in on the fourth.
Also won a few bucks playing limit HORSE.
This morning I logged on and tried three tournies - Sat morning seems to be the only time I can dedicate five hours to playing at a stretch.
Just busted out 40th in a $5 rebuy tournie for a $26.10 - a whole $1.10 profit on my investment.
Crashed out of $5 tournie on FT out the money earlier.
Gonna get some food now!

Wine and poker

Got home last night having shared 2 and a 1/2 bottles of red wine with a contact and thought it a good idea to play some poker.
It was.
Then woke up very early this morning needing some water, decided to play some more.
Doubled up again in 40 mins.
Up $90 in about 2 hours, most of which I was half cut, on $25 tables.
This game is easy!
Here are some hand histories:

How to double up in ten minutes!
HAND 1

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [4d 6c]
EP raises $0.25 to $0.50
MP calls $0.50
CO calls $0.50
QuanticFive in BB calls $0.25
*** FLOP *** [Qh 5d 3c]
QuanticFive: bets $1
EP calls $1
MP calls $1
Ken7Card: folds
*** TURN *** [Qh 5d 3c] [7h]
QuanticFive: bets $2.25
EP raises $2.25 to $4.50
MP folds
QuanticFive: raises $5.75 to $10.25
EP calls $5.75
*** RIVER *** [Qh 5d 3c 7h] [Js]
QuanticFive: bets $7.25
EP calls $7.25
*** SHOW DOWN ***
QuanticFive: shows [4d 6c] (a straight, Three to Seven)
EP mucks (7s,7d) (Unlucky sir - left him with $4, should've taken it all)
QuanticFive collected $38.20 from pot

HAND 2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [Kh Ad]
UTG calls $0.25
QuanticFive: raises $0.75 to $1
MP calls $1
MP2 calls $1
UTG calls $0.75
*** FLOP *** [Kc 7d Ac] - Bingo!
UTG checks
QuanticFive: bets $3
MP folds
MP2 calls $3
UTG folds
*** TURN *** [Kc 7d Ac] [9c] - Scary flush but must fight on...
QuanticFive: bets $2.75
Winestone: calls $2.60 and is all-in
*** RIVER *** [Kc 7d Ac 9c] [5d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
QuanticFive: shows [Kh Ad] (two pair, Aces and Kings)
QuanticFive collected $14.80 from pot
MP2 mucked [As 4h] ...erm...

AND LAST NIGHT.
HOLE CARDS
Dealt to QuanticFive [Qc Qh]
EP QuanticFive: raises $0.75 to $1
SB calls $0.90
BB calls $0.75
*** FLOP *** [4d 5s 5d]
SB bets $2
BB folds
QuanticFive: calls $2
*** TURN *** [4d 5s 5d] [6h]
SB bets $5
QuanticFive: calls $5
*** RIVER *** [4d 5s 5d 6h] [9h]
SB bets $5.15 and is all-in
QuanticFive: calls $5.15
*** SHOW DOWN ***
SB shows [Qs Jh] (a pair of Fives)
QuanticFive: shows [Qc Qh] (two pair, Queens and Fives)
QuanticFive collected $26 from pot
SB said, "WOW" - He must've been drunker than me.

Sometimes you need to give up, or BET BIGGER

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [Js As]
EP raises $0.75 to $1
QuanticFive: calls $1
*** FLOP *** [3h 5d Jc]
EP bets $1.25
QuanticFive: calls $1.25 - Don't believe you
*** TURN *** [3h 5d Jc] [2s]
EP bets $3
QuanticFive: calls $3 - Still don't believe you
*** RIVER *** [3h 5d Jc 2s] [9h]
EP bets $3.50
QuanticFive: calls $3.50 - O, please be lying...
*** SHOW DOWN ***
isoteck: shows [Qh Kh] (high card King) - yep
QuanticFive: shows [Js As] (a pair of Jacks)
QuanticFive collected $17 from pot

You need luck in this game
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [Ah Th]
EP raises $0.50 to $0.75
MP calls $0.75
QuanticFive: calls $0.75
SB calls $0.65
*** FLOP *** [Td 5h Ac] - looking good.
SB checks
EP bets $3.50 - I have you beat son
MP folds
QuanticFive: calls $3.50
SB raises $8.30 to $11.80 and is all-in - But maybe not u!
$teveOH: raises $1.55 to $13.35 and is all-in
QuanticFive: calls $9.85
*** TURN *** [Td 5h Ac] [Kh]
*** RIVER *** [Td 5h Ac Kh] [3h] - NOW I HAVE THE NUTS!
*** SHOW DOWN ***
$teveOH: shows [Qd As] (a pair of Aces)
QuanticFive: shows [Ah Th] (a flush, Ace high)
QuanticFive collected $2.95 from side pot
ericbaasch: mucks hand (Ts, Tc) - unlucky sir.
QuanticFive collected $36.75 from main pot

WTF, I can lose...

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [Jd Js]
QuanticFive: raises $0.75 to $1
SB calls $0.90
*** FLOP *** [Qc Ts Kd]
SB checks
QuanticFive: bets $1.50
SB raises $3.65 to $5.15 and is all-in
QuanticFive: calls $3.65
*** TURN *** [Qc Ts Kd] [6d]
*** RIVER *** [Qc Ts Kd 6d] [4s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
SB shows [Tc Td] (three of a kind, Tens)
QuanticFive: mucks hand

Yes, I can lose...
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [Kh Kd]
MP raises $0.75 to $1
QuanticFive: calls $1
BB calls $0.75
*** FLOP *** [3d 8s 7d]
BB checks
ZenTrickster: bets $2
QuanticFive: calls $2
*** TURN *** [3d 8s 7d] [6h]
MP bets $4.50
QuanticFive: raises $5.25 to $9.75
MP raises $13 to $22.75 and is all-in
QuanticFive: calls $9 and is all-in
*** RIVER *** [3d 8s 7d 6h] [Ts]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
MP shows [8c 8d] (three of a kind, Eights)
QuanticFive: mucks hand - RELOAD!
ZenTrickster collected $42.40 from pot - lucky puppy

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [6s 6c]
UTG raises $0.75 to $1 - Same guy who won a smallish pot with Ts v my Js earlier
QuanticFive: calls $1
*** FLOP *** [6h 2d As] - I WANT MY MONEY BACK
UTG bets $1.25
QuanticFive: calls $1.25
*** TURN *** [6h 2d As] [3c]
UTG bets $2
QuanticFive: raises $7.25 to $9.25
UTG calls $5.65 and is all-in
*** RIVER *** [6h 2d As 3c] [2h]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
UTG shows [Kc Ks] (two pair, Kings and Deuces) - terrible call
QuanticFive: shows [6s 6c] (a full house, Sixes full of Deuces)

So there you have some wins and losses.
The hands don't tell the whole story and I won some other pots too. But the game is great when you're winning!

losing run

My last post seems to have disappeared into cyberspace although it appeared on bloglines.
Being running bad last couple of days, mainly due to my loose play.
To be honest I'm not enjoying the poker at the mo and am not treating it, or my roll seriously.
Hopefully have something positive to say soon!

Lack of posts, lack of play

The title sums it up really.
I've been playing here and there, mainly on the weekend, and success has been fairly limited.
My roll on Stars is moving between $650 and $750 as I try to reach a 2,250 FPP target to release a $150 bonus.
It stands at around 900 at the mo.
Cash play has been solid but I've lost most of my money taking shots at various $20/$30 buy-in tournies.
The latest saw me get down to the last 200 with 150 paying on a $24,000 tourney before crashing out to a rivered flush, against my top pr, and then a four flush with me holding 10s and my foe holding 6s.
Will keep trying these, just need a bit of luck here and there.

I have $2,200 still sitting in Neteller, accumulating interest for them (kind soul that I am) and $300 on FTP, so my combined roll is over $3,000.

Hope to play a bit this week and I'll try to post some interesting hand histories soon.

Hit n Run

Made another $20 last night, three tabling $25 NL on Stars.
Only played for 30 mins before the tables tightened right up again after the weak players busted.
When I look at table selection, I'm more bothered about average % flop seen, and try and sit at tables with over 35%.
It works well but the churn on the low limit tables mean you can very quickly end up on a table of tight, nut players (All from E Europe tee hee :))

+

Work do's tonite and tomorrow so prob not much play until Thurs.

+

Despite being totally skint, I should get paid a fair whack on Friday after my promotion so I'm gonna hang tough on my bankroll and leave it in Neteller.
I'm tempted by the Mansion Poker $1,000 deposit bonus, which is paid in $10 increments.
Soooo, tentative plans are to play Stars until I clear the $150 bonus, 1/3 of the way through so far, before moving a chunk over to Mansion.

OK, Ta-ra for now

Decent weekend

I had a good weekend of poker - the first time I can say this in what feels like a long time!
My win-rate was not fantastic, but I felt in control, calm and made some really good plays.
I only played on Stars to take advantage of the double FPP points on offer and try and scoop some cash in their giveaways.
Played $25 and $50 NL, mainly three tabling, and won about $150 over the 2 days.
I was a new player so nobody had a read on me and I felt really good about my play.
I called down bluffs, made some bluffs, extracted maximum chips when I could and laid down some big hands.
I think the redeposit bonus and overlays on offer at the mo on Stars is making for some very juicy cash tables.
Lots of new Europeans who don't have a clue.
One thing I did pick up over the weekend that I've been thinking about - Eastern Europeans play TIGHT!
Having lived there for four years I know the average salary is rubbish and they are the biggest misers out there. The classic Czech family will think nothing of driving to Croatia with their boot packed full of food and not spend a penny when they're there on essentials.
Look at the Poles in the London, working 80 hours a week and spending NOTHING.
The Russians are gamblers, but the Czechs, Poles, Slovenians, Hungarians that I've been seeing on the site play super-tight.
If one re-raises you, think long and hard about calling.
In my experience, the western Euros, esp Scandis, play looser and their range is bigger.
This is a huge generalisation, but I truly believe that national characteristics make a difference when playing.

*

On Saturday I went very deep in a $8 rebuy tournie where I managed to get to the top 40 using only one rebuy and one add-on, when other players were buying in like crazy.
I thought I was on a for a big score but busted with Js v As against a similar stack just outside the payouts (135 paid, about 880 started).
I replayed that hand many times afterwards and I'm not sure I could have got away from it. Flop was low, foe was v aggressive, so it would have gone all-in whatever happened. Sometimes the luck is against you.

*

I'm seriously considering withdraw the rest of my stack in Neteller.
I have $750 now on Stars with $150 bonus pending, $250 on FullTilt and this is enough for me to play $25 NL and $50 NL, as well as buyinto some tourneys up to $30.
I have $2,100 left in Neteller and I'm SKINT! Sooo tempting.

OK, back to work, GL at the tables!

Stars play

My play this month has dwindled right down, partly due to an effort to cut down starring at laptop screen all evening and partly due to the annoyingly addictive game Oblivion (!)
I played a little over the weekend but lost more than I won.
I have deposited $600 at Stars to take advantage of their 10bn hand offer of a 25% bonus. Down about $60 already to $630 there, most from a $33 loss on a $11 re-buy tournie.
My FT a/c sits at $300 and change which means I have $2,900 now in poker winnings.
I'm less motivated to grind it out at cash games at the mo, so will continue with my tournie strategy on both sites and hopefully score another big win soon.
Of the last three tournies, I've busted out 2x through lack of focus/losing patience - bad beats I can take, but busting through my own stupidity is the pits.

Patience

Patience is key to playing solid poker, something that I normally have in bucketloads.
In tourneys especially the winning player has no problems folding hand after hand, waiting for the right moment to show aggression and build his stack.
On Saturday morning, I went deep again in another of those $24+$2 tourneys which had a prize pool of around $7,500.
With 300+ players, I managed to stay in the top ten throughout most of the tourney and made it to the final two tables lying 6th.
I then busted out in one orbit, the final hand pushing 85o (WTF!) from the SB against the table bully who called with a7o.
This hand stayed with me for the rest of the weekend. I was sitting solid and blew my whole tourney on a crazy steal.
Instead of winnning several hundred, I ended up with $55 for a small profit.
Patience!
Anyway, I made another $75 playing $50 NL, to build my stack further.
My new PC allows me to four-table using the new tile facility on FT pretty easily.

Still don't know where to put my $2,500 from Neteller but I will find a new home for it soon.

No posts, no play

The lack of posts reflects the lack of play I'm afraid.
My new laptop has opened up a world of opportunity for me. My internet is superfast, I can download quicker and play the latest games.
At the moment the gambling urges have receded somewhat.
I've withdrawn all but $200 of my FT cash to neteller and will deposit bankroll somewhere soon.

Nasty surprise

A rather horrible thing happened to me this weekend.

My Full Tilt a/c got closed!

The reason: dual accounts.

I first played on Full Tilt back in 2005, before this blog started, when I was playing very low limits.
I deposited $200 and would withdraw any decent profits, say over $50 or $100.
I ended up closing the account after my initial bonus was up.

I then discovered rakeback. And started a new a/c under a different name and a different email address in November 2006.
I stress I NEVER again touched my old a/c...until a couple of weeks ago.

I made the big mistake of logging on, twice, when Full Tilt were offering a one-off bonus. I didn't play but the fact that I logged on using the same IP address must have triggered an alert somewhere at FT.

After a couple of dodgy plays I decided to make a big withdrawl from my newer QuanticFive a/c.
First I tried $2,000, which was voided, again $2,000, then $1,000 - both voided.
I queried and received an email saying I had been using two a/c's and the newer one, which had $2,500, a $26 token and 12,000FTPoints had been closed!

For a short while, about five minutes, I actually thought I had lost the money but the last paragraph of the email told me that I could either withdraw all the cash to my neteller a/c or to my old a/c.

I chose the latter, so I now have all my cash there, minus the 12,000 FTP.
The FTP would have afforded me prob three poker books, so I lost about $50 in the incident.

I'm not going to criticise Full Till outright. What I was doing was technically wrong. BUT I would have much preferred the old a/c being closed and actually asked for this.

I've now lost my rakeback ability and I think my Full Tilt days are coming to an end.
I'm now looking for a new home for my cash - not decided where yet.

For those that have two accounts on FT (naughty, naughty!), my advice would be to stay away from your old one like the plague.
Having said that I think the size of my withdrawl ($2k) may have meant someone looking more closely at my activity. A $350 withdrawl made at around the same time got through fine.

Anyway, I'll now be playing on FT under the moniker Razorlight, so feel free to drop by and take some chips off me!

Quickie

Not much play since last week.
I spent four days back up north trying to get my flat on the market.
Either side of this I've not had a serious session and my roll is floating around the $2,700 mark on FT.
Had a crack at a $5k $26+$2 tourney with a token on FT but crashed out after an hour on a steal from the button.
I have a new laptop arriving on Friday and plan to play some tourneys over the weekend.

SNG time

Had fun with various sit'n'gos last night.
Won a heads-up $5 Horse SNG, then $10 on a cash game before I saw one of the Token Frenzy tournaments starting up on Full Tilt.
For those that don't know about them, they are a $6+50c buy-in and basically one in four entrants gets a $26+$2 token.
In my opinion these are excellent value, play is generally very poor and once you've accumulated enough chips, which I did last night, you can tighten up and let people knock each other out.
I am now two for two in these. This compares with the $8+70c 2-table SNG which pay five people tokens and the 6th cash. One in three in these, which means I effectively paid outright for a token.
Last night there were around 220 entrants and 50 got tokens and I will take those odds anytime.
Also played a couple of $3 turbos on Stars winning one and coming 3rd in the other.
Plan to have another go at the $14k $26+$2 tourney, which starts at 7pm UK time, when I get the time.

Cash games

Cash games are really killing me at the moment.
I edged up over the weekend around $100 playing decent poker, then lost it all and another $50.
First buy-in lost was top two par v bottom set, all-in on flop.
I then lost a succession of $20-$30 pots for the rest last night.

In my non-poker related life I've just been promoted to news editor on my magazine for a hefty pay rise and my very own team to order around :)
Very, very chuffed so I think I will go home now and play some poker!

Deep again

Just had another deep run in a tourney, this time on Stars.
Only a $3 entry but with 650 players there were some decent prizes at the top.
Didn't quite get there unfortunatly - 7th for a $60 win.
Played much more aggressively than the big win on FT and went into final table in 3rd but lost a chunk laying down js to and to two all-in re-raises (ks and aqo).
Then aks wasn't good enough to beat 10s.
Fun while it lasted.

On Thursday I withdrew my $200 and change from Interpoker.
It was a decent looking site and I had made $50 there, rakeback was also high.
But unfortunately traffic wasn't. Normally only 5,000 players and five or six cash game tables at the limits my bankroll allowed me to play.
I had a $150 match bonus available, but I had cleared just 10% and had about a month and half left to clear the rest.
Not sure where it'll go, leave it in Neteller and see.

Bigstack.com

www.sharkscope.com is good.

For Full Tilt players, www.bigstack.com is better.

All results, no search number limits, you can see how well you're running and more importantly see if your foes are fish or shark.
Check it out!

Tourney post

This will be an uber-post!
Starting 597, 63 paid.

HOUR 1

All start with T3,000 chips.

Fairly uneventful first 20 mins but I'm down to 2,678 when I raise the BB with A10h to 150 from SB, BB calls. Flop 4s5h6h, I bet 200, BB raises to 750, I push and BB folds. The very next hand I steal a small 250 pot with a limped j10o from the button, all check to me on Q hi flop, I pot it and win.

Steal with QKs to put me at T3,900 but drop down 200 when I limp early with A10s and call a 4xbb re-raise, flop double-gutter but don't hit.

Nice move from the button after 35mins which had me chortling. Raise 6xbb with 72o, SB calls, flop KK2, not bad, checked to me bet 500, fold and I show. No-one said anything but it stopped me stealing (so wasn't a good idea to show!). Raised very next hand A9s but had to give up to strong post-flop bet from TM8 (decent-ish player).

45 mins in I get 10s, I pot raise from MP, but get re-reraised by BB, TM8 again. Flop Qd Ac 7h and I have to laydown to strong pot-sized bet. This put me back down to 3,603 when I got moved to another table.

We are five mins before first break and 2nd hand in I get As, blindsd now 50/100. 1 limper who has T5,285 odd, I raise pot to 450, blinds fold and he calls. Flop a beauty 999. He bets out 500, and I waited until my clock almost ran right down before (reluctantly) calling.
Turn 3, he bets 1,100, I consider just calling again but I think the bait is struck and he thinks AK, raise my remaining 2,500 and he calls and turns over 4s.

This put me up to 7,350. I get Ks very next hand, raise, no callers. Then AQs which I limp from 2nd position, three callers, flop AQx, pot it and win. Then win two small pots with 56o and k6s from SB and BB to leave me on T8,156 and in the top 50.

HOUR 2

Did very little for the first half hour, winning one pot with AJo, one caller but an Ace on turn scared him away. Got moved again with T8,456.

For some reason, I've lost some stats for this table (I think because I was downloading a better version of Hud cos of flickering). But when I moved again and I can pick up the story, I had 12,186 and blinds were 120/240 with 25 ante. Three others had equalish stacks, the other five were all under 6,000.

Picked up Js in 1st position, raise to 800, all fold. Fold 4s to an all-in 2,000 bet and one caller before (10s v KQo).

With blinds at 150/300, ante 25, I pick up 9s in MP. 2xbb raise from UTG, one caller, I call, blinds fold. Lovely rainbow 9Q7 flop, UTG bets 300, I raise to 2,400, fold and I pick up 3,000 pot.

Sitting at T13,500 when I get lucky again. Blinds 200/400, ante 50, I raise to T1,000 from button with 10h9c on a steal but SB calls. Flop Tc,2s,Jc. He puts out half-pot bet of 1,200, I think about raising but just call, turn 8c giving me an open-ended Straight flush draw.

SB bets 1,200 again, I call. River Qd giving me str8. He checks, I value bet 2,000 knowing I'm ahead and he shows 8s for trips. Up to over 19,000, in top 25 and chip leader at my table, I think prob still 300 left in it tho.

Last hand before break I decide to limp with AJo in MP two other limpers, BB checks,
flop 3h,5d,Jd, check, check, I bet pot of 2,000, and all fold.

HOUR 3

Sitting on 21,500, I have one more hand at this table before being moved.

Blinds now 250/500, ante 50. 'Steal' blinds with Js, then lose my first biggish pot with As against very shortstacked Ks, and drop back to 20,000.

Get As again a few hands later, but no callers.

'Steal' with Aqo and then Q8o from the button. Lose 2,000 in SB v BB battle, me with 93s, trying to steal.

I now have around 17,000 which is below average and there are, I think, about 120 left.

Blinds are 400/800, ante 100 so short stacks are dropping like flies.
Steal with AJo to get back up to 19,000. Still playing tight though, and I fold AJo and A10o from 1st and 2nd position, am heading for the money and there's no need to start pushing.

Win a nice pot with 10s, calling one pre-flop raiser, and forcing short-stacked BB all in. Hit my set on flop and win 7,200. 80 left just 17 more for money.

With blinds 500/1000, ante 125, I find As (again!) in mid-position. Raise to 3,500, BB re-raises all in with Js and I win a T20,000 pot.

Now 33,564, big stack (who is on my table) has 59,750, and I'm back in top 30. 76 players left.

Steal blinds with 8s from MP.

Then hit trips for the 3rd time. Blinds now 800/1600, ante 200. Call from SB a 2xbb bet with 4s. Four on flop and check raise foe's continuation 2xbb continuation bet to take down a 16,000 pot. Now have 46,500.

Blind down to 42,500 by the end of the hour.

HOUR 4

Now in the money but I want to go further!

Blinds 1000/2000, ante 250 and I 'steal' with AKs.

I then get bad-beat number 2.

Button, who has been pushing all-in often, pushes again against my SB pushes with A10s, I call with AKs and 10 on flop, 10 on turn and he wins 42,000.

Back down to 25,000 and 12xbb. I get blinded down to 19,000 when I make a move on the SB who had raised my BB before. He doubles BB to 4,800, I push with 109o, he folds.

Now down to 40 left and I am in bottom few.

Drop even further, to 15,000, when I call a 7,200 raise from serial raiser with A10o, SB calls, I call, too much of a pussy to push. Flop K hi, check, fold. O dear.

Antes push me down to just 12,659 and 5xbb when I push with 4s from MP (7-man table) and pick up blinds and antes and I'm back to 18,359. Need more stealing, I think to myself, before folding A9s like pussy with the very next hand :)

Again for some reason Pokertracker misses the hand that gets me out of the shit. But I remember it was my dubious push with A6s in MP and an even more dubious call from another shortie with JQs. Ace on flop and I was back in it.

Blinds 1500/3000 Ante 400, 33 left. Final three tables paying $60.

However, the blinds and antes eat me up again, so much stealing going on, every hand raise, re-raise, and I get blinded down to 25,000, back in the shit and facing a new table.

However we are know on the the final 3 tables and if I can hang on in there we get to the real money.
This is the hand that propelled me back to within sniffing distance of the leaders.

Full Tilt Poker Game #2180935514: $14,000 Guarantee (16001934), Table 23 - 2000/4000 Ante 500 - No Limit Hold'em - 17:58:40 ET - 2007/04/10
Seat 1: MusicMan09 (50,973)
Seat 3: indieangler (214,863) - Big stack now but ended up coming 9th
Seat 4: John_Galt65 (52,977)
Seat 5: RaginAZN (67,052) - Cames 6th
Seat 6: The Phenom33 (52,088)
Seat 7: Cashkidz4 (82,763)
Seat 8: SuckTheRedFox (20,021)
Seat 9: QuanticFive (16,815) - Came 5th! :)
All post ante of 500
indieangler posts the big blind of 4,000
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [Qh Qd]
RaginAZN raises to 66,552, and is all in (He'd been doing that A LOT)
SuckTheRedFox calls 19,521, and is all in
QuanticFive calls 16,315, and is all in
RaginAZN shows [Th As]
SuckTheRedFox shows [Jd Ac]
QuanticFive shows [Qh Qd] - Just two outs to dodge.
Uncalled bet of 47,031 returned to RaginAZN
*** FLOP *** [7d 4s Ks]
*** TURN *** [7d 4s Ks] [Kd]
*** RIVER *** [7d 4s Ks Kd] [8s]
SuckTheRedFox wins the side pot (6,412) with a pair of Kings
QuanticFive wins the main pot (56,945) with two pair, Kings and Queens
O yes!

I'm back to 56,000 and in with a shot.

However, I then lost 15,000 from the BB when I rivered a STR8 only to fall to a rivered flush. And I was back against the wall before I knew it.

The blinds were such however that just one steal added 8,000 to your total, so I duly stole with ...errr...Ks again! The did the same with 8s, both pushes and I was back to 53,000.

We got to the final 2 tables right at the end of hour 3.

Seven players on my table, I picked up 10s and grabbed the blinds to propel me to 60k then picked up Ks the very next hand.

This time the shortstack before raised all in in 1st position with A3o, I dodged an A, and was now in the top 9, 13 left, with over 110k. I then got As (how many times is that?) and knocked out the last shortie on our table with his all-in 3s.

Five players on each table now, and I had 165,000 which was 3rd on my table and 5th overall and I knew I would make the final table.

HOUR 5

It slowed right down after the break with no-one wanting to bubble the final table and we were playing hand for hand for quite a while. 10th paid $150 but 9th paid $270.

It took 20 mins to get there (the bubble boy incidently was the player who cracked my AKo with his A10o earlier) but I made it with 123k and in 7th, big stack 400k.

To be honest, I was hanging on in there rather trying to win the thing. I folded AQs the very first hand in late position after big stack pot raised pre-flop. I didn't know this player and with such a big difference between places I didn't want to crash out on a 50/50 the very first hand.

Blinds were huge 5k/10k, ante 1k, that one pre-flop raise and I was almost pot-committed.

Yet I had enough to let the shorties push and test their fate first.

Pay-outs from 1 to 9 were: $3510.36, $2185.02 , $1611.90, $1253.70, $931.32, $680.58, $444.17, $343.87, $272.23

I managed to tread water for 20 mins, raising twice and winning without showing, and 4 players came and went, and I was left as the short stack for fifth.

My next post shows the last two hands, all in with K8o to beat A4o and then all-in with A10o which lost to big stacks A9o.

$931.32 for five hours work and a profit of $925 as I won the token in a satellite.

That post took me TWO HOURS!

Small post

Not sure if anyone will finish my last post. Got kinda carried away!
If you do, you will see I had a lot of very good hands and very opportune moments.

Holy Cow!

Played the $24+$2 $14,000 guaranteed and finished 5th for....wait for it...$931.32!
592 entrants, 63 paid. O the joys.
Took five hours, finished just after midnight, had some great cards, a couple of bad beats - one to knock me out.
If I could have hung on a little longer and could have really reaped it - 1st was over $3,000, but it was not to be.
My A10o re-raise all in from the SB as the short stack to the Button's A9o steal lost when a 9 hit the turn.
My read was right, the poker gods however decided I had played enough and it was time for bed.
A few rounds earlier, five left and I had raised all in with k8o as a very low stack. Called by A4o and hit a king on the flop.
Anyway, will update tonight fully, but needless to say the roll is now looking pretty healthy!

Easter

No play over Easter until a short session on Monday night.
I was away up north again, trying to sort out my flat to either sell or find new tenants, not decided yet.
It wasn't as in much of a mess as I thought it would be but will require one more trip up there next weekend.
Not a lot happened really when I played, piddled about on Interpoker and Pokerstars with my peewee bankrolls, and tried 2 SNGs on Stars (didn't cash in either).
Couldn't face playing a FT cash game and there were no $24+$2 tournies starting up so I watched Phil Ivey play for a bit on the $100/$200 NL tables.
I plan to use these two tokens up before I play cash games again.
GL

Whipped

I just had my ass handed to me and ended up losing $255 on one table.
Not too down, just realistic about how much luck this game entails.
Am asking myself should I be playing?
I lost every hand I played.
Qs v 87o
Js vs 106s
Qs v Ks
A huge pot with A8s v 99s v Ks, 92636 and flush on river
Three of the hands were against the same player, who was combining amazing luck with a LA style.
He must have taken $200 off me.
I'm now on the cusp of $2,000 again and am wondering am I a winning player?
Have I just got lucky. I'm up $1,600ish since November but $560 of this is bonus, prob another $150 in rakeback.
Just checked Pokertracker and over 5,946 hands on the $100NL tables I've made a paltry $19.45!
I'm now Semi-loose AA, according to pokertracker, and was slowly inching my way up, but it all has come crashing down.
Should I be playing more tourneys again? I seem to do ok on them but I'm just not sure.
I don't really have the time to spend five hours playing on the bigger tourneys.

Im single, with a great job, but don't even have a TV and poker seems to be taking over my life outside work.
I'm out a lot with work but when I do come home in the evening, I either pick up or book, or most often fire up the PC.
I have two of those $24+$2 tokens so I'll probably play those and see how I do.
I have to face it I can't play a good, loose player very well, even when I have position.
OK, I'm got a weekend away with some mates to get ready for, hope your poker play goes better than miine.

Gambling

Dropped $40 last night but felt I played pretty solid.
The very last hand I lost $20 with Qs v my foe's 10s in a blind v blind battle.
I got him all-in on the flop but he glopped a 10.
I decided it was time to call it a night after this hand.
My wins came from a $100NL, where there was a classic calling station sat three to my right.
How did I know he had no clue: he limped A LOT with any 2-suited cards from any position, called pre-flop raises after limping with nothing, he checked when he missed.
He was doing so many things wrong.

He only raised once, against me on the river in this $80 hand.

From the small blind with k10o I hit top two pr, k107 rainbow flop.
I bet $3 into a $4 pot 1st up, two callers.
Turn 5, I bet $10, bb folds, fish calls.
River j, I thought about checking but put another $10 out there, he raises me another $10, I call and he shows 5s.

Terrible play on two counts, IMO, first he called the flop bet and second he didn't stack me ( or at least try to stack me), calling the turn and only raising the river $10.

I then preceded to win a succession of small pots from him, some with legitimate hands and then some bluffs once he had decided I was a straight up player.
Also a couple of $40 pots from two other players.
When the fish left I decided to cash in too.

OK, back to work!

Weekend wins

Played almost all day Saturday and a few hours on Sunday in what was my first decent weekend session in a few weeks.
Overall I couldn't do much wrong and slowly chipped up for a net win of around $150.
Saturday was great fun, I had the cards and got paid off.
Image is hugely important. I raised pre-flop with more hands, sometimes feigned weakness to extricate more chips or just bet big, and folded when I thought I was beat.
I only lost one buy-in with As to 63o! But apart from that it was all up.
Ended the weekend on around $2,325, from a high of $2,370 and cleared $45 of the bonus.
My aim now is get back to $2,500 by the time the bonus time runs out, which for me is April 2.

The raketherake freeroll on Sunday however ended very quickly, about 2 mins this time!
I sat down 15 minutes late with 1,350 chips.
Had my bb raised on the very 1st hand by the big stack on the table.
Saw 4s, pushed and found I was facing QKo. Q88 flop, Q on turn and IGHN.
Poor play but heh, there's always next month!

Will play some more tonight but then have two nights out planned on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Nailing a fish

Lost money again yesterday, about $15, but I managed to grind back up after being down $70.
It was all down to one $50 table where one fishy player was changing the dynamic of the table.
He was in every pot, seeing flops and calling raises with almost any two cards.
But somehow keeping his head above water and in the money by getting very lucky.
He was a classic calling station, with a very low Pre-flop raise % but would check call the nuts as well as third pr all the way down.
It made it easy to play him. Check if you're drawing and bet if you hit, and he will pay u off.
Unfortunately, he kept hitting against me and then redistrbuting my winnings around the table.
I couldn't hit a thing and it was getting frustrating and as I said I was down $70.
As with poker, I then went on a rush which saw me win back all back $15 of my losses.
Hitting trips 2x, one of these winning $25 of my foe who had nothing.
And chipping back up as people started to respect my raises and folding. Previously they would call with 2nd pr or 3rd pr and hit.

I made a slight profit on the two $100 tables I was playing, and still feel more relaxed about my game again. I think part of this is pychological. I forgot how much I like seeing the bonus amount slowly rising on FT.

Also won a $24+$2 token on a SNG and plan to try one of the $3,000 or $5,000 guaranteed tourneys which start up around 6.30pm GMT on FT.

Desposited $50 on Party Poker again for some 10-man action.

Industry do tonight at the Grosvenor which has Jimmy Carr compering so no play until the weekend. But looking forward to it. I'm determined to book a win!!

Back on it

After a long weekend at a wedding back up north, I've returned to the Full Tilt tables again today.
Had to take advantage of the juicy reload bonus on offer.
Steady play but still managed to drop $60.
The two big losing hands were both set over set, one losing me $30, the other $55. On both hands I and my foe flopped them and there was no getting away from them, unfortunately.
Other than one hand on Pokerstars where I say set over set over set once, they were my 1st and 2nd experiences of them in cash games.
I actually quite enjoyed playing, it felt good, but I struggled to make any progress.
My bankroll is still around $2,000 and I'm gonna try to release as much of the $300 bonus that they've offered.
If I play the $50 and $100 tables, I may clear $100 of it in the next fortnight.

Rant

No play last night as I was out and about, but thought I'd post this little rant from a foe from Monday.
I was paying very little attention to the particular hand, I had 49o in the big blind, and was not watching all the action.
Three other players, SB folded, so I was 1st to act on both flop and turn.
I checked both and my foe bet 50c or 1BB into a $2 pot on the turn.
There was a three flush in diamonds on board, including the jack and ace.
I called as I had the 9 of diamonds, and won the pot when another diamond hit.
I then received such a torrent of abuse that I have never experienced before.

Tralis: omg
Tralis: 49 hahahahahaha
Tralis: what the fuuck r u doin in that pot? lmao
QuanticFive: i was in bb
Tralis: how u sucl
QuanticFive: f u
Tralis: i bet 50 cent on turn
QuanticFive: big deal
Tralis: its an auto fold u clown lolol
QuanticFive: wityh a flush draw?
Tralis: suit yourself clown
QuanticFive: u ve no idea
Dealer: SpasticPoker wins the pot ($1.75)
Dealer: Hand #2022471845
QuanticFive: why the abuse on such a small p[ot
QuanticFive: u bi-tch
Tralis: its not the pot u clown
Tralis: u dont get any of it lolol

I then lost it a little...

QuanticFive: f of.f wi-tch
QuanticFive: mark me down as a fish
QuanticFive: keep playing me tralis
QuanticFive: i've never had such abuse after a 2
dolar
Tralis: i sure will u are pathetic
QuanticFive: pot
QuanticFive: i'm sitting on a 2 grand stack
QuanticFive: which i've won playing retards like u
QuanticFive: let me guess
Tralis: poor u u still dont get it do u? lololol
QuanticFive: u were bullied as a child

I then made some reference to him being ignored as a teenager before I calmed down.
It riled me so much, over a tiny pot, and a dubious (at worst) call on the turn to a very weak bet.
I sat with him for another hour. He was 5-tabling and actually found a space to his left on one table and he lost about $40.
He played a weak-tight game, and was no danger to anyone. If I don't get it, he's still lost in the jungle somewhere trying to work out what he's supposed to do.

SNG action

Played a little over the weekend and it was a case of grinding out steady gains and then giving it all back again in one hand!
I'm writing this at work but the only hands I can remember are the ones I lost...some very bad play combined with some strong poker.
I ended Sat up around $50 and the highlight was going deep in a 90 player, deepstack $5 SNG on FT.
I was very, very, very lucky on one hand put me in the top 10 with 50 players remaining.
I raised under-the-gun with 9s, got raised by mid-position player who had TT.
Flop Qs, I checked, he bets, I push and IGHN.
But no...I hit 9 on turn and then another 9 on river!!!!! Quad 9s baby!!!!
I can't really remember many other hands in the lead-up to the final two tables except a big triple with about 16 players left.
I'm dealt Ks, I raise a limper, BB and biggest stack calls, as does limper.
Flop q hi, limper pushes, I raise all-in and BB calls, both have qj and hand stands up.
The final table was slow and I have no idea what happened on a hand view but I spent a long time battling with three other players as the short stack.
Both the big stacks were too my left which was tough and the player immediately to my left was constantly raising me.
I pushed lots and got lucky a couple of times.
My A3o to his QJo, for example.
Finally the long-time big stack lost it all to the serial raiser and we were three. He had 8x both myself and the 3rd player and it was really only a matter of time.
It finally came when I re-raised all-in another pre-flop raise of my blind with 4s, he had j10s, J on flop, 10 on river and I came 3rd.
Profit was around $50.

Last post

Just re-read my last post.
My rant about bluffing is not entirely accurate...
Bluffing happens at all levels, by me included.
My problem at the moment is not been able to lay down hands when I know I'm beat and I think the last post was me trying to tell myself that this is a major flaw in my play.
According to Pokertracker there is now a little bomb next to my name and the words Loose/passive/aggressive. Ooops!
Come find me on Full Tilt and I'll be sure to donate you some of my bankroll! :0

Work on time

Truly amazing but I'm here 10 mins early. Just me and the editor, he gave me a nod and a smile when I worked in.
So I thought, instead of cracking on with some top financial journalism, I'd write a quick blog update.
On the way home I bought three books from Oxford Street Waterstones, and read and hung out with my flatmates for a couple of hours.
The PC remained off...until around 11pm, when I checked my mail and...wait for it...played some poker! surprise, surprise.
Not long, maybe 45 mins, on Interpoker. Two tabling, 10c/25c and a 25c/50c NL.
Too high for my measly $150 deposit, but I don't think I could face playing lower.
Anyway, I think I'm remembering how I used to win, I've said it before, it is play TIGHT.
Unless you have a read on someone, after playing a couple of hundred hands with them or they play very loose, if someone re-raises you IT IS NOT A BLUFF.
Up high $200+ NL there are bluffs galore, but down in the doldrums there are very few bluffs.
I laid a biggish hand down when I didn't call a $14 bet on a $19 pot on the river, with js with a 9,10,10,K,3 board (three clubs).
But then won it back in three hands later.
The stack is now $180, $30 up on my desposit, although I'm a long way away from releases the $150 match bonus, 7% through it I think.
Anyway, I feel MUCH BETTER at work today cos I haven't been staring at a PC screen for 15 hours or something stupid the day before.
I will keep playing and posting, tho, so keep on reading!

GL at the tables

Need a break

Just a quickie at work.
I've decided I need a break from FullTilt and poker in general, or at least cut the playing down.
Yes, I'm losing, not massively, but the roll is still on the slide.
I withdrew $200 from FT and put $150 into Interpoker, which is offering a 100% deposit bonus and 40% rakeback through RTR in March.
Nothing seems to tighten me up and play solid poker than playing with a small bankroll.
On FT, for example, I took $25 from a player on my left, got dealt qs and had $6 from him on a low flop.
A king hit on turn, I check, he bets $13.50 into a $12 pot, with $6 remaining in his stack.
This could be a bluff, but based on the way he was playing I knew had a king, or a flush draw. Instead of folding my thought process was : "I only need to put another $20 to see what he had. I have a huge stack now $20 is nothing."
I should have folded, my discipline has gone. Low and behold he turns over k10s for a king and flush draw, and I lose when another king hits on river. I had ONE out!Stupid really.
Anyway, another reason for the break is my work is suffering. I've been late for work now 6 days in a row.
I play too late, can't sleep and then can't get up.
Go to work late, have a manic day, come back, fire up the PC. Repeat ad infinitum.
The only breaks I have in the evenings is going out on the piss for work dos.
Not the ideal life and work balance.
So I'm gonna play a little on Interpoker to clear my bonus, piss about with the Stars SNGs and then reassess in a month.

On the work front, apart from my tardiness, I've been nominated for an award and made £650 in freelance work for three articles all on finance.

So poker is paying, I'm up $1600 since I bought in for $500 on FT in November, which itself was profit from previous play.
BUT I am, first and foremost, a journalist and need to remember this.

GL on the tables...

A winning day!

O the joys, a winning day!
It has been too long that I care to remember and it feels good.
Yesterday I had a run of cards but didn't make any money.
Today I doubled up on two of the three tables I was playing.
I realised I was playing scared, which is stupid considering the size of my stack.
If I have the hand I need to bet and not check-call for fear of the ultimate nuts.
I hit two pr on flop and smelt top pr top kicker from a serial bettor and flted him.
I did not fear trips!
Then I did something I should be doing more, I identified a fish, followed him and felted him too.
My stack is now back to over $2,300 and it is going to carry on rising.
I'm using PokerHud now and it helps enormously (thanks Rossi!). I can multi-table and see who is raising pre-flop and who is aggressive w/o haven't to watch every hand all the way through.
But the key was the fish following. I won't name him, but he's there, 2-tabling on the $50 tables most evenings.
Another thing I noticed was a very aggressive player who I thought was killing the tables.
He felted me once and always seemed to have a big stack.
Well he's still multi-tabling but only buying in for $20. He's so much tighter and weaker for it.
Methinks he's actually another losing player.
For some reason this also makes me feel good, having lost $50 to him a week ago.
Let's hope the luck lasts...

Out in 20th

First hand after last post I pick up js, serial raiser makes it $5,000, I push my last $10,000, one short stack calls, blinds and original raiser fold. He has ako and my hand stands up.
Soon get moved to a table with a player who was raises pre-flop one in two hands.
I won a bunch after re-raised his standard 4xbb pre-flop raise with ak0 and he folds after a long pause.
He then raised my blind time and time again, and others.
He had reached $124,000 and in the top five and no-one was playing back at him.
Then all of sudden everyone did.
He lost about $30,000 with a blind v blind battle.
He then raised with position when I sat in the SB with Js.
I pushed he called with 97s and despite a flush draw on turn it held up.
I was up to $55,000 and in the top 18. He lost another battle with the guy to my left and I then knocked him out with k9o (in bb) v his 910o.
I was sitting pretty for a tilt at the final two tables when I got moved to a 6-man table (the other two had 7 players)
I had $65,000, raised 4xbb in early position with a2s, aggressive player re-raises me, I fold.
The blinds are $5,000 now!
I pick up 99s in SB with around $40,000, button (who has been stealing all tournament) raises, I push. Ace on flop and IGHN
O well. I picked up $224. If I had got to the last two tables i would have made double that, and 1st was $1,900 but it wasn't to be.
Happy but a little disappointed.
Its strange to say but I feel I did not get very good cards on the whole, BUT crucially when I did they held up.
Every single one, including the one marginal my js v ako. I was ahead on every hand I pushed on but you need these hands to stand up to make it deep.
$224 is my biggest MTT payout, and although I'll still play more cash, I've decided to give more of these bad boys a go.
OK, Good luck at the tables!

RTR freeroll

Playing the raketherake.com freeroll and have made the cash!
Sitting slightly precariously in 54th with 62 players left, good for a whopping $76.
There were 1,500+ starters.
I've been playing T I G H T, managed to double thru with As and triple up with Ks...its easy if you know how!
I'm def not stealing enough, the guys with the big stacks are raising pre-flop around 1 in 6 hands they play.
The next level of cash is 45th so will need to pick up some hands very soon. I have 5xbb only.
I'll post again when I'm done.

The cup runs dry

The poor run of results continued last night.
After a four day break from Full Tilt, I had another crack and failed to get win stack moving back in the right direction.
Lost a buy-in after getting qs 2x in three hands, first to flopped 777s when I doubled up a short-stack, and then the rest to As.
Both were all low flops and anyone that is playing properly would have gone broke after those to hands.
Doubled up on a flopped full house, and won bits and bobs elsewhere, but my stack is now around $2,120, almost $500 down on my record high earler this month.
I need to do something, but I'm not sure what. The only thing that is encouraging me is how appalling the standard of play is.
A frenchie, who managed to quadruple his buy-in, felted me with a crazy hand.
He was playing every hand, limping and limping, calling raises and he kept hitting. It was amazing. Flushes, trips with 84o, str8s, a truly amazing set of flops.
His post-flop play was a bit better than his almost 100% pre-flop calls, but he was a total chump.
I had ks, he turned out to have j10s.
Glop 952 rainbow, I bet pot he calls, turn 8 I bet pot, he checkraises me, river q, and I get felted.
A few hands later he calls two people's big flop raises with 5s on a jk2 flop.
Short stack has 222, big stack has jk.
He turns a 5 and gets paid off big-style.
I managed to chip up to $75 when he left having lost an all-in raising war with as v a foe's ks.
He finally got sucked out on! Once he was gone, I buggered off too.
Over at Stars the stack continues to rise and my winning run on the Omaha H/L turbos is continuing. There are some horrible players there and I plan to tuck in some more in the coming days.
I've got the raketherake freeroll on Sunday which has reached the dizzy heights of $19,000 and hope to get past the 13 minute mark this time!
Playing my irregular home game with my bros and three of his mates tonight. I plan to continue my campaign to make it a NL game rather PL.

Break time

I've taken a break from the game after a terrible Saturday.
I was down about almost four buy-ins during the day and was hitting very little. When I did I overplayed the hand and didn't win enough.
Withing ten minutes I lost a buy in with the nut str8 on the flop to a flush on the river, and it just got worse.
I didn't tilt..., erm, yes, I did tilt when I chucked away another $50 to a decent player with top pr top kicker to his overpair. I was just tired of getting pushed around by him and folding to his big re-raises.
Not even sure I'll play on FT tonight, I really need to find my mojo again there.
On the plus side, I've been building my roll up on Stars to around $350 with some solid SNG cashes and a few double ups on NL Holdem.
The way to beat this game, if you play a solid, tight game like me, is pretty simple - make as much as you can when the cards are hitting you, and then grind it out when your getting crap.
I'm going to stick to Stars for a bit as I want to get on the top ten leaderboard on Sharkscope for my limit, between $1 - $5, for Omaha H/L.

Bonus complete

Three things of note happened tonight.
1) I completed my $500 bonus
This means I'm now just playing on rakeback. Hopefully there will be a reload bonus coming up soon.
2) I got back to winning ways
Made about $40 all told. This included getting As cracked again by a four outer on the river, and ks cracked by runner runner hearts, o the joys.
3) I managed to play a few hands with DrPauly, the author of the Tao of Poker blog.
Took a $35 pot off him. I saw him reraise twice on the turn with an open ender, if anyone is taking notes, checked river both times he missed.

Playing Razz now so probably blow all my winnings in about 20 minutes!

Tilt returns

O dear, very bad session.
Should've trusted my instincts and stopped playing at 9pm.
But carried on and lost alomst $200.
I was up $100 in the first part of the evening, had supper, chatted with flatmates and almost fell asleep on the sofa.
Came back and lost a buy in on two $50 tables and another on $100.
FUCK!
One bad beat, when my aces got cracked by jko (terrible player) who hit runner runner str8.
Then I lost with qs on a 446 flop and some fucker had a 4.
45s. Pot raise pre-flop wasn't enough to lose him.
THAT IS WHY I DON'T LIKE HIGHER LIMITS, there are too many gamblers and the swings are too big for me to feel comfortable.
Don't want to look at the my stack but its back down to low $2,400 after hitting $2600 only 2 hours ago.
For tilt is this tight feeling of panic in my head and my body, rather than calm rational play.
I was prob on tilt even before as I called a reraise on the river in a 3-way pot and DIDN'T EVEN SEE THE FLUSH ON THE BOARD.
Ok rant over, I feel better.

Quickie at work

No play since Monday when I won $35.
Plan to play for two hours tonight max. as I have loads of washing to do!

Update

Back at home again and had originally planned to write a detailed a/c of the tourney run on Sunday.
Too lazy so I wanted to update on how I've run up my roll over the last few days.
I moved back down to the $50 tables on February 6 and since then I've:
Feb 6, +$36.75, 3 tables, 259 hands
Feb 8, +$16.90, 2 tables, 112 hands
Feb 9, +$72.35, 2 tables, 140 hands
Feb 10, +$134.15, 7 tables, 291 hands
Feb 11, -$18.35, 2 tables, 139 hands

I'm not exactly breaking the bank, nor playing hundreds of hands, but I'm really happy with these solid gains.

Running gooot...

The decision to move down seems to have been a good one and I'm back to winning ways.
I've been playing drunk, tired and while surfing - breaking all my rules - but I keep winning.
It's been slow but steady stuff, 3-tabling the $50NL tables, but booking wins every session.
Writing this at work again so cannot recall specific hands, but my roll is on the cusp of $2,500.
It was boosted on Saturday morning with a 2nd place in a 151-man $2 NL tourney on FT.
Key hands were a push on the button after two limpers, with A4o and getting two callers, j10s and k5o!
Ace on flop and it help up.
Hit trip 7s to double up early, also trip 9s to put me top 10 with 30 remaining and then it was plain sailing from there.
The final table went from 9 players down to 4 in amazingly fast fashion, I was actually chip leader for a bit with three to go, but went very card dead and ended up with a 6:1 chip deficit going heads up against the tourney bully.
Lasted two hands when my ajo lost to his k10o all in pre-flop, and he flopped a 10 and spiked a k for good measure.
2nd was good for $55.
Good luck on the tables

Dropping down

Played no poker last night as I was out at a couple of industry do's/free piss-ups.
But played a couple of hours on Tuesday night.
One of my NY aims was to use Pokertracker more to analyse mine and my foes play.
Well, I uploaded a load of hands over the weekend from FT play since December 2 and it made very interesting reading.
Most striking is my BB/100 rates, at 25c/50c it is something like 17 and at 50c/$1 it is 4, i think. I can't remember exactly because I'm writing this at work.
I win more at showdowns at the lower level, see more flops and am an all-round charlie at the 100NL. I've also made 2x more money there in half as many hands, eek!
I tried three-tabling the 50c tables and made a decent-ish profit on all three to end up $50.
The standard is lower, the post-flop play in particular very weak, but then again maybe I got lucky?
Will prob continue grinding at this for a couple more sessions and then move up again.
Good luck

Full Tilt and Stars

Not much to report today after a steady Sunday.
Racked up another 200 FTPs and won around $80 on Full Tilt and had some more success on the Omaha H/L on Stars.
Looking at my Sharkscope stats makes strange reading.
On Pokerstars I have played 81 SNG and MTTs, with an average profit of $2 on an average stake of $4, my ROI is 72%, and profit level is $191 and I'm running Hot.
On Full Tilt, by contrast, the numbers are 20, -$2, $4, -35% to produce a loss of $32 (eek!), although I'm also running hot after cashing in my last three tries.
Why the difference?
Probably the main reason is that the FT SNGs are slow, 10 minutes blinds as opposed to five minutes.
Early doors I tend to see flops cheaply but only play the nuts.
I just get bored if I have to wait 40 minutes before the blinds hit a level where it is worth stealing and raising pre-flop.
This is where I build my stacks when other players are trying to limp into the money.
AA23 double suited in the first orbit? I call because not matter what you raise with $20 blinds you'll get five callers.
But a pot sized raise on blinds of $200/$100 and one limper means foes are less likely to call.


On another matter I slightly worried about the size of my roll and the blind levels I'm playing.
Is 50x the buy-in the correct level to play? Or 20x?
I feel I'm playing slightly too tightly and sometimes am still scared to put my money on the line. On the other hand when I drop down to the $50 tables I play like its play money, calling raised pots with dodgy hole cards and chasing when I don't have odds.
Something to work on anyway.

Not sure how much I'll play tonight. GL on the tables.

Long session

Saturday was poker day in the Marky household.
I managed to rack up almost 700 FT points over the day and night, two and three tabling on 100NL.
Pretty mixed really. I had one really good session when I was up $200 on one table and another $80 on another but this was after a horrible run.
I was down to $1,950 at one stage but have brought it back up to $2,100 again.
Still below my best but I still moving in the right direction at least.

The highlight of the night was going deep in a tournament on Stars.
It was one of those $1NL games with 1,830 entries. I entered at 10pm, not realising that it takes more than 6 hours to get the final table.
Crashed out in 7th, after being in the top 10 for most of the last two hours.
I stole lots, tripled up with around 60 remaining, and then knocked out another big stack with my As v his Ks, all in pre-flop.
I was eliminated after an all-in pre-flop with 7s that ran into Ks.

I got $45 which is not a bad return but not worth the time, and if I could have hung on a little longer I could have made some decent cash.
1st was $330 and third was around $100.
It was very late though and I was really struggling to keep up my concentration.

Just won another of those $3 SNG at Stars as I write this so my stack there is up to $269.54 (precisely!). I realised a $50 last week.

GL on the tables

Hit and Run

After two nights off from poker I had a small hit and run session last night.
After donkeying off $150 on Monday, I spent 10 mins piddling about on the 25c/50c tables before deciding to move back up to 100NL.
1st hand up get dealt aqo, and win $5, a few hands later get aqo again and win another small pot.
Then ks 2x and 9s to book a $65 in about half an hour.
It was late so I logged off far happier than I did two nights ago. Winning is easy if you hit.
Also booked $50 rakeback this month so I'm back up to almost $2,200.

On a separate note, a month ago I set a plan to build my bankroll to $3,500.
Winning $1,200 in January has set me thinking that this might have been a little conservative!
So I'm setting a revised target of $10k. This is around $8,000 in 11 months or $700 a month - very doable at current win levels.
It probably is a little conservative but when I reach $4,000 I will have to move up a level to $1/$2 and this would be relatively uncharted territory for me.

Tilt returns

O dear.
Lost rather badly tonight. Drunk a few after work, came back, shouldn't have played but did.
Roll now down to just shy of $2,100, same old story, hitting nothing, then calling an all in with pr of qs with a kicker, to a set hitter.
He made it obvious, raising me on flop and all-in on turn AND I CALLED.
What a donkey.
I was 3-tabling trying to clear 100pts so I get the ironman bronze. But couldn't get the 100 pts quick enough.
Very pissed off.
I have two days to go and two more nights out planned so it looks like I won't make the bronze. Only a small goal but it was one I was trying achieve.

Decent weekend

Played lots this weekend. Totally skint after the skiing trip and Christmas so nothing to do except hit the tables!
Doubled up at least three times, and was up every session - this time mainly 2-tabling.
Had my first set over set win, 9s to my 10s.
Four people saw a 4xbb flop, k high flop which we all checked.
Turn was 9, I took at stab with a half-pot bet 1st up, he smooth called and the original raiser and button caller both folded.
The 10 came on river, I potted it ($30) he re-raised all in after some delay. Felt bad for him but it has happened to me before.
Another double up came from an aggressive player who basically bluffed off all his chips with q high against my flopped set of 9s.
He turned a flush draw but the last $50 bet clueless after I called progessively bigger bets on the flop and turn.
He then lost another $100 buy in, and a further $60 with another huge bluff.
My stack is now $2,266 which represents about $500 gain over the last week.
Still played the pee-wee SNG on Stars for fun, and the odd very low buy-in tourney, but cash games suit my style of play.
There are several more successful players than me multi-tabling at 50c/$1 NL, but I try not to tangle with them too much.
Most are playing ABC poker, are disciplined although probably slightly more aggressive than me.
Anyway there are still enough fish out there. The best thing that you can see at my level is someone buying-in for $43.76 or some other random amount. You can be pretty sure this is all their stack and they are there to gamble.

I still have $120 left of my bonus ($380 released) and plan to keep grinding. Even thinking about cashing some out but scared it might jinx my run.
I need two more 100 FT point days to qualify for the Bronze medal, which I'm going to save.
My record on big cash freerolls is pretty dismal!

FullTilt's being good to me

A very good couple of days have lifted my roll to the cusp of $2,000.
Yesterday I couldn't stop hitting and ended short session 2-tabling $150 to the good.
I had a couple of other hit'n'runs in the afternoon (I was meant to be studying for my exam this morning) also netted some bucks.
Went out after work and came back about an hour ago and thought I might try my luck again.
Started badly and it just got worse. Lost about $50 with Qs against 10s against a mega slow-player who hit trips on the flop. He/she actually played it good, checking on flop and turn, as there was a scary k on flop in a three-way raised and re-raised pot.
Then lost another $50 before realising my 10s were prob not good on a low flop against a raiser.
Dribbled another $20 away (my qk v foe's qa on a high flop) before calling it quits on that table.
On the 2nd table things were not as bad - I was only down around $20 when this happened.


Full Tilt Poker Game #1661190053: Table Hauck - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 19:30:41 ET - 2007/01/23
Seat 1: SuperGirl126 ($65.50)
Seat 2: RUDYTWO ($11.80)
Seat 3: fatestguyevr ($55.30)
Seat 4: Edroh ($48.25)
Seat 5: MBx ($101.50)
Seat 6: GMoney2001 ($99.05)
Seat 7: LetsExperiment ($149.25)
Seat 8: nivekcraw ($102.20)
Seat 9: QuanticFive ($89)
Edroh posts the small blind of $0.50
MBx posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #3
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [7c 8c]
GMoney2001 calls $1
LetsExperiment calls $1
nivekcraw folds
QuanticFive calls $1
SuperGirl126 folds
RUDYTWO calls $1
fatestguyevr calls $1
Edroh calls $0.50
MBx checks

This was going to be last hand so I limped here when I prob would have folded in mid position. Glad I did cos the flop was a beauty.

*** FLOP *** [5c 4c Qc]
Edroh checks
MBx bets $3.50
GMoney2001 folds
LetsExperiment folds
QuanticFive raises to $13
RUDYTWO has 15 seconds left to act
RUDYTWO calls $10.80, and is all in
fatestguyevr folds
Edroh folds
MBx raises to $100.50, and is all in
QuanticFive has 15 seconds left to act

Now what do you do here. Can you fold this? MBx had just sat down and I had no read on him. To be honest I thought he was ahead, and RUDYTWO's delay was because he had a Ac.
Who knows if I would have called if I hadn't lost so much before, prob not. But I remember thinking that I might need a 6c.
I called ....


QuanticFive: i have it but not too high
LetsExperiment: wow
QuanticFive calls $75, and is all in
MBx shows [Kc 3c]
QuanticFive shows [7c 8c]
RUDYTWO shows [Tc Qd]
Uncalled bet of $12.50 returned to MBx
*** TURN *** [5c 4c Qc] [6c]
QuanticFive: 6 clbs

I was calling for the card but typed too slow.

*** RIVER *** [5c 4c Qc 6c] [Jd]
MBx shows a flush, King high
QuanticFive shows a straight flush, Eight high
QuanticFive wins the side pot ($153.35) with a straight flush, Eight high
QuanticFive: ooo
RUDYTWO shows a flush, Queen high
QuanticFive wins the main pot ($37.45) with a straight flush, Eight high
LetsExperiment: OH MY GOD
RUDYTWO is sitting out
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $193.80 Main pot $39.40. Side pot $154.40. | Rake $3
Board: [5c 4c Qc 6c Jd]
Seat 2: RUDYTWO showed [Tc Qd] and lost with a flush, Queen high
Seat 5: MBx (big blind) showed [Kc 3c] and lost with a flush, King high
Seat 9: QuanticFive showed [7c 8c] and won ($190.80) with a straight flush, Eight high

WHAT LUCK!!!
I cashed out a couple of hands later after being berated by one player, and backed up by two others for my call.
What would you do?
Anyway it meant I was back over $1,900 - $1,926 to be precise after another $20 bonus was realised on that hand too.

BTW I somehow managed to pass the exam despite the poker playing. It was multi-guess and I managed to get a few by process of elimination.
My mag is giving me £200 for passing it which is not bad.
Ok, bed time, its after 1am.

Ta-ra

Three-tabling

Sticking to the $100 NL tables on Full Tilt seems to have worked.
My bankroll is at a truly staggering $1,764 - well, ok I'm not breaking any records but I'm pretty pleased.
Playing at this level seems to concentrate my mind more than the $50 tables where I fritter cash away.
On Sunday evening I was all set for the raketherake.com $16,000 freeroll which had 1,500 entrants. Like last month my table had just 3 people playing and like last month I didn't last very long...9 minutes to be precise.
My Qs losing to A7o on a 7 high flop, all in on flop, and he hit an A on the turn.
Every time I play a NL tourney I get sucked out on - once memorable hitting trip 6s on the flop, getting all in v ako and losing to runner, runner a and then k.
Not planning on playing many more in the short term.

It will be interesting to see what effect the Neteller ban on US players does to numbers at FT and poker in general.
It surely is the next step to a total ban on ALL sites for yanks.
The only hope now is that the Democrats get in and they reverse the law, although there has been no noise from them on this front.

More and more Europeans seem to be playing the game, and if it takes off in Asia the game will surely get another boost in numbers.
China is a huge marketplace, and they LOVE to gamble. Disposable income is still low there though, and I'm not sure they have sorted out their banking laws sufficiently to be able to deposit properly.

The only downside to my success since I got back from skiing is that my exam revision has suffered. I'm actually a little worried I will fuck it up on Tuesday which will be a mite embarrassing.

Anyway good luck to my 'hundreds' of readers.

Back on it

...and bleeding chips.
I'd forgotten how frustrating this game is after a week away.
My neck hurts and I'm pissed off after jujst four hours playing.
Lost a $200 pot with As to some multi-tabling 'rock' who I totally fished in, only for him to hit runner, runner flush on a rag board.
Seeing the guy - ruxyman - sitting there doing nothing for round after round after this hand is mighty galling.
I'm slightly on tilt, but am going to 3-table the $100NL tables and see what happens.
Wish me luck!

Last post for a couple of weeks

I'm off skiing on Saturday and then I have an exam on the Tuesday when I get back so I won't be playing poker again for a while.
I decided to take a break from the grind of the Full Tilt cash tables after frittering away $120 at the start of the weak.
I had lost patience and had got into the mindset that I was going to lose.
I played just three Pokerstars SNGs over the last two days, winning a $6 turbo (Omaha H/L of course) on Tuesday night.
Last night I came came 6th in another $6 turbo, before dropping down to a $3 turbo which I won.
Not a lot else to say.
When I get back from my hols and studying I'm planning to give some of my tips in how I'm beating these Omaha H/L PL games.
Good luck on the tables.

The run continues

Don't wanna seem arrogant and I know it is all for puny stakes but I have been killing the turbo SNG on Stars.
After the weekend the results wre: 2,6,1,10,2,3,2,2.
And then 1,1,2,4 tonight.
I basically feel that I can make the final three almost every time, and decisions are coming so easily.
If you check www.sharkscope.com and type in QuanticFive you can see how well I'm running. Basically I was dead even after 20 games and since then I have made $120 in about 25 games, with an overall ROI of 70%+
The only downer is that I'm having so much fun on Stars I haven't been doing well on FT.
I reached a high of $1550 but now am at $1426 and falling.

Star SNGs

You may remember that I was trying to increase my pee-wee stack on PokerStars by playing the turbo $3+40c Omaha H/L SNGs.
Well I'm in the midst of WSOP-esque run :)
Since Thursday I've played 11 games while I've been grinding away on the Full Tilt tables.
My results are: 3,2,1,1,x,3,3,3,3,1 and finally a 1st on a RAZZ $3+40c.
My dwindling roll on Stars has risen from a puny $30 up to $90.
OK, I'm not going to break the bank but if I keep at it I hope to be able to get back to my starting $200 there

Grinding

I've been playing a lot of the past few days, managing to rack up 100 FT points on each of the last five days.
Four out of the five days were winning days, but progress was, until this morning, frustratingly slow.
Yesterday, for instance, I lost a $50 buy-in to a four-outer on the river (we were all in by the turn) and a 2-outer for anoher $25.
I went to bed last night at around the same time a player called Phatheon logged on, and started four-tabling. The only reason I noticed him was that he was playing so tightly.
Anyway, eight hours later, after a decent night's kip for me, he was still four-tabling - and playing much looser.
He was not on tilt, but just calling and raising more, and putting his chips at risk.
Anyway this happened.

Full Tilt Poker Game #1542964686: Table Wengert - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 5:38:21 ET - 2007/01/06
Seat 1: toedrag27 ($34.80)
Seat 2: Likethebox ($75.55)
Seat 3: Patient Paddy ($35.10)
Seat 4: squeege55 ($80.80)
Seat 5: Pockets Impty ($98.60)
Seat 6: phaethon ($38.40)
Seat 7: KGB_AK ($100.60)
Seat 8: I__WIN 4 LIFE ($7.95)
Seat 9: QuanticFive ($47.75)
QuanticFive posts the small blind of $0.25
toedrag27 posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #8
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [Th Ts]
Likethebox folds
Patient Paddy folds
KGB_AK: i'm blowing heads up
squeege55 folds
Pockets Impty folds
phaethon raises to $1.50
KGB_AK folds
I__WIN 4 LIFE calls $1.50
QuanticFive calls $1.25
toedrag27 folds
*** FLOP *** [7s Ad Td]
QuanticFive checks
phaethon bets $3
Likethebox: p.i.m.p
I__WIN 4 LIFE folds
QuanticFive calls $3
*** TURN *** [7s Ad Td] [6c]
QuanticFive checks
phaethon bets $8
QuanticFive raises to $23
phaethon raises to $33.90, and is all in
QuanticFive calls $10.90
phaethon shows [Qh Qd]
QuanticFive shows [Th Ts]
*** RIVER *** [7s Ad Td 6c] [8s]
phaethon shows a pair of Queens
QuanticFive shows three of a kind, Tens
QuanticFive wins the pot ($75.80) with three of a kind, Tens
phaethon is sitting out

And a few hands later...


Full Tilt Poker Game #1543030427: Table Wengert - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 6:06:29 ET - 2007/01/06
Seat 1: toedrag27 ($53.45)
Seat 2: Cuddler11 ($56.05)
Seat 3: Patient Paddy ($34.90)
Seat 4: squeege55 ($74.70)
Seat 5: Pockets Impty ($99.30)
Seat 6: phaethon ($71.25)
Seat 7: KGB_AK ($104.60)
Seat 8: lord80 ($44.75)
Seat 9: QuanticFive ($80.50)
QuanticFive posts the small blind of $0.25
toedrag27 posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #8
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to QuanticFive [6c 6h]
Cuddler11 calls $0.50
Patient Paddy folds
squeege55 calls $0.50
Pockets Impty folds
phaethon raises to $1.50
KGB_AK has 15 seconds left to act
KGB_AK calls $1.50
lord80 folds
QuanticFive calls $1.25
toedrag27 folds
Cuddler11 calls $1
squeege55 calls $1
*** FLOP *** [6d Jd 3d]
All check
*** TURN *** [6d Jd 3d] [Jc]
QuanticFive bets $4
Cuddler11 folds
squeege55 folds
phaethon raises to $8
KGB_AK folds
QuanticFive raises to $23.50
phaethon has 15 seconds left to act
phaethon raises to $69.75, and is all in
QuanticFive calls $46.25
phaethon shows [Td 9d]
QuanticFive shows [6c 6h]
*** RIVER *** [6d Jd 3d Jc] [6s]
phaethon shows a flush, Jack high
QuanticFive shows four of a kind, Sixes
QuanticFive wins the pot ($144.50) with four of a kind, Sixes
phaethon is sitting out

Now I know I got lucky by hitting my trips but I was fully expecting him to fold to my re-raise. Especially on the 2nd hand. If anything this shows how playing too long, or too many tables impairs our judgement. Take a break kids! Anyway, here endeth the lesson.

The upshot is I'm back up $1,378.75, the level I was a before my xmas Razz nightmare.

The only thing of note is that i tried my hand at a Horse $5 tournie on FT attracted just shy of 100 players. Ironically, the Razz rounds kept me in this all the way to the final table, 6th place, and a whopping $15 profit. Not really worth the time, it was nearly 2am when i finished and I suffered at work the next day, but it definitely got the blood pumping a few times.

Cheers.