OK, so I've been expecting to fall on the negative end of my SD and actually have a few losing sessions here and there. I just wasn't planning on this long of a streak of cold cards, bad beats, and tilt. But that's why this is a hard way to make easy money, right? All in all, I'm only down ~60 BB over ~800 hands, so I guess it could be worse - but it's definitely been a reality check. (Yes, yes, I realize that 800 hands is probably less than a blink of an eye ... but considering how quickly I was moving upward, this has seemed like a sluggish and painful decline.)

Anyway. I just wanted to post a few of my bigger losers, to see what you guys thought about my play ... after all, I'm probably still well within my learning curve.

Hand #1 - amidst my cold streak, this one looked particularly good. But could I have really anticipated what was in store for me?

Ultimate Bet 1/2 Hold'em (10 handed)

Preflop: Hero is BB with , .
5 folds, MP3 calls, CO raises, 2 folds, Hero calls, MP3 calls.

Flop: (6.50 SB) , , (3 players)
Hero checks, MP3 checks, CO bets, Hero raises, MP3 folds, CO calls.

Turn: (5.25 BB) (2 players)
Hero bets, CO raises, Hero calls.

River: (9.25 BB) (2 players)
Hero bets, CO raises, Hero calls.

Final Pot: 13.25 BB

Results in white below:
Hero has As Qs (two pair, aces and queens).
CO has Td Th (three of a kind, tens).
Outcome: CO wins 13.25 BB.

Hand #2 - this one was on a shorthanded table, and PT/GT+ had Button as pretty loose (of course, it had him as a LAG, so I was a bit nervous...), so I thought the call on the flop was rather fishy. Plus the draw seemed like it was solid.

Ultimate Bet 1/2 Hold'em (4 handed)

Preflop: Hero is BB with , .
1 fold, Button calls, SB raises, Hero calls, Button calls.

Flop: (6 SB) , , (3 players)
SB bets, Hero raises, Button calls, SB calls.

Turn: (6 BB) (3 players)
SB bets, Hero calls, Button calls.

River: (9 BB) (3 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, Button raises, SB folds, Hero calls.

Final Pot: 13 BB

Results in white below:
Hero has Qd Ks (one pair, queens).
Button has Td 3d (two pair, tens and threes).
Outcome: Button wins 13 BB.

Hand #3 - OK, so this one probably went too far. But again ... I'd been cold for a while, and it was hard to throw away. Should I have been more disciplined here?

Ultimate Bet 1/2 Hold'em (8 handed)

Preflop: Hero is SB with , . Hero posts a blind of $1.
3 folds, MP2 calls, 2 folds, Hero (poster) checks.

Flop: (2 SB) , , (3 players)
Hero checks, BB bets, MP2 calls, Hero raises, BB calls, MP2 calls.

Turn: (4 BB) (3 players)
Hero bets, BB folds, MP2 raises, Hero calls.

River: (8 BB) (2 players)
Hero checks, MP2 bets, Hero calls.

Final Pot: 10 BB

Results in white below:
Hero has 4h 4d (three of a kind, fours).
MP2 has 8s As (flush, ace high).
Outcome: MP2 wins 10 BB.

Hand #4 - Yet another draw that didn't happen for me. I guess with these types of hands I tend to feel committed - was it worth trying to chase the draw? Perhaps a more direct question: in a situation without much opposition or aggression, when should you chase, if at all?

Ultimate Bet 1/2 Hold'em (9 handed)

Preflop: Hero is MP3 with , .
1 fold, UTG+1 calls, 2 folds, Hero calls, 2 folds, SB completes, BB checks.

Flop: (4 SB) , , (4 players)
SB checks, BB checks, UTG+1 bets, Hero raises, SB folds, BB calls, UTG+1 calls.

Turn: (5 BB) (3 players)
BB checks, UTG+1 checks, Hero bets, BB calls, UTG+1 calls.

River: (8 BB) (3 players)
BB checks, UTG+1 checks, Hero bets, BB raises, UTG+1 folds, Hero calls.

Final Pot: 12 BB

Results in white below:
BB has 5s 6d (straight, eight high).
Hero has 7h Ah (one pair, sevens).
Outcome: BB wins 12 BB.


Well, any words of encouragement would be nice. Any words of advice would be better. Honesty with either would be best.

Hand 1 : Pretty rough...I'm not sure whether I'd be able to hold back betting the river, either...When he raises the turn, I put him on either AA, two-pair, or he just picked up a flush draw (maybe an Ax-suited clubs)...The fact that the backdoor flush hits the river isn't a huge deal, but I think it may be enough to encourage you to check-call instead of bet out. Even so, I don't think betting the river was really that bad a move.

Hand 2 : Even though the hand that beat you was rather out-of-line by the button, I still think I'd check-call this river rather than bet out. You were mainly looking for a straight here, and although you have top-pair, good kicker, the board looks like one that could easily make two-pair for someone (though it's hard to see tens and threes coming), or possibly a straight.

Hand 3 : Yeah, gotta fold on the river...Hey, believe me, I know it's rough, especially when it seems like you've waited weeks for a set, and when you finally get one, it gets cracked...but still, gotta do it.

Hand 4 : Your raise on the flop is good, but you have to treat it as a free card raise. When you get two callers, you can't try to make them fold by continuing your aggression on the turn. When it misses you, check in turn, take a free look at the river. And if it checks to you, check it down. Think about what hands the BB would bet the flop with; a lower flush draw (in which case he probably won't call a river bet anyway), a jack (in which case you're throwing away a bet by not checking), or the straight draw, which just hit. Yeah, maybe he bet a low pair and you could get one more bet out of him, but on the whole, betting this river is a losing proposition.

In conclusion, losing streaks SUCK! We've all been through them, and they can really rattle your confidence. But, the good news is, they don't last forever...and generally, when you come out of them, your play is elevated as long as you use them to try to learn. The fact that you posted these hands means you're willing to do what it takes to be a winner, so take heart! Keep on learning, try to stay tilt-free, and "she'll be right!"

-TW

Hand 1: I play it the same except I don't bet out the river. I probably check/call

Hand 2: Don't bet out the river. You raised for the straight and that what you are looking for. The Q might have given you a winning hand but I wouldn't want to pay two bets to find out.

Hand 3:You have to fold the river. It sucks but you do.

Hand 4: Muck it preflop as Piers said. Its a steal hand in LP if no one is in or a limping hand if there are many limpers to you in LP. Once in the hand, I like the flop raise but take the free card on the turn. Too many people in the hand for you to try and push them out. Check the river.

One thing to add--Notice the first hands are out of position. You have to figure that in the SB to MP, your hands are quite a bit devalued. Aggression is the name of the game, but it's very hard to be aggressive when you're first to bet.

I agree with everybody else on the A7s. You limped in with only one sure opponent. You need this to be a multiple opponent situation to build a pot sufficiently full to make the odds. You need at least three more callers. You're risking too much for too little.

The rest--It's poker. Sometimes it sucks to be you.

CJ

I have to be boring and agree with the others. Having done a whole heap of 1/2 hands recently I think its fair comment to say you cannot fold two or more callers by aggression. At least one will stubbornly call you even with bottom pair if only to keep you honest. For this type of play I have GT Plus set up to show % Went to SD. If its more than about 30% don't bother, save your money for another day.

Otherwise you've just got to concentrate on making the right decisions hand by hand, then the bottom line will sort itself out.

Rich