And so begins my poker journal. I'm starting this mainly so I can learn from my mistakes, as I am a very stubborn person. Perhaps seeing the same mistakes over and over again in writing can finally help me change. Though I am laid back, I am a perfectionist at certain random things, and poker happens to be one of them. Even the tiniest mistake will gnaw at me all day. I strive for perfection.

I mainly play short handed NLHE online. Ultimate Bet's my main site, though I've now started to chase bonuses at other sites. My current BR is $3703.01, the majority of which I earned in the last 2 months. I'm currently testing out the $100 NL tables with mixed results. Over 4k hands, I am down about $30 and am perplexed as to why this is the case. I see no difference in my play from the $50s, which I have been killing for 5 months now. Perhaps its just one of those swings everyone goes through? I certainly hope so.

Anyways, the most common mistakes I have been making:

1. Chasing losses: I need to acknowledge the fact that losing sessions do happen and no amount of time at the tables can prevent them from happening. Looking back at my spreadsheet, the biggest losing days I've had in the last few months are the days in which I played the longest. I will try to limit myself to no more than 3 hrs, b/c over that time, I feel my concentration wanes, and am more prone to tilt.

2. Stone-cold bluffs: gotta stop that, just not worth it at these limits.

3. Tilty BlackJack: I curse the person who decided to put BJ at Ultimate Bet. I've done some stupid stuff that luckily hasn't cost me much, though I know its only a matter of time before I suffer a huge loss. I wish there was a way of turning off that option. Sure was fun though!

4. Misplaying overpairs post-flop: I think I finally figured out the whole folding AA-QQ on a low, seemingly unthreatening flop with lots of action. I'm mainly talking about the Mid PPs, specifically 88-JJ. On more than one occasion I've gotten in a raising war on the flop when its all lower cards, and got stacked. I'll post some hands later

Welcome to BTP!

First, I am glad that a future dentist strives for perfection. As my mentor likes to say, "Good enough, isn't."

I look forward to a good read in this spot. As for your common mistakes, and noting that I am a NL noob:
1. Moving sites helps me, unless I identify tilt, in which case I quit.
2. Pick better spots. Big bluffs have their place.
3. Never ever play blackjack, unless of course you are following exactly.
4. Post some trouble hands in the NL forum. I have this problem too, so for now I just won't play an overpair for my stack absent a read. Seems to be working.

Down a little over a buy in for 3 hours time. A few bluffs cost me about $50. I stack a guy when I flop a set vs his KK, but then the same guy takes it right back and then some when his 66 cracks my AA after we get all in preflop. Oh well.

Also, I think I'm getting carpal tunnel from trying to learn all those neat chip tricks.

Played a 2.5 hr session this afternoon, and not much to talk about. Card dead and no action for my monsters, but I did steal a lot of little pots, so I was able to post a small profit. I'm happy that I was able to stay patient so no major mistakes to write about.

Tonight was a different matter all together. Flopped 4/9 sets w/ my PP and won two monster pots to close the 45 min session, including the one below. It seems like sets come in bunches for me. Makes for a very exciting evening.

To set it up, I caught 2 bluffs by the villian for good sized pots earlier in the session, and a few hands before this baby I reraised his flop bet with bottom set, and then reraised him again when he bet out the turn, and took it down.

Here it is in all its glory, my biggest pot to date:


Poker Room skin
No Limit Holdem Ring game
Blinds: $0.50/$1
4 players


Stack sizes:
UTG: $140.25
Hero: $159.90
SB: $67.25
BB: $93.45

Pre-flop: (4 players) Hero is Button with
UTG calls, Hero calls, SB calls, BB checks.

Flop: ($4, 4 players)
SB checks, BB checks, UTG bets $1, Hero raises to $7, 2 folds, UTG raises to $13, Hero raises all-in $151.9, UTG calls all-in $126.25.
Uncalled bets: $12.65 returned to Hero.

Turn: ($282.5, 0 player + 2 all-in - Main pot: $282.5)


River: ($282.5, 0 player + 2 all-in - Main pot: $282.5)


Results:
Final pot: $282.5
Hero shows 6C 6S
UTG shows 4H 9C


Thanks for limping w/ 94o buddy! lol

Up $100 in a short session this afternoon. Won a big pot by making a tough call with middle pair, following through on a read I had. Very encouraging. Just transferred some money into InterPoker to work on their monthly $100 reload bonus. I'll be able to 3 table it there since their software is fairly slow. Off to the par 3 course now. Lets see if i can break 50 this time.

Played in my weekly .25/.50 live cash game last night. Usually 5-7 play there consistently it it is where I first got the poker bug last year. Everyone buys in for $40 and the pot is usually close to $400 when we finish, so its a pretty lively game. There is a pretty good LAG who ALWAYS makes the table super loose. The fun part is that we all know pretty much how everyone else plays so it makes for some interesting hands.

I was involved in 3 big hands with the LAG, losing all of them. My problem with him is that I never ever give him credit and pay him off with the 2nd best hand, which is why, if played correctly, LAG play can be quite productive.

Hand 1: I have J8s in the button, folded to me, so i raise it up, LAG calls from BB. Flop is 982 rainbow, he checks, and I know most likely i have the best hand so i bet nearly the pot. He calls, pot is about $10 now, and turn is a Jack. Chk, I bet 8, and he reraises me to 20. I push all in, and he calls with the nut straight Q10, and I dont improve. My mistake was that when he reraises all in, he is most likely on some sort of draw, so the size of that turn reraise should have alerted me to the fact that he held a great hand.

Hand 2: I reloaded back to $30 (all the cash I had left) and raised it up with . Loose passive CO calls and LAG calls on the button. Pot is $7. Flop is [7d][4s]. Checked all around. Turn is . I bet out $5, fold, and then LAG reraises me all in. After about 30 seconds I make the call, and he turns up [Tc]. He catches one of his 12 outs, another queen, and I bust out again.

Hand 3: He lets me borrow $50 and I slowly lose $10, trying to tighten up a bit, when this hand comes around. I have [5c] in the BB, and everybody limps. Flop is [8c][3c]. Bingo! I bet out $2.50, LAG smooth calls, and button, who is solid, reraises to $8. His range of hands that he'd raise this flop with are either a set, or the flush. I put him on a set though, so I push all in, $40 total. Now LAG thinks for about a minute, and then smooth calls $32. Hmmmm. That's not good. No way he smooth calls with a hand like 9 or something like that. Now button goes into the tank. He thinks for about 2 minutes, and then finally HE pushes all in, $24 more to the LAG. LAG calls, we turn up our hands, LAG has the nut flush (UGHH!!), and button shows up top 2 pair. I did not catch my runner runner straight flush, and LAG wins a monstrous pot. Very bad call IMO by the button, as he's gotta know ONE of us has the flush, and is drawing to 4 outs. LAG spends the rest of the night running over the table with his stack.

Highlight of my night: Guy to my right loans me $1.50 and stakes me 50%. Lol. First hand, I'm all in blind, and 3 callers. Flop is Axx, and button bets out, everyone folds, and he turns up 99, I turn up Q2, LAG says he folded a Q, but I catch a queen on the river!!!! lol. I worked it up to $56 by night's end, and give $28 to my backer. The best decision he made all night!

So I ended up down about $80 for the night. Since I started playing there last year, I think I am about even, maybe turning a small profit.

Spent Friday and Saturday at a friend of a friend's ranch. I got to shoot a rifle for the first time and barely missed some beer cans. The next day, we went fishing at his fully stocked pond. One guy caught a 10 pound catfish after a good 5 minute fight and my friend caught 2 nice 6 pound bass as well. And I got skunked, but it was still fun, though. The pond was absolutely gorgeous, with cliffs all around and the water clear through 15 feet.

Played an hour long session tonight when I came back and finished up $160. Didn't get any big pairs, but my draws were hitting and I was able to take advantage of a big stack calling station. He had $1000 at the $100 NL 5 Max tables. He played about 90% of the hands when I was there. He would call any raise preflop, call full pot flop and turn bets with any pair or any draw. He started minraising preflop on every hand after a while, bet like a weenie on the flop, and show his bluffs if everyone folded. There were only 4 people at the table, so it was effective for a while. I had to force myself to fold trash hands to his minraises. I made a very bad 3 barrel bluff against him when he called the flop w/ bottom pair (deuces), and turned 2 pair (deuces and fives!). I stopped CBing if I missed the flop, and started over betting the hands that hit, and finally doubled up on one hand when the turn gave him the straight and me the nut flush.

Bankroll surpassed the 5K mark and I am finally starting to get comfortable at .50/1.00. yay.