I was in AC on Saturday and was trying to decide between playing 3/6 limit or the 1/2 NL. When it came down to it, I wasn't in the mindset for NL so I stuck to limit. It was terrible for the first 3 hours as I was extremely bored as I saw more garbage hands than I can remember. I was down $70 when I hit it big. I proceeded to get AA 3 times in 30 minutes, including 2 times in 3 hands. I won all of them against a field of calling stations. The second one however, I hit my ace on the flop and played it really badly and ended up forcing someone out when I could have gotten 3 more BB out of him so I was pissed at myself for that. $18 that should have been mine. He was the only decent player at the table besides me so I should have known better.

After them, I was up about $30 and then never really gave it back. I hit a nice nut flush on someone on the turn with my AKs and he lead into me trying to represent it. Since there was someone else in, I didn't raise because I knew he would call one bet but maybe not two. Unfortunately, the guy didn't lead into me on the river but I got 2 calls and they were surprised that I actually had the flush. Later, I hit a set of 8's that boated on the turn agaist a woman with A4 for tpnk. After I showed my hand, she stared at the board trying to find if she could win. What was she looking for a straight? a flush? YOU STILL LOSE LADY! Too bad this was about the one hand in an hour that didn't have 6 people seeing the turn because it would have been a nice pot.

I hit a set of 4's near the end of the session and boated on the turn but my raise on the turn got everyone to fold, including the guy that had lead the flop and turn. I guess he was on a complete buy. I was up a little over 100 and I was gonna leave after the round but got AKo in mp so I had to raise it only to get 3 bet by the sb and get 2 loose callers. Flop was blank and it was checked to me. I knew that betting would not work so I checked and then check/folded the turn when a J hit. I called it quits and I left up $93 for 8 hours of play. Not too shabby.

On sunday was the BTP cash game that was pretty shorthanded the whole time. Party had given me $100 to get me to play so I figured I might as well just use it and if I lose, who cares. However, I was playing really well (except for a couple hands) and proceeded to win almost $200 at the $50 table. I couldn't believe it either. I think I do better against some better opponents. Everyone was trying to outplay each other and I don't know if anyone noticed but I was pretty straight forward with a few tricks in there. Kalle called me a bully just because I checkraised big on one hand. Kalle proceeded to bully me off many hands to who is really the bully? I posted a couple hands in the NL section including one where my opponent didn't wanted to be named so it wouldn't affect the analysis. The other one, I didn't know how to play and folded as I was playing with a big stack against palman, the only one that could bust me at the table.

Now that I got that money, I guess I'll try to actually release that $100. After that, I'm gonna do the party reload bonus and then this other 15% up to $100 bonus party is offering me. That will give me a nice $300 bonus through party which should put me up over $1000 for the month as long as I don't lose big while earning it.

Its strange that I haven't even tried hard to make money this month but its just one of those times things just fall into place. I've been working on only the easy bonuses too so I guess I found a good plan for the future.

I cut it close to release the $100 bonus party gave me but I completed it and I made another $90 on the PLO tables doing it over about 7 hours so overall, I turn that $100 that they gave me into $388 in a week. I wish it was always that easy.

I got a lot of drinking and chillin plans over the next couple days so I doubt any poker will be played til Sunday where I will start on the Party reload bonus which I have to have done on Monday. I had to deposit it while I was working on the other bonus in order to make it on time so I got almost 700 raked hands I will have to do Sunday and early Monday. Gonna be close.

Since I won't be playing to Sunday, my April figures are up $917 in 38.75 hours for a winrate of $23.68 an hour. It didn't seem like I played that much but I had over $330 in bonuses which helped a lot. If I could only do this every month so easily, I would have so many fewer problems right now.

Maybe you should try putting in 10 hours a week and keep working on those bonuses??

if you set yourself 10 hours a week and reach that goal...maybe you'll start bringing in a decent amount of money every month, good enough for a nice supplemental?

It's hard for me to put in over 20 hours a week...so that's what i shoot for.

I dunno..just a suggestion. I'm getting tired

Its definitely a consideration. Thanks for the suggestion and thanks for still reading.

I haven't been playing as much poker as I usually do but I did try some $50 PLO on party since I should have tried moving up a long time ago. I had the COLDEST cards I've ever had playing. I was 15% VP$ip for the first 100 hands and that include the blinds which accounted for about 10% of that. I win some small pots and just get bled down until this hand. I admit that I may have gotten a little frustrated with the lack of playable hands so I limped with this one.

Party Poker Pot-Limit Omaha High, $0.5 BB (6 handed)

Button ($73)
SB ($13.5)
BB ($49.25)
UTG ($88.52)
Hero ($51.3)
CO ($50.35)

Preflop: Hero is MP with , , , .
1 fold, Hero calls $0.50, CO calls $0.50, Button calls $0.50, SB completes, BB checks.

Flop: ($2.50) , , (5 players)
SB bets $2.4, BB calls $2.40, Hero raises to $12, CO folds, Button folds, SB raises to $13 (All-In), BB folds, Hero calls $1.

Turn: ($30.90) (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: ($30.90) (2 players, 1 all-in)

Final Pot: $30.90

You want to guess what he had? The flush? The 36 for 6 high straight? a set for runner runner boat? You give him too much credit. He had [ 7h 4c Th 8c ]. He bet the pot and called all in with a pair of 4's, T kicker with a gutshot draw which he hit on the turn. He didn't have the flush draw. WTF? This would have put me even instead I'm down I nice $25 in an hour.

There is a poker tourney at my house tomorrow if anyone is interested. I don't know why I didn't mention it sooner since some of you live close enough to think of attending. It will likely be 20 or so people, $25 buy in, $35 for new people (we had an entry fee in the past to cover expenses like chips and beer that we've eliminated since this is likely the last big tourney at my house but everyone has paid the $10 in the past so this is to be fair to everyone) There would be 1 rebuy and it will last about 6 hours and starts at 2pm at my house near Trenton, NJ.

Anyone interested, PM me to let me know. Sorry for the late notice but we may have smaller ones in the future if anyone is interested. First prize is normally almost $400 and depending on how many people, we pay 3-5 spots.

Thanks for reading!

For about the last month, I have been playing nothing but PLO as I've wanted to learn the game more and felt I had a decent understanding of the game but just need more experience. I have put in a lot of time (also in past months) at the $25 tables so I decided to move up although I've had the bankroll for it for a long time.

I never play different games at the same time. I play 4 tables at once but they are always the same game at the same level. This way, I am in one mindset the whole time. As for SNG's, I only have one open at a time since I feel I need to concentrate on each one to better play when its shorthanded. Because of playing tight, I am often one of the shorter stacks when it gets around the money so I need all the info I can get to better determine who to steal from and such.

As for switching games, I don't switch often. If I play limit holdem, I do it for a few weeks just like I have been playing PLO for a while now.

I think I definitely play tight/conservative enough to help supplament my income consistently. The only reason I believe had that bad run was that I was getting too loose and trying to play too many hands because I felt I was playing better than others. Although that might be the case, a mix of bad beats and being uncomfortable brought the losing streak. I've realized that I don't need to do that in order to consistently win.

Yo Bri--

its pretty sweet you have a tourney at your house! We have a tough time even filling up our homegame -- you'd be surprised what a broke ass bunchof basterds law students are. Anyways its good that your off your losin streak. I went through the exact same thing as you, where i looked down at 68s in MP and thought that opening for a raise was the proper play, because i can 'outplay' the opposition- Either make a hand, or push him off his. So easy! And when i would miss my flush draw (Which i turned, and led with), id fire the last barrel and some ass piper that called my MP raise with Q9o would take it down with middle pair--Then id think--GOD, im running soooo bad--how can i lose to this table full of yeast infected poontangs? Repeat ad infinitum. Definitely stopped that now.

Anyways--good luck, and have fun at your tourney. Kinda wierd though, its gonna be a pretty serious game. Ive never played a serious game of poker at any of my own homegames, its all just random raises and reraises, and allins with gutshots, since we play small.

We try to play serious there although some people are definitely having more fun at it than others since they have more money to throw around

As for the tourney, I finished 3rd out of 19 for a profit of $60. Not too shabby seeing that I was short stacked most of the day and never had a stack higher than 7500 (near the end) when everyone started with 1500 and there were about 8 rebuys so about 40,000 in total chips. I doubled up when I needed to, won a coinflip and a 60/40 situation and then knocked out the 5th placed guy with AJ to his KJ and then took the last of his very few chips with JJ to his A6 when i flopped a jack. I had AA once and KK twice (both in the sb). I won the blinds with all of those hands. I practically played 12 hands all tourney because my hands were either great or very poor. When it got 3 handed, I got 2-4 3 out of 4 hands, 93, J2, ect and couldn't find a hand to push as they both had such big stacks, I was very likely to be called. I went out with T6s in my 800 bb when they all limped and the flop came KTx. SB checked, I went all in for about 2500 (pot bet) and the sb called with K4 to knock me out. Nothing much I could do. I was just happy to get money after seeing how the tourney was going for me so far.

I believe that makes 7 or 8 total big tourneys we've had and I won the first 2 for a total profit of over 900 (2nd tourney had unlimited rebuys and 30 people, i didn't rebuy once) and then this one. I had a long string of bad cards, bad beats and some bad play that kept me out of the money all the other times but I was always (except once) able to make the final table and at least compete. The one time I didn't make it was when my AA lost to JJ who spiked a Jack on the river when we were all in on the flop. Anything can happen once at the final table. Hell, the winning of this last tourney was last place in chips going into the final table and was chip leader by the time we got to 5 people.

Had to drive 2.5 hours each way to Delaware for Mother's Day and had a nice day as we BBQ-ed with family. Got home at almost 9 and decided to start a little towards the stars bonus as I played 400+ hands for $11 profit at the 1/2 limit tables in 1.5 hours. I made one bad semi-bluff against the wrong guy but I just couldn't hold a hand against some people. They always hit 2 pair or chase their 4 card gutshot straight when they have flopped bottom pair agains my overpair or TPTK. Earned about 80-90 FPP which seems to suck at that rate but I get so many hands in that it could be worse.

Been playing a lot of God of War as its a kick ass game but I'm starting to lose interest in it as I'm on the final boss on God mode and can't beat it. Its 3 forms and I'm stuck on the second part. Part of me never wants to play the game again but the competitor in me can't just give up. I looked up for hints online to beat it and one just said "you have to get lucky" which just gives me tons of hope in beating him. Anyone else play game?

I played it exactly once. I got up to the part where you have to fight some greek mythological thing thing some greek mythological weapon. I lost.

-TW

Helpful as always TW. God of War has been one of the main reasons I have not been playing as much poker lately.

I finished the stars bonus by 4 tabling 1/2 for 3 hours and it started really bad. I was down $50 at one point so I was playing the bonus at that point to break even. I don't know why I have been doing so bad there but I got some wins and actually ended up $21 and the $120 bonus. I will admit, there were a couple suckouts by me in that but hey, turn about is fair play. I also made some nice moves when I hit a 1 card full house 2 times to get people to commit a lot more chips with the lower boat and another big bet when the other guy was playing the board (board of Q222Q when I had AQ and he had 45 - don't know how he called my flop bet but I checked to turn to get him to pay me off on the river).

After, I played a couple SNG's on Party but got 5th and 6th. The first one I got short stacked by trying to bluff a couple hands I should have and then someone minraised my sb to 100 and I went all in for 450 with AQ. He had A8 and called me to flop an 8. I forget how I busted out of the other.

Yesterday, I only played a couple more SNG's on party for 1st and 2nd and eanred a nice $116 doing so. Not too bad.

Nice job Brian.

I was just thinking as I read your journal....

do you have any bankroll goals? Is there a certain point in your mind now that you're shooting for?