Piss Wank.

That about sums up the last 3 hours of my life.

It shames me to say I have just lost $183, of which about $120 I can directly attribute to my piss poor play.

Between you and me I have gone through the hands. Spotted my wankiness and made my notes, then banished those sessions from PT. I know this will be a bit extreme etc and maybe cheating but to be perfectly honest feeling the way I feel now its history.

I do not really feel like writing a lot about it all at this stage. I know leading up to my collapse I was actually playing very well and getting some awful luck. I lost with a top set of jacks to a runner runner straight, JJ to QQ (occupational hazard) then I lost a really rough hand to a guy chasing a flush who called off two thirds of his stack to get it. I made those bets big as I knew he was chasing and sure enough... the river drowned me.

I think the learning curve has been my temperment. Up to know I have thought I was pretty immune to everything since its happened before. Guess not. Well I shall now own up to being human and make a point of taking time if things get a little hairy. Its not like there is anything I will lose by taking the time over what I lose trying to play through.

Stupid.

This is likely to be the last entry in a while as I am going on holiday to spend some time with the missus, and poker is not on the agenda! All things considered the timing is pretty good as it will give me a little time and space then its all out for $100NL and the best poker game I can manage.

Tell then GL

Rich

Don't be too hard on yourself!

We all make mistakes. We all tilt on occasion. We all get bad luck.

This break sounds like some pretty good timing. Get all that negative air out of your head. Going into games thinking negatively will adversly affect your bankroll. I wonder how long it took me to figure that out? I never ever play now if I feel any negative emotions. One bad hand and I might lose it. When you start feeling it...you need to get away from that poker table! Just repeating the obvious...so we can both get it through our heads!

Your NL game has improved tremendously since you've switched. I can tell by the hands you post and the comments you post about other hands. I think you will steadily improve more and more...and will jump up limits quicker then you may have thought. I would be surprised if you're not tearing up the $200 tables in 6 months.

Thanks for the kind word Kenny.

I do think sometimes taking a slap in the chops can be good if you recognise it for what it is. I certainly am going to change my approach and learn from this mistake. I think its fair to say that there is a finite amount of crap that can be hurled in one session at you before your A game slides to your F game. Its just a case of recognising in the truth in this statement and taking a time out. I think I felt it would be weak to do that, stupid but there you go.

I have decided to reload my BR $100. This is my "Stupid Tax". I figure this means I might miss one night out on the sauce but thats the whole point. I will instead study my poker books!

I hope to book a little time in tomorrow then it is off for 10 days. I do think this is good timing, agreed. When I come back its new focus and we shall see where it ends!

Cheers again.

Rich

Didn't end up playing last night, too much to do.

Well I am off on holiday for 10 days so won't be writing much if at all.

Speak soon.

Rich

Hey,

Second day of my holiday and I just cannot keep away, so sad?

I have just got the 2nd Harrington's book so it means I will wipe the floor with you yanks in the next BTP tourney. Not really started reading it as I am still working through the first though I have to say the style of writing is excellent. I think it deals with NLHE in a good way, concentrating on decision making instead of absolute rules. Since so much of NHLE is subjective I think this is the best way to be. I am also working through a book on tourament play incorperating The Art of War, interesting stuff.

I expect I shall book a little time later but till then stay lucky.

Rich

The book I am reading is Tournament Poker & The Art Of War by David Apostolico. Its less of a how-to book and more of a why-you-do type of thing. Its been an interesting read so far though some of the strings it draws together are pretty obvious.

I played last night for about half an hour getting stacked pretty quickly, all the more fun as I was being watched by Cornier at the time. Nothing like sharing your pain! It was a house over house thing with a possible flush on the board so I was never laying down. Occupational hazard. I made half of it back on another table so I was down maybe $25, not a lot in the scheme of things.

Still on my world tour of Minnesota. I have to say, I have been seriously mislead. I was told this place was cold cold cold. Its bloody boiling! Yesterday was the first sub 100 degree day. I was at the wedding of the missus' sister. One of the wedding presents for my future brother in-law was a poker table and chips, sweet! I also have now seen my new poker table for our house, seems I am marrying the right woman.

I think we have plans to hit one of the race tracks near here to get some shuffle up action. Should be fun. Otherwise things have been going really well. I was made to wear a T-shirt yesterday saying "I America, Feeling the love since 1776" so my European cool was compromised. I am having fun so far. Its very strange to be touring around and thinking that in 9 mths I shall be living here. I saw my second ever baseball game yesterday but this one with with the father in-law. We saw the Twins lose to the Angels. That sucked as it looked like we were set to steal the game in the final inning, the sort of thing that makes you a fan for life. As it is reality stuck and we lost by one game, bah.

Have no clue when I shall play next as I am a little preoccupied but I am home on Monday so I am back to the grind stone next week. Got a wedding to pay for...

GL

Rich

Hey Rich, that boat-over-boat hand really sucked (I was the one watching you...).
Anyway, I intend to play a bit more NL on UB (I'll play 2 PLO tables and 1 NL table or vice versa, depending on where the action is), so if you see me there step by. Always good to get some constructive criticism... I hover between the $50 and $100 tables. You know they have a nomax table with $.25/.50 blinds? Sometimes a couple of horrible players will sit down with $200 or so just to prove how big their roll is, and they have no clue how to play the big stack.

Cheers, Pieter

Well I am back!!!

Would play tonight but I am so tired its untrue. I do feel good though about playing again, the holiday has been perfect tonic for a bad day at the office.

The plan is to get back to the $50NL and make it up to the $100NL. I keep getting my BR raped by wedding costs etc so I have decided to modify my goals slightly. I have decided I shall start taking shots at the $100NL once I get over $1500. If things go well then I should be able to build up and never look back. If things go a bit squiffy then I shall go back to $50NL if I drop below $1100, so I am never in a BR disaster zone.

I know this is me pushing a little harder but I feel my game is developing. Well wish me luck. I am prob about $400 from this goal right now so there is no rush.

Rich

Back to the rock face today.

Played for about 2 hours in a nice session. Got hit by the bad guys a few times but managed to streak ahead by dishing out a few cans of whoop ass.

$50NL

Hands: 500 (nice number)
Amount Won: $60.95
BB/100: 24.38

I played well in this session recovering for a near stacking pretty early. I have identified one weakness in my game that I am working on. I think I bet badly when I have a real good hand, often over betting to maximise value but I making too many easy folds for other. I have read about betting to someone's sweet spot where they don't want to call but its not enough to let them fold. I did it better today but there were still a couple where I pulled the trigger a little too hard.

I have decided to put any hands I really need comments on in the NL ring games section, but instead I shall post interesting or gay stuff here.

Todays shall be the toughest call I have ever had to make...

Ultimate Bet No-Limit Hold'em, $.50 BB (8 handed)

MP2 ($79)
CO ($71.25)
Button ($62.15)
SB ($21.75)
Hero ($49.65)
UTG ($39.85)
UTG+1 ($39.35)
MP1 ($45.55)

Preflop: Hero is BB with , .
1 fold, UTG+1 raises to $1.75, 5 folds, Hero raises to $6.5, UTG+1 raises to $19.75, Hero calls $13.25.

Flop: ($39.75) , , (2 players)
Hero checks, UTG+1 bets $19.6 (All-In), Hero calls $19.60.

Turn: ($78.95) (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: ($78.95) (2 players, 1 all-in)

Final Pot: $78.95

Results in below:

Hero has Qd Qh (four of a kind, queens).
UTG+1 has Ac Ad (two pair, aces and queens).
Outcome: Hero wins $78.95.

This was a nice session where I went from down to up, then stayed up the whole session finishing at the highest. That doesn't happen enough so I am going to be happy today. I also got about $12 out of my UB cash pile so life is good. $445 till I can take some shots at $100NL...

Rich

To be perfectly honest it was a good raise on his part. Any more and I fold. It was $13 back to me and I was happy to pay that. I figure he might have tens or jacks at the outside but most likey he has me out gunned. I played that looking for the flop, a good flop and I stack him, bad flop and I am going to bail. I would have written that off as the price of doing business. The UTG+1 player wasn't the most solid either, so it wasn't totally cut and dry in my mind.

Didn't play tonight as I was mostly out drinking...

Rich

Played a 2 hour session just now. Since I am playing later tonight I won't go into details on the results but I am down about $7, nothing big. To be honest it was a pretty dull session. I played 3 tables posting a massive win on one and two modest loses on the other. Not a lot to say as I was card dead nearly the whole way. Lost one hand for $25 when the table idiot went all-in (short stacked) on a draw and missed but hit an overcard on the river to take a pot from me. Especially annoying as my reasons for calling the bet was I put him on a bluff/draw. Wank when you are right and it still goes to tits.

I think I am playing very well at the moment. I had an instance where I lost about $40 in three hands over all the tables but I took a second and used the time to pee, came back and just got on with it.

Playing more later so hopefully with a few cards I shall skank a few people.

Rich