poker blog

May 3rd, 2004 - JetSet - Quads

Im at JetSet. It's a $0.50/$1.00 pot-limit game. I get pocket Aces in early position and I raise the max to $2 (my position was too early to raise more). I get 1 caller and the flop is K-10-5. I bet out the max ($6). He calls. I figure he is calling with the King. Next card is the 9. Not a great card. I bet the pot ($25) and my opponent has only $14 left and he calls all-in. He shows 9-9 and hits runner-runner quads.

May 2nd & 3rd, 2004 - Truepoker - Quads

Here I lose to quads twice in 2 days at Truepoker. That makes getting beat by quads 3 times in 2 days even though I only played about 7 table hours.

May 9th, 2004 - Nice $3/6 session

In this loose $3/$6 game at Superior I have JJ in MP (middle position) and I raise to cut the field. I get a few callers and the flop is K-K-9. I bet out to see if I get raised and I don't get raised. I don't think anyone has the King. Next card is the 8 of spades. A card that doesn't kill me but makes my hand marginally worse. Now there are 2-flush and 2 cards to a straight on the board. Someone bets so I call. River is the King of spades. A great card for 3 reasons: 1. Now I am more sure that no one has a King. 2. I have a full house. 3. The spade makes someone else a good second best hand. I bet out and someone raised. Someone cold-called the raise and I re-raised to 3 bets. Normally I wouldn't do this but this is a case where you are playing the players and not the cards. A good palyer might be looking at me and thinking I am an amatuer who is re-rasing without the nuts but I was confident with my read. The players in this game sucked and someone could easily be raising with a spade flush. Most probably someone has J9 and has Kings full of 9's and thinks he has the best boat. In a tight game I could easily be beaten be K-9 or K-8 for a higher boat but I know I'm ahead. Both players ended up calling and I won the pot. I didn't get to see their cards because they auto-mucked. It was a nice 23BB pot.

Here is an example of a good session. The way to make money playing poker is to win the most money - not to win the most pots. In this $3/$6 session I played a nice tight aggressive style and didn't get involved in big pots where I didn't know where I was. According to the stats I only won 4 out of 61 hands (7%) but I finished up $157 in 45 minutes (26BB or 35BB/hour).

May 9th, 2004 - Truepoker - Flush-over-flush-over-flush

Truepoker. Suited connectors in late position. I limp in and catch the draw and hit it on the turn and lose to 2 higher flushes.

May 10th, 2004 - Getting outdrawn

Superior Poker. $2/$4 game and I have K9s. I flop top 2 pair. I'm hoping to raise the hell out of it seeing as there are 2 to a flush and when you flop 2 pair you always have to be afraid of the straight. A Queen comes on the turn and worries me a bit. The only straight now is J-10 which is the best drawing hand in poker. But I still think I am OK. River is a Jack and I know I have to check/call at this point with 4 to a straight and the pot being 25 Big Bets.

May 12th, 2004 - Tournament suckout

Absolute Poker tournament. Starting chips are T1,500. I have 2,200 and the table chip leader has over T4,000. Blinds are 20/40. Leader limps in UTG and I make it 450 to go. I'm looking to get 1 loose caller and either flop undercards and go all-in or put a medium bet out if a weak overcard comes (Jack,Queen). If a King or Ace comes then I'll bet small and see what happens. Flop is all rags and from the way the leader just smooth-called preflop I am putting him on face cards. Either that or a weaker pair but not pocket 5's or lower so I'm not afraid of a set. My stack is 1,800. Surprisingly he bets out 1,200 - a huge bet. To me it's obvious he is trying to scare me out. If he had a pair higher than mine he probably would have re-raised me pre-flop (except if he had Jacks maybe). I'm putting him on face cards. I re-raise all-in for 800 more. I don't particularly want him drawing here - he could easily suck out on me with 2 cards to come. Unfortunately his huge bet on the flop made the pot odds good enough for him to call with almost any non-dead hand (800 to call 3,600 - he is getting 4.5-to-1 on his money). He calls and shows A6o. I'm very surprised. He ended up hitting his inside straight draw on the river.

He showed a lot of courage making a huge bet on the flop there. His move didn't make sense to me. If I raised big pre-flop (10 times the Big Blind) then it is obvious I have a pair and after the flop I obviously have an overpair to the board in which case I am going to re-raise him all-in on the flop. If he is putting me on face cards then the most probable hand I have is a strong Ace - if that is the case then why cold-call a huge raise pre-flop with a hand that is dominated?

May 12th, 2004 - Stupid call in NL cash game

Home Game. $1/$2 no-limit cash game. I have a $130 stack. I get 4-5 of spades in late position. There is 1 limper and I limp looking to pick up a draw and then big blind checks. Flop comes 6-7-8 with 1 spade. I am very happy to flop the straight but want to raise it up so keep anyone on a draw from hitting. First guy to act bets out $4. He is a very good player - plays strong hand but mizes it up and bluffs just the perfect number of times to keep you guessing. Next girl who is tight raises to $8. I think for a long time. I am putting the guy on a hand that is good but vulnerable hand but a hand that probably has outs to a better hand (maybe A-8 with top pair/top kicker and 5 more outs) so I need to reraise a good amount here to make him fold. Her I am putting on a much better hand probably 2 pair or even a set. I reraise to $25 looking for him to fold and for her to probably call looking to catch and then checking to me on the turn so I can bet all-in for $100 and take it down. She reraises me all in for $125. Now I have to re-evaluate. I no longer think 2 pair is a possibility. It's either a set or a made straight with 9-10. I am figuring if she has a set then I am a 60/40 favorite and if she has a made straight I only have a backdoor flush and runner-runner straight to chop the pot for miracle suckouts for a 7% chance. I call. I made this call based on the very low probability of her and me both flopping straights. She shows 9-10 and I am not surprised. I am in big trouble. The turn is a 10 of spades giving me a flush draw (she has no spades) and an inside straight draw to play the board and chop. The river is no help and I lose.

This was a bad call. I made it based on the low chance that we both flopped straights. Instead, I need to go on the information I am given not on the probability of what could have happened before the hand was even dealt. There were 4 things I should have thought of:
1. She was a very tight player and only made big bets with strong hands.
2. 9-10, although not a good hand, is a very playable hand for a limp in a no-limit cash game.
3. While I was thinking, someone asked her to see her hand she showed it with a flippant I-have-nothing-to-worry-about-look. This to me shows she had a hand she was proud of and it was a tell I shouldn't have ignored.
4. She raised the minimum on the flop. If she had a set on the flop she needs to raise more on the flop and keep someone from hitting their straight and her having to call a big bet on the turn and lose a big pot.
5. Being a tight player, she wouldn't have re-raised all-in with a set on the flop knowing I could have a made straight. I think she would have bumped.
The 1 thing that made me question her was that if she had the straight on the flop and I bet out $25 then why not raise me to $50 on the flop and make sure I call instead of raising to $125 and risking me to fold. But it is obvious she didn't put me on a lower straight. She only knew she had the best hand on the flop and that I could have been on a flush draw or had a set with many outs. If she knew I had the lower straight then I'm sure she would have raised the minimum or even smooth-called looking to give me some false confidence but there was no way she could have put me on the particular hand I had - not to mention when you flop the best hand you have a tendency to not bother putting people on hands because you instianctively think it is irrelevant - you just bet your hand strong and see what happens.
I made a big mistake here. It would have been a tough laydown but making tough laydowns is what good players do. Dumb.

May 13th, 2004 - Party Poker - When good reads have bad endings

     Here is a case of having a certain read on an opponent and playing your hand according to that read. After getting AQo in (LP) late position, the flop comes J-J-J. "Golfman2" bets out and "Indyrick" calls and it comes to me. Automatically I put "golfman2" on 1 of either 2 hands: 1. A made full house with a medium pocket pair (5's or 6's) or Ace high and he is on a semi-bluff. "Indyrick" calls but was harder to read. He could have been calling with 3 different hands: 1. face cards looking to hit a boat (AJ, KJ, KQ) 2. a weak boat (pocket 2's) and afraid to raise because he could get re-raised by a stronger boat or quads 3. slow-playing the case Jack.
     I call with my AQ looking to hit either card and hit my boat. If I don't hit my boat then I am hoping both players were semi-bluffing and will now check the turn then i get to see the river for free and possibly win the hand unimproved. If I hit my Q then I plan to bet/call if both the other players are in on the turn.
     "Golfman2" leads with a check and "Indyrick" bets out. I just call in case "golfman2" has quads, but I don't think he does. If he raises it would be very hard to lay the hand down considering I have the almost-nut full house. And if he is raising with KQ then he could get re-raising by "Indyrick" in which case it might be possible to lay the hand down but would still be tempted to call. He ends up folding which is good.
     The river is a 7 - meaningless. "Indyrick" bets out but I still don't put him on the case Jack - if both players were still in then I would be more hesistant. I think for a while and raise. I put him on a hand without a Jack and don't think I can kose if my read is correct. He re-raises me. Now I just call (there is no way I can re-raise here). He turns over pocket Queens for Queens full of Jacks. I never saw that coming. He didn't raise preflop. Also, I had 1 queen and there was 1 on the board so he had the only 2 left. It looks like a risky move, but given the fact that he doesn't have a J then my raise is a +EV move - it just didn't work out this time.

May 22th, 2004 - $3/6 - Another big Superior pot

$3/$6 game at Superior Poker. I had JJ on the cut-off. I don't raise because with that many players in the pot I am worried that either an overcard will come or, if there are undercards, that someone will call the flop and hit one later. Lately, I have been trying not to get too aggressive with JJ pre-flop in a loose game. There are 7 people seeing the flop. Flop is QJ8 rainbow. Right away I am happy but a little worried. I know I am ahead now but with 2 connected face cards I know a couple of people have some kind of straight draw. Someone bets out and after 1 fold it comes to me. I raise. I get 2 cold calls, plus the originil raiser calls. The next card is a 10 of hearts - definitely a scare card. There are 2 to a flush (not a big deal right now), but there are 4 to a straight.

Someone bets out and someone else raises. I cold called. At this point in a game with loose players (i.e. "stupid") it is very possible someone could be raising with 2 pair. But still, someone could have the made straight. I still have 10 outs for a boat or better. The next card is a Q. Now I have Jacks full of Queens. Someone still bets out. I raise. Someone could have a better hand with Queens-full (Queens full of Jacks, 8's, or 10's). But I know they don't and here is why. If someone had Queens full of 8's or Jacks they would have flopped 2 pair and probably would have re-raised me pre-flop. If someone had Queen-10 and hit 2 pair on the turn then they probably wouldn't have re-raised me considering there were 4 cards to a straight out there. So there is only 1 hand out there that could beat me that makes sense. The guy who has been cold-calling cold calls again and the original bettor calls. I win a 22 BB pot.

May 24th, 2004 - $3/6 - QQ holds up

$3/$6 game at Superior Poker. I had QQ and it got 3-betted preflop for a huge pot. I was worried because if an overcard comes I know I am dead, but even if undercards come then the pot odds are big enough for anyone to call to try to hit. Not to mention all the flush/straight draws.

May 24th, 2004 - $3/6 - Weird hand with QQ

The same $3/$6 game at Superior Poker. This was a weird hand. I get QQ again. This game was very loose-aggressive. I raise UTG and it gets reraised. I love when I raise with a hand like that and it gets 3-betted right to the left of me. I love when this happens because it keeps loose players from cold-calling 2 bets with junk and hitting - and once 1 or 2 players cold-call raises then everyone else does too because of the pot size. One other player does call so the pot is a 3-way. Flop comes KK8. It is just me and 2 other players. I'm pretty sure I have the best hand but I'm not sure. I bet out and both other players call me but don't raise. I'm sure no one has the King. In loose-aggressive game people don't slowplay and also the pot size would keep someone from folding to just 1 raise. The next card is an 8. Now the board is double-paired. Normally I would be very worried here because any full house beats me but I already have some valuable information here. There are 4 cards that beat me and 2 of the cards aren't out there. Now I have to see if someone has the 8. I am almost sure the guy who reraised me to my left doesn't have an 8. Even though these are loose-aggressive players (i.e. "stupid") I don't think he would reraise any hand with a 8. The other guy I am worried about a little because he just smooth-called 3 bets which showed he didn't have a strong enough hand to reraise and may be makign a bad call with a weak hand (A-8s?). But the odds of him having it are still low so I think I am still ahead. Given the dangerous board though I'm not going to bet out and risk a raise - I am just going to check/call because there are no cards that can hurt me too much here (only an Ace to make someone 2 higher pair). So I blank the yurn and an 8 comes on the river - making a full house on the board. Now I am almost sure I am going to chop it with the other guy so I check and he bets and I think he is just seeing if he can represent the King an steal it. I call and he shows AQs. The river hurt me there. I knew I was ahead on the turn and I also knew the other guy had a strong enough hand (when there are 2 pair on the board many times Ace-high wins) that he would call a bet on the river if I decided to make one. It would have been a lot better if the river was the King instead of the 8 because not only do I win the pot ubt I also could easily raise him on the river and surprise him with the Kings full of Queens.

May 25th, 2004 - QQ cracked in NL cash game

A $0.50/$1.00 no-limit cash game at Bugsy'sClub. I have QQ (my popular hand lately) and someone in EP (early position) makes it $3.50. In this game a typical raise is to $2 or $3. With his $4 raise I'm first thinking strong Ace or medium pair - in other words, a strong-but-vulnerable hand. I reraise to $6 and get no other callers. The flop couldn't be better, 2-2-3 with 2 spades. He bets out $13.50 trying to either steal or thinking his strong Ace is good (if he is putting me on a hand like KQs or something). I smooth call. Turn is a 10 of spades. There is a 3 flush on the board but I am not worried - With only 1 person in the pot with me I'm not worried that he has a flush and if he hit his 10 then I still have a better hand. But he could be on a draw and at this point I've got to get him out. So if he bets into me I'll re-raise him all-in. He ends up betting $27 all-in before I get the chance. He shows AJo. He has no flush draw (I figured if someone called then it might be someone with 2 overcards AND 1 spade - that way he has 9 outs on the flush draw and another 4 for his face cards).

- AJo is not that great of a hand. I'm not sure why he would make this huge bet other than general aggressiveness. I reraised him pre-flop (I raised the minimum - this usually means the raiser is begging to be called and I have a very strong hand) and called a huge bet on the flop - I obviosly had something. I think it is possible that because I didn't re-raise him pre-flop that I missed the flop. I don't undersstand what hand he could have thought I had where he had beat. He is drawing to a 3-outer here with 1 card to go. I am a 93% favorite. River comes an Ace and he wins. He seemed so crazy that I am wondering if I raised him on the flop that he may have called anyway.

May 25th, 2004 - Bugsys NL cash game

Same $0.50/$1.00 no-limit cash game at Bugsy'sClub. The table is a bit calmer now. I have AQo UTG and raise the minumim to $2 - looking to catch a flop. I don't want to raise more to try to push people around and get caught up in a reraise. Three people call and the flop comes A-J-2 with 2 hearts. I bet out $1 and she raises to $10.25. I don't think she is bluffing but the question is does she have a strong hand or a medium hand? For strong hands I am only thinking A-K where I am outkicked or A-J where she has 2 pair. For weaker hands she could be raising here with A-10S all the way down to A-7s maybe. She could also be playing a flush draw very strong. My instinct tells me she definitely has a strong hand. If she was raising with A-9s or something then she is risking a reraise from A-J or A-K. The raise was not a huge enough raise for me not to call. My hand is also strong enough so that there still aren't too many stronger hands. The big factor here is that I have $400 at the table and she is short-stacked with $30 or so. If I was against someone with a few hundred then I would be worried about getting caught up against someone making $50-$100 bets on later rounds. I know that I will probably call down whatever bet she makes on later rounds so I just reraise her $9.25 all-in here and take the chance. Folding this hand would put myself at risk of being pushed around too much. She shows A-J and wins. I don't think I would have played this different. I am heads up with the third best logical hand here (if she had J-J or A-A I think she would have reraised - pocket 2's would have been possible maybe).

May 25th, 2004 - Bad session at Superior

Here is my record from a 45 minute session at $3/$6 Superior. Quite the opposite of the record from before. Here I won 2 pots out of 46 (5%) but, most importantly I won small pots and lost big ones. The 2 pots I won didn't go to a showdown (I had strong hands) and the pots I lost I put too much money in the middle.

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