Staking My Claim: A Poker Dynasty

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by TRO

Am I missing something or wouldn't if one of the 7s hit, you'd still be up with FH 3/7? Any 7 would have to be accompanied by another 7, a 6 or a Q for him to beat you.

Semantics, I know.

You're absolutely right. I knew there was something wrong with my figuring... I was farther ahead than I described.

[Radii]

radii@dread:~$ pokenum -h 3c 3h - Qd 7d -- 3s 6d 7h
Holdem Hi: 990 enumerated boards containing 3s 6d 7h
cards     win   %win      lose  %lose       tie   %tie        EV
3c 3h     920  92.93        55   5.56        15   1.52     0.937
Qd 7d      55   5.56       920  92.93        15   1.52     0.063

[Rich1033]

Add me to the list of the people who are really enjoying this. Great read.

[QuikSand]

Side Game – 13 March

I sit down at the table, where there are already five players rolling in a side game. While it’s announced as “2/4/10” (a game that I am used to) the implementation has been a bit different than I expected – they are using $2/$4 as the blinds here, rather than the minimum bets. So, the cost to see a hand is twice what I am used to for the side game – meaning that I need to adjust and play a little more tightly than I have been with a blind of only $2.

Mrs. Q has been playing for maybe half an hour, and is holding pretty steady, as nearly as I can tell. I see that there are two “new” players at the table – guys I figure to be pretty weak – and the other tourney loser who follows me is pretty loose as well (he was on my right before – the guy I “tested” early in the tourney). I think this table ought to be pretty profitable. I can see that Mrs. Q is a little intimidated, but she is remaining very tight – which is good for her first foray into a game like this (she has no experience with spread-limit, which takes some getting used to).

I sit and buy in for $100, with another $100 back in cash. On my right is a player whom I know is terrible, and on my left is another novice – looks like a good seat to me. Mrs. Q is two seats to my left.

In the first hour or so, I have a couple bad hands – and lose in showdowns to the same player, a seemingly arrogant jerk I’ve never met before. It’s a little tough to lose to someone with an unseemly personality… but that’s how it goes. I pretty quickly say goodbye to about a hundred dollars, and have to cash in the next hundred – from the jerk. Nice twist.


I am in a hand against Chip, which merits some detail. I am the small blind, and hold Ah3h – a pretty good hand for late position, I think. I am getting better about playing Ax in general (in tougher games, this is a great hand to lose a lot of money on) but when there are three players ahead of me and no raises, I put in my extra two bucks without blinking. Five players see the flop.

3d – 2h – 3s

I have trips with the best kicker, I have to be well ahead of anyone. At this table, with the poor play, it’s certainly possible that someone stayed in with a hand that now yields a straight draw (A-4? Even 4-5?) but I have to be well ahead. I stray from my usual play here, and sandbag, checking it initially, and expecting a bet from one of the aggressive players.

Chip bets $10, gets one caller, and it’s back to me. On the flop, in a simple limit game where we’re still making small bets, this might be a spot to just check and call – but here, with the maximum bet $10 anytime, I don’t see any reason to wait. I raise him $10, and he looks at me like I just kicked his dog. He calls, and to my surprise, the other player calls, also.

Turn brings the 2c. This is a bittersweet card for me. I still have the strong boat, but now trail a pair of deuces. And my kicker, once a chance to win out over another set of trips, has become irrelevant. So, I feel like my hand got better, but my position may not have. I bet $10 anyway – I have shown strength, and there’s a sizable chance that if I slow down here, they may take a free card. No sandbag opportunity here – I bet. Chip calls, and the third player calls as well.

River is a relative blank, 8h. It would be tough to put anyone on a pocket pair of eights, but now that is a hand that beats me as well. I fire again – and bet $10. Chip raises $10. Ouch. The other player folds – I figure he probably did have an overpair, but not eights, of course. Back to me. I want to reraise… but it’s possible that I am beaten here. I call.

I turn over my 3. Chip shows his 3 and an ace kicker. I show my ace also. Laughs all around (except for the third caller) as we chop up a pretty substantial pot.


Anyway – play carries on or another hour or so. The tournament wraps up – the host manages to beat his brother in the final showdown (now convenient is that?). Chip drifts over to the other table after losing at ours for a while, and so does the jerk who cleaned me out early. I’m down maybe $140 at this point… I feel like I am playing fairly well, not recklessly, but I just have had little success.

Anyway, our game goes on for a couple hours longer, and I’m at a complete loss to explain what happens. Th player on my right is making completely amateurish mistakes – he’s calling bets on the river when he doesn’t even have a pair, he’s baffled by the notion of using only five cards (he’s stupefied that we won’t break the tie when both players are using the board cards, even if one of them had a better initial holding)… it’s weird. And yet, after about three hours of play, this guy is sitting behind a wall of chips – plenty of them are mine. Yes, it’s possible that poker players “act” like they are weak when they are strong, and it’s conceivable that a good player might pretend to be a new player – but this guy is making mistakes like crazy and being rewarded for it.

Across the table, my tourney neighbor is proving to be a loose but aggressive player also, and he has some poker sense. With both of them at the table, we are seeing plenty of action – and it’s hard to decide exactly when it’s worth staying in any given hand. I’m frustrated when I lay down top pair (queens), weak kicker – only to see a pair of eights, caught on the turn, taking down a pot after betting all the way. There are a few cases of this, but I generally keep my wits, and play according to my best estimates of pot odds. Mrs. Q has basically crawled inside a shell, and is playing at most one hand per round beyond her big blind. She brings down one big pot, but I can see that she is mostly watching – she is patient, and this is a bad game for her to get her feet wet.

My evening just goes miserably. Around 12:00 or so, I have liquidated three benjamins, and a couple of twenties, and am down to just a pathetic handful of chips. I play another suited ace with a weak kicker – this time A4s. On the flip, I see A-A-7. Good for me, presuming that nobody else has the other ace and has me outkicked. Checks around to me, and I bet $5 on the flop – half the maximum. Two callers.

Turn brings a ten. I still feel very good, but decide to check this round – I’m worried, maybe too much, that the better ace is out there, especially since the second caller is a pretty decent player (though he is getting eaten up by the maniacs tonight as well). Checks around, and we see the free card. The river is a king. I figure someone probably made a pair this time, and will call my bet – I’m no longer worried about the better ace, as I’m sure it would have shown on the turn were it out there. I figure to win this, and only hope for a caller. My $10 bet leaves me with only one $1 chip.

The loose-aggressive player moves to raise my bet – he pushes in $20. The other player folds, and it’s up to me to call – I’m all-in for my last dollar. I mutter as I turn over my third ace “I guess I’m outkicked…” and am aghast to see him playing an unsuited jack and queen. He got runner-runner to get his straight.

I am, of course, complicit in this farce – I let him get his free card by not betting the turn. But calling my bet on the flop with aces showing, without a pair and only two decent, unsuited cards? I should have known better… but in retrospect, after watching his play, I don’t think would have shaken him at the turn, I just would have run out of chips sooner. (And I would have had a better-grounded grievance after the hand ended).

Awful, awful night. I walk away from the table… I notice that I have a fifty in my pocket, but discretion is the better part of valor here, and I hold onto it, as the table breaks up within another twenty minutes. Mrs. Q had a whimper at the end, chasing in two pots and folding before the finish both times – and ended up down on the night. She bought in for $140, and ended up with only $15 left in chips. She was upset, but recognized that the table was strange – she was far cooler under the collar than her steaming husband.

OUT: $340
IN: $0

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by Alf

So, you are back in black now !

So much for being in the black.

[Vince]

Ouch...that last hand is just horrible.

Chalk me up as another who is really enjoying the dynasty, Quik.

[primelord]

Originally Posted by QuikSand

Turn brings the 2c. This is a bittersweet card for me. I still have the strong boat, but now trail a pair of deuces. And my kicker, once a chance to win out over another set of trips, has become irrelevant.

Unless I am missing something you were always trailing to a pair of deuces. Some holding pocket 2's would have made the boat on the flop.

[primelord]

Originally Posted by QuikSand

I am, of course, complicit in this farce – I let him get his free card by not betting the turn. But calling my bet on the flop with aces showing, without a pair and only two decent, unsuited cards? I should have known better… but in retrospect, after watching his play, I don’t think would have shaken him at the turn, I just would have run out of chips sooner. (And I would have had a better-grounded grievance after the hand ended).

Even if you knew for certain betting the turn wouldn't have shaken him it still would have been the right thing to do. I am fairly certain you were not going to lay down that Ace if someone bet $10 on the turn. So considering you only had $1 over the max bet and were willing to call the max bet on the turn it is always better to bet out and give everyone the chance to fold. And if your LAG opponent doesn't fold even better, since obvioulsy you want him calling and drawing to that gut shot. However by checking if he misses his 3 outs then he is obviously going to fold to your bet and you just cost yourself money.

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by primelord

Unless I am missing something you were always trailing to a pair of deuces. Some holding pocket 2's would have made the boat on the flop.

Quite right - that's twice I've made that same error. Grrr.

[QuikSand]

Well, I am hoping to get back to the "pink game" tomorrow night for some $7/50/$15 action against the "A team." I am told that the better players there generally take off when they drop to $5/$10 - so I'll be looking for the tougher nuts this week. I think it's good for my game - that level helps enforce my discipline.

[primelord]

Any update on how the "pink game" went?

[cthomer5000]

This has been an enjoyable read. Keep it up.

[QuikSand]

Pink Game - March 17

Well, I am home, and it's not even midnight. Part of the point of maintaining a journal like this is to be honest with myself and you. So - you get me while I am still steaming.

I got flattened tonight. I don't have a good feel for whether it was bad play, bad luck, or a combination of the two. But I sat down at the $7.50/$15.00 "pink game" tonight at 8pm, and in three hours lost about as much as I could handle.

I confess that I never got to any degree of "comfort" with the game. Not a single player there was someone I recognized. One guy's face was familiar to me - but I think I have just seen him playing at the Borgata in Atlantic City, he's not sonmeone I know locally. This was not my usual group of former frat boys - these were different, and generally more serious players. A fellow player from my latest visit here (calls himself "Texas Dave") mentioned to me in passing that "you haven't even seen the A team." I suspect that at least some of that was the group here tonight.

So, I don't have a lot of outrageous suck-out stories (I have a few, but I don't want to suggest that they explain my loss for the evening). I wasn't the victim of ridiculous play that worked out for someone else to my harm. I played a reasonable array of opening hands, made what I thought to be a fair number of folds when I felt I was beaten, I made fairly aggressive plays when I thought I was strong, and in just about every case things failed to work out. I flop two pair, and lose to a straight. I call with suited connectors, and everything misses. I play high cards, someone flops trip sixes. Seemed like it was happening all night.

I generally have pretty high confidence in my game, and coming into tonight I had every expectation of sitting down and feeling comfortable. Instead, I felt decidedly uncomfortable the whole night -- I didn't know anyone, I felt like they all knew each other, I lost chips right away on two quick hands that broke wrong for me, and the play at the table intimidated me a bit. All in all - a bad setting.

So, I'm pouring all this out here, and I'll record it in my log as well -- you can't fall for the oldest fallacy in the book, and only remember the good times. I'm more than a bit disappointed that a sizable stack of hundreds that I had built up over the couple of months at the end of last year has now dwindled to a pretty paltry sum. For the first time since last fall, I may actually need to go into my own bank account in order to stake myself for gambling. (It was nice playing with "won money" all this time)

Sob. Sob. Sob.


OUT: $450
IN: $0

[sabotai]

Ouch....but these night will happen. I remember Vegas Vic saying awhile ago in one of the poker games that he dropped over a grand one day, or something like that. And I'm not sure if that was even against "A team" material either.

[primelord]

As frustrating as I am sure it was to drop $450. You only lost 30 BB on the night. It is VERY possible to play solid poker all night and still drop 30 BB. Hell it's very possible to be playing solid poker and drop 100 BB. Especially against good competition. Unless you know some of that money was lost from tilting, and based your comments it doesn't sound like it was, I wouldn't be too concerned about your game.

[Barkeep49]

What's BB?

[RPI-Fan]

big blind

[QuikSand]

Actually, as used above, BB means "big bets." When calculating your wins and losses in a fixed-limit game, it's pretty common to translate eveything to the number of "big bets" as a way of normalizing. Losing $450 in a $7.50/$15 is 30 big bets... equivalent, in essence, to losing $120 in a $2/$4 game.

[RPI-Fan]

My bad, typed wrong. thanks for the correction

[QuikSand]

Small update. I have been away from actual tables for a few nights, but I di play a little bit onlone last night and this morning, gaining a little bit of needed affirmation. Three sit-and-go tournaments (10 players, top three spots get paid) with finishes of 3rd, 3rd, and 1st.

Up ahead is a $5/$10 game on Monday night at the Pink Game (where Mrs. Q also wants to play), then Rick's tournament on Thursday, and then a pretty big affair on Saturday at Bumper's place - he expects to have over 40 players and a top prize of over $2,000. So - more to come, needless to say. (Mrs. Q is on spring break, and can hit the tables this week without worry about early mornings)

[QuikSand]

I won a qualifier at Party Poker this afternoon, and now am entered in the $200,000 guaranteed "Saturday Special" tournament tonight... not a bad deal, for two rounds of $24+2 entry sit-and-go qualifiers. Maybe my run of bad luck will turn around a bit.

[MrIllini]

quik, I'll see you there in a couple minutes!

I won a 9+1 multi qual earlier this week

[QuikSand]

Short night in there for me... pushed in with sneaky two pair from the big blind, but lost to a made set of fives. I ended up in 800+ position overall. *sigh*

[MrIllini]

376 for me

all my good cards dried up early

couldn't get anything late, and paid for it

good time

[Subby]

Here's hoping the pink game went well...

[QuikSand]

The Pink Game – 22 March

Back to the site of the Pink Game, but I’m here to play in their $5/$10 offering. Mrs. Q is on spring break, and is here to play as well - - we each hit the table with a $300 stake. She is a little intimidated – I have told her that this is a pretty tough game, but I think she is up to the challenge.

Our first hour goes pretty badly. I lead the flop betting twice, only to get raised on the turn both times. I lay one down, and call out the other and lose both times. Not terrible beats, but enough to put me about a hundred in the hole within the first sixty minutes or so. Hell, I’m barely even settled into my seat, and I’m putting a hundred dollars on the table behind my chips. Things went poorly last time I was at this table (different game, and totally different foes) and I’m starting to get hinky.

Mrs. Q is having some trouble. She is simply not very aggressive, and I can see a couple of times when she should have made raises to get out the chasers – but only called the bets. Missing those chances cost her badly, as she got sucked out twice with decent hands. She’s down about a hundred as well.

Things pick up for both of us, to some degree. I stabilize, and stop my bleeding. Mrs. Q wins a hand, and she seems to tread water for a while – though she has either gone on a terrible run of cards, or has gotten exceedingly tight. She’s getting nibbled by the blinds, but isn’t losing rapidly.

My rebound starts up, and around 11:00 or so, I am roughly back where I started. Mrs. Q, however, has slipped badly, and is down to a pre-flop raise to go all in. I check my cards (am two seats to her left) and see AJ I have to call. The table hoots with shock, and someone suggests that I might as well not even come home. Turns out the third player and I both check all the way to the river – where he bets. With an empty side pot, he has to be very strong to be betting here, so I fold. Mrs. Q takes the pot anyway, after catching a straight with her QJs.

But, it’s not too long before she is out. She is all in again with a pair of aces in hand pre-flop, and the entire table knows it (it seems). She loses to a straight, and is busted out of $300 on the night. Thirty big bets – sounds familiar. She heads home – and the rest of the players are mightily impressed that we drove separately.

The next two hours I hold my own. I take a few small pots, but don’t have a big hand to go after any big game, really. I’m not giving chase to lots of flush draw hands, so I miss out on that $20 adventure every few hands. Instead, I play my high cards and pocket pairs, and land a few bucks when I can.

At around 1:30 or so, the game largely breaks up. I am ahead by about $60 at this point, and am ready to cash out. But the offer comes, “want to keep playing?” Three players, same stakes – I stick around. Things work well for a while as I am the first of the three players to really loosen up and play aggressively, but then I get outmuscled by my left neighbor (Chris, the host, a good player) and when he and his fantasy baseball co-manager get me talking on that topic, I lose my focus and blow a hundred in about 15 minutes. So, I worked my way back from $150 down to nearly $150 ahead, and then frittered a lot of it back in the last hour and change, playing short-handed. So it goes. I had a pretty good time, and made pretty good strides feeling comfortable with this game and these opponents. Solid night – I don’t mind ending up in the red a bit.

OUT: $300
IN: $258

[Subby]

Brutal stretch for Mrs. Q...it sounds like your analysis of her game is right on, though...she needs to be more aggressive and maybe switch gears once in a while. I am guessing she is probably playing tighter than she needs to...which is understandable when you are in a group of intimidating players.

[QuikSand]

Well, as nearly as I could tell, Mrs. Q was up until about five in themorning last night playing on Party Poker. Apparently she was busting up the $3/$6 games thre so badly, she couldn't actually bring herself to come to bed. Should be a helpful confidence boost.

(Let's keep this focused on poker, please)

[SplitPersonality1]

Originally Posted by QuikSand

(Let's keep this focused on poker, please)

?!?.....fine. It was just too easy anyway.

RE: Poker
I'm happy to see that she didn't get discouraged and dove right back in there. Many times, it seems as if these things come in cycles, at least for me.

At PP, I am in a horrible funk in the ring games, regardless of level. I'm not sure exactly where the problem lies, but I'll figure it out eventually. Fortunately, I am playing exceptionally well in the SNG tourneys. The odd thing is that the opposite was true last month. Very odd.

QS,
Do you ever go through something like this; where there is a large difference in results based on the type of game you play? If so, what do you attribute it to? Just curious.

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by SplitPersonality1

At PP, I am in a horrible funk in the ring games, regardless of level. I'm not sure exactly where the problem lies, but I'll figure it out eventually. Fortunately, I am playing exceptionally well in the SNG tourneys. The odd thing is that the opposite was true last month. Very odd.

Funny, I'm on the same side of this right now. I've been in the money in 12 of my last 17 sit-and-so tournaments, putting me ahead by some $765. Through the same period, though, I have been dying on the vine in ring games - even at levels where I am usually very, very solid.

It sure does seem to come in cycles this way.

My response is usually to do some reading focused on the area where I'm having trouble. Right now, my bedside book is Sklansky and Malmuth's Hold 'em for Advanced Players, which is largely focused on the limit environment. Just refreshing myself on some of this seems worthwhile... and this seems like a good time for a re-reading.

[SplitPersonality1]

Thanks QS,
I will be looking for the book this weekend.

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by SplitPersonality1

Thanks QS,
I will be looking for the book this weekend.

It is among many good poker books readily available on ebay - sold new for around 1/4 below sticker price. I do recommend it, though.

Another very good one, if you're looking for something pretty general, is Lou Krieger's More Hold 'em Excellence - A Winner for Life.

Amazon Link

I found this to be a very helpful book - his writing style stuck with me more than most, and for the most part I concur with his strategic suggestions. It's not as thick as Sklansky's writing can be - much more approachable. An easy one to pick back up and flip around in from time to time.

[QuikSand]

Tonight, I'll be playing in Rick's tournament again, after a couple weeks off. My legend of bad beats is starting to precede me - at a small tourney last Thursday night, I'm told that a few people asked where I was... only to be assured that "he's just riding out a series of bad beats... he'll be back."

Anyway - there's a failry big tourney nearby on Saturday, which both Mrs. Q and I plan to play in. She is playing in a "satellite" tonight - open only to poker novices and women. I'm optimistic that she can fare well in that kind of field, though she will be vulnerable to a big suck-out, I fear.

More to report soon, hopefully.

[Subby]

Good luck tonight...living vicariously though you

[FishFan]

Good luck in your ventures tonight and into the weekend. I'm playing a $100 SNG game this Friday about 90 minutes north of where I am. Hopefully, it will be well worth the drive.

[QuikSand]

Ack - Rick's tournament is canceled for tonight, and there is talk that it might either be scaled back or even deep-sixed. *sigh*

I'm going over to the site of the play-in tournament where Mrs. Q is playing, and I have expectations that there might be something kicking around there. Rumor is that they might start a fairly small scale Stud/Omaha/Holdem game (sort of a mini-HORSE game, I guess).

[Radii]

We played HOE the other weekend, hold 'em, omaha, stud/8. At another time the selection of choice was what they called HOE-Duece(two stud games I guess is where the duece comes from) as no one wanted to play razz... it was Hold 'em, omaha, stud high and stud/8. I sternly protested the idea of ever doing that in the future, stud hands take so much longer to play, you spend 75% of your time or more playing stud, most of us are hold 'em or omaha players(a couple play omaha exclusively online).

I'm currently reading Gary Carson's recent book(I forget the name right now) at the recommendation of many poker players on another board I read, so far I am not really enjoying his writing style, though the content seems to be good.

I have been ripping 1/2 online to shreds for the past month. I started at the full tables and lately have been playing the 6 man tables and absolutely running over the competition. Ready for a move up to 2/4, but at the rate I'm winning 1/2 short 2/4 may not be a profitable move even if I play well(no 2/4 short tables on party).

Back to the main topic, I was glad to see in your last game that you didn't leave frustrated even though you were down. Being able to leave a game knowing you played well and that you can beat it even though you didn't come ahead this time is a comparatively good feeling(it doesn't compare to winning, but it's better than leaving totally flustered).

[QuikSand]

Last night was pretty disappointing for me. Rick's game got cancelled, and I ended up going over to the satellite tournament where Mrs. Q was playing. A table of mostly relative newcomers, there wasn't a lot of aggression there, and the action was pretty slowly paced. She made it to the final three (out of eight) with the smallest stack, went all-in under the gun with A9, and got crushed by a pair of kings (by a player who really shouldn't have even been in the "newbies" tournament in the first place).

Meanwhile, I got to wander around a stranger's house for about three or four hours, play about 30 minutes of a dreadful sidegame (which collapsed when our fourth player busted out of his initial stake of fifteen dollars), and go home tired and unfulfilled. *sigh*

Saturday is the main event - should be exciting. Mrs. Q, at the moment, has decided that she doesn't want to play, since she's doing well in limit games online, she's back in the mode of believeing that is her true calling. (She may be right -- aggression is an awfully big part of playing no limit, and I was frequently disappointed that she failed to pick up pots with easy bets last night)

[Radii]

Saw this post on a poker board on another site(fool.com's pay discussion boards, there is a small crowd over there that plays, mainly online of course).

===================================================
One of our crew met someone in AC that runs a pink chip game in Richmond. Lotta people hearing about tourneys being run in different areas. Our group even branches out so far as to invite and be invited to games and tourneys in DC, VA Beach, and areas in North Carolina.
====================================================

The mention of the pink chip game caught my eye, but I didn't know the location of yours, wonder if you guys are playing in the same circles perhaps?

All of this came up in a discussion about how to find local games and this site:

http://poker.meetup.com/

[QuikSand]

I'm told that the "pink game" concept comes from a popular game played at the Tropicana in Atlantic City. It might be that my game and their share that same genesis. (Or perhaps there's some tradition that if you wnt to use a chip between the traditional $1 white and $5 red, you go with a $2.50 pink)

[Barkeep49]

It's a shame to hear about Rick's game breaking up since it seemed to be such a well run and popular affair.

[QuikSand]

Annapolis Tournament – 27 March

This is a pretty big event, and promises to draw most of the familiar players from the area. The host, Bumper, is a guy I have described as a “poker impresario,” and today that description is reinforced – his tournaments aren’t just basement card games, they are events.

Mrs. Q had been a little bummed out by her performance at the satellite on Thursday night (she finished third out of 8 players, but felt that she wasn’t being aggressive enough) and had decided no to play on Saturday in the big event. We talked about it a second time, and my argument was that her game (solid and tight, but maybe a little bit too passive) is actually an even better fit for a larger field – and since Bumper expects 40 players, and we’ll spend our first two hours playing for piddly stakes, this is a perfect opportunity for her. I’m convinced that she will get her $100 worth just from the experience. Eventually, I get her to agree, and we drive over separately to the game.

Indeed, there are 41 players in the tournament, and we eventually settle in for cards. The 4pm start really means cards get dealt around 4:45 – so there’s plenty of time for mingling beforehand. Pretty much all the regulars are there – Bumper is hosting and not playing, but the better players that I know are in the field: among them Chip (winner of the Baltimore WSOP satellite) and Milt (two-time winner of Rick’s game). Also there is a player from Virginia – Kevin has won a previous event hosted by Bumper, and cut a deal for the top prize the last time I was around (I missed the tourney but played in the side game). All three of these players are serious threats, I know. I’m sure there are other good players among the 15-20 players here whom I don’t recognize.

I draw my seat, and am not too thrilled. On my immediate left will be Kevin, a very good player. And on my immediate right will be Chris (a different Chris than the host of the Pink Game) – a very loose aggressive player. In theory, I like playing to the left of a maniac (Chris isn’t crazy, but he does bet out a lot) but here, I’m not so sure if I like it.

We each start with $10,000 in chips (for a $100 buy-in) – and the first two hours will be $100/200 blinds, then $200/$400 – fairly small stakes. You only get in trouble early if you get take risks and get unlucky, or if you fall into a big trap. Play tight, and the worst that can happen is you get nibbled a bit. I think this generally bodes well for Mrs. Q, and probably for me, too. I don’t mind seeing a loose player pick up a bunch of small pots for a while, and get all excited that he can back the table off with a $2,000 bet. We’ll see plenty of that, but not too many of them are going to be there in the end, I expect.

In the first 45 minutes, I have a number of good opening hands. But I can’t get a flop to work for me. I raise pre-flop with JJ, TT, and JJ again. Each time, I get at least on caller, each time the flop misses me completely, and each time I end up losing the hand – one in a showdown (I stayed with my kings, as the ace wasn’t betting strongly) but twice end up simply folding to obvious overcards. This is a tough plight – I don’t want to slowplay big pocket pairs, but my investment in these very promising starters has my stack down a bit.

After having a bad run with outpaced pocket pairs, I finally get the big ones. After seeing three players call the $400 big blind, I raise it to $1000 with AA. Kevin, dealing from my left, calls the bet, and everyone else folds. The flop comes to the table:

6d – 8d – 9d

I am quickly figuring through the hands that he could have cold-called my raise with. He could be ahead of me with a set, of course, and the three-flush adds in the possibility of a strong suited ace (I don’t have the diamond). I am probably still good, but the flush possibility is the main fear. Kevin checks, and I act fairly quickly (I think) and bet $1000.

Kevin, reading me for “fear of flushes” does the right thing here. He pushes all in. He has $15,000 or so, and I am a little under my original $10,000 (after nibbling back a bit from my early losses). I hesitate, he can see that he has trapped me, and I decide to lay down my aces, the better to do battle again. The prospect of sitting around for three or four more hours to get into a side game eventually is just too strong – thus the power of the tournament environment.

Soon after the hand, a couple of players at the table are busted and initiate the re-buy: another $20 to get $5,000 more in chips. Now, I feel like an idiot. Had I called Kevin’s bet, I could have re-bought and kept playing, albeit with a pretty modest stack. I’m just not used to having the re-buy option, and it really wasn’t in my mind at all.


I’m down to $7,000 (including my re-buy) by the time we take our break. I’m still okay, but the blinds are about to go up to $500/$1,000 and I don’t have enough ammunition to make a real play.

Mrs. Q, on the other hand, already has her first real “poker legend.” I get to hear about it even before I talk to her – quite a hand. She is in a hand with both Chip and Milt, who are at her table. With a flop of A-7-7, Milt bets, Chip calls, and Mrs. Q calls. The turn brings a K, and Milt bets, Chip folds, and Mrs. Q calls. The river is a rag, and Milt checks… Mrs. Q goes all in. Milt quickly calls (he has a sizable stack) and reveals his boat, kings full. Mrs. Q turns quad sevens, to a shocked table. So, she doubles up and then some – and gets to the break with $21,000 in chips.


I talk to Kevin during the break, and he reveals his hand. With the three-flush on the board, he had pocket tens (an overpair) including the diamond. Thinking back now, my aces were ahead (I did not have the diamond) but he had a wide array of outs, with two cards to come: the other two tens, all nine remaining diamonds for a flush, and all the sevens for a straight. Had I called in that situation, I would have been ahead, but likely to be passed. (One calculator I entered showed him as a 52.4% favorite there) I still probably would have played the aces, especially knowing I had the re-buy still available.


Anyway, we’re back, I am fairly short stacked, and the blinds are up. I get a JTs, and decide to play for $1,000 – nothing comes for me, and I’m down to about $6,000. I’m feeling some pressure – I’m getting to the point where my stack won’t be enough to intimidate anyone if I do get a decent hand, and losing leverage is bad with big stacks on both my immediate left and right.

I get another pocket pair…but this time it’s deuces. I am probably behaving irrationally, but after watching the last three pre-flop all-in bets simply take the pot, I decide to push in here. What I’m really looking for is either a free scoop, or a caller with two overcards – I’d be in more or less a 50/50 situation, and I think I need to double my stack to be viable. So, unless I run into an overpair, I want to be called here – an I’ll take my chances.

Fold, fold, fold, fold… then a caller. We are heads up, and I turn my runt pair… only to see pocket kings down the table. I am *way* behind – but basically in the same spot as I would have been in had I made this play very sensibly with pocket tens or jacks, for instance. I have less than 20% chance to get the outs I need – basically the remaining deuces. The board comes with nothing for either of us, and I am eliminated. My position isn’t important – something like 25th out of 41 – but I am “not a factor” this day. No bad beat story, no incredible suck-outs, just a tough day seeing good down cards and mismatched flops. I did not see a single flop where the cards really hit me – the best flop all day for me was a 2-5-6 when I was holding Q6 in the big blind. Over three hours of play or so, that’s really not saying much.

OUT: $120
IN: $0

So, I get to spend about an hour or so dawdling around. I help chip people up, and eventually the field breaks down a bit and we start to free up a table or two for side games. Mrs. Q is still alive in the field as it breaks to three tables (about 20 players), but she lacks much power as the big hitters’ stacks continue to grow.

Eventually, I get into a side game (detailed shortly) and just get to hear occasional updates about Mrs. Q from the adjacent room where she is still playing. The field shortens and the tourney collapses to two tables – and she is still in. It’s down to nine players at on table, and she is still there – a small stack, but still in it. Bumper has announced that he is paying nine positions (including 3 or 4 who just get their money back) so she is officially “in the money” now. I know she will be very, very happy.

I am tied up and miss the details, but she is all-in at one point with A6, and she pulls a 6 to beat a small pocket pair. That gets her off the felt for a while, but she eventually succumbs – going out in sixth place out of 41 and just missing the escalating payouts. She declines on the side game, and heads home… great night for her.

Kevin, my neighbor, brought a pretty big stack into the final table, but ended up in fifth place. At the end of the line, it’s Chip and Milt who make the final two – and they cut a deal to split the first and second prizes, each taking $1350, I believe. A good showing for the two players I pegged as solid contenders from the start.

Mrs. Q is effusive after her play – she felt good about her play, she got a little lucky along the way, and she really enjoyed the people, too. I had guided her a little bit toward the people I knew were good guys, and that helped a bit – but she also came back with second-hand praise for me, telling me all the things that other players had said about me and my game. That’s reassuring to me, also, even though I wasn’t in the mix this time.

[QuikSand]

Side Game – 27 March

After the first side table gets set up, I’m a little disappointed. It’s going to be a crazy game - $5/$10 high low dealer’s choice with multiple options (buys, twists, rutle chips, and so forth). It’s also a smoking game – and from the looks of it, if you aren’t lighting one cigarette off the last one, you basically can’t play. So, this is a mismatch for me – I’ll pass.

The second game is a better fit for me. We’ll play the now-familiar $2/4-10 game – blinds of $1/$2, with betting up to $10 any time. However, as we sit, there is a vote – and we decide to alternate hold ‘em and Omaha high-low. I accede, though I’d rather play hold ‘em – this will be my first semi-serious session of Omaha 8. But with the field that takes the table, I figure I can ride it out okay.

Things go pretty well, and I quickly realize something about the high-low game: hold ‘em players who decide to dabble in a high-lo game are just hopelessly lost. I, at least, have played quite a lot of Omaha – albeit mostly at a low-stakes friendly game – so at least I understand the mechanics of how low hands operate, and how high your expectations need to be to win the high part of the hand. The fact that half our players didn’t really understand this made the table very profitable for a while.

I play for about four hours all told – we eventually sort thorough the chaff, and get down to five, then four players. We stick with “HO” for the whole time, and thing work out okay for me. I didn’t do that well with only four players (including two very solid players), but left with more than I brought that night. All told, a good affair… and possibly rekindling my interest in the high low game.


OUT: $100
IN: $310


Incidentally, when I get home at around 2:30, I find Mrs. Q still playing online, and she has won more there than I did at the side game. She is positively effervescent.

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by Barkeep49

It's a shame to hear about Rick's game breaking up since it seemed to be such a well run and popular affair.

I got a chance to talk with Rick, who also played in the tournament but not the side game.

The official insider word is that he is pausing his game for a few weeks, but will restart it later with a limited invitation list. I had heard basically this version before, and had assumed that the lack of a follow-up meant that I wasn't going to be on that list. However, Rick told me that I would indeed b invited, so I should have that game going again before too long.

[gkb]

This has been a very entertaining dynasty to read. I played Hold 'em for the first time two weeks ago at a buddies house with five other guys. It was a blast (even though I did terrible). I'm happy to hear that Rick's game will be restarting.

Quik, do you and Mrs. Q play online at partypoker.com?

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by gkb

Quik, do you and Mrs. Q play online at partypoker.com?

Yes, I have a couple of names there - including this one. She plays there, too -- once she was at a table with sabotai, but something prevented her from saying hello on my behalf.

[Radii]

Thinking back now, my aces were ahead (I did not have the diamond) but he had a wide array of outs, with two cards to come: the other two tens, all nine remaining diamonds for a flush, all the sevens for a straight, plus the nine remaining cards that paired the board.

I don't understand the part about the "9 remaining cards that pair the board"

pokenum -h Ah As - Td Ts -- 6d 8d 9d
Holdem Hi: 990 enumerated boards containing 9d 8d 6d
cards     win   %win      lose  %lose       tie   %tie        EV
As Ah     468  47.27       516  52.12         6   0.61     0.476
Ts Td     516  52.12       468  47.27         6   0.61     0.524

good laydown don't think I could have made it myself.

[Subby]

An appeal for an update before this falls off the front page...

[QuikSand]

Okay, I have one more update to make since the last tournament. I'll try to get to it today.

[QuikSand]

Back to Bumper’s – 1 April

It’s getting late in the afternoon. I’m tired. Long day at work. I give a call to Mrs. Q at home… she asks how late I have to work. Why? “’Cause you and I are going to play poker tonight!” Energy back, not such a bad day after all…

Bumper has decided to try to pick up the Thursday night crowd, and tonight he is offering a $100 buy-in tournament for whoever shows up. Mrs. Q and I are both in. It ends up being a 16-player, two-table affair.

I am at a table with Bumper (a good player), Charlie (a pretty good player) and several people I either don’t know or don’t know well enough to rate. I am still alive when we are down to ten players overall, including five at my table. Mrs. Q is also doing okay at this point.

Anyway – I am at about $12,000 in chips at this point (started at $10,000) when we have “the hand.” This is the poker hand I described in its own thread a couple of days ago – in this thread.


I have pocket queens under the gun, and raise the $1,000 big to $3,000. Next player (a little loose) doubles that. Bumper moves all in with just over $6,000. Tough call to me – I have a big hand, I fear Bumper a bit, and a third player makes me leery.

I call.

In retrospect, I think this was the weakest of the possible moves to make. Folding keeps me alive no matter what, and pushing all-in at least gives me the chance of pushing out the third player. Instead, I am in for half my stack, basically married to this pot, and will see the flop after the third players inevitably calls the remaining $550.

The flop comes with bad news for me. A-T-4. The ace kills the value in my hand – now a gigantic array of all-in potential hands are ahead of me. I feel like I am very unlikely to win this hand outright – so I think my best play is to represent strength, and I push all in. If I lose this hand, I’m down to practically nothing anyway - so I feel I’m not risking much here. He calls my all-in, and we all turn over our cards.

Bumper has KK. I was dominated by him all along.

The third player has . . . A9. That’s exactly the kind of shit hand that I had hoped (and expected) to chase away with my all-in bet at the end, but to no avail. A9 reraised my QQ raise, and then called an all-in. And this guy knocks out both Bumper and m in the same hand, and coasts to the final three with a big stack of chips. I’m out.

OUT: $100
IN: $0

Mrs. Q has another respectable showing – she makes it to the final table, and limps her way to fifth place, one spot out of the money. Not a terrible evening – but I spent a lot of time thinking about what I should have done with those queens, and ended up walking away from a side game as I was too rattled.