Friday, September 29, 2006

Results from Tuesday and Thursday

I did not play Wednesday since I was watching my Mets get their asses kicked by the Braves. We are in trouble. Pedro is gone, our pitching is in shambles, we are not hitting. The best thing I can hope for is that we play St. Louis.

So on Tuesday I lost $450 playing some 2/4 NL. There were some big hands, failed bluffs, and then a long steady break even period. I just could not gain any momentum. I also bowled lousy, (163-152-148), so that did not help.

Last night I played in three tourneys. We had the Bluff Poker Tour event at Doyle's poker and that was a disaster. How a legend like Doyle lends his name to that place is beyond me. Every tourney runs like a turbo. There is absolutely no play at that site whatsoever. I ended up finishing 72nd out of 137 when I had to push with 55 and got called by AQ. He caught an Ace and a Queen and I was dead to a five that never showed.

I also played in the 500 guarantee on Pokershare and I was killed with KK against like QJo when the guy flops two pair. I finished 45th out of 65.

My final tourney was the 20k guarantee at Party that ended up being almost 27k. I finished 284th out of 2658 people for a small cash. My AcQc could not win a race against 1010 and I was dead. I love those tourneys though. I also watched my cousin cash in the Super Thursday tourney at Party. I love their structure for that tourney, and I will be playing in it as well. It is a $162 entry fee but you get 5000 in chips and 20 minute blinds. The prize pool last night was 140k.

I won over $200 in my cash game which included donking off $50 against my buddies playing .25/.50 NL like a maniac. So overall for the day the profit was $211 which puts me at $20,854.

So tonight I will play in a tourney or two and I will play in some cash games of course. Tomorrow I have a live tourney plus I am in a 100k tourney on Party Poker.
If I am not done with the Party Poker tourney I will be bringing my laptop to the live tourney. Now that is dedication!!!

Best of luck to everyone out there. Win a ton of money this weekend. Just don't do it off of me.

Tuesday, September 26, 2006

Results from 9/25

Well last night I was real tired so I did not play any tourneys and I only played about two hours worth of cash games before I hung it up for the night. The profit for the night, yes there was profit, was $134 which brought the bankroll up to $21,113. Tonight is bowling night, so I wont get to play until 9:30 or so which means I will focus on cash games again rather than play a tourney. On Wednesday I am going to the Braves/Mets game so I can wish my Mets team good luck in the playoffs. I only hope we can face and beat the Yankees for the title this year.

Anyway enough about baseball. Best of luck to all of you. Sorry for the short post today.

Monday, September 25, 2006

Weekend results

Well between soccer games, dance performances, and going out with the wife to dinner and a movie (Fearless - very good movie), I did not get to play alot of poker until Sunday. I played in 4 tourneys that were enough to make you sick. First tourney I lose half way through with JJ on a board of J77 when we go allin and I get called by 87. Only one card can make me lose the hand, and that is exactly what came out on the river when he got the 4th 7 for quads. Yuck.

I lose with AJ when I reraise allin on a board of J42 and get called by AK. Yep a King pops up and I am out. Then I play the Bluff Poker Tour event and I was going to play tight until I look down and see AA. I get crippled when I go up against AQ and he turns a 4 outer for a straight. Finally I play in the Party 20k and I am in decent position with 66 people left out of 2,729 people when I call an aggressive players all in while I am in the small blind. I have 55 and he has A9. He gets quad aces and I am done!!!!!!!

So with only one cash in 4 tourneys, I move to the cash game where I dominated. For the weekend I ended up +$879, putting the bankroll at $20,979. Not bad at all.

So tonight I will most likely focus on cash games, but I may sneak in one tourney just to aggravate myself. Best of luck to everyone out there.

Friday, September 22, 2006

Results from 9/21

Well they were not good. Can I leave the post like that?????

I guess not. Let me dig deeper then. I played three tourneys last night including the Bluff Poker Tour event. In the Bluff Poker Tour event, the blind structure was way too fast and I had to push with KJs and was called by K10o and lost when a 10 flopped. In my first 20k event I pushed with 99 on a flop of 7810 rainbow. Unfortunately someone had QQ and I did not hit one of my 10 outs and I was knocked out in 187th out of 870 players. In the other tourney I pushed with AKs and I could not run down QQ (again) and I was out in 1500th out of 2450.

Now the cash game also did not treat me kindly, but alot of that was my fault. My first hand of the night I pick up Qh5h. Four people limped in and I checked. The flop came Jd2h3h. I bet out and only one person calls. The turn is the 4h. I bet out again and I get min raised and I call. The river is a Kc. The guy bets out 1/2 the pot and I think and call and he flips over KhJh. OUCH!!!!!

I then also overplay TPTK (my biggest mistake, and the biggest mistake I see online) when my AQ hits a board of Q75. The guy sucks me in all the way with AA. LIke I said I did not play well.

Soooooo for the day I lost $550 which dropped the bankroll to exactly 20.1k. Tonight I wont get to play until late because my daughter has three performances at the state fair tonight.

Best of luck to those who actually get to play!!!!

Thursday, September 21, 2006

Start of the Bluff Poker Tour!!!!!

Yes we kick of season 3 of the Bluff Poker tour with a tournament tonight at 9PM at VIP poker. What is the Bluff Poker tour??? Glad you asked. It is a series of tournaments at different poker sites set up by Bluff Magazine. Each tournament will be $10+$1. They are on Thursdays and Sundays at 9pm. What are the prizes??? Another great question. First place gets a Carribean vacation during the Carribean Poker Classic. It also includes $900 in tourney vouchers and cash besides 9 nights at the St. Kitt's Marriott, meals, and airfare from Miami or London. Also at the end of the season there will be a freeroll where the winner will get flown to LA to compete against a Bluff Poker Pro in a $1,000 heads up match that will be broadcast on Live at the Bike. Thanks again Bluff Magazine. If you guys wish to compete I encourage you to click on the Bluff link or go to www.bluffpokertour.com. I have finished in the top 10 the first two years, and I look for another strong showing.

Last night I played in three tourneys and I got screwed in all of them. I lost in the 20k at Party when I pushed allin over two limpers with 88. One guy called with 66, the other guy called with A6. An ace on the river kills me and I finish 623rd out of nearly 2500 people. I also played in the Poker Players Alliance tourney on Pokerstars. It was a $1 tourney with $5,000 added to the prize pool. They have another one tonite. I went allin with AA and ran into AKo. Four diamonds, the last one on the river, sends me packing in 299th out of 686. The third tourney I could not win a race and I am out 11th out of 25. Man sometimes you just cannot win.

In the cash games I did ok and overall the profit was $130 for the night. The bankroll is now at $20,648. Tonight I will play in the 20k at Party and of course the Bluff Poker Tour at VIP poker. I hope to see some of you out there. Take care, and best of luck to all of you.

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

I can dodge bullets baby!!!!!!

That is how I felt last night after playing some NL on Party last night. In two hours of playing two tables I was dealt AA(3x), KK(2x), QQ(4x), JJ once. In those 10 hands I went 2-8. My first hand of the night I get dealt QQ, flop a set of queens but there is two diamonds on the board. I make a $24 bet into a $25 pot and the person calls. The next cards is a offsuit rag. I bet $60 into the now $73 pot and he calls. The next card is a diamond. He immediately goes allin for my $130 that I have left. I think for a while and fold. He shows the flush. Oh well.

Then at my other table I get two red kings in the SB. The are 6 limpers into the pot so I raise 6x to get some of them out. Two of them call. The flop comes QhJh8h. I bet $60, it gets min raised twice to $180. So now I have to call $120 and I just feel that one guy could have either a made flush or a hand like AhQs or even AhAc. The other guy could have a set or a straight. I lay the hand down and one guy has QcJc for two pair and the other guy has 10s9s for a straight. Thankfully no hearts come out on the turn or river.

So with losing all these big hands how did I do??? I only lost $72. It felt like a victory. I could have easily lost $500 based on those hands.

As for bowling last night we only won 2 out of 7 points. I bowled 171-201-135. Don't ask about that last game. My ball was moving too much and I did not adjust well.

Anyway hopefully tonite the flops will be kind. Best of luck to all of you.

Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Nothing you can do

Sometimes it just happens that way. I played in two tourney last night, the 20k at Party and the 20k at Stars. At Party I lose early when I flop a set of aces, push allin and then lose to a guy who calls with a flush draw and hits. On Stars I flop bottom two pair and lose to someone who flopped top two pair.

Then we get in the cash games and I lose set over set three times. So overall for the night I lost almost $500 which drops the bankroll down to 20.6k. I am not discouraged because I played well enough to win but the cards did not fall right. I am sure it will be different today.

Tonight is bowling night so I wont get to play until late. It will be a short session, but hopefully a profitable one. Best of luck to all of you.

Friday, September 15, 2006

Results from 9/14

Well it was a good day overall, but a very frustrating day with MTT. I played in the 3k guarantee at Sun Poker only to see my AA lose to K10o when I get the guy allin on a 10 high flop only to see the turn card come a K. GG me. I then also played in the 20k guarantee on Party where I got close to the money only to lose with AQ on a Q high rainbow flop when the other guy had AA. At least that time I can blame myself and not the cards. Then I played another $22 MTT on Party to see my KK go down in flames to A6o. Oh well, like I said a very frustrating day.

Cash games were a different story altogether. I just killed the 1/2 tables on Party yesterday, recouping my losses from the MTT and bringing the profit for the day to $807, my best day in a long time. The bankroll now is up to $21,280. Playing the full ring games again instead of shorthanded has really helped. The work I have been doing with Pokerbility has helped as well.

Once again thanks for staying with me when the times were tough, and boy were they tough. It seemed like I could not do a thing right, and I was sure questioning my ability. Now I enter the table extremely confident that I am the best player there.

Once I build this back up to 25k, I will try the 2/4 games once again. These will be full ring games only. Until then we will grind it out at 1/2.

Take care everyone. Good luck at the tables.

Thursday, September 14, 2006

Results from 9/13

Well yesterday was a good day overall, but disappointing in some respects. I played four tourneys yesterday, making the final table in two of them. My biggest tourney though I finished in the middle of the field, which was a $109 entry tourney. The two tourneys that I finished on the final table was a 5th place finish for $262, and a 1st place finish for $125 in my bluff poker league game.

So with those finishes and my cash game the profit for the day was a healthy $502. The bankroll is at $20,473. Today I am still recovering so I will be on the couch playing more poker. I am starting with a $22 tourney that is not going very well in the early stages. There is still plenty of time to turn it around though.

Wednesday, September 13, 2006

Results from yesterday

Boy I should have surgery more often. I did play two tourneys yesterday with lousy results. I finished in the middle of the pack of the Party Poker 20k, and I did not do any better in a Pokerstars MTT.

In the cash game I did much better. I played alot of 1/2 at Party. For the day the bankroll went up $606 to $19,971. Hopefully today we get past 20k (and never dip back below it).

So today while I am sitting on the couch I will be back playing Party and joining a tourney or two. It sure is fun earning a buck or two while you recover. I hope to throw on a movie or two. I am thinking Syriana and 12 Monkeys to start with.

Anyway good luck to all of you out there.

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

Results from the weekend

First of all I did not get a chance to say thanks yesterday, so I just want to say thanks to all the people who were true heroes on 9/11 and the months that followed. Being from NY, I and many others were personally impacted by the loss of lives on that horrible day. My prayers go out to all of those families.

So the bankroll has stayed put over the last couple of days. It is at $19,365. I will be playing alot over the next couple of days as I recover from my surgery yesterday. The surgery went well, now it is a matter of staying off my feet for a couple of days. I should be back at 100% next week.

Well I am off to play some 1/2. I will see you all soon. Good luck to all of you.

Friday, September 08, 2006

Why never to play cards with your family

This is the reason. Some of you who have read the blog in past weeks know that I created an account at Party Poker for the sole reason to play cards with my cousin. Well the last two night we played at a table on Party Poker together. The first night he absolutely kicked ass and ran $200 up to $1000 on a 1/2 table. That night I still won as well, so all was good.

Last night we did it again. Now keep in mind I would not "softplay" my cousin. For those of you who do not know what "softplaying" is, it is the act of checking down your hands when your buddy is in the pot. Only twice in my life have I ever played differently because I was up against a buddy at a table, and both times they were in a live casino. Both times I just reraised the guy all-in when I flopped a set to let him know that he should not screw around with me and he should fold immediately. Fortunately both times they folded. Now normally I would have slowplayed both hands and probably won a ton more, but I just could not do that to my buddies at that time.

So back to the story. I am doing well so far as I am up to $300 on this 1/2 table. My cousin is not doing as well and he is down to about $125 on this table. We both bought in for the max of $200. So I get dealt KK in MP and there is one limper before my cousin, who is aggressive, bumps it to $11. I reraise him to $31 and everyone else but him folds. The flop comes out Q35 rainbow and he bets out $25. I reraise him allin and he calls. He fips over 35o for two pair, and I do not get a K or the board to pair (other than the 3 or 5 obviously). He starts laughing that he "got me", and I am upset, but that is poker.

Overall I finish the cash game down $11 for the night. I also played two tourneys, but I suffered from KK vs AA disease and we eliminated in both about 3/4 of the way through. Just cooler hands really. Oh well. Overall the bankroll dipped $32. I will take that. The bankroll sits at $19,343. I will get alot of play over the next week plus as I am having a minor surgical procedure on Monday that will put be on the couch for most of next week. Couch=poker for me, so I will be on often.

Best of luck to everyone. Take care.

Thursday, September 07, 2006

The winning streak is at 7

Not thanks to tourneys though. I finished out of the money in three different tourneys, and I got screwed in each one. Twice I lost preflop allin with AA, once to KQo and the other to 88. The other tourney my 1010 lost to A9 on a flop of 972 when he rivered an Ace after I put him allin on the flop. Oh well.

I did try out my Pokerbility software on Party Poker last night though and won $150 putting my profit for the day at about $100, and upping the bankroll to $19,375. The software ran great, and I was really still in a little shock at how loose my starting requirements have become. I am also much more aggressive postflop than the software would like. The good thing is you can easily change how tight/loose or how passive/aggressive you want to be preflop and postflop. I will continue to use the product, as I think it can be a great help to my game.

Anyway today will be a much more active playing day for me, since the wife is out with her girlfriends tonite. I think that will focus mostly on the cash games, but I am sure some of my buddies will tempt me into a tourney or two.

Best of luck to everyone.

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Pokerbility

Here is that article I promised.



POKERBILITY



There are a lot of times during a game of hold’em when you look at your cards and are not quite sure what to do. This quandry occurs on both sides of flop. Great hole cards can be absolutely neutered by a less encouraging flop. Conversely, cards that looked about as powerful as a Pee Wee Hermann in a speedo can turn into an unstoppable force if the flop the comes up your way. Then there are always the “tweener” hands. The ones that can go in any direction at any point in the game. With so many options and so many different possibilities, the game comes back to the age old question of “do you hold, or do you fold?”



Hold’em is all about takeing risks, but the smart player only takes a risk when it makes the most sense. This is where Pokerbility comes in. The Pokerbility odds calculator will help you navigate through the emotional landmine about how one feels about the cards they have been dealt, and provides objective, real time odds based on the cards that showing on the table and the hole cards clutched in the players hand.



On the surface, the Pokerbility odds calculator quickly assesses what is going on during the hand of hold’em and delivers advice on what to do next based on mathmatical calculations of your chances of victory. This advice is supported with a plethora of data that will help a player decide for themselves what to do next. Included in the litany of support information is the nuber of outs that possibly available to help the players hand, the rank of the hand, the players percent chances of a win/split as opposed to the chances of their opponents, and the perecent chances of hitting a specific hand. In other words, if before the turn Pokerbility tells you that your chances of hitting a flush are 30.62%, your chances of victory are 37.624%, and the unit is telling you that this is a good time to make a small bet, you can feel pretty good about your decision to go for it.



Some folks have used other odds calculator and found that the advice given was based on calculations that were only slightly less random than something one finds in a fortune cookie. This issue is not something that is ever associated the the Pokerbility unit. It is truly the best outcome possible when the online game of hold’em collides head on with science.



The secret behind the speed and accuracy of the Pokerbility odds calculator is the exclusive, patent-pending CombiCalc™ hands odds calculation technology.



When most companies build an odds calculator, they make a choice in method they use to program their product. Game simulations is one popular option. In essence the computer is made to play thousands upon thousands of hands of hold’em, and data collected from these hands is used to “teach” the odds calculator. Hard coded statistic figures based on existing data and ranking based on hand history are other widely accepted methods. Instead of making a choice about which philosophy to build into the Pokerbility unit, our developers decided to the use best aspects of each to create a unique, speedy, and insanely accurate product that will take your online game of hold’em to the next level.



As if accuracy was not enough, Pokerbility is also one of the most versatile odds calculators available to the online player. The makers of this product are fully aware that not everyone plays the game the same way. Some are a tad more cautious and conservative while others attack the game with all the reckless ferocity of a conered wombat. To accomodate every sort of player, the Pokerbility unit can be adjusted to suit the needs of the individual. Instead of being one dimensional, and dispensing advice that only fits one style of play, the unit can be personalized to advise a player based on their personal approach to the game. This doesn’t mean that the hard data, such as the claculated odds, will change, it just means that the advice that it dolls out will differ depending on the setting. For example, looking at the same odds the unit will give different advice if it is configured for a tight game than it would if it were set for a loose game. This gives the user a level of accuracy and personalization that they simply wont find in other products.



One of the most appealing aspects of the Pokerbility odds calculator is how user friendly it is. When it is activated, an “Attach” button will be displayed. Clicking this button will allow the unit to associate itself to a particular online poker room and table. The program does the rest once it has attached. It will read the hands, adjust its advice as each card is shown, and all the user needs to do at this point is take the advice that is offered to them. It is simply that easy.



Those who are serious about playing poker online should make Pokerbility an essential tool in their poker playing arsenal. Although nothing can remove the threat of random luck, or help if a their opponent holds on to get a fortunate draw on the river, the Pokerbility tool will consistantly put a player in a better position to win more often. This will, of course, result in more pots and bigger online paydays for the internet player. For playing hold’em in cyberspace Pokerbility is less of a luxury and more of a neccisity for the online gamer.


Last night's results and a new tool

Ok guys and gals (do we have any women who actually read this?), I know that the blog is starting to look like an entry to a NASCAR race. I just had to add a link and an ad to this exciting new tool. At least it is new to me. First the results though.

I played two tourneys last night when I got home after bowling. By the way my bowling sucked, thanks for asking. Oh you didn't ask? I will move on then. The two tourneys I played were the $500 guarantee on Pokershare where I finished 17th, and a $20 180 man SNG on Stars where I finished 4th to win $288. Now I had to split my winnings four ways (actually three now, thanks Duffy), so the amount I earned was not that much. What felt good though was this was my 2nd final table in three days. My play is getting much better. I also won some money playing around with my new tool on Party, so the overall profit last night was $200, bringing the bankroll up to almost 19.3k.

The new tool? Glad you asked. It is by a company called Pokerbility. This tool is a MUST HAVE for all serious players. What does it do? It attaches to your online poker table, tells you all the odds for hitting a range of hands with your hole cards, and suggests you to either check, call, raise, or fold. It is pretty slick. This is only version 1.0, I cannot imagine how much better it could be. When I was playing last night it was like I had a coach right by my side. Plus I never needed to calculate odds, because it was right there for me to see. It was interesting to see how my play differed from what was recommended. Usually my play cost me money (I guess I am a donkey). I would recommend you play at least a couple of sessions a week with this tool, and if you don't multitable much then I would use it every time I played. It is easy to implement and seemless when it is running.

Anyway enough for now. I am going to put a review of the tool up on the blog as well. If you decide to take advantage of the free download and/or you decide to get a full copy, please use the link. I will get a kickback, but that is not why I recommend it. I will answer any questions you guys (gals?) may have with it. Like I said from the start, if I can have the people on this site succeed with their goals, the effort is all worth it.

Best of luck to all of you.

Tuesday, September 05, 2006

To chop or not to chop

That is the question. Yesterday my decision was to chop, let me know what you would have done. Here is the total situation....

$10 tourney on Party Poker. 629 players. We are down to 4 people. Chip Stack are approximately (98% accurate)...

Player 1 - 700k
Player 2 - 450k
Player 3 - 410k
Me - 300k

The prize pool would have given 1st - $1500, 2nd - $800, 3rd - $480, 4th - $380.

We decided on the following payments...

Player 1 - $1001
Player 2 - $794
Player 3 - $763
Me - $652

I did not feel I was overmatched, but I did have company over, so my concentration level was marginal at best. I was still doing well though. Also the blinds, which were 10k/20k were going to hit me next, causing 10% of my stack to go. So again what do you guys/gals think?

So obviously I had a good day again yesterday, boosting the bankroll $900+ and barely clipping the 19k mark at $19,084. Tonite I will not be playing until late as Tuesdays are bowling night (yes I do more than play poker). Good luck to everyone out there.

Monday, September 04, 2006

The winning streak continues!!!!!

Man it sure feels good to play poker this week. I played some more 1/2 NL on Party and some tourneys on Party as well. I did not win in any of the tourneys, but I did win over $500 playing 1/2. Overall the profit for the day was $498, bringing the bankroll to $18,166.

Today I will be back playing some 1/2 NL after I set up my new laptop and my new router. I have the day off today and the kids are going to finally let me relax for a day since I have spent the last two at the pool with the kids or going to parties for my wife. Monday is Dad's day.

Good luck to everyone out there. Come by and say hello to me at Party.

Sunday, September 03, 2006

Solid play still rewarded

Well I was able to play for a few hours yesterday before my wife's party, and for about an hour after the party. I again played 1/2 NL on Party. For the day my profit was $406, bringing the bankroll back up to $17,668. It sure feels good to start moving forward again, even if it is just retracing your steps from a couple of months ago.

Today I will play some more 1/2 NL and some tourneys. Hopefully I can get a decent amount of play in today. Take care and good luck everyone.

Friday, September 01, 2006

Rising from the dead

I should change my name to Lazarus. My bankroll hit an all time low on Tuesday, dropping all the way down to 15.8k. What happened? I cannot even begin to tell you. Twice in one session I go allin with a full house only to lose to rivered quads. Losing to gutshot after gutshot. Flopping a set of aces on a AJ3 board only to be called by KQ and the guy rivers a straight. It was absolutely brutal. I made the decision on Wednesday morning to take some time off of the cash games at Pokershare. I will only play the 10pm tourney there and nothing else for at least another week or two until I get my head on straight. That sucks because I have a great rakeback deal there, but I just cannot beat the fish right now and it is starting to impact my play.

So I wake up on Wednesday knowing that I have lost almost half my bankroll in two months. I plan on rebuilding by playing 1/2 NL at Party Poker pretty much exclusively. How does that go?????

Well on Wednesday night I post a solid winning session, with a profit of $500. That pushed me back over 16k, putting me at 16.3k overall. Yesterday I played 1/2 again with one $33 MTT as well. I finished near the bubble of the MTT when I pushed allin with a nut flush draw (AdJd on a rag board with two diamonds) and was called by a guy who slowplayed KK. None of my 12 outs came on the turn or the river and I finished 99th out of 630 people (80 cashed).

In the cash game I won over $800 though and now the bankroll is at $17,143. I was soooo thrilled to put together two winning sessions in a row. I am anxious to get back out there again tonight. It is my wife's birthday today so play will be limited. But I will get out there ASAP and I plan on continuing the 1/2 NL play on Party.

So I know I have a lllloooooonnnnngggg way to go to get back, but it feels good to be rewarded for some solid poker. Hopefully that continues. Best of luck to all of you.