Thursday, February 14, 2013

I met a second blogger in person!

I want to give a quick shout out to Brian, over at Birdies & Bad Beats.  I linked up with him last night while playing at Ctown.  He's a BAMF playing 5/5 PLO...  Don't know how he plays that game with the variance he must experience - I couldn't handle the swings!  I'm scared about 2/5 and here he is at the 5/5 $1500 Omaha tables!

Brian - I hope you cleaned up last night, because if you have the cojones for it, I'd imagine you can really kill the game.

As to the 2/5 comment above, I think 2/5 needs to make it into my regular rotation.  I need to get past the feeling of safety that 1/2 gives me and also stop being so complacent.  I am going to make a concerted effort to play the "bigger" game.  If Brian has the cajones, I'm gonna grow a pair myself.

One quick poker hand which I feel I played well, because last night really lacked any true need for decision making:

I raise to $17(!!!!!) with from the BTN with AdQx and get 2 callers, a wonky, loose, though passive 50+ gentleman, and a 40+ gentleman who is an engineer in business for himself in a similar line of work to myself.  Also loose, the 40+ has a habit of overcalling when he limps most of his hands (and he raises his premiums without a doubt).  Otherwise, I thin out the field of around 5 limpers.

FWIW, the 50+ has $95 remaining and the 40+ has a stack of around $400 (I have him easily covered - booyah!).

The flop comes Kd Tx 3d.

Checks to me and I weak lead for $30 into the $60 pot.  I figure this will not be a clear stab because both players have a tendency to check / fold most missed flops and I don't want a diamond or random QJ J9 to "get there" on me, even though my hand isn't great at this point.  Two calls and I'm pretty much done with the hand.

The turn is the Kx.
Checks again to me and I check through.  Either the river misses and I take down the pot with a sizable bet, or I fold out of the hand.  I'm reasonably certain that no one holds a K though.

The river is an offsuit J and here's where the action becomes interesting.
The 50+ tries to ship his remaining $65, but can only manage $60 because he string bets his remaining $5 in white $1 chips.  The 40+ hesitates for around 10 seconds and calls.  Action to me.

Here's the difference between me a year or two ago and me now:  The old me would consider this a call / fold situation.  The current me says I'm never folding here; the only decision is whether to raise.  If I'm beat from the 50+, whatever...  He probably has KJ, end of story.  However, if I am indeed beat, I want to get value out of the 40+ guy who has a larger stack.  I want him committing more than $100 to this hand.  I ponder the decision for awhile and figure that he had to think about his decision for a $60 call, so therefore likely does not hold a K - and neither does he put me on a K or a rivered broadway.  I decide to put in a raise for $75.  50+ guy snaps the $5 effective, but I can't get 40+ guy to make the call.  He hesitates for a long while, realizes he'll see a showdown regardless of his action, and convinces himself of the fold.

FWIW, 50+ guy held Jd6d for the rivered JJ KK two pair - WTF?  What is he ever beating when getting called / raised?  In a comical moment afterwards, I hear him talking about how I sucked out on the river!  LULZ!

GG sirs...

12 comments:

  1. Hardly a BAMF...lol. That is an absurd game. Very swingy but highly +EV. I am up a ton in about 15 sessions though i lost ~1k last night.

    On the second issue of game stake selection. I am a big believer in shot taking (even playing on a short roll), not only to hopefully make more money but to improve your game. I have played as high as 10/25 PLO and 75/150 Limit games. These experiences are INVALUABLE if your goal is to develop as a player to where you can make real money (assuming you are playing to make money). You can't really make "real money" playing 1/2 without putting in decent hours IMO.

    Its an interesting process that the player has to go through in getting comfortable as a player. If you had told me 5-6 years ago that I could be sitting at a table with 4-5k in front of me and 25k+ on the table wagering on the results of a bunch of cards I would have said you are fucking nuts.

    Good to meet you. Let me know if I can help you in a way get ready for the "next level".

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  2. My problems are mind games. I'm certainly accustomed to 1/2 and comfortable with the stakes. I'm faced with the same challenge I had growing my online play - the stakes are more significant. I agree that you can't make "real money" playing 1/2 and that's precisely why I want to move up. My brain says to move up, but my feet are too fearful to carry me there.

    For the last few times I've gone, I've come rolled for the 2/5 games, but find myself working out an excuse as to why I won't play... Don't get me wrong - I'm doing very well in the 1/2 game; not quite "crushing it" but damn close. I need to work up the courage and take that next step.

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  3. I have the same problem with moving up from 1/2 to 2/5. Even when I plan to take my stab, I find an excuse not to do so. Let us know if you work it out.

    BTW, I'll be in AC Sunday to Monday. If you can make it, it'd be great to meet up.

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  4. I definitely can't make it this weekend. It's unfortunate, too - the wife will be with the girls in NYC, but I'm with my son all weekend. It's a boys weekend for him and me. Perhaps I'll get some play time up in Ctown, but no way I'm going to be able to get out to AC.

    Good luck out there - and get some 2/5 in! If you do it, I'll do it. Peer pressure - that's how we'll overcome this fear.

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  5. Hah, I'm going out to AC next weekend myself, actually (Th-Sun). Going to be hitting the 2/5 tables at Borgata. Peer pressure!

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    Replies
    1. Good luck! Run good. I tried getting up to Ctown last night but was thwarted by both the waitlist (2 hours for 1/2 and 1.5 hrs for 2/5 - no call ahead) and traffic (9:00 pm, rt. 340 was essentially shut down).

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  6. PM,

    I was there for 10 hours starting at 10. 1/2's were a goldmine and 2/5's were a landmine (for a SS guy at least). I was pretty much getting blinded out just to see a flop with my short stack and zero cards.

    Had an interesting hand from 1/2:

    Make it $5 to induce action with 8's. 6 callers, OK!
    Flop is a thing of beauty, 258 Rainbow. I CB 10, raise 20, 3 callers before it came back to me. Pot: 120. I say ok make it 75 total (should have made it 50 in hindsight).
    The lady who is pissed at me ships it for 100. Folds after the other callers took it forever to fold.
    I smooth. She turns over AK.
    Just to rub it in, the board runs out KK.

    GolfPro

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  7. PM,

    One suggestion. Give your card to a friend that usually plays there on a regular basis.

    They can swipe in at the kiosk and your wait time might come down drastically.

    GolfPro

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    Replies
    1. Totally agree. I've done that before, but I didn't have any friends up there this past weekend :-(. I suppose I need to give a few more people my card.

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  8. Nice hand! Didn't know you too were in the MD / VA area. Where are you located?

    I disagree with your analysis of the raise. You want to charge for 34 & 67 draws as well as wonky inside straight draws. A raise to 50 allows the pissed lady to either jack it up once again if that's her goal, or allow the others to call along. If you boost it to $75, now you put them to a decision for the $55 raise... FWIW, Ctown donks will overcall a $10-20 lead with nothing but overs.

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  9. I totally agree! The board had the st8 draws. The table looked a little limpy, so, I thought the 55 looked scary and little too strong for them.

    Looking at the way it played out, I believe my raise to 75/60 (I was debating between 50 on top or 65 on top) would have resulted in the same way, as the lady who is pissed was ready to ship it against me (she did hit two, but, they didn't quite help :)

    Why was she pissed: Seat 1 was a 30ish dude that got under my skin twice (four flushed my flopped st8, hero called my flopped set with a 4 flush with 10 high). So, I was pretty much gunning for him. In this hand he raised to 10, I called (Q4s) and the PoW (Pissed off Woman) joins us as well. Flop came 578 with two diamonds, I had a gut shot st8 and flush draws . He ships it for 71, I was ready to call whatever he bets, so I did (I had another 125 behind), she goes AI (400 behind). Pot: 398 (including her 125 if I call). I think out loud how stupid this call was and made the call. Both of them had 78 and I turned my flush to ship the monster potten.

    On the hand above, one guy had A8 (initial reraiser), the other had 9's, I am not sure what the other caller had (he took forever to fold, call him Quad A's, he made $35 with Quad A's (was down to his last 35 before that hand)).

    I am in Gaithersburg area.

    GolfPro

    ReplyDelete

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