Sunday, March 30, 2008

Another Good Session

After my session on Monday, I went back on Thursday and played from around 8-close. It was the last day the casino would be closing, which is cool to have 24/7 poker during the week. This session was a bit of a grind, but it didn't feel I was there for 8 hours. I did make one huge mistake where I lost so much value on the last hand of the night. I'll recap some hands, I think there were only 3 or 4.

I was down $60 to start (including this hand), and then started winning some pots.

UTG made it $11 (solid player, was getting PAID every single time he had the nuts, people just kept bluffing him, it was so stupid.) Folds to MP who shoves for $34 total, he was really tight and just blinded down, he bought in for $50 I think. I get QQ on the button and flat call. I wanted UTG in the hand, but in case he had AA or KK, he would re pop here 100%, so I figure if he doesn't, he has AK, AQ, JJ or lower. Flop is A J J, UTG and I check it down and he has 1010, the shover has KJ and takes the pot down, he left immediately, which seems to be a growing trend at the casino every time I go. So many hit and runs.

New player at the table MP, $100 behind maybe a bit less, makes it $8, folds to me, I call with 7h8h in the cut off, EP limper calls. $27 in the pot, flop us 5x 6h 10h, EP checks, raiser bets $15, i make it $40, EP folds, guy shoves for like $60 more, I call, he has JJ. I hit a 9 on the turn to take it down.

Two decent players limp EP, their range is big since they are limping, tight player makes it $7 with $100 behind, I call in the SB with Ah 3h knowing the limpers are calling and if I hit a big flop I can hopefully stack the tight player and anyone else. The tight players range here is AA - JJ, and AK, AQ. Flop is 3 3 K. Checks to the tight player who bets $15, I make it $35 folds back to him and he shoves, I hope he doesn't have KK, if he does whatever I'm paying him anyways. I call quickly and he has AA and misses his one outer.

This is the hand I played so stupidly and bad and I hate myself for it. I missed so much value I think, but maybe not. Please help me...

We are 4 handed, and this is the last hand of the night. First position opens for $7, he had been raising every second hand since a full table so his range is extremely wide here. To make things interesting, I had just had AA and KK back to back hands, and right as he raises to $7 he says be careful, I have the rockets. I said "do you seriously have aces right now?" and he said yes, and I called with 8d 9d. SB and BB call as well. The flop was 7 10 3 rainbow. Mr. I have aces bets $15 into $28. I call getting 3:1 which is fairly good odds to draw too and we both have deep stacks. I have $500 or so, he has around $700. SB and BB fold and there is $53 in the pot (after rake). Turn is a J. He bets $20, this is where I got stupid and funny just to have fun on the last hand of the night. I min raised which is a play I never used ever in poker and hate it when anyone else does it, I just think it's the stupidest play for NLHE. I make it $40 and he calls, and I asked him one more time if he has AA, and he kept saying he did. So this is where I think it was okay for what I did on the river. The river was a Q making AK the nuts and my hand the 3rd nuts. He leads out for $50 into $133. I asked him again, do you really have AA? and he said yes one more time, so I made it $125 and he called with AA getting insane odds. I think I lost alot of value on the turn by just min raising. I should have made it around $60 so I could get more on the river, but in turn, he knows I know he has AA and could easily have him beat with Q 10, J 10, a set, etc. So maybe he would figure that out and wouldn't call a big bet on the river. Oh well, I am still kicking myself for making that dumb play cause I hate min raising so much aksudhaskjdhaskdhakdsa asljdhaksdha123yu2ihqwadjkasd.

I profited $430 for the night.

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Feels Nice To Run Well

I haven't posted in a while, mainly because I stopped going to the casino regularly because I am graduating in a month and needed to focus on finishing up important assignments, labs, etc.

Since the last time at the casino, I had been running bad and I had a bad month for February. January was awesome, was up almost 3k, and I was down just over $400 for February, and I went a few times in March here and there and broke even each time.

I went to the casino last night (Monday) refreshed and ready to go, I was excited to get back to playing it had been so long. I will recap as many hands as I can that were important to my session. This could get long, so bare with me if you are interested.

Bought in for the max. as usual and was sitting at an awesome table. There was one extremely terrible player who limped every hand and hit every single river it was unreal how well he was running. He did start to realize how well he did run, and would sit out every 5 or 6 hands and walk around for 5-10 minutes at a time. He would then come back and play really tight which sucked, he had $1600 in front of him, $300 was mine, $350 was my friends. We were dying to take all of it from him. Anyways, other than him, it was your typical casino players, a couple short buy in players, and then best of all, the writer (Derrick) of The Tom Green Show, Tom Green's sidekick - Glen, and another man who was on/part of the show named Phil were sitting at my table.

I had a good time at my table and having those guys there made it that much better, they were drinking, having fun, they were loud, and it just made for a good atmosphere and hopefully easy money. Anyways, onto the hands I played.

My first big hand was with the insane terrible player. He raised preflop to $10, SB called and I called with 55. The flop was 7 6 3 which I was feeling good about. I checked to raise him and just take the pot down here, or slow down with resistance. He checked, which was odd, so I knew for sure he blanked. Turn was a J, I checked again hoping to induce a bet, which he did do. He bet $12 into $30, which I felt was weak, the SB folded and I called hoping to check call a river bet and look like a hero. Anyways, the river was a Q which sucked, but I was hoping to pick up a betting pattern off him to figure out if I had the best hand. He bet $50 into $57, and started taking a sip of his water, and playing with his chips and all this crap, I thought forever and really thought he was trying to buy this pot since I had looked weak the whole way. I had seen him do this a few times tonight and show complete air, so I made the crying call and he flipped up Q 8. Bad read, I suck, I was angry. Well played by him.

I am down to my last $130 total at this point after some other hands. So now, I'm just waiting to get in a hand with this complete donk get my money back. I had $400 on my card and was sitting with $130 which I hate, because I like having a full stack. This usually does not happen to me, hence the $400, but I guess it wasn't enough for tonight. I lost like $70 on the hand with the donk when I called with 55, and lost some more against him after he rivered a higher flush with Jc 2c vs. my 7c 8c on a 10c 6c 3x 7x Kc board.

Anyways, so I'm sitting with $130, I make it $11 with Ah Kh UTG+1, Glen calls, donk calls. Flop is 10h 8h 4x. I lead for $20, Glen shoves for his last bit of change I think $60 total, donk reshoves and says "for protection" so I know he has a stupid hand like Q10 K10, but should realize I am probably not folding since I lead into that flop for 2/3 the pot OOP, but he isn't smart enough to know that which is good. I call. Glen has K 10, donk has A 10. I stand up and say one time, please just one time put a heart out there, blank turn, heart on the river, woo. Felt amazing to win that pot and get up to $320 and be stuck $80 at that point. The night was not over. It was around 1am and I had grinded back up to $377 and my table broke.

I change tables, buy in for $200, we are 6 handed most of the time. I played pretty aggro. for the first bit until I doubled up. I make it $8 with As 7s preflop. Guy who JUST got stacked for $200 just sat down and reloaded and called. Flop was Ks Qs 5x, he checks, I bet $12, he makes it $25, I call. Turn was a Js, he checked, I bet $40 into $60, my thinking was, he's a station and I lose value on the river if I check here. He shoves and I call, he has KQ, I hold. Up to $380 at my new table.

This hand, I think I made my second mistake of the night. A regular at the casino, good player, made it $7, I have AK off and I cold called. From my read on him, his range is fairly wide preflop, and hopefully I can get paid off with a huge flop if he does have a hand. Also, I like to mix it up and I hadn't re-raised any hands tonight, so it gives away the strength of my hand. There is one other caller, flop is A A 6. It checks to me, I bet $12, making it look like a steal. He min raised me because he knows I hate min raises (I was telling him earlier how I think it's a dumb play for 100% of the situations at the casino or any cash game and like 99% of situations online) anyways, he says "min raises put you on tilt right?" so he makes it $25, and I know he isn't bluffing or trying to tilt me. He talks alot to his opponents to sucker them in, thing is, I'm suckering him in. I figure if I raise here, it gives away my and and he might throw away a weaker A, he knows I am not bluffing if I 3 bet. Anyways, I flat call hoping he puts me on 77 or 88. The turn was a Q, he bets $25, I smooth call again, this is where I play the hand bad, but I have a reason for flatting here. I know he has an ace, and I doubt he is raising with A10 or lower OOP preflop. So I am worried about AQ of course. River was a 10, he bets $35 leaving himself $41. I cold called and he had A J, so my read was right, but he didn't have a boat, and even if he did, I still should have shoved his last $41 on the river, oh well. He told me nice hand and didn't suspect AK there at all.

I'm hovering around $450 at this point, I made another $50 off a guy who 3 bet shoved pre with 9h 7h and I had KK. Made another $50 with AJ on a A K 10 8 4 board. I can't remember any other big pots that I played, but I got my stack up to $640 I think maybe $670, but this blog is long enough. So I did end up getting out of the red and made a profit of $450 last night. Great night. Will be going again soon.