Month: November 2016 Page 2 of 3

Played well had three times the chip average for a good while but finished day 1 with an average stake of 157 K. Cards dried up and I remembered to be Zen and let the game come to me, it felt good to make day 2.  Back to level 14 with  2,500/5,000/500 ante tomorrow = 12 K in the pot each hand and me with only 30 BB. Time to get lucky. There were 175 entries + 42 rebuys for a total of 217 appox 40 made day 2

So I go to my Friday £60 at Asper’s game arriving at 7:12 p.m,. to find that there was a 888 £220 tournament already running from 6 p.m. I NEVER do well in a tournament if I am not seated at the table to see the first card off the deck at the first level.

I’ve never bought in with cash to a tournament over £100 except in Las Vegas, I’ve always qualified. I find a cash point pay the £1.50 cash point fee and buy in for £220 and we start a new table in seat 2 at table 13. Blinds are 150/300 50 ante so 900 pre-flop. UTG raises to 600 cutoff calls and I flat with As6s and SB make it 2,100. UTG folds and cutoff calls and I complete 7,500 pre, the flop comes QsJs6d giving me bottom pair and nut flush draw..”aghhh!! this could get messy” I think. Big Blind leads for 4,000 and cutoff folds and I call, I consider re-raising but didn’t want to be blown of my equity with a re-raise if he had a set of queens or jacks.

“I’m putting  you on an over pair” I say as I call as pot builds to 15,500

Turn is a blank and he bets 5K I call quickly and the river is a queen but no flush, pot 25,500

He checks and I shove 16,900 all-in and he sighs but call and I’m done and dusted. I’ve blown £220 in under 10 minutes, so Negreanu does it and is a genius and me a complete donkey. I thought the queen was a good card for me and he’d fold his Kings, who wants to bust on their first hand with just a bluff catcher? I’d even called his hand on the flop for him, perhaps the queen wasn’t the best bluff card in the deck.

Now I have to go back tomorrow at 2 pm and put the wrong right, I hope I have a happy ending otherwise it is a £440 weekend in the continues game that is poker.

If you bluff your opponent, he may get a read or find a call if you dress like I do below. I didn’t consider hard enough his view of my table image.

“Perhaps he is bluffing…” he may have thought and with good reason…be careful with your subliminal messages…

Currently reading the Zen of Poker and it’s main premise is learn how to fold and to emotionally disassociate yourself from the game and it variance. It is a good book as I realise that I haven’t quite yet learnt to detach myself from the game. There is a Zen level for me to attain where I will have no emotion just mastery and I look forward to it.

1. Regard patience as a central pillar of your game
2. The long run is longer than you think
3. To win at poker you must embrace the idea of breaking even
4. See poker as a continuum that goes on forever
5. Detach yourself emotionally from the game

You never go home cursing that you left value on the table, but you do go home miserable when you slow play your big hand and get outdrawn. Save yourself the heartache. Admittedly Vicky Coren wouldn’t have folded pre-flop but this is an example of the concept, get the majority of your chips in good is my advice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQBx6wKdrk0

The Poker Hall of Fame this is where every player dreams of ending up as it shows you have arrived in the game.

The requirements are as follows:

Never fold Kings pre-flop as this video shows you’ll often be wrong and  up against aces you still have 20% equity against aces…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEcwtzfEU_E

When people are bluffing they blink excessively sometimes….pretty sure this is what David Kitai picked up on with these calls against Andrew Chen. Pay attention to Andew Chen’s blink rate at 3:40 on the second video it is out of control, this is why I wear glasses…it’s not a sick read it’s a simple one check it out next time you are at the tables…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TTpWqbluzA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5-jtShi60M

Get your copy here

I bought Jeff Hwang’s book a long time ago but it may be time to learn Pot-Limit Omaha, it is a gambler’s game as Isildur shows here. The days of the $1.3M pots are surely over…Interesting article about Patrik Antonius’ 5 biggest pots.

It’s refreshing to see how hard Doug Polk is finding making money in poker… 20 days in up $68 on his initial $100, I don’t feel so bad.

https://www.upswingpoker.com/doug-polk-online-poker-bankroll-challenge/