Who wants 4th?

Started playing ring on Stars again. AA no good v KK all in pre for $20. JJ no good v 97 on a 762 flop. Get TT all in on a flop of 2TQ, up against QQ. So I quickly left the cash tables as I didnt have enough to keep losing like that. Ended up playing a bunch of $3 6 man turbos. Did well, made some money so I am going to keep playing them for now.

Been playing in freerolls on Will Hill the last few nights. Two tourneys each night, top 50 go through to final tourney next Saturday for a chance to win an EPT seat (10K euro). Last night there was 1345 runners, with a £1000 added prizepool. First place gets a laptop. So naturally I get 4th. urggggg. Still good for £60 and yes thats good when it cost me nothing to play, but still, I really wanted the laptop for the fiancee. 5 handed I went card dead. Pushed A6 into KK and became shortstacked, then pushed 24s into big blinds A8. No help. I did have some fold equity and without a hand he does not call ther so I am happy with the move. Just wished I could have pulled the trigger.

The fiancee goes home to Ireland this weekend and I am off school Friday and Monday for some weird UK holiday thing. Im cool with it. So lots of poker in the next few days.

I will try and keep this blog updated.

Update on Cash Games

I bought Poker Tracker and Poker Ace recently since I started playing cash games. They are both pretty good programs. I have played about 9000 hands of 5cent 10cent blinds and I am up about $110. I know it is a lot of hands for $110, but I have to start somewhere.

Something that is totally new to me is playing cash games within my roll lol! I am used to being euphoric or miserable after a session as the money involved was more than I could afford. This is much better. I had KK within 3 hands a few days ago and got stacked twice. Once against TT and TJ all in preflop. (yes 1 out) and the other was all in on a flop of 9h6h2h. I put him all in for his stack and he called with QcTh. Yes, he called with a 10 high flush draw. lol. I literally laughed and rebought. It didnt matter to me as I knew I played both hands well and I was unlucky. If I had lost $100 or $200 I would have been devastated.

I hope to update better in the future (I hope to jump to $25 NL as soon as I hit $500) but my school recently updated the internet restrictions and blogspot.com is no longer accessible. So that sucks, but I will make a better effort from home.

All in all. I am liking cash games.

Scotland!!!!

What a game.

Rakeback

So I signed up for rakeback through rakebreak.com for Full Tilt. Playing on Stars though fun, was not getting me any rakeback so I was losing out quite a bit.

That being said, last night I 6 tabled the 5cent 10cent tables and I got hammered. Twice I had set under set, I got it all in with KK v QQ on a 26Q flop, and I lost a big pot with AJ v J9 on a J82 flop. Not cool. I also fell in love with top pair on a Q high board and I kept calling. I dunno why. I was obviously behind a set of Q's

All in all, a loss of $28. And considering the new account I started had only $100 on it, I am not happy.

I had no hands stay ahead throughout the session and I had TT, JJ, QQ, and KK about 15 times in the last 1/2 hour of the session and I received multiple callers each time (even when raising it ridiculous) and each time an ace flopped. It was uncanny. I also only had AA twice the entire session, both times winning the blinds.

Yuck. Definitely a session to forget.

I have yet to import the hands into poker tracker, but I am curious to see the results.

PS My new name on Full Tilt is Cabot Cove. A direct homage to that wonderful detective Jessica Fletcher in the timeless show, Murder She Wrote. Cabot Cove was where the show took place. And even though someone was murdered there every week, people still lived there.

Beautiful Girls

The movie I referenced yesterday, Beautiful Girls, was in fact a movie owned by Mike my roommate from college. I watched it one day at the end of 3rd year and loved it.

So credit must go to Mike as he saw it first.

Blog Changes

I just updated my blog with recent templates and such. I also figured out how to put a picture at the top of my blog which I wanted to do when I first started blogging my poker exploits.

The picture is of the cast from my favorite movie called Beautiful Girls. It is the same pic I have as my Stars avatar.

The movie is set in a place called Knightsridge, hence the name I chose for poker.

Knightsridge the Grinder

I just referred to myself in the first person. Fantastic. Yet another first for the blog.

I played again last night on the $10 max buyin on Stars. I played six tables, then tried eight, but went back to six. Eight was not too tough, but there was considerable overlap so I went back to six.

I made $28 in about two hours so 140 BB an hour. This is quite good as I was down about $14 at one point. (my KK v QQ all in on the flop of 57T, Q on turn)

By playing six tables for that amount of time I encountered some very interesting hands:

One hand I had KK and raised with one caller. I hit quads on the flop and checked. Turn is a Q check check. River a J he bets $.50, I make it $1.50 and he calls with AA. Strange strange hand. Cannot believe he had AA.

Another hand that I am still debating is I am UTG with KK and make it $.30 to play. The small blind then re-raises me, making it $.75 to go. The BB then calls. I should have re-raised but I didnt, and I called. Flop came QT7 which is just a massive board of draws and possible sets. The small blind leads out for $1.50 and the BB insta calls. I really didnt know where I stood. I was sure either AA or a set was lurking so I folded. The turn came a 4 and they both checked. DAMNIT. As soon as they both checked I knew I would have been in front. The river was a 6, making the board QT746 and the small blind went all in and the small blind insta called again. Their hands? The small blind who had re-raised an UTG raiser out of position had AQ of course and the insta caller BB, 88. That was a $20 pot which is a big pot for those stakes. I couldnt believe he had re-raised me with AQ. I gave him way too much credit. Would have bumped my profit big time if I had stayed in the hand. But to be fair I went with my read and I am cool with that.

I am trying to get used to playing cash games and some hands are played much differently than sngs. Small pocket pairs play very well with set mining big on my list. I flat call any pocket pair anywhere on the table for just the BB, but fold lower ones to a raise. (this may be wrong but I am still learning how the games go) I am also trying to see cheap flops with Ax suited. I hit a few flushes and was paid off on them. As far as bluffing goes, I do very little. I will do a continuation bet with AK but if it is called I shut down as players will call down with very little.

Odds and Ends:

I signed up for Full Tilt last night on a new account to get some rakeback. It is technically the fiancee's account which I am hoping she will play, but Im not too sure. I am getting rakeback on the account so I may start playing there instead of Stars. It could mean as much as $60-$100 a month which at those stakes, is massive. I am just waiting for confirmation from rakebreak.com to say the account is good to go.

I am going to buy pokertracker today. I need some software to track my stats and profits playing cash games (and most importantly the hands costing me the most money) just so I can plug some leaks.

I have given some thought as to when I should move up to $25 NL (10 cent - 25 cent blinds) and I figure 20 buyins should be ok. I would move back down if I went below 15 buyins. So 20 buyins of $25 is $500. (That is shocking as I was playing $50 and $100 with less than that and $200 NL with $600-$700 last year. Bankroll Management has never been my strong suit, but I am trying to change that)

I always thought Stars hand histories had to be emailed to me, which was not cool as it only gives you the most recent 200 hands. Which is quite useless after 6 tabling for two hours. This is not the case as today I found I can automatcally save my hand histories directly onto my computer the same as on Full Tilt.

My thoughts on cash were always quite bleak. I enjoyed the winning of sngs and always thought you cant 'win' cash games. Well I must say, when sitting at a table and you stack a player...it feels pretty damn good. Especially when they reload and go out of their way to play pots with me. This is quite funny though as I play only solid hands.

Hopefully I will get some more playing in tonight.

Weekend Poker

I played quite a bit this weekend.

On Saturday I played 45 heads up games. Yes I know, a lot of them. The fiancee's sister and friend were over this weekend so they were off shopping, talking about our upcoming wedding and the details that are endless (dress, food, hymns in the church, who is/isnt going) all of which is important, but I personally could not care less about. I would get married in a barn wearing a garbage bag while some dog barks in the distance, but it makes the fiancee happy so its cool with me. So of the 45 I won 27, which is a 60% success rate. The rake hurts over that many games, but I did ok.

On Sunday I went over to the 'house of poker' where a few guys a know live. I had beent here before but with scheduling and my laziness I had not been back. Anyways, I walk in and I see three guys all playing poker in various positions in the room on reclining leather couches wacthing the Villa Chelsea game on a massive tv. So after some careful planning and thought, I am moving in there tomorrow. Kidding. Anyways, I lug out my laptop and open some games. I played a 5$ Stars tourney where QQ ran into KK and I also played a £12 sat to the 40K on Will Hill. The sat went well. I had my hands hold and I didnt do anything stupid. From 120 people with 12 getting a seat, I coasted in with no real drama. So now I had a seat into a tourney that costs £110, while in my account I had $105. Yes, this tourney was over twice what I had in my account. So I tried to unregister for the 40K but for some reason Will Hill does not allow sat winners to unregister. I called Will Hill customer service and they said that poker support was not in and that I should call back Monday morning when they are in. I then informed her that the tournament started in 15 minutes and by that time a refund would be impossible. Her response? 'Yes that is correct sir'. Ok then, thanks for nothing.

So I end up playing the 40K and as tournaments go, this one was highly uneventful. The best hand I played was the first of the tourney. AdQd on the button, it was raised with three callers. I call. Flop comes T high with 2 diamonds. Raiser bets same amount as his preflop raise. Two callers. I pump it up 3/4 of the pot, all fold. Yes, it was downhill from there. TT raised, called on a Q high board. Check raised I fold. AQ raised, KJ3 flop. Raise and a reraise in front of me, I fold. Then I go card dead for two levels before I get AK. With 1400 behind and 600 in the pot I push and lose a race to TT. Ho hum, as I said, uneneventful. Mark and George were still alive though and George had a nice stack. I had to leave at 10:30 as I needed to be up for work in the morning and I didnt want to bother with a cab at midnight so I called the fiancee and she came and picked me up.

I got home and fired up Will Hill to see how George and Mark were getting on and then debated over what to play. I didnt want to play a HU game as I was kind of tired and I wasnt in the mood to be involved in a long drawn out game. So based on Mark's and George's success on cash I decided to play some myself. My history in cash games is not exactly a merry one. I have consistently played in games above my head (sometimes way above my head) and I always get my fingers burnt. I know I am capable of playing a solid cash game, but because the figures involved usually represent a high % of my roll, I can never remove emotion from my thinking. AKA I feel terrible about losses and inevitably end up chasing lost money. It is a bad habit and one I have never removed from my cash game play. So I decided to swallow my pride and begin at the bottom rung of the ladder. I started playing 5cent 10 cent tables. I promised myself I would play tight and not get fancy with plays people at that level would never fold to. And because I intended on playing tight, I knew I would be playing few hands, so I sat down at 6 tables. Yes, 6. It was actually a lot of fun. I ended up only winning $25, but that is 250 BB in 1.5 hours so I was ok with that. (It would have been a lot more but I had to fold two sets when the flush came and two people were betting and raising into a sizeable pot for those stakes. I also lost a $20 pot when I flopped two pair with 73o in the BB. The money went in after genuis slow played his aces preflop only to hit his set on the river.) If either board pairs when the flush came, or that A does not come on the river, my profit would have been around $40-$60 which would have been pretty good.

I must say that I enjoyed playing cash quite a bit, and knowing the amount of money I had on the table was a small % of my roll, bad beats and bad cards rolled off me. (except that 73 hand, that pissed me off). I am going to continue playing cash and attempt to slowly move up the ladder. After thinking a lot of where my game is and where I would like it to go, I think cash is the logical area. Though my past is quite jaded in cash games, I think if I build from the ground levels up, I can do well.

PS I was watching Mark and George play until there was about 15 left or so in the 40K. George I think finished 14th or so but Mark had a big stack and was definitely in a good position to do some damage. Hope you took it down Mark.

PPS Mark, you are going to have to show me how to use Poker Tracker. I tried this morning and it confused the hell out of me.

I just dunno

I am giving up poker for the next three days.

I have had enough for a little while.

Maybe changing sites is a good idea...NOPE

Table "5413917 - 1" Seat 1 is the button.

Seat 1: Emmap0611 (1500 in chips)

Seat 2: danger5 (1500 in chips)

Emmap0611: posts small blind 7

danger5: posts big blind 15

----- HOLE CARDS -----

dealt to Emmap0611 [Kc Kh]

Emmap0611: raises to 45

danger5: raises to 1500 and is all-in

Emmap0611: calls 1455 and is all-in

----- FLOP ----- [9h Jc Qs]

----- TURN ----- [9h Jc Qs][Qd]

----- RIVER ----- [9h Jc Qs Qd][3c]

----- SHOW DOWN -----

danger5: shows [9c 9s] (A Full House, Nines full of Queens)

Emmap0611: shows [Kc Kh] (Two Pairs, Kings and Queens, Jack high)

danger5 collected 3000 from Main pot

----- SUMMARY -----

Total pot 3000 Main pot 3000 Rake 0

Board [9h Jc Qs Qd 3c]

Seat 1: Emmap0611 (small blind) showed [Kc Kh] and lost with Two Pairs, Kings and Queens, Jack high

Seat 2: danger5 (big blind) showed [9c 9s] and won (3000) with A Full House, Nines full of Queens

Bad Beats

Sorry for all the bad beats recently.

I am enduring the worst run of luck I have ever had playing poker.

I cannot believe what is happening in front of me.

I hope it ends soon.

Ummmm, Question.....WTF?

Table '59568850 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: Knightsridge (1560 in chips)
Seat 2: Xunomaha68X (1440 in chips)
Knightsridge: posts small blind 10
Xunomaha68X: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Knightsridge [Kc Js]
Knightsridge: raises 40 to 60
Xunomaha68X: raises 120 to 180
Knightsridge: calls 120
*** FLOP *** [5d Kd 3s]
Xunomaha68X: bets 360
Knightsridge: calls 360
*** TURN *** [5d Kd 3s] [2c]
Xunomaha68X: bets 900 and is all-in
Knightsridge: calls 900
*** RIVER *** [5d Kd 3s 2c] [6d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Xunomaha68X: shows [6h 6s] (three of a kind, Sixes)
Knightsridge: shows [Kc Js] (a pair of Kings)
Xunomaha68X collected 2880 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2880 | Rake 0
Board [5d Kd 3s 2c 6d]
Seat 1: Knightsridge (button) (small blind) showed [Kc Js] and lost with a pair of Kings
Seat 2: Xunomaha68X (big blind) showed [6h 6s] and won (2880) with three of a kind, Sixes

Jesus...

Table '59488343 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: Knightsridge (1680 in chips)
Seat 2: gonzokovac (1320 in chips)
Knightsridge: posts small blind 10
gonzokovac: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Knightsridge [As Ac]
Knightsridge: raises 40 to 60
gonzokovac: raises 1260 to 1320 and is all-in
Knightsridge: calls 1260
*** FLOP *** [3h 8s 9c]
*** TURN *** [3h 8s 9c] [Jc]
Knightsridge said, "jesus"
*** RIVER *** [3h 8s 9c Jc] [6d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
gonzokovac: shows [8h 8d] (three of a kind, Eights)
Knightsridge: shows [As Ac] (a pair of Aces)
gonzokovac collected 2640 from pot
gonzokovac said, "sry"
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2640 | Rake 0
Board [3h 8s 9c Jc 6d]
Seat 1: Knightsridge (button) (small blind) showed [As Ac] and lost with a pair of Aces
Seat 2: gonzokovac (big blind) showed [8h 8d] and won (2640) with three of a kind, Eights

Seriously?

These are all the same game.


Round I, Level I (10/20) - 2007/08/27 - 12:06:28 (ET)
Table '59471289 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: billiejoe77 (1080 in chips)
Seat 2: Knightsridge (1920 in chips)
billiejoe77: posts small blind 10
Knightsridge: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Knightsridge [8s 8c]
billiejoe77: raises 140 to 160
Knightsridge: raises 1760 to 1920 and is all-in
billiejoe77: calls 920 and is all-in
*** FLOP *** [3c 3d 4d]
*** TURN *** [3c 3d 4d] [Jc]
*** RIVER *** [3c 3d 4d Jc] [Kc]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Knightsridge: shows [8s 8c] (two pair, Eights and Threes)
billiejoe77: shows [6c Ks] (two pair, Kings and Threes)
billiejoe77 collected 2160 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2160 | Rake 0
Board [3c 3d 4d Jc Kc]
Seat 1: billiejoe77 (button) (small blind) showed [6c Ks] and won (2160) with two pair, Kings and Threes
Seat 2: Knightsridge (big blind) showed [8s 8c] and lost with two pair, Eights and Threes

Round I, Level I (10/20) - 2007/08/27 - 12:08:44 (ET)
Table '59471289 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: billiejoe77 (1300 in chips)
Seat 2: Knightsridge (1700 in chips)
billiejoe77: posts small blind 10
Knightsridge: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Knightsridge [Th Ah]
billiejoe77: raises 20 to 40
Knightsridge: raises 1660 to 1700 and is all-in
billiejoe77: calls 1260 and is all-in
*** FLOP *** [8d 3d 5d]
*** TURN *** [8d 3d 5d] [9s]
*** RIVER *** [8d 3d 5d 9s] [Kd]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Knightsridge: shows [Th Ah] (high card Ace)
billiejoe77: shows [Ts Kh] (a pair of Kings)
billiejoe77 collected 2600 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2600 | Rake 0
Board [8d 3d 5d 9s Kd]
Seat 1: billiejoe77 (button) (small blind) showed [Ts Kh] and won (2600) with a pair of Kings
Seat 2: Knightsridge (big blind) showed [Th Ah] and lost with high card Ace]

Round I, Level II (15/30) - 2007/08/27 - 12:09:41 (ET)
Table '59471289 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: billiejoe77 (2580 in chips)
Seat 2: Knightsridge (420 in chips)
billiejoe77: posts small blind 15
Knightsridge: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Knightsridge [Ks 6s]
billiejoe77: raises 60 to 90
Knightsridge: raises 330 to 420 and is all-in
billiejoe77: calls 330
*** FLOP *** [6h Ac Td]
*** TURN *** [6h Ac Td] [Qc]
*** RIVER *** [6h Ac Td Qc] [Qd]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Knightsridge: shows [Ks 6s] (two pair, Queens and Sixes)

This has been happening a lot lately...

PokerStars Game #11719843142: Tournament #59469879, $6.00+$0.25 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level II (15/30) - 2007/08/27 - 11:48:22 (ET)
Table '59469879 1' 2-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: Knightsridge (1160 in chips)
Seat 2: PLAAYJ (1840 in chips)
PLAAYJ: posts small blind 15
Knightsridge: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Knightsridge [3s 2d]
PLAAYJ: calls 15
Knightsridge: checks
*** FLOP *** [8h 3d 2h]
Knightsridge: checks
PLAAYJ: bets 90
Knightsridge: raises 150 to 240
PLAAYJ: raises 1570 to 1810 and is all-in
Knightsridge: calls 890 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [8h 3d 2h] [5d]
*** RIVER *** [8h 3d 2h 5d] [Qs]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Knightsridge: shows [3s 2d] (two pair, Threes and Deuces)
PLAAYJ: shows [6d 4h] (a straight, Deuce to Six)
Knightsridge said, "lol"
PLAAYJ collected 2320 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2320 | Rake 0
Board [8h 3d 2h 5d Qs]
Seat 1: Knightsridge (big blind) showed [3s 2d] and lost with two pair, Threes and Deuces
Seat 2: PLAAYJ (button) (small blind) showed [6d 4h] and won (2320) with a straight, Deuce to Six

Honestly...who are these people?

Weekend Recap

Well, first things first.

Thanks to my good friend Mike who came to visit me in Scotland this past weekend. He is heading back to Canada this week and is going to be away from his girlfriend until Christmas. But being the degenerate poker player that he is, he came over to see me for a couple days. Good to see you.

Mike came Thursday night and we played some online and ordered Chinese food, of which I ate too much. Poker wise I lost three heads up games in a row for the first time ever after endurring some ridiculous outdraws. (3 times in a row I got my money in as a 66% or higher fav and lost) While Mike destroyed the 6 handed $13 sngs. Mike stayed up till 4am playing as I had work the next day and he would be bored so he was hopnig to sleep for most of it.

I go to work, and then come home Friday afternoon to find Mike sitting at the computer, not showered, not having eaten all day and the first words out of his mouth as I walk in the room are 'so many bad beats today, this is disgusting, you have no idea'. God I miss talking poker all day. So we talk about his online day which was quite bad, and then I play a few heads up matches and run alright. So we get cleaned up and call a taxi. Taxi arrives and takes us to Argyle Street where we walk to KFC. (Point of interest, cab driver was a New England Patriots fan and a BoSox fan. Kindred spirit if there ever was one) We eat some KFC and head to the Cincin club for a 25£ freeze. As we are walking I realise I have lost my glasses and sunglasses which were both in my pouch on my hoodie. Damn. (I dont wear sunglasses, but I bring them to form a little box on the table to protect my cards from my neighbors.) So we go back to KFC, no luck, head to the club and call the cab company to check the cab, no luck. So I lost a nice pair of sunglasses and a pair of prescription glasses. Damnit. Anyways.

The tourney is highly ineventful for both me and Mike. I start with 10K and never get above 13K. I lose some on a bad steal with QT and get raised all in by shortie. I call as I am getting odds until I find he has AA and I dont hit. Then I push 99 into JJ and I am done. Mike pushed AQ into AK after losing a big hand with Ax against J9 all in pre. So we left the club frustrated and went to the Counting House (just off George Square) for a pint. I had a pint of Carling, Mike had Magners, and we spent about 5£ playing a video touch screen game. One game was called 'Losers Win' where there were questions and to get it right you had to answer wrong. You would think this is easy, but trust me, its not.

We then walk to Buchanan and grab a chips cheese and curry sauce (dont knock it till you try it) which is absolutely delicious. And we talk about University days while we eat in the middle of the street. We then grab a cab and head back to my flat. We get in, and the fiancee is just leaving to go dancing with friends while Mike and I get ready for an eveing of online poker. Is life not perfect when everyone is happy? We both play the $22 six handed deep stack tourney and the 100K garunteed $10 both on Stars. I also play a $6.50 bounty tourney on UB and a $10 tourney on Will Hill. The UB goes down in flames when I push with TPTK against a flopped straight, but the WH tourney goes well but I lose some crucial hands on the Final Table for 7th of 90 and $20 profit. The deepstack is going well and both Mike and I are getting some chips. As time goes on, we actually get moved to the same table and I freak out. I sit out and contact stars to make sure it is ok that we are both playing in the same room and we are on the same table. I sit out for 20 mins waiting for confirmation. (when we were seated at the same table and I was sitting out Mike and I never discussed the hands I folded until he was out of the hand) Stars finally emailed me to say it was ok, so I began playing again. It didnt help Mike though, as soon after, he had QQ and raised 3x bb and was called in two spots. Flop comes 9T3. It ends up that all three players are all in with JJ, QQ and JQ (JQ called two all ins, worst play ever) So obviously, the turn is an 8 and Miek goes down in flames when the river is no help. He was bummed. He actually got QQ again shortstacked and I raised with AJs. He pushed and I called. I hit an ace and he was gone. Unlucky Mike, that QJ call was awful. So anyways, I am playing well and when the bubble bursts (340 started) I am 14th of 30. $1600 for first, yes, I want to win badly. Then comes this hand.

I am in the BB and get 94o. The button flat calls, the small blind completes and I check. Flop comes 959. SB checks, I check, button leads out. Small Blind raises and I reraise thinking the small blind is trying to steal. Button folds, small blind calls. I think he is on a flush draw. Turn is an offsuit K. he checks I push, he calls with A9, river is a brick and I am gone. God Damnit. Pissed me off so much. I had like 50K at 400-800 blinds and I lose on one hand. I should never have gone broke there, but I should have lost a lot. Tough to get away from, but I should not have pushed. I was sure he was drawing though. C'est la vie. Great tourney though, ridiculous amounts of play.

The next morning, Mike and I talk some more about poker and whatnot, and play a little, then the fiancee and I drive Miek to the airport. On the way we agree that he and I as well as a few poker playing friends should plana trip to Vegas at some point. Sounds good to me.

I end up watching Go with teh fiancee that afternoon after getting some Greggs sandwiches and crisps, then watching X-Factor (whatever, its not that bad a show) and we then go see The Bourne Ultimatum which is just awesome. Sunday our water heater breaks and we stay in bed till like 3pm hoping it will fix itself and letting the water run. It didnt. We watched Batman Begins waiting for the repair guy to come, but he takes to long so we cancel and we will get a local guy who is much cheaper today. We head to Asda for groceries, and then when I get home I play some more heads up games. I got sucked out big time the first two games, but then I ran good and actually ended up sucking out on some other guy so it was ok. I am currently at 32-15 with my heads up 100 game quest. Not as good as I would like to be, but 68% is apparently pretty sound. I think I should be able to go on a run and hit 73-75% by the time I finish. I would have to go 4 wins of 5 games for the remainder but I am confident it can be done.

Anways, I should be playing more tonight.

Heads Up Challenge Continued

So I tempted fate last night by playing a sixth game after having won five in a row. I was upset with that decision because even though winning five in a row has no bearing on the sixth, in my mind I knew it would be tough to win. So rather than not play, I played, and lost. So I walked away from my computer upset with myself and went in to watch some tv (the fiancee was off visiting a friend) Then as I was watching CSI Miami, I wanted to play some more, so I grabbed the computer and came back into the bedroom.

Side note - I have wireless in my flat but I forgot the password to connect to it, so when I bought my Mac I couldnt connect. (I am sure some computer guru could have found the password somewhere, but alas, I am no guru) So anyways, after arriving home from New York, I was unpacking and moved some books onto the bookshelf. A piece of paper fell out and on it was the password. BINGO. So to make a long story short I know have wireless.

So after my rant post last night about tempting fate I played another five games and I went 5 for 5. Which made me feel much better and brought my total to 10 wins, 1 loss.

C'mon 80 wins!

Mike arrives tomorrow. We have decided to stay in tomrrow night and give the Wabash a miss. We will order some chinese, play online, and watch a dvd or two. Does it get any better than that?

God Damnit

Consider fate tempted. Just lost. AT I raise big and he puts me all in with KJ. Flop comes K high.


5-1

Rolling

Played a little last night.

Played a $6 18 man turbo, got nowhere and pushed A4 into QQ. Yawn. Then played a 12 man $13 six handed sng. I got third for $28, when I should have won it. I was at 10K to 4K and 3K and got third. I was too aggressive with QT on an ace high flop and then lost a coin flip to exit. Really disappointed with that result as it was $72 for first and I had it. 10K of 18K chips in play and I lost it. Damn.

Anyways. I was at work today and at lunch time I was looking on the 2+2 forum and saw a heads up section. Since Stars put heads up cash games, heads up has exploded, and 2+2 made a forum. (not sure if heads up forum is a direct result of Stars new tables as the forum I think came first, but from reading some posts, it definitely increased the traffic on there) Anyways, I really enjoyed reading some of the posts and there are definitely some players on there who post that I could learn a lot from. Anyways. As I was on the train home I got an idea. Instead of bouncing around, I am going to try and play 100 heads up matches at the $6 turbo level. I figure I should win around 80 of them as I usually win around 80% or so, give or take.

So if I play 100 games, that is $650. If I win 80 of them, that is $960. A profit of $310. Not a bad payday if I can manage that level of success.

So far I have played five since I got home and I am 5-0. Not a bad way to start. This is usually where I go unhinged though, (game number 6), so I may not tempt fate tonight and just wait till tomorrow. I'll see.

Mike comes Thursday from Canada, pretty pumped to see him and to talk poker. I truly believe that if Mike and I lived close to one another (ie same city or town) we would both be making solid money online. As it stands, we play small stakes sngs lol.

Some day...

Monday Morning Quarterback

Played a little this weekend. Nothing major, but being back in Glasgow does allow me to play more than New York so it is a welcome change.

On Friday night I played some cash on Full Tilt and Stars. I lost on both which was yet another reminder to not play cash. So on Saturday I planned on playing heads up sngs and maybe a few full tables ones as well. I began by winning a $13 six seater which was a nice way to start then I won five consecutive $11 heads up games. Not bad at all. $55 profit in about 1.5 hours. Then the 6th game I lost which pissed me off. He hit every miracle card he could and then I pushed with A2 and he called with A9 (blinds were big) I hit a deuce on the flop and I thought justice had prevailed, but a nine on the turn erased any justuce I felt I was owed and thatw as that. I dropped down to $6 heads up games and won two before siging off. A good session. On Sunday I played some more heads up winning four of six but one of the losing games was a $11 while the wins were only $6 so a little profit, but to be honest I was just chilling out watching Bourne Supremecy and didnt mind.

My heads up game is getting stronger every game I play. I rarely lose two in a row and if I get a lead I usually keep it. One major change I am making is folding marginal hands preflop when I am out of position. It is amazing the hands people will call with out of position both preflop and on the flop. And also, especially at the $6 level, if they check the river after check calling flop and/or turn nine times out of ten they fold to a pot sized bet on the river. I am not saying it is fool proof, but I cannot count the number of times I bet with air on the river and they insta fold after checking.

I really enjoy the heads up sngs, and hopefully I can stay focused enough to solely play them.

Hoping to play some more tonight after going to the gym.

Back in Glasgow

Arrived back in Glasgow Tuesday morning after flying from JFK to Heathrow, Heathrow to Glasgow. I showered at home and then took a cab to school. Two inservice days and today, I am teaching. Crazy.

I am pretty much exhausted but glad to be back in a routine. New York was awesome, had a great time, and camp was a good time. By the way, the roller hockey tournament I refereed, my camp won it fort he first time in eleven years. I was glad to see them win, but it was difficult to enjoy it as I was involved. But afterwards, it sunk in and I was very happy for the kids.

OK, so poker related stuff. I have been playing a little lately on Full Tilt and Stars. Stars I am glad to say have finally gotten heads up cash tables. So I have been having a bash at them recently. I have been doing ok as well. On Full Tilt yesterday I lost a little when a guy went on tilt and pushed in for $35 preflop and I called with tens. He had K6 and the flop and river were both kings. C'est la vie I suppose. But I dropped an additional $25 to the same player trying to recoup the losses. I am going to play some heads up matches first, and then cash games. Just so I dont get too over eager.

Stars balance is now $302, Full Tilt $262, Ultimate Bet $360, and Will Hill $90. The fiancee and I have also been talking about our wedding next summer (July 5th) and we need to be saving money better than we have been. So we are both taking half our wages from New York and setting up an account with an additional £200 per month from each of us. That should give us a pretty good sum for the wedding. So for the first time in my life since I began playing poker, I am going to rely on poker to pay bills. I figure I can make $25 per day on poker as long as I stay disciplined and focused. That amount is basically winning four heads up matches at the $6 level which I know I can do with regularity.

Oh, and my friend Mike is coming to visit next Friday for 2 days before he returns to Canada for school. He has been dating an Irish girl for a few years now so he spent the summer there. Im not sure what the odds would be, but I lived with four guys in college, and two of us are now dating Irish girls. I would say, considering we had never been to Ireland and we are both Canadian, they would have been pretty long.

Update from New York

In New York right now. Having a good time. Updates are tough to do but I have a few minutes right now so....

Flight over was brutal. Delayed 2 hours, got to JFK airport and our bags were lost. It took 8 days to get them back. Yes 8 days. They were sent to Jamaica before they got here. No idea why. But boy were me and the fiancee glad to get our stuff finally.

I have played 4 Heads up matches since I got here, winning 3 of them. Not a lot of free time here so it is tough and I dont want to get too involved in a game as I could be called away at any minute to deal with a problem somewhere.

Tomorrow is a big day for the kids. It is our annual roller hockey tounrnament which I used to coach, but now I just referee. My feet are going to be so sore tomorrow. The first game is 10:30am with the finals scheduled for 7:00pm. It is going to be rough.

Nothing new really. I am trying to follow the WSOP main event and some hands are just crazy.

Anyways, I will try and update sooner next time.

When The Dog Is Smiling...

...good things are happening.

I have been playing pretty good recently and I am currently sitting on $240 on Stars. I won a 18 man $6 turbo as well as a few $6 six handed sngs. I also played a 45 man $5 sng coming 6th. I was chipleader with 6 left with 2nd place in chips to my left. Blinds were 800-1600 and I had a stack of 1600. Yes chipleader, but in no way safe and content. I get AJo and put the bb all in for his life of 8.5k. Unfortunately, the sb, second in chips flat calls me. Damn. Flop comes Q73. He checks. Now I know that he has only 4K left, but at the $5 level, being pot committed does not always come into it. So I ship it all in praying he folds. He calls with 33 and his set obviously wins. Now why on earth did he basically put his life on a hand where he is at best a coin flip. I couldnt believe he called preflop. Why mess with the one player who can eliminate you? So I type in 'wow, you put your life on 33'. Next hand I get AK and double up v the same guy's 55. Very next hand I get 66 and ship it in again. I am called by AK and it hits an A and I am down to near nothing. This is where it gets funny. Another player, not involved in any of these hands then says 'well you put your life on 66'. Obviously frustrated I type in 'I moved in with 66 idiot...he called with 33...calling and moving in are different things' He didnt reply. It gets folded to me in the sb and I ship in my remaining chips with A2. BB wakes up with AQ and I am gone. I have to play at low levels, but the players are just so bad. Yes I know that is a good thing, but to play for almost 2 hours and lose when a guy puts his life on 33...frustrating.

I also played a tourney on UB, 6 handed, 72 entries paying top 6. I ended 9th when 88 was no good v 44 all in preflop. I win that and I am going nicely. I am currently sitting on $360 on UB.

Full Tilt I have not played much on recently. I have about $240 on there.

William Hill I played a little a few weeks ago but nothing recently. I have about $100 left on there but rakeback will be coming soon.

All in all, some nice progress. I am hoping to get above 300 on Stars, maybe even $350, before I leave for NY in 4 days.

Shenanigans

Yes shenanigans. I have never used that word on this blog and I thought it was high time.

So I played a bunch of $6 heads up matches last night. Twenty to be precise. I won 14 of them and lost six (obviously). What those stas do not tell you however, is that in the middle of these, I decided to play some full table turbos so I multitabled four of them. In those four my best finish was 6th. Yes, I know, impressive. The highlights were as follows: K5 in the BB losing to K7 on a K562 board. Losing with JT to J7 when I pushed for 5x the bb. Pushing AT into QQ, and my favorite, losing with AA to A9 and 77. It was a lot of fun to say the least. So with that disaster of a set, I ended up making about $15 on the day.

So in two days I have increased my roll my 50% and I am definitely on target for my goal of $250 by the time I leave for New York. (Maybe even $300 if I can push myself and stay focused).

The fiancee is working tonight at her school so I am hoping to get in some playing tonight. However, Thursday night TV is pretty good so I may only play a few. House at 9pm, Shark at 10pm and CSI Vegas at 11pm. Yes I know, nothing incredible but British tv is pathetic and the only good shows are from North America.

So I am hoping for a total of 7 games tonight with my goal to win all 7, but I would settle for going 5 and 2.

Heres to hoping.

Hot

This was last week during a hot streak on the heads up SnG's.

I think I won 9 or 10 in a row. I cant remember. Thought I should take a picture of it as I figured it was pretty cool.

Oops...My Bad

PokerStars Game #10530561845: Tournament #53347146, $6.00+$0.25 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level I (10/20) - 2007/06/20 - 13:31:07 (ET)
Table '53347146 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: tyson_bluffs (1520 in chips)
Seat 2: Knightsridge (1480 in chips)
tyson_bluffs: posts small blind 10
Knightsridge: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Knightsridge [7h 3d]
tyson_bluffs: calls 10
Knightsridge: checks
*** FLOP *** [2d 6s 3c]
Knightsridge: checks
tyson_bluffs: bets 40
Knightsridge: calls 40
*** TURN *** [2d 6s 3c] [7c]
Knightsridge: checks
tyson_bluffs: bets 140
Knightsridge: raises 300 to 440
tyson_bluffs: raises 1020 to 1460 and is all-in
Knightsridge: calls 980 and is all-in
*** RIVER *** [2d 6s 3c 7c] [3s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Knightsridge: shows [7h 3d] (a full house, Threes full of Sevens)
tyson_bluffs: shows [5d 4c] (a straight, Three to Seven)

Nothing like hitting a 4 outer after the money has gone in...

Grrrrr

PokerStars Game #10530286789: Tournament #53345057, $6.00+$0.25 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level II (15/30) - 2007/06/20 - 13:07:49 (ET)
Table '53345057 1' 2-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: RiverRaider8 (1605 in chips)
Seat 2: Knightsridge (1395 in chips)
Knightsridge: posts small blind 15
RiverRaider8: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Knightsridge [Td Kd]
Knightsridge: raises 60 to 90
RiverRaider8: raises 120 to 210
Knightsridge: calls 120
*** FLOP *** [Jd As Qd]
RiverRaider8: bets 180
Knightsridge: calls 180
*** TURN *** [Jd As Qd] [5d]
RiverRaider8: bets 1215 and is all-in
Knightsridge: calls 1005 and is all-in
*** RIVER *** [Jd As Qd 5d] [7d]
RiverRaider8: shows [Ad Jc] (a flush, Ace high)
Knightsridge: shows [Td Kd] (a flush, King high)


Thats brutal

Grinding it Out

Yesterday was a true day of grinding. I played eighteen $6 heads up matches going twelve wins and six losses. By no means is that fantastic as I feel as though I should have been 14-4 or possible 15-3, but 12-6 is ok I guess. The players at this level are incredibly diverse. One game my opponent is strong who I have to grind down and another may be a total donk who pays me off in full when I have the nuts and he has third pair.

One game I was disappointed in lasted all of two hands. The first hand of the match, he moved in and I folded. The second hand I limped with 6c4c and he checked. The flop came Kc6d2c. I had 2nd pair, a flush draw and a backdoor straight draw. He pushed in 1480 chips into the 40 chips pot. I called and he showed Kd3c. I ended up losing the hand and the match. Based on his play I should have waited but I was so anxious to see so many draws and I didnt believe he had a K. Oh well.

I enjoyed playing though I must say. Not much money I know, but to grind out a profit rather than short climaxes of a massive hand in cash or playing above myself in SnG's was a welcome feeling. I am currently sitting on $133 on Stars (I made a mistake yesterday, I did not have $120 but rather 100 to start this little HU challenge). But for a player with 100 in the account, $30 is quite an increase. Not many people can say they increased their roll by 30% in one sitting lol.

9 days till I go to the States. I spoke to my friend Francis who is already in New York and he told me that the night before a bunch of counselors played a $5 freezeout. He flopped a boat and ended up being called by a counselor from Greece who had a straight 8-J. Yes 8,9,T,J...a straight. Otherwise known as jack high, nothing, nada, zilch.

Needless to say, I am looking forward to playing.

Rounders The Poker Show

Rounders is a podcast available for free through itunes which you can listen to on your ipod or simply on your computer. It is based out of Vancouver Canada and airs live Sunday nights with the upload on itunes happening a day or two later.

The two hosts are both pretty good, with one being a poker pro and the other being a poker junkie. They are funny and have some pretty good shows. They always have a famous poker player/host/or tournament director on with them as a guest and I have learned a fair bit from the show.

Yesterday I was listening to their latest show and the pro, Adam, was talking about something that happened while he was in Vegas last week during the WSOP. He was waiting for a 75-150 omaha game, so to kill some time, he started to play a 5-10 NL game. He bought in for 5K and immediately another existing player to his direct right bought more chips to cover him.

A few hands in Adam is on the button and does something I have never heard before, a 'Mississippi straddle'. Which is posting twice the BB on the button with the small blind to act first and with the option to raise if it is called around. As he posts and the dealer is dealing the cards, his cell phone rings and he picks it up, tells his daughter he will call her back later and hangs up. The dealer finishes dealing and the action goes around with five callers at $20. Adam looks down to see AdKd and makes it another $125 to play. The small blind then makes it another $500, $625 to play. It is folded back to Adam who moves in for 5K. The small blind then calls the floor and says his hand should be declared dead as he was on the phone during the hand. The floor manager asks what happens and after he gets the story says, 'So you waited until he raised you all in to say anything? No thats angle shooting.' He turns to Adam to remind him that phones are not allowed but the bet stands. The guy then folds. Adam then turns to the guy and says 'You should be ashamed of yourself, that is the lowest thing you could have done.' The guy then says 'You're right, and walked away with his chips.' I would have been livid had that happened to me!

Another podcast you may want to listen to is The Circuit by Cardplayer. It is very well done and all the back shows can be downloaded. If you want to listen to some pretty crazy ramblings and also to hear Phil Laak in action, download one of their first shows with Laak and Joe Cassidy as guests. It is from just around Christmas 2005 and is seriously priceless. Laak cannot finish a sentence without starting the next one. His story about the fire in Denmark attests to that very well.

New York and The Next 10 Days

Well I leave for New York in ten days and I am extremely excited. I have worked there for the past six summers and I cannot wait for number seven.

I work at a childrens summer camp called Camp Summit which is in the Catskill Mountains near a little town called Wurtsboro. I basically play sports and games all summer with a few nights off each week to a local hole in the wall with a jukebox and pool table. It's a good time.

The fiancee is also coming where she will teach drama and do plays with the kids. I used to teach tennis, then I moved on to roller hockey and now I am in a kind of supervisor role which oversees the boys on camp. A good friend of mine Francis, is the other person in charge of the boys and its a pretty good laugh. People seem to think we are important for some reason, but we both know better.

In the meantime I am trying to pick up my Stars account to some level of respectability. I had it going well but some ill advised cash games left me dwindling. Really upset at my choice of games; one night and that's it.

So for the next 10 days before I leave (actually eleven days as I began last night) I am hoping to get my Stars account to $250. I currently stand at about $105. I am going to play $6 heads up matches until I get to $160 and then $10 heads up matches until I get to $250. I know it does not seem like a lot, but it is most definitely a grind as I only play one match at a time. Any more than that and I lose the feel for the game and it becomes more like whack the mole than poker. Multi tabling is cool for turbos, but not heads up where the game is more than pushing botting.

Last night I started and played ten $6 matches. I was 7 wins and 2 losses before I played my final game. I had him down to 500 chips but I was in too much of a hurry to win and lost the match. Not cool. So I now stand at 7 and 3, which is not good enough. I should be atleast 8-2 possibly 9-1 at that level. I intend on doing better tonight.

Right

Was in Ireland all weekend so no poker. I came home from work and played a 6$ HU match. I won but was very bored so I signed up for a 22$ HU match.

I took this hand as a hint I shouldnt play anymore tonight.

PokerStars Game #10496989838: Tournament #53179452, $22+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level II (15/30) - 2007/06/18 - 13:02:26 (ET)
Table '53179452 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: enjoysix (870 in chips)
Seat 2: Knightsridge (2130 in chips)
enjoysix: posts small blind 15
Knightsridge: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Knightsridge [6h Jh]
enjoysix: raises 30 to 60
Knightsridge: calls 30
*** FLOP *** [Qh Th 8h]
Knightsridge: checks
enjoysix: bets 30
Knightsridge: calls 30
*** TURN *** [Qh Th 8h] [3s]
Knightsridge: checks
enjoysix: bets 60
Knightsridge: raises 60 to 120
enjoysix: raises 660 to 780 and is all-in
Knightsridge: calls 660
*** RIVER *** [Qh Th 8h 3s] [7h]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Knightsridge: shows [6h Jh] (a flush, Queen high)
enjoysix: shows [Qd Ah] (a flush, Ace high)
enjoysix collected 1740 from pot

I ended up losing the match.

Unreal. So frustrating to not play for awhile and then get hands like that.

Stars Heads Up Tourney

167 runners. $20 entry

I got a bye in the first round.

My second round opponent was ok. We basically sparred for a little while and then we got it all in, my TT v his AK. The TT held and soon after I won when he had a couple hundred left and my A5 held v his QJ.

My third round lasted all of 3 hands. He won the first hand for 40 chips, I won the next hand for 40 chips, then I had AK in the bb and he raised it to 60. I did a massive overbet to 500. He re-raised all in for 1500 and I insta-called. He had AQ and he hit nothing. I am now guaranteed $33 for a profit of $11...but I want the $900 for first!

My 4th round match went well. I got an early lead and didnt let up. I tried not to play large pots, just try and smother him. He fought back a bunch of times, but he never broke even. I had him all in with 77 against his A3 but he hit. The final hand was my JJ v his A2. There was a little drama with a 235 flop giving him 9 outs, but he missed them all. Now assured $50.

My 5th round match (round of 16) my opponent was pretty good. He played well and on more than one occasion called down with K high. Both being wrong, but he went with his read which I have respect for. He started to get aggressive at the end, (a little too much in my opinion) which was his undoing. I hit QQ and he raised I reraised and he flat called. The flop was T73 and with 650 in the middle, I put him all in for his last 300. He called with 78s and he missed his 5 outs. Now assured $116.

I just played a fantastic game of heads up poker, and I lost. I was down early and fought back to take the lead. I had him down to 385 chips. He doubled up with A7 v my A6 and then this happened.

This hand cost me the chance at $900 and an assured $267 from getting to the final four.

PokerStars Game #10387022097: Tournament #52339325, $20+$2 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round VI, Level III (25/50) - 2007/06/11 - 17:49:14 (ET)
Table '52339325 3' 2-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: oahi5 (870 in chips)
Seat 2: Knightsridge (2130 in chips)
Knightsridge: posts small blind 25
oahi5: posts big blind 50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Knightsridge [Jd Qh]
Knightsridge: raises 50 to 100
oahi5: calls 50
*** FLOP *** [Qd Qc Th]
oahi5: checks
Knightsridge: bets 100
oahi5: raises 600 to 700
Knightsridge: raises 600 to 1300
oahi5: calls 70 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [Qd Qc Th] [8c]
*** RIVER *** [Qd Qc Th 8c] [Ah]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
oahi5: shows [Ks Js] (a straight, Ten to Ace)
Knightsridge: shows [Jd Qh] (three of a kind, Queens)
oahi5 collected 1740 from pot

After that hand he hit a lot of cards and I made one bad call late in the game. In the end, his A2 was too much for my QJ.

So disgusted right now. I just cannot get over that one last hand to carry me through. I played that hand so well too. Just so disappointed. I really think I could have won it all.

In the middle of the last game I was playing incredible poker. I knew where he was every hand. I bluffed him a few times and I knew exactly how much and when. I had him cold. Unfortunately pokerstars did not see it that way.

God damnit..

That Kind of Day

I know no one likes to hear about bad beats. But you know what? This is my blog. Deal with it.

PokerStars Game #10383899314: Tournament #52339315, $5.00+$0.50 Hold'em No Limit - Level VI (100/200) - 2007/06/11 - 14:34:15 (ET)
Table '52339315 150' 9-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: DUKE147 (2581 in chips)
Seat 2: GoaMick (7820 in chips)
Seat 3: vinodanino (1035 in chips)
Seat 4: Knightsridge (3215 in chips)
Seat 5: seaanchor (7184 in chips)
Seat 6: Niblitus (1350 in chips)
Seat 7: Sloppers (1963 in chips)
Seat 8: ijnekapijne (4922 in chips)
Seat 9: newspaperman (9270 in chips)
vinodanino: posts small blind 100
Knightsridge: posts big blind 200
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Knightsridge [As Ah]
seaanchor: calls 200
Niblitus: raises 1150 to 1350 and is all-in
Sloppers: folds
ijnekapijne: folds
newspaperman: folds
DUKE147: folds
GoaMick: folds
vinodanino: folds
Knightsridge: calls 1150
seaanchor: folds
*** FLOP *** [5d Jd 2d]
*** TURN *** [5d Jd 2d] [Ad]
*** RIVER *** [5d Jd 2d Ad] [7d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Knightsridge: shows [As Ah] (a flush, Ace high)
Niblitus: shows [Ac Kd] (a flush, Ace high - King higher)
Niblitus collected 3000 from pot
Niblitus said, "hahahaha"
Knightsridge said, "sigh"

Obviously not a massive pot, but it put me shortstacked. I ran 35o in the small blind into AJ in the BB. That was me.

I was playing well too...

Will Hill Head Hunter Tourney

Went to the gym this morning, felt pretty good afterwards. I like working out in the mornings as it makes me feel productive. And what better way to feel even more productive on a Saturday then to play poker. My thoughts anyway. I just finished a Head Hunter tourney on Will Hill. I like these a lot as I can make money by knocking people out and it puts a fun spin on hands early on.

I do well early on, knock a few people out with AK and then again with AA. I plod along and stay out of trouble. I bluff an aggressive player on a blind on blind battle and I am playing well. With 265 starting and 15 left, I dont catch any hands and there were some big stacks raising alot who would have called me, so I had to fold. In the end, I was blinded down and found AQ. I stole the blinds. Two hands later, I get AT and move in. I get a caller in A8. Flop is 6JK, turn is a 6, so we are in a split pot barring a QT or 8. Yes, the river is an 8.

I am so close in these tournies, I am just missing that key hand late on. Too bad, I would have loved to get to the final table and see how far I could have got. 12th is not bad though I guess, next time.

Return to The Cincinnati Club - Tourney Report

Today at work I took a look at my blog and saw someone had commented on my latest post. Cambo, a good player who plays at the Cincinnati Club and the Wabash regularly, asked if I would be heading to Cincins for the nightly tourney. I had not given it any thought previous to his post but as the day progressed, a little poker was just what I needed. I came home and hopped on the Blonde Poker forum and looked up the schedule. Friday nights there are two tourneys running. A 6:00pm 25£ 10K chip freeze, 7 handed, with 15 minute levels, and a 9:30 30£ freezeout with 20 minute levels. I figured that because I have not played in awhile, I would play the cheaper early game, and if I liked how I was playing, I would stay on and play the later game.

I got to Cincins and some regulars were having a 1£ sng to kill time before the tourney. It was nice to be back at the club and to see some familiar faces. The tourney began with 24 players paying the top three. I took my seat and we were off.

My table was quite strong from what I could see. Many faces usually seen at the final table were all at my starting table, no time to ease back into live poker, I would earn my chips. I agreed to deal the first two levels as I dont like dealing when the blinds are big and stealing is required. I want to concentrate on stealing and only stealing.

As I am dealing my first hand, the other table near us has an all in and a call! First hand or so. AA v QQ all in preflop. The Q on the flop sends a player to the side. So I get my first hand during the first orbit JJ, and raise to 350. It is folded around and I win my first pot. I get JJ the very next hand and make it 300. I get one caller. The flop is A high, and I check. He bets 500 and I call. Turn is a 6. I check, he bets 1000, I fold. I played this hand badly. I should have came out betting, or check raised the flop. Although I lost only a few chips, and I am 98% sure he had the ace after his turn bet.

I plod along and end up getting 9T in the BB. I check with 1 limper and the sb completing. The flop comes T62. SB checks, I bet 2/3 the pot. Limper folds, sb calls. Turn is a 4. he bets 500. Hmmmm, I call. River is a J. He bets another 1000, I think and think and call. He mucks immediately. Not sure what he had but his betting made no sense for a hand that is beating me. Possibly 35 but he wouldnt call the flop with a gutterball so I was confident. I get AQ and raise, one caller, flop is A high and I bet out, take it down. I am on about 14000 or so when this hand occurs. The blinds are now 150-300 (third level) and on the button I get 77. I raise, making it 1100 to play. The sb folds. The bb is a solid player capable of making moves. I can see from his body language that he does not have a great hand, but he calls. The flop is A64, two hearts. He checks, I check. Mistake! Should have bet out. Turn is a 2 of clubs. He checks, I bet 1400. He min raises to 2800, I call. River is 2 of spades, and he moves in for 6k. Damn. I think and think about what he could have. I was obviously scared of 35, but I kept thinking he had 64 but the running 2's made me a higher two pair. I counted out my chips and realised that if I called and lost, I would have only 6k left, and I didnt need to put my chips in a position like this one. I folded. He then looked at his cards and showed the Q of diamonds, mucking the other. Wow. What the hell did he have. Although something struck me. If he had nothing, he would not have been worried about what card to show me, as if it was a total bluff, either card is alright to show. That made me think 2. A little while later he said he had Q2, which I believe. His reasoning being that he felt it was the best way he could induce a call by making it look like a total bluff. Good fold by me, badly played flop by me.

Few hands later I get 66 and take the blinds. Then I get K9o in the cutoff. I make it 1300 to play (200-400). The bb (never played with him before) calls. The flop comes 678 rainbow. Not a bad flop. He checks, I bet 1000, he min raises to 2000. I call. Turn is a K. He bets 3000. I go all in for 10K or so. He folds JJ face up. Wow, did not think he was that strong at all. I made a note to remember he flat calls with strong hands in the future. A few hands later another hand with the same guy arises. I get KTdiamonds UTG and limp for 400. It is completed by sb and checked by bb. Flop comes KQ5, two hearts. sb checks, bb checks, I make it 1500. SB raises me to 3000. Weird. BB folds, I call. Turn is T of clubs, giving me two pair, but putting a straight draw out. He bets out 4000, I go all in for around 14K. I hate the flush draw and I feel confident I am ahead and I am content to take it down there. He obviously hates that I moved in and after talking about me bluffing, mucked AQ face up. I show the KT diamonds for some bluffing credit later on. I am now cruising on about 20K and playing well. I then make some calls in position with small suited connectors, T8 spades, 57 spades and complete some small blinds. However, I miss each and I fall to around 14K-15K. Around this time, we break up the table. I get moved to the AA v QQ table and I know no one there.

The blinds are now pretty big, 300-600 and definitely worth stealing. I get no hands and go an orbit without anything. This tourney is fast becoming a Pokerstars turbo sng. I then get 99 and raise it to 2300. I take the blinds. The blinds then go to 400-800 and on the button I get 68suited. The bb has played one hand since I sat down so I make it 2200 to go. He moves in instantly for 6K more. Great. It is 6K to me, to win almost 11K. I dwell a bit to make it look like a decision, but fold saying an ace is ahead. He tells me he had one and mucks. Damn. Down to 10K or so. Blinds then rise again, and I soon find myself in the bb of 1000 with one limper and the sb completing. I look down at A8. I move in. With 3K in there and with only 9K back, I can increase my stack by 33%. Limper folds, sb who is chipped up, calls with A6. Window card on the flop is an 8 and I double up. Breathing room. Next hand, I am in the small blind and there are two limpers. I see 77 and ship it in again. After some minor dwelling, I take it down. 3600 chips without showing and I only had 20K to begin the hand with. We lose some players and I concentrate on winning one hand an orbit. Pretty soon we are down to two tables of 5 and we agree on a 10 player final due to the large blinds.

We go on a break, and then draw cards for the final seat positions. I draw seat 5 which is by far, my favorite seat, right in the middle of the table and away from the dealer grabbing my cards by accident. I sit down with 19K to start the final. This is just below average of 23K, but I am confident in my sng skills, especially with the rising blinds.

The final starts and I go through the blinds (800-1600) losing both. I am now sitting on 16.5K and in need of a playable hand to keep my fold equity. I then find 44 in mid position, and I ship it in. Caller from the button, blinds fold. I say 'I hope we are racing' He then says 'pair' and my heart sinks until I see 33 from him. Wow, quite possibly one of the best hands I could see other than 32 42 and 43. The board brings no drama and I add some needed chips, up to 30K (I eliminated him on the hand as he only had 11K left so it was not a total double up.) Then the hand of the night happens when I am in the sb (1000-2000) sitting on 34K. One limper from early position (Q2 guy from earlier) and I complete with 42clubs. The flop comes Ac Qc 8s. I check, bb checks, limper checks. This really surprised me. I 100% expected the limper to bet there. My thinking was that I check and when he bets, I flat call, looking for a club on the turn and then decide how to play a non club turn or depending on the size of the flop bet, make a large raise, committing a lot of chips to scare away a badly played JJ or KK. But when he checked, it made my life very easy. The turn was a beautiful Tc, completing my flush. I check again, knowing he will bet. Then the bb then does me a big favor and bets the minimum 2000 into a 6000 pot. The limper then raises, making it 15K to play. I instantly move in for another 19K. The bb gets out of the way and the limper looks pained and makes a crying call with KhJh for the straight. The Tc was the best possible card for me, giving him the straight and me the flush. I am chipped up now sitting on 70K and chip leader by quite a bit. I then take control but play smart. I dont bluff needlessly but play my cards strong. I also get some luck. The Q2 player moves in on my bb for 9.5K total with blinds at 1500-3000. It is folded to me and I have 63o. It is 6.5K to me to win 14K, better than 2-1 and I am confident I have 2 live cards. I call, he has KT. Flop comes KT4, turn a 5, river.....2. I hit my straight. A few hands later the button bets into me for 12K total and I put him all in with QQ. He calls with AQ and no drama, I take on another 24K. I am now sitting on 110K or so and we are four handed.

We agree to a saver of 50£ for 4th place as the top 3 were only getting paid. Then an interesting hand comes up. I get AT UTG and make it 12K to play. The bb calls. The flop comes 963. He checks, I check. The turn is an 8. He bets out 15K, I instantly go all in as I sense weakness from him. He thinks and thinks, and then asks, if he folds will I show?. I say yes and he mucks Q8 face up. I show the AT and he says nh. I then confirm it was my first bluff of the night to which he says was a reason why he folded. I then get some cards AQs, AT, KTs and take a lot of blinds. Then when in the bb and blinds are 3K-6K, the SB asks if I have looked at my cards yet. I say no. And he says, me neither, I will go in blind if you call blind. I work it out and with 9K already in the middle, I need to call another 13K to win 25K. I agree. We each then flip over a card. I show a 2, he shows a T. The board hits neither and he flips over the other which is a 2. I flip over an ace and win the hand.

Three handed I move in a few times and steal blinds and have 75% of the chips in play. Then the other two players have an all in and AT beats 92 to win. So heads up I have about 170K to 60K or so. The prize money is 245£ for first 135£ for second. I do the math before we play a hand heads up and I realize that we are both guaranteed 135£ and we are playing for 110£. One double up by him though me and he is chip leader. So I say to him 'I will give you 20£ from first prize, making 1st prize 225£ and 2nd place 155£ if you agree to stop now and give me first place'. He thinks about it, and agrees. We shake hands, and I walk away with 215£ (10£ tip for dealer). I was thinking about the deal on the way home and I think it was pretty good for me. I gave up the chance to win 110£ for an assured 90£. In other words, if we had played, I only have to lose 20% of the time or more to be -ev. (I win 4 of 5 times for 440£ or I deal five times for 450£) If we play 5 times, it is entirely possible I lose once.

All in all, it was fun to get back to live poker and to feel the chips and cards instead of see them on a screen. I played well and hit the cards I needed to. Which is basically what winning a poker tournament is all about. After the tourney, I decided not to press my luck and play the 9:30 freeze as I dont think winning twice in one night would happen, and also to put myself in the right frame of mind of starting over would be difficult.

This is Getting Old

The majority of the money going in after the turn......sigh

Donkeys

Yes I encountered plenty of donkeys last night. A ton of them. Where do I begin?

First tourney - Head Hunter tourney on William Hill. I dont play a hand for 20 mins. Then I get JJ in late position. Mid position raises 3x bb, one caller. I go all in for about 12bb. Original raiser folds, caller calls. He flips over....wait for it.....K3s. Flop brings a K and I am done. Well played donkey.

At the same time as the head hunter tourney, I went in a double shoot out sat for the Sunday Warm Up on Stars. $11 entry with 3 entries. I win my first table and then with 7 left and me in 4th place, I get AKs. UTG I raise, BB thinks and thinks. He pushes all in. I have him covered by a little. What did he have...wait for it....A9o. How a player can win his first table, and then put his life on the line with A9o against an UTG raiser I will never know. But the turn is a 9 and I am down to 2 bb. I push with A6s next hand and get called by QQ. Well played donkey.

Tourney number three - UB bounty tourney. I get KK early and get it all in against AQo. I hold to get an early double up. Things look good. A little later I get it in with AQ v AJ. J on river and I am back to where I started. Then with blinds at 50-100 and 2 callers of 100, I push for 1500. Folded around to first limper, he calls for his life with AQ. Flop brings a Q, I am gone. Well played donkey.

Tourney number four - Full Tilt $10 tourney. I get AA and make it 3x BB on the button. BB calls. Flop is A53. I bet 1/2 pot after he checks. He calls. Turn is a J. He checks. I bet pot. He calls. River is a 7. He goes all in which is about 3/4 of the pot. I make a crying call and see 46o. Not a terrible play by him as if he believed I would call if he hit then his implied odds possibly warrant it, but in his shoes, I fold. So no donkey star for him, but a curious look of bewilderment perhaps.

All in all, I was frustrated to lose as I did, because I would have loved for a big cash. And I really would have loved to win a Warm Up seat for $215. I am going to play more tonight as the fiancee is going shopping with friends. So if all goes as planned, gym, then poker.

Heres to hoping.

Fitness and Tonight

I have been going to the gym for about 5 or 6 weeks now trying to not let myself get to out of shape. In high school and university I was quite active playing sports and so I was never really 'out of shape'. But recently I know that my fitness is not what it should be, so while home in Canada I made an effort to get back into it. I started going to kick boxing training with my little brother (though only 16 he is in incredible shape), I was lifting weights in my basement, and trying to eat better. While my fiancee and I were apart for that 6 weeks, she was getting in shape back in Glasgow. She lost a stone in that time and she looks fantastic as she was not big at all to start with anyway. Her and I are trying to get in shape both for our personal well being and the dreaded wedding pictures which will be taken next summer, July '08.

How does this tie in with poker you ask? Well it has been proven that physical well being promotes better thinking and a positive frame of mind. Two tools very important with poker. Not only will I feel and look better but I hope my poker game will progress as well.

After work today I am going to go to the gym for about an hour, then return home and play a bunch of MTT's. It is been awhile since I played one and I am excited to sit down and invest some time. The fiancee wanted me to tone down the poker I play but she is ok with one or two nights a week. And because Wednesday night is the night she goes swimming some friends and then they make dinner and watch Big Brother, it fits in nicely.

I may even put up a few updates as I play tonight. I have neglected this blog these past few weeks, and I would like to get back into it.

A big cash is on its way tonight.

Heres to hoping.

Update

Back in Glasgow. Back to teaching. Back to normal.

Have not had much time to play poker since I got back, but I did play a little this weekend. I started with a roll of $50 on Stars and through many heads up matches at the $6 level (yes a grind) I am sitting on $210. I absolutely own them. I went 6-0 Saturday, 8-2 on Sunday, and 5-0 yesterday. So out of 21 games, I have won 19 of them. Not a bad deal at all. I dont like multi tabling with a small roll so I wanted to spin it up a little. Mission accoplished. I will play some turbos in the near future.

Just to give an update where I stand with online accounts and where I have been playing:

Stars - $210
Ultimate Bet - $390
Full Tilt - $210
William Hill - $160

I have been only playing heads up recently, but hope to get in some MTTs shortly, possibly this weekend. I am also planning on giving some friends a call Wednesday or Thursday. George and Mark, if you are reading this, I will call you today or tomorrow. I may even take a stab playing live at the Cincinnati Club this weekend, we'll see.

And finally, I hope to post more often now that I am back!

Quad Shootout

Signed up for the quad shooout Stars runs every Wednesday with a few minutes to spare. I have seen it replayed but could never play as it is on too late. My first table had only three players.

My second round I was completely card dead. Let me repeat, I had nothing. I was eliminated in 3rd place when I pushed KT and CL called with KQ. No help gg me. Very frustrating game. They were ok players 3 handed, but I couldnt do anything more. I stole so much to stay afloat. I never got dealt better than A7 or 66. Not cool.

Damn...

227 enter, 22 left, all in preflop.

The pot would have put me in top 5 with around $750 for first. Instead I have a blog entry entitled Damn...

Tonight

Urggggggg

Played 4 multis tonight

$10 on UB
$5 on Stars
2 x $10 on Full Tilt

Ultimate Bet I go out with AT v TJ on a A89 flop...woulda been in top 3 if I won....30th of 155
Stars I go out with 55 v KQ preflop...woulda been in top 20.....75th of 1500
Full Tilt number 1 - Go out with AK v 22, 22 hits a flush after I hit 2 pair. Woulda been in top 20....185th of 900
Full Tilt number 2, I go out with K4 v 99 when I was shortstacked and I needed to push.

Very disappointed with the UB, I was playing well, and the Stars I was shortstacked alllllllll tourney, but I squeezed and dodged my way through, stealing when I needed to. The final hand came when habitual raiser made it 3 BB and I pushed with 55. He called with KQ and hit. I had to take a chance sooner or later but it didnt work out. Frustrating, as if I won that hand, I could done some damage.

Next time.

Update

I am sorry to anyone who is checking this blog (Cambo) and not seeing anything. I have been laying low at home with not much urge to do anything. But I am exercising quite a bit and playing some poker as well, so all is not lost.

Since my last post which was some time ago, there have been some developments. My work permit was issued 2 weeks ago, and today, I received word that my entry clearance visa to enter the UK was granted. Finally. I am hoping to fly back next Saturday May 26th. That will be almost 6 weeks since I left.

So that is good, my fiancee is quite glad. And after talking on the phone two or three times a day everyday, my parents phone bill is glas as well.

As far as poker, I have been jumping around site to site playing cash and SnG's. I am playing ok, nothing major but recently I started playing multis. Last night I won the 1500 guaranteed on Ultimate Bet for $450. With 350 runners, it felt good. And this morning I won another multi on William Hill, but there were only 50 some runners for $120 or so. I also took 5th of 55 on Ultimate Bet today in a $10 tourney for $45. So I am having some mderate success in multis and I am really enjoying them.

So I am gonna play some more multis until I leave for the UK and I will post more now that I know I am leaving soon and my future is no longer up in the air.

Cunningham who?

Scrolling through Full Tilt's games looking for something juicy when I spot Allen Cunningham sitting at a .50-1 table.

I grab an open sit and fire on $40.

A little while in I win a pot against him. Nothing big, but cool all the same.

Where Have I Been You Ask?......Well I.....

So, I traveled home to Canada for two weeks to visit my family. It was a nice stay and the fiancee and I had a good time.

This past Saturday I flew from Halifax International Airport to London Heathrow, and then the plan was to fly from London to Glasgow where we live. That did not happen. Due to my visa being out of order, I was stopped at Heathrow, detained, photographed, fingerprinted, interviewed, and ultimately was refused entry into the UK and sent back to Canada where I currently am. Below is my entire story which I have emailed to numerous bodies and businesses in the UK. Rather than write the story again, I have just copied and pasted it.

I am a Canadian citizen and I traveled to the UK under a student visa in
August of 2004 to study at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. When the
year was finished, I decided to return to Glasgow for the 2005-2006 school year.
Because my student visa had run out, and also because I was not permitted to work under it
anyway, I returned to Canada following my summer job and applied for another UK
visa.

In September 2005 I was granted a working holidaymakers visa. This allowed me to
live in the UK for two years, but only work for one. When I finally landed in
the UK and my disclosure papers (those papers which all teachers must have to
legally work in a school) had come through I began doing temporary supply work
in October 2005. Two weeks into doing supply work, I was given some work at
the school I am still currently at. They asked me to do long term supply for a teacher on
leave and I agreed. This job was later put up under a full time post for which I
applied and was given in December 2005.

I continued to teach through the year and following summer employment I returned
to Glasgow in August 2006. I knew my one year for working was coming to an end
in October, so I found out how to extend my stay. After searching through
websites and calling numerous numbers I contacted work permits UK, which had an
office in Sheffield. After getting information (over the phone, not in writing I
am afraid) I was told that because teaching is considered a work shortage
occupation, I could continue to teach as long as my work permit application was
being processed. I printed off the necessary forms from the internet and
actually helped my school's external relations officer by filling in some of the
information myself. The completed application was then sent off to Glasgow City
Council offices, and I continued to teach. (The completed forms were handed in
September 2006)

In April 2007, my fiancee and I traveled to Canada for a two week holiday with
my family over the Easter break. However, unknown to me, two days before we
left, the work permit application was returned to my school never having been
sent away to be processed. Following this break we were due to fly back to
the UK from Halifax to London, London to Glasgow. We left Halifax Saturday April
14th and arrived in London Sunday morning April 15th. When I attempted to go
through immigration I was stopped after the customs official had some questions
regarding my visa. I explained that my work permit was being processed and that
because teaching was on a shortage list, I was allowed to continue to work. He
tried to find this out but was unsuccessful. At this point I was detained and
brought to a holding room for photographs, fingerprinting, and interviews.

During the interviews I explained my situation and how I had been told that
teaching was a shortage occupation and as long as my application was being
processed, I could continue to work. They looked for said information, but after
being held for five hours, they told me that they could not find it, and I was
being put on a plane for Canada.

The following was not in the email, but is still part of the story.

I flew from London to Montreal then Montreal to Halifax. I arrived in Halifax Sunday night and got a hotel room across the street from the airport. I had not showered or washed in almost 48 hours. I was never so glad to see a shower or bed in all my life

The next morning I took a 6 hour ride back to my home. However, because my luggage was not switched from the Glasgow flight to the Montreal flight so I wore the same clothes 4 days in a row. My luggage finally arrived Tuesday night.

All in all, the past week has been extremely frustrating. Since I got home I have figured a few things out.
1. The women on the phone gave me information for teachers in England, not Scotland. I know however that I said Scotland, as I phoned numerous times to ensure everything was in order.
2. The day after I was detained the work shortages law was changed to include Scottish teachers. If I had entered the UK the next day, I would have been allowed through.
3. Even though the law was changed, I cannot go back under the visa I had because it was canceled while at Heathrow.

For the past 5 days I have tried to figure things out and I think I should be ok. Glasgow City Council is currently in possession of a work permit application which is being sent Monday morning. That takes 5-10 days to process, then that gets sent to me in Canada. When I receive that I apply for an entry clearance visa through the UK consulate in Ottawa. When that gets sent back to me I can return to Glasgow which I hope is as soon as possible.

Not a fun few days to say the least.

Canada Pics

Having a great time being home. Playing a little poker when I can, but I will talk about that later.



Fiancee posing on the pond













Went hiking up the mountain across the street from my home.












My cousins who came with us











There is a cabin at the top of the mountain that is free to stay in or go in for a little fire and get warm