Operation 400NL by 01/08

800 hands, -$330 4-5 Tables of 200NL FR.

Honestly pretty happy with the results, considering...

(the first 3 posts are without stats/reads because they are basically bad beat posts -- enjoy! Laughing

)

Full Tilt Poker Game #2412082873: Table Shore Haven - $1/$2

VIllan: ($208.70)
Hero: ($203.75)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [7h 7s]
3 folds
Villan: raises to $7
1 fold
Hero: calls $7
3 folds
*** FLOP *** [7c 3s 3h]
Villan: bets $10
Hero: raises to $35
Villan: calls $25
*** TURN *** [7c 3s 3h] [8s]
Villan: checks
Hero: checks
*** RIVER *** [7c 3s 3h 8s] [Ad]
Villan: bets $35 (? -- He called with an Ace on the flop?)
Hero: raises to $85
Villan: raises to $166.70, and is all in
Hero: calls $76.75, and is all in

*** SHOW DOWN ***
Villan: shows [Ac Ah] (a full house, Aces full of Threes)
Hero: mucks
Villan: wins the pot ($407.50) with a full house, Aces full of Threes

Full Tilt Poker Game #2411701223: Table Arlington Bridge - $1/$2

Hero: ($200)
Douche: ($195.40)
6 other players

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [8h 9s]
4 folds
Hero: raises to $7
1 fold
Villan: calls $6
1 fold
*** FLOP *** [7h 3d 9d]
Villan: checks
Hero: bets $11
Villan: calls $11
*** TURN *** [7h 3d 9d] [8c]
Villan: checks
Hero: bets $25
Villan: raises to $100
Hero has 15 seconds left to act
Hero: raises to $182, and is all in
Douche: calls $77.40, and is all in
Hero: shows [8h 9s]
Douche: shows [Th Ts]
*** RIVER *** [7h 3d 9d 8c] [6c]
Hero: shows two pair, Nines and Eights
Douche: shows a straight, Ten high
Douche: wins the pot ($389.80) with a straight, Ten high

Douche: "you raised 9-8 preflop?"

Full Tilt Poker Game #2411991404: Table Horizon Lake - $1/$2

Douche: ($197)
Hero: ($216.45)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Kc Ah]
3 folds
Douche: raises to $7
3 folds
Hero: raises to $22
1 fold
Douche: calls $15
*** FLOP *** [8d 5s As]
Hero: bets $35
Douche: raises to $100
Hero: raises to $194.45, and is all in
Douche: calls $75, and is all in
Hero: shows [Kc Ah]
Douche: shows [Ad 5d]
*** TURN *** [8d 5s As] [Ac]
*** RIVER *** [8d 5s As Ac] [7d]
Hero: shows three of a kind, Aces
Douche: shows a full house, Aces full of Fives
Douche: wins the pot ($393) with a full house, Aces full of Fives
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $396 | Rake $3
Board: [8d 5s As Ac 7d]

Douche: "better than 9-8 = >"

Well, i saved the one i feel i could have folded for last. Is his river raise always at least a bigger two pair? No useful stats/notes; it was probably my second orbit at the table.

Full Tilt Poker Game #2411750459: Table Hidden Quail - $1/$2

Hero: ($206.15)
Villan: ($103.25)
5 other players

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Vi-Popsmak [5c 9c]
Villan: calls $2
5 folds
Hero: checks
*** FLOP *** [7s 9h 2c]
Hero: checks
Villan: bets $5
Hero: raises to $15
Villan: calls $10
*** TURN *** [7s 9h 2c] [Js]
Hero: checks
Villan: checks
*** RIVER *** [7s 9h 2c Js] [5h]
Hero: bets $28
Villan: raises to $86.25, and is all in
Hero has 15 seconds left to act
Hero: calls $58.25
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Villan: shows [8c Tc] (a straight, Jack high)
Hero: mucks
Villan: wins the pot ($204.50) with a straight, Jack high

Towards the end of my session, my Rakeback was credited to my account, so my account actually reflected a $100 profit on the session!

Week 5 Results: (-$400) + ($500) + ($280) + ($380) + (-$270) + ($130) + ($150) + (-$150) + ($200) + (-$330) + ($110 -RB) = $600

Grand Total: +$1655

River raise on last hand has you beat for sure. I would not have raised flop without another club, however.

Nice week!

100 hands, +$130 2 Tables of 200NL FR.

Nothing to post, in terms of hand histories. C-bets all worked and i got some good starting hands.

I think i will play 1-2 small sessions today, and hope that i can score $100 or so in each in an effort to help restore some confidence after a relatively long losing session.

225 hands, -$140 4 tabling 200NL FR.

I feel like i played really good the entire session. I lost this rather large coinflip, but i wouldn't change anything about it. Mostly posting it to explain the poor results. However, is a bet/3bet line better for getting him to put $$$ in and then fold when i push? I was afraid he would just call with an overpair, and by c/shoving i hoped to gain enough FE to get him to fold though i love he called me with Q-Q.

No Notes. However, i was absolutely crushing this table after someone intially bluffed me and showed it off. I won 3-4 medium sized pots picking off other peoples bluffs Very Happy

Full Tilt Poker Game #2417015104: Table Dreamy Winters - $1/$2

Hero: ($368)
Villan: ($245.65) (22/10/4.5 over 40 hands)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Ks As]
1 fold
Hero: raises to $8
Villan: raises to $24
5 folds
Hero: calls $16
*** FLOP *** [5s 9c 7s]
Hero: checks
Villan: bets $44
Hero: raises to $344
Villan has 15 seconds left to act
Villan: calls $177.65
Hero: shows [Ks As]
Villan: shows [Qc Qd]
*** TURN *** [5s 9c 7s] [6c]
*** RIVER *** [5s 9c 7s 6c] [6d]
Hero: shows a pair of Sixes
Villan: shows two pair, Queens and Sixes
Villan: wins the pot ($491.30) with two pair, Queens and Sixes

On this hand, i checked behind since i figured that such a low and coordinated flop could easily have hit his hand, based on his stats. His turn check made me think A-x/missed broadway and so i lead out. His small reraise looks like 5-x or air. rereraise ok? I hate folding and calling seems weak and -EV.

No notes. 2nd or 3rd orbit at the table.

Full Tilt Poker Game #2416818873: Table Lineshack - $1/$2

Hero: ($237.80)
Villan: ($304.85) (29/10/4 over 200 hands)
7 other players

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Qh 9s]
5 folds
Hero: raises to $8
1 fold
Villan: calls $7
1 fold
*** FLOP *** [8s 4h 6h]
Villan: checks
Hero: checks
*** TURN *** [8s 4h 6h] [7s]
Villan: checks
Hero: bets $12
Villan: raises to $25
Hero: ?

I don't mind hand 1...with no draw you have to fold I think, though.

I call turn in hand 2 and evaluate on river.

630 hands, +$100 while 4 Tabling 200NL FR.

I made 2-3 memorably spewy plays, but none of them cost me more than 20BB's, so it stands to reason i could have done worse. No interesting hands to post, though i will say that i hit a dream flop with 4-4 (4-2-2) and got A-2 to go AI for 60BB's. I guess that good luck countered my spew, and a few well timed c-bets and double barrels accounted for the net profit Very Happy

1200 hands, -$300 4 Tabling 200NL FR.

What a crazy session. After the first hour, i was down nearly $1,000. I felt sick Sick

. I almost turned off my computer for the day. But instead i took a 5 minute break, logged back on and crawled back. After losing a couple medium sized pots towards the end, i decided that calling it a session was for the best.

Here are several hands from this session...

On this hand, i think that the best line would have been to c/c flop then donk the turn. Instead i c/r'ed and built a good sized pot OOP not knowing whether he was on a draw or had a bigger king. River call was bad.

Full Tilt Poker Game #2424233485: Table Stonewater - $1/$2

Villan: ($191)
Hero: ($293.45)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Kh 2c]
5 folds
Villan: calls $2
2 folds
Hero: checks
*** FLOP *** [Tc Kd 3c]
Hero: checks
Villan: bets $4
Hero: raises to $11
Villan: calls $7
*** TURN *** [Tc Kd 3c] [9d]
Hero: checks
Villan: checks
*** RIVER *** [Tc Kd 3c 9d] [Th]
Hero: checks
Villan: bets $27
Hero: calls $27

This is a difficult spot IMO. I think if he had J-J or Q-Q he would have reraised me preflop, and i don't think he would play 8-8 - 10-10 so strong on the turn. I figured that he had a set and decided to fold, but i wonder if anyone else plays the turn differently.

No notes.

Full Tilt Poker Game #2424649855: Table Cimarron Crest - $1/$2

Hero: ($340.30)
Villan: ($318.20) (30/11/5 over 100 hands)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: Ks Kc]
4 folds
Hero: raises to $8
2 folds
Villan: calls $7
1 fold
*** FLOP *** [6s 7c 2d]
Villan: checks
Hero: bets $13
Villan: raises to $48
Hero: calls $35
*** TURN *** [6s 7c 2d] [3h]
Villan: bets $74
Hero: folds

I had two notable suckouts that netted me +$200.

In the first hand, i had decided to semibluff the turn, holding the nut flush draw, a gutshot straight draw, and two overcards to the board. My opponent called with two pair, but i rivered a straight. He called my push on the river.

On another i c-betted my 3-3 on a K-J-5 rainbow flop, got called and spiked a 3 on the turn. He ended up getting all in with A-K for 50BB's.

However, i was pwned myself several times.
(These are net losses, not pot sizes and the %'s are when the money went in)

2 Times i got K-K AI when i was a 4:1 favorite and lost. -$200
1 Time i ran A-A into a set. It was a reraised pot however so i don't think i could have gotten away from it. -$200
I lost with 9-9 when i was a 3:1 favorite. -$50
1 Time i lost a 85/15 with my flopped top set against a gutshot. -$80

I also lost a 45/55 for $200, though i was getting 3:1 on my flop call so i don't think that it was bad.

Here are a few poorly managed pots...

I initially liked my river raise since it was for value, and obviously his reraise has me beat so i folded. Personally, i think he rivered 9's Full or had K-Q. Calling on the river seems best, looking back. It doesn't seem likely he would be leading a medium PP on the river if that was what he had floated me with on the flop.

Full Tilt Poker Game #2423536257: Table Laurel Ridge - $1/$2

Villan: ($367.50)
Hero: ($200)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Qh Tc]
5 folds
Villan: calls $2
Hero: raises to $10
2 folds
Villan: calls $8
*** FLOP *** [Qc 8h Qd]
Villan: checks
Hero: bets $16
Villan: calls $16
*** TURN *** [Qc 8h Qd] [Kc]
Villan: checks
Hero: checks
*** RIVER *** [Qc 8h Qd Kc] [9h]
Villan: bets $15
Hero: raises to $35
Villan: raises to $160
Hero: folds

I think in this hand i just need to fold the flop, since my position sucks and i am not interested in raising enough to price out the flush draw. In actuality i decided to rep 3-x when i made the small flop raise. Though if i did play the flop the same on the turn i think i need to just check and see if he checks behind. If he does then he is probably on a draw, if he doesn't then he has a hand he probably isn't folding.

Full Tilt Poker Game #2424372276: Table Miragrande - $1/$2

Villan: ($278.90)
Hero: ($200)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [9c 9h]
3 folds
Player 1: raises to $7
Villan: calls $7
2 folds
Hero: calls $5
*** FLOP *** [3s 7s 3c]
Hero: checks
Player 1: bets $12
Villan: calls $12
Hero: raises to $32
Player 1: folds
Villan: calls $20
*** TURN *** [3s 7s 3c] [Jc]
Hero: bets $72
Villan: calls $72
*** RIVER *** [3s 7s 3c Jc] [7h]
Hero: checks
Villan: goes AI
Hero: folds

2-3 hands after that i allowed the same villan to 3 outer me on the river because i played my TP so slowly. That resulted in me losing $70.

In one of the first hands of the session, i flopped TPTK with A-K. I 3/4PSB flop, 2/3PSB turn, and checked behind on a relatively safe river card. My opponent had flopped top two pair and c/c'ed the whole way. It was a really weird hand.

All told i think there were 4 medium sized pots i could have managed better.

Dude, you gotta quit raising TPNK. It only gets you in bad spots, even if you are ahead. Pot control.....

QT hand--Yeah, I think raising river is bad. Not much calls that you beat.

Disciplined fold of the KK hand. Nice job.

99. The smooth call by villain has to concern you. I don't think this is a flop I raise. Folding>calling.

700 hands, -$200 5 Tabling 200NL.

Frustrating seems to be the right word.

Two spewy plays for 160BB's. Won't even post them since i knew what i should have done the moment i made the play. I really need to slow down and think before i act.

This -$200 session included my suckout artist play with Q-Q against A-A for 50BB's.

I already had played a good deal today. I think i was tired and that probably affected my play a little bit.

I feel sick.

Back to 100NL for a bit -- I have to get over my bruised ego lol. The move does seems best though since my conifdence is pretty low after today. I may want to wait to move up to 200NL completely next time until i have 5-6k. While i don't think i donked off all of my money, i don't want to hit a full blown downswing with only 18 Buyins. For the next couple of weeks i will only be sitting at 200NL tables if the game seems very fishy. The good news is this time when i leave 200NL i am $450 up instead of -$80 down (shouldn't have played 200NL 6Max) 3rd times the charm Rolling Eyes

Just remembering that i am leaving up makes me feel a little better about losing $500 today

I think i need to start a mini operation for my stint at 100NL.

Goal: Play 15k hands at 8ptBB/100.
-4 Tabling
-Minimum 500 hands a day

I hope to get to 5k by the end of May. so that is 1400bb's and i believe would be accomplished running just under 8ptBB/100.

As a random thought, i am thinking that i may be playing too many big pots in marginal situations. Might be one of my bigger leaks right now.

All this losing got me to thinking about how best to spend my time...

I decided to go ahead and withdraw the money from my PokerStars account (ended up -$50 there), and have decided to sign up at Ultimate Bet - utilizing their Deposit Bonus. This time i signed up with Rakeback!

So at this point i am going to be spending my time on two sites:
1). FullTilt
2). Ultimate Bet

I hope to deposit $1500 or so onto Ultimate Bet so i can start at 100NL. Money isn't really a problem as i am earning a good deal at my day job at the moment and i have no large upcoming expenses as i am going to school only part time. This is nice...

...though i still haven't figured out how best to spend my time playing. Assuming i am mostly 4Tabling for the next couple of weeks as i spend more time concentrating on improving my game than breaking even over 8-10 Tables, what would be an optimal amount of time to spend on both sites to maximize Bonuses?

These are the conclusions i have come to:
1). I like the Iron Man challenge on Full Tilt. This is mostly because i am close to earning 100 Iron Man Medals, and then if i understand correctly recieving 100 more for declining to participate in the Freerolls. I think getting a seat reserved at a table would be a total balla move, but im not sure if i will opt for 5,000 FTP's and get a Jersey (i currently have 22k FTP already), or save up the medals for $$$.
2). Full Tilt Rakeback - 27%
3). Ultimate Bet Rakeback - 30%
4). So it stands to reason i should spend more time on Ultimate Bet, especially considering that i am going to be trying to fully unlock their deposit Bonus.
5). I have probably 15-20 hours a week i can devote to playing poker for the next 4 months.
6). I need to spend around 60-90mins a day 4Tabling 100NL to get 200FTP's on FullTilt, remaining qualified for the Iron Man Medals.

Are there any cool bonuses on Ultimate Bet? I don't expect to start playing there until sometime in late May as i am waiting for ePassporte to clear my deposits. Also, can i deposit $1500 (in whatever portions the site allows) and not eradicate my initial deposit Bonus?

In a few months (after i have cleared my UB Deposit Bonus), i hope to be able to run 1-2 Tables on either site and have access to a larger pool of weak players and better tables.

If you haven't noticed, i am also using this Blog as a sort of notebook for my poker thoughts. My apologizies if some of my writings are "spew" Smile

700 hands, +$230 4-5 Tabling 100NL.

I basically made all of that on my last hand, but i will get to that later on.

I got dealt Q-Q/J-J 6 times in 50 hands at one table. Check this shit out...

I am only posting stats/notes for the first hand since i feel it is the only one i could have/should have gotten away from. On the fourth hand i just played it poorly and know it though if you want to mention it yourself feel free...

While i was playing the hand: Looking at villans AF, i decided that i was going to shove any flop that came with cards lower than J-J and probably dump my hand if any Aces or Kings hit.

My question is, how should i interpret a limp/reraise from someone with such a high AF?

Now: Looking back my analysis is that if villan is so aggro he is going to be raising a ton preflop, probably not limp/reraising. If such a scenario occurs again i am dumping this in an instant, barring specific notes that villan uses this play as a bluff.

Full Tilt Poker Game #2434526127: Table Camden Rose - $0.50/$1

Villan: ($103.45) (23/11/8 over 100 hands)
Hero: ($139.50)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Js Jc]
Villan: calls $1
Hero: raises to $5
7 folds
Villan: raises to $18
Hero: calls $13
*** FLOP *** [Ts 9d 6c]
Villan: bets $35
Hero: raises to $121.50, and is all in
Villan: calls $50.45, and is all in
Hero: shows [Js Jc]
Villan: shows [Ac Ah]
*** TURN *** [Ts 9d 6c] [Kc]
*** RIVER *** [Ts 9d 6c Kc] [Jd]
Hero: wins the pot ($205.40) with three of a kind, Jacks

Full Tilt Poker Game #2434559044: Table Camden Rose - $0.50/$1

Hero: ($239.95)
Villan: ($109.40)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Qd Qs]
6 folds
Hero: raises to $5
Villan: raises to $20
1 fold
Hero: calls $15
*** FLOP *** [Jh 2c 5c]
Villan: bets $30
Hero: raises to $219.95, and is all in
Villan: calls $59.40, and is all in
Hero: shows [Qd Qs]
Villan: shows [Ad Ac]
*** TURN *** [Jh 2c 5c] [7c]
*** RIVER *** [Jh 2c 5c 7c] [4s]
Villan: wins the pot ($217.80) with a pair of Aces

Full Tilt Poker Game #2434687795: Table Camden Rose - $0.50/$1

Hero: ($128.05)
Villan: ($50.10)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Js Jd]
Hero: raises to $5
2 folds
Player 1: calls $5
3 folds
Villan: calls $4.50
1 fold
*** FLOP *** [9d 3d 4d]
Villan: bets $15.10
Hero: raises to $123.05, and is all in
Player 1: folds
Hero: shows [Js Jd]
Villan: shows [Ad Tc]
Hero: "lol" (I AM A PROPHET Laughing

)
*** TURN *** [9d 3d 4d] [Ah]
*** RIVER *** [9d 3d 4d Ah] [3h]
Villan: wins the pot ($104.20) with two pair, Aces and Threes

Full Tilt Poker Game #2434821854: Table Camden Rose - $0.50/$1

Hero: ($98.50)
Villan: ($97.80)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Qs Qh]
3 folds
Hero: raises to $4
1 fold
Villan: calls $4
3 fold
*** FLOP *** [Kd Js 5d]
Hero: bets $7
Villan: calls $7
*** TURN *** [Kd Js 5d] [As]
Hero: bets $13 (a bad bet)
Villan: raises to $26
Hero: folds
Villan: wins the pot ($47.05)

the other two times i got dealt J-J and took the blinds down preflop.

The final hand was really neat. I was just thinking to myself, "this is going to be another breakeven session"...

Full Tilt Poker Game #2434850193: Table Hauck - $0.50/$1

Villan 1: ($114.55)
Hero: ($111.45)
Villan 2: ($112.50)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Kc Ks]
Hero: raises to $4
3 folds
Villan 2: calls $4
Villan 1: calls $3.50
1 fold
*** FLOP *** [Ac 7d Kd]
Villan 1: checks
Hero: bets $9
Villan 2: raises to $29
Villan 1: calls $29
Hero: raises to $107.45, and is all in
Villan 2: raises to $108.50, and is all in
Villan 1: calls $79.50
Villan 2: shows [As Kh]
Villan 1: shows [Ad Jd]
Hero: shows [Kc Ks]
*** TURN *** [Ac 7d Kd] [3c]
*** RIVER *** [Ac 7d Kd 3c] [2c]
Hero: wins the main pot ($332.35) with three of a kind, Kings

and then i decided i was going to stop Very Happy

Limp reraise is AA/AK/KK 90% of the time or more. Someone with such a high AF I would say it's more like 99% of the time.

I saw one guy limp reraise 88 one time, and I was shocked.

I don't push flop in hand 2. You only beat AK.

Hand 3 isn't so bad if you think you have FE. A or K diamonds isn't going anywhere though.

You are right about hand 4, turn lead is not good.

NH with KK Smile

I haven't posted in here for a while. I haven't really been playing or anything and taking a break felt good.

Well, my mischevious deed Rolling Eyes

caught up to me on Friday. I attempted to log onto FullTilt, and was notified that my account had been suspended. I broke into a cold sweat and opened up my email account to see what was in the email they sent me. I was really surprised to read that they were willing to return all my funds to me. Naturally, i told them that that would be great and 12 hours later i had all my funds in my ePassporte account.

At that point i decided to withdraw 2.5k of that money to put into savings. I may end up getting a new computer when i take a couple semesters off from school with some of that money.

EDIT: I was kind of high when i wrote the earlier post, so i touched it up a little to make it easier to read Laughing

Vi-Zero- One word of advice- since u only have 17 bi for 100nl right now dont experiment so much playin lag till ur more properly rolled. Variance is sick- in my last 10k hands i have been up 7 bi, then down 10, then up 13 again. playin 20/16.

so until ur at 30 bi at least id stick to ur A game

however i definitely recommend switching up playing styles- to improve my game i have switched it up every month - 22/18 march, 26/20 april, 20/16 may- i think besides confusing the reg's PAHUDs it keeps things fresh and keeps me learning

Well, i would say i certainly enjoy 6Max more than FR. I like getting more opportunities to bluff Very Happy

However, i don't seem to be very good at 6Max just yet. For example, today i was up 2 buy ins at a table thinking i was at least 1 buy in up on the day. Unbelievably IMO, i was down 1/2 buy in for the day (mustve reloaded a lot more than i remembered). After 1.5k hands, i am down 3.5 buy ins. Playing more pots has been a challenging adjustment from FR to 6Max. My c-bets don't get as much respect, but it has helped me to pick better spots for double barrelling. I also am pushing draws harder on the flop, and i am getting even better at selecting spots to 3bet.

That, coupled with an interest in experimenting with different strategies has made me decide to drop down to 50NL 6Max.

I cashed out a large portion of my roll a little while ago, for many reasons. Part of it was to show myself and others that online poker was serious stuff. I intend to take out even more during the course of this year. I figure that this is a good point in time for me to withdraw some of my roll, since i am not a solid winner at anything above 100NL yet and my game has a lot of room for improvement. I can more cheaply make the necessary adjustments at 50/100NL.

I watched a couple of videos on cardrunners today, as well as read a few articles. I didn't take as much as usual away from the videos, but the articles i read were very educational - particularly the ones regarding Bankroll Management and changing limits. They were the biggest influences on getting past my ego and helping me to move down to a lower limit.

I feel like i have improved as a poker player over the last couple of days, though i don't have any results to show for it yet Smile

40% VPIP for my first experiemental session at 50NL. I have to say i had a lot of fun playing so many pots, and feel like against 50NL players i pwn postflop. Won 31% of the hands i played.

200 hands, +2 buy ins.

GL at $50 6 max....small sample (4K hands maybe)...but I am over 10ptbb/100. That was after dropping 2 or 3 buyins to start.

lot of good poker ideas ingested this week, though all told i think i have dropped $500 or so in the last 6 days. Regarding my operation, i have been playing with a VPIP between 35-44% during my sessions, and have gotten some big showdowns with some relatively marginal hands (my small overpair winning 150BB pot against TPTK). I don't feel like writing a ton about this yet, but i do truly feel that this is in large part due to variance. This isn't to say i am not getting outplayed in some spots, but i feel i would have better results if i wasn't losing several 50/50's, 60/40's, and a couple 75/25's for 100BB"s.

Anyways...

I am looking more closely at how i am playing in spots like the one below. Usually in this spot i would give up my hand, or try to get fancy and call on the flop intending to shove a blank turn. However, i realized that on combo draw boards like the one below it is going to be very difficult to figure out which draw villan is holding if he leads any turn (which is standard after a flop c/r). Better to try to win the pot on the flop, i figure.

Example:

Villan: ($175.50)
Hero: ($101.50)
4 other players

New to the table, but my notes on this opponent say he is a regular at 100NL 6Max and is very aggressive and a light 3better. No stats BTW b/c i am a donk and cannot figure out how to get HH's to auto import into PT on Ultimate Bet Laughing

******HOLE CARDS******
Dealt to Hero: [Ac Kd]
1 fold
Hero: raises $3.50 to $4.50
3 folds
Villan: calls $3.50
******** FLOP ********
[9h 9d 7h]
Villan: checks
Hero: bets $7
Villan: raises $12 to $19
Hero: raises $70 to $89

This is what i figured villans range to be.
9-x
8-10
8-6
xh-xh
Ah-xh
2-2 - 8-8

Text results appended to pokerstove.txt

201,960 games 0.005 secs 40,392,000 games/sec

Board: 9d 9h 7h
Dead:

equity win tie pots won pots tied
Hand 0: 45.395% 44.61% 00.79% 90088 1592.00 { AcKd }
Hand 1: 54.605% 53.82% 00.79% 108688 1592.00 { 88, 66-22, AhKh, AhQh, AhJh, AhTh, A9s, Ah8h, Ah7h, Ah6h, Ah5h, Ad4d, Ah4h, Ah3h, Ah2h, KhQh, KhJh, KhTh, K9s, QhJh, QhTh, Q9s, Qh8h, JhTh, J9s, Jh8h, Jh7h, T8s+, Th7h, Th6h, 96s+, 8h7h, 86s, 7h6h, 6h5h, 5h4h, A9o, K9o, Q9o, Q5o-Q4o, J9o, J5o-J4o, T8o+, T5o-T4o, 86o }

My equity seems to only improve slightly when i hold the Ace of hearts... i would have figured the % to increase from anywhere between 5-10%. I imagine this is because many Ah-xh hands that i could win against via high card are now no longer in villans range, and because i pick up a backdoor flush draw.

Text results appended to pokerstove.txt

191,070 games 0.005 secs 38,214,000 games/sec

Board: 9d 9h 7h
Dead:

equity win tie pots won pots tied
Hand 0: 48.628% 48.27% 00.35% 92239 675.00 { AhKd }
Hand 1: 51.372% 51.02% 00.35% 97481 675.00 { 88, 66-22, A9s, KhQh, KhJh, KhTh, K9s, QhJh, QhTh, Q9s, Qh8h, JhTh, J9s, Jh8h, Jh7h, T8s+, Th7h, Th6h, 96s+, 8h7h, 86s, 7h6h, 6h5h, 5h4h, A9o, K9o, Q9o, Q5o-Q4o, J9o, J5o-J4o, T8o+, T5o-T4o, 86o }

So, the lesson i learned here was that pushing with a nut draw against a loose and aggressive opponent is ++EV!

---

Text results appended to pokerstove.txt

188,100 games 0.005 secs 37,620,000 games/sec

Board: 9d 9h 7h
Dead:

equity win tie pots won pots tied
Hand 0: 63.457% 63.11% 00.35% 118709 654.00 { AhKh }
Hand 1: 36.543% 36.20% 00.35% 68083 654.00 { 88, 66-22, A9s, K9s, QhJh, QhTh, Q9s, Qh8h, JhTh, J9s, Jh8h, Jh7h, T8s+, Th7h, Th6h, 96s+, 8h7h, 86s, 7h6h, 6h5h, 5h4h, A9o, K9o, Q9o, Q5o-Q4o, J9o, J5o-J4o, T8o+, T5o-T4o, 86o }

---

I threw in some random hole cards to give villan a bluff %, and left all the 9-x hands in even though he would probably c/c the flop with them some % of the time.

This was just one aspect of poker i improved on this week. I was thinking at work today about an article that someone on FTR had stickied regarding a concept known as "G-Bucks". I had read it a few months ago and couldn't get my head around playing your hand as a range against a villan. I reread the article last night and was thinking about that as well as something i read in gabe's thread titled "any questions?"

In that thread gabe brought up a post he had read when he was moving up in stakes on 2p2 where the OP had asked whether calling or folding was best to a large river bet. durr (a HS player for those who don't know) responded, "my favorite option isn't in the poll". I had not understood that until today.

Here is the board (from gabe's thread):

A-Q-x-x-y ("x" is a paired card on the flop)

I didn't understand at first what value there would be in raising the river - after all that would obviously be spewing into a set/FH.

Then i realized:
By raising the river, villan may even lay down a low set since this board seems so unfavorable to be bluffing on that a bluff raise on the river would seem out of the question. Villan might also have a hand like A-Q and be trying to maximize value against A-K/lower aces and is planning on dumping to a raise. The fact that villan is bluffing isn't out of the question either, and by raising Hero doesn't have to show villan or the rest of the table that he figured villan was bluffing or that Hero was making a very strong play on the river without a monster. All in all raising looks like a great play, once i thought about it more. This got me to think more about which boards are goof to bluff on.

And if i am wrong please point out any errors since i don't want to feel right, but in actuality be incorrect and not find out why i am wrong.

Since i posted, i ran good and won 3 buy ins at 100NL, then spewed 2.5 buy ins tonight. I was not playing my A game, oh well. The way i have been seeing it lately i have forever to work on my poker playing, and there is no need to let mistakes frustrate me, as long as i don't allow them to linger.

I don't even know what else to post in here except that i have not felt as motivated to play poker the last couple of days. I was pretty burned out after the weekend though so kind of a small sample size Smile

Hopefully by Friday i am eager to play again!

hey vi... i will try to catch up your operation later but good you give me a quick summary? did u cash out, run bad, or something? and it looks like you switched to 6max from your operation sig thing...?

Sorry readers, i have been quite lazy about updating this blog the last couple of weeks Smile

Update: I withdrew 2.5k a couple of weeks ago when i switched from FTP to Ultimate Bet. Since then i have switched from FR to 6Max and from 200NL to first 50NL, and now 100NL 6Max. I also finally figured out how to import hand histories from Ultimate Bet into my PokerTracker, so i am going to be playing with my HUD again! (very useful for me IMO)

I am currently down $600, but i have felt that my poker play has improved significantly since i switched from FR to 6Max. One thing i am not doing well is staying focused when i am playing. I recently quit drinking soda and i am thinking that i am probably experiencing some caffeine/sugar withdrawl, hence the lack of focus. Hopefully this passes soon, or i may be forced to return to my soda drinking ways for the sake of poker!!!

I currently have 19 buy ins for 100NL, though if i drop below $1500 i am going to swtich back to 50NL 6Max. Hopefully i don't have to do this.

Been quite a while since i updated this...

But, things have gone okay since i last did.

I redeposited $200 onto PokerStars again after withdrawing an earlier deposit, and have built it up to $500 playing SNG's and 25-50NL.

On Ultimate Bet i have been playing between 50-200NL, and i am probably down $500 or so. Honestly i have been just been amping my variance big time by 3betting lighter and playing draws very aggressively.

The biggest reason i am updating this blog is to report that i had another poker revelation! I used to be like a lot of players at my limits in the sense that i would make plays and not really understand why i was making them. I had essentially absorbed things i heard and read and began implementing the new ideas without understanding why they were good ideas.

I can now go play a long session and lose several buy ins, and instead of feeling angry or sad i am much better at rationally analyzing the plays i made and determining whether i ran into bad variance or made a poor play.

I feel like i understand so much more about poker, and not just the technical aspects (i.e. value betting, folding 9-3o UTG). I better understand how/why to balance my own poker play (reraise A-Q OOP sometimes, but also sometimes call and c/r some Ace high flops, some raggy flops b/c the hand has outs against a middle pair that might call, etc.)

I BETTER UNDERSTAND THE WHY IN POKER!!!!

i just read this whole operation from start to finish and it was a solid read. i def. think someone should write a sticky on how playing 10k+ hands of 50nl 6-max will greatly improve any FR player. when i went back to 50nl after 2 weeks at 6 max i was killing FR, hope the same happens for you.

i am playing really well. I really played well and took advantage of several good bluffing opportunities. At 100NL on Ultimate Bet there are only a few regulars that i actually don't mind having position on me, since only a few regulars actually 3bet somewhat lightly.

Lots of other good stuff too like weaker players calling my 3bets preflop and then folding on the flop. Or they will call and a King or and Ace will hit the turn, i will bet it and they fold. Very Happy

Only a couple of pots that i was in today i feel i made mistakes in. I already know what i did wrong so i am not going to post them but i am considering posting in this blog more frequently. My poker drive is returning again and it only takes a few minutes to write in here.

Still playing very well, and winning $$$.

I am now reviewing sessions in PokerTracker, like my role models sbrugby and GP Laughing

. I didn't use to do this on a regular basis, but by doing so i am getting another chance to review my errors and further prevent myself from making them again.

One postflop play i learned for myself this week was to NOT go for broke with a FD for 100BB's in an unraised pot. Such a donk play and i will NOT make that mistake again.

I am becoming much better at picking spots to semibluff. My favorite thing i figured out for myself was when i was reviewing someone elses' HH's...

A-Q is a tough hand to play, since it doesn't do very well in RR pots (i.e. on Ace high flops, you can frequently run in A-K). However, it is favored when put against a standard TAG/LAG's opening range.

So i thought about how i would like to play this hand, and i have decided to:

1). 3bet A-Q IP almost always
2). 3 bet A-Q OOP 50%
3). call with A-Q OOP 50%
- On Ace, Queen, and boards where i have a FD to c/r the flop
- Also c/r on K-x-x flops. This is because it is tough for an opponent to continue with a hand like 9-9/10-10 after you c/r. And, even if you get called by K-x (not as often as you will win the pot on the flop), you still have the Ace as an out. And, if opponent has a high cold call frequency you can double barrell a board like this profitably.

I think i am going to start posting the worst pots i played, for two reasons.

1). To embarrass myself enough not to make the mistakes again

2). To see the poorly played pots several times so i think about why they were played poorly so i don't make the mistakes again

3). To make others feel sorry for my complete lack of poker skillz Rolling Eyes

Here are today's "worst played hands":

At the time, i figured villain might be donking the flop with a FD. But, when i consider the rest of his range (K-Q/A-Q/set), i am a solid dog. Also, i am not going to get him to fold a FD since he will be getting 3:1, and i am probably only to get K-Q/A-Q to fold a small % of the time since they might put me on a FD.

Villain: ($185.70 in chips)
Hero: ($98.50 in chips)
Player 1: ($148.65 in chips)
Player 2: ($102.95 in chips)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Js Jh]
Player 1: raises $3 to $4
1 fold
Player 2: calls $4
1 fold
Villain: calls $3.50
Hero: raises $12 to $16
2 folds
Villain: calls $12
*** FLOP *** [Qd 5h 9d]
Villain: bets $24
Hero: raises $58.50 to $82.50 and is all-in

This one i am posting to sort of remind myself i am not playing to win every pot. I feel this is a pretty weak time to start a bluff, seeing as i only get 1 street to convince him that i have a hand. I suppose folding this on the flop is probably fine too. This is the first time i saw Villain 3bet.

Hero: ($125.75 in chips)
Villain: ($147.80 in chips)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [As Qd]
3 folds
Hero: raises $2 to $3
Villain: raises $4 to $7
1 fold
Hero: calls $4
*** FLOP *** [Jc 9s Kd]
Villain: bets $5
Hero: calls $5
*** TURN *** [Jc 9s Kd] [8h]
2 checks
*** RIVER *** [Jc 9s Kd 8h] [7c]
Villain: bets $5.80
Hero: raises $19.20 to $25

Seeing as this shortstack has shown an interest in this pot, i should just let him have it. At the time, i couldn't let that happen... Rolling Eyes

Hero: ($100.90 in chips)
Shortstack ($21.80 in chips)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Ac Th]
2 folds
Hero: raises $3 to $4
1 fold
Shortstack: calls $3
1 fold
*** FLOP *** [3d 9c 9d]
Shortstack: bets $4
Hero: raises $15 to $19

I need a plan before i call this 3bet. I figured my A-J was ahead or close to even money against this villains 3bet range. He and I had been in a reraising war the last few times i have played with him. I respect him but i know he will also shove light (8-8 in an earlier BvB when i had A-A) so i didn't want to 4bet him seeing as i would be in a very marginal spot if he shoved. My plan was to c/r AI any flop with an Ace, Jack, or which gave me some sort of draw.

Hero: ($102.65 in chips)
Villain: ($94.50 in chips)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Jc Ad]
3 folds
Hero: raises $3 to $4
Villain: raises $11 to $15
Hero: calls $11
*** FLOP *** [5s 3s 3c]
Hero: checks
Villain: bets $20
Hero: folds

The biggest lesson i took from this was i won't let this player have position on me anymore, unless i have a very good reason for staying at the table.

I think i can avoid a c-bet on this flop. But i am interested if anyone else feels the same way. I feel villain has a loose pushing range here and i can't call a shove. However i also feel his PF calling range of my RR could be pretty loose too. Thoughts?

Villain is 66/35/1 over 30 hands.

Villain: is at seat 0 with $165.90.
Hero: is at seat 1 with $146.60.

Dealt to Hero: [Js Jc]

3 folds
Villain: raises to $3.50.
Hero: re-raises to $13.50.
Villain: calls

Flop (board: 9h Kh 4h):

Hero: bets $21.
Villain: raises to $91.
Hero: folds.

This was a really bad river bet. I made the mistake of trying to put villain on a specific hand (9-x), and playing as though i were against that hand. Looking at this hand now i cannot believe i fired on the 3rd spade. His check is kind of odd but i have been very aggressive at this table so it isn't really that surprising.

Villain was 25/10/.8 over 75 hands.

Villain: is at seat 0 with $80.40.
Hero: is at seat 4 with $230.

Hero: [7c 6c]

2 folds
Hero: raises to $3.50.
1 fold
Villain: calls.

Flop (board: 3s 9d 7s):

Villain: checks.
Hero: bets $4.50.
Villain: calls.

Turn (board: 3s 9d 7s Ac):

Villain: checks.
Hero: bets $11.
Villain: calls.

River (board: 3s 9d 7s Ac 4s):

Villain: checks.
Hero: bets $27.

Those are my worst hands from today. 6 poorly played pots for a 1k hand session isn't great, but at least i am identifying my errors. This should speed up the learning process.

I think this is a bad river raise. If i had A-J+ then the raise would be a better value raise, but in this case i don't think villain will often call with 7-x and so he will only continue with a higher set of aces or a full house. I almost certainly have the best hand, but my hand cannot stand a reraise and it is unlikely villain has a strong hand that is weaker than mine that he will call with.

Villain is 22/13/2 over 300 hands. He is on a lot of tables - at least 6.

Hero: ($98.50 in chips)
Villain: ($102 in chips)
2 other players

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to VI-Popsmak [Ad 4s]
1 fold
Hero: raises $2 to $3
Villain: calls $2.50
1 fold
*** FLOP *** [7d 5h 3c]
Villain: checks
Hero: bets $4
Villain: raises $7 to $11
Hero: calls $7
*** TURN *** [7d 5h 3c] [Ac]
Villain: checks
Hero: checks
*** RIVER *** [7d 5h 3c Ac] [As]
Villain: bets $14
Hero: raises $14 to $28

Only 2 pots tonight where i feel i made a serious mistake (one is in the SH forum).

I should have thought more about villains range before i raised this one. At the time i figured his range to be (A-9, A-x, air (float flop), 8-7, A-8/A-7, 8-8, 5-6/9-10). The mistake i feel i made was the size of the raise. I should have made the turn raise bigger for three reasons:

1). Make it easier to get the money all in on the river
2). deny any straight draws a chance to call for 3:1 and then stack me every time on the river.
3). No hand that is calling the $25 raise would fold to a $35 raise. Therefore the raise with the better EV is the $35 raise.

Hero: ($307.35 in chips)
Villain: ($107.45 in chips)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [7s 7c]
1 fold
Hero: raises $3 to $4
1 fold
Villain: calls $3
*** FLOP *** [7d Ac 8h]
Villain: checks
Hero: bets $6
Villain: calls $6
*** TURN *** [7d Ac 8h] [Kc]
Villain: bets $12
Hero: raises $25 to $37

i dont know... i kind of like your 25 dollar raise. you are way ahead here and you dont want to raise him out. he needs more than 3 to 1 to profitably chase a straight on you (since its just the river left not both turn and river).. although he does have big implied odds... but a straight draw doesnt really make up that much of his range. he donks out the turn which makes me think two pair a lot here. or occasionally a weak ace.

I agree the 3:1 pot odds are pretty irrelevant, but regardless it makes more sense to raise a larger amount since weaker hands are folding regardless of what size i reraise to and stronger hands are still calling.

The sick thing was the river was 6c and villain pushed. I called and he showed Qc Jc for the backdoor flush Sick

Still playing well, though already today i feel i may have poorly played these 2 pots. I will probably play another session later tonight.

Hand 1). Villain is 30/22/3 over 150 hands. I have no notes on him, so i assume he hasn't done anything crazy when i have been at his table.

This turn bet is really stupid after my flop check, since i almost always c-bet a reraised pot, especially with an Ace on the board. Checking this flop was a big mistake also...

Villain: ($113.70 in chips)
Player 1: ($329.70 in chips)
Hero: ($246.05 in chips)
3 other players

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Qc Kh]
1 fold
Villain: raises $3 to $4
1 fold
Player 1: calls $4
Hero: raises $11 to $15
1 fold
Villain: calls $11
Player 1: calls $11
*** FLOP *** [Ah Td 4c]
3 checks
*** TURN *** [Ah Td 4c] [2s]
Hero: bets $22

Hand 2). Villain is 18/12/3.5 over 80 hands. He reraised one of my flop c-bets earlier this session (reraise size approx. the same). I chose not to bet/fold the turn since i figured he could easily have K-Q/Q-J and fire at the turn, and i didn't want him to reraise me with either of those hands and put me in a tough spot, with him thinking i was block betting the turn with a FD. Should i have c/r or is c/c okay? The reason i decided not to c/r is because i don't see any hands he continues with that i beat, and if he doesn't check behind he probably doesn't have a FD. My plan if he had checked behind was to check whether or not a Heart hit, to give him a chance to bluff if he missed. Okay plan?

Hero: ($149.20 in chips)
Villain: ($158.20 in chips)
3 other players

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Ad Qc]
1 fold
Hero: raises $2 to $3
Villain: calls $3
2 folds
*** FLOP *** [Qh 3d 5h]
Hero: bets $5
Villain: raises $8 to $13
Hero: calls $8
*** TURN *** [Qh 3d 5h] [7s]
Hero: checks
Villain: bets $19
Hero: calls $19

last hand i think i like bet folding the turn more.
KQ and QJ probably wont reraise you there.

One more pot that i made a mistake in...

I don't like that i raised this turn. I feel i should have called, getting over 5:1. The reason why i feel calling is better is because if my raise does get called, i only have 3 outs. And i don't feel that raising is necessarily going to get villain to fold; the board didn't really change on the turn.

Hero: ($121.15 in chips)
Villain: ($170.65 in chips)
3 other players

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [8h Qd]
2 folds
Hero: raises $2 to $3
Villain: calls $2.50
1 fold
*** FLOP *** [4d 9c 3c]
Villain: checks
Hero: bets $4
Villain: calls $4
*** TURN *** [4d 9c 3c] [6s]
Villain: bets $2
Hero: raises $12 to $14

Up all night reading Harry Potter, but i managed to play another session before i did that. Very Happy

Up nearly 16 buy ins since Tuesday: winrate is well over 10BB/100 over a 7.5k hand sample, though my money won at showdown is 51.00% so idk how much of that i can attribute to positive variance... Regardless i have played significantly better this last week than i ever had in my life. Concepts are finally starting to "click"; i also went an entire session with a friend watching, and i explained literally every single decision i made.

Bankrollwise:

I tried not looking at my UB bankroll for a while, but eventually my eyes wandered to find that i am around 3k.

My PokerStars roll has experienced the most growth: it has gone from $700 a week ago to around $1900.

I intend to wait to move up to 200NL until i have around 4k in both accounts. I am confident i will be able to win so the bigger question is when can i afford to safely move up.

Got to go to work; i will post some pots from sessions later today.

Harry Potter LOL

I made the decision preflop that this guy was probably on tilt (he lost a big pot before this). My plan was to call PF and call a bet on any non Ace-King high flop. I called anyways; i just had the feeling that villain may be holding J-J or air. This was a stupid call because:

1). If i shove PF and he is on tilt, he may call me with weaker hands
2). I can also fold PF. I don't know for sure that he is on tilt, or if he is a calm multitabler who wasn't really bothered by getting stacked and is playing a tight 4bet range (K-K+)
3). Villain's "air" probably contains either an Ace or a King. So this flop could easily have hit a random hand like A-4o or K-9s.
4). I went with a specifc read off of one piece of evidence. I really need to build a bigger case for a marginal call next time. For example if he had raised/reraised the last 3 hands plus lost a big pot, then we would have more information to base our read that villain was tilted.

I had no notes, nor a significant sample size for stats..

Villain: ($127.70 in chips)
Hero: ($101.50 in chips)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Qc Qs]
1 fold
Villain: raises $3 to $4
3 folds
Hero: raises $10 to $14
Villain: raises $25 to $39
Hero: calls $25
*** FLOP *** [9c 8s Ks]
Hero: checks
Villain: bets $60
Hero: raises to $62.50, and is all in.

STUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDSTUPID

lol

So i have played maybe 2k hands since i last posted any poorly played pots. I have several more to post. I don't feel like i have been playing nearly as well recently.

In this hand, i did not put the coldcaller AI. The reason this is a mistake is because with A-K (unlike K-K/A-A) i want the other guy out of the pot, and don't want to suck him in with a small raise. It didn't matter since villain had K-K, but the mistake was not giving myself enough FE.

Villain: is at seat 1 with $60.15.
Hero: is at seat 3 with $117.55.
4 other players, including the Shortstack

Hero: Ac Kh

Pre-flop:

Shortstack: goes all-in for $14.50.
Villain: calls
1 fold
Hero: re-raises to $34.
2 folds
Villain: calls

This hand was already posted in the SH forum. The mistake here is that i am offering implied odds for villain to stick around with a smaller pocket pair than the ones i am representing (K-K+). I should have RR to $45 or $50. Still not sure whether to c/f any non A-A-x/K-K-x flop, since villain's calling range to a large 4bet is surely K-K+, no?

Ugh i just realized i am better off 4betting with 6-7s than A-K since then i have more clean outs. I think i will generally avoid 4betting A-K, and if i get into a spot like this again i may choose the really weak play of folding, unless villain's have been very aggressive.

Hero: ($187.10 in chips)
Villain: ($186.50 in chips)
3 other players

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero:[Ah Kc]

Player 1: raises $3 to $4
Villain: raises $8 to $12
Coldcaller: calls $12
1 fold
Hero: raises $24 to $36

What i did on the flop was a big mistake also, but this mistake is the one that set me up to get titanically stacked Laughing

In this hand, i need to RR the flop. This way i represent a strong hand, and have the benefit of sometimes getting Q-x to fold, or to call and check to me on the turn at which point i can take a free look at the river. I have no idea why i just called...

Hero: ($103.40 in chips)
Player 1: ($127.95 in chips)
Player 2: ($81.15 in chips)
Villain: ($54 in chips)
2 other players

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero: [Kc Ac]
Villain: calls $1
Hero: raises $3 to $4
2 folds
Player 1: calls $3.50
Player 2: calls $3
Villain: calls $3
*** FLOP *** [9c Qc 9d]
2 checks
Villain: bets $11
Hero: calls $11

I initially liked my river call, but looking at this later i realize a few conditions needed to be met before i made such a thin call

1). villain needs to have been more aggressive over a larger sample. This villain was reasonably aggressive, but i hadn't seen him triple barrell bluff once and my sample size was only ~150 hands. I need to continue to remind myself that thin calls/bluffs need to be saved for opponents whose tendencies you are better aware of.
2). the turn needs to be a Jack, Queen, 4, 3, or 2. None of these cards are likely to improve a hand that villain was holding on the flop.
3). the river needs to be a 6, 7, or Jack. The Jack should scare villain unless he is holding one (not likely), and either a 6 or a 7 would make the likelihood of a set small.

The texture of the board and the image of the player changes significantly when those conditions are met, and then i like my call much better. Anyways villain was an 18/12/3.5 and i was feeling like a donk when i did this i guess... Laughing

Villain: is at seat 0 with $84.35.
Hero: is at seat 3 with $167.95.
4 other players

Hero: Qd As

Pre-flop:

1 fold
Hero: raises to $3.50.
2 folds
Villain: calls.
1 fold

Flop (board: 6s 3c 7d):

Villain: checks.
Hero: bets $5.
Villain: raises to $14.
Hero: calls.

Turn (board: 6s 3c 7d Ts):

Villain: bets $15.
Hero: calls.

River (board: 6s 3c 7d Ts 2c):

Villain: goes all-in for $51.85.
Hero: calls.

In case you are wondering what made me decide to do this at the time, i felt his turn bet was kind of small followed by a large river bet. The river bet wasn't a value bet, while the turn bet made me think 6-x/7-x or something along those lines.

And in general operation news, i took a shot at 200NL last night. I played okay, but i made a 100BB bluff that got called (which was fine: i am confident that my bluff was +EV). Overall i finised up about 1/2 a buy in over 500 hands. I may sit down at the 200NL tables again tonight, since i have ~25 buy ins for 100NL between UB and PokerStars for 200NL.

I am getting better and better at this game... Very Happy

This is of course the whole point of my blog but i am going to write a post about things i feel i am doing well.

1). I am very aware of my image, as well as my opponents' images. I relied much more on my opponents stats to make decisions regarding whether to raise/fold/call, but my notetaking and observations of opponents tendencies is definitely earning/saving me some money.

2). I am very good about selecting spots to 3bet. I am much more focused on my opponents history/opening position than my whole cards when i decide to 3bet.

3). I am table selecting so much better! I am hunting for tables where i can have a LAG in front and a nit/shortstack behind. I am also avoiding several of the toughest regulars.

4). I am thinking about poker more when i am not at the tables. I am starting to come up with my own ideas about boards to play back at, what kind of opponent i need, etc.

One thing i need to do more of is study sessions after i play. I have probably played 4k hands now without reviewing. I just don't feel like i am making major mistakes, and i feel like even while i am in a session i am aware of when i make a mistake. Still, looking at my mistakes a second time increases the likelihood that i don't make the mistake again. Also, actively seeking out weaker players, and not just avoiding the toughest ones is something i need to start doing. I haven't played enough 200NL 6Max to have a good idea of the weakest players, but eventually i hope to have a good idea of who the fish are so i can search for them.

Dropped 5 buy ins at 200NL, so i am moving back to 100NL on PokerStars. I made some poor plays, but i feel that i was mostly running poorly. My showdown winrate was 47%, which is slightly lower than average, and my winrate without showdown was 42%. These could also be indicators of how i played but i honestly believe that the downswing was primarily the result of variance. I will continue to play 200NL on UB, since those games are so soft and i have enough of a BR for now to continue playing there.

+2 buy ins at 100NL today over 1k hands.

I was reading another good post when i realized how badly i want to be like some of the mid stakes and high stakes players on FTR. Obviously not like down to the kind of clothes they wear but i want to be able to make 14k in a month and know i played great poker to earn it. Right now my best month ever is probably 2k and i have never played higher than 200NL regularly. Hopefully in a few months all of the work i have put into my poker game will have paid off, and i will be playing 400NL and doing well.

I just hope that i start swinging upwards again!

oh so you're plaing on stars now? i was wondering why i never run into you anymore. just keep working hard and im sure you will keep moving up.

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Operation 400NL by 01/08

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Operation 400NL by 01/08