Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 14
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Hiya. I haven't really posted here before and I don't exactly consider myself an expert but I have a couple of thoughts on this. I've played a lot of live games at casinos, home games and recently (not quite two weeks ago) I started playing a bunch on the internet. I'm up about $1K from that. I usually play on about 3-4 $25 NL tables on Party Poker. I mix in a few tournaments here and there, although I'm not as good at those I'd say I finish ITM about 65% (mostly Multi's)
Runs of 15-25 (hell, runs of 100) hands of crap cards is not unusual, it's rather normal actually. Most of the time that means folding for an hour or so in a home game. We've all had to do that on occassion. The worst thing you can do is let it start getting into your head. I've seen plenty of players go literally on tilt not from bad beats or getting busted out, but simply because, in their minds, they haven't gotten a fair share of the cards.
One thing I would do is to start working on your table's HPH (Hands Per Hour). Meaning, make sure everyone is always being as effecient as possible when it comes to starting the next hand (get the game moving). This can be as simple as making sure the dealer shuffles and deals before stacking the chips he won on the last pot. Or reminding people who don't have their blinds out before the action starts. Or having an extra deck that can be shuffled and ready while the current deck is being used for this hand. Basically the more hands you play, the more consistently good players will be rewarded and the more the fish will be punished.
The answer to the rest of your question is the same as the answer to every Poker question: It depends. How are the players at your table? Is there a lot of preflop raising? A lot of loose calling? How many players are there? If you can get in cheap in a ring game (especially if it's short handed), I would do it occassionally with even 1 gap unsuited cards in position just to see a few flops. Most of the players I've run into at home games are so bad post-flop that you can take down a few pots with pretty marginal hands, plus being in position limits your vulnerability. These players generally watch too much TV and don't understand that Hold 'Em isn't a pre-flop game.
BTW, your story with the Queens has also happened to all of us, but you've got to realize that the scenario you talk about is exactly the one that we all want to be in. Poker is not a game of absolutes, all you can do is make the right play and know that most of the time it'll work out in your favor but sometimes it will not.
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