BooG690 Lerns Zi Pokerz

Ahhh...2NL. Oh, how I've missed you. Well, not really. I hit 2NL up and I hit it hard tonight. I played 914 hands and won $22.98 to go an astonishing 62.86BB/100. I forgot exactly how easy 2NL is...and it's 100x easier the second time around (although I obviously hit many good hands). 2NL plays TOTALLY different than 5NL or 10NL, no matter what people say (and probably all limits above that as well...I just don't want to comment on limits I haven't played). I guess if I'm going to climb the ladder back up to 10NL, I might as well chronicle everything I see instead of just updating you guys on my progress. Anyway, here goes:

Generally speaking, I see three types of villains at 2NL. One villain has a ridiculously high VPIP and a near-zero PFR. Another is the maniac with a high VPIP and PFR. Finally comes the ubernit (probably multi-tabling 8-15 tables). This villain only plays AJs+, AQo+, and TT+.

The most common villain seems to be Mr. High VPIP, No PFR. This villain LOVES to see flops. One general rule here is to raise preflop with strong-medium hands. This villain will call with just about anything and this is a major leak (this leak basically helped me win the money I did today). Now, villain sees the flop...and it's fit-or-fold time (SUPER leak...#1 MONEYMAKER!). Simply c-bet the flop and they'll most likely fold. If they call, they've hit something. If you have something yourself, VALUETOWN! Seriously that simple.

In addition to the whole raising, c-bet idea...another way to beat this villain is by limping. Yes, LIMPING! A major difference between 2NL and the other limits is the super-low PFR. This means that you will NOT be punished for limping with a raise behind you (well, most of the time you won't be). I was limping away in all positions with my connectors, small pocket pairs, and suited one-gappers. Hopefully you hit the flop hard and are able to take villain to valuetown. If not, bluff the pot (if board texture dictates it smart to) and hope villain didn't hit a thing (which he probably didn't most of the time).

One more thing about this villain...if you ever find yourself facing a preflop raise, know you're probably facing quite the strong hand and play accordingly.

Now, the maniacs: possibly the biggest goldmine of them all. I don't understand what exactly is going through their mind...but I guess they assume over-aggression will win them pots...and they're right. However, these pots are tiny. Their preflop raises mean NOTHING. The easiest way I find beating them is to call them down with your medium-strength hands...you are more than likely ahead. Obviously your premium hands work amazingly here as they will play right into them. There is no need to build a pot as they will do it for you.

The ubernits usually don't help you win much money unless you hit against them. I may call they're raise with a speculative hand. The ubernits hand is basically turned face-up at this point. Use this to your advantage. Tonight I called with a pocket pair and hit my set. Ubernit obviously had an overpair and put himself all-in. SHIP IT!

As for playing Ax, be kicker careful! Like other limits (at least 5NL), these players love playing ANY ace. Be careful with pairs of aces and low-kickers being that there may just be an ace with a higher kicker on the other end. This advice goes for poker in general...but I guess I'm just saying be extra careful around players that will never fold aces. You can't bluff them off that ace (they just don't understand the concept of shitty kickers I guess).

One outstanding thing I've noticed at 2NL is the min-bet. I don't really understand this move much and hopefully somebody can clarify what they believe it means. What do I mean by min-bet? I've seen players bet two cents into a pot of 98 cents. What the HELL does that mean? Mostly, I've seen it signifies a bottom or middle pair (never usually top pair). However, I would sometimes raise this bet to only have this answered by a reraise. Players in 2NL don't usually bluff so I'm gone after this reraise. I'm definitely going to say that this bet puzzles me a bit. It USUALLY signifies weakness but there ARE times that villain will 3bet. Anybody with any advice on this queer (this word works in so many ways here) bet?

As for the "small hand, small pot; big hand, big pot," notion; this is totally out the window for me at these stakes. Players at this level are willing to call huge bets down to the river with TPNK. It really is amazing. TPTK and two pair win HUGE pots at these stakes. I don't mind creating a huge pot with my TPTK and bringing villain all-in...I'm usually ahead.

I'm no expert on poker and am nowhere CLOSE to one. I actually suck ass at poker (no joke, I do). I'm sure I'm going to get flamed for most of the things I wrote here...but this is just what I find to hold true at 2NL. And again, this is ONLY for 2NL. I find this limit to play different from ANY other limit. I TOTALLY disagree with those that say 2NL plays just like 5NL. There's no way it does. Players here are literally throwing their money into a pot that they CANNOT win. It's up to you to just TAKE it!

I jumped up to 5NL for the time being. I know, I know, I'm playing too high for my bankroll. How can I do this after what just happened to me? Well, I'm a little more aggressive with my bankroll when it's smaller. There is less to protect and a lot more to gain from hopping up to 5NL.

5NL definitely won't be lasting for too long anyway. I've decided to deposit my way back up to 10NL once I get this week's paycheck. Yes, I'm doing so even though I promised myself not to. Why? I've chosen to take full advantage of Pokerstars' reload bonus. That means I'm depositing $600 into Pokerstars by week's end. However, I will not count all of it toward my bankroll. I will probably just put $150 of it towards by bankroll and try and ignore the other $450. That means I will look at my bankroll as whatever the number says in the cashier box minus $450. This will help me avoid jumping limits too quickly.

That's really it for now. I've decided to stop playing poker since my bed is calling me. I will be succumbing to my bed more often since my being tired leads to bad decisions. My bad decisions lead to tilt. And my tilt leads to bad decisions...and we all (well, at least the people that actually read this damn thing) remember what happened to me not too long ago. Later!

So I went on tilt again. Yup, AGAIN. I know what you're all thinking...jeez, he blew his bankroll again. NOPE! The exact opposite. The SECOND I felt myself getting frustrated and sick of the shitty spots and beats that were being bestowed upon me, I got off the tables and turned on some George Lopez. Ah, how that Mexican can make me smile and calm me down.

But seriously, the beginning of tonight's session ended quickly. I was put in REALLY bad spots. 9's vs. T's, J's vs. Q's, and straight vs. straight were a few of the hands in the session. I also had kicker trouble (J vs. Q). My biggest mistake in all of these pots was making the pot big for no reason. I had good cards...but none of these cards really called for a large pot. Anyway, I lost about $17 and chose to get off and relax a little bit.

After watching some TV, I chose to get back on and pwn. I did exactly that. I won $14.35 in 537 hands (32.23 BB/100). I was catching sick cards...but playing good poker as well. Here is tonight's graph (hopefully you can tell when I came back on...this is the effect George Lopez can have on poker):



It really shouldn't be that big of a deal...but I'm a little proud that I was smart enough to get offline for a bit and shake everything off before things got bad. Hopefully I can get off just as quickly in the future when I recognize that I'm beginning to tilt.

I haven't really had a long session in a week or so. I've been getting tired earlier since I've been hitting up the gym in the morning. Hopefully I can grind a bit longer this weekend...but we'll see.

Anyway, I've noticed a HUGE, GLARING leak in my game. I definitely don't 3bet [light] enough...and I know I'm folding to 3bets way too often. Anybody know of any good guides on here? I've read this one: http://poker-strategy.flopturnriver....t-Strategy.php, but I definitely have to read it over and over to digest it. It's quite a dense article. Are there any other good ones? Any advice on 3betting? I'm sure this won't come into play much until 25NL or 50NL...but I want to work on it early so I can have it down by the time I reach those stakes.

Well, I'm outta here guys. I have to go check if my TiVo recorded another George Lopez. YES! I leave you with my biggest hand of the night:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.05 BB (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (CO) ($11.08)
Button ($8.42)
SB ($5.95)
BB ($16.22)
UTG ($2.03)
UTG+1 ($5)
MP1 ($2.22)
MP2 ($7.58)

Preflop: Hero is CO with A, 6
1 fold, UTG+1 bets $0.15, 2 folds, Hero calls $0.15, 2 folds, BB calls $0.10

Flop: ($0.47) 8, 7, Q (3 players)
BB checks, UTG+1 checks, Hero bets $0.25, BB calls $0.25, 1 fold

Turn: ($0.97) 10 (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $0.70, BB raises to $2.75, Hero calls $2.05

River: ($6.47) 6 (2 players)
BB bets $1.60, Hero raises to $7.93 (All-In), BB calls $6.33

Total pot: $22.33 | Rake: $1.10

Results in white below:
BB had 9, J (straight, Queen high).
Hero had A, 6 (flush, Ace high).
Outcome: Hero won $21.23

My advice, don't worry about 3betting light until at LEAST 10nl, and even then only against players you have a larger sample on that shows hes kinda looser and aggro. Don't even ATTEMPT that shit at 5nl lol. I was just starting to 3ball light at 25nl and I'm doing fine (ldo ) but yea, just focus on the fundamentals for now, worry about that stuff when the time comes. It wouldnt be a bad thing to LEARN how right now, but just dont APPLY it yet. You know what I mean? Like you're at a 5nl table, guy whos like 18/14 or something opens in the CO and ur in the SB with K6s, just be like, here would be a good spot to 3bet light, then fold. No need to force anything at these limits.

Good luck on grinding it back up, and nice work on getting off the tables before uber tllt set in!

I think dranger makes a good point about 3-betting.

Focus on 3-betting for value at 2nl-10nl, get used to playing 3-bet pots with good hands before you start adding in strange junk - trust me you can get yourself into really tricky spots 3-betting T9s or A9o, espeically if you don't know why you're doing it.

Sometimes this will mean 3-betting only QQ+, other times you may be 3-betting a hand such as KQo - for value - but it is all dependant on your opponents range, and how your opponent is likely to react to your 3-bet.

I started experimenting alot with 3-betting at 10nl, and it helped me get a better feel for it at 25nl. Understanding how to calculate expected value (EV) and working out problems mathematically away from the table will likely be a major factor in building the intuition needed at the table to quickly estimate whether 3-betting that blind stealer or nit is +EV.

As for leaving the tables when playing shitty and coming back when ready to go - that's probably one of the most underrated skills in poker, and I think it's something everyone (myself especially) needs to seriously work on.

Hi BooG,

I wanted to pick your brain for some HUD stat advice since I'm just getting started with Holdem manager.
At 2nl (remember....its 2nl) what HUD stats should I have on the screen?
Right now I have VPIP, PFR, Agg factor, fold to cbet%, cbet% and 3bet...
I dont see much point in 3bet b/c at 2nl that usually means AQ+, JJ-QQ+, but I have it anyway.

Is there anything else you'd recommend? Thanks!

It definately won't hurt your game to learn more about 3betting, particularly in BTN vs Blinds sort of situations. The thing is, you'll really have to have some good reads / very good smaple sizes to know who 3betting light against will be profitable. So whilst learning is always good, don't be tempted to read up on it, and constantly start 3betting Axs from the blinds at 5NL / 10NL. Micro2Macro makes a very solid point in terms of how you change your 3bet VALUE range vs different villains.

FWIW, I'm at 50NL and 3bet pots is possibly one of the areas I need to improve in most. So whilst it shouldn't do you any harm to read up on it and maybe start implementing it vs the right people, it definately isn't a necessity.

Hey buddy. I guess I'll post the answer in my blog so others wondering the same thing can see the answer with it.

I suggest steal stats as well. Everybody has their own preferences but I have overall steals. If you hover over that stat, a pop-up comes up breaking down the stats (steals from button, SB, CO, etc.). That's really the only other thing I can imagine having.

One thing that HEM has that is a huge help is the color-coding of the stats. You can color-code them whichever way you want. For example, villains with a VPIP < 15 or a PFR < 7 are in red. Red means I won't be getting much from them, nit, gay, and I basically expect them to play good hands. For VPIP > 28 and PFR > 17, I label them green. They are looser and will play weaker hands. They will be giving me the majority of my winnings. I am yet to color-code AF, but I'm sure you get the idea. I'm thinking a AF < 1.8 will be red while a AF > 3.9 will be green. I'm sure you get the general idea!

Yeah I love the color coding...
I think for now I changed the color for >30 VPIP and <7 PFR.
I find that at 2nl players either have <10 VPIP or they are >40 VPIP...

I'll have to look at the steal stats....There is so little done at 2nl it seems...
So this stat tells how often THEY steal or how often they FOLD to a steal?

To start off, allow me to answer Vinland's question. This stat actually tells you how much THEY steal...but hovering over the stat will present a pop-up that lets you know how often they FOLD to a steal. Hope that helps.

Anyway, onward with my progress. I'm still on a massive heater and am breezing through 5NL. I played a mini-session today (wanted to get one in before work). I won $23.91 in 358 hands (66.79 BB/100). Thank God...I don't really want to stay down here too long. I will be making my $600 deposit on April 30th. With that, I'll move back up to 10NL and ignore the rest of the bankroll.

Ragnar and I played together yesterday (he scolded me for sitting to his left LOL). We spoke about the whole starting tables thing. I personally like the idea of it...but when there aren't any fishy tables. Obviously I'll be sitting down at the fishy tables before starting my own tables. The great thing about starting tables is that most of those taking the seats AREN'T other regs. They're usually new players (according to my database) and they aren't very good. Usually, the first round of people that sit are fish. However, the sharks come with the quickness so rotating tables is usually what happens.

Anyway, I'll leave you with a hand I have a question about (do I keep the pot smaller?):

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.05 BB (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG ($3.53)
UTG+1 ($4.86)
MP1 ($6)
MP2 ($4.93)
MP3 ($9.08)
CO ($17.14)
Button ($4.93)
SB ($5)
Hero (BB) ($10)

Preflop: Hero is BB with A, A
1 fold, UTG+1 calls $0.05, MP1 calls $0.05, 2 folds, CO calls $0.05, 2 folds, Hero bets $0.25, UTG+1 calls $0.20, MP1 calls $0.20, 1 fold

Flop: ($0.82) 5, J, 9 (3 players)
Hero bets $0.40, UTG+1 calls $0.40, MP1 calls $0.40

Turn: ($2.02) Q (3 players)
Hero bets $1.45, UTG+1 calls $1.45, 1 fold

River: ($4.92) 5 (2 players)
Hero bets $2.76, UTG+1 calls $2.76 (All-In)

Total pot: $10.44 | Rake: $0.50

Only thing wrong with your hand is bet more on the flop. Bet closer to pot, say 60-70ish. Other than that, fine as played.

Proof that variance and bad beats run both ways (remember that boys!):

Gotta love one outers! Too bad Pokerstars doesn't have a BBJ.
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.05 BB (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($2.03)
BB ($9.55)
UTG ($6)
UTG+1 ($8.88)
Hero (MP1) ($10.42)
MP2 ($6.10)
CO ($1.80)
Button ($2.04)

Preflop: Hero is MP1 with 5, 5
2 folds, Hero calls $0.05, MP2 bets $0.20, 4 folds, Hero calls $0.15

Flop: ($0.47) J, 5, A (2 players)
Hero checks, MP2 checks

Turn: ($0.47) 8 (2 players)
Hero bets $0.35, MP2 calls $0.35

River: ($1.17) 5 (2 players)
Hero bets $1.50, MP2 raises to $5.55 (All-In), Hero calls $4.05

Total pot: $12.27 | Rake: $0.60

Results:
Hero had 5, 5 (four of a kind, fives).
MP2 had A, A (full house, Aces over fives).
Outcome: Hero won $11.67

Two hands later:
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.05 BB (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

CO ($5.81)
Hero (Button) ($10)
SB ($5.33)
BB ($2.66)
UTG ($2)
UTG+1 ($9.80)
MP1 ($3.74)
MP2 ($5.90)
MP3 ($7.50)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 5, 5
UTG calls $0.05, UTG+1 calls $0.05, 4 folds, Hero calls $0.05, SB bets $0.15, BB calls $0.10, UTG calls $0.10, UTG+1 calls $0.10, Hero calls $0.10

Flop: ($0.75) 5, 3, 6 (5 players)
SB bets $0.30, BB calls $0.30, 1 fold, UTG+1 calls $0.30, Hero raises to $1, 1 fold, BB calls $0.70, UTG+1 calls $0.70

Turn: ($4.05) 3 (3 players)
BB checks, UTG+1 checks, Hero bets $1.25, BB calls $1.25, 1 fold

River: ($6.55) 7 (2 players)
BB bets $0.26 (All-In), Hero calls $0.26

Total pot: $7.07 | Rake: $0.30

Results:
Hero had 5, 5 (full house, fives over threes).
BB had 4, 4 (straight, seven high).
Outcome: Hero won $6.77

I really just wanted to experiment with a 3bet here (villain had a wide range):
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.05 BB (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG ($4.62)
UTG+1 ($4.45)
MP1 ($2.50)
MP2 ($2.77)
CO ($2.79)
Button ($5.93)
Hero (SB) ($12.69)
BB ($9.16)

Preflop: Hero is SB with 10, 9
5 folds, Button bets $0.19, Hero raises to $0.80, 1 fold, Button raises to $1.41, Hero calls $0.61

Flop: ($2.87) 7, A, J (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

Turn: ($2.87) 8 (2 players)
Hero bets $1.50, Button raises to $3, Hero raises to $4.52, Button calls $1.52 (All-In)

River: ($11.91) Q (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $11.91 | Rake: $0.55

Results:
Button mucked A, A (three of a kind, Aces).
Hero had 10, 9 (straight, Queen high).
Outcome: Hero won $11.36

1 - open limping. . . . . wat?

2 - raise flop on more. think about likely ranges that are continuing to a raise on that board, and then think about the size the pot is BEFORE your raise, and how decent the odds you're giving them are.

3 - why are you 3betting so large pre? do you 3bet this big with your value range too? I guess people wont notice if you size value 3bets and bluff 3 bets differently at 5NL but if your value 3bets are to like 3x then it follows your bluffs should be too a lot of the time. one of the main reasons for this is that its cheaper for us.

nice hands though sir. ldo.

Originally Posted by sil693

1 - open limping. . . . . wat?

2 - raise flop on more. think about likely ranges that are continuing to a raise on that board, and then think about the size the pot is BEFORE your raise, and how decent the odds you're giving them are.

3 - why are you 3betting so large pre? do you 3bet this big with your value range too? I guess people wont notice if you size value 3bets and bluff 3 bets differently at 5NL but if your value 3bets are to like 3x then it follows your bluffs should be too a lot of the time. one of the main reasons for this is that its cheaper for us.

nice hands though sir. ldo.

1) Shit. I got caught open limping. I WILL open limp with small pocket pairs (and smaller suited connectors) when I can more than likely see a cheap flop. This is usually done with loose tables and very low PFRs. I understand that this habit must be cut in later stakes...but for now I occasionally setmine like this (again, depending on the table).

2) Admission: I'm not very good playing sets (especially against 2+ villains). I'm torn...I WANT to keep both of them in the pot...yet I don't want them sucking out. A little contradictory...I know. As I was posting this hand, I saw that I was giving them good odds to call...this is definitely something I will be looking to fix. Thanks sil.

3) I understand all 3bets (value and bluff) should be equal for deception purposes. However, I am still relatively new to the concept of 3bets. I learned that a 3bet from 3x to 4x is OK. For this particular pot, I leaned toward 4x to try to bluff him out. In the later stakes I will make sure to try to have a standard 3bet for both my value bets and my bluffs...but as you said, players at these stakes don't really take not of things like that.

The end of part 3 actually brings me to another point. I am now bet-sizing pre-flop according to position. Obviously hand strength is cut out as a factor for bet-sizing. However, players at 5NL do NOT take note of bet-sizing relative to hand strength. With this in mind, should I take advantage of this and bet according to hand strength at these stakes? Or should I simply keep up with this habit and not develop a bad one?

This is just getting sick. Another one-outer. And yes, more open limping (the table called for it, I swear!):
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.05 BB (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($5.67)
BB ($6.02)
UTG ($2.30)
UTG+1 ($5.05)
Hero (MP1) ($13.57)
MP2 ($9.98)
MP3 ($1.82)
CO ($8.28)
Button ($9.81)

Preflop: Hero is MP1 with 4, 4
2 folds, Hero calls $0.05, MP2 calls $0.05, MP3 calls $0.05, CO calls $0.05, 1 fold, SB calls $0.03, BB checks

Flop: ($0.30) 4, 5, K (6 players)
SB bets $0.15, 1 fold, Hero calls $0.15, 3 folds

Turn: ($0.60) 10 (2 players)
SB bets $0.30, Hero raises to $1.30, SB raises to $5.47 (All-In), Hero calls $4.17

River: ($11.54) 4 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $11.54 | Rake: $0.55

Results:
SB had 5, 5 (full house, fives over fours).
Hero had 4, 4 (four of a kind, fours).
Outcome: Hero won $10.99

So it seems that everybody on FTR (at least the player's I really keep up on) is running bad. Well, guys, if you're reading this...sorry. I'm running really well and getting pretty damn lucky with hands and such. All your confidence is probably shot and it may seem like things won't look up again...but they will. Just don't sit at the table if you're not going to be playing your BEST poker. There's no reason to sit at the table with anything less. You have to sit down at the table knowing you're going to OWN the table and all the other players will look to see what your next move will be.

Originally Posted by Mike Caro

In response to frustration-or sometimes simply for adventure-we tend to stray from the proven profitable strategy we know will win. We play worse than we are capable.
You can't afford to do that anymore! I know of hundreds of players who are good at reading opponents and who know the correct strategy. But they're not playing today. They're sulking. Sulking because they lacked the ability to play their best game all the time. Is 50% of the time enough? Of course not. How about 75% of the time? No, that won't get the money. In fact, even 99% of the time may not be enough. It depends, of course, on how big an advantage you have over your opponents and how much you throw away in bad decisions when you don't play your best game. So, by saying 99% isn't enough, I'm also telling you that you must play your best game all the time. Make yourself a promise right now: I will play my best game all the time.

Of Mike Caro's tiny (crappy really) book of "Fundamental Secrets of Winning Poker," that one excerpt stuck out in my mind the most. And I honestly believe it may pertain to everybody who is running bad right now. I understand that it didn't start out with you guys NOT playing your best poker (bad beats, bad spots, etc.)...but it sometimes ends up that way. The bad beats lead to shitty play due to frustration. Don't sit down at the table if you feel that way. Take three days off from poker and do something else you may enjoy. Come back to poker fresh and ready to OWN some shit. Make the other players fear the SHIT out of you. Make them feel uncomfortable being at the table with you. THAT is how you win...and you simply CANNOT due this when you are frustrated and sick of poker (you may not be sick of poker...but you know what I mean).

Anywho, yesterday and the day before led to bad sessions. One session I was OWNED by some guy that I was playing HU with at a table I was starting. He hit flops so hard it was amazing. Tonight, I made up for the losses of the last two nights. I won $36.50 in 557 hands (65.53 BB/100). The players at 5NL are simply horrific.

No-Limit Hold'em, $0.05 BB (7 handed) - Hold'em Manager Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP1 ($3.75)
MP2 ($2.04)
Hero (CO) ($10)
Button ($10.76)
SB ($1.29)
BB ($6)
UTG ($1.93)

Preflop: Hero is CO with J, 10
1 fold, MP1 calls $0.05, 1 fold, Hero bets $0.25, Button calls $0.25, 2 folds, MP1 calls $0.20

Flop: ($0.82) K, A, J (3 players)
MP1 bets $0.25, Hero calls $0.25, Button calls $0.25

Turn: ($1.57) 5 (3 players)
MP1 bets $0.50, Hero calls $0.50, Button calls $0.50

River: ($3.07) J (3 players)
MP1 bets $2.75 (All-In), Hero calls $2.75, Button raises $9.76 (All-In), Hero calls $6.25 (All-In)

Total pot: $23.82

Results:
Button had 8, A (two pair, Aces and Jacks).
MP1 didn't show
Hero had J, 10 (three of a kind, Jacks).
Outcome: Hero won $22.67

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.05 BB (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG+1 ($7.79)
Hero (MP1) ($10.30)
MP2 ($10.18)
CO ($3.57)
Button ($9.93)
SB ($9.95)
BB ($10)
UTG ($2.56)

Preflop: Hero is MP1 with A, Q
2 folds, Hero bets $0.20, MP2 raises to $0.60, 4 folds, Hero calls $0.40

Flop: ($1.27) 6, Q, Q (2 players)
Hero checks, MP2 bets $0.60, Hero calls $0.60

Turn: ($2.47) Q (2 players)
Hero bets $1.75, MP2 calls $1.75

River: ($5.97) 9 (2 players)
Hero bets $6, MP2 raises to $7.23 (All-In), Hero calls $1.23

Total pot: $20.43 | Rake: $1

Results:
Hero had A, Q (four of a kind, Queens).
MP2 had K, K (full house, Queens over Kings).
Outcome: Hero won $19.43

I've been trying to make my $600 deposit...but I forgot that I imposed a limit on my deposit limit (I did this after I tilted and fucked my bankroll). I went to change it last night...but it takes "1 business day" to change the deposit limit. It should have changed by now but it hasn't. Hopefully by tomorrow I can deposit for my bonus. That's really it for now. Guys (that are running bad), if you're reading this...know good things are coming soon. Bring a positive energy to the table and your skills will put everything into its place.

Caro's book is actually very underrated imo, probably because it isn't 'technical' like other books. Definately a good read though.

I recently opened this book again, and it's had an immediate impact on my game already.

What's your Stars SN btw? I'm newguy89..been playing around the $5nl full ring tables for the last couple days. Perhaps we ran into each other?

Good to see ur running well dude! Keep it up! I was running/playing (mostly playing after the first few BI's lost) bad until I moved down. Immediate upswong ensues at 10nl. One week later I'm back up to $680 from being down to $490 lol. <3 10nl.

Originally Posted by Micro2Macro

Caro's book is actually very underrated imo, probably because it isn't 'technical' like other books. Definately a good read though.

I recently opened this book again, and it's had an immediate impact on my game already.

What's your Stars SN btw? I'm newguy89..been playing around the $5nl full ring tables for the last couple days. Perhaps we ran into each other?

I agree...it's a good book. I'm not sure it's worth a buy though. Luckily I got it dirt cheap...but you can easily breeze through the book at a sitting in Barnes & Noble.

My PokerStars SN is BooG690. We haven't run into each other just yet. I knew your SN and kept an eye out to see if you were at any of my tables. No such "luck" (quotations because I wouldn't say it's luck to be at a table with you) yet...but I'm sure we'll bump heads sooner or later.

Another note on Caro's book...I enjoy his last chapter ("Final Winning Affirmation"). That chapter actually helps me through my tilt and has become a larger asset for me after my tilting of the roll. I suggest it be read again for those lacking confidence and on a brutal downswing. It helps with getting your mindset in the right place before playing poker.

Also, I found a video that describes poker very well. There are ups and downs...but it all comes back around. You have to take in the good energy and block the bad. Bring a winning attitude to the table and leave the scared money behind. Check it out to see what I'm talking about: The ultimate tilt mantra.

And then the way I feel when I get a bad beat and go on tilt: The cards should just go HOME!

Enjoy!

Jeez, I haven't updated this thing in a while. Nothing's really happened in my poker world in the past few days (besides tonight's session) besides my depositing $600 for the bonus. I will be completely ignoring these $600 and still focus on building my roll. I will remain in 5NL until I reach the $200 plateau.

Anyway, I had quite the session today. The heater remains on. This was a longer session. In 1145 hands I made $15.41 (13.46 BB/100). I am a BIT disappointed in myself however. I knew I was getting tired, but I played for a bit more. I was up $27 at one point...but wanted to stay on because I had position on a station with a wide range. Unfortunately, he never paid me off and I was making bad decisions at my other tables.



Schya and I played for a while at one of the tables. We never really got into it...though it would be fun to see a hand play out.

I've been working a bit more on my 3bets and it's been coming with great success. I figure now is an OK time to start since I am finishing up 5NL and (hopefully) going into 10NL soon.

There are no outstanding hands this session. I played reasonably good poker and hope to extend this momentum into tomorrow's session.

If you ever want a sweat (jeez, I seem to be offering this to a lot of ppl lol. Maybe i should start charging? ) at 10nl just give me a holler dude. Or if you wanna sweat me, and watch me play some tables, I'd be cool with that too.

Here's a suggestion the next time that whole having position on a massive fish think comes up: Just get off your other tables, and focus on that one. 1.) You admitted to be tired, so you won't be playing your best vs. other more "competent" villains. 2.) This will allow you to focus more on the fish, allowing you to value bet thinner/take away more pots.

Doing that is extremely profitable. It can be kinda dull doing 1 table of FR, but if you're tired, fuck it. Why burn money at other tables when you can pwn a donk at 1 and once he leaves you can instaleave yourself. Ez game sir.

Keep up the grind, and you'll be passing me up soon. Farking boot camp. *cries* (lol)

Nice run boog making 3 BI at our table haha, After you left caveman went busto making bad calls. and ppl decided to start giving me their monies. Good playing one day we will get into a decent hand together.

Caveman was the fish I was waiting to stack. Figures he'd give it all away after I leave. He wasn't getting too involved with me.

Well, I'm over the $200 mark and ready to move onto 10NL. Today's session went rather well except one hand that I just didn't know how to play. Looking back, I should have bet more on the flop. It makes me sick that I didn't. I was about to quit after this hand...but didn't. I have to learn to deal with the bad decisions I make and not to tilt after making them. I didn't tilt and I went on to win more money. Here's that shitty hand so you can all see how shitty I played it:

No-Limit Hold'em, $0.05 BB (7 handed) - Hold'em Manager Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG ($9.95)
MP1 ($5.05)
MP2 ($5)
CO ($10)
Button ($6.36)
Hero (SB) ($14.73)
BB ($1.93)

Preflop: Hero is SB with 9, 9
2 folds, MP2 (poster) checks, CO (poster) bets $0.35, 1 fold, Hero raises $1.18, 2 folds, CO (poster) calls $0.80

Flop: ($2.50) K, 10, 9 (2 players)
Hero bets $1.50, CO calls $1.50

Turn: ($5.50) Q (2 players)
Hero checks, CO checks

River: ($5.50) 7 (2 players)
Hero bets $4.50, 1 fold

Total pot: $5.50

I know...the flop bet should've been higher. There are WAY too many draws out there for me to be betting that little. It all goes back to my shitty playing of sets. I have to learn to play them better.

Anywho, off to 10NL I go. I'll probably start it up tonight and see how things go. Here's today's graph if anyone cares:



Dranger: As for the sweat, I honestly don't even know how to do those things. What would I need? If you can explain the whole thing or direct me to somewhere that explains it...I'd be down like Chinatown.

All you gotta do is get teamviewer from teamviewer.com (allows me to see ur screen and vice versa) and skype from skype.com (like a phone for computers, faster than typing stuff back and forth.)

After that, you can just fire up some tables while I watch you play. We can talk about pretty much anything (poker or nonpoker related, whatever). I can make suggestions to help your play, you can explain to me why you do certain things, etc. Its a chance for us to both to see how others play/think. We can also do a sesh where you watch me play and you can ask me questions about my play and all that jazz.

Nice work boog. Now i wont see you at my tables taking everyones money! Hopefully in a few weeks i'll make it up there.

You'll be up here owning fish soon enough Schya. Don't forget to post your biggest hands up!

As for my shot at 10NL...I'm simply bewildered. The tables aren't hard to find; there are still fish all around. There's only one annoying problem: they are all friggin' shortstacked. I'm not really experienced with shortstacks since there weren't many down in 2NL and 5NL. They are pesky as shit and I want to kill them all. They don't really play poker...they just go all-in whenever they feel it would be fun. So their all-in range is huge...but then some of these damn shortstacks will go all-in with aces & kings and throw off my whole approach toward them. I'm embarrassed to say this but shortstacks are responsible for a good amount of my losses here at 10NL. I also lost a shitload of money to a 93/26 that I shouldn't ever tell anyone...but I got all my money in good so fuck it. The bitch sucked out on me like it was her job. Oh well...I found her yesterday and stacked her twice. Hopefully I can find her tonight and stack her again and again.

The good thing about 10NL is that I have to focus and continue my learning process. 5NL was very easy (the second time around). However, 10NL plays a bit different. For instance, players do NOT simply play fit-or-fold anymore. The pot is not won by simply betting into it when you know they didn't hit the board. You have to play a little bit more to win the pot (keywords: little bit). Now, more than ever, you must pick your spots to cbet. You WILL get raised and floated more in 10NL so cbetting is not as profitable as in the lower stakes where the players do not play back at you.

As for shitty habits that I picked up at the lower stakes that I must say goodbye to...open-limping will no longer be tolerated. I have cut open-limping from my diet as limpers are finally punished. Unlike 2NL and 5NL where everybody loves to see a flop, pre-flop play is a little more prevalent here. As you may have read, I didn't have a problem open-limping with speculative hands at a table that rarely raises pre-flop. I made a whole bunch of monies by seeing cheap flops and stacking unexpecting bystanders. This is no more. My low pocket pairs, connectors, and suited one-gappers are now easily folded in EP and MP (MP depending on table).

However, through all this crap that I must adapt to, I have managed to only lose 1 BI. A lot of it is to bad play versus shortstacks. A good amount of it is to calling stations that simply will never fold...and hit their two pair against my overpair on the turn/river (it's happened more than one would think). I've been up and down 2 BI's both ways for about 3000 hands (which is absolutely nothing). I KNOW I can take these stakes down...but I won't be able to do so until I learn to only play the primos against shortstacks. This and not allowing the suckouts get to my head (I must remember: I WANT them to call all these ridiculous hands) will be the keys to my success.

And by the way...this IRC I hear about. Anybody want to explain more? I am getting the stuff together to be sweated (sweated?)...but am now interested in this IRC. Details!

IRC is basically an online chat room for FTRer's to go to to talk about damn near anything. Poker, whatever, pretty much anything goes. And spoonitnow is on there quite a bit, and holy hell can you learn a lot from him.

About the short stackers: Yea, they can be a pain, but a lot of my money from 10nl came from these guys. You just have to determine how wide a range the "hand-chart" monkeys are shoving and then call with +EV hands. One day at work I went through and figured out some hands that had good equity vs. 6% shoving range, 10% shoving range, 15% shoving range, etc. It really is quite amazing some of the hands that good equity compared to others. Like TJs >>> KQo in most situations vs these short stacks. I suggest you do something of the same. It will really open your eyes, and help you make more +EV plays vs these guys.

Also, table select more. Don't just click the table at the top of the list because its the "juiciest" because of its stats. I tend to look for tables with mostly 50bb+ stacks with maybe 1 or 2 20bb stacks. Otherwise it just gets stupid lol.

Once you get the stuff together to get sweated, hit me up, I'll do it up. GL man, pwn dem 10nl fish!

Table selection:

1. Sort by High Players per flop
2. Low Hands per Hour (lots of hands going to showdown)
3. High Average Pot (at least 10bbs)

In that order.

FWIW playing against short stacks is much higher variance and the most you can expect to take off them is 20bb - so expect not to really make much against them - as in if you played with a table full of them a good win rate would be 2ptbb/100 over the long run - and even then at a table full of them you would likely lose to the rake if they were tight enough.

I haven't forgotten about you guys. However, I don't think I will be updating my blog as often as I have before. I think this would be a good move for me not to become so results oriented. It's easier to win money when you don't know how your session is going. However, I will still be looking over each and every session I have.

Anyway, since my post on May 6th, I've been doing rather well. My answer to shortstacks? Try not to sit with them...and if I have to, don't play with them unless I have premium hands (depending on their range). This has worked rather well for me so far. Since my last post, I'm up $54 in 3499 (7.72 BB/100). I guess 10NL doesn't play too differently than 5NL. One thing I noticed, however, is the tightening of my range. I didn't mean to...I guess it just came about. I enjoy playing a wide range and it's been working for me in 2NL and 5NL...but I guess if my tight range ain't broke in 10NL, I won't fix it.

I expanded my maximum tables at one time to six tables. It actually isn't that hard. The only thing that sucks is that my teeny tiny monitor makes it difficult to maneuver my mouse around the HUD. I still generally play four tables...but I will play six if there are six juicy tables going on. I think this may account for my tightening up...but who knows?

I'll keep you guys updated on any other going-ons in my poker world. There were no real outstanding hands this session. Later!

Your OP is long and I'm at work so I haven't had a time to read it all. However, I did read the post by Carroters LMAO. The funny thing is that the opposite happened to me. I took MORE interest in your posts and subconsciously liked you MORE cause you had Kramer as your avatar haha. Anyway, that was so 2 months ago...

Good job on Getting up to where you're at from $50. I started at $50 too and I'm not anywhere near there yet.

Nice bounce back dude! I remember you spewing your BR down to 2nl-5nl range not too long ago, and you're already back up to 10nl. Nice work man. 10nl is so lol ez game I love it. I almost wish I could stay there instead of moving up to 25nl (although I love 25nl too ).

Can't wait to see you pwning 10nl hard and looking forward to seeing that you surpassed me in BR and skill after boot camp!

Thanks buddy. It's been three weeks since my tilting away of the roll. The funny thing is that I don't really regret or wish the whole thing never happened. I learned from the experience and now know exactly what tilt feels like and why it must be kept at bay.

Pretty cool that I'm further along than I was only three weeks later. My bankroll bounced back faster than I thought it would. Again, 2NL and 5NL is super duper easy the second time around. Anyway, time to get to grinding. Later!

Bankroll plus-$300.

I had a pretty good session last night. $25.35 in 607 hands for a 20.88 BB/100. NICE. This was the last session to be played before beginning studies for my final. Self-exclusion for a week ftw.

I actually wanted to hit SilverStar this month...but the week off obviously doesn't help. The solution? Grind out many $1 DoN's at the end of the month to catch up and make that SilverStar. Why do I give a shit about making SilverStar so much? Well, I want the $8 and $16 bonuses PokerStars is offering for May and June. I will be getting them damnit! Well, that's all for now. See you all next week.

Congrats Boo. Looks like I have some work to do if I want to continue sitting at all your tables as you will be at 25NL by the end of the month it seems.

Originally Posted by BooG690

Bankroll plus-$300.

I had a pretty good session last night. $25.35 in 607 hands for a 20.88 BB/100. NICE. This was the last session to be played before beginning studies for my final. Self-exclusion for a week ftw.

I actually wanted to hit SilverStar this month...but the week off obviously doesn't help. The solution? Grind out many $1 DoN's at the end of the month to catch up and make that SilverStar. Why do I give a shit about making SilverStar so much? Well, I want the $8 and $16 bonuses PokerStars is offering for May and June. I will be getting them damnit! Well, that's all for now. See you all next week.

So did your mother and I. Coincidence?

Jk, nice work dude keep it up. MAKE DEM MONIES

Originally Posted by BooG690

Bankroll plus-$300.

I had a pretty good session last night. $25.35 in 607 hands for a 20.88 BB/100. NICE. This was the last session to be played before beginning studies for my final. Self-exclusion for a week ftw.

I actually wanted to hit SilverStar this month...but the week off obviously doesn't help. The solution? Grind out many $1 DoN's at the end of the month to catch up and make that SilverStar. Why do I give a shit about making SilverStar so much? Well, I want the $8 and $16 bonuses PokerStars is offering for May and June. I will be getting them damnit! Well, that's all for now. See you all next week.

HAHA YESSSS DONS FTW

I'm going to be grinding the 5's and 10's I believe if I find myself running short on goldstar

I haven't posted in quite the long time. I was "studying" for my final all of last week. After that, I went to Atlantic City to play some poker.

I went to the Borgata on Tuesday and had a great time. I played for about 10 hours and ended about +$400. It was all really a game of patience and seeing cheap flops. The players do not play back at all and play their cards very straight-forward. I will probably be returning to Atlantic City this coming week.

As for my return to online poker, twas mixed. I had a pretty good session last night (while collected some VPPs playing the $1 DoNs). However, this morning didn't go as well. I ended down two BI's (which isn't really the bad part). To be totally honest, I played like shit. I was getting 3bet like crazy which led to the realization that I suck balls playing against 3bets. Additionally, the shortstacks were running rampant this afternoon (Eastern Time). I simply cannot play against these shortstacks and there were barely any tables with more than two deep stacks.

I chose to get out of the house and do some studying. I found a pretty good article on 3bets: http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/78...3-bets-483541/. The problem this morning was that I was playing OOP against these 3bets. It seemed to be happening constantly and the results were overwhelmingly negative.

I am now adding playing against 3bets as something else I need to work on. Obviously, I need to work on my poker as a whole (since I still suck) but I think it is a good idea to focus on blatant leaks.

I am also working on playing sets and maximizing their value. I have to stop being scared of betting villain off their hand.

The 10NL has shown me (and will continue to show me) leaks that I would not have found in 2NL, 5NL, or live poker. Not to beat a dead horse, but this is the reason that working up the levels is the best bet (and not simply depositing $1000 to go straight to 25NL).

Originally Posted by BooG690

I haven't posted in quite the long time. I was "studying" for my final all of last week. After that, I went to Atlantic City to play some poker.

I went to the Borgata on Tuesday and had a great time. I played for about 10 hours and ended about +$400. It was all really a game of patience and seeing cheap flops. The players do not play back at all and play their cards very straight-forward. I will probably be returning to Atlantic City this coming week.

As for my return to online poker, twas mixed. I had a pretty good session last night (while collected some VPPs playing the $1 DoNs). However, this morning didn't go as well. I ended down two BI's (which isn't really the bad part). To be totally honest, I played like shit. I was getting 3bet like crazy which led to the realization that I suck balls playing against 3bets. Additionally, the shortstacks were running rampant this afternoon (Eastern Time). I simply cannot play against these shortstacks and there were barely any tables with more than two deep stacks.

I chose to get out of the house and do some studying. I found a pretty good article on 3bets: http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/78...3-bets-483541/. The problem this morning was that I was playing OOP against these 3bets. It seemed to be happening constantly and the results were overwhelmingly negative.

I am now adding playing against 3bets as something else I need to work on. Obviously, I need to work on my poker as a whole (since I still suck) but I think it is a good idea to focus on blatant leaks.

I am also working on playing sets and maximizing their value. I have to stop being scared of betting villain off their hand.

The 10NL has shown me (and will continue to show me) leaks that I would not have found in 2NL, 5NL, or live poker. Not to beat a dead horse, but this is the reason that working up the levels is the best bet (and not simply depositing $1000 to go straight to 25NL).

Bold 1- This is the key to making your game suck less and less. You can't magically fix ALL your leaks overnight. It takes hard work and study to fix it up, leak by leak. If you look back through your old HH's from where you first started out, I guarantee you will get a chuckle out of some of the things you used to do. I wish I could play myself HU from when I first started out lol, just to see how much I could whoop my own ass.

Bold 2- I wish more people would realize this when they first start out. (Actually, I'm glad they DON'T, since those people are the feesh that pad our BRs lol.) This is so important. If I had just deposited $300 and went to 10nl, I would have gotten eaten alive, but by making my way from 2nl, to 5nl, then to 10nl, it was quite easy. I can sit down at pretty much any 10nl table, and be confident I can be a consistent winner vs the fish there. Now I'm just trying to adjust to the "better" play at 25nl.

Dude, you're doing great. It's really great to have these blogs on FTR so that others can watch as a new player develops into a finely tuned fish stomping machine lol. It's really astounding to see how far me, you and m2m have come in such a short period of time, and I'm eager to see where we are this time next year. We all have high expectations, and I don't see any reason why we shouldn't get there in the near future.

I look forward to hitting you up after Boot to see how you've been. Its been a pleasure reading your blog and getting to know you over the past few months, and I wish you continued success while I'm gone. Just know this, I plan on coming back with a crazy hunger for poker after boot camp and will probably grind 50k hands that first month I'm back lol. So I suggest you get your ass on the tables and get your BR up to $2k before I get back.

Have a good summer man, if I don't see you IRC before I go. Tear up that 10nl, its ez game once you get used to it. When I get back you can teach me how to rape 25nl.

Later man.

I figure I'd update my blog so I don't have to go searching on page 2 for it. Tonight held another good session and my bankroll is now over $400. I am getting closer and closer to 25NL...but I am no rush to get there. I will NOT be taking a shot the second I reach $500. I may actually be waiting until I reach about $600 (even though the first post and my banner says $700) to take my shot at 25NL...but I will cross that bridge when I get to it.

I'm playing my sets 100x better now that I'm not so scared to push villain off his hand. My sets are all being played as if villain had aces...and it is paying off very well. Stacks, you probably don't remember it, but your "bet/bet/bet" is in my head when I hit my set.

As for my live play, I found out that the Harrah's casinos in AC are ALSO throwing me free rooms. So that is two casinos that want me to play in their poker room. That basically means that starting June, I will probably be staying in Atlantic City for two nights (three days) instead of my usual one nighter at the Borgata. I will be sleeping one night at the Borgata and the other night at whichever Harrah's casino. If anyone from the northeast is looking to take a trip to AC, let me know. I wouldn't mind going with a fellow grinder.

I be gone. LATER.

How'd your exams go? And how was that BBQ you burned last time I talked to you lol. Anyways, I've been taking poker lightly for the past week, but I'm gonna get serious real soon. We should do another sweat session soon.

Btw, that's sweet that you get free rooms. How'd you hook that up? You just stay at the tables for a long time and win some money and people come up to you asking if you wanna stay at the hotel for free?

My exam went pretty badly. I just checked my grade actually...and not so good.

And the rooms are simply put on my Player's Card. You present your card at the table and I guess if you play long enough, they'll offer a room on that card.

As for the sweat session, I'm ready when you are my friend.

Oh they have those cards in Vegas as well right? I'm going there again for work in August and I think I'm gonna play the lowest stakes there as much as I can.

You free tomorrow? Maybe we can get your sweat and lock's sweat done tomorrow. I think he's free after 4 PM EST. I'm free all day.

Nicely done Boo. You are miles ahead of me now since I WD everything and am starting it all over from 2NL again.

Xpaand.... after 7pm ET.

Oh right. I calculated the other way around haha. 4 PM PST.

I had quite an interesting few days playing poker. However, most of it was live. I DID win 3.5 BIs online today...and that's really it for my online play.

Two days ago, I went to a poker club around my way. I played quite well...but there were barely any players for me to pawn off and I actually got sucked out on. Down $100.

Yesterday, I went to Atlantic City with a couple of friends. It wasn't really a poker trip (though I kind of wish it was). We hung out at the pool at Harrah's. I sat down at the tables a bit. The play was awful...but again I lost. It was one hand I lost on really:

AJo on the button. I raise to $15 (standard). SB and CO call. Flop comes Jxx. I bet $35 into the $45 (taking big blind and limpers out for a simpler story) pot. Call-call.

Turn comes, x. I bet $80 into the $115...call-call.

River comes, K. SB bets $100. CO calls and I fold. SB shows KJ. I'm disgusted. I keep my mouth shut though...until SB says, "I put you on ace-jack." That's when I ask, in a louder than usual voice, "How do you call my bets then?" He then tells me, "the pot was big...you didn't bet enough to get me off the hand." I was going to open my mouth to tell him just how wrong he was...but I simply rolled my eyes and said, "You're an idiot." I think I got more satisfaction out of that.

We then left Harrah's and went to the Borgata. We proceeded to get drunk at the Bar...it was a pretty good time. I was hit on by an Indian hooker (I have a thing for Indian girls). I was actually going to pay for the hooker...but figured playing 3-card poker and blackjack would be a better idea. Long story short...I should've gotten the hooker.

Anywho, I came back home and fired up some online poker. As I said before, up 3.5 BI's. Will probably fire up another session tonight after eating.

And that's my story.

So I've been too lazy to write in here and not much has been happening for me poker-wise anyway. I was unable to play live this week due to my need to withdraw from my bankroll. I should be able to play next week though.

As for online poker, I'm still in a rough patch. I refuse to call it a "downswing" since that implies only bad beats and suckouts. Fuck that, I've played like shit. I re-evaluated my positional stats and my call 3bet% is disgustingly high. Basically, REALLY high. It made me pretty sick to see that I'm such a fish in that aspect. This is a major leak I will be focusing on trying to patch up.

Also, I signed up for sweat session on 2+2. I got paired up with a random partner...which I think may be interesting. Hopefully he's a decent player with some insight (I'll be picking at his brain if I get the chance to chat with him).

If anyone on here wants to get a sweat session going, it'd be cool. Xpaand, lockpull, that means you! I'm PMing the both of you to see when we can get it going. That's all for now. Later!

Edit: Oh, and I ordered Mike Matusow's autobiography. Not very important since it's not a theory book...but I'm a fan of his and I figure that has SOMETHING to do with my poker going-ons...so I included that little tidbit here.

Last night's session probably calls for another update. No, not because I did well (which I did). However, it was my longest session to date. I recorded a 424 minute session last night (that's 7 hours and five minutes for you people that are horrible at math). I had to take a small ten-minute break in between to eat since I play rather badly when I'm hungry (which is a small thing I should work on). I am pretty proud of myself about the session as it tells me I can grind out long sessions online (as well as live...where I can probably grind out 14-15 hours).

I sustained a winrate of 13.70 BB/100 over 1958 hands last night. However, I shouldn't have won as much as I won (going to be honest here). I just ran into idiot after idiot after idiot. I had a 3way all-in with KK: KK>A7>A4. This was standard for last night...but I guess you can't discount the winnings against the fishies, right?

Additionally, I was sitting at a table that 2+2 must have started. I had no idea I was at a 2+2 table until they all started chatting poker. At that time, it was clear that it was a 2+2 table. They were obviously players with higher bankrolls throwing chips around. I was a big beneficiary of these chips. I was up $35 at one point and was sitting at the table with a $45 stack. There were three other large stacks (a $64 stack, a $57 stack, and another $45 stack). I really, really, really wanted to stay...but it was 5am and I know I shouldn't be at a table with a 450bb effective stack. I reluctantly left...but glad I did at the same time.

I was supposed to have a sweat session today with a 2+2er at 10am...but after my long grind, I just couldn't seem to wake up. Oh well...I'll just lie and tell him my internet was down (and I will be caught if he, somehow, finds this OP and reads it).

On a lighter note, Micro2Macro is the greatest 2NL player of all-time. Actually, he's disgustingly lucky (at 2NL...he is, of course, a good player). We agreed to flip for $5 at a 2NL table...of course he pulled aces. We flipped twice afterwards...and he beat me both times. I think I'm down about $35 in 2NL IRC games. And I'm pretty sure all that $35 is to Micro2Macro. Fucking guy.

I love 2nl lol. Now if only I could run that good at a higher stake....

By the way I hear ya on taking food breaks. Sometimes I find I stay at the tables too long whether its because they're just too good or I'm running hot etc. I tend to forget that I'm really passing up on some EV by not being properly fueled. I play pretty bad when I'm hungry too - I don't really want to know how much money I would have otherwise.

Damn. My OP was all the way at the bottom of page 1. I'm really, really slackin'.

I went to Atlantic City on Tuesday and Wednesday. I, of course, played poker. The players are really bad...but this trip reminded of the importance of a bankroll. I lost pretty shitty hands but I played well all-around. These things happen. At least the pool party at Harrah's was sick.

As for online poker, things are still on the up and up. I've chosen to go to 25NL (which completes half of my OP) and had my first session today. I limited myself to four tables until I get used to the bet-sizing and accumulate more hands on new villains. The session went well...+2 BIs. It's funny...those 2 buy-ins are equal to 5 buy-ins just yesterday. A little something for me to get used to. 25NL is gravy too being that I'm getting a lot more FPPs/VPPs. It really isn't much different than 10NL. In fact, I feel the villains are actually a bit looser. However, I only played one session and I shouldn't say things like that just yet.

If any of you guys have any advice for 25NL (as in what I should look for) or if you can tell me some of the differences between 10NL and 25NL, that'd be great. Or maybe you want to wish me luck? Who knows? Either way, happy grinding. LATER.

Advice:

Don't get fancy. Straightforward, solid play beats 25nl.

(and of course you can 3bet the regs lightly once and awhile )

So I've been half-assing my posts here on the OP. Nothing much of significance has been happening in my game. But, recently, I moved to 25NL (as most of you probably [didn't] read). I thought nothing of the move...just another stake up I figured. However, it is the biggest transition I've ever made (granted, I've only made two prior transitions). The players here actually...kind of...think. KIND OF. And I love it. I love learning more pokers.

I've only played three sessions in 25NL so I will not be making any generalizations. I still have to get used to the stack and pot sizes. I see $25 and get all excited. I see $40 pots and get all excited. I am sitting at a table with $55 and get all nervous/excited. What I'm trying to say is I have to get rid of my hard-on for the amount of money at the table and realize that it's the SAME amount of big blinds as before.

With my hard-on for these "bigger" stacks comes nerves. I WILL NOT open six tables (yet). Six tables at 10NL represented a little bit above 10% of my bankroll. Six tables at 25NL represents over 20% of my bankroll. Mentally, I cannot put that much up at one time. I will only play four tables until I reach a bankroll of $800+. Of course, this is subject to change.

With bigger stakes comes bigger sessions. What I mean by that is...I am winning (or losing) more money per session. However, again, I MUST get used to the fact that it is the SAME as 10NL in terms of buy-ins. In today's session, I was up 2.5 buy-ins. This is $62.50. Of course, I thought "omg omg...a lot of money." But seriously, 2.5 buy-ins is standard (you know what I mean). There's nothing too special about it. I am just still in 10NL mode where this would be 6.25 buy-ins. 6.25 buy-ins is a great session (imo). But...I'M NOT IN 10NL. Again, I must stop thinking in terms of money.

I believe this distortion of money comes with the transition into 25NL (in relation to the other transition in stakes I've had). From 2NL to 5NL, I was used to sitting at the table with $5 (as I bought in for as much as possible). From 5NL to 10NL, I was used to sitting at a table with $10. Additionally, the stakes only doubled. However, from 10NL to 25NL, the stakes went up by 2.5x and I was only sitting at a table with up to $10. If I doubled up at 10NL, I would be sitting there with $20 (still not $25 ldo). When I double up in 25NL, I'm sitting there with $50. This is a lot more than I'm used to.

Has anyone else felt the same way when going into 25NL? I'm not complaining or saying it is hurting my game in any way. I'm not playing scared really. I'm simply saying it's a bit of a shock that I must adapt to.

I figure now would be a good time to design a bit of a game plan of when to move up to 50NL. Unlike my last game plan, it will not be based on reaching a certain bankroll. That may be a good idea when planning to move out of the 10NL and below (since, I think, you want to get the hell out of there ASAP), but at 25NL, you want to be sure you're BEATING the game. You want to be sure that you can handle medium stakes. You want to be ready to take on 50NL (where players probably are thinking even MORE!).

I hope to play 40-50K hands at 25NL (does anyone suggest I play more?). Hopefully, by that time I will be rolled for 50NL. I will be withdrawing periodically from my bankroll. This will be my way of yanking the chain and NOT letting myself take an early stab at 50NL (it also works as a reward system). A lot of you will say that I don't have self-discipline. I disagree. I do have self-discipline...but for one reason or another, this is my way of ensuring I don't go to 50NL prematurely.

I will not be withdrawing much from my roll at 25NL. The plan is to withdraw $250 at every $500 benchmark. Therefore, I will withdraw at $1250, $1500, and $1750. How is that every $500 benchmark? Well, when I withdraw $250 from my $1250 roll, it will leave me with $1000. I must then get to $1500 to withdraw once again...leaving me with $1250 and so on. This is, obviously, also subject to change. Most of you may say that I shouldn't withdraw at 25NL...but back in my real life, I have an inconsistent job and credit card bills that need to be stopped (it kills me to owe a bank money knowing those sons of bitches are charging me interest [interest = -EV]). I did not come up with this idea by myself...I actually saw an idea like this one in this thread: HERE.

As for live poker, I do not have the bankroll for it. Credit card bills are mounting up and it is irresponsible of me to take cheap shots at live poker with a tiny bankroll.

That is all for now boys and girls. I apologize for the shitty posts as of late...but hopefully this was a good one.

Bankroll: $660

Nice post, and good luck.

Moving up to the quarter seems to be the biggest leap for alot of micro guys, but once you get used to it it's all good. Just play your game.

OPERATION COMPLETED! It's actually been complete for quite a bit...but I figured I'd let everybody know at my monthly update.

Well, this month was a small turning point in my poker career. This month, I finally made it out of the microstakes. I made over $500 and shot my bankroll to over $1000.


Here's my graph:


Side Accomplishments
Reached Silver Star
Achieved my $120 Reload Bonus
Got my $8 and $16 July Special Bonus
Overall: +$653.41 for the month

Goals for July
25K+ hands
Gold Star
More studying!
More experience in MTTs

Fun Facts
I suck balls at 2NL. If I weren't to count 2NL, my winrate this month would have been 8.43 BB/100. Counting 2NL, I am 4.99 BB/100. Special thanks to micro2macro and Stax for this!

Special Thanks
Thanks to m2m for leading the way and paving out clear steps for me to follow.

Thank you Stax. Little do you know this, but you helped my game the most. I read your comments and discussions on others' hands. This helps immensely. Also, your idea of poker that you share in the IRC is great. Thanks for all this.

Thanks Spoonitnow. Your quizzes are great. As much as I don't take part, I do learn a bit. I appreciate your taking the time out to help us noobs.

And a special shout out to Dranger. Even if he isn't playing poker with us right now, he will be soon. He's back in October. I promised him I'd surpass his bankroll...and I plan to do just that!

And now I'm not exactly sure if I will be creating a new thread or simply continuing this one. I'm leaning towards continuing this one thread to chronicle my whole poker career. We'll see though. As of now, I will probably complete 25NL in this one thread and make my decision if/when I reach 50NL.

Congrats on all the accomlishments man. Won't be long before you're playin double quarter

nice work on the $1k, the first is the hardest - cliched but true.

Originally Posted by BooG690

Has anyone else felt the same way when going into 25NL?

I felt the same moving to 25nl, to 50nl, and to 100nl. Oddly, not 200nl, guess i just played too many hands deep at 100nl for it to feel like loads of money. It goes away fairly quickly.

Originally Posted by BooG690

You want to be ready to take on 50NL (where players probably are thinking even MORE!).

on FT, 25nl and 50nl play similarly, the move from 50nl to 100nl is the biggest cos there aren't many pros at 50nl and a whole bunch at 100nl+.

Originally Posted by BooG690

I hope to play 40-50K hands at 25NL (does anyone suggest I play more?).

i suggest playing enough to build your roll to 50nl ($1500? $1800? your decision here). Once you've built the roll by beating 25nl then you should move up. This could be as few as 20k hands as 5ptBB/100 would be $500. Play minimum of 20k hands, move up when the roll feels right, and if the roll feels right then you must have been beating 25nl ok...

Originally Posted by BooG690

Hopefully, by that time I will be rolled for 50NL. I will be withdrawing periodically from my bankroll. This will be my way of yanking the chain and NOT letting myself take an early stab at 50NL (it also works as a reward system).

I will not be withdrawing much from my roll at 25NL. The plan is to withdraw $250 at every $500 benchmark. Therefore, I will withdraw at $1250, $1500, and $1750.

Most of you may say that I shouldn't withdraw at 25NL...but back in my real life, I have an inconsistent job and credit card bills that need to be stopped

i like your plan cos i dislike the idea of credit card debt. Enjoy the feeling of your hobby paying some bills!

I've never really been affected by the money in its own right when moving up, but I have trouble with the amount per buyin. For instance, when I moved to 100nl, if I got down $25 then its not losing $25 that affected me, but more that $25 was 1/2 a buyin at 50nl. Adjusting to thinking of $25 as only 1/4 of a buyin took a few days. I dunno, weird when you type it out, but there you are.

Congrats on $1k!! Its an awesome achievment for anyone who starts out at the micros!!

congratulations Boog . I know what you mean about the jump up to 25NL . Its something that is daunting to me for when I get the roll up to be able to take my shot . At 5NL i'd played a lot of deep stack 10$ poker having doubled up against people buying in full. At 10 NL the $ amounts I was used to , it was just adjusting to larger bet sizing and standard of play. What I havent really experienced at all is playing with 25$+ on a table against 2 or 3 other 25$+ stacks.

Nice job and good luck on the move up. I'm @ $25NL but I thought it was still considered micros. Maybe it's just semantics, but it seems like I've heard $25NL and less referred to as micros, $50NL to $200NL small stakes, $400NL to $1000NL mid stakes, and anything higher than $1000NL high stakes. Or maybe $1000NL is the start of high stakes.

As far as the money goes, I haven't really been withdrawing to this point, so that helps my psychological game because I just treat everything like chips. I've been basing my moves on money won at the previous stake, not hands played. I figure if you can win 30 buy-ins or more to move up, you're doing something right. But, either way, have 30 buy-ins at a minimum when you move up and then imagine you lost 10 buy-ins @ $50NL and had to drop down to $25NL. What would you like your bankroll to be when you moved down? No matter what, moving down sucks - it'll be $500 either way, but you can plan ahead to try to make it as painless and comfortable as you can.

Good luck.

Congrats BooGalooga. Good luck with yo billz and w/e withdrawing is fine if you have a plan and shit. Just means you have to work twice as hard to get the same result!

Originally Posted by Jason

Nice job and good luck on the move up. I'm @ $25NL but I thought it was still considered micros. Maybe it's just semantics, but it seems like I've heard $25NL and less referred to as micros, $50NL to $200NL small stakes, $400NL to $1000NL mid stakes, and anything higher than $1000NL high stakes. Or maybe $1000NL is the start of high stakes.

I'm not even exactly sure why I wrote that. I was a bit tipsy last night and chose to write it up quickly before going out again. Yes, 25NL is still microstakes. I was too lazy to change it and all. Thank you though!

congrats op

I was randomly here and I do this exactly too, losing $200 at 2/4 feels like a buy in

Originally Posted by bjsaust

I've never really been affected by the money in its own right when moving up, but I have trouble with the amount per buyin. For instance, when I moved to 100nl, if I got down $25 then its not losing $25 that affected me, but more that $25 was 1/2 a buyin at 50nl. Adjusting to thinking of $25 as only 1/4 of a buyin took a few days. I dunno, weird when you type it out, but there you are.

nice job, boog! like everyone said, the first 1k is always the hardest (but it's also the sweetest)

GJ Boog.

Somebody else passes me on the road to poker success

I will not put more pressure on myself
I will not put more pressure on myself
...

Good Show...
Looks like you will do well in the months ahead.

I've decided not to create a new thread. I think it would be a good idea to chronicle my entire voyage down the poker road in one thread. This way, when newer players see it, they see that things can happen from a mere $50 deposit.

Anywho, I chose to name the thread after my learning poker. 2NL-10NL taught me close to nothing. Alright, maybe it taught me a bit, but 25NL is different. The regs actually have half a brain and there isn't much shoving with air. It's either I actually learn to play well...or suffer the consequences.

I've been on a shitty run. This shitty run tilts me. My value bets aren't getting called and my bluffs are getting called all the time. My kickers are getting outkicked and my two pairs are getting counterfeited. Villains that open every hand hit the flop in the face when I choose to play sheriff. Pokerstars is obviously against me by giving me this shit run, right?

That's simply bullshit. I simply have to learn the game. I have nobody to blame but myself. The guy who is stealing blinds 74% of the time IS going to have a hand at times. No, he's NOT just trying to bluff me off my TPTK (that I should be folding). He ACTUALLY has a hand.

And this is one of the biggest effects tilt has on one's game. You begin to create stories that make no sense. You see villain's shoves as bluffs...when your sane poker-playing self would read this as him trying to get it in. You refuse to believe that villain has a hand better than you again...he HAS to be bluffing! When you find yourself saying, "Holy shit...he has a hand AGAIN!?!?!?," you're most likely tilting. Get the fuck off the computer. Close all your tables. They'll still be there tomorrow...I promise.

Where is this rant coming from? I tilted away four buy-ins. It was very avoidable. I created retarded stories in my head and didn't believe what villain was CLEARLY telling me ("I HAVE THE BEST HAND AND I WANT YOUR STACK!"). I like to somehow tweak the story so villain is somehow bluffing. I should have closed my tables earlier. I've chosen to use the 24-hour self-exclusion PokerStars conveniently provides. Don't be too proud to use it...it's there for reasons just like this. We all need a cooling-off period.

We all tilt. We are not entitled to hit our 15-out draws every time. We are not entitled to win our made hands as a 95% favorite. PokerStars is not tweaking the deck to screw us (do you see how this is a self-centered idea?). We create this tilt in our heads. For some odd reason, we feel we must tell everybody how we got two-outered on the river. And the more we make a spectacle of it, the bigger we play it up and the longer it sticks around. The idea is to tilt as little as possible and stay away from the tables when you are in this mental state.

Originally Posted by Mike Caro

Among similarly skilled opponents, the player with the most discipline is the favorite.

Avoid tilt and WIN!

P.S. This thread is ridiculous. I mean really? You're still using the "OMG Jokerstars is rigged" excuse? WEAK!

P.P.S. And now my tilt has been addressed. I wrote about it and must now eradicate it. Spoonitnow explained it to me once in IRC: "You know what amplifies tilt? Talking about it." And he's right. Address your tilt...but don't let it sink you. Shit hands happen. You're going to get a bad run of cards and hit the top of villain's range every once in a while. Sometimes this happens many consecutive times. Don't let it control you. Understand it's there, do what you need to do to cool off, and learn from it. Plug the glaring leak that the tilt may have shown you. Just don't let it take control.

Writing is how I address my tilt and cool off. My tilt is now here for all to see...and it will be gone now that it's off my chest.

I gotta re-read Caro's book again.

True classic.

Originally Posted by BooG690

I've decided not to create a new thread. I think it would be a good idea to chronicle my entire voyage down the poker road in one thread. This way, when newer players see it, they see that things can happen from a mere $50 deposit.

cool idea. One day I'll read through my 4 op threads, start to finish. I link the old ones in the first post of every new one, for some of the same reasons as you described.

Originally Posted by BooG690

Anywho, I chose to name the thread after my learning poker. 2NL-10NL taught me close to nothing. Alright, maybe it taught me a bit, but 25NL is different.

it's incremental. Every small piece in the puzzle etc. I bet you now know a load more than before. Remember a poker truism - 'a fish is relative', 25nl is very beatable..

Originally Posted by BooG690

My value bets aren't getting called and my bluffs are getting called all the time.

ok, maybe post some of your bluff hands for critique. Chances are they are not good places to bluff. Bluffing less probably makes more sense for a while if you're not sensing the right places to do it.

Originally Posted by BooG690

My kickers are getting outkicked and my two pairs are getting counterfeited.

hard to see how this happens when your value bets aren't being called in the first place

Originally Posted by BooG690

No, he's NOT just trying to bluff me off my TPTK (that I should be folding). He ACTUALLY has a hand.

people bluff less than you think... as you know:

Originally Posted by BooG690

You begin to create stories that make no sense. You see villain's shoves as bluffs...when your sane poker-playing self would read this as him trying to get it in. You refuse to believe that villain has a hand better than you again...he HAS to be bluffing!

now come back calm and collected and playing your a-game and pillage 25nl

So, as I posted already, I've been spewing money. I'm not losing this money, it was simply being spewed due to my own bad play.

I took a short break from poker (two days) and came back with renewed focus. Sex does wonders to help you regain focus (seriously). I chose to come back to only four tables at a time. I am playing more patiently and using my time wisely (PokerStars gives us a time bank for a reason!).

What am I taking the time to do? I am asking myself the necessary questions before actually taking action. Some of these questions include (but are not limited to):

Pre-Flop Raise
- Why am I raising here?
- Am I looking to be called or would I like to win the pot right here?
- What are villains' most likely action here? Is this what I want?
- Am I looking to isolate anyone in particular?
- What is my plan for the flop if villain calls?

Calling With a Speculative Hand
- If with a pocket pair, how will I play this hand if I don't hit my set? Is this profitable?
- If with a [suited] connecting hand, how will I play this hand if I hit a pair (obviously this question is board-specific but it helps to have a plan!)?

Please note that we are ALWAYS asking these questions against villain's range. We do NOT ask these questions in a vacuum which means the answers to these questions will NOT always be the same.

Post-Flop
- How does this flop correspond with villain's range?
- How does this flop correspond with my perceived range?
- Am I going to need to draw? How many outs do I have?
- Given villain's range, my perceived range, and the outs I have, is a cbet profitable?

Turn
- What did villain's call/raise on the flop mean?
- Have I seen this action before from villain? If so, what was he holding (if it went to showdown)?
- Can he be floating me?
- Did the turn card complete any draws?
- Does villain's range include hands that may now be holding a straight/flush?

River
- All turn questions.
- Am I likely ahead or behind at this point?
- Can I win this hand without betting?
- If a bet is needed, what is my perceived range at this point?
- Would a bluff be profitable?
- Is my hand strong enough to catch a bluff?
- Should I value bet here or check to induce a bluff? Am I happy if this river is checked down without further value?

In addition to all these questions, one of my favorite questions is the whole "Do worse hands call here?" and "Do better hands fold?" Basically, are you betting for value or as a bluff? It becomes second-nature at a point...but ask yourself this at when you start!

Of course there are hundreds of other questions we should be asking ourselves that are specific to each situation. As of now, I will leave my list at that. I may add more in the near future.

I wouldn't mind if some of you guys helped me out with some of the questions you use to keep your mind in the game. It would be great to have some ideas of good questions to ask handy.

And for those of you losing focus or clicking buttons too fast, take a breath before taking action. While taking this breath, think to yourself about your impending decision. Good luck!

great list, x-post to the BC imo so people who don't browse the blogs section can read it.

Droppin' little nuggets of advice...MICRO STYLE!

Do NOT fall into the trap of playing sub-par hands just to enter more hands with a fishy villain. Widen your range...but be weary of becoming reckless!

boog thats gold btw. +1 to m2m's suggestion.

jyms posted a WHY post in his op/blog a while ago.
That's what I ask myself at the moment.

Originally Posted by BooG690

Do NOT fall into the trap of playing sub-par hands just to enter more hands with a fishy villain. Widen your range...but be weary of becoming reckless!

assuming a passive fish who is limping.
Isolate with an appropriate range - why/why not A6o? how about 89s?
When/why to limp behind? what sort of hands?
Watch out for squeeze type players behind though. Learn about his pre-flop response to isos. Know when to c-bet, when to check behind. Stack him. Do it again.

BooG69 your doing well my friend. Keep it up!