Building BR Playing Donkaments - Part I

Hello FTR members.

This is my first operation ever and I am a little excited. English is not my native language so, please forgive my mistakes, if any.

I used to play chess untill I moved to US for my PhD education on chemistry and learnt poker on TV, last year. Unfortunately, things didn't go well and I came back to Turkey this summer. I had great time with the students while I was a teaching assistant. People were always nice and respectful to each other. However, there are bad people everywhere. Before I moved to US, I didn't know that the city I used to live was the one with the 2nd highest crime rate in US. One day, I was having my dinner at home and suddenly someone shot at me. The bullet just went above my head. I was lucky I dodged the bullet... Yes! I can dodge bullets baby I am alive because, I will dodge more bullets, but this time on poker tables!

I don't know how the poker will go together with my PhD work. I will be synthesizing the derivatives of a lead compound that is known to be active on Prostate Cancer. It is a very difficult and time consuming job but hopefully, we will reach our goal. Since, my research is very time consuming, I will have little time to play poker but, I want to spare at least 1day/week for playing poker.

As a former chess player, I am used to thinking, making plans, and keeping my concentration at the table for hours. I haven't won a big MTT yet but I know these are the musts in order to win an MTT.

Goals:

My ultimate goal is to built a BR to play higher buy-in MTTs. I am not worried about how much I win, I just want to improve my game as much as possible. So, my goal is not to make the most money in short term but to play the best poker in the long run. I know in order to learn deep stack and post-flop plays I need to play cash games. I have been playing MTTS and SNGs on Stars but, I want to deposit 50 bucks on another site and start building it by exclusively playing cash games. I am not going to withdraw any money so, hopefully moving up won't be difficult.

I have already gained a lot from FTR. I don't think I will ever need another site to improve my game at any stage of my learning process.

MTT Books:

My posts will be mainly on MTTs and SNGs. I will pick up some critical points and try to analyze them. In order to make a deeper analysis, I need to read more and do some more range exercise. The only book I read so far is HOH volume II. I will order some more books on MTTs. I have HOH I in mind and there are also "drmcboy the great"'s suggestions:

- Winning Poker Tourneys 1 hand at a time
- Kill Everyone
- Every Hand Revealed
- TPFAP
- Full Tilt's tourney book (this would be higher but some of the chapters are not NLHE)
- HOH 3

more or less in order according to doc.

Bankroll Management:

I initially deposited $50 on Stars but had no idea about Bankroll Management by the time. I played some $10 SNGs including Gaunlet games. As a result my first deposit vanished Then, I decided to take a more serious approach and read about Bankroll Management. I shipped another $200 on July 2009 and started to play $1 SNGs. I was down to $175 at one point but then, I either broke the variance or improved my game a little bit and started to move up. My current BR is $767. I am even a ittle bit nitty now. I am not moving up unless I have like 60-70 BI's for SNG's and 100BI for MTTs.

That's all I want to say for now.

Good luck FTR!

After playing MTTs with a BI range of $1-$5 for a weak or so, my BR was down to $650 and I decided to play SNGs back to build my BR back to $700s. I played just one $10 27-man SNG and won rather interestingly.


I was down to 200 chips after 8th hand:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 11 Tournament, 10/20 Blinds (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (BB) (t1500)
UTG (t1490)
UTG+1 (t1470)
MP1 (t1410)
MP2 (t1560)
MP3 (t1330)
CO (t2280)
Button (t1380)
SB (t1080)

Hero's M: 50.00

Preflop: Hero is BB with A, A
2 folds, MP1 calls t20, 1 fold, MP3 calls t20, 1 fold, Button calls t20, 1 fold, Hero bets t140, 1 fold, MP3 calls t120, Button calls t120

Flop: (t450) 10, 4, J (3 players)
Hero bets t400, MP3 raises to t1190 (All-In), Button calls t1190, Hero raises to t1360 (All-In), Button calls t50 (All-In)

Turn: (t4120) 9 (3 players, 3 all-in)

River: (t4120) 3 (3 players, 3 all-in)

Total pot: t4120

Results:
Button had J, A (one pair, Jacks).
Hero had A, A (one pair, Aces).
MP3 had 9, 10 (two pair, tens and nines).
Outcome: Hero won t100, MP3 won t4020

At this point I thought there is no reason to tilt as this is how we make our money. I had 200 left but it was 10BBs and antes didn't kick in yet. The field was surpriingly weak and I managed to double up a few times relatively easy. My first double up was with 99 agianst a few limpers. I shoved pre and the first limper instant called with 87o for 200 chips It seemed like the FT was no different than $1 BI 27-man FT.


Later in the game, before FT, these two interesting hands occured

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 11 Tournament, 75/150 Blinds (4 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (BB) (t3975)
UTG (t1955)
Button (t8135)
SB (t5340)

Hero's M: 17.67

Preflop: Hero is BB with 5, A
2 folds, SB bets t300, Hero raises to t3975 (All-In), 1 fold

This might be over-agressive but he is doing this with crap most of the time and he is not going to call unless he has a premium hand. Besides, there is already 450 in the pot which is almost 10% of my stack. I also didn't want him to flat my c-bet with bottom pair. So, I chose to take it down with less risk.

Total pot: t600

Results:
Hero didn't show 5, A (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won t600

After, 1-2 cycles we were again HU with the same villian and he minraised again! Now, he knew I am prone to shoving from the hand above so, he must have a big hand. So, I knew he would probably call if I push. Since, his range here includes weak A, I was ready to flip if he has a PP because I am ahead of his range. Here we go :

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 11 Tournament, 100/200 Blinds (5 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (BB) (t4175)
UTG (t1330)
MP (t7700)
Button (t5315)
SB (t1895)

Hero's M: 13.92

Preflop: Hero is BB with Q, A
2 folds, Button bets t400, 1 fold, Hero raises to t4175 (All-In), Button calls t3775

Flop: (t8450) 3, A, J (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t8450) 8 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t8450) J (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t8450

Results:
Button had 10, A (two pair, Aces and Jacks).
Hero had Q, A (two pair, Aces and Jacks).
Outcome: Hero won t8450
[/b]

Another interesting thing was that I played HU with the guy who cracked my AA's above in the 8th hand! I have no idea how these players manage to survive that long!

I am in the same boat as you. I recently found this site and I find myself browsing through all the articles for SnGs as they are my favorite. I managed to grind my BR up from FT's Take2 bonus from 30$ to 200$ playing 1/2/5$ SnGs. I switched to the 5$ after hitting 120$. Made it to 200$ and then have gone on a very bad streak where every hand I'm a favorite in turns into junk bringing me down to 100$ =(

after seeing your post on grinding donkaments, I see that if someone else has the discipline to move down in stakes, I should too. (hard from 5$ back to 2$ lol for me)

Good luck on your voyage!

Her ne kadar ikisinde de ihtiyacin olmadigina eminsem de hem isinde hem pokerde iyi sanslar dilerim dostum...

Originally Posted by illness

I am in the same boat as you. I recently found this site and I find myself browsing through all the articles for SnGs as they are my favorite. I managed to grind my BR up from FT's Take2 bonus from 30$ to 200$ playing 1/2/5$ SnGs. I switched to the 5$ after hitting 120$. Made it to 200$ and then have gone on a very bad streak where every hand I'm a favorite in turns into junk bringing me down to 100$ =(

after seeing your post on grinding donkaments, I see that if someone else has the discipline to move down in stakes, I should too. (hard from 5$ back to 2$ lol for me)

Good luck on your voyage!

Dude, be a bankroll nit and don't move up unless you have the proper BR. I also suggest posting hands in the SNG forum. taipan168 and others will answer all of your questions. You are in a great place to improve your game.

Originally Posted by Belt

Her ne kadar ikisinde de ihtiyacin olmadigina eminsem de hem isinde hem pokerde iyi sanslar dilerim dostum...

sagolasin dostum, sana da iyi sanslar!

translation: thanks dude! good luck to you, too

Good luck sir.

Originally Posted by Micro2Macro

Good luck sir.

thanks dude. i will need it! good luck to you, too.

You might find HOH1 a bit basic as you ahve played quite a lot. I have not read winning 1 hand at a time, but I think Kill Everyone is great. Good luck.

Originally Posted by linaker

You might find HOH1 a bit basic as you ahve played quite a lot. I have not read winning 1 hand at a time, but I think Kill Everyone is great. Good luck.

I might still have some very basic leaks as a beginner. If not, I am planning to read HOH1 just for curiosity. Good luck to you too.

I didn't have much time during weekdays like for two weeks. I was generally tired when I was back to home and I thought I could play some "easy" stuff like 45 and 18 man turbo SNGs with $1-2 BI's . How difficult can be a push or fold game, especially at this level?(!)

I tried 16 tabling and made it really difficult to play. I tried to decrease the number of tables to 10 tabling and it didn't work well either.

Turbo session ...........# of tables..........BR(start).........BR(finish)

_____1_______________16__________766__________758

_____2_______________10__________758__________741


Even though it is a really short sample, it shoudn't be a coincidence that I lost when

1) I was tried
2) I was playing more tables than I can handle.


After like 2 weeks off, I'l be able to play a real session today. Lets keep taking shots in MTTs!

Good news! I finished 2nd out of 3150 in Stars $1 freezeout! This is my first deep run. I had 7/2 chip lead at some point when we were HU. I've earned $323 from this tourney and my BR reached $1,041. It looks like Part1 of my operation is complete, but I'll decide to move up later.


Special thanks goes to: drmcboy, fjuanl, taipan168, baudib, and revolvingiris. Thanks also everyone on FTR for all the discussion going on.

After a week without poker, I finally have time to revise my last run. I wanted to note all the breaking points in the tournament to make the final table.

HAND 1:

This push should be close since MP3 was running 16/10 and the raise is coming from a mid-late position. But then, button makes a surprise and calls my shove. MP3 surprises me even more by calling with his 66. Luckily, I have the best hand and it holds up.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 75/150 Blinds (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP1 (t5990)
MP2 (t4880)
MP3 (t2655)
Hero (CO) (t2680)
Button (t1455)
SB (t8740)
BB (t2465)
UTG (t2485)
UTG+1 (t2175)

Hero's M: 11.91

Preflop: Hero is CO with 8, 8
4 folds, MP3 bets t300, Hero raises to t2680 (All-In), Button calls t1455 (All-In), 2 folds, MP3 calls t2355 (All-In)

Flop: (t6990) 3, Q, J (3 players, 3 all-in)

Turn: (t6990) 5 (3 players, 3 all-in)

River: (t6990) Q (3 players, 3 all-in)

Total pot: t6990

Results:
Button had K, A (one pair, Queens).
MP3 had 6, 6 (two pair, Queens and sixes).
Hero had 8, 8 (two pair, Queens and eights).
Outcome: Hero won t6990



HAND 2:

This is pretty standard. My c-bet sizing might be a little big but, nobody folds his pair, or adjusts at this level. I could bet a little less on the turn though.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 150/300 Blinds 25 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP3 (t5280)
CO (t6860)
Button (t5745)
SB (t12530)
BB (t15738)
UTG (t8982)
UTG+1 (t17735)
MP1 (t42012)
Hero (MP2) (t8750)

Hero's M: 12.96

Preflop: Hero is MP2 with K, K
1 fold, UTG+1 calls t300, 1 fold, Hero bets t1200, 5 folds, UTG+1 calls t900

Flop: (t3075) 9, 7, 7 (2 players)
UTG+1 checks, Hero bets t2400, UTG+1 calls t2400

Turn: (t7875) 4 (2 players)
UTG+1 checks, Hero bets t5125 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: t7875

Results:
Hero didn't show K, K (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won t7875


HAND 3:

This lady was runnig 29/3 and I just didn't want to fold this hand against her large range. I don't think she ever thought of fold equity while doing this. I guess she just wanted to gamble, which I accepted instantly:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 200/400 Blinds 50 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG (t3080)
UTG+1 (t6760)
MP1 (t6320)
MP2 (t12280)
MP3 (t15188)
CO (t11807)
Button (t12835)
SB (t42437)
Hero (BB) (t12925)

Hero's M: 12.31

Preflop: Hero is BB with K, Q
6 folds, Button calls t400, 1 fold, Hero bets t1600, Button raises to t12785 (All-In), Hero calls t11185

Flop: (t26220) 10, 2, K (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t26220) Q (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t26220) 4 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t26220

Results:
Button had 7, 5 (high card, King).
Hero had K, Q (two pair, Kings and Queens).
Outcome: Hero won t26220


HAND 4:

I had a pretty comfortable stack with an M of 25 but, a few hands later, I lost half my stack to a coin flip:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 200/400 Blinds 50 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP1 (t5660)
MP2 (t5810)
MP3 (t8670)
CO (t11330)
Button (t14758)
SB (t11707)
BB (t21195)
UTG (t39087)
Hero (UTG+1) (t26810)

Hero's M: 25.53

Preflop: Hero is UTG+1 with J, J
1 fold, Hero bets t1200, 5 folds, SB raises to t11657 (All-In), 1 fold, Hero calls t10457

Flop: (t24164) K, 7, 3 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t24164) 6 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t24164) 8 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t24164

Results:
SB had K, A (one pair, Kings).
Hero had J, J (one pair, Jacks).
Outcome: SB won t24164



HAND 5:

This was the key moment that allowed me to run deep in the tournament.

UTG still has like 20BB and his push is kind of suspicious. Still, he was running 13/9 and I was a little worried about his UTG push. MP1 was a loose guy running 29/10 and he made this call after taking some time. He made some loose calls earlier. I think if he had like AA,KK, or QQ, he would probably shove; I don't think he is talented enough to flat with those hands at this spot. He has a lot of small and midpairs in his range. So, considering the side pot I could get from MP1, I decided to shove:



PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 200/400 Blinds 50 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button (t4610)
SB (t5160)
BB (t8420)
UTG (t9880)
UTG+1 (t14108)
MP1 (t26214)
MP2 (t20345)
MP3 (t39937)
Hero (CO) (t16353)

Hero's M: 15.57

Preflop: Hero is CO with J, J
UTG bets t9830 (All-In), 1 fold, MP1 calls t9830, 2 folds, Hero raises to t16303 (All-In), 3 folds, MP1 calls t6473

Flop: (t43486) 8, 4, 7 (3 players, 2 all-in)

Turn: (t43486) J (3 players, 2 all-in)

River: (t43486) 2 (3 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: t43486

Results:
UTG had A, J (one pair, Jacks).
MP1 had Q, A (high card, Ace).
Hero had J, J (three of a kind, Jacks).
Outcome: Hero won t43486

And the table is closed...

After winning this hand, I doubled my stack up to 100K by just stealing the blinds.

HAND 6-7:

My c-bet percentage is actually pretty high but I decided to check this flop to have somewhat tight table image. Now, at least some people will think that "hmmm this guy bets when he has it". Hand 7 happened right after HAND 6 and guess how easy my c-bet was.

In HAND 6 I actually accomplished two things. The river was an obvious call but now again "some" may think that "better not to try to bluff this guy. He calls the river with A high!". I remember Phil Hellmuth saying " If you don't make these calls, you lose", after making a similar call on the river with A high. Well, he probably faced a bigger river bet though...


HAND 6:
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 400/800 Blinds 75 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB (t114865)
UTG (t30615)
UTG+1 (t5950)
MP1 (t21007)
MP2 (t15975)
Hero (MP3) (t59174)
CO (t50737)
Button (t35990)
SB (t16775)

Hero's M: 31.56

Preflop: Hero is MP3 with A, K
2 folds, MP1 calls t800, 1 fold, Hero bets t3200, 4 folds, MP1 calls t2400

Flop: (t8275) 4, 2, J (2 players)
MP1 checks, Hero checks

Turn: (t8275) Q (2 players)
MP1 checks, Hero checks

River: (t8275) 6 (2 players)
MP1 bets t800, Hero calls t800

Total pot: t9875

Results:
MP1 had A, 10 (high card, Ace).
Hero had A, K (high card, Ace).
Outcome: Hero won t9875

HAND 7
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 400/800 Blinds 75 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB (t113990)
BB (t30540)
UTG (t5875)
UTG+1 (t16932)
MP1 (t15900)
Hero (MP2) (t64974)
MP3 (t50662)
CO (t35915)
Button (t16300)

Hero's M: 34.65

Preflop: Hero is MP2 with Q, A
3 folds, Hero bets t2400, MP3 calls t2400, 4 folds

Flop: (t6675) 2, 4, 7 (2 players)
Hero bets t4000, 1 fold

Total pot: t6675

Results:
Hero didn't show Q, A (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won t6675


HAND 8:

All right, I kind of sucked at this hand. The UTG raiser was running like 21/11 and I decided to isolate the other fish who went all in. However, UTG might have had a big hand instead. My push wasn't a good play here but, I think I was getting good FE against the UTG raiser. He was tight and was most probably aware of my stats/tight image. I knew he was capable of laying his hand down.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 1500/3000 Blinds 300 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP1 (t89543)
MP2 (t7712)
MP3 (t137643)
CO (t334269)
Button (t20345)
Hero (SB) (t101974)
BB (t120496)
UTG (t156296)
UTG+1 (t128619)

Hero's M: 14.16

Preflop: Hero is SB with 6, 6
UTG bets t9000, 5 folds, Button raises to t20045 (All-In), Hero raises to t101674 (All-In), 2 folds

Flop: (t54790) 3, Q, 5 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Turn: (t54790) A (2 players, 2 all-in)

River: (t54790) 8 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: t54790

Results:
Button had Q, Q (three of a kind, Queens).
Hero had 6, 6 (one pair, sixes).
Outcome: Button won t54790


HAND 9:

I could make 3-bet bigger but, I will have less then a PSB left after he calls my 3-bet. The villian had a huge stack and was probably the chip leader by the time. It is not hard to guess how he made that big of a stack that fast:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 1500/3000 Blinds 300 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG+1 (t79043)
MP1 (t3336)
MP2 (t80643)
MP3 (t364869)
CO (t88631)
Hero (Button) (t91705)
SB (t137296)
BB (t139796)
UTG (t158319)

Hero's M: 12.74

Preflop: Hero is Button with K, K
4 folds, MP3 bets t18000, 1 fold, Hero raises to t40000, 2 folds, MP3 calls t22000

Flop: (t87200) Q, 5, 3 (2 players)
MP3 bets t54000, Hero calls t51405 (All-In)

Turn: (t190010) 10 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t190010) Q (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t190010

Results:
Hero had K, K (two pair, Kings and Queens).
MP3 had 9, 9 (two pair, Queens and nines).
Outcome: Hero won t190010


HAND 10:

It is time to get the fruits of tightening up against these loose guys:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 2000/4000 Blinds 400 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button (t38190)
SB (t89579)
BB (t112243)
UTG (t263864)
UTG+1 (t92431)
Hero (MP1) (t205710)
MP2 (t112096)
MP3 (t149696)
CO (t155255)

Hero's M: 21.43

Preflop: Hero is MP1 with Q, Q
2 folds, Hero bets t12000, 5 folds, BB calls t8000

Flop: (t29600) 7, 3, 8 (2 players)
BB bets t12000, Hero raises to t30000, BB raises to t99843 (All-In), Hero calls t69843

Turn: (t229286) J (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t229286) 5 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t229286

Results:
BB had A, 8 (one pair, eights).
Hero had Q, Q (one pair, Queens).
Outcome: Hero won t229286

HAND 11:

This is a nightmare flop for me. There are two over cards, and so many straight and fush draws. Being OOP really sucks at this spot. I decided to call on the flop to see her action on the turn. The only thing that made me take this pot down is her dumb bet sizing on all streets.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 2500/5000 Blinds 500 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG+1 (t443475)
MP1 (t61935)
MP2 (t1290)
MP3 (t181212)
CO (t579636)
Button (t196473)
SB (t365044)
Hero (BB) (t351353)
UTG (t103758)

Hero's M: 29.28

Preflop: Hero is BB with J, J
6 folds, Button bets t15000, 1 fold, Hero raises to t45000, Button calls t30000

Flop: (t97000) 9, Q, A (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets t20000, Hero calls t20000

Turn: (t137000) 4 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets t20000, Hero calls t20000

River: (t177000) 9 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets t30000, Hero calls t30000

Total pot: t237000

Results:
Button had J, 10 (one pair, nines).
Hero had J, J (two pair, Jacks and nines).
Outcome: Hero won t237000


HAND 12:

Time to stack the fish that doubled me up earlier with 99 vs my KK.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 3500/7000 Blinds 700 Ante (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG+1 (t717649)
MP1 (t777284)
MP2 (t120924)
CO (t699194)
Button (t176484)
SB (t609428)
Hero (BB) (t425143)
UTG (t241573)

Hero's M: 26.41

Preflop: Hero is BB with A, K
5 folds, Button calls t7000, 1 fold, Hero bets t28000, Button calls t21000

Flop: (t65100) K, 2, 4 (2 players)
Hero bets t59000, Button calls t59000

Turn: (t183100) A (2 players)
Hero bets t105000, Button calls t88784 (All-In)

River: (t360668) 8 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t360668

Results:
Button had A, 3 (one pair, Aces).
Hero had A, K (two pair, Aces and Kings).
Outcome: Hero won t360668


HAND 13:

I don't know if there was another way to play this hand.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 4000/8000 Blinds 800 Ante (7 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG (t631349)
MP1 (t752784)
MP2 (t262731)
CO (t884918)
Button (t681228)
Hero (SB) (t628427)
BB (t233773)

Hero's M: 35.71

Preflop: Hero is SB with 9, A
5 folds, Hero bets t24000, BB calls t16000

Flop: (t53600) 9, 3, K (2 players)
Hero bets t32000, BB calls t32000

Turn: (t117600) 8 (2 players)
Hero checks, BB bets t32000, Hero calls t32000

River: (t181600) J (2 players)
Hero checks, BB bets t58000, Hero folds

Total pot: t181600

Results:
BB didn't show
Outcome: BB won t181600


HAND 14/15:

These two hands happened in succession and I guess the play is standard.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 6000/12000 Blinds 1200 Ante (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG (t278149)
UTG+1 (t1480136)
MP1 (t173331)
MP2 (t736092)
CO (t982518)
Button (t594428)
Hero (SB) (t413027)
BB (t351773)

Hero's M: 14.96

Preflop: Hero is SB with A, J
5 folds, Button bets t36000, Hero raises to t411827 (All-In), 2 folds

Total pot: t93600

Results:
Hero didn't show A, J (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won t93600


PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 6000/12000 Blinds 1200 Ante (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB (t276949)
UTG (t1478936)
UTG+1 (t172131)
MP1 (t734892)
MP2 (t981318)
CO (t557228)
Hero (Button) (t469427)
SB (t338573)

Hero's M: 17.01

Preflop: Hero is Button with A, 10
3 folds, MP2 bets t36000, 1 fold, Hero raises to t468227 (All-In), 3 folds

Total pot: t99600

Results:
Hero didn't show A, 10 (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won t99600


HAND 16:

It really sucks loing with this hand with 16 people left. After losing this hand, I decided to tighten up and shove with only premium hands.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 8000/16000 Blinds 1600 Ante (7 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

CO (t1555336)
Button (t272262)
SB (t921041)
BB (t968918)
UTG (t537628)
Hero (MP1) (t501427)
MP2 (t252842)

Hero's M: 14.25

Preflop: Hero is MP1 with A, A
1 fold, Hero bets t48000, MP2 raises to t251242 (All-In), 4 folds, Hero calls t203242

Flop: (t537684) 2, 6, J (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t537684) 5 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t537684) 5 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t537684

Results:
Hero had A, A (two pair, Aces and fives).
MP2 had J, J (full house, Jacks over fives).
Outcome: MP2 won t537684



HAND 17:

It is fun watching your flip with few people left in the tourney Weeeeeeeee

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 8000/16000 Blinds 1600 Ante (6 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG (t1500674)
MP (t238924)
CO (t989841)
Button (t805718)
SB (t1228912)
Hero (BB) (t245385)

Hero's M: 7.30

Preflop: Hero is BB with 9, 9
UTG bets t64000, 4 folds, Hero raises to t243785 (All-In), UTG calls t179785

Flop: (t505170) 5, 6, 4 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t505170) K (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t505170) 8 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t505170

Results:
Hero had 9, 9 (one pair, nines).
UTG had Q, 10 (high card, King).
Outcome: Hero won t505170

HAND 18:

This is standard. If I just reraise it is hard to c-bet a missed flop with this stack size. He has a big stack and he can just call my 3-bet pre and c-bet. However, 400K is a big portion of his stack.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 10000/20000 Blinds 2000 Ante (5 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG (t402248)
MP (t1935406)
Button (t1026518)
SB (t1230512)
Hero (BB) (t414770)

Hero's M: 10.37

Preflop: Hero is BB with J, A
3 folds, SB bets t60000, Hero raises to t412770 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: t130000

Results:
Hero didn't show J, A (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won t130000

PS: Got to go now. I'll post the rest of the hands prior to the FT later on today.

Hey extremo,

Great to see another MTT operation thread. So few of them for some reason?

BTW, the bit about getting shot at for no reason while having dinner is quite fucked up. I'm from Canada, you probably should have elected to study at McGill or something cuz there is practically zero crime up here. What city were you staying at, anyhow?

Good luck with your OP, I'll probably check in and comment from time to time.

Originally Posted by Penneywize

Hey extremo,

Great to see another MTT operation thread. So few of them for some reason?

BTW, the bit about getting shot at for no reason while having dinner is quite fucked up. I'm from Canada, you probably should have elected to study at McGill or something cuz there is practically zero crime up here. What city were you staying at, anyhow?

Good luck with your OP, I'll probably check in and comment from time to time.

Hey Penneywize,

It is an honor to get comments from you

It was fired by a random guy. It had been just 3 months I had been there for and I had nothing to do with anyone. I've actually never had problems with anyone in my life. That incident was just an exception. People were always nice to me and other foreginers. I was in Stockton/CA. I haven't heard of McGill but, I'll check it out.

It is tough to make an MTT operation thread because, it sometimes takes 2 or more months to take an MTT down. So, you basically write your losses during that time period.

Thank you very much and good luck to you too man!

HAND 19:

I was dealt AA again and I got action again! This time my Aces held up and I took down a nice pot right before the final table!

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 1.1 Tournament, 10000/20000 Blinds 2000 Ante (5 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG (t342248)
MP (t1985406)
Button (t946518)
SB (t1230512)
Hero (BB) (t504770)

Hero's M: 12.62

Preflop: Hero is BB with A, A
1 fold, MP bets t60000, 1 fold, SB calls t50000, Hero raises to t502770 (All-In), MP calls t442770, 1 fold

Flop: (t1075540) 9, 7, 6 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t1075540) 2 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t1075540) K (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t1075540

Results:
Hero had A, A (one pair, Aces).
MP had Q, Q (one pair, Queens).
Outcome: Hero won t1075540

I tried to pick up all the critical points before the final table. The final table was also pretty interesting. I became a real aggro when it was like 5 handed. Then, I had 7-2 chip lead at some point when we were HU. I was simply outplaying my opp. He couldn't stand the pressure and started to openshove like almost every hand. Unfortunately, I was dominated every time I called his shove and lost the HU.



The tournament took 8h41min and it is really tough to maintain your concentration at high level, especially towards the end of the tournament. As it can be seen from the picture above, I tried taking down notes as much as I can to keep my concentration at high level.

After playing an MTT session yesterday my BR was down to $990.

I wanted to play some PLO to make up for the amount I lost. I played $10 - PLO and lost some more money. BR was further down to $945. It is really hard to play AAxx postflop, unless you have FD or a set. Lesson learnt : check fold these hands on the flop unless you have a set or nut flush draw.

After PLO session, I played some SNG's today. I lost a few of them to flips and in some of them I just messed it up. I shoved A2, for example, at SB after a raise from CO and he instantly called with his AK. I lost a simlar one with AJ vs 99 and bubbled. BR is now $922. I need to tighten up more even if it is bubble play and avoid marginal spots.

I decided to post all the hands that lead to my elimination from SNG's today. It is time to show how I really suck at pokers:

HAND 1: It is bubble situation, raise is coming from CO and he can fold if I shove right?

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 11 Tournament, 75/150 Blinds (6 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

CO (t4703)
Button (t2390)
SB (t2420)
Hero (BB) (t3170)
UTG (t4200)
MP (t3253)

Hero's M: 14.09

Preflop: Hero is BB with 2, 2
2 folds, CO bets t450, 1 fold, SB calls t375, Hero raises to t3170 (All-In), CO calls t2720, 1 fold

Flop: (t6790) Q, A, 8 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t6790) A (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t6790) 7 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t6790

Results:
Hero had 2, 2 (two pair, Aces and twos).
CO had Q, Q (full house, Queens over Aces).
Outcome: CO won t6790



HAND 2: How can I not fold this hand on the flop? Pot odds? Of course not! Some of my outs are dirty at this spot; he could be pushing A3,A5,A8,K3,K5, or K8.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 5.5 Tournament, 50/100 Blinds (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP2 (t4855)
MP3 (t430)
CO (t1828)
Button (t2880)
SB (t1100)
BB (t3480)
UTG (t3520)
Hero (UTG+1) (t1230)
MP1 (t2030)

Hero's M: 8.20

Preflop: Hero is UTG+1 with K, A
1 fold, Hero bets t300, MP1 calls t300, 1 fold, MP3 raises to t430 (All-In), 2 folds, SB calls t380, 1 fold, Hero calls t130, MP1 calls t130

Flop: (t1820) 3, 8, 5 (4 players, 1 all-in)
SB checks, Hero checks, MP1 bets t1600 (All-In), 1 fold, Hero calls t800 (All-In)

Turn: (t3420) 3 (3 players, 3 all-in)

River: (t3420) 10 (3 players, 3 all-in)

Total pot: t3420

Results:
Hero had K, A (one pair, threes).
MP1 had J, J (two pair, Jacks and threes).
MP3 had 2, A (one pair, threes).
Outcome: MP1 won t3420



HAND 3: Again, I have the illusion that CO can't have a real hand or that he can fold if I shove

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 5.5 Tournament, 100/200 Blinds (7 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP2 (t4920)
CO (t3257)
Button (t4178)
Hero (SB) (t2635)
BB (t4685)
UTG (t16641)
MP1 (t4184)

Hero's M: 8.78

Preflop: Hero is SB with 2, A
3 folds, CO bets t600, 1 fold, Hero raises to t2635 (All-In), 1 fold, CO calls t2035

Flop: (t5470) 5, Q, Q (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t5470) 3 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t5470) 7 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t5470

Results:
Hero had 2, A (one pair, Queens).
CO had A, A (two pair, Aces and Queens).
Outcome: CO won t5470



HAND 4: This is coolers since, UTG is a chronic limper.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 5.5 Tournament, 200/400 Blinds 25 Ante (7 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB (t11480)
UTG (t13220)
MP1 (t2070)
Hero (MP2) (t1245)
CO (t5770)
Button (t3940)
SB (t2775)

Hero's M: 1.61

Preflop: Hero is MP2 with A, J
UTG calls t400, 1 fold, Hero bets t1220 (All-In), 1 fold, Button raises to t2040, 3 folds

Flop: (t3615) 5, 7, 6 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t3615) 5 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t3615) 5 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t3615

Results:
Button had K, A (three of a kind, fives).
Hero had A, J (three of a kind, fives).
Outcome: Button won t3615



HAND 5: Another one I got a raise from CO but he is not aware of my 11/11 stats and obviously he can't fold this hand.
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 11 Tournament, 50/100 Blinds (6 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG (t1305)
MP (t2960)
CO (t2820)
Button (t1335)
Hero (SB) (t1380)
BB (t3415)

Hero's M: 9.20

Preflop: Hero is SB with K, A
2 folds, CO bets t200, 1 fold, Hero raises to t1380 (All-In), 1 fold, CO calls t1180

Flop: (t2860) 10, 7, 6 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t2860) 10 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t2860) 5 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t2860

Results:
Hero had K, A (one pair, tens).
CO had 8, 8 (two pair, tens and eights).
Outcome: CO won t2860



HAND 6: Again a chronic limper behind and another coolers. With all that dead money in the middle I should be pushing this.
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 5.5 Tournament, 75/150 Blinds (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP2 (t3275)
Hero (CO) (t1935)
Button (t5205)
SB (t2165)
BB (t6980)
UTG (t255)
UTG+1 (t1110)
MP1 (t5430)

Hero's M: 8.60

Preflop: Hero is CO with Q, A
2 folds, MP1 calls t150, 1 fold, Hero bets t1935 (All-In), Button calls t1935, 3 folds

Flop: (t4245) Q, 8, 10 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t4245) 5 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t4245) 6 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t4245

Results:
Button had K, K (one pair, Kings).
Hero had Q, A (one pair, Queens).
Outcome: Button won t4245



HAND 7: lol. If I didn't make this post, I wouldn't be able to realize that I hate people sitting at CO when I am SB or BB. This is the 4th hand I am defending my blind against a raise by CO!
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 5.5 Tournament, 100/200 Blinds 25 Ante (6 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

CO (t6470)
Button (t4232)
Hero (SB) (t6712)
BB (t5146)
UTG (t12490)
MP (t5450)

Hero's M: 14.92

Preflop: Hero is SB with 3, A
2 folds, CO bets t600, 1 fold, Hero raises to t6687 (All-In), 1 fold, CO calls t5845 (All-In)

Flop: (t13240) 10, 7, 8 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Turn: (t13240) Q (2 players, 2 all-in)

River: (t13240) Q (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: t13240

Results:
Hero had 3, A (one pair, Queens).
CO had A, K (one pair, Queens).
Outcome: CO won t13240



HAND 8: OMG! 5th time I am shoving against CO! Another coolers...
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 11 Tournament, 25/50 Blinds (7 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG (t3320)
MP1 (t1290)
MP2 (t3545)
CO (t1040)
Button (t2465)
Hero (SB) (t760)
BB (t1080)

Hero's M: 10.13

Preflop: Hero is SB with Q, A
3 folds, CO calls t50, Button bets t150, Hero raises to t760 (All-In), 1 fold, CO calls t710, 1 fold

Flop: (t1720) 6, J, 10 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t1720) 10 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t1720) 9 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t1720

Results:
Hero had Q, A (one pair, tens).
CO had 10, A (three of a kind, tens).
Outcome: CO won t1720



HAND 9: I didn't raise the blinds of these guys a lot and almost all players at the table had been folding pre. Suddenly, both them snapcalled my raise! c'mon ex, please don't do this again, not at these stakes! raise more pre!
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 5.5 Tournament, 100/200 Blinds (5 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP (t1733)
Hero (Button) (t2345)
SB (t10337)
BB (t2642)
UTG (t5808)

Hero's M: 7.82

Preflop: Hero is Button with A, A
2 folds, Hero bets t440, SB calls t340, BB calls t240

Flop: (t1320) 9, 8, 4 (3 players)
SB checks, BB checks, Hero bets t1200, 1 fold, BB raises to t2202 (All-In), Hero calls t705 (All-In)

Turn: (t5130) 7 (2 players, 2 all-in)

River: (t5130) 5 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: t5130

Results:
Hero had A, A (one pair, Aces).
BB had 9, 8 (two pair, nines and eights).
Outcome: BB won t5130



HAND 10: Coin flip
PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, 11 Tournament, 10/20 Blinds (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button (t1660)
SB (t3050)
BB (t1330)
UTG (t1560)
UTG+1 (t1480)
Hero (MP1) (t1470)
MP2 (t1480)
CO (t1470)

Hero's M: 49.00

Preflop: Hero is MP1 with A, K
UTG bets t100, 1 fold, Hero raises to t1470 (All-In), MP2 raises to t1480 (All-In), 5 folds

Flop: (t3070) 3, Q, 7 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Turn: (t3070) 6 (2 players, 2 all-in)

River: (t3070) 9 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: t3070

Results:
Hero had A, K (high card, Ace).
MP2 had J, J (one pair, Jacks).
Outcome: MP2 won t3070


-All are 27-man SNGs. I played 4 of $11 and 7 of $5 SNGs. I won only one $5 and finished 5th in only one $5.

-Of the 11 games, I got eliminated from 5 them because of my horrible play, mostly after shoving againt a raise by CO when I was SB or BB. In one of them, I lost with AA because of not making a standard raise pre. Why the hell do I make it smaller pre against loose guys?

-Hands 4,5,6,8 and 10 were coolers. I lost flips and got sucked out in these hands.

No more talking about BR and how much I won or lost. This doesn't help anything other than increasing the tilt factor. Also f'ck SNGs imo. AK lost against a donkey's 44, after his limping and calling my shove pre. My AA got cracked again vs KK, two times in the evening. Maybe I shouldn't even talk about this because, it doesn't help anything etiher. Just ship the EVs.

I think the best thing to do now is to keep discussing the play and to keep reading. I still haven't read any of the books in my list. I will focus on these books as soon as I got them.

I was deep in 2 tournaments today.

The first one was $4.40 180-man which I finished 5th. I raised with QQ at UTG and the guy at SB shoved. I called his shove only to face his KK and elimination.

The second one was $2.20 with rebuys. There were 500 participants. The blind levels were increasing every 8min so, it was kind of turbo. I once rebought for double and added-on so, I paid a total of $8.80. After the rebuy period ended I had like 30BBs. One thing I want to note is that I almost never had more than 20-30BB starting from 10K stack to like 200K.

I had the chip lead when 16 people or so left. Then I lost with JJ vs AQ, called a shove by SB with KT at BB, against the same opp. Finally, when it was 6 handed the same guy limped in at UTG, I shoved for 15BB or so with AQs and he called for almost all his chips with AJo. He hit the J on the flop and I got eliminated at 12th place. Man, I was almost there...The first prize was around $700. meh....next time.

My AA got cracked like 4-5 times today and I got them in preflop. It has been like 6-7 times my AA got cracked in last two sessions. I guess there is kind of variance going on.