My road to glory :) I hope

[jazzzik]

OK, so I joined FTR. I guess the best move in my short poker life. I'm not sure if it's the best place to show my achievements, if not, I don't mind moving it somewhere else. I have no idea how often will I update it, but I'll do my best. Here is something for start. I wrote similar stuff in Begginers Circle of Winners, but I wouldn't be able to update my situation there.

A month ago (maybe a bit more) I had $0 poker bankroll. Then I got ITM in some freerolls on Expekt.com, this way I got $3 :P. Played a bit at 5NL and went to $10. Then moved to Party Poker since there where no tables on Expekt.com.

Played so so. Fortunately found FTR, read EVERYTHING on the main page and moved to forum. Read all stickies in Begginers Forum and all posts from first 2 pages, then the same with NLH Strategy forum. I realized I had no idea about poker at all. Decided to start playing by Renton's 169H strategies. Thx RENTON. This is how I became a TAGG. A weak TAGG I guess, but I hope it will change in time. Downloaded trials of PT and PAH and started working on my bankroll.

When I reached 100$ I was really happy, because finally I was properly bankrolled for 5NL . At $125 I withdrew $25 and bought PAH. When reached $125 again, withdrew $100 to go casino whoring.

Last night I whored at Starluck. I'm kinda stupid, cause I didn't read T&C before depositing (just trusted FTR stickies). So, I found out that since I'm Polish, I have to wager my $200 48 times , instead of 8x. I didn't have anything important to do, so started with $2 bets, then changed to $4, cause it was getting late. I ended up with $370, after wagering $11000 at 5AM. Now I'm waiting for the cash out.

I realize I must have been really lucky when moving from $3 to $100 (didn't get any really bad variance and so, I didn't go bankrupt). The same with playing BJ with $4 bets at $200 bankroll. I'll try to be more careful in the future.

So this was the past. Now plans:

1. As soon as I get my money on neteller, I'm buying PT (reinstalling it after every 1000 hands is pretty annoying). I'm really curious what my BB/100 is, also plan to spend a lot of time analyzing my stats at PT.
2. Plan to casino whore a bit more, starting with Planetluck.
3. Go back to playing poker, probably at 10NL this time (if my bankroll is over $200 after all my casino affair).
4. Start reading HH at FTR.
5. I will include my 5NL stats in here, so you could see how lame I still am . Maybe some hands that get me in trouble.

I know it all may sound funny for you, this 5NL, but I had to start somewhere. Also the fact that I didn't deposit even a nickle and now have $370+PAH makes me proud .

Wish me luck. Hope to get some feedback. One more thing, FTR members:
You are f***ing amazing!!!

Over

PS. Everytime I see Alex de Large's picture on FTR, it reminds me of my success so far in online poker.

[pokerroomace]

nice story. $370 out of nothing is great. even with a bit of luck.
try not to go on a downswing or play above your stakes. you will go on a losing streak but try not to let it hurt you to much.

i deposited $20 at pokerroom the first time i played. I doubled it within a few hands and then cashed out my $20. Then with the $20 I had in my account I turned it into $580 within a week (no idea how now that i look back at it. i think i cashed for $300 in an mtt. finished 3rd.)
anyway, then i went on a downswing that lasted a few months. eventually i lost my $580 and i was on exactly $0 profit. right where i started.
i then joined paradisepoker and started winning again right from the start. i built up to $200 or something like that very quickly and from then on i've just been going up a bit. down a bit. and so on.

my biggest problem has been playing above my stakes. i've stopped now and i didn't do it much at the start. but a couple of weeks ago i was playing way out of my bankroll.

i ran out of money online a few weeks ago (but still have a bankroll of about £400 = $800) that i have to deposit into my bank account. anyway, i was too lazy to go to the bank and i started going through all my accounts trying to find a few dollars that i had left behind. in the end i went through all my accounts and had nothing left to play with.
i then realized i had lots of points at pokerroom and holdempoker and that i could buy tickets with the points.
i bought a few $5.5 tourney tickets. ended up winning one of the 5 man sngs with a ticket (i had lost a few before this). i then turned this $5.5 into approximately $185 which is where i am now.
i feel like i'm playing really well atm and i know i can easily beat the 25NL tables. i just need to build my online bankroll to $1000 so i can move up to $50NL.

and i started using pokertracker this week. and i agree that it's a great program. i haven't used it in the past because i usually play on a mac. (and the mac equivilent isn't very good).

turned into a long post. lol. good luck.

don't let the downswing hurt you! you are not the bets player in the world just because you won $370. you got lucky at blackjack to do that. that same luck will take $300 from you another day. be careful. just trying to help.
it happened to me and it happens to everybody.

PS - why play at planetluck when you have to wager $9600? intercasino seems a good choice. only need to wager $3000 for the same bonus.
and take a look at this site: http://www.casinobonuspages.com/index.php

[givememyleg]

GL sir!! I'm going to start hitting up this casino whoring thing once I find some more time... sounds valuable.

[jazzzik]

Thx for the valuable feedback. You're right about Planetluck. From now on

I WILL READ T&C BEFORE DEPOSITING TO CASINO
I WILL READ T&C BEFORE DEPOSITING TO CASINO
I WILL READ T&C BEFORE DEPOSITING TO CASINO

I didn't ctrl+v it . I'll try to find bonuses that have lower wagering rules this time.

And...

I WILL NEVER PLAY OUT OF MY BANKROLL
I WILL NEVER PLAY OUT OF MY BANKROLL
I WILL NEVER PLAY OUT OF MY BANKROLL

I must say that I know that it is the worst thing one can do. I was pushed to it, since I started from nothing. Now the situation changed and I will be careful with my bankroll.

That's it for now. Still waiting for cashout from Starluck.

Leg: GL in casino whoring... use small bets , like 1%

[jackvance]

Good luck. And no need to buy PT. I can advise you PO instead because you can get it for free while clearing bonusses at the same time: http://pokeroffice.com/free.html

[pokerroomace]

Good luck. And no need to buy PT. I can advise you PO instead because you can get it for free while clearing bonusses at the same time: http://pokeroffice.com/free.html

you can also get pokertracker for free while clearing bonuses:
http://www.pokersourceonline.com/freepoker/software.asp
and you still get the normal bonus

is pokeroffice any good? is it better than pokertracker?

[Irisheyes]

gl man!

[jazzzik]

Thanks guys, I'll look at it.

I got used to Poker Tracker pretty much though, and it works well with my PokerAce Hud. Also when I see statistics from other FTR members, it seems that they all use Poker Tracker.

EDIT: I have one slight problem with getting PT as a bonus, well two actually:
1. I'm registered almost everywhere, cause I was playing freerolls on lots of different poker sites in the past So I can't register with a bonus code. Although I'm not registered with real money accounts (except Pacific Poker - I played some LH there in the past, found a SUPERSYSTEM on the net , I was doing pretty good actually and cashed out, cause $/hr was horrible)
2. Usually the stakes start at 25NL. I'm planning to move from 5NL to 10NL on Party Poker. So 25NL is beyond my BR and skills for now.

BTW Intercasino T&C say:
"Players from Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Latvia, Poland, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Ukraine will be excluded from the match deposit bonus promotion. " - this sucks

I suppose people from these countries just take money from the casino instead of leaving it there. That, or just fraud.

[pokerroomace]

i'm sure there are some sites that you are not signed up to that you can get pokertracker from.
btw, pokeroffice has pokerace hud built in. also, with a BR of $370 you can play $25NL. If you're scared to then it's probably not a good idea.
Moving to 10 first is probably a better idea. and then moving to 25NL when you've made $250 from playing $10NL.

[jazzzik]

...with a BR of $370 you can play $25NL. If you're scared to then it's probably not a good idea....

Yep, I'm definitely not going to play 25NL until I have at least 500$ + couple of k's 10NL winning hands (preferably at least 10k with steady growth of my bankroll)

Right now I have no money to play (withdrawing from Starluck), then I'm going for Golden Palace Casino (300% 300$ cashable blackjack bonus, 20x D+B). I'll move some $ back to Party and play some 5NL or 10NL, depending on BR. Or maybe I'll try to look for opportunity to play 10NL+clearing Poker Tracker bonus somewhere (I'm not sure if I could find something like that).

I had a trial of Poker Office and didn't like their hud at all. PokerAce Hud seems to be much better for me.

[donkbee]

try not to go on a downswing

lol gl with that

[jazzzik]

, I'll try not to. TY

I decided to buy Poker Tracker, since I got some extra cash from Starluck and definitely don't want to take a shot at 25NL right now. Unfortunately you cannot use Neteller to buy PT . I'll have to withdraw my money to my bank account and use ma card to get it, so my Poker balance at my bank account would be still 0. I really don't want to make all these transactions, but couldn't find any site where I could get PT pretty fast as a bonus.

I have a play money account on 7/10 of poker sites listed at www.pokersourceonline.com, so I don't qualify there. In the rest, the minimum stakes are 25nl and bonus conditions are pretty tough to do for me right now.

[jazzzik]

Alright. I bought Poker Tracker. I couldn't find any poker sites where I could wager the bonus in a short time with my limits. I paid through Neteller (e-mailed them and got instructions what to do). I was pretty pleased, cause there was no Neteller option on their webpage.

Moreover I got the money from Starluck and turned 100$ to 400$ on Golden Palace Casino... not so fast, I didn't even start wagering it . My BR right now:

$395 -$55 (PT) - $100 (GPC) = $240
+ $400 (not wagered at GPC)

Below are my stats and graph. I found out that I've played 22k hands at 5NL (pretty big number, lol). Don't even try to count what my $/hr is . I'm learning poker, I should pay for it... instead I'm making pennies, it's a good deal. Also when you look at my worst hands, well... there is 87s at the top (it's all because of one single hand, where I've put my stack on low str8, losing to a higher one, result -$5).

One more thing. I have to start reading some books, like Sklansky or HoH. I've never read a single page of any poker book. Also I need to start doing research on HH Forum.













Any suggestions, feedback, anything... I will be more than happy to read it.[/img]

[Ravageur]

Looks like you're on the right track. I wouldn't be too shy taking a few shots at bigger games every once in a while. It keeps things exciting as long as you're not too reckless.

nothing wrong with erring on the side of caution of course.

Gl

[pokerroomace]

looking good. i wish i knew what my stats were.
my graph would have the biggest variance ever.
if you're making 8BB per hundred hands then you can move up to the $10 tables.

do you only play 1 table at a time? try playing 2, 3 or even 4. you're hourly rate will go up a tonne.

how did you get 22k hands into your db so quickly? is that 22 database files that you kept on your computer every time you restarted?

[jazzzik]

I started with single table of course. Then 2-tabling and went smooth to 4-tabling. I have to admit that my biggest sin is to read FTR while playing, I only pay attention to other players when I have good hole cards and decide to play (paying attention = looking at hud, especially at popup statistics from PAH).

I noticed that when I play single table I get into tough situations because I try to make to many fancy moves and end up bleeding chips (I guess I'm just bored, due to lack of action). Even with 4 tables I still read FTR when I'm not in the pot. That is a leak I guess :/

Answering your DB question. Well I just took all the HH (not databases)that my trial Poker Tracker moved earlier from Party Poker directory to other destination and I placed it again in PartyPoker directory. I took some time to make a DB out of these 22k hands though.

I have also one question concerning my Poker Tracker DB. After it changed all these 22k hands into a DB, I got lots of lots of errors. Majority of them were just:
"Connection lost - #Game No : xxxxxxxx is incomplete."
"Table closed before complete hand history was written (#Game No : xxxxxxx). "
I guess these were when I turned PP off, or just left the table. But some of them are different:
"Error finding the big blind (XXXXX) for game #xxxxxxx. If you play more hands at this table, Poker Tracker should be able to import this hand the next time around when it can determine the players seat number." - this is I think when somebody joined the game after HH started.
"Chip count for player going all-in is 0 which indicates a bug in the Party hand history text." - this is I guess when somebody rebought and PP didnt notice it in the HH.

Is there any point in contacting PP to get some of these ERROR hand histories, or I should just live with that?

[jazzzik]

Oh, I forgot about detailed statistics:

[metaxy6]

Nice job so far. You definitely should be proud of those results.

As you move up , start posting hands, and developing your game, one of your first tasks is to figure out why one-pair hands are such a $ loser for you.

As an aside, be careful about relying too much on your programs for reads. There is no substitute for developing your own reads/poker instincts.

[jazzzik]

Thanks metaxy6, it will be a nice homework to do. I have to go through these One Pairs and try to find what I could do better. I'm sure I'll post some hands.

In the last couple of days I didn't have much time to play poker and analyze my game, only casino whoring. The same with the days to come .

EDIT: Just wagered Golden Palace Casino. Deposited 100$, got 300$ Bonus. I lost 200$ and withdrew 209$ (Golden Palace Casino gives comp points, which can be exchanged to cash). I was down to $66 at some point :/.
BR: $240+$209 (pending) = $449
Looking for the next casino...

[jazzzik]

Bankroll $500ish... still casino whoring, no poker lately - I dont wanna sit at the table and think YAY BJ, looking at AT. I attached some of my hands I would like you to comment on. Some of them I played like a donk (maybe I was tilting), but anyway. I cant remember the reads, so there are none, unless noted otherwise:

1. I took him for TP, I didn't really think about a set. I think I should have.

Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $ BB (10 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: FlopTurnRiver)

saw flop|saw showdown

Hero ($8.26)
CO ($0)
Button ($10.69)
SB ($7.35)
BB ($5.90)
UTG ($6.53)
UTG+1 ($5.54)
UTG+2 ($9.30)
MP1 ($1.82)
MP2 ($7.66)

Preflop: Hero is MP3 with A, A. SB posts a blind of $0.02.
4 folds, MP2 raises to $0.16, Hero raises to $0.64, 3 folds, MP2 calls $0.48.

Flop: ($1.34) K, 6, 3 (3 players)
MP2 bets $0.9, Hero raises to $1.8, MP2 calls $0.90.

Turn: ($4.94) 5 (3 players)
MP2 calls $7.66 (All-In), Hero calls $5.22.

River: ($17.82) Q (3 players, 1 all-in)

Final Pot: $17.82

Results in white below:
MP2 doesn't show.
Hero has Ah Ac (one pair, aces).
CO doesn't show.
Outcome: Hero wins $17.82.
Hand converter got it all wrong. It should be:
MP2 shows [ Qh, Kd ]two pairs, Kings and Queens.
Hero shows [ Ah, Ac ]a pair of Aces.
MP2 wins $14.63 from the main pot with two pairs, Kings and Queens.


2. Horrible flop play from my side:

Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $ BB (9 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: FlopTurnRiver)

saw flop|saw showdown

BB ($6.79)
UTG ($9.88)
UTG+1 ($2.50)
MP1 ($3.88)
MP2 ($3.86)
MP3 ($9.85)
CO ($7.23)
Hero ($8.37)
SB ($1.34)

Preflop: Hero is Button with A, K. SB posts a blind of $0.02.
3 folds, MP2 calls $0.04, MP3 calls $0.04, CO calls $0.04, Hero raises to $0.28, 2 folds, MP2 folds, MP3 calls $0.24, CO calls $0.24.

Flop: ($0.94) K, 2, 3 (3 players)
MP3 checks, CO checks, Hero bets $0.7, MP3 folds, CO raises to $1.4, Hero raises to $2.8, CO calls $7.23 (All-In), Hero calls $4.15.

Turn: ($16.52) 8 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: ($16.52) 6 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Final Pot: $16.52

Results in white below:
CO has Kh 2s (two pair, kings and twos).
Hero has Ad Kc (one pair, kings).
Outcome: CO wins $14.84. Hero wins $1.68.

3. Similar:

Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $ Hero (10 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: FlopTurnRiver)

saw flop|saw showdown

UTG+1 ($3.02)
UTG+2 ($4.66)
MP1 ($6.02)
MP2 ($4.54)
MP3 ($6.30)
CO ($1.16)
Button ($7.58)
SB ($3.96)
Hero ($8.95)
UTG ($1.78)

Preflop: Hero is BB with A, A. SB posts a blind of $0.02.
3 folds, MP1 calls $0.04, 1 fold, MP3 calls $0.04, CO calls $0.04, 1 fold, SB (poster) completes, Hero raises to $0.28, MP1 folds, MP3 calls $0.28, CO calls $0.28, SB folds.

Flop: ($1.04) 8, 5, 9 (3 players)
Hero bets $0.66, MP3 raises to $1.32, CO folds, Hero raises to $2.64, MP3 raises to $3.96, Hero calls $8.91 (All-In), MP3 calls $6.30 (All-In).

Turn: ($22.85) 3 (2 players, 2 all-in)

River: ($22.85) 6 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Final Pot: $22.85

Results in white below:
Hero has Ah Ac (one pair, aces).
MP3 has 5d 8d (two pair, eights and fives).
Outcome: MP3 wins $21.56. Hero wins $1.29.

4. I'm a fish. My AA, KK and AK are very profitable for me. But please tell me, where should I stop bleeding chips in these kind of situations:

Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $ Hero (9 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: FlopTurnRiver)

saw flop|saw showdown

UTG ($6.82)
UTG+1 ($3.21)
MP1 ($2.54)
MP2 ($4.56)
MP3 ($5.38)
CO ($2.32)
Button ($5.74)
SB ($1.36)
Hero ($5.46)

Preflop: Hero is BB with K, A. SB posts a blind of $0.02.
UTG calls $0.04, 2 folds, MP2 calls $0.04, 1 fold, CO calls $0.04, Button calls $0.04, 1 fold, Hero raises to $0.28, UTG calls $0.28, MP2 folds, CO folds, Button folds.

Flop: ($0.78) A, 9, 5 (2 players)
Hero bets $0.6, UTG raises to $1.2, Hero raises to $2.4, UTG calls $1.20.

Turn: ($5.58) 4 (2 players)
Hero calls $5.42 (All-In), UTG calls $2.74.

River: ($13.74) 8 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Final Pot: $13.74

Results in white below:
Hero has Kh Ah (one pair, aces).
UTG has Kc Ac (flush, ace high).
Outcome: UTG wins $13.74.

5. Another horrible play....

Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $ BB (10 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: FlopTurnRiver)

saw flop|saw showdown

MP2 ($6.36)
MP3 ($2)
Hero ($5.26)
Button ($11.98)
SB ($6.51)
BB ($5)
UTG ($4.88)
UTG+1 ($2.08)
UTG+2 ($6.45)
MP1 ($4.56)

Preflop: Hero is CO with Q, K. SB posts a blind of $0.02.
2 folds, UTG+2 calls $0.04, 1 fold, MP2 calls $0.04, MP3 calls $0.04, Hero raises to $0.28, Button calls $0.28, 2 folds, UTG+2 folds, MP2 folds, MP3 calls $0.24.

Flop: ($0.98) 8, Q, 3 (3 players)
MP3 checks, Hero bets $0.7, Button raises to $1.4, MP3 folds, Hero calls $0.70.

Turn: ($3.78) 4 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $1, Hero calls $1.

River: ($5.78) T (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $2.58, Hero calls $5.26 (All-In).

Final Pot: $13.62

Results in white below:
Hero has Qh Ks (one pair, queens).
Button has 8c Qd (two pair, queens and eights).
Outcome: Button wins $13.62.

So these were my most losing one pair hands in my first 22k.

[metaxy6]

Jazzzik,

I'll let others post more detailed responses (feel free to post hands in the SSNLHE forum, as well). In the main, I'd point out that you met resistance on the flop in most of these hands, and still got stuck putting all the chips in the middle.
Liten carefully when opponents are telling you that you're beat.
Unless you have good reasons to suspect they're full of it, proceed with caution.

[givememyleg]

Take some shots at 10nl man! You'll find that the play is the same and you'll make more money. Congrats being in the green and can't wait to see you move up!