Poker Wannabetag:typepad.com,2003:weblog-695192005-07-11T07:03:30-05:00Life at the bottom of the barrelTypePad7/11/2005 - End of an Eratag:typepad.com,2003:post-55335952005-07-11T07:03:30-05:002005-07-11T07:03:30-05:00So not only have I changed my physical home, I'm also changing my virtual home. Typepad has been nice to me, but they charge a small monthly fee and there's no point for me to be paying a dime considering...Eric Everstine
<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>So not only have I changed my physical home, I'm also changing my virtual home. </p>
<p>Typepad has been nice to me, but they charge a small monthly fee and there's no point for me to be paying a dime considering there are many free blogging services out there. And so I'm changing over to another blogging service.</p>
<p>My new blog will be just a continuation of this one. It can be found here:</p>
<p><a href="http://threebet33.blogspot.com/">http://threebet33.blogspot.com/</a></p>
<p>I had to change the name since</p>
<p>1) Someone over at blogger already had the name taken. :(</p>
<p>and</p>
<p>2) I'm not really a poker wannabe anymore, am I?</p>
<p>Anyways, I think the new name accurately reflects my laggish, donkish playing style. </p>
<p>I should keep this blog up until the end of the month at least. </p>
<p>Finally, only another day or so until I update how my first days in Vegas have gone. Preview: great!</p></div>
7/6/2005 - 0 Daystag:typepad.com,2003:post-54788262005-07-06T14:02:34-05:002005-07-06T14:02:34-05:00Well, this is it. Moving day. I fly out in about seven and a half hours. I'll update from Vegas as soon as I can, but it will probably be a few days before I'm able to.Eric Everstine
<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>Well, this is it. Moving day. I fly out in about seven and a half hours. I'll update from Vegas as soon as I can, but it will probably be a few days before I'm able to. </p></div>
7/5/2005 - More Holiday Madnesstag:typepad.com,2003:post-54538882005-07-04T23:45:12-05:002005-07-04T23:45:12-05:00I swear, I think I could make a decent annual wage if I only played on Holiday weekends. Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, Memorial day and now the 4th of July have all been bery, bery good to me. Throw in...Eric Everstine
<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>I swear, I think I could make a decent annual wage if I only played on Holiday weekends. Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, Memorial day and now the 4th of July have all been bery, bery good to me. Throw in Labor day and perhaps Halloween and I could probably live off of those seven weekends alone (albeit not exactly like a rock star). </p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>So yes, like a loser I sat in front of my computer playing poker rather than actually doing anything for the 4th. I swung by a BBQ briefly, but I didn't really know anyone and I didn't feel like sitting out in Austin's 100-degree heat to watch fireworks, especially with a whole bunch of people I didn't know. So back I came for poker.</p>
<p>At first the tables seemed fairly tight, but then around 9-9:30pm they opened up. Perhaps not coincidentally, that's when a lot of East Coasters would be returning from fireworks and looking for something to do. Whatever happened, the games noticeably improved at that time, and for the rest of the evening I had a nice run.</p>
<p>Ok, "nice run" is an understatement. Here's a fun hand I played from the CO:</p>
<p>Party Poker 20/40 Hold'em (9 handed) <a href="http://www.selachian.com/tools/bisonconverter/hhconverter.cgi">converter</a></p>
<p><strong>Preflop:</strong> Hero is CO with 2s, 2d. <br /><span style="color: #666666;"><em>5 folds</em></span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero raises</span>, Button calls, SB calls, <span style="color: #666666;"><em>1 fold</em></span>.</p>
<p><strong>Flop:</strong> (7 SB) 2h, Th, Ad <span style="color: #0000ff;">(3 players)</span><br />SB checks, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero bets</span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Button raises</span>, SB calls, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero 3-bets</span>, Button calls, SB calls.</p>
<p><strong>Turn:</strong> (8 BB) 9s <span style="color: #0000ff;">(3 players)</span><br />SB checks, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero bets</span>, Button calls, SB calls.</p>
<p><strong>River:</strong> (11 BB) 8c <span style="color: #0000ff;">(3 players)</span><br />SB checks, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero bets</span>, Button calls, SB folds.</p>
<p><strong>Final Pot:</strong> 13 BB</p>
<p>Results: <br />Hero has 2s 2d (three of a kind, twos). <br />Button has Qc Ah (one pair, aces). <br />Outcome: Hero wins 13 BB. </p>
<p>There's nothing like raising with a small pair and hitting your set. They never see it coming.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Here's another:</p>
<p>Party Poker 20/40 Hold'em (9 handed) <a href="http://www.selachian.com/tools/bisonconverter/hhconverter.cgi">converter</a></p>
<p><strong>Preflop:</strong> Hero is CO with 3h, 3d. <br /><span style="color: #666666;"><em>5 folds</em></span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero raises</span>, <span style="color: #666666;"><em>2 folds</em></span>, BB calls.</p>
<p><strong>Flop:</strong> (4.50 SB) 2c, As, 3c <span style="color: #0000ff;">(2 players)</span><br />BB checks, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero bets</span>, BB calls.</p>
<p><strong>Turn:</strong> (3.25 BB) 2d <span style="color: #0000ff;">(2 players)</span><br />BB checks, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero bets</span>, BB calls.</p>
<p><strong>River:</strong> (5.25 BB) Qh <span style="color: #0000ff;">(2 players)</span><br />BB checks, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero bets</span>, BB calls.</p>
<p><strong>Final Pot:</strong> 7.25 BB</p>
<p>Results: <br />BB has Qs 5c (two pair, queens and twos). <br />Hero has 3h 3d (full house, threes full of twos). <br />Outcome: Hero wins 7.25 BB. </p>
<p>(yes, that's a 20/40 player playing Q5o for a raise and calling to the river unimproved).</p>
<p>And finally:</p>
<p>Party Poker 15/30 Hold'em (10 handed) <a href="http://www.selachian.com/tools/bisonconverter/hhconverter.cgi">converter</a></p>
<p><strong>Preflop:</strong> Hero is BB with 6h, 6d. <br />UTG calls, <span style="color: #666666;"><em>8 folds</em></span>, Hero checks.</p>
<p><strong>Flop:</strong> (2.66 SB) 6c, Js, 9d <span style="color: #0000ff;">(2 players)</span><br /><span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero bets</span>, UTG calls.</p>
<p><strong>Turn:</strong> (2.33 BB) 4c <span style="color: #0000ff;">(2 players)</span><br /><span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero bets</span>, UTG calls.</p>
<p><strong>River:</strong> (4.33 BB) 9s <span style="color: #0000ff;">(2 players)</span><br /><span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero bets</span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">UTG raises</span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero 3-bets</span>, UTG calls.</p>
<p><strong>Final Pot:</strong> 10.33 BB</p>
<p>Results: <br />Hero has 6h 6d (full house, sixes full of nines). <br />UTG has 9h Th (three of a kind, nines). <br />Outcome: Hero wins 10.33 BB. </p>
<p>Notice a trend? The 4th of July was the day of sets for me. I think I hit more sets than I did all of June. Almost every pocket pair it seemed was a set for me. I had a few other sets of deuces (including another where I had raised preflop), a few of kings, a few others. It was ridiculous.</p>
<p>And what was more ridiculous was that Sunday night was an even better night for me. All told, this past Thur-Mon work week of mine goes down as, by far, my biggest week ever, surpassing every single monthly total prior to April (including all months of 2004). And the kicker is that I've only played about <em>15 hours</em> of poker for the week. I hate to sound like I'm bragging or anything, but that's just how things have been going--ridiculously well.</p>
<p>I just passed 20,000 hands and my winrate at the Party 15/30 is sick beyond belief. The 20/40 has been very good as well, in about 6000 hands. As a poker player, I know all this success simply means that I'm going to have some pretty rough times ahead. It all evens out in the end. But I'm going to enjoy it while I can. </p>
<p><strong>Moving</strong></p>
<p>The day of reckoning is almost upon me. Yes, on Wednesday, July 6, I fly out to Vegas where I will spend one night in a hotel room before moving into my new place on Thursday. I'll be out there to enjoy the spectacle that is the WSOP main event (although I won't be playing in it) and to hopefully enjoy the side games.</p>
<p>I'll then briefly return to Austin later in the month to pick up the last of my things, including my car, and then drive back to Vegas for good.</p>
<p>I have to say, I'm going to miss Austin. It's a fun town, and I've made some good friends (those rare times I've been able to pull myself away from my computer). </p>
<p>It all doesn't even seem real to me yet. I mean I understand that I'm moving, but I'm not sure it's really going to sink in until my first night out there, alone, not knowing anybody, in a town that I've only ever really been to two different places (the airport and the strip). Although I've only been here three years, Austin's pretty much become my home and so I imagine being out there in Vegas those first few nights (or weeks) I'll feel quite a bit of homesickness.</p>
<p>1 day. </p>
<p></p></div>
7/2/2005 - June Recap and First Half Reporttag:typepad.com,2003:post-54268582005-07-02T04:44:02-05:002005-07-02T04:44:02-05:00June Recap Last month was certainly exciting. By about halfway through, it looked as though I would zoom past May to have my best month by far. The first half of the month was nothing but large wins, culminating with...Eric Everstine
<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p><strong>June Recap</strong></p>
<p>Last month was certainly exciting. By about halfway through, it looked as though I would zoom past May to have my best month by far. The first half of the month was nothing but large wins, culminating with my <a href="http://pokerwannabe.blogs.com/poker_wannabe/2005/06/6182005_a_littl.html">best day ever</a> on June 17. There I was, barely over halfway through the month and I was already nearly 85% of the way to my May record total. </p>
<p>But then I had my <a href="http://pokerwannabe.blogs.com/poker_wannabe/2005/06/6192005_from_pe.html">worst day ever</a> June 18, dropping more that one day than I used to earn in a month at the job I had just left.</p>
<p>I had a moderately successful <a href="http://pokerwannabe.blogs.com/poker_wannabe/2005/06/6272005_la.html">trip to LA</a> and then had a decent final few days playing online to finish out the month just a hair beneath May. </p>
<p>So, to sum, everything's still going great. </p>
<p><strong>First Half Report</strong></p>
<p>When the year started, I set for myself poker goals in terms of total winnings. I had a range I wanted to hit, with a conservative, realistic goal at the bottom end and an aggressive, optimistic goal at the top end--think perhaps a 25 percentile/75 percentile range of my expectation (okay, perhaps more like 40/90). </p>
<p>Well, I zoomed past my low-end goal a month ago and am on pace to far surpass even my optimistic goal by year's end. (Obviously "on pace" doesn't mean squat as far as poker is concerned, but I gotta work with what I got.)</p>
<p>The last three months in particular have been absolutely wonderful, ever since I had hit a rut playing 5/10 and switched to 10/20 and eventually 15/30 and 20/40. I have little doubt that I'll go through another extended break-even stretch like I had in March, but until then I'm going to enjoy the ride.</p>
<p>I guess in six months or a year I might feel quite differently, but so far I'm absolutely loving my decision to quit my job and go back to playing poker for a living. I'm on my own schedule and I don't have to constantly be doing mind-numbing work that's heaped on me day after day. With poker, I'm doing what I love to do and I'm paid better.</p>
<p>I can only hope poker always stays this enjoyable and profitable. </p></div>
6/28/2005 - LAtag:typepad.com,2003:post-53616572005-06-27T15:33:09-05:002005-06-27T15:33:09-05:00Thursday night, I flew off to Los Angeles for the second time in my life and first time to play poker. Three of us were making the three-day trip, with the plan of doing nothing else besides eat, sleep and...Eric Everstine
<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>Thursday night, I flew off to Los Angeles for the second time in my life and first time to play poker.</p>
<p>Three of us were making the three-day trip, with the plan of doing nothing else besides eat, sleep and play poker at the <a href="http://www.commercecasino.com/">Commerce</a>. It was going to be great.</p>
<p><strong>Commerce</strong></p>
<p>I'd never been to the Commerce before so I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I knew it was a big name in the poker world, what with the largest poker room in the world and all, but that was about it. </p>
<p>I have to admit--I was expecting a little more in general. It was nice, but I guess I was kind of expecting something that would live up to Vegas standards, just transplanted into LA. Rather, it was clearly a few steps below that--somewhat nicer than the casinos in Lake Charles, but still not quite as nice as, say, the Harrah's in New Orleans. It seemed to be about on par with, say, <a href="http://www.canterburypark.com/index.htm">Canterbury Park</a> near the twin cities in MN.</p>
<p>But whatever, how was the poker room?</p>
<p><strong>Poker Room</strong></p>
<p>Well, rooms actually. There was the low-limit room which was simply massive. You walk in and it's just a sea of tables nearly as far as you can see, all packed full at peak times, with countless 2/4, 3/6 and 4/8 games, with limits all the way up to 15/30. Around the corner a bit is the higher-limit area, which houses 20/40 and above games. Even that room was big--just from eyeballing it, the higher-limit area seemed to be at least as big and probably bigger than the Bellagio poker room. </p>
<p>One really nice feature about the Commerce poker room is that in the higher-limit room all food is free for all players. People would get feasts delivered to the table, steak and potatoes and veggies and fruit and soup and dessert, all at once. Even in the low-limit room, food was cheap, with some pretty decent meals available for $2 or $3.</p>
<p>More questionable was their decision not to offer free drinks to players. Even in the high-limit area, players had to shell out $7 or more for a drink. I like my opponents nice and wasted, and that certainly was not the case at the Commerce. This is certainly more of a concern for lower-limit players, as I've noticed players at 30/60 and above seem to be a lot more careful about (not) drinking while playing.</p>
<p>One thing I noticed about the Commerce is that at least the higher-limit area seems to be a completely player-run room. Players were doing a lot of things that would not be tolerated at, say, the Bellagio. On three separate occasions, I saw a player take his cards and literally crumple them up and spike them back at the dealer, and on none of those occasions was he so much as reprimanded--the dealer simply picked them up and called for a new setup. Dealers were berated mercilessly at times, players would yell and argue with each other as loudly and for as long as they wanted. Setups were called for and provided seemingly every eight or ten hands. Practically anything went. </p>
<p>Another thing that bugged me was that the "I want to see his hand" rule was abused relentlessly. It seemed to me that as one moved up in limits, that rule is used less and less. At least in Vegas that seemed to be the case. But in LA, suddenly every other hand that went to showdown was asked to be seen. I don't know why, but I can sit there and endure bad beat after bad beat and not really get bothered at all beyond maybe a minor annoyance. But people asking to see my hand time after time really, really irks me. Anyone who's played with me knows I generally stay pretty quiet and calm, but at one point this trip even I jumped on this guy for asking to see my hand for what must have been the tenth time in about three hours. </p>
<p><strong>Playing Pokah</strong></p>
<p>Ah, but the real concern would simply be this: how were the games?</p>
<p>Answer: great.</p>
<p>Thursday, I put myself on the 20/40 and 40/80 lists and was called almost immediately for 40/80. This isn't surprising as they had three 20/40 games going, but <em>six</em> 40/80 games going. Six! This would be my first time playing 40/80. I didn't let the size of the bets distract me any, but it took me a little while overall to stop being so cautious--I was giving people too much respect. </p>
<p>The first table I sat at was quite tight. The only decently-sized pot I saw in my hour there was when I was dealt KK and the guy to my left got AA. I did not improve. Doh.</p>
<p>I moved to a better game, but the cards didn't get any better. Top-two on the flop no good. I couldn't hit anything except a couple hands that were always second best and I dropped about $3000 pretty quickly. I went on a mini-rush over about 45 mins late in the evening to get back to even and I was able to tack on a little more to that to finish the night up about $1000. </p>
<p>Friday saw me back at 40/80 trying desperately to catch a hand. I still couldn't catch anything, but a few blind steals, a couple bluffed pots and the rare legitimate hand had me basically treading water. 10 hours I played, and I probably won one pot more than four or five BBs. I gave back all I had won the previous night, but I consider that a victory considering how the cards ran.</p>
<p>The game that night was amazing, though. There were two loose-aggressive maniacs, two loose-passive calling stations and two people who seemed as though they had no clue what they were doing. Add to that two tough players and lil' card-dead ol' me and it was quite an interesting table for all involved, even though I was essentially a spectator with my endless parade of J3o.</p>
<p>Saturday would find me in second place pretty consistently again, and I would quickly be $2500 in the hole, where I would tread water for hours. And hours. And hours. Nothing, no hands, no big pairs, no sets, no straights or flushes, only an occasional flopped two pair that wouldn't hold up, or a blind steal if I was lucky.</p>
<p>Then finally, after twenty hours of nothing (including Friday night), I would finally go on my second rush of the weekend, winning about $5000 in the span of about two or three hours. This was aided by one complete LAG two to my right and one total calling station on my left. </p>
<p>LAG raised UTG, as he was prone to do with any two cards. I three-bet from MP with 33, calling station (CS) called, and all else folded. Flop: K97. LAG checked, I bet, CS called, LAG folded (wow!!! he later told me he had 45o). Turn: A(K97). I bet, CS called. River: K(AK97). I bet, CS thought a while and finally folded. To show the table image I had at that point, two different players called out nearly simultaneously,</p>
<p>"Show your big slick!"</p>
<p>I couldn't resist. "Ok!" and I tabled my 33. Ah, yes, there's nothing like seeing 100% pure shock on all eight opponents' faces at a poker table.</p>
<p>Two things happened after that hand--1) I started hitting a few hands and 2) I was paid off handsomely.</p>
<p>That hand jump-started my rush that provided all of my profit for the weekend. At nearly 5am I finally stopped, up about $2500 for the night and therefore the trip. I finished the trip donking around at 4/8 with my friends, winning another $100 or so to finish up almost $2600 overall.</p>
<p>Definitely not a bad weekend, but seeing how I was up and down constantly, having at different times a $4000 downswing and a $5000 upswing, it's hard to feel great about the results--for all I know, I'm nothing more than a break-even player at that limit. I guess I feel good given how for the vast majority of the weekend I was hitting nothing, completely card dead, and yet I still managed to average about 1.2 BB/hr for the weekend.</p>
<p><strong>Conclusion</strong></p>
<p>The games in LA are great. And by great, I mean absopositivelyfuckinglutely wonderful. While the tables certainly got tight and tough at times, there were plenty of times when the games were loose-passive--six, seven, eight players seeing the flop for one bet--and plenty of other times when they were loose aggressive--four or five players seeing the flop for two or three bets.</p>
<p>I haven't played a whole lot at either limit, but it seemed in my short stints at each that the Commerce 40/80 had, on average, slightly weaker players than the Bellagio 30/60. There were certainly some real tough spots, and a few genuinely tricky players this past weekend, but there were also more downright bad and clueless players than I remember in my short time at the Bellagio 30/60. But, once again, small sample-size warnings apply. </p>
<p>So the plusses for the Commerce are plentifiul, juicy mid-limit games, free food delivered right to the tables and that it's located in LA with its great climate and plentiful beaches. The drawbacks are that LA is expensive, and the city overall is less exciting (in my opinion) than Vegas.</p>
<p>Vegas' advantages are that they have the nicest poker room I've ever been in (the Bellagio, of course), with its better dealers, better-run room, still nice mid-limit games. And it's Vegas, baby, Vegas!</p>
<p>So, as tempting as it might be to cancel my apartment in Vegas and move to LA instead, I think I'm going to stick to Vegas. Heck, LA is only a four-hour drive away...</p></div>
6/23/2005 - Leaving for LAtag:typepad.com,2003:post-53162122005-06-23T11:44:19-05:002005-06-23T11:44:19-05:00I leave for the city of Angels (and smog) later today. Three of us are going for the weekend and we plan on taking full advantage of all the different kinds of activities available in a huge city right off...Eric Everstine
<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>I leave for the city of Angels (and smog) later today. Three of us are going for the weekend and we plan on taking full advantage of all the different kinds of activities available in a huge city right off the beach in southern California by sitting around and playing poker in the <a href="http://www.commercecasino.com/">Commerce</a> round the clock. </p>
<p>I mean, what else could we possible want to do?</p>
<p>Full trip report when I return, of course. </p></div>
6/19/2005 - From Penthouse to Outhouse, back to Penthouse, to House Being Blown to Smithereens (and definitely no more braggin')tag:typepad.com,2003:post-52543542005-06-19T14:12:58-05:002005-06-19T14:12:58-05:00Yesterday was certainly one of the more amazing runs of poker I've had. I started out doing horribly, dropping a ton of money quick. I then had a nice little run where I won all of it back and then...Eric Everstine
<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>Yesterday was certainly one of the more amazing runs of poker I've had. I started out doing horribly, dropping a ton of money quick. I then had a nice little run where I won all of it back and then some. But, I finally just piledrived right into the ground, having my worst run of cards I can remember to aptly end the day after my best day of poker ever with my worst day of poker ever--and worst by a factor of about three. </p>
<p>I've been stuck in Party's "Thou Shalt Not Win" mode before, but this was a new one, "For 3000 Hands, Thou Shalt Put Tons of Money Into the Pot As a 95%+ Favorite, But Still Thou Shalt Not Win." </p>
<p>I won't recap them all here, but I certainly had amazing hands that literally made my jaw drop all night long. Hands that I might see one or two a night in just the astounding way they develop ("Wait, he capped my AA on a AK8 board the whole way with his 24 to catch a 3 and a 5?") I think I can remember at least 20 hands like that just off the top of my head from last night alone--heck from those last three fateful hours. Ugh.</p>
<p>Oh yeah, didn't I <a href="http://pokerwannabe.blogs.com/poker_wannabe/2005/06/612005_a_tale_o.html">say I shouldn't play</a> between the 17th and 20th of each month? Quote:</p>
<p><em>I returned to have my monthly 130BB downswing (which always seems to come around the 17th-20th of each month--maybe I should just plan on taking those days off)</em></p>
<p>Yes, the trend continues. </p>
<p>Oh well, what can I do besides go right back out there and play again tonight?</p>
<p><strong>More Bad News</strong></p>
<p>I recently bought Half-Life 2. Okay, a few months ago I bought it, but between poker and work and something resembling a social life, I just got around to playing it yeseterday. Or, I should say, trying to play it.</p>
<p>I was able to play it for about five minutes before getting motion sick so bad I had to turn it off. </p>
<p>Me! Motion sick! I'm someone who literally grew up on first person shooters! I played the original Wolfenstein 3D from its initial release, downloaded Doom the day it came out and went on to play it 8 hours a day for more than a year (and for quite a bit after that, as well), and I continued to play them all up until a year ago--Doom II, Duke Nukem, Quake, Half-life, Quake II, Return to Castle Wolfenstein etc. But here I go and take a year or so off from playing them and boom, I can't even go five minutes without getting sick.</p>
<p>This is more distressing than was dropping a month's salary at my old job last night.</p>
<p>Yes, June 18 really was the day of bad beat after bad beat. </p>
<p></p>
<p></p></div>
6/18/2005 - A Little More Braggin'tag:typepad.com,2003:post-52390552005-06-18T02:38:41-05:002005-06-18T02:38:41-05:00Oh geez. Well, I continue to running embarassingly well at the Party 15/30. I had my best day of poker ever Friday night, helped along by hands like this (which turns out to be my biggest online pot ever): Party...Eric Everstine
<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>Oh geez.</p>
<p>Well, I continue to running embarassingly well at the Party 15/30. I had my best day of poker ever Friday night, helped along by hands like this (which turns out to be my biggest online pot ever):</p>
<p>Party Poker 15/30 Hold'em (9 handed) <a href="http://www.selachian.com/tools/bisonconverter/hhconverter.cgi">converter</a><br /><br /><strong>Preflop:</strong> Hero is CO with Kd, 9d. Hero posts a blind of $15. <br /><span style="color: #666666;"><em>2 folds</em></span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">MP1 raises</span>, MP2 calls, <span style="color: #666666;"><em>1 fold</em></span>, Hero (poster) calls, <span style="color: #666666;"><em>1 fold</em></span>, SB calls, BB calls.<br /><br /><strong>Flop:</strong> (10 SB) Jd, Td, 8s <span style="color: #0000ff;">(5 players)</span><br />SB checks, BB checks, <span style="color: #cc3333;">MP1 bets</span>, MP2 calls, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero raises</span>, SB folds, BB folds, <span style="color: #cc3333;">MP1 3-bets</span>, MP2 calls, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero caps</span>, MP1 calls, MP2 calls.<br /><br /><strong>Turn:</strong> (11 BB) Qs <span style="color: #0000ff;">(3 players)</span><br /><span style="color: #cc3333;">MP1 bets</span>, MP2 calls, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero raises</span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">MP1 3-bets</span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">MP2 caps</span>, Hero calls, MP1 calls.<br /><br /><strong>River:</strong> (23 BB) 3d <span style="color: #0000ff;">(3 players)</span><br /><span style="color: #cc3333;">MP1 bets</span>, MP2 calls $22 (All-In), <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero raises</span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">MP1 3-bets</span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero caps</span>, MP1 calls.<br /><br /><strong>Final Pot:</strong> 31.73 BB<br /><br />Results: <br />MP1 has 9c 7c (straight, queen high). <br />MP2 has 8d 8h (three of a kind, eights). <br />Hero has Kd 9d (flush, king high). <br />Outcome: Hero wins 31.73 BB. </p>
<p>I can understand MP2's play, but MP1's?? Wow. </p>
<p>Poker hasn't been all roses. Thursday night I had my worst run at the 10/20 six-max games I can remember, dropping over 100 BBs almost immediately before finishing down 80 BBs. But I more than made up for it with my 15/30 play and my first-ever attempt at the Party 20/40. </p>
<p>The 20/40 seems to be a good game, although not quite as juicy as the 15/30 has been. I was at a couple tables that would have four or five people in a raised pot on a fairly regular basis. I almost definitely will not play 20/40 regularly, however. I need to stay at the 15/30 for a while to make sure I'm solid there before moving up. If I see an especially juicy 20/40 game, I'll jump in, but that's it. </p>
<p>I even got crazy enough to sit at the Party 30/60 game for a round. I managed to win one hand--my AKs held up unimproved over a cold-caller's A6s--but it was clear even after only that one round that I wasn't going to be able to play my normal game at those stakes, so I quickly left. I need to get used to the daily swings at 15/30 before I try to get used to playing the 30/60. Considering I won't even play the 20/40 regularly yet, it'll probably be quite a while before I again try the 30/60. </p>
<p><strong>I Don't Need No Stinkin' Job!</strong></p>
<p>Besides being my best-ever day of poker (and getting to watch <a href="http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/wrapup.jsp?ymd=20050617&content_id=1093973&vkey=wrapup2004&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb">Roger Clemens beat the Royals</a>), Friday was also my last day at my day job. I am now officially a professional poker player.</p>
<p>I had been working as a mathematician at a gaming company, but no longer. No more wage-slavery for me. No more rotting in a cubicle for eight hours a day. I am now a free man! </p>
<p>Well, free to be a BB-per-hour-slave, rotting at a poker table (virtual or real) all day. Heh. </p>
<p><a href="http://pokerwannabe.blogs.com/poker_wannabe/2005/05/5242005_some_ne.html">18 days</a>!</p></div>
6/13/2005 - A Little Braggin'tag:typepad.com,2003:post-51501732005-06-13T03:10:54-05:002005-06-13T03:10:54-05:00So I split my time evenly between 15/30 full and 10/20 6max this weekend. 15/30 is still going amazingly well, but I wanted some variety. One of the things I missed about 6max is hands like this one: Party Poker...Eric Everstine
<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>So I split my time evenly between 15/30 full and 10/20 6max this weekend. 15/30 is still going amazingly well, but I wanted some variety. </p>
<p>One of the things I missed about 6max is hands like this one:</p>
<p>Party Poker 10/20 Hold'em (6 max, 6 handed) <a href="http://www.selachian.com/tools/bisonconverter/hhconverter.cgi">converter</a><br /><br /><strong>Preflop:</strong> Hero is CO with 7c, 9d. <br /><span style="color: #666666;"><em>2 folds</em></span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero raises</span>, <span style="color: #666666;"><em>1 fold</em></span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">BB 3-bets</span>, Hero calls.<br /><br /><strong>Flop:</strong> (6.50 SB) 5c, Jd, Tc <span style="color: #0000ff;">(3 players)</span><br /><span style="color: #cc3333;">BB bets</span>, Hero calls.<br /><br /><strong>Turn:</strong> (4.25 BB) 5h <span style="color: #0000ff;">(3 players)</span><br /><span style="color: #cc3333;">BB bets</span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero raises</span>, BB calls.<br /><br /><strong>River:</strong> (8.25 BB) 2c <span style="color: #0000ff;">(3 players)</span><br /><span style="color: #cc3333;">BB bets</span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero raises</span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">BB 3-bets</span>, <span style="color: #cc3333;">Hero caps</span>, BB folds.<br /><br /><strong>Final Pot:</strong> 15.25 BB<br /><br />Results: <br />Hero has 7c 9d (one pair, fives). <br />Button doesn't show. <br />Outcome: Hero wins 15.25 BB. </p>
<p>BB was a chronic bluffer who would keep going up until the point he had to show down his cards. There was literally no other play I could make on the river.</p>
<p>Or maybe I'm just a fish. Either way, I don't thing you've lived until you've capped the river with an unimproved 97o. </p></div>
6/7/2005 - My Glaring Weaknesstag:typepad.com,2003:post-50638482005-06-07T12:29:33-05:002005-06-07T12:29:33-05:00Well, the Party 15/30 continues to roll along marvelously for me. I'm actually getting a little worried--I've been running so well that it's only a matter of time before I get my ass handed to me. I don't have access...Eric Everstine
<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>Well, the Party 15/30 continues to roll along marvelously for me. I'm actually getting a little worried--I've been running so well that it's only a matter of time before I get my ass handed to me. I don't have access to my database right now, but an example hand would be this one hand where I had QQ in the BB and the pot ended up being capped four ways preflop, four ways on the flop (at which point I decided that I should at the very least slow down and probably check-fold on the turn), but then I hit a Q on the turn to win the huge pot from a very enraged KK.</p>
<p>I've certainly had my share of bad river cards, but I've also gotten quite lucky on the river (or turn, as the case may be) in more than a few big pots. I can easily see my next 10,000 hands or so being significantly less profitable than the last 10,000 (which were also the first 10,000 at that level).</p>
<p>Anyways, I'm really starting to want to play in the main event of the WSOP. My only problem is actually, you know, getting a seat. I certainly don't have the bankroll to go dropping $10K on a seat, and I just don't have the patience for online tournaments to win a seat. I can do online cash games fine, of course, and I'm even semi-decent at SnGs, but online multi-table tournaments are just a recipe for disaster for me. I'll sit there and do fine, but then get bored, or lose concentration or whatever and play a hand or two badly, lose a chunk of chips and then just donk the rest away.</p>
<p>I played a freeroll at Pokerroom where the winner would get a WSOP ME package, and I only had about 600 players to beat, half the players that had registered weren't even in the damn tournament (they were "away," posting and folding), and the top 100 players all got entries into another WSOP tournament. All I had to do was sit there, steal the blinds from the posting-and-folding players (literally six of the ten players at my table were doing that) and wait for them to all bust out. But no, I finished in the 300's somewhere anyways, donking off my chips with a couple of very questionable moves. </p>
<p>Online MTTs are a real war of attrition, and I guess I'm just used to the more regular positive reinforcement that comes with cash games--I mean if I win a pot at 15/30, that's a few hundred bucks right there. If I win a pot at a tournament, I have more chips, but I still have to beat some hundreds of random other players just to cash and get some piddly payout. And finishing in the top three or so, where the real money is--fuggetaboutit. I guess I'll just have to learn to appreciate the value of the tournament chips I accumulate. Or something. </p>
<p>Doing poorly in online tournaments is strange because I've actually done well in live tournaments. I'm able to sit there for hours and make better decisions as a whole. I'm not sure why that is. I think when I first started playing cash games, I was the same way--good and disciplined live, a bit undisciplined online. I probably just need more overall experience before I'm able to regularly perform as well as I can at online MTTs. </p>
<p>So, yeah, the bottom line is that while I'll be in Vegas for the ME, I almost certainly won't be playing. Speaking of which...</p>
<p><a href="http://pokerwannabe.blogs.com/poker_wannabe/2005/05/5242005_some_ne.html">29 days</a>!</p></div>