Over the past several weeks, I've been literally fighting against myself in Texas Hold'em. My game has evolved from very tight to super loose and then back to variations in between. For too long, my cards were see-thru. When multiple people could call my hand, there's a serious problem. That's what instigated my current situation.
I began changing up my game and that brought win after win after win for weeks. But then, winning wasn't even satisfying. My game started being about something more than just winning. I had nights where I was in the money in all 3 games and I would drive home picking my bad moves a part. I had one game where I ended up with every single chip on the table, but all I could think about after a while was the game I got 2nd place in. What if I would have bet big instead of check? How did I misplay pocket A's so bad? Did I get bluffed on that one hand? Why couldn't I see the bluff? Even with an over-whelming winning percentage, something was wrong. I still wasn't good enough (and I'm still not).
Then, a series of things recently happened that turned it all upside down. I played a cash game at Winstar and lost $300 in a rushed effort with my wife waiting. Then, I went to New Orleans and played 6 hours only to lose $300 more. And last weekend, I went to Shreveport and lost $100 over several hours. Lose, lose, lose!!! I lost $700 in about a month's time, not to mention just barely breaking even in Friday Night Poker. You would think this probably didn't help matters very much, but it actually changed me.
These cash poker games are very aggressive. Sitting down with under-sized chip stacks and losing $700 over the course of about 12 hours opened my eyes to the fact that not only could I sit in there with big players, but I'm just on the cusp of being a big player myself. I feel like I'm very close and I learned that the #1 thing I'm missing is the thing I love most about poker - poker psychology.
I'm missing most of the tells and giving off most of them back to my opponents. I'm still an open book and my cards are still see-thru, but not for long. I had a chance lunch meeting with at attorney who just played in the WSOP main event and he placed in the top 10%, getting him into the money. We hit it off instantly and he recommended that I read Caro's Book of Poker Tells. In fact, he had it delivered to my office a couple of days later and I read it for the first time that night. Yes - I read it cover-to-cover that first night. I couldn't believe how badly I was crippling my game by giving off and not recognizing obvious tells.
So, last night I was playing Friday Night Poker with the guys and I spent most of the evening watching for tells. I still didn't win either game last night, but I did pick up some tells that saved me a lot of chips. One guy was sizing up his chip stack after seeing the flop. He had a good hand and I folded. He had me beat. Good fold. Another guy saw the flop and immediately glanced down at his chips - huge tell. Then, to add to it, he appeared to be indecisive as to whether or not to bet. That made up my mind to fold - good fold. He had it. Then, my favorite one took a little friendly manipulation on my part. I had pocket J's and the flop was all cards lower than jack, so was the turn. I bet fairly big and was raised on the flop and the turn. So, I said to the other guy, "I have a pretty big pocket pair, so if you're raising me, you must have an even bigger pair." It took a few seconds before he couldn't hold in his smile. It took even less time for me to fold my Jacks and he had pocket Kings. I'll keep watching for tells and I'm going to read the book a couple of more times too.
Finally, tonight I sat down to play a Full Tilt Poker tournament (90 players) and for the 21st time this year, I made it to the final table and ended up in 4th place. I was pretty happy with that outcome. My game purpose was to get back to "basics". I tightened back up some and primarily played a range of about 15 to 20 starting hands. I raised about 30% of the time that I bet, made some good position bets, and put in some strategic bluffs that paid off. I even loosened up a couple of times to suck out on the river, which I guess you have to be able to do sometimes. Tonight, I just needed to be reminded that I could still get it done if I needed to back away from the game transformation. But then, what am I really thinking? Back away from the game transformation? Now, I have a "range" of acceptable starting hands, a calculated % of raises, strategic position bets and bluffs. My game is evolving to a mix of tight and loose, aggressive and calculated.
I have no idea where my game will go next, but I do know one thing: I'm very competitive and there is nothing that I hate worse than losing at poker. But poker energizes me, so I'll weather the losing until I start winning consistently again. Hopefully a winning streak is coming.
Showing posts with label New Orleans Poker. Show all posts
Showing posts with label New Orleans Poker. Show all posts
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Texas Hold'em at Harrah's New Orleans
Generally speaking, I don't enjoy cash poker as much as I do tournament poker. Tournament poker is essentially "knock-out" poker, but cash poker is just that - CASH poker. Getting knocked out in cash poker means something entirely different - specifically, it means that you're broke.
The psychology of poker changes from tournament to cash poker too. In cash poker, guys (and girls) can force you to make decisions with all of your money. Mis-played hands can lead to going broke very quickly. Two days ago, at the Harrah's Casino, in New Orleans, I played beside a young guy that was throwing $100's down like they were $1's. I wanted to try and keep track of the money he was losing, but I lost count at around $800, and he was still there after I left.
I've played poker and won at the Bellagio. I've been up an down at the Chumash in Santa Ynez, California. The Winstar, in Oklahoma, is still keeping a few hundred dollars of mine warm. But my time at Harrah's New Orleans is by far the most memorable poker I've ever played. The Bellagio is my favorite venue so far, but the experience in New Orleans was the most educational poker I've ever played.
I played $1 / $2 No Limit Hold'em starting in the late afternoon / early evening. All day leading up to that, I didn't drink any alcohol. I took a power nap before walking to the casino. While I was attending the educational sessions earlier in the day, all I could think about was poker. This day, I was finally going to really get to do what I went to do - play uninterrupted poker (see my previous blog about Poker in New Orleans if you want those details).
So, I sat down at the table. I had a great spot at the very end of the table, to the right of the dealer. I could see everyone. I could watch and observe everything. Lots of people like to sit directly in front of the dealer, but not me. I want to see my opponents without needing to turn my head and make it so obvious. Immediately, I found out that this was going to be an aggressive table. Bet, raise, re-raise, fold (me).
There was a very old guy at the table, probably about 85 years old, give or take. He was the clear big stack at the table. He appeared to have about $1,000 in front of him when I sat down. Some smaller chip stacks at the table, at that time, averaged about $400 and the larger stacks (other than the old man) averaged about $600 or $700. Me? I sat down with $300 and an immediate and very obvious disadvantage.
Throughout the evening, I played at this table with around 25 different guys. Nobody sat down with less money that me. Many of them were locals and knew each other. Those guys clearly played together regularly. I heard several of them talking about something that happened last week and saying they would see each other again in a few days. It felt like that scene in rounders when Matt Damon and Ed Norton went to the casino and sat at a table with some other guys they knew and took money all night long from lesser players. Was I the lesser player? Probably.
In New Orleans, I played with some of the best players I've ever played with. Aggression was the theme of the table. No free cards. No limp-ins. But still, lots and lots of draw chasing. I couldn't believe all of the guys betting $50 or more after the turn, hoping to hit their draws on the river. It was really maddening. Once, I flopped 2 pairs and made big bets at each stage with 2 callers. After the river, I didn't believe my final opponent, so I bet, he raised, and I called. He hit his INSIDE straight. So sick!
The old man was taking everyone's money all night long. He was either hitting everything or he was bluffing often. I figured him for bluffing often. So, in another hand, I flopped 2 pairs and made a large bet. He called. There was an Ace on the flop (not one of my pairs). So, I had him on an Ace with a big kicker. Turn was insignificant. I bet, he called. River was even less significant. I bet, he raised, I re-raised all in. I won and I was up for the first time all night. (By the way, he had AQ off).
After that, I lost fairly consistently. I made bets, but ultimately my hands weren't good enough to continue calling ridiculous raises and re-raises. So, I donated quite a bit until I finally got pocket A's. Thank God for that hand because it kept me in the game for a few more hours. I played the way I had played all night long - relatively weak and irritated. I was the small blind. By the time the betting got back around to me, it was at $30, and I very uncomfortably just called. (Just the be clear, the only think actually uncomfortable was the idea of other people folding.)
Flop: A 2 2. Unless someone was holding pocket 2's, this hand was mine. I'm first to act. So I checked with that look of discomfort. Another guy bet $30 more and the guy on the button raised it to $50. I thought about my options (again very uncomfortably) and finally just called after what seemed to me like minutes, when it was actually only about 15 seconds. The other guy folded and it was heads up for the turn and the river. I checked the turn and "button boy" bet $40. I hesitantly called. The river came and I bet $40. By this point, I had about $65 left and "button boy" raised me all in. I VERY uncomfortably (wink, wink) called and said, "I hope you don't have pocket 2's."
He threw down 2 3 suited and was certain he won with a set of 2's until I showed my pocket rockets. Full House! I was up BIG at that point and the other guys at the table who seemed to all know him and each other gave him hell for the next couple of hands to follow. I tried to hold in my excitement, but I'm sure it showed in my shaky hands as I folded the next hand.
Later, I played A K off really big and got folds all around to win about $75. Other than that, I won some small hands and lost some small and big hands. I won't lie to you. By the end of my night, I was busted out. I walked away from that table with zero (although I still had plenty of money to throw back down if I chose to).
Here's the thing though. Even though I lost, in my 3 days there, $265 total, I sat at that table Tuesday night for 6 hours and played with some of the best players I've ever faced. It took these guys 6 hours to take me out and you better believe that I told them all that very thing as I was standing up with a smile on my face after being finished off by a pair of queens over my 10's. "Well guys, you got me. It took 6 hours though. You better practice up for next time." It got a good laugh, but I'm still smiling today - 2 days later.
I could have quit half way into my evening and been up relatively big. Then, my story would be about going to New Orleans and winning. That would have been a good story, but this one is better. I never thought I would walk away a winner anyway. That's just me being honest. I wanted to sit back and play for hours and I got to do that. What I realized throughout the evening is that I just wanted to stay in the game and keep playing with these guys that were way better than me. I wanted to last as long as I could last. I stayed in the game for 6 hours. I didn't get up to go to the restroom. I didn't get up for drinks. The waitress brought me water and Sugar Free Red Bull throughout the night. The Chinese place delivered egg rolls to me at my table. I sat there and played undistracted poker for 6 hours. I got my good plays in and I made some stupid plays. It was a great education in aggressive poker and I'm still smiling.
The psychology of poker changes from tournament to cash poker too. In cash poker, guys (and girls) can force you to make decisions with all of your money. Mis-played hands can lead to going broke very quickly. Two days ago, at the Harrah's Casino, in New Orleans, I played beside a young guy that was throwing $100's down like they were $1's. I wanted to try and keep track of the money he was losing, but I lost count at around $800, and he was still there after I left.
I've played poker and won at the Bellagio. I've been up an down at the Chumash in Santa Ynez, California. The Winstar, in Oklahoma, is still keeping a few hundred dollars of mine warm. But my time at Harrah's New Orleans is by far the most memorable poker I've ever played. The Bellagio is my favorite venue so far, but the experience in New Orleans was the most educational poker I've ever played.
I played $1 / $2 No Limit Hold'em starting in the late afternoon / early evening. All day leading up to that, I didn't drink any alcohol. I took a power nap before walking to the casino. While I was attending the educational sessions earlier in the day, all I could think about was poker. This day, I was finally going to really get to do what I went to do - play uninterrupted poker (see my previous blog about Poker in New Orleans if you want those details).
So, I sat down at the table. I had a great spot at the very end of the table, to the right of the dealer. I could see everyone. I could watch and observe everything. Lots of people like to sit directly in front of the dealer, but not me. I want to see my opponents without needing to turn my head and make it so obvious. Immediately, I found out that this was going to be an aggressive table. Bet, raise, re-raise, fold (me).
There was a very old guy at the table, probably about 85 years old, give or take. He was the clear big stack at the table. He appeared to have about $1,000 in front of him when I sat down. Some smaller chip stacks at the table, at that time, averaged about $400 and the larger stacks (other than the old man) averaged about $600 or $700. Me? I sat down with $300 and an immediate and very obvious disadvantage.
Throughout the evening, I played at this table with around 25 different guys. Nobody sat down with less money that me. Many of them were locals and knew each other. Those guys clearly played together regularly. I heard several of them talking about something that happened last week and saying they would see each other again in a few days. It felt like that scene in rounders when Matt Damon and Ed Norton went to the casino and sat at a table with some other guys they knew and took money all night long from lesser players. Was I the lesser player? Probably.
In New Orleans, I played with some of the best players I've ever played with. Aggression was the theme of the table. No free cards. No limp-ins. But still, lots and lots of draw chasing. I couldn't believe all of the guys betting $50 or more after the turn, hoping to hit their draws on the river. It was really maddening. Once, I flopped 2 pairs and made big bets at each stage with 2 callers. After the river, I didn't believe my final opponent, so I bet, he raised, and I called. He hit his INSIDE straight. So sick!
The old man was taking everyone's money all night long. He was either hitting everything or he was bluffing often. I figured him for bluffing often. So, in another hand, I flopped 2 pairs and made a large bet. He called. There was an Ace on the flop (not one of my pairs). So, I had him on an Ace with a big kicker. Turn was insignificant. I bet, he called. River was even less significant. I bet, he raised, I re-raised all in. I won and I was up for the first time all night. (By the way, he had AQ off).
After that, I lost fairly consistently. I made bets, but ultimately my hands weren't good enough to continue calling ridiculous raises and re-raises. So, I donated quite a bit until I finally got pocket A's. Thank God for that hand because it kept me in the game for a few more hours. I played the way I had played all night long - relatively weak and irritated. I was the small blind. By the time the betting got back around to me, it was at $30, and I very uncomfortably just called. (Just the be clear, the only think actually uncomfortable was the idea of other people folding.)
Flop: A 2 2. Unless someone was holding pocket 2's, this hand was mine. I'm first to act. So I checked with that look of discomfort. Another guy bet $30 more and the guy on the button raised it to $50. I thought about my options (again very uncomfortably) and finally just called after what seemed to me like minutes, when it was actually only about 15 seconds. The other guy folded and it was heads up for the turn and the river. I checked the turn and "button boy" bet $40. I hesitantly called. The river came and I bet $40. By this point, I had about $65 left and "button boy" raised me all in. I VERY uncomfortably (wink, wink) called and said, "I hope you don't have pocket 2's."
He threw down 2 3 suited and was certain he won with a set of 2's until I showed my pocket rockets. Full House! I was up BIG at that point and the other guys at the table who seemed to all know him and each other gave him hell for the next couple of hands to follow. I tried to hold in my excitement, but I'm sure it showed in my shaky hands as I folded the next hand.
Later, I played A K off really big and got folds all around to win about $75. Other than that, I won some small hands and lost some small and big hands. I won't lie to you. By the end of my night, I was busted out. I walked away from that table with zero (although I still had plenty of money to throw back down if I chose to).
Here's the thing though. Even though I lost, in my 3 days there, $265 total, I sat at that table Tuesday night for 6 hours and played with some of the best players I've ever faced. It took these guys 6 hours to take me out and you better believe that I told them all that very thing as I was standing up with a smile on my face after being finished off by a pair of queens over my 10's. "Well guys, you got me. It took 6 hours though. You better practice up for next time." It got a good laugh, but I'm still smiling today - 2 days later.
I could have quit half way into my evening and been up relatively big. Then, my story would be about going to New Orleans and winning. That would have been a good story, but this one is better. I never thought I would walk away a winner anyway. That's just me being honest. I wanted to sit back and play for hours and I got to do that. What I realized throughout the evening is that I just wanted to stay in the game and keep playing with these guys that were way better than me. I wanted to last as long as I could last. I stayed in the game for 6 hours. I didn't get up to go to the restroom. I didn't get up for drinks. The waitress brought me water and Sugar Free Red Bull throughout the night. The Chinese place delivered egg rolls to me at my table. I sat there and played undistracted poker for 6 hours. I got my good plays in and I made some stupid plays. It was a great education in aggressive poker and I'm still smiling.
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