Crazy Night on Full Tilt Poker

I've been playing around with $100 on Full Tilt Poker this week.  For the most part, I would say I've been up and down and with some huge swings.  Admittedly, I've been playing .10 / .25 tables, but my online cash game abilities need some work before I put in a lot of money.

I started the night being down 50% with just $50 of my original $100 remaining.  So, I decided to play 2 tables simultaneously ($25 each).  Everything was going along pretty well until I went all in with 2 pairs AQ on one table and lost to a sick set of 10's.  Didn't see that coming!

So, I was down to 1 table and by this time, just about $14 or $15 remaining.  30 minutes later, all hell broke lose and I was up over $75.  In 5 hands, I hit a full house and 2 Straight Flushes that were both 9 thru K.

As you can see, the 2nd was even on the flop and I only won .57 cents.  The 1st was the best because my opponent hit a full house and he called my all-in bet.

When I hit the full house, I actually picked up a set of 4's on the flop and then the board paired.  With that set, I had it all the way, but the guy I beat for quite a bit of money completely went on tilt.  This is him:

He made such as special (although completely ineffective) effort to piss me off and get me off of my game for the next 10 minutes that I thought I should memorialize him here.  At this point, half of the money I was playing with came from him anyways, so how could I be upset at him for being a total jerk afterwards.  It's safe to say that HE didn't see THAT coming either.

Anyways, I finished with $74 for the night and now I'm only down $26 for the week.  What a crazy night!

Texas Hold'em Game Transformation

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.

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.

Poker in New Orleans

I'm so excited because I'm leaving tomorrow for a 4 day business conference in New Orleans.  I should get to my hotel around 4pm, listen to a speaker, and then hit the casino.  My hotel is 0.2 miles from Harrah's.  My plan is simple and relaxing:  put $200 on the table, kick back, and fold hand after hand until I get good starting hands.  No mid-level hands.  Sure as heck no low hands.  Pocket pairs, suited face cards, AK, probably AQ, maybe even 10 J suited.  I won't have to rush.  I can play as long as I feel like playing.  My co-workers won't need to wonder where I am if I'm not with them.  Just find me at the poker room at the Harrah's.  I hope there's plenty of coffee at the conference each morning and I'll need to find a place to buy sugar free Red Bull.

Where's Chris?  He was just standing right here.

Texas Holdem Game Adjustments

I haven't written anything in 2 or 3 weeks.  During that time, I have just broken even in Friday Night Poker, while having probably my 2nd worst game streak in over a year.  My winning prior to that could best be described as total dominance, but I've been rattled by distractions that turned my poker brain upside-down.  Lately, when I've won, it's been ugly and when I've lost, it's been a result of stupid play and an utter disregard for my own personal "rules".  But, I've been lucky to break even.

I've used this down time as an opportunity to grow my game and I've made some mental adjustments that should be very helpful in the long-run.  I have been playing a lot of online cash poker and I spent a few hours in the poker room at the Winstar Casino.  I've also done my normal routine of watching every hand played on TV.  A primary adjustment that I'm making is aggressive betting - raising and re-raising, but not only with predictably good hands like, KK, QQ, AA, or JJ.  I've paid special attention to the game style of Tom Dwan.  Now, I understand that his style alone probably is not going to have long-term benefits, but it does serve as a nice change-up.  I might, for example, play 6-8 suited like it's a pair of Q's, especially in the right position.  Unpredictability is another game adjustment that I need to make.  This style of play should be particularly good for that change-up.

In the past, I've shown too many of my hands after winning hands and I've confirmed when other players called my hands correctly.  That has to stop.  From now on, I'll only show my hands if I feel that doing so has some strategic value.  Otherwise, you have to pay to see.

Finally, I'm going to try to play fewer overall hands.  I read once that Hellmuth said that you should only be in about 20% of flops.  So, I'm going to fold a little more often, but I also read that when betting, roughly 50% of bets should be raises so that you're not playing against so many opponents in a hand.  Both of these things will help me with unpredictability and aggressiveness.

Of course, we'll see how this ultimately plays out at the table.  The distractions are mostly gone now.  I'm acutely aware of my recent stupid game-play.  And, I've run my losing hands thru my head over and over and over again.  So, I think the winning should start back up again.  We'll see.

Stay tuned.

Texas Hold'em: To Be Great - Learn

I'm the kind of guy who has to eventually be great at something if I'm ever going to pick it up to start with.  I've always been this way.  It's no fun to be bad at things, so I will only pick something up if I think I have a chance to be great.  By "great," I mean being among the best (not necessarily THE best).

I started playing Texas Holdem about 3 years ago and at that time, I was just playing to hang out with the guys and have some fun.  I didn't know how much I would love it though.  In keeping with wanting to be among the best at things, I'm very competitive by nature.  That's just part of wanting to be great at things.

Anyways - poker.  I do want to be great at poker.  I still remember the first No Limit Hold'em "tournament" that I won.  There were 18 players at 2 tables.   I made the final table and eventually won.  I took a picture of all of the chips and I still have that picture.  That was it for me.  I beat some really good Holdem players that night and I wanted to win more.

Since that night, I've spent a lot of time playing poker and even more time studying poker (especially No Limit Texas Hold'em).  I realized very early that if I ever wanted to be great, I needed to seriously LEARN to play like great players.  To learn to be a really great poker player, I do all of the following things farely regularly.

1.  I play 3 live poker games every week.

2.  I watch poker almost every time it's on TV.  If I can't see it "live," I always record it to watch later.

3.  I search the internet for other poker blogs to learn about how others play and think about poker.

4.  I search the internet for poker educational sites.  There are lots of them out there that are really good.

5.  I study the guys that I play with and I pay close attention to the way they create success at the table.

6.  I spend time weekly reflecting on my own game.  I tend to be brutally honest with my own game play.

7.  I play online weekly at www.fulltiltpoker.com.  Playing several hundred hands per week keeps me on my game and improves my Friday Night Poker games.

8.  I even have a Texas Hold'em app on my Blackberry.

Texas Hold'em is like everything else when it comes to being great.  You have to learn the trade (so to speak), and there is a lot to learn:  The basic rules, winning hand hierarchy, basic and advanced strategies, statistical odds, and more.  This will take a lot of time, but if you really love doing anything, it's worth it.

Texas Hold'em: It Helps to Hit Good Cards

OK, so I said I was going to leave stupid at home last night when I went to play poker, and I did.  Looking back on the night, I can't remember one stupid move (on my part).  I was back to making calculated plays, at times even reminding myself not to play stupid.  There were 9 people there last night, whereas usually we have 8.  So, the card "rotation" was changed slightly.  We also used 2 new decks.  I'm not necessarily saying that these 2 factors had anything significant to do with the outcome of the games because we had winners in all 3 games.  I'm just pointing out that we had some (minor) changes last night.

What I am saying is that sometimes even if you avoid playing stupid, you still need to get good cards at least some of the time.  You need good cards in your hand with matching good cards on the board (at least sometimes).  Last night, I got junk hole cards in what seemed like 80% of my hands.  In statistics there is a term called "mode".  This is the thing that happens most frequently - not an average - just the thing that happens more often that anything else.  Well unbelievably, my "mode" cards were 2-7 off.  I got that ugly combination 4 times in the 2nd game and 3 times in the 1st game.  I also got 2-7 suited twice.  Ordinarily that wouldn't necessarily be such a big deal because that kind of stuff happens.  However, on top of getting 2 7 nine times, I also got just about every junk card combination you can think of.  8-2, 9-2, 9-3, 8-3, 6-3, and on and on and on.

An undisciplined player might get tired of folding and just start playing those cards.  Believe me, it was tempting, but then what?  Those are the worst statistical starting hands in poker.  You could get lucky from time to time, but more often than not, you're just going to lose.  I played patiently, folding one hand after another.  And, I played frustrated, which like I've said before, is part of the formula to losing.  I would occasionally get some decent starting hands:  Q-J off, J-J, 9-10 suited, A-7 suited.  Those never worked out for me though.  It just wasn't my night.  In Texas Hold'em, even the best players (and I am not one of those guys yet) need to get cards to at least build some momentum.

So, I got off the short-lived losing streak in game 3 with a win, but it wasn't very significant to me.  Only 5 of us stayed for the final game, so I only had to deal with 4 other players instead of 8.  I started hitting cards with a smaller card rotation and 1 of the guys had more than a few beers in games 1 and 2, so getting his chips wasn't the hardest thing I've ever had to do.  It was a win, but it wasn't a good win.