Sticking to my plan

Well, sort of.

My plan was to play $2/$4 limit hold'em (full-ring) because I think that this is my best game. Also, my focus is not there to deal with playing no limit. This worked out reasonably well over the weekend, where I played a decent amount of $2/$4 limit and won at a rate of about 5 BB/100 hands.

The second part of my plan was to play more heads up SNGs at Poker Stars. This has worked out quite well, and I would guess that I am winning about 75% of these right now. I literally won all seven SNGs that I played yesterday (I lost my first one today). I would have built up quite a nice stack at Poker Stars, except that I deviated from my plan and I lost a bunch playing short-handed no limit. This reminded me to stick to my plan.

Random, bad thoughts

My run of bad poker continues, although I think my run of bad luck is over. After playing great last weekend, I feel like a complete donkey right now when it comes to no limit. It's as if I have amnesia. Seriously, I had a game plan last week. I would play certain cards, a certain way, from a certain position. This week, I can't even remember what that game plan was.

It's definitely time to take a break from no limit. Although I was playing no limit last weekend, I really feel like limit hold'em is my best game. To me, limit is more of a mathematical game where you must play your cards correctly according to the math. Math is certainly one of my strengths.

With that in mind, I bought into a $3/$6 limit (6-max) game on Friday. I played great and I doubled my buy-in VERY quickly. I quit quickly too, but that was pre-planned (I only had about 30 minutes to play). I played a little more on Friday night ($1/$2 limit), but I had no focus at all. I literally spent most of the session surfing the internet, trying to find songs to sing to my daughter (On top of spaghetti...).

Yesterday, I started playing heads-up SNGs at Stars again. My stack there was somewhere around $8 (I donked it all away playing no limit earlier in the week), so I had to win my first one or I'd have to redeposit. I won my first four and I eventually built my stack up near $35. This is all inconsequentual, of course, but at least I got the feeling of winning. My stack right now sits at $25 after I lost a $10+0.50 SNG last night when my opponent hit a one-outer on the river. I had J9 and flopped top pair. He pushed on the river (nine of clubs) and I called with my two pair. He held 99.

I also played about 150 hands of $3/$6 limit (6-max) and this time I played as if I were on tilt the entire time. Perhaps it was because I was playinig above my bankroll, but I was stressed and tense the entire session. I think most people play timid in these situations, but I play like a maniac. As a result, I lost a bunch, almost the size of my win from Friday.

Last night, I played some full-ring $2/$4 limit. I played like a complete donkey for about 75 hands, losing somewhere around $75. For whatever reason, I simply did not care about the money or playing correctly.

Eventually, though, I forced myself to focus and I won a few key pots. In one, I limped from late position with Jc Qc and I won a 4-way pot when the flop came Q-high with two clubs. The third club didn't come, which was good because I was against someone chasing the nut flush.

I then won another big pot against a donkey who held 22 and played it like they were aces. I had Ad Jd and the flop was Jc Xd Xd, giving me TPTK plus the nut flush draw. The turn brought another jack, and the donkey re-raised me until he was all in. The river was a blank and I finished that hand up $5 for the session. I quit soon after that, glad to have recovered my loss.

I write this blog to help me mentally process my poker play. While writing this particular entry, I've developed my game plan for the next few sessions. First, I am comfortable playing $2/$4 limit, so I think I'll play that. Second, I need to get my confidence back, so I am going to play more heads up SNGs.

Bad Play, Bad Beats

I have a theory that when I am playing badly... that I suffer more bad beats. This theory is based on table image, in part. Most of my opponents recognize that I am playing like a donkey, so they don't give me any respect, making them more likely to call and catch their two-outer.

There are two things that I know for sure: (1) I am playing poorly, and (2) I am taking some seriously bad beats. I have had four all-ins called by people who flopped top pair vs. my overpair, only to have them catch trips on the turn. Crap! I had another big hand where I flopped three kings (I held KQ) only to get outdrawn by someone holding K4.

To summarize the brutality, I have lost about $150 at Party Poker, $50 at Poker Stars, $30 at UltimateBet, and $60 at Pacific. I have since recovered about $30 at Pacific. Luckily, I haven't played at Full Tilt, or I am sure that I would have lost there too.

I apologize for this being such a boring blog, but it's hard to write anything interesting when I am losing this badly.

Running Good

After clearing the Party Poker reload bonus over the weekend, I continued to play the $50 NL equivalanet at Full Tilt Poker. Most people think that the games at FTP are much tougher than at Party Poker, and I must admit that I do also. Considering that I primarily play for fun, a tougher game at relatively low stakes is actually a good thing for me -- I play for the challenge.

Not to brag, but right now my game is as good as it has ever been. I have continued to win at Full Tilt, although not at the ridiculous rate that I was winning at Party Poker. This recent winning streak is over about the last 2000 hands, so some might claim that I am just getting lucky. Certainly that is part of it, but I also know that I am playing well. I am the aggressor in virtually all of the hands that I am playing and I usually have position. I am avoiding tough decisions and I am waiting my opponents to make mistakes.

During this hot streak, I have not been perfect. Yesterday, for example, I flopped bottom set on a flop of A Q T and I pushed all-in... only to get called by JK. Doh!

Needless to say, I am quite excited by this recent run. I have not had many hot streaks over the last year (for proof, read my entire blog... if you have 50 hours with nothing better to do) and this one is most welcome.

My current plan is to start playing at UltimateBet. I have a very short bankroll there but a lot of bonus to clear, which is something that I cannot say about Full Tilt or Party Poker.

Swimming with the Fishes

I continue to pursue Party's reload bonus. Prior to yesterday, I had played strictly $50 NL (6-max) and I had been winning at a nice rate.

Yesterday, my wife had to work, leaving me to take care of our daughter. She's an "easy" baby, so that left me plenty of time to play cards. Unfortunately, it didn't give me enough time to focus carefully on everything going on at the table, so I played $0.50/$1.00 LHE instead. The play at these tables was brutally bad and I matched them donkey move for donkey move during the first 75 hands. This got me stuck about $15. I started playing better and eventually got back to even, actually winning $0.50 for about 300 hands of play. Stellar poker, I know.

After my wife returned, I played for about 30 minutes at the $50 NL (two tabling). My third hand, I was dealt QQ on the button. I made a good raise, which was called by the big blind. The flop came ten-high and I made another bet, which was called. The turn was a blank and I got check-raised, after which I pushed all-in because I was essentially pot-committed at this point. The river was another ten, and he too the pot with his AT.

Here is where it got weird. I then typed in "nice catch donkey" and another guy at the table started spewing all sorts of obnoxious comments at me. I kind of egged him on a bit, I must admit, but I said nothing profane or offensive. Next thing I know, he starts talking about all sorts of things that should be done to my wife. Things that usually involve tribunals investigating war crimes (seriously nasty stuff). I don't offend easily, but this guy crossed a line. I actually reported him to Party Poker support.

Anyway, so I was stuck $25 (I usually buy-in for half of the maximum) before my session really even started. After that, I started grinding away and building both of my stacks slowly. I had maybe $35 in my other room when I was dealt AA under-the-gun.

Here is where I really don't like playing short-handed tables. I am out of position with a great hand; I'd love to limp and trap someone who raises from late position. This is much more likely to happen in a full-ring game, so usually I raise in short-handed games with AA from UTG and I take down a small pot. This time, however, I merely limped, promising myself that I'd play VERY carefully after the flop. I got very lucky, however, as the cutoff raised and was called by the button and the big blind. I then had to figure out how much to re-raise. I figured that if I pushed all-in that all three of them would fold and I'd win a small pot. I decided that I'd be happy with that result, so I pushed all-in. I got very lucky when the button called with his TT and he did not improve. So, in this rather short session, I went from -$25 to +$25. Variance is fun!

Late last night I had another short session where I found myself at a crazy table. I kept getting raised and re-raised all-in. I played very tight, one time folding TT on a board that was eight-high (my opponent flashed AA). I picked one spot to call when I raised with AK from the button and got re-raised by the big blind (I called). The flop was Kc 7c X. My opponent made a pot-sized bet and I pushed all-in. He started typing about how stupid it was to push with a flush draw (I guess he was hoping I'd tell him something about my hand) and then called with AJ (no clubs). I am sure that I could have made a good chunk of money at this table, but I was tired so I just went to bed.

By the way, now that this blog is being cross-posted at TPF, please feel free to e-mail me comments, criticisms, or questions to frazwood@yahoo.com. If it's a legitimate message, I'll respond via e-mail, or if it's interesting enough... via my blog (you'll remain anonymous in the blog).

Edit: I just finished clearing the Party reload bonus. While clearing the bonus, I ran ridiculously good and had some ridiculous stats:
$50 NL: 1040 hands, +$296, 28.5 PTBB/100 hands
$25 NL: 54 hands, +$13.30, 49.3 PTBB/100 hands
$0.50/$1.00: 373 hands, +$0.50, +0.1 BB/100 hands

Chasing a Party Poker Reload Bonus

Party Poker offered an account-specific reload yesterday -- I was lucky enough to get 25% up to $100. This was was enough of an enticement to pull me away from the heads-up matches at Poker Stars (truthfully, I was getting sick of them).

My goal for this reload period (1000 raked hands) was to play well and actually win. I am one of the worst bonus whores in the history of online poker. I usually lose about as much money as the value of the reload. I focus too much on clearing the bonus rather than playing solid poker. Hence, my goal.

I played about 250 hands last night of $50 NL, winning somewhere around $65. I was working at the same time and I honestly have no recollection of any interesting hands. Tonight, I have found myself two really soft tables of $50 NL (I am playing as I write). I spent the first 125 hands folding and bluffing because I was entirely card dead. I was somewhere +/- $5 at that point. And then my "big hand" came up. I flopped top pair and a flush draw and checked because I was first to act. I pushed all-in when the button overbet the pot. I figured that I was beat when I failed to improve, but I was lucky and the donkey called my all-in with a straight draw. After that, I won a couple more good sized pots and I was on my way to another nice winning session. As of right now, I am about 50% of the way to clearing the bonus and I have met my goal so far of play solid poker while bonus chasing.

$50 NL Texas Hold'em - Friday, January 20, 21:33:31 EDT 2006
Table Table 65529 (6 max) (Real Money)
Seat 3 is the button
Total number of players : 6
Seat 1: dinn333 ( $22.20 )
Seat 4: frazwood ( $48.50 )
Seat 5: fsmkramer ( $70.25 )
Seat 6: Scorpio79 ( $18.78 )
Seat 3: survivor_7 ( $56.10 )
Seat 2: donkey ( $27.82 )
frazwood posts small blind [$0.25].
fsmkramer posts big blind [$0.50].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to frazwood [ Qs 2s ]
Scorpio79 folds.
dinn333 folds.
donkey calls [$0.50].
survivor_7 calls [$0.50].
frazwood calls [$0.25].
fsmkramer checks.
** Dealing Flop ** [ Qh, Ts, 4s ]
frazwood checks.
fsmkramer checks.
donkey bets [$5].
survivor_7 folds.
frazwood: should i gamble? votes please
gqholyboi: yes
frazwood: lets go
frazwood is all-In [$48]
survivor_7: Y
fsmkramer folds.
donkey is all-In [$22.32]
** Dealing Turn ** [ 6c ]
** Dealing River ** [ 5c ]
donkey shows [ Js, 9c ] high card queen.
frazwood shows [ Qs, 2s ] a pair of queens.

Heads Up Poker

One of the great things about internet poker is the ease with which you can play different games. A game that I enjoy playing from time to time is the “Heads-Up” sit-n-go. I discovered these several months ago when my bankroll was short at Full Tilt Poker. I immediately realized that these were a great way to build a bankroll. If you played well, then you could easily pick your spots and have a very high win rate. There were fewer suck-outs than ring games and normal SNGs. Heads up SNGs also allow you to gain a lot of experience very quickly. From these games, I obtained a greater appreciation for the power of position and how to play cards that are less than premium hands.

Although I initially did great at these games, I soon burned out and started playing horribly. I was trying to run over my opponents rather than pick my spots. After a several month hiatus, I started playing heads-up again this week – this time at Poker Stars. I have been playing $5+$0.25 SNGs and I’d guess that I am winning about 70% of them right now. The biggest improvement in my game is that I am playing less aggressively. I am betting more like a normal game, somewhere in the range of half to 75% of the pot size (or maybe a little bigger). This allows me to apply pressure to my opponent while not risking too much of my stack.

My cynical side also enjoys watching bad players make horrible moves. Many of the people at TPF absolutely hate “donkey of the week” posts, but I love them. (Aside: I must admit that I am afraid that one of these days someone will post a “donkey of the week” and it’ll be frazwood. Certainly, I’m capable of playing that badly.) Anyway, I had this hand this morning. I am not sure if my push with a 3-flush on the board was that great, but I know that calling with a Q-high flush draw (and an inside straight draw) was a really bad idea.

Table One on One
Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: frazwood (1750 in chips)
Seat 2: donkey (1250 in chips)
frazwood: posts small blind 10
donkey: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to frazwood [Ts Qh]
frazwood: raises 40 to 60
donkey: raises 80 to 140
frazwood: calls 80
*** FLOP *** [3d Jd 8c]
donkey: bets 120
frazwood: calls 120
*** TURN *** [3d Jd 8c] [9d]
donkey: bets 160
frazwood: raises 1330 to 1490 and is all-in
donkey: calls 830 and is all-in
*** RIVER *** [3d Jd 8c 9d] [9s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
donkey: shows [Qd 5h] (a pair of Nines)
frazwood: shows [Ts Qh] (a straight, Eight to Queen)

I have read very little about heads up strategy, so I had to develop my own -- although I doubt that it's anything earth-shattering. Preflop: I am loose-aggressive with the button; I am a little tighter but much more passive when I am the big blind. Post-Flop: I am loose-aggressive when I have the button and tight-aggressive when I don't. My purpose of this strategy is to put myself into a position to outplay my opponent after the flop. This is much easier when you are the aggressor when you have position; alternatively, out of position, you need a better hand.

Out of context

My last blog was posted at www.thepokerforum.com, which is kind of weird because I had written it for audience of one (i.e., me; it's my poker journal). Just in case my audience increases in size, I figure it might be a good idea to tell my "poker story".

In April 2004, I convinced my wife to let me deposit money into an online poker room. I knew nothing about poker except that I enjoyed playing it. I literally began with a google search, and found Pacific Poker. I played at the play money tables for awhile and then attempted and failed to make a real money deposit.

I did not try to play online poker until later that summer when a friend mentioned that he played at Party Poker and that he could transfer $50 to my account. I lost that $50 in about a week. I had him transfer another $50 and I lost that in about a week. At this point, I figured out how to set up an IGMPAY account and I repeated this process twice more.

Finally, I decided to purchase a poker book: Phil Hellmuth's Play Poker Like the Pros. Although most people hate this book, it was perfect for me (at that time) in that it taught me the importance of playing a tight-aggressive style. My wife let me deposit another $50 into Party with the stipulation that it be my last poker deposit ever. In fact, our agreement also includes a stipulation that she gets to keep all of my poker winnings -- so I literally play poker for fun.

Armed with just this a little bit of knowledge, I started winning at Party's $0.50/$1.00 limit hold'em tables. Within a week, I had built myself a decent bankroll. Since then I have slowly won over time, eventually playing stakes as high as $10/$20 (limit). These days, my bankroll is much smaller. I merely enjoy playing poker and I don't necessarily need the heartache of losing $500 in a day. This probably affects my poker playing as I often lose focus at the table, but I feel like I can play very well when I am properly motivated.

Strange poker facts about me: (1) I have used my poker winnings to purchase a Dyson Vacuum and a set of knives for my wife, (2) I have never cashed in a poker tournament with more than 30 people, (3) the largest pot I have ever won was $250; this happened twice, both times with JQs, (4) the largest pot that I have ever lost was $850 (i.e., $425 of my money) in a pot-limit hold'em game where I bluffed into an opponent holding 9 4 and a board of J J J 9 2 (I had KQ), and (5) I recently played with someone at Full Tilt Poker who claims that I am the worst poker player in the history of the game. Apparently, he and his friends call a bad poker move as "pulling a Frazwood".

Today's Poker Update: I have not played hardly at all today. My wife is sick and I have been babysitting all day. I have tried playing poker while holding my daughter, but she's constantly telling me to raise and it gets annoying (she's only 3 months old).

OOPS!

Last night I made another attempt at $100 NL at Party. I played absolutely great for about 90 hands (up $15), then I lost patience and called an all-in with AK on a queen-high flop. Oops. I don't know why I do things like that. I then lost another $50 during the next 30 hands. At least I was smart enough to quit after that. I played another short session of $100 NL today and I won about $10.

In other poker news, I have started rebuilding my stack at both Poker Stars and Pacific Poker. At Stars, I was down to about $10 as of yesterday. I played a little no limit (blinds = $0.05/$0.10) and built the stack up to $17. Then, I played some heads up SNGs and built it up from there. My stack is now a few pennies below $40. It should be a few pennies below $30, but I had a fantastic suck-out. I pushed all-in with KT with a board of 22T8. My opponent held J2. The river was a ten, and that was pretty much it (he was hopelessly short-stacked).

At Pacific, my stack has been as low as $10 in the past. I had it around $38 until today, where I've been playing 6-max limit holdem ($0.50/$1.00). My stack right now is around $70. This is of little consequence, really, although I think it's interesting. I am not even sure if they'll let me cash out. I originally deposited some cash and then immediately cashed it out, leaving me with my bonus ($100) to play with. The catch was that I could not cash it out unless I wagered $2000 with 60 days. Those 60 days have long since passed but I am now finally get close to clearing the $2000 stipulation. Once I do, I'll cash out and see what happens.

A dumb idea: $100 NL

I have had two more sessions at $100 NL and both have been successful. I played about 70 hanbds yesterday afternoon and I won $100. I played another 70 hands last night and I won another $55.

My strategy is pretty simple: wait for premium hands in position, play them aggressively preflop and on the flop and get a read on my opponents. At this level, many of them are so aggressive that you don't have to bet your hands to win. They'll do it for you.

I had a hand yesterday that summarizes this nicely. I called a button-raise from the big blind with AJs (2-handed). The flop is ten high and I call a smallish bet. The turn is a jack and I bet and call the minimum raise. The river is an ace, giving my top two pair and I simply cannot put him on KQ. I check and he bets $20 into a $16 pot and I call. He had T8 and was trying to run me over. This hand is one I am familar with, usually because I am the guy with T8 trying to run over the guy with the better hand.

So far, my stats at $100 NL are just sick. In 180 hands, I've won $312 for a win rate of 87 PT BB's per 100 hands. Besides being a ridiculously small sample size, there is no way that can continue. It helps that I have yet to lose a pot where I've risked more than $10.

A horseshoe up my butt

After playing really well lately, I have decided to be a complete donkey. I have lost my focus and I am simply going through the motions at the poker table. My basic problem is that I win for awhile and then I don't care until I lose what I won. For example, two days ago... I played great and won a bunch at Full Tilt and Ultimatebet. Yesterday and today, I pissed most of it away playing like a donkey.

This evening, I decided to play a single table of $1/$2 limit at FTP. I played well at first, but then I started to make donkey moves. It's totally a lack of patience.

The cure for this problem is to quit. Instead, I decided to play a 6-max $100 NL game. I bought in for $50, which is my usual. I only played 30 hands, which was enough for me to triple my stack. Here are the key hands:

Hand #2

Dealt 77 in the small blind. The button raises to $4; I call. The flop is As Js 4h. I check; he bets $4; I check raise to $12; he calls. The river is 7h. I go all-in; he calls with Ac Td. I double up.

Hand#3

It's folded to me on the button; I raise to $4 with A9o. The big blind calls. The flop is 7 5 3 (rainbow). He bets $3; I call. The turn is a 2. He bets $3; I call. The river is a 4. He bets $7 with K3o; I call with my wheel.

Hand#14
It's raised to $4; I call from the big blind with 56s. The flop is 6 5 5. He bets $5; I call. The turn is a 2. He bets $25; I raise all-in; he calls with QQ. The river is a brick. He complains that I called with such trash.

Hand #24
There's one limper when I raise to $4 from the button. The small blind, big blind, and limper call. The flop is Qd Jd 7h. It's checked to me; I bet $10 into a $13 pot; the small blind calls. The turn is Kh; I bet $25 and the small blind calls. The river is a blank; I check; he flips over AA.

Good Luck and Better Luck

After posting a blog this morning, I proceeded to get myself stuck $50 playing $1/$2 6-max. I played some hands poorly, missed some flops on hands that I played aggressively, etc. Eventually, though, I started to catch some cards and I managed to win back $30 of the losses.

At lunchtime, I played some more and this time I caught cards from the beginning. I managed to quickly win about $23, thus ending my day at party Poker +$1.25 or so. Not a big deal, really, but after being stuck $50... it was a great comeback.

Later in the day, I decided that my limit 6-max game is really "on" right now, and I really wanted to take a crack at $2/$4. Unfortunately, Party doesn't offer this game (at least last time I checked), so that meant I had to play the game at Full Tilt where I have a rather short stack. It was a bad idea, but like I said... I am "on" right now. I played a short session and I caught cards and I won $50 in 20 hands (ridiculous, I know).

Tonight, I wanted to continue playing at 6-max limit. I didn't really want to play at Party (I always play there) and I didn't want to play at FTP (I still don't have the bankroll for $2/$4). So, I played at UltimateBet, where I played $1/$2 even though I really only have the bankroll for $0.50/$1.00.

Luckily, this session could not have gone better. I won virtually every hand I played. My opponents called or raised when I had strong hands and they folded when I bluffed with weak hands. I flopped trips twice defending my big blind against an overly aggressive donk in the small blind. Seriously, this was a perfect session. I played well; I caught cards; and my opponents seemed to do exactly what I wanted them to do. I won about $50 in 75 hands.

In short, this was one of my better days of poker in a long long time. I won about $100, which adds nicely to my bankroll. If this keeps up, then I might have to cash out actually winnings (i.e., not merely bonus money).

Good Luck & Bad Luck

I won almost $50 yesterday getting extremely lucky (mistakes made by my opponents helped). I won a hand with AQ vs AK when I caught an ace on the turn (my opponent failed to raise) and a queen on the river.

My luck so far today has already been much worse. My first hand, I was dealt KJo. I called a raise and three of use saw the flop, which was Q Q T. I raised the original raiser, hoping to get him to fold. The raiser folded, but the other person called. I bet the turn when I caught an ace. I got bet into on the river and my opponent merely called when I raised. He flipped over QT. Now, I did not play this hand great, but not horribly either. My opponent played it worse, clearly, as he played it scared and did not raise me on either the turn or river.

Quick Update and Donkey of the Day

After having a successful weekend of playing poker, I managed to piss away virtually all of my profits last night in a short period that combined bad play, tilt, and bad beats. That's poker. Oh well. I don't plan on playing much today and if I do... I am going to stick to limit.

I have already cleared my minimum play requirements at Party Poker (gets me Party bonus points for free crap that I don't even want). This was a fantastic session where I won $34.66 in only 42 hands of 6-max $1/$2 limit. The following hand is an example of how not to play poker.

The lessons to be learned from this hand are:
1. Don't call a raise with 62s from the small blind.
2. Don't call a bet with middle pair, two kicker when the pot was raised preflop.
3. When you hit the miracle two pair on the turn, RAISE!
4. When the board pairs on the river, killing your two pair, don't bet!

I nominate this guy for donkey of the week.

$1/$2 Texas Hold'em - Monday, January 09, 14:00:48 EDT 2006
Table Table 80103 (6 max) (Real Money)
Seat 3 is the button
Total number of players : 6
Seat 1: Roman79 ( $54.25 )
Seat 2: King_Holdem ( $27.70 )
Seat 3: Alf_Svensson ( $19 )
Seat 4: runintables ( $83 )
Seat 6: vh17aland ( $43.90 )
Seat 5: frazwood ( $77.41 )
runintables posts small blind [$0.50].
frazwood posts big blind [$1].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to frazwood [ Qs Ac ]
vh17aland folds.
Roman79 raises [$2].
King_Holdem folds.
Alf_Svensson folds.
runintables calls [$1.50].
frazwood calls [$1].
** Dealing Flop ** [ Qc, 6d, 5d ]
runintables checks.
frazwood bets [$1].
Roman79 folds.
runintables calls [$1].
** Dealing Turn ** [ 2h ]
runintables checks.
frazwood bets [$2].
runintables calls [$2].
** Dealing River ** [ 5h ]
runintables bets [$2].
frazwood calls [$2].
runintables shows [ 6s, 2s ] two pairs, sixes and fives.
frazwood shows [ Qs, Ac ] two pairs, queens and fives.
frazwood wins $15.25 from the main pot with two pairs, queens and fives.

My Final PSO promotion?

I cleared the Sun Poker PSO promotion yesterday. I wonder if it will be my last promotion? I have only two left right now: The Gaming Club and Golden Palace. The Gaming Club requires 750 raked hands at $2/$4 (hardly seems like much of a bonus) and Golden Palace requires that I fax a picture ID, a sworn affidavit, and a note from my first grade teacher. In short, why bother?

With PSO out of the way, that leaves me with traditional bonus whoring. I have a bunch of bonus to clear at UltimateBet, but it clears slowly. I have a little to clear at Full Tilt, but again... it clears slowly. Ergo, I am pretty much jus "playing poker", which to be honest... is alot of fun right now. I am playing low stakes no limit at Party, UB, and FTP. I am playing pretty well and my bankroll is slowly climbing.

Sun Poker

I started another PSO promotion at Sun Poker today. I hope to patiently clear this promotion -- we'll see if that happens. I have a history of getting impatient and trying to clear hands rather than playing poker. So far, I have played a little $0.50/$1.00 limit, which has netted me 3 points (I need 750 to clear the promotion). I need something like 250 points to clear their $40 monthly bonus and the $50 sign-up bonus. So far, I am up $1 or so.

In other news, I almost busted out at Poker Stars yesterday. I kept taking bad beat after bad beat. In the first, I was in a $5+0.50 SNG. I flopped top pair and pushed all-in against a guy who called me with ace high... and an ace hit on the river. He claimed that he was "pot-committed". I seriously doubt that he had any concept of "pot-committed", especially for a tournament because he was nowhere near pot-committed to call my bet with ace-high. Oh well. Those are the breaks. In the next hand (now limit holdem), I flopped top two pair when I held JTs. My opponent was betting like crazy with J9o. I should have won a HUGE pot, but the turn and river put nines on the board, giving him a full house. My stack was already tiny, but this put it in dire straits. I finished the session with only $10 left. I played a little no limit last night and I won maybe $8-$10 at 6-max tables with blinds of $0.05/$0.10.

I also played a little no limit at Full Tilt -- I lost $0.50, so little to report there. I am playing just a little each day at Party, but I have been winning $10 or so each day. I won $17 today playing $50 NL in just 45 hands. I am seriously considering playing $50 NL at Party now, considering that I am playing these stakes at Full Tilt with about half the bankroll. I just need to be careful, which is a good idea considering how ridiculously aggressive I can be.

Playing Poker Again

After my last post, I cleared my remaining raked hands at Poker Rewards to get the $200 bonus. I was an auto-pilot most of the time, so I managed to lose $60 or so in the process. In the end, my Poker Rewards experience netted me a profit of $160 (i.e., I lost $40 but won a $200 bonus) and 6000 PSO points. My plan with the PSO points is to purchase another 400 Nevada Jacks poker chips plus a case to have one kick-ass chip set. I need to clear one more promotion to get the chips and then I'll need just a few more points after that. I am trying to talk a friend into opening a PSO account; the points that go with this referral is what I need.

Last night, I sat down for 45 minutes and I simply "played poker". That is, I was relaxed; I played correctly; and I enjoyed the experience. I was not anxious about clearing a billion hands or anything like that. Not surprisingly, I won $20 at Full Tilt. I played a $0.25/$0.50 (blinds) no limit (6-max) table and a $0.50/$1.00 limit table. I did get lucky as I won both limit show-downs and none of my no limit bluffs were called.

My current plan for the immediate future is to play more at UltimateBet and Full Tilt than at Party Poker. I have noticed that I have a problem respecting my opponents at Party because they are soooooo awful. I am playing much better at UB and FTP. I hate it when people talk about how difficult it is to win against bad players. This makes no sense. In my case, however, I play down to my opponents, so it makes a little sense for me.

I also might reload into the Poker Room to try and clear a $200 bonus there. I am undecided, however, because I am sick of bonus chasing for the sake of bonus chasing. Also, I think I'd rather attempt one more PSO promotion to get those chips.

Inconsistency

I have cleared my PSO promotion at Poker Rewards, but I am still playing there to clear the $200 bonus that I will receive once I clear 2000 raked hands. To recap, I played poorly at the start, losing about $75. I then played really well, and rebuilt my stack to +$100. After that, I stupidly started 6-tabling, which netted me a pretty big loss (back to -$25). I then had a bad session of 6-max limit, and I was -$50. Yesterday, I got my head out of my butt and I 4-tabled and netted a nice win at all four. So, I am now +$10 with about 400 raked hands to go.

2005 in Review

I don't know how much I've made off the top of my head, but it was better than 2004 (~$1600). I played really well in January and February, playing mostly no limit. Then, Party Poker changed the ratio of max buy-in to blinds and I played poorly and started losing. Oh yeah, I also lost $400 in a single hand trying to bluff a donkey with middle pair, four kicker.

In March, April, and May, I played really well $1/$2 6-max at Party. After that, however, I discovered bonus-whoring and I started playing a couple of new sites. My play leveled off and I stopped winning (except for the bonuses).

In May and in July, I made two trips to Quetico Provincial Park, catching my first Lake Trout (May) and my first trophy northern pike (22-25 lbs, July).

In August, I discovered PokerSourceOnline, which initiated a new era of bonus-whoring.

In October, our first baby was born.

In summary, my poker has been so-so, but I am upbeat about poker in 2006. I learning to grind again and I am showing glimpses of being a top-level poker player.