Party Poker Reload, Part II
In my last blog entry, I discussed my plans for the Party Poker reload bonus. I planned to exclusively play full-ring, $0.50/$1.00 limit hold'em for this bonus. Because I am chasing a $100 bonus, this means that I need to clear 1000 raked hands. Based on my previous experience, about half of the hands at this level are raked, so I need to clear about 2000 raked hands. As of my last blog, I had cleared about 500 raked hands, netting a profit of $10 along the way.
I have since cleared another 200 raked hands and my profit has soared to almost $60. This increased win rate has come about, in part, because I have played better. I am not as loose preflop, but that has only helped a little. I have played much tighter on the flop and I am perhaps a fraction less aggressive. This has made a very big difference because I am no longer leaking money with top-pair, weak-kicker and the like.
One other big difference is that I have been catching cards lately. In my last two sessions, I have been dealt AA and KK at least 6 or 7 times (out of 400 hands) and most of the time these hands have held up. I also seem to be catching my flush draws and my straight draws.
I am also getting better reads on my opponents, which has helped me lose less. For example, one of the times I lost with AA, I put my opponent on KK preflop. When the flop came KQ3, I figured that I was in trouble and I turned into a call station and lost the minimum (note: I don't believe that making "great laydowns" is a winning strategy in limit hold'em for hands contested heads-up).
The other big difference has been the [low] quality of play at my tables. In my previous post, I commented on the relatively high quality of play at these micro stakes. Ironically, my last two sessions involved tables full of donkeys of the profitable kind. For example, I had a hand where five people limped (including the small blind), so I checked from the big blind with 3s 7s. The flop came with two spades, giving me a flush draw. Given the relatively large pot, the relatively loose-passive table play, and the fact that I had four people in the hand, I bet out and got called by everyone. The turn completed my flush and I got called in two spots. The river paired the board and the small blind suddenly bet out; I raised; he re-raised and I called. He flipped over three of a kind and I took down a monster pot with my trash hand. This donkey chased a hand that was drawing dead by the turn and then proceeded to pay me off handsomely. Now, this is how I remember $0.50/$1.00 limit hold'em at Party Poker!
I have since cleared another 200 raked hands and my profit has soared to almost $60. This increased win rate has come about, in part, because I have played better. I am not as loose preflop, but that has only helped a little. I have played much tighter on the flop and I am perhaps a fraction less aggressive. This has made a very big difference because I am no longer leaking money with top-pair, weak-kicker and the like.
One other big difference is that I have been catching cards lately. In my last two sessions, I have been dealt AA and KK at least 6 or 7 times (out of 400 hands) and most of the time these hands have held up. I also seem to be catching my flush draws and my straight draws.
I am also getting better reads on my opponents, which has helped me lose less. For example, one of the times I lost with AA, I put my opponent on KK preflop. When the flop came KQ3, I figured that I was in trouble and I turned into a call station and lost the minimum (note: I don't believe that making "great laydowns" is a winning strategy in limit hold'em for hands contested heads-up).
The other big difference has been the [low] quality of play at my tables. In my previous post, I commented on the relatively high quality of play at these micro stakes. Ironically, my last two sessions involved tables full of donkeys of the profitable kind. For example, I had a hand where five people limped (including the small blind), so I checked from the big blind with 3s 7s. The flop came with two spades, giving me a flush draw. Given the relatively large pot, the relatively loose-passive table play, and the fact that I had four people in the hand, I bet out and got called by everyone. The turn completed my flush and I got called in two spots. The river paired the board and the small blind suddenly bet out; I raised; he re-raised and I called. He flipped over three of a kind and I took down a monster pot with my trash hand. This donkey chased a hand that was drawing dead by the turn and then proceeded to pay me off handsomely. Now, this is how I remember $0.50/$1.00 limit hold'em at Party Poker!
posted by frazwood at 9:56 AM
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