I really enjoy this game. It’s become my game of choice on Planet Poker until I get regular internet at home and time to start grinding again.
I’ve gotten to the point where I’m better than most of the regular slothoki players in the tournaments. I’m placing in the money much of the time (and usually only the top 3 to 5 pay), and getting a real feel for the game.
I’m trying to limit my starting hands to strong flush draws (ideally, multiple flush draws) and hands with good low possibilities. Early on, I’ll play many more hands because you can hit a lot of flops.
My problem is late in the game. I’m not sure how to tighten up my starting hands. In fact, I worry whether I should tighten up, or start to play more. Soemtimes it feels like I keep folding waiting for good strarting hands and I get blinded away. Guess it’ll take a little more practice there.
I also have to learn when a “winner” might actually be a loser. The low is often split among two or sometimes three players. That means you could actually get a piece of the pot and lose money. Unfortunately, there’s not much of a way to determine when that will happen to you, so it’s hard to avoid.
Get On Board!!
I’ve decided we need a better way for all of the poker bloggers to keep in touch. With that in mind, I’ve set up a simple Poker Bloggers mailing list that poker bloggers can use for announcements or communication.
For instance, if it’s time for a poker bloggers tourney, we’ll send an announcement to all subscribers on the mailing list. If a blogger is changing domain names or website locatios, you can tell everyone to update their links via the mailing list.
This will be a list for poker bloggers only. It’s not for readers, so the list won’t be clogged with random messages.
So, if you’d like to get on board, just send an email to me (pagemaster @ upforanything.net) and tell me which blog you run. The list is very simple to use, and I think it will help us keep all our find fellow poker bloggers up to date. Let me know if you have any questions!
Mr. WPT was first to act, and he just checked. I thought he was opening the door so I bet. He hesitated and called. The turn was a 6, I think. Mr. WPT checked again, and I pressed. I figured this big 2000T bet might scare him off, and I figured I might have him beat anyway. It’s not like he’s holding 4-7 or something like that.
He calls my 2000T after much deliberation. At that point, I’m down to 2500T and Mr. WPT was down to 2000T. The river was another 5. I guess at that point I thought he might have a 5, but I had to bet anyway. He called me, but looked like he didn’t want to. When he flipped over his pocket 10’s, I couldn’t understand why he played his hand the way he did. Perhaps it was sheer brilliance, because it worked.
I was down to just one brown 500T chip. My “big blind” forced me all in with K-2 of diamonds. Mr. WPT raised everyone else out of the pot and showed me pocket deuces. My K-2 was a heavy underdog. In fact, the hand analyzer tells me he was a 2-1 favorite. A King fell on the turn, however, and I was still alive with 2000T.
That’s when we moved to the final two tables. There were 19 players remaining, and I was in 19th place, a long way from 18th. Luckily, I was two seats to the right of the button, so I’d get to look at a few hands. Unfortunately, two people between the button and I got knocked out, so my blind came along before I ever saw a playable hand.
I didn’t look at the cards. I figured I’d see them at the end. A young guy with a big stack raised everyone else out of the pot and when the showdown came, my 4-5o paired a 5 on the board, but his J-9o paired a 9. I was out, in 16th place, 6 places from the money.
Amazingly, Don was still alive. After his early reckless play, he really settled down and caught some good hands. I was really hoping he’d make it to the money. The Old Guy was also still alive, and after mumbling about Cowboys, it’s actually a pair of K’s which got him to the final two tables. In a three-way all-in showdown, his Cowboys beat 10’s and Rockets when a K hit the table.
During a brief break, I got to talk to Mr. WPT about that hand that did me in. He thought I was just raising from position to steal, but he checked to me because he wasn’t sure. He thought I had a higher pair, but was pot committed and had to stay in when no scare cards hit the table. If any thing higher than a 10 hit the flop, he likely would have folded. Just my luck.
So, did I play that hand wrong? I wish now I had played it differently, but I’m not sure what else I would have done. I thought I had the best hand, and I bet it. I guess I’ll do it again next time.