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I've been working in new aspects to my play lately, trying to evolve into more than just a straightforward player, particularly in my regular cash game and a couple of local tournaments that feature many of the same players. Anyway I figure it, if I don't mix up my play, the reactions to my playing a tight, simple (and predictable) style of poker will come at my expense, either via bigger hands or by bigger bluffs. The beatings will be swift, severe and painful.
As you might expect, the early results have been mixed. However, I am committed to working such plays into the fold of my game, short-term losses notwithstanding.
Let me document a couple of the literal misfires.
The first was more of a lapse in judgment than anything else. Relatively early in a 2 rebuy tournament I raised an unopened pot with 10,8 off and got 3 callers. I flopped trip 8s with 2 diamonds on board and led out. Two players folded and the last, a guy I often play against, called. The turn brought another diamond and I checked and after a brief thought about making a move, merely called a bet by my opponent. He's a solid, winning, tight player and doesn't usually make moves without good hands, so at this point I could have ditched, since at the worst I had him on a middle flush, but decided to see the river, hoping to boat up or represent that I had done so. When a fourth diamond hit the board on the river, I saw even more opportunity make a play at the pot. With about the size of the pot left in my stack and two rebuys in hand, I shoved, hoping my standard tight image would induce a big (if incorrect) laydown of the likely flush my opponent held.
It didn't. My consolation was that I was afforded the knowledge that I do indeed have a tight image, as he called with a somewhat resigned "If you boated up, you've got it" as he showed one of the big hands I hoped to represent, the nut flush. With two rebuys, he wasn't laying that down under almost any circumstance, a fact that I should have recognized earlier.
A consolation to this was that after rebuying, much later in the tournament I was able to make plays, hit hands and continuation bet my way to a second place finish for a tidy little cash.
My next ill-fated semi-bluff was in my regular cash game and the problem with this one was not so much opportunity or timing as it was some poor execution on my part.
After a small preflop raise from a player in early position drew a couple callers, I looked down at K,3 suited from the BB and came along. Flop came A,K,x with two clubs on board (I held no clubs) and I checked and the preflop bet out. Having been in many games with him, I was almost 100% that he had an ace but not A,K. My normal play here is to get out of dodge and wait for a better spot but the new me decided I would make a play on this hand if a scare card came on the turn (or if I happen to hit a 3.)
Well, a club did turn and I decided to spring the trap. I checked, my opponent kept his action consistent and bet out and I raised. And I made my mistake, and it was two fold. The first mistake I made was in not calculating my opponent's stack, which after his last two bets was dwindling somewhat. The second was because of his stack, I didn't raise enough. Granted, my check raise gave him pause for a couple minutes and I did have him thinking he was beaten but because it wasn't enough of a raise, he ended up making the call. The river bricked out and I was left with a basic tenet of poker: bet or lose. So I bet, enough to put my opponent all in because of his previous call, he was now short. Not automatic type of short, but still short. And again he agonized, and again he called and his ace was good. If his stack is bigger, he probably folds it on the river. If I raise more on the turn when his stack was bigger, he probably folds it right then. Duly noted.
On I go, waging the battles to improve. Whether it happens or not, we shall see.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Friday, June 26, 2009
God Bows To Math
So I had a three hour cash session last weekend and managed to play with the worst players in the world. Literally, not figuratively. I heartily recommend that if anyone is interested in winning buckets of money to stop what you are doing and immediately head for this venue...
But first a few quick asides:
I think that the United States men's national soccer team showed a lot of guts and heart in the past week. I'm as much a bandwagon follower of the team as anyone and I love to watch us play against the premier teams in the world. I thought we outplayed Italy for the entire first half of that game (US led 1-0) at the half, but that second half non-adjustments doomed us. Italy came out attacking in the second half and the US went back into a defensive cocoon. Unfortunately, we don't mark as well as we should in those situations and multiple times Italian players got free for chances and put some big ones in. I don't think it is a coincidence that once Altidore was subbed out that Italy's strikes soon followed. He's the kind of player we have been lacking. Not that he is a world class, top 5 striker or anything but he has a knack for the goal and he's a presence on the field. Opponents are always keen on where he is and leery of a big counterstrike by him. With him out of the game, Italy felt comfortable that no other US striker could counter and their pressure, already ramped up, came full on and we collapsed. Similarly, his goal in the Spanish match was exactly what other teams fear, that smaller defenders will be overpowered by his size and strength (and there certainly was no foul on that play, contrary to the Spanish defender's claim) and he showed that he knows how to finish, something lacking in past forward prospects the US has featured. And it would be remiss to not say that the player of the game was Tim Howard, who had every line and angle covered and played a superb match in goal against unrelenting pressure from the Spanish. The opportunities they created were plenty and he held fast, with a good deal of assistance from the defensive corps.
A couple of cash game hands to talk about, one involving me, one not, with a bit of stomach acid-inducing results. First one, cash game, I call a preflop raise from a tight player from the SB with 6h7h and we see a heads up flop of 8,9,A rainbow. I check, other player checks. Turn peels a 10 giving me the donkey end. I lead out, get raised and call. River is garbage, I again lead out, other player goes all in, I call and my straight tops the set of aces.
Next hand (I'm not involved) goes similarly: same tight player raises preflop, gets a caller, flops a set of Ks and gets drawn out on the turn by A,Q who makes broadway. What interested me about both hands was that the tight player would have won both had they not flopped the set. In the first, in order to string me along, it was a (proper) check post-flop with the nuts that cost, in the second it was bet at but the outs were available only because of the K on the flop. Kind of sick to watch the same player get felted in eerily similar situations two weeks in a row with legitimate monsters. It was also a great reminder of the chance that sometimes goes into big winning sessions from big losing ones and a good lesson for me about waiting for big hands.
Which I promptly had to realize in the action that immediately followed. I have been fortuitous lately with not taking such beats when I get my big hands, that is until that same cash session a couple days ago. Raising with KK preflop and getting heads up out of position, I check-called a board of Q,3,x and after a blank on the turn we got it in and my opponent held...Q,3. Suited, you know. I've kind of been due for one of those hands so took it in stride and rebought. Shortly thereafter I had my entire stack in again when I flopped a flush with Kd9d against the preflop raiser's set of 10s. My hand held but I gave back a chunk later on when I got AcKc and after check/check on the flop and a K showed on the turn, my raise was shoved upon. Only another fifty into a pretty decent pot and I called into a set of 6s and was dead. It was one of those up and down nights that is tough to make a decision on whether I was playing sloppily or if it was just the night of second bests (mostly). I think it was a mix of the two and I'm going to work on tightening a few holes that I spotted in my play during some of these hands.
Back to the worst (and I really do mean the worst, in a worst is so bad it's the best for anyone with a clue sort of way) poker room in the country...
The Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, FL. If you have the opportunity to go, drop what you are doing, whatever it may be, and GO. The play was so awful, the betting so terrible, the calls so light that I really felt like I could have sat daily and made a killing. Who knows, maybe that is something to consider. I was there on a Saturday night and the complex, which includes a slew of nightclubs, bars, restaurants and a casino was hopping. Distractions galore. Drinks flowing for most of the people. Cash too. One thing about Florida poker rooms, regardless of the game, players can max out at a 100 dollar buy in. So I sat at a 1,2 table with it and watched a parade of first-timers sit and buy the table minimum of...$40...and drop it within a few hands, calling themselves into oblivion. One moron sat/stood for five minutes and proceeded to go all in blind for $40 four consecutive times, losing all 4 times. I was the beneficiary of one of those donations when I had KQ against his Q5. He cheered lustily on a K,5,x board, not realizing. Then there was the guy who called two consecutive all-ins with 2,7 once when he hit a deuce and the other when he hit a seven. I later felted him consecutively when I flopped top/top and he kept calling me with third best pair. The following hand I picked up KK and his revenge strategy was foiled when he again flopped middle pair. Just brutally awful play. No need to bluff and it is actively discouraged at this game but don't fret, when you get the nuts, everyone will pay you at the Hard Rock Hollywood. Just be patient.
I've got some more play to detail but this post has gone on too long already, I'll hold them for the next entry.
But first a few quick asides:
I think that the United States men's national soccer team showed a lot of guts and heart in the past week. I'm as much a bandwagon follower of the team as anyone and I love to watch us play against the premier teams in the world. I thought we outplayed Italy for the entire first half of that game (US led 1-0) at the half, but that second half non-adjustments doomed us. Italy came out attacking in the second half and the US went back into a defensive cocoon. Unfortunately, we don't mark as well as we should in those situations and multiple times Italian players got free for chances and put some big ones in. I don't think it is a coincidence that once Altidore was subbed out that Italy's strikes soon followed. He's the kind of player we have been lacking. Not that he is a world class, top 5 striker or anything but he has a knack for the goal and he's a presence on the field. Opponents are always keen on where he is and leery of a big counterstrike by him. With him out of the game, Italy felt comfortable that no other US striker could counter and their pressure, already ramped up, came full on and we collapsed. Similarly, his goal in the Spanish match was exactly what other teams fear, that smaller defenders will be overpowered by his size and strength (and there certainly was no foul on that play, contrary to the Spanish defender's claim) and he showed that he knows how to finish, something lacking in past forward prospects the US has featured. And it would be remiss to not say that the player of the game was Tim Howard, who had every line and angle covered and played a superb match in goal against unrelenting pressure from the Spanish. The opportunities they created were plenty and he held fast, with a good deal of assistance from the defensive corps.
A couple of cash game hands to talk about, one involving me, one not, with a bit of stomach acid-inducing results. First one, cash game, I call a preflop raise from a tight player from the SB with 6h7h and we see a heads up flop of 8,9,A rainbow. I check, other player checks. Turn peels a 10 giving me the donkey end. I lead out, get raised and call. River is garbage, I again lead out, other player goes all in, I call and my straight tops the set of aces.
Next hand (I'm not involved) goes similarly: same tight player raises preflop, gets a caller, flops a set of Ks and gets drawn out on the turn by A,Q who makes broadway. What interested me about both hands was that the tight player would have won both had they not flopped the set. In the first, in order to string me along, it was a (proper) check post-flop with the nuts that cost, in the second it was bet at but the outs were available only because of the K on the flop. Kind of sick to watch the same player get felted in eerily similar situations two weeks in a row with legitimate monsters. It was also a great reminder of the chance that sometimes goes into big winning sessions from big losing ones and a good lesson for me about waiting for big hands.
Which I promptly had to realize in the action that immediately followed. I have been fortuitous lately with not taking such beats when I get my big hands, that is until that same cash session a couple days ago. Raising with KK preflop and getting heads up out of position, I check-called a board of Q,3,x and after a blank on the turn we got it in and my opponent held...Q,3. Suited, you know. I've kind of been due for one of those hands so took it in stride and rebought. Shortly thereafter I had my entire stack in again when I flopped a flush with Kd9d against the preflop raiser's set of 10s. My hand held but I gave back a chunk later on when I got AcKc and after check/check on the flop and a K showed on the turn, my raise was shoved upon. Only another fifty into a pretty decent pot and I called into a set of 6s and was dead. It was one of those up and down nights that is tough to make a decision on whether I was playing sloppily or if it was just the night of second bests (mostly). I think it was a mix of the two and I'm going to work on tightening a few holes that I spotted in my play during some of these hands.
Back to the worst (and I really do mean the worst, in a worst is so bad it's the best for anyone with a clue sort of way) poker room in the country...
The Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, FL. If you have the opportunity to go, drop what you are doing, whatever it may be, and GO. The play was so awful, the betting so terrible, the calls so light that I really felt like I could have sat daily and made a killing. Who knows, maybe that is something to consider. I was there on a Saturday night and the complex, which includes a slew of nightclubs, bars, restaurants and a casino was hopping. Distractions galore. Drinks flowing for most of the people. Cash too. One thing about Florida poker rooms, regardless of the game, players can max out at a 100 dollar buy in. So I sat at a 1,2 table with it and watched a parade of first-timers sit and buy the table minimum of...$40...and drop it within a few hands, calling themselves into oblivion. One moron sat/stood for five minutes and proceeded to go all in blind for $40 four consecutive times, losing all 4 times. I was the beneficiary of one of those donations when I had KQ against his Q5. He cheered lustily on a K,5,x board, not realizing. Then there was the guy who called two consecutive all-ins with 2,7 once when he hit a deuce and the other when he hit a seven. I later felted him consecutively when I flopped top/top and he kept calling me with third best pair. The following hand I picked up KK and his revenge strategy was foiled when he again flopped middle pair. Just brutally awful play. No need to bluff and it is actively discouraged at this game but don't fret, when you get the nuts, everyone will pay you at the Hard Rock Hollywood. Just be patient.
I've got some more play to detail but this post has gone on too long already, I'll hold them for the next entry.
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