Back to the Beginning

Just played quite a good session.

Think I made some really good laydowns like I talked about in my last post. Was really bossing the session. Judged my plays well, and I've made notes of players that will cbet once, then check if you call and they haven't hit the board, so when I think it's suitable, I float them in position.

Also I seem to be getting control of my habit of value-towning myself. There's been a few occasions when I was about to bet the river, but realized all weaker hands would fold and only better would call, so I'd check behind and take a smaller pot

Got a little bit tired after a while, and made some bad plays/calls when I really should have taken a break.

Such as

IPoker, $0.05/$0.10 No Limit Hold'em Cash, 6 Players
Poker Tools Powered By Holdem Manager - The Ultimate Poker Software Suite.

BB: $10.23 (102.3 bb)
UTG: $19.46 (194.6 bb)
MP: $32.12 (321.2 bb)
Hero (CO): $19.87 (198.7 bb)
BTN: $10.91 (109.1 bb)
SB: $3.85 (38.5 bb)

Preflop: Hero is CO with 9 Q
2 folds, Hero raises to $0.30, BTN calls $0.30, 2 folds

Flop: ($0.75) A 9 T (2 players)
Hero bets $0.40, BTN calls $0.40

Turn: ($1.55) Q (2 players)
Hero bets $1.16, BTN calls $1.16

River: ($3.87) 3 (2 players)
Hero bets $1.93, BTN raises to $3.86, Hero calls $1.93

Results:

However, overall it wasn't too bad, and the more I play the more I learn. I was up 2BI at my peak, and finished up 0.9BI after a few poor calls. Overall I'm pleased though

So it's the end of the first month of 2013, which means it is the perfect time for the update!

Poker
Been quite a decent month actually. I've played mostly NL10 and only really started putting in any volume about half way through the month.

Hand played: 8,986
Winnings: $17.03
Rake: $77.84 (killer!)
Graph:

Overall impressions:
I was definitely rusty coming back, but I've probably put in the most volume I ever have thanks to fast fold poker on ipoker. I've definitely improved throughout the month, and I feel I can easily beat NL10 if I keep going.

I haven't put in a huge amount of work on my game purely because I am mostly playing for fun right now, and I'm also putting in some volume so I can try to pinpoint my leaks and get my basic knowledge back before adding new elements.

Sessions have quite a familiar pattern:
- Start off slightly slow, usually some small pots and warming up.
- Get warmed up, start three betting more, looking to play in position as much as possible, make some good calls/bets/folds and feel like I'm playing quite solid
- After about 45 mins I start to tire, usually challenging myself to play for 15 more minutes, start to see some mistakes creep in to my game and make some bad calls

I try to make myself play those extra 15 mins to get my poker stamina up and be able to push myself towards being comfortable playing for an hour.

I've been two tabling fast fold. I feel comfortable and it suits my screen space. When I'm more consistent I will think about adding a third table.

Life Update

- Joined gym so I can go in the afternoons at work every day. This should help get my daily energy up, and get me back physically fit. I've been every day this week and I'm liking it. It breaks up the work day nicely.
- Attempt to make my money flows fixed out each month so I can plan my finances better
- Have emailed my old directors in the USA, and been talking to them about job opportunities
- Got a call from a headhunter today about a position for an asset manager... In Munich! So I've given them a copy of my CV as there was not point in saying no!
- Looking at making some investments, cash is not where it's at. If i want a good future, I need to look at ways to get higher returns and see my assets increase.

Feb Goals will be posted up at the weekend once I've decided on them.

And here is my song for the week:

Love this guy, his tunes remind me of NYC big time

Poker Update

Last week's graph

Was quite a nice week at NL10, I feel like I'm really beginning to hit my stride with it, and I definitely feel like one of the better regs at the table. I've been making some good reads and some solid folds.

I've found that the more I've played, the better I've started controlling pots and not value towning myself. Plus I've started to think a bit better when it comes to their cold calling ranges and stuff.

Might not get in a huge amount of volume this week, as I have a lot to deal with but I'm fine with that.

Poker Fun Challenge

So I haven't played a WH in ages, and got an email saying my points were going to expire, so I cashed them all in for a huge $5 cash monies.

I thought to myself, hmmm, what can I do with this fortune? And decided to set myself a side challenge for my spare time.

It's called super-aggro brm. I will play speed tables until I have 1.5 to 2xBI for the next limit.

I'm currently playing NL5 (level one as you will), but should be stepping up to NL10 shortly. I have to say NL5 seems ridiculously soft.

Each week I will post an update on the challenge, there probs won't be huge amounts of time spent on it, it's just for when I feel like changing it up to see how far I can get.

Starting BR: $5
Current BR: $13.38
CTD Hands: 220 (challenge to date)

Life Update

Not gonna spend too much time going on. Today was my first day of P90X at the gym, I liked it, and it was good to have a set routine to follow in the gym, that's where I usually fall down.

Job hunt wise, my old director in the USA told me it's gonna be hard because they are being forced to hire from within, but to keep in contact with him and he will try to help me out.

So I've been playing quite a lot across the last few Thursday evenings, and have noticed so many limpers and general fish around. Definitely more than earlier in the week! Maybe even Friday nights!

Anyone else noticed this phenomenon? (<-- Great word, underused IMO)

Poker seems to still be going well, although I can't really tell if NL10 is actually easy, or I'm going on a prolonged upswing (for me). Probably a mix of both I guess!

Current BR is at $355 dollars. It really seems to have shot up from nowhere?

IPoker, $0.05/$0.10 No Limit Hold'em Cash, 6 Players
Poker Tools Powered By Holdem Manager - The Ultimate Poker Software Suite.

BB: $4 (40 bb)
UTG: $10 (100 bb)
MP: $12.19 (121.9 bb)
Hero (CO): $12.70 (127 bb)
BTN: $10.80 (108 bb)
SB: $34.95 (349.5 bb)

Preflop: Hero is CO with 5 5
2 folds, Hero raises to $0.30, BTN folds, SB raises to $1.10, BB folds, Hero calls $0.80

Flop: ($2.30) 5 6 Q (2 players)
SB bets $1.90, Hero raises to $4, SB raises to $14.30, Hero calls $7.60 and is all-in

Turn: ($25.50) 8 (2 players, 1 is all-in)

River: ($25.50) 2 (2 players, 1 is all-in)

Results:

Solid play from a reg there

Aaaand believe it or not, the above was not even the worst beat of the session. Bad beats and coolers all over the show. 500 hands, 5BI down, 6 under EV. Doesn't even count the bad beats. Wow friday, wow

Okay vent over. That was mental. Truly mental

Originally posted by bennisboy
Aaaand believe it or not, the above was not even the worst beat of the session. Bad beats and coolers all over the show. 500 hands, 5BI down, 6 under EV. Doesn't even count the bad beats. Wow friday, wow

Okay vent over. That was mental. Truly mental

Should not have gone back to playing. On enough of a life tilt at the moment to not be able to cope with tilt. -7.5BI in one day. Coolered and sucked out on, but also some horrendous tilty play

If you read nothing else in this thread, watch this video

So my video of the week is an old one. But one of my fave on youtube. So much incredible packed in to one video. I love a bit of extreme sports, this makes me want to go away and learn to do even better!

WATCH IT IN HD

Hope today is going better, poker wise

Awesome vid btw!

Originally posted by HollyMichelle
Hope today is going better, poker wise

Awesome vid btw!

Eh poker wise, even more under EV, but that's not really bothering me! Way more to life than poker!
Going through some horrible stuff with the ex is bothering me! I just wanna know when this shit will stop!

Women!

Originally posted by bennisboy
If you read nothing else in this thread, watch this video

So my video of the week is an old one. But one of my fave on youtube. So much incredible packed in to one video. I love a bit of extreme sports, this makes me want to go away and learn to do even better!

And to grind for GoPro camera. It is awesome.

Only a small update this week cos I'm tired!

I've fought back fairly well from super monkey tilt of an earlier day this week when I really should not have played poker. I'm back in the positive winnings after blowing it all!

I feel a solid few days play without making any huuuuuge mistakes has helped. Don't get me wrong mistakes were obviously made, sometimes poor ones, but none were so big as to be damaging to my BR or mindset.

I also got donated a few stacks from crazy players and poor bluffs.

Here be the last two weeks graph, not that it means anything, but it highlights my tilt session. I have never tilted that bad in my life. I'm still amazed by it, but I've learned my lesson!

Nice save

I tend to use the self exclusion system a lot - especially if I am playing tilt monkey style!

Just a suggestion for you!

Originally posted by HollyMichelle
Nice save

I tend to use the self exclusion system a lot - especially if I am playing tilt monkey style!

Just a suggestion for you!

Yeah I usually stop playing when I start to tilt but I was convinced I could come back from it... I couldn't! And by then it was too late! Still at least I didn't go busto our step up to chase my losses!

Life Update
So I am now rebooting this thread. I stopped playing poker again in the end because I just wasn't in the right place for it mentally, and couldn't handle the tilt, but now I am feeling like I am in a good place

Been in (another) new job since September, doing well in it, although the hours are longer (on average 0830 to 1900+), it is definitely a better place to be than my old job.

I am up at 6am most days in order to hit the gym before work, and played football most Saturday's since August (won the league by a mile ♠_cool:), so definitely also feeling fitter and healthier than I was last time the blog was updated

Also moved out of home and living in Camden now, with a view overlooking most of London (sweet for grinding with that in the background).

I feel like my life is back on track.

So I am now back to poker as I did miss it, and it's a good hobby for keeping you sharp, also gives me something to read about on my commute!

Poker Update

Given I withdrew pretty much all my funds when I stopped playing, I have started again from a first deposit of $100 at Titan Poker. I am hoping this will be the only deposit of non-poker money that I need to make

In about two weeks of evening/weekend play, I have doubled the BR to $200 at NL5 EUR

My plan is to keep grinding until I clear the FDB and see what my BRM looks like. NL10 zoom seems to be dead at iPoker, so may have to shoot straight at NL20, which I am not so keen on

Playwise, I started off pretty poor, I was hella rusty. Losing from the off.

Since then I read a few of the strategy articles and most of "Crushing the Micros" book (although it is aimed at FR rather than SH, a lot of the concepts carry over), I've also decided to follow Weazel's 6max course, and the ranges from the first two lessons have helped immensely.

I think my play has been up and down, some of the days, I felt brilliant, like I knew what the opponents would do before they did it, and could barely lose a hand. Other days, it's been like swimming upstream - making bad calls when I know to fold etc. Overall I think I have had more good play days than bad.

I will look to update this thread at least once a week, and will post my graph so far when I get home

It feels good to be back!

This is more of a vent post, but I just played 1000 hands and not one flush or straight draw connected, not one! I even filtered it in my HEM to check...

And to top it all off, my flopped full house got cracked by a runner runner straight flush in a 3 way pot... it was then that I quit...
Not cool man, not cool

So I figured I will post my graph since I restarted playing about a week or so ago.

Actually I think the rakeback graph should show more as I am actually up ~$130 from my starting $100 BR

I started off playing pretty week, and was obviously quite rusty, but have done quite a lot of reading and learning since then, and feel I really turned it around from the poor start.

From just under 15K hands, I have a return of about 5.8 bb/100, which I have to be pleased with.

It always amazes me how much rake I pay... across those 15k hands, I have clocked up $127 in rake, so really a small winning player before rake would be losing consistently. Someone putting in much more than my fairly measly volume must really clock up the rake!

Overall I think I have been playing pretty simple poker, betting for value when I should, and also stealing pots regularly. Players seem to give up on hands quite easily at NL5, especially if you judge the spots right (and I've definitely learnt that this is a LOT easier in position)

I don't really have that many interesting hands to post because nothing gets too complex at NL5, but I will be on the look out for funny hands like the below to share with you all.

Nice little overbet getting a call:

IPoker, $0.02/$0.05 No Limit Hold'em Cash, 6 Players
Poker Tools Powered By Holdem Manager - The Ultimate Poker Software Suite.

Hero (BB): $5.72 (114.4 bb)
UTG: $2.47 (49.4 bb)
MP: $5.81 (116.2 bb)
CO: $2.23 (44.6 bb)
BTN: $5.24 (104.8 bb)
SB: $1.85 (37 bb)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 2 2
UTG folds, MP raises to $0.10, 2 folds, SB calls $0.08, Hero calls $0.05

Flop: ($0.30) 8 2 3 (3 players)
SB checks, Hero checks, MP bets $0.20, SB folds, Hero calls $0.20

Turn: ($0.70) 8 (2 players)
Hero checks, MP checks

River: ($0.70) 6 (2 players)
Hero bets $2, MP calls $2

Results:

And of course the best flop you can hope for, I just wasn't sure how to get max value from it... Any advice is appreciated

IPoker, $0.02/$0.05 No Limit Hold'em Cash, 6 Players
Poker Tools Powered By Holdem Manager - The Ultimate Poker Software Suite.

BB: $4.93 (98.6 bb)
UTG: $5.62 (112.4 bb)
MP: $9.61 (192.2 bb)
Hero (CO): $8.44 (168.8 bb)
BTN: $5.79 (115.8 bb)
SB: $3.55 (71 bb)

Preflop: Hero is CO with A A
2 folds, Hero raises to $0.20, 2 folds, BB calls $0.15

Flop: ($0.42) A A 6 (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $0.15, BB calls $0.15

Turn: ($0.72) 6 (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $0.50, BB calls $0.50

River: ($1.72) 8 (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $1.80, BB folds

Results:

looks nice keep it up no intresting hands?? i played alot speed nl5 and there is alot of intresting , strange hands

Originally posted by rompas
looks nice keep it up no intresting hands?? i played alot speed nl5 and there is alot of intresting , strange hands

Oh for sure there is strange, like someone calling a PF 3Bet and betting 3 streets with Q6o and no connection to the board, but I haven't got in two many spots where I've been like "damn this guy is outplaying me, what do I do?"
Not because I am an awesome player (I'm not, I'm playing NL5 lol), but because at the crazy micros, it seems beneficial to avoid super high variance spots. Mainly because at zoom you can fold and someone will give you their money sooner rather than later

I will definitely be trying to mark more hands during play for later review though