Confessions of a Pro

This hand was really the turning point of the tourney.
I played it quite badly but got lucky I think though once I saw the flop I was always getting my stack in.

The pre flop call is marginal at best I guess but my excuse is I was looking to chip up and multi way suited one gap connectors play pretty well.

This put me 2nd in chips and shortly after I moved up to chip leader and pretty much maintained that from a long way out.

No Limit Holdem Tournament
PartyPoker
10 Players
Hand Conversion Powered by weaktight.com

Stacks:
UTG (5,635)
UTG+1 (16,862)
UTG+2 (6,196)
MP1 (10,938)
MP2 (11,720)
MP3 (30,365)
CO (5,392)
BTN (16,035)
1rhinoneil (SB) (13,170)
BB (25,751)

Blinds: 125/250 Ante 25

Pre-Flop: (625, 10 players) 1rhinoneil is SB J♥ K♥
2 folds, UTG+2 calls 250, MP1 raises to 755, 2 folds, CO calls 755, BTN calls 755, 1rhinoneil calls 630, 1 fold, UTG+2 calls 505

Flop: 7♥ J♣ 3♥ (4,275, 5 players)
1rhinoneil bets 2,137, 1 fold, MP1 goes all-in 10,158, CO goes all-in 4,612, BTN goes all-in 15,255, 1rhinoneil goes all-in 10,253

Turn: 2♣ (46,690, 4 players, 4 all-in)

River: 10:heart: (46,690, 4 players, 4 all-in)

Final Pot: 46,690
CO shows
J♠ K♠
BTN shows
7♠ 7♣
MP1 shows
Q♣ Q♠
1rhinoneil shows
J♥ K♥

1rhinoneil wins 43,825 (net +30,655)

BTN collects 2,865 (net -13,170)
CO lost 5,392
MP1 lost 10,938
UTG+2 lost 780

This is another interesting hand which tbh I'm not sure if I played ok or not.

Villain gave me the ????!! after so I guess he wasnt too happy but if I show you the hand then explain my thinking....

No Limit Holdem Tournament
PartyPoker
10 Players
Hand Conversion Powered by weaktight.com

Stacks:
UTG (98k)
UTG+1 (12k)
1rhinoneil (UTG+2) (86k)
MP1 (60k)
MP2 (75k)
MP3 (56k)
CO (2.5k)
BTN (6.7k)
SB (93k)
BB (36k)

Blinds: 1.3k/2.5k Ante 250

Pre-Flop: (6.3k, 10 players) 1rhinoneil is UTG+2 A♥ K♥
2 folds, 1rhinoneil raises to 5k, 1 fold, UTG+1 says "gg", 2 folds, CO goes all-in 2.3k, 2 folds, BB calls 2.5k

Flop: Q♠ 6♠ 2♠ (16k, 3 players, 1 all-in)
BB checks, 1rhinoneil checks

Turn: 5♣ (16k, 3 players, 1 all-in)
BB bets 5.9k, 1rhinoneil calls 5.9k

River: 10:spade: (28k, 3 players, 1 all-in)
BB checks, 1rhinoneil bets 14k, BB folds

Final Pot: 42k
CO shows
2♦ 2♣
1rhinoneil shows
A♥ K♥

1rhinoneil wins 31k (net +6.0k)
CO wins 11k (net +8.1k)

BB lost 11k

Pre flop is standard I think. BB calls for value with the extra "dead" money.
Flop is pretty horrible so no cbet from me - highly unusual I have to say - my cbet stats are pretty high 71% overall.
BB turn bet just looked like a steal and I floated.
River puts the 4 flush on the board. At this point I was pretty convinced that the all in guy probably had me beat and either way I wasnt really bothered at this stage about checking down and eliminating him if BB had a spade, I just wanted to get something out of the hand.
I figured if I bet something that looks like I might want a call he has to put me as the original raiser on As or Ks and cant call

Originally posted by rhinoneil
This is another interesting hand which tbh I'm not sure if I played ok or not.

Villain gave me the ????!! after so I guess he wasnt too happy but if I show you the hand then explain my thinking....

No Limit Holdem Tournament
PartyPoker
10 Players
Hand Conversion Powered by weaktight.com

Stacks:
UTG (98k)
UTG+1 (12k)
1rhinoneil (UTG+2) (86k)
MP1 (60k)
MP2 (75k)
MP3 (56k)
CO (2.5k)
BTN (6.7k)
SB (93k)
BB (36k)

Blinds: 1.3k/2.5k Ante 250

Pre-Flop: (6.3k, 10 players) 1rhinoneil is UTG+2 A♥ K♥
2 folds, 1rhinoneil raises to 5k, 1 fold, UTG+1 says "gg", 2 folds, CO goes all-in 2.3k, 2 folds, BB calls 2.5k

Flop: Q♠ 6♠ 2♠ (16k, 3 players, 1 all-in)
BB checks, 1rhinoneil checks

Turn: 5♣ (16k, 3 players, 1 all-in)
BB bets 5.9k, 1rhinoneil calls 5.9k

River: 10:spade: (28k, 3 players, 1 all-in)
BB checks, 1rhinoneil bets 14k, BB folds

Final Pot: 42k
CO shows
2♦ 2♣
1rhinoneil shows
A♥ K♥

1rhinoneil wins 31k (net +6.0k)
CO wins 11k (net +8.1k)

BB lost 11k

Pre flop is standard I think. BB calls for value with the extra "dead" money.
Flop is pretty horrible so no cbet from me - highly unusual I have to say - my cbet stats are pretty high 71% overall.
BB turn bet just looked like a steal and I floated.
River puts the 4 flush on the board. At this point I was pretty convinced that the all in guy probably had me beat and either way I wasnt really bothered at this stage about checking down and eliminating him if BB had a spade, I just wanted to get something out of the hand.
I figured if I bet something that looks like I might want a call he has to put me as the original raiser on As or Ks and cant call

Nice analysis. Cheers. What do you think betting lower/higher on that river says in terms of hand strength? I like your bet, is that usually what you bet for value when you have something?

tbh, i think its hard for BB to call any bet here but wanted to make it enough that he dont make a crying call with medium spade or pair but not so big it looks like a bluff.
My value size along with my bluffing size depends on previous action and stack sizes.
Half pot here is enough to make a sizeable dent in his stack and looks like a value bet that can rarely be a bluff on that board

Lol @ getting asked to look at hands. Remember I'm a and I'm not used to playing so shallow.

Hand 1) I guess you have to get it in in the first hand given the odds you're getting, but you're never ahead here. Pokerstove says you have 33% against the actual hands. I'd be worried that one of them has the nut flush draw and another has a set or overpair, in which case you're fucked.

Hand 2) If you're going to have a stab at it, I'd b/f the flop. If he just calls pre he probably has a small to medium pair or some suited connectors, so he now has a set, a flush or a hand he'll probably fold. You're happy to fold out his pairs, so I'd bet the flop then give up given that you're super shallow.

EDIT: And don't post the results if you want unbiassed comments! ♠_cool:

Hey Rhino,

JB directed me to this thread and I'm glad he did.

Best of luck and keep the posts coming.

Thanks.
I dont normally bother posting badbeats but this one was a particularly nasty kick in the sack last night.
$30K guarantee on Party, down to last 16 so money is gradually ramping up.

97% to win on flop, runner, runner, bollocks!!

No Limit Holdem Tournament
PartyPoker
9 Players
Hand Conversion Powered by weaktight.com

Stacks:
UTG (49k)
UTG+1 (18k)
MP1 (173k)
MP2 (92k)
MP3 (24k)
CO (36k)
BTN (89k)
1rhinoneil (SB) (49k)
BB (31k)

Blinds: 1k/2k Ante 200

Pre-Flop: (4.8k, 9 players) 1rhinoneil is SB K♥ K♦
3 folds, MP2 raises to 4k, 3 folds, 1rhinoneil raises to 11k, 1 fold, MP2 raises to 60k, 1rhinoneil goes all-in 37k

Flop: 2♥ 10:club: K♠ (113k, 2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: A♥ (113k, 2 players, 1 all-in)

River: J♠ (113k, 2 players, 1 all-in)

Final Pot: 113k
MP2 shows
Q♥ Q♣
1rhinoneil shows
K♥ K♦

MP2 wins 113k (net +53k)

1rhinoneil lost 49k

Well, things are going pretty well on all fronts right now.
I am playing great poker (even if I do say so myself) and have had some great results this week.
In total on Party I have played 13 mtts, cashed in 38.5%, won one, 2nd in another with ROI of 1397.4% lol.
January as a whole I have played 39 mtts, cashed in 33.3%, roi 634.6% so Im over the moon with those stats, albeit its a tiny sample size.
On Wednesday night I won the $100, $16K guaranteed for $7198, came 16th in same tourny last night (all in KK v chip leaders 55 to take chip lead, river 5, doh) and was 2nd in $99 rebuy $30K guaranteed last night for $8348.
Only down side is 2 very late nights in a row, (4.15 this morning and 3.00 ish yesterday morning with work in between so up at 6.30am lol) so I am a very tired boy.
Still thinking of the money helps,.. a lot.
Will play both again tonight and see if I can record an historic treble. Of course now Ive said that I may as well not bother!
So if you see me at Party (only1rhino), steer clear cuz I am hot hot hot at the moment, you have been warned, lol.

Date Tournament Buy in Entries Rank Prize
26 Jan 12 $30,000 Gtd Super Thu Rebuy * $99+ 200 2 $8,151
26 Jan 12 $15,000 Gtd $100 302 17 $242
25 Jan 12 $5,000 Gtd 6Max $30 206 12 $80
25 Jan 12 $15,000 Gtd $100 273 1 $7,098
20 Jan 12 $5,000 Gtd 6Max $30 230 26 $48
19 Jan 12 $30,000 Gtd Super Thu Rebuy $99+ 225 29 $398
19 Jan 12 $15,000 Gtd $100 347 22 $226
13 Jan 12 $15,000 Gtd $100 255 10 $408
12 Jan 12 $15,000 Gtd $100 264 27 $185
11 Jan 12 $30,000 Gtd Super Wed Rebuy $99+ 175 16 $516
09 Jan 12 $30,000 Gtd Super Mon Rebuy $99+ 209 29 $335
05 Jan 12 $10,000 Gtd Rebuy $20+ 269 1 $4,126
04 Jan 12 $5,000 Gtd 6Max $50 136 15 $85

Well done you!

Hey Neil,

I'm a silent follower, enjoy reading the updates and happy to see the hard work is paying off ♠_biggrin:

Keep up the fantastic work

Gratz, indeed!

Nice!

It's about time

Quick update, havent played since last Friday.
Needless to say per my last post, played 2 mtts Friday and was out within the first hour on both, not bad considering i didnt join one til 30 mins late lol.
Both hands that bust me, I 4bet all in pre with KK v AK, both times A on flop, so not worried about that

This month I are been mostly playing cash, NL200 6 max, hence the shiny new platinum status.

I am still learning the nuances of cash poker but have to say that at these limits and NL400 I do really enjoy it, certainly a lot more than NL25/NL50 which frustrates me.

I havent exactly set the world alight but am pretty much break even for the month which for me is ok while I am still getting to grips with it.

I have also played a few mtts but nothing big to report, just a few mincashes and a couple of FTs but no big score.

I read somewhere that as well as playing poker for enjoyment, if you are playing seriously its a good idea to treat it like a job and take a "salary".
You fix a certain figure as your bankroll, lets say $12K, then each month on a certain date, say the 25th, you withdraw anything over and above the $12K as a salary. Of course if you are under the $12K then you either have to top up or drop down a level to accomodate it.

I am going to give this a try as I like the sound of it.

I still have played no games this year on my sponsership, am still using my own accounts and as I am enjoying it so much will continue to do so for a while, maybe reassess after Easter.

Th th thats all folks for now!!

Nice to hear your news. If I may, one downside of the "withdraw all profits above x model":

It only works if you have the discipline not to spend everything you withdraw on a month to month basis. Otherwise your 'disposable income' will vary wildly which, imho, is not a healthy thing. Since pkr is full of wild swings, it's nice if the remuneration can be more or less constant. Say you need $2k per month. Month a) you make $5k, month b) you make $1k. If you already spent all the $5k then now your BR has to drop to support month b) expenses. Whereas, if you just take $2k in month a) then month b) is no problem - you can take from past earnings. I would say 6 monthly is a better time to consider distributing excess profits over your minimum requirement, b/c you then have a better idea of your true earning potential.

GL!

Hi nice blog
Your seriously good a Mtt that us one super impressive run how did you learn?

Originally posted by Tim64
Nice to hear your news. If I may, one downside of the "withdraw all profits above x model":

It only works if you have the discipline not to spend everything you withdraw on a month to month basis. Otherwise your 'disposable income' will vary wildly which, imho, is not a healthy thing. Since pkr is full of wild swings, it's nice if the remuneration can be more or less constant. Say you need $2k per month. Month a) you make $5k, month b) you make $1k. If you already spent all the $5k then now your BR has to drop to support month b) expenses. Whereas, if you just take $2k in month a) then month b) is no problem - you can take from past earnings. I would say 6 monthly is a better time to consider distributing excess profits over your minimum requirement, b/c you then have a better idea of your true earning potential.

GL!

Hi Tim
thanks for the input. You're right of course, especially so if poker winnings are your only income.
In my position, I earn a good salary from my real life job so poker earnings are just a bonus so I dont need to be quite so careful other than to make sure I am sufficiently rolled for the games I want to play.

Originally posted by GetARealJob
Hi nice blog
Your seriously good a Mtt that us one super impressive run how did you learn?

Thanks for the compliment but in honesty in general I would say that I am a decent mtt player who has the occasional runs of good fortune and the even more occasional runs of pure brilliance lol.

If you have a look at my other blog - see link below - you will see that I have been playing for a long time now and have had a lot of ups and downs.

Just wanted to fire in a quick update in case anyone still reading this.

Thinking of closing the thread actually as its kinda boring now, not had time to write anything interesting lol.

I have been playing mostly mtts with the odd few ring games thrown in.
Nothing major to report in honesty, a few cashes, no wins, played 4 SCOOP events, cashed in 3 including the main event but again nothing big.

I have been trying to play a bit more creatively early on with mixed results and I know for sure that I need to mix up / balance my game a bit more in the later stages as I'm either getting itm with a small stack or decimating my bigger stacks with badly timed bluffs or suck outs.

It's only boring because you never post in it any more.