tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83351251887851148552024-03-05T07:13:48.886-08:00Poker ShenanigansOnline Micro Stakes Poker BlogSimon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.comBlogger584125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-58553622260327674912021-11-23T02:59:00.003-08:002021-11-23T02:59:56.699-08:00Losing some buy-ins at Zoom, switched back to HUSNG to regain some post-flop confidence<p>Morning all,</p><p>Long time, no update. </p><p>I've played a few thousand hands over recent weeks, just trying to have fun in the games; not really worried too much about winning. During that time I have lost a few buy-ins at Zoom. I think it's largely negative variance; however, the games seem to have a high % of regular players so I'm beginning to question possible return rates. I'm aggressive and selective enough in pots that I believe I'm winning enough non-showdown cash but it's the big pots which seem few and far between. It used to be quite straight-forward to limit non-showdown losses (i.e. the blinds tax) and then profit on the difference between making good folds and making the most of value positions. Entirely possible that this is still true but that negative variance is obscuring the truth.</p><p>In an effort to regain some trust in my post-flop play I've returned to the games where I began it all: Heads-up Sit n' Go (HUSNG). Still seem to be plenty of regulars but at least when you get a fish, you get them all to yourself! For example, this morning first hand I snapped up an open 25bb shove with AK facing ATo. </p><p>Enjoying these games again right now, and going to try to move up fairly aggressively if I can make a profit i.e. as soon as I reach 10 buy-ins at the next level I'll move up, but strictly move back down levels as soon as I no longer meet that threshold. I suspect it will take a long time to reach any kind of meaningful judgement on profitability of the games but it's good to be playing some post-flop pots again. </p><p>Suspect I'll post again in a few weeks and will update on my view on the state of the HUSNG games then.</p>Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-51000269421140512862020-11-16T03:04:00.000-08:002020-11-16T03:04:32.984-08:00A few hours of play<p>Good morning, I’ve managed to play a few hours in the last two to three weeks, currently up about $200. Sense that ‘Stars are spending a little more on playing bonuses, so might be worth your time.</p><p>Serious play has continued to centre around Zoom poker. Latest 10k hands are break-even (recent returns corrected a small downswing earlier this year). I’ve returned to $50NL Zoom because it’s the lowest stakes without an ante. I’m not disputing that the ante games are beatable, but without a major adjustment to my style it feels like a drag on win rate. The 50 games don’t feel much tougher so that will be my new home for now. </p><p>I’ve also indulged in some degenerate Spin n Go play. Just for fun. Although sensible chip-EV decisions have got me a 37-38% ITM rate so far, I’m not sure that’s sustainable. Will let you know. You can get through tons of these very quickly, so maybe I’ll bink one of the higher payoffs at some point.</p><p>Will post the 10k graph and stats soon as that might be interesting.</p>Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-43911794604855019172020-07-22T15:47:00.002-07:002020-07-22T15:47:48.714-07:00Hi internetIt's been a long time.<br />
<br />
I'm really not sure why I don't play as much poker as I used to. Of course, there's the "poker dream". I wanted to play professionally as much as anyone back then. But life happened; fortunately, I do quite well from an ordinary 9-5 nowadays. More than "the dream" though, I think I just burned myself out; I stopped enjoying playing every day.<br />
<br />
To the present; I fancied a game on Sunday afternoon and have grinded a few hours since. Not winning, as you'd expect after a long break, but I've been very happy with my play in general. It's really surprising (to me at least) how quickly I settle back into the routine: * Pre-flop discipline; * Post-flop assessment and decision making. Also all the things I learned from experience and videos soon come back when I get going. Usually my memory works differently; I'll often forget what's learned if I don't practice/practise something regularly. That's never been true for poker, even though it's been nearly ten years since I played regularly enough to consider myself a serious player. <br />
<br />
One other note, I've been playing a lot of chess and that's distracted me from poker for the last year or two. I'm not a strong chess player but do enjoy the game. At slow time controls I might be class A or B standard. Drop me a comment if you'd like a game. <br />
<br />
Back to poker, then; I've really enjoyed playing. No pressure, calmly playing the hands as well as I remember to. I have made mistakes, no question. I snap-called a river over-bet from a loose aggressive in a spot where it just screamed bluff - but the player had top two. I didn't maximise value on a different river where I had the near-nuts on a very wet board. But in general, I think my ROI is more a function of variance than my play. <br />
<br />
So what next? Well, I've really enjoyed these hands. Looking back at "recent" blog posts, all promises of a return to regular play have proven false - apologies (as if anyone still reads these mindless posts). I'd like to think that I'll play more often, and if I do, I'll share my results and a few hands.<br />
<br />
Until then, good luck.<br />
<br />
Please let me know if you do still read this shit. It might encourage me to post better content. I think I used to at one point. <br />
<br />
GL!<br />
<br />
Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-76580371771731853322018-11-22T05:14:00.003-08:002018-11-22T05:14:38.073-08:00Graph (2009 - 2013) Zoom and Rush NL Hold'em 750k handsAs promised, my playing history from the lucrative period to 2013. It just shows that even through some downswings that felt quite terrible at the time, it seems that I was a small winner in those games at that time.<br />
<br />
How that translates to the present day I'm not so sure. Recent results in Zoom have been break-even at best and it could be that those tables are no longer "soft" enough for my small win rate and I'd be better off back in the standard games with table selection.<br />
<br />
A quick note about the player alias, it's given as B4nko - my Full Tilt username - but this graph also includes hands played in Zoom poker.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb7W1rycBhbH1o_RidPGlGCx1w40HSw0GZPfqhaNzFto7H6GfP2Gn1I7EgCKtpAu4uQ3W6wVc56lrhhQs2Vc6mLVNZd628o_bVkLzj7PE8_5Z1Qzn6nCn21MWCqJV8iSRUaAjAZRZK1pY/s1600/BB+Won+over+Hands+Played+for+%2528Full+Tilt%2529+B4nko.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="886" data-original-width="1579" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb7W1rycBhbH1o_RidPGlGCx1w40HSw0GZPfqhaNzFto7H6GfP2Gn1I7EgCKtpAu4uQ3W6wVc56lrhhQs2Vc6mLVNZd628o_bVkLzj7PE8_5Z1Qzn6nCn21MWCqJV8iSRUaAjAZRZK1pY/s320/BB+Won+over+Hands+Played+for+%2528Full+Tilt%2529+B4nko.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
A note on playing style, tight aggressive was key. 3-betting was so prolific that I was ditching small pairs UTG (up to 55), along with other marginals e.g. KJs. Post-flop understanding of fold-equity and value betting were key. Understanding ideas such as hands on the river with showdown value should usually be checked back if villains are not calling with worse. This combination of pre-flop discipline and post-flop understanding is what yielded those results.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I will update soon if I get around to playing some hands.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
GL!</div>
Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-23973423896822808132018-11-17T12:37:00.000-08:002018-11-17T12:37:08.148-08:00NewsI still play from time to time, but not often enough that I have much to post about.<br />
<br />
The story since the last update is one of flatlining results (including Poker Stars bonuses), so slightly losing overall. That’s in Zoom games.<br />
<br />
The reason for this post is that I rebooted my old gaming machine for the first time in years today. It has all of my databases 2009 to 2013 so I’m going to aggregate the results if I can and post the full history so that the blog is fully up to date. It may also serve as an incentive to play some more: If I can correlate my recent stats to those winning ones, perhaps I’ll play a bit more.<br />
<br />
To follow, then. Probably be a week or two before I get around to it.<br />
<br />
<br />Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-90714520931136910142017-05-18T15:08:00.001-07:002017-06-07T16:00:01.196-07:00UpdatesGoing to try something a little different, and instead of spouting over a number of individual blog posts, I'll collate my small uninteresting updates into a single blog between the more detailed ones.<br />
<br />
<u>Early Zoom Thoughts 18/05/2017</u><br />
<u></u><br />
It feels like the games have changed in some ways since my days as a regular a few years back, but there is definitely enough poor play on show to feel that I can win with a little practise. <br />
<br />
I have encountered a lot of pre-flop aggression and fewer loose passive players which is a shame, as this cuts down on available post flop value. I can't really comment on the standard of the regulars at this stage as I have too few hands, but one or two players look competent. It also seems that there are fewer short stackers - which is good news for someone who likes to play 100bb. <br />
<br />
Early results? I'm two buy-ins down, KK v AA in one pot and then variance. <br />
<br />
It looks like I'm controlling the 'red line' or non-showdown winnings well, so it remains to be seen if I can still craft enough value in the big pots to make up the difference and earn some profit. <br />
<br />
Another point to note is the card match feature, which adds a nice little side game while you play. <br />
<br />
Overall I've been enjoying playing some post flop poker again. GL!<br />
<br />
<u>07/06/2017</u><br />
<u></u><br />
Played a short session tonight, there seemed to be a lot of casual players; maybe the games get good from 10:00pm or something, I wouldn't usually play this late. Picked up a quick 2.5x buy ins.<br />
<br />
Overall though, I've been running fairly poorly so haven't much felt like blogging, though run bad doesn't affect me as much as it once did. <br />
<br />
I have some hands I'd like to share, but will save for a later blog post when I'll do several at once. Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-91386776697849955622017-05-13T12:15:00.002-07:002017-05-13T12:21:56.925-07:0050 Tournament Update <br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">If you have not been following my blog recently, I have been
playing 6 man Sit n’ Go tournaments at Poker Stars because I had some
tournament currency on the site that I wanted to convert to actual $ that I
could take to cash games, which are historically my strongest area. To anyone
unfamiliar with Poker Stars, tournament currency is earned by qualifying
through satellites but then unregistering from the tournament in question (a
way of ensuring that the value is returned to Poker Stars). </span><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">As mentioned, SNGs are not my strongest area because they
require knowledge of the Independent Chip Model to play short stacked poker
well and my ICM is limited. There are plenty of resources out there for those
that wish to get to grips with ICM and tournament poker maths but I’d recommend
beginning with the excellent book ‘Kill Everyone’ by Nelson, Streib and Lee. So
my objective wasn’t really to beat the games, but to break even.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Happily, I can report that I have more or less achieved that
goal; that my T$ are all converted and that I didn’t lose a great deal in the
process, and I have a bankroll of a few hundred $ to play cash games. I intend
to continue to play these tournaments now and again as I have learned a little
ICM through the process and it would be foolish to waste an opportunity to gain
an additional string to the poker bow. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><strong>The Results<o:p></o:p></strong></span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOGRanfNzY1O_b6zbCrq3A2eGGPdTE_daQQAgJexoPcOYUqtjFTzsFfXCofNi4qLV-zaooQW27R4PONxQeCasSFsWTYkD2JiGnA60lrwl5Go0C1ROelKha_qmkNhUdccOfx-DnRIM665E/s1600/50+SNG.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOGRanfNzY1O_b6zbCrq3A2eGGPdTE_daQQAgJexoPcOYUqtjFTzsFfXCofNi4qLV-zaooQW27R4PONxQeCasSFsWTYkD2JiGnA60lrwl5Go0C1ROelKha_qmkNhUdccOfx-DnRIM665E/s400/50+SNG.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">First, sample size. This is a woefully inadequate number of
tournaments to glean a meaningful insight into if I’m doing anything right or
wrong. Still, I feel that I play better than the average player in the early stages of these games and I probably do well enough at short stacked play, though </span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I believe I could have done better. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">One of the main reasons
why the graph doesn’t look positive is that I’ve lost most of the heads-up
battles I’ve played, so this is definitely an area where I need to improve. Having
said that, variance is very likely to be playing a part and I’ve only felt out
of depth against a single opponent – who happens also to be on a certain SNG leader
board!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I had planned to go into more detail with specific stats, but to
be honest I have such a small sample size that it seems like a waste of time at
this stage. Perhaps I’ll do so once I have more games to look at. My basic numbers are:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">VPIP <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> 28%</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">PFR 28% (I seem to be calling a very low % of the time which looks like a leak, though it could reflect in part the lower average pre-flop implied odds, will talk more if this trend continues).</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">Total AF 3.30 (Nice and high, influenced by the second stat above)</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> BB/100 -0.5 (All-in Adjusted 1.2, primarily down to my poor record when heads-up though I'm probably not beating the games in reality)</span></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><strong>Bad Beat Corner<o:p></o:p></strong></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Finally a bit of fun, everyone loves a bad beat story so
from time to time I’ll divulge the sickest hand from my recent database history.
Here I’m a huge favourite on flop and turn but villain catches a minor miracle
on the river. Enjoy my misery!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><a href="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/view.php/id/8278524">http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/view.php/id/8278524</a></span></o:p><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></o:p> <br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><strong>Future Plans<o:p></o:p></strong></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">So now it’s back to cash / Zoom poker. I intend to play a
few thousand hands at Full Ring Zoom 25NL in the near future so I’ll see how
that goes. It’s easy to forget how quickly the hands accumulate and patterns
begin to emerge, so perhaps I can reassess if I’m still in front of the field.
I have databases that suggest I beat Zoom at 10NL/25NL at a low rate over several
hundred thousand hands but the hands were played a number of years ago when the
games were probably juicier.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Good luck at the tables!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-64061074497436428392017-05-01T09:12:00.000-07:002017-05-01T09:12:33.667-07:00Zoom Poker hand (any thoughts?) Don't worry, I still intend to write a long post about my SNG results but in the meantime I thought I'd share a large pot I played in Zoom which I may have misplayed. My thoughts are below the hand history but feel free to add yours to the comments.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div>
<div class="handhead">
Hand Information
</div>
<div>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Game: </td><td>No Limit</td>
</tr>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Blind: </td><td>$0.10/ $0.25</td>
</tr>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td colspan="2">Hand History converter courtesy of <a href="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/">pokerhandreplays.com</a></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
</div>
<br />
<div class="handhead">
Table Information
</div>
<div>
<table><tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Seat1: </td>
<td>Player 1
</td>
<td>($24.65)</td><td>Dealer</td></tr>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Seat2: </td>
<td>Player 2
</td>
<td>($47.10)</td><td>Small Blind</td></tr>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Seat3: </td>
<td>Player 3
</td>
<td>($37.31)</td><td>Big Blind</td></tr>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Seat4: </td>
<td>Player 4
</td>
<td>($28.47)</td><td></td></tr>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Seat5: </td>
<td>Player 5
</td>
<td>($27.36)</td><td></td></tr>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Seat6: </td>
<td>Player 6
</td>
<td>($23.80)</td><td></td></tr>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Seat7: </td>
<td>Player 7
</td>
<td>($32.29)</td><td></td></tr>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Seat8: </td>
<td>Player 8
</td>
<td>($12.50)</td><td></td></tr>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Seat9: </td>
<td><span style="color: red;">Hero</span>
</td>
<td>($51.03)</td><td></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Dealt to <span style="color: red;">Hero</span></td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/4S.png" /><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/4C.png" /></td>
<td></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<br />
<div class="handhead">
Preflop (Pot:0.35)
</div>
<div>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 4 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>FOLD </i> </td><td align="left" width="40"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 5 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>RAISE </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$0.62</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 6 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>CALL </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$0.62</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 7 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>FOLD </i> </td><td align="left" width="40"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 8 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>FOLD </i> </td><td align="left" width="40"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80"><span style="color: red;">Hero</span> </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>CALL </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$0.62</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 1 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>FOLD </i> </td><td align="left" width="40"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 2 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>CALL </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$0.52</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 3 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>CALL </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$0.37</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="handhead">
Flop
(Pot: $3.10)
</div>
<br />
<div>
<img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/8D.png" /><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/4D.png" /><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/KD.png" /></div>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 2 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>CHECK </i> </td><td align="left" width="40"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 3 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>CHECK </i> </td><td align="left" width="40"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 5 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>CHECK </i> </td><td align="left" width="40"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 6 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>CHECK </i> </td><td align="left" width="40"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80"><span style="color: red;">Hero</span> </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>BET </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$1.98</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 2 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>RAISE </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$4.50</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 3 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>CALL </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$4.50</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 5 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>FOLD </i> </td><td align="left" width="40"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 6 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>FOLD </i> </td><td align="left" width="40"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80"><span style="color: red;">Hero</span> </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>CALL </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$2.52</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="handhead">
Turn
(Pot: $16.60)
</div>
<br />
<div>
<img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/8D.png" /><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/4D.png" /><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/KD.png" /><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/5C.png" /></div>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 2 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>BET </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$13</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 3 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>FOLD </i> </td><td align="left" width="40"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80"><span style="color: red;">Hero</span> </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>CALL </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$13</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="handhead">
River
(Pot: $42.60)
</div>
<br />
<div>
<img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/8D.png" /><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/4D.png" /><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/KD.png" /><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/5C.png" /><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/5S.png" /></div>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80">Player 2 </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>ALL-IN </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$28.98</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td align="left" width="80"><span style="color: red;">Hero</span> </td>
<td align="left" width="60"><i>CALL </i> </td><td align="left" width="40">$28.98</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<br />
<div class="handhead">
Showdown:
</div>
<br />
<div>
<table><tbody>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td>Player 2 SHOWS</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/9D.png" /><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/JD.png" /></td>
</tr>
<tr class="handinfor">
<td><span style="color: red;">Hero</span> SHOWS</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/4S.png" /><img src="http://www.pokerhandreplays.com/images/poker_image/4C.png" /></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<table><tbody>
<tr class="handinfor"><td><span style="color: red;">Hero</span></td><td> wins the pot: $42.60</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<br />
I'm sitting on a 204BB stack w 44, so I think the pre-flop call is fine. <br />
<br />
Hand is checked around to me and I bet for value, but the check raise into multiple players shows huge strength from my opponent. I have removed KK from the villain's range as most players would usually 3-bet that hand pre-flop so I'm staring down 88 or a good flush or maybe a strong draw. With his bet sizing though, I have enough direct odds to call and hope the board pairs on the turn beating the larger portion of his range. The board pairs about 18% of the time on the turn and about 25% of the time on the river, or 38% over both streets. I'm getting 18% from the pot plus some implied odds so I think calling is OK. <br />
<br />
On the turn though I'm getting 31% from his bet sizing so I need sufficient implied odds to make up the gap from 25% (% of the time board pairs on the river). However the water is muddied because I could quite easily be behind to two combinations of 88. <br />
<br />
My opponent has about $29 behind so I'm getting 18% from an implied perspective but taking into account the times I lose I need my opponent to have a flush at least 18%/25% (% of time I need to win to make call profitable divided by odds of river pairing the board) = 72% of the time. If this doesn't make sense think of it another way, 72% x 25% = 18% so if opponent has a flush more than 72% of the time we'll win more than 18% of the time and our call is OK. Now, there are 2 combinations of 88 in his range so there must be at least 6 combinations of flushes. I think it's reasonable to consider that this might be the case (AQs, AJs, ATs, QJs, QTs, JTs, etc.). <br />
<br />
The biggest question mark in this hand is probably my river play. Villain very quickly shoves all-in. I know for a fact some opponents would check-call here with a flush but would also almost always shove 88. Given this kind of weighting and I'm getting 29% from the pot what do you think of the call? <br />
<br />
If I was my opponent against an unknown (we have no history) I might light value bet the river with a good flush expecting some kings to call. Again it comes down to combinations, I need my opponents on average to have at least 1 flush combination for the call to be profitable. The $50 question! <br />
Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-35918649839167644792017-04-28T15:49:00.000-07:002017-05-08T12:14:40.291-07:00SNGs (more to follow!)Update: Short vacation arrived just before I completed my post. Will follow shortly!<br />
<br />
I've been playing $7 6-max SNGs for a while and studying a bit of ICM. Really been enjoying getting to grips with a format I have limited knowledge of, and I'm surprised at how much I've been keen to play - reminds me of the mid 'noughties' again. <br />
<br />
My decision to choose the 6-max format comes from the ICM being about as easy as it comes outside of straight-forward chip equity. Coming from a cash game background I though it would be beneficial to start out simple and learn to play short-handed thoroughly before progressing to larger tournaments.<br />
<br />
Anyway, to the point. I will shortly post my most recent 50 6-max SNG results and pick out a few hands and do a little stat analysis. I would like to improve the content of my blog, so I hope it will be interesting.<br />
<br />
My initial goal in playing SNGs was to convert my pool of tournament $ into cash so that I have a decent bankroll to hit the Zoom tables again. However despite the hourly being lower, I've been enjoying the tournaments so much I am planning to continue after my tournament $s are gone. If I can play reasonably and get together a decent sample size perhaps I'll be able to add another game to the 'can beat' list. <br />
<br />
Next post to follow over the weekend!<br />
<br />
GLSimon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-13108877410197487892017-03-25T10:02:00.001-07:002017-03-25T10:02:20.446-07:00Careless ICM MistakesI just played a couple of SNGs off the back of some Spin&Gos, didn't run great but didn't tilt and played some decent poker overall.<br />
<br />
However after playing the Spin&Gos I failed to switch mentality from chip accumulation (these tournaments are winner takes all so no ICM comes into it). So I made a couple of pretty basic (though I guess forgivable) ICM mistakes.<br />
<br />
First mistake I called a Small Blind shove with A6o. The SB had a big stack of 7246 (after blinds) and I have 818 left with the folded Button on 876. Now I know the SB has a wide range here, but roughly speaking my risk factor is about 2.2 due to there being another short stack in the game so my pot odds translate from 1.6 to 0.7/1 so I need to be a 58% favourite and I don't have those odds even against a 100% SB shoving range with A6o unfortunately. <br />
<br />
A little later and my situation has improved, this time I have the button with 1576 and the SB is sitting very short with 296 and the BB has 6828 (all after blinds are posted). The presence of the micro stack makes my risk factor very high against the big stack, so I need to be careful. I pick up QQ and I should just shove as I have a 10bb stack and this would be ICM correct. However - still thinking in terms of chips - I decide to min raise to try and induce something silly from the BB who obliges by shoving. I quickly call and he shows 45s, but I'm knocked out on the river - gifting my equity to the tight and rather patient SB. <br />
<br />
My pot odds were 1.6/1 pre-flop, but my risk factor was a huge 4. So pot odds become 0.4/1 so I need 71% equity against the BB shoving range. With QQ I don't think I ever have that, even knowing he has hands like 45s in his range!<br />
<br />
This is just a reminder that ICM decisions can be difficult and while I continue to play SNGs I need to be better in extreme situations like these.<br />
<br />
GLSimon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-21228521448896142992017-03-24T14:17:00.000-07:002017-03-24T15:08:40.882-07:00Spin & GosI was awarded a handful of Spin & Go tickets as a deposit bonus, it's been a bit of fun playing short handed in these and I managed to cash a few too. Always nice to get free ROI from depositing money!<br />
<br />
Now when these first came out I instantly dismissed them as being a business cash generating exercise to exploit gambling and that there would be no value there, but I think I was wrong. <br />
<br />
On first glance, you have three players that sit down and put in, say, $1 each and then play for a $2 prize pool most of the time. Which just seems like an easy way to lose money quickly. However the prize structure is actually equitable, 8% rake is taxed from the buy-in but thereafter all prize money is distributed fairly, as the following table illustrates. Sum up the third column and you get the contributions of the players for a single Spin & Go (less rake of course). <br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I've used prizes from the $1 Spin & Go games here but it looks like they just scale with buy-in, so this should be equally true for other stakes. </div>
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 243px;"><colgroup><col span="3" style="mso-width-alt: 2962; mso-width-source: userset; width: 61pt;" width="81"></col><tbody>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15pt;"><td class="xl65" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black; height: 15pt; width: 61pt;" width="81"><div style="text-align: right;">
<strong><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Probability</span></strong></div>
</td><td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black; width: 61pt;" width="81"><div style="text-align: right;">
<strong><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Prize</span></strong></div>
</td><td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black; width: 61pt;" width="81"><div style="text-align: right;">
<strong><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Prob x Prize</span></strong></div>
</td></tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15pt;"><td align="right" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black; height: 15pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.000001</span></td><td align="right" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">10000</span></td><td align="right" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.01</span></td></tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15pt;"><td align="right" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black; height: 15pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.00003</span></td><td align="right" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">200</span></td><td align="right" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.006</span></td></tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15pt;"><td align="right" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black; height: 15pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.000075</span></td><td align="right" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">100</span></td><td align="right" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.0075</span></td></tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15pt;"><td align="right" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black; height: 15pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.001</span></td><td align="right" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">25</span></td><td align="right" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.025</span></td></tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15pt;"><td align="right" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black; height: 15pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.005</span></td><td align="right" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">10</span></td><td align="right" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.05</span></td></tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15pt;"><td align="right" class="xl63" height="20" style="background-color: #f8cbad; border: 0px black; height: 15pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.075</span></td><td align="right" class="xl63" style="background-color: #f8cbad; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">6</span></td><td align="right" class="xl63" style="background-color: #f8cbad; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.45</span></td></tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15pt;"><td align="right" class="xl63" height="20" style="background-color: #f8cbad; border: 0px black; height: 15pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.184506</span></td><td align="right" class="xl63" style="background-color: #f8cbad; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">4</span></td><td align="right" class="xl63" style="background-color: #f8cbad; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.738024</span></td></tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15pt;"><td align="right" class="xl63" height="20" style="background-color: #f8cbad; border: 0px black; height: 15pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">0.734388</span></td><td align="right" class="xl63" style="background-color: #f8cbad; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">2</span></td><td align="right" class="xl63" style="background-color: #f8cbad; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">1.468776</span></td></tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15pt;"><td height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black; height: 15pt;"></td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"></td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"></td></tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15pt;"><td height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black; height: 15pt;"><div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Win %</span></div>
</td><td align="right" class="xl64" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">40%</span></td><td align="right" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px black;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">1.06272</span></td></tr>
</tbody></colgroup></table>
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<div align="left" style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
It's also tempting to think "well surely in order to get full ROI from these games we need to cash big sometimes, and 1,000,000 to 1 doesn't look like great odds to me". Well this is partly true, and there may well be better uses for one's investment if we can't put in the hours or play the number of tables required to pick up the larger prizes. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
However these games may have more recreational players than others; those gambling for a big payday. Referring back to the table above, 99% of the time we'll be playing for $2, $4 or $6 at these stakes. If we can cash 40% of the time then we can make 6% ROI without even taking the larger prizes into account!</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
CAVEAT(S): </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
It is certain that good regulars will have looked at the maths and will know all of this, so it's likely that there are Spin & Go specialists playing these games. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I'm not sure what win %s are realistic in 3-handed Hypers though I saw a HUSNG professional do very well in Heads-Up Hypers a few years back. I suspect 40% is manageable at the lower buy-in Spin & Gos but this would require quality short handed and heads-up play.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Anyway, I was foolish to dismiss these out of hand, and as I'm only a recreational player these days, I might play a few for fun!</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
Edit:<br />
<a href="http://www.pokerlistings.com/how-to-make-a-profit-playing-spin-and-gos-a-statistical-deep-dive" target="_blank">This link</a> explains it all much better than I did!<br />
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
GL</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-23215699399318409282017-03-23T07:50:00.001-07:002017-03-23T07:50:36.315-07:00Sunday Storm & OtherPlayed in the $1m Sunday Storm on Stars, lost a couple of medium pots before getting the chips in as favourite but losing my stack well away from the money. <br />
<br />
Stars seemed to be teeming with players of all standards, I hope the game has reached some kind of equilibrium after the boom during the last decade and decline following the US federal action against the online games.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile I'm playing a few SNGs now and then to convert some T$ I had accrued in Full Tilt and build up my cash bankroll. I may begin to sit into the Zoom games again at 25NL Full Ring when I've done this, though it would be interesting to know if anyone continues to beat them at a decent rate.<br />
<br />
Assuming I more or less break even in the SNGs (where my ICM knowledge is limited) I should have about $750 to invest in Zoom or around 30 buy-ins. This offers enough cover should I drop a few buy-ins off the bat. I'm bound to be rusty.<br />
<br />
I'll also try and watch my stack size carefully. When I dipped back into Zoom last year I made a mistake in a big pot which crushed my confidence for a while though I'd been playing well to that point. <br />
<br />
Will try and make my next post a little more interesting and include a hand history or two.<br />
<br />
GLSimon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-33728149623821437262017-03-10T11:28:00.001-08:002017-03-11T01:14:52.441-08:00Micro Time TourneysHi all,<br />
<br />
Just playing a few tournaments at the moment and trying my hand at the PokerStars 'Time Tourneys'.<br />
<br />
It seems to me that these attract a large number of gamblers and casual players given the number of bizarre hands people are getting all-in with before the time runs out.<br />
<br />
Given that the equity is shared out to the remaining players based on stack size should it not work like the bubble of a tournament when time gets short? Unless I'm missing some obvious mathematics, if you have a strategy that is chip winning on average and you obey basic bubble risk management I'd be surprised if this didn't equate to a nice ROI.<br />
<br />
Of course at higher stakes I imagine these are full of ICM experts but at the Micros should be solid money here. Not to mention these are pretty damn fun to play!<br />
<br />
If anyone else has thoughts on these or if my maths is way out please post below!<br />
<br />
GL<br />
<br />
Edit:<br />
<br />
I've had a chance to look at these more closely, and actually, I was making a foolish mathematical mistake as it seems that the ICM isn't required at all and time is only relevant when thinking in terms of 'hourly' win rates.<br />
<br />
The prize money is distributed calculated on your % of chips as a % of total chips in play. So it's just a cash game dressed as a tournament. I can demonstrate the maths with a simple hand that I misplayed just now. <br />
<br />
PokerStars Hand #167394871397: Tournament #1843138363, $2.00+$0.20 USD Hold'em No Limit - Level III (300/600) - 2017/03/10 19:32:44 WET [2017/03/10 14:32:44 ET]<br />
Table '1843138363 7' 9-max Seat #3 is the button<br />
Seat 1: MrSmacks (2560 in chips)<br />
Seat 2: AlwaysFoldAc (13020 in chips)<br />
Seat 3: seikopiet (10180 in chips)<br />
Seat 4: kushnerev A. (9240 in chips) is sitting out<br />
Seat 5: BankoBet (2900 in chips)<br />
Seat 6: pedrojam (6200 in chips)<br />
Seat 7: ShellShark1 (2380 in chips)<br />
Seat 8: vestjyden54 (8540 in chips)<br />
Seat 9: pavlovsdoc (15820 in chips)<br />
MrSmacks: posts the ante 60<br />
AlwaysFoldAc: posts the ante 60<br />
seikopiet: posts the ante 60<br />
kushnerev A.: posts the ante 60<br />
BankoBet: posts the ante 60<br />
pedrojam: posts the ante 60<br />
ShellShark1: posts the ante 60<br />
vestjyden54: posts the ante 60<br />
pavlovsdoc: posts the ante 60<br />
kushnerev A.: posts small blind 300<br />
BankoBet: posts big blind 600<br />
*** HOLE CARDS ***<br />
Dealt to BankoBet [8d 8s]<br />
pedrojam: folds<br />
kushnerev A. has returned<br />
ShellShark1: folds<br />
vestjyden54: folds<br />
pavlovsdoc: folds<br />
MrSmacks: folds<br />
AlwaysFoldAc: raises 1200 to 1800<br />
seikopiet: calls 1800<br />
kushnerev A.: calls 1500<br />
BankoBet has timed out<br />
BankoBet: folds<br />
*** FLOP *** [5c 4d Js]<br />
BankoBet is sitting out<br />
BankoBet has returned<br />
kushnerev A.: checks<br />
AlwaysFoldAc: bets 11160 and is all-in<br />
seikopiet: folds<br />
kushnerev A.: folds<br />
Uncalled bet (11160) returned to AlwaysFoldAc<br />
AlwaysFoldAc collected 6540 from pot<br />
AlwaysFoldAc: doesn't show hand<br />
*** SUMMARY ***<br />
Total pot 6540 | Rake 0<br />
Board [5c 4d Js]<br />
Seat 1: MrSmacks folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 2: AlwaysFoldAc collected (6540)<br />
Seat 3: seikopiet (button) folded on the Flop<br />
Seat 4: kushnerev A. (small blind) folded on the Flop<br />
Seat 5: BankoBet (big blind) folded before Flop<br />
Seat 6: pedrojam folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 7: ShellShark1 folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 8: vestjyden54 folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 9: pavlovsdoc folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
I'll give you a moment to stop laughing at my fold... <br />
<br />
So giving some rough ranges to my opponents and assuming a call puts me all-in (which it effectively does) lets assign me 30% equity in a four-way pot. The prize pool is $522 and there were 261 players hence 783,000 total chips in play. At the start of the tournament each player's stack has equity of 3000/783000 x $522 = $2 or $0.0007 per chip.<br />
<br />
In the hand, my expected value if I fold is (2240/783000) x $522 = $1.49 and $0.0007 per chip.<br />
If I call, it is 30% x ((1440 + 8960)/783000) x $522 = $2.079 so it's a very easy call in reality. <br />
The $6.93 stack if I won would be worth $0.0007 per chip.<br />
<br />
Chip value never changes so it's essentially a cash game with loose players.<br />
<br />
As a caveat though, rake is steep at 10% in these tournaments so whether the general looseness compensates for the high tax I'm not sure.<br />
<br />
But I enjoyed being able to play for a fixed time, so I might dip into these again. Anyone with a decent understanding of pot odds should do OK.<br />
<br />
*************************************<br />
<br />
As a general update, I don't play much any more, just when I feel like it. So I'm certainly not a winner any more, but it's kind of refreshing to play for fun (as I did once long ago) without putting loads of pressure on myself to play mistake free poker.<br />
<br />
<br />Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-21522618657336308482016-08-06T08:50:00.004-07:002016-08-07T02:23:46.183-07:00More HypersGood afternoon, what a lovely day.<br />
<br />
I've played a few more hypers, after running poorly to begin with and dropping several buy-ins I have placed in a few now to bring me nearly back to even. To be honest if I can get through all of my T$ at about break-even the exercise will have worked out exactly as I hoped as I'll be building a decent micro 'roll again at that point. <br />
<br />
I'm really happy with my play overall, I've played pretty well and only found a few small ICM mistakes - and I've seen opponents make plenty so I actually think these are probably beatable. <br />
<br />
When I've got through my T$ I'll post a bit more about results and see if there are any semi-instructive hands to go through. <br />
<br />
I'm tempted after a few more of these to up the number of tables and try to get a bit of volume in. I think I'm probably making fewer ICM mistakes than others at this limit so hopefully can make a small return, though I'd need to do work at higher buy-ins to remain a winner I expect.<br />
<br />
Update (edited with corrections):<br />
Just made my biggest ICM mistake, so going to post it so that - hopefully - I learn from it!<br />
<br />
PokerStars Hand #156942445770: Tournament #1637170203, $6.71+$0.29 USD Hold'em No Limit - Level V (40/80) - 2016/08/06 18:31:00 WET [2016/08/06 13:31:00 ET]<br />
Table '1637170203 1' 6-max Seat #6 is the button<br />
Seat 4: TexassRanger (990 in chips)<br />
Seat 5: Me (1214 in chips)<br />
Seat 6: Karganeth (796 in chips)<br />
TexassRanger: posts the ante 8<br />
Me: posts the ante 8<br />
Karganeth: posts the ante 8<br />
TexassRanger: posts small blind 40<br />
Me: posts big blind 80<br />
*** HOLE CARDS ***<br />
Dealt to Me [Qc Js]<br />
Karganeth: raises 708 to 788 and is all-in<br />
TexassRanger: folds<br />
Me: calls 708<br />
*** FLOP *** [7d 2d 6c]<br />
*** TURN *** [7d 2d 6c] [9d]<br />
*** RIVER *** [7d 2d 6c 9d] [3d]<br />
*** SHOW DOWN ***<br />
Me: shows [Qc Js] (high card Queen)<br />
Karganeth: shows [Tc Th] (a pair of Tens)<br />
Karganeth collected 1640 from pot<br />
*** SUMMARY ***<br />
Total pot 1640 | Rake 0<br />
Board [7d 2d 6c 9d 3d]<br />
Seat 4: TexassRanger (small blind) folded before Flop<br />
Seat 5: Me (big blind) showed [Qc Js] and lost with high card Queen<br />
Seat 6: Karganeth (button) showed [Tc Th] and won (1640) with a pair of Tens<br />
<br />
I have both players covered, but my pot odds are terrible so this should be a fold all day. Against the smallest stack I wouldn't expect my bubble factor to be huge here, it's just those pot odds.<br />
<br />
Analysis:<br />
Bubble factor against player 1 is ~ 1.3. <br />
Pot odds / bubble factor = 1.18/1 / 1.3 = 0.91/1 so I need equity of ~53% required.<br />
<br />
My opponent needs to be shoving 65% or more of his hands here for that to be true, and I don't think that is the case. <br />
<br />
Lesson learned: Just because villain is relatively loose, and the bubble factor is low doesn't mean I can simply ignore pot odds!Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-12743678111729348052016-08-06T08:50:00.003-07:002016-08-07T01:29:44.009-07:00More HypersGood afternoon, what a lovely day.<br />
<br />
I've played a few more hypers, after running poorly to begin with and dropping several buy-ins I have placed in a few now to bring me nearly back to even. To be honest if I can get through all of my T$ at about break-even the exercise will have worked out exactly as I hoped as I'll be building a decent micro 'roll again at that point. <br />
<br />
I'm really happy with my play overall, I've played pretty well and only found a few small ICM mistakes - and I've seen opponents make plenty so I actually think these are probably beatable. <br />
<br />
When I've got through my T$ I'll post a bit more about results and see if there are any semi-instructive hands to go through. <br />
<br />
I'm tempted after a few more of these to up the number of tables and try to get a bit of volume in. I think I'm probably making fewer ICM mistakes than others at this limit so hopefully can make a small return, though I'd need to do work at higher buy-ins to remain a winner I expect.<br />
<br />
Update:<br />
Just made my biggest ICM mistake, so going to post it so that - hopefully - I learn from it!<br />
<br />
PokerStars Hand #156942445770: Tournament #1637170203, $6.71+$0.29 USD Hold'em No Limit - Level V (40/80) - 2016/08/06 18:31:00 WET [2016/08/06 13:31:00 ET]<br />
Table '1637170203 1' 6-max Seat #6 is the button<br />
Seat 4: TexassRanger (990 in chips)<br />
Seat 5: Me (1214 in chips)<br />
Seat 6: Karganeth (796 in chips)<br />
TexassRanger: posts the ante 8<br />
Me: posts the ante 8<br />
Karganeth: posts the ante 8<br />
TexassRanger: posts small blind 40<br />
Me: posts big blind 80<br />
*** HOLE CARDS ***<br />
Dealt to Me [Qc Js]<br />
Karganeth: raises 708 to 788 and is all-in<br />
TexassRanger: folds<br />
Me: calls 708<br />
*** FLOP *** [7d 2d 6c]<br />
*** TURN *** [7d 2d 6c] [9d]<br />
*** RIVER *** [7d 2d 6c 9d] [3d]<br />
*** SHOW DOWN ***<br />
Me: shows [Qc Js] (high card Queen)<br />
Karganeth: shows [Tc Th] (a pair of Tens)<br />
Karganeth collected 1640 from pot<br />
*** SUMMARY ***<br />
Total pot 1640 | Rake 0<br />
Board [7d 2d 6c 9d 3d]<br />
Seat 4: TexassRanger (small blind) folded before Flop<br />
Seat 5: Me (big blind) showed [Qc Js] and lost with high card Queen<br />
Seat 6: Karganeth (button) showed [Tc Th] and won (1640) with a pair of Tens<br />
<br />
I have both players covered, but my pot odds are terrible so this should be a fold all day. Against the smallest stack I wouldn't expect my bubble factor to be huge here, it's just those pot odds.<br />
<br />
Analysis:<br />
Bubble factor against player 1 is ~ 1.24. <br />
Pot odds / bubble factor = 1.32/1 / 1.24 = 1.06/1 so I need equity of 48.4% required.<br />
<br />
My opponent needed to be shoving 45% or more of his hands here for that to be true, and I don't think that was the case. <br />
<br />
Lesson learned: Just because villain is relatively loose, and the bubble factor is low doesn't mean I can simply ignore pot odds!Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-32028838734048102722016-07-31T14:40:00.000-07:002016-07-31T14:40:40.793-07:00Some hyper-turbo funI have some tournament $ I'd like to try and transfer into cash to boost my bankroll, so I've been hitting the 6-max hyper turbos at the $7 limit (this gives me plenty of buy-ins to allow for some variance). <br />
<br />
So far my decision making has been reasonable, though I haven't run very well and only cashed once so far. <br />
<br />
It's basically a game of ICM, and I'm not sure there's any profit in it - but if I come out close to break-even then I'll be pleased. <br />
<br />
It's quite nice to be able to burn through a few tournaments in an evening, so I may investigate if these games can be beaten. If I find that they can be, and if I can build a degree of competence, then I could potentially multi-table... But we'll see.<br />
<br />
If you have any experience with these, let me know!Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-18177897192628892382016-05-05T14:43:00.002-07:002016-05-05T14:43:55.352-07:00SNGsJust a short post as had an hour of spare time tonight, played a couple of nine player turbo SNGs. Just at the $7 level as I'm very rusty.<br />
<br />
Any of you know what win rates are possible in these? Play seemed weak (though I got knocked out early in both). <br />
<br />
Summary of my play, lots of folding followed by two unsuccessful reshoves. <br />
<br />
I had 99 in the SB and shoved my stack in the face of a button raiser who snapped with KJo and I lost the race; and I had 66 in the BB and shoved over a small blind raise and was called by KK. Standard tournament fare.<br />
<br />
<br />
The 99 hand might be worth looking at as I need the practise and we were 6-handed so a small amount of bubble factor/ICM tax should come into play.<br />
<br />
For simplicity I'll assume this is a call decision and that the BB folds, and given the horrendous hand he called with let's assign a range of {22+, any suited broadway, ATo+ and KTo+; 15%}. With 99 I have 54.7% equity against that range.<br />
<br />
Using <a href="http://www.icmpoker.com/icmcalculator/" target="_blank">this ICM calculator</a> my bubble factor against the villain in question is roughly:<br />
9.86/(18.03-9.86) = 1.21.<br />
<br />
The pot odds I would have received facing a shove would have been 1345/1125 = 1.2/1, and dividing by 1.21 we want roughly even equity or better which we have with 99 as disclosed above.<br />
<br />
In the real hand I had fold equity on top of this, though that's offset by the small chance of the BB waking up with a good hand but even so I think it's a no-brainer, as I had suspected at the time.<br />
The more I work through examples like this the more intuitive the decisions will become.<br />
<br />
<br />
Why have I turned to tournaments given I've played a million micro cash game hands as a small winner? Not entirely sure, I go through phases and at the moment it's tournaments. I definitely feel that I'm a fish in tournaments and it's a bit of motivation for me to get better - much as I used to strive to improve my cash game skills back in the day. <br />
<br />
I suppose really I just want to sit in whichever games I fancy playing and be somewhat competent, as I no longer harbour any dreams of making serious money from the game. <br />
<br />
Right ramble over, good luck at the tables.<br />
<br />
Simon.Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-32762644592285448352016-05-01T05:14:00.002-07:002016-05-01T05:18:18.762-07:00PokerHello internet. After a long hiatus I feel like I'd like to put in some hours again.<br />
<br />
My personal life has stabilised and spare time has been somewhat freed by completion of a qualification that I'd been working towards for the past four years. So with increased spare time brings opportunity to play poker!<br />
<br />
I sat in the PokerStars Sunday Storm a couple of weeks back, and it made me realise just how much I'd forgotten, and how rusty my play was. I defaulted to super-nit mode (my general reaction when feeling out of depth in a poker game). <br />
<br />
An example, I raised in MP with AcTc and WCGRider shoved back with about 9BB. I was getting about 2:1 from the pot, but I was LOST in terms of how I should react. A player as skilled as that could be shoving with anything there, though given his limited fold equity I should probably assume a decent hand. We weren't significantly close to the bubble that the ICM Tax was too great, but I folded. <br />
<br />
Actually let's analyse the hand while I'm thinking about it. <br />
<br />
PokerStars Hand #152065620950: Tournament #1489909215, $10+$1 USD Hold'em No Limit - Level XVI (400/800) - 2016/04/17 21:33:47 WET [2016/04/17 16:33:47 ET]<br />
Table '1489909215 2488' 9-max Seat #8 is the button<br />
Seat 1: 1Bentley123 (25511 in chips)<br />
Seat 2: mathewholdem (8815 in chips)<br />
Seat 3: badkali (13316 in chips)<br />
Seat 4: tipchick95 (26392 in chips)<br />
Seat 5: BankoBet (14180 in chips)<br />
Seat 6: davini1972 (17614 in chips)<br />
Seat 7: ircminator80 (25414 in chips)<br />
Seat 8: ZoomathteTop (13337 in chips)<br />
Seat 9: WCG|Rider (7398 in chips)<br />
1Bentley123: posts the ante 80<br />
mathewholdem: posts the ante 80<br />
badkali: posts the ante 80<br />
tipchick95: posts the ante 80<br />
BankoBet: posts the ante 80<br />
davini1972: posts the ante 80<br />
ircminator80: posts the ante 80<br />
ZoomathteTop: posts the ante 80<br />
WCG|Rider: posts the ante 80<br />
WCG|Rider: posts small blind 400<br />
1Bentley123: posts big blind 800<br />
*** HOLE CARDS ***<br />
Dealt to BankoBet [Tc Ac]<br />
mathewholdem: folds<br />
badkali: folds<br />
tipchick95: folds<br />
BankoBet: raises 1200 to 2000<br />
davini1972: folds<br />
ircminator80: folds<br />
ZoomathteTop: folds<br />
WCG|Rider: raises 5318 to 7318 and is all-in<br />
1Bentley123: folds<br />
BankoBet: folds<br />
Uncalled bet (5318) returned to WCG|Rider<br />
WCG|Rider collected 5520 from pot<br />
*** SUMMARY ***<br />
Total pot 5520 | Rake 0<br />
Seat 1: 1Bentley123 (big blind) folded before Flop<br />
Seat 2: mathewholdem folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 3: badkali folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 4: tipchick95 folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 5: BankoBet folded before Flop<br />
Seat 6: davini1972 folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 7: ircminator80 folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 8: ZoomathteTop (button) folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 9: WCG|Rider (small blind) collected (5520)<br />
<br />
Initial pot $1920, I bet an additional $2000, WCGRider shoved $7318 ($6918 additional) so pot size is $10,838 and I must call $5318. Pot odds are 10838/5318 so 2.04:1.<br />
<br />
Let's introduce some ICM Tax, let's say 1.2 (this is just a guess because we're not that close to the money, I'd love to know if there is a way to accurately determine this figure for large field tournaments if any of you know without calculating ICM for thousands of players!). Now our odds are 2.04/1.2 so 1.7:1 which implies equity of 37% required by our hand against his range.<br />
<br />
If he is shoving 88+, AJs+, AKo, KQs my equity is 35.7% so my fold is good. Any wider though, and I've made a mistake. So it looks like my decision was probably good, but it was pretty close.<br />
<br />
The point though is that I had no idea during the tournament of whether I should have called, and I really need to brush up on this sort of thing now that I feel like playing again (working through examples like above should help).<br />
<br />
In the end I finished ITM and tripled my buy-in so fairly please with the result though I'm certain I made pre-flop mistakes.<br />
<br />
My goal over the next few weeks is to learn how the top hands fare against given ranges. There is an excellent table in the book 'Kill Everyone' by Nelson, Streib and Lee that gives these odds and I'll make that my starting point. Once this knowledge is learned it will just be a case of application at the tables and hopefully I can record some small-stakes tournament results.<br />
<br />
I'll keep you posted, and hopefully get this blog running regularly again.<br />
<br />
Simon.<br />
<br />Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-52620104355972646952015-06-28T11:49:00.001-07:002015-06-28T13:21:24.787-07:00An evening of SNG play. [Updated]Hi reader,<br />
<br />
As ever my busy life has not allowed me much time for poker lately, but I will play a few $10 SNGs tonight as I have some tourney tickets to use. Hopefully I will cash a few and get a reasonably even return for the tournament dollars, though I think I'm at best break even in these games.<br />
<br />
I have very little knowledge of the correct shove/call/fold ranges but I think I can probably come close to break even play as long as there are fish in the games, and I base my play around detailed player reads and cautious regard of stack sizes. In other words I'll do no more than two table!<br />
<br />
I will post an update at the end. Probably once I've dropped several buy-ins....<br />
<br />
Update:<br />
Well, a little lame but I was distracted and only played one tournament in the end. But I did win it! I ran extremely well to be fair.<br />
<br />
Notes about the $10 SNGs:<br />
* They do contain players that play sub-optimally, of the usual kind:<br />
Loose passives<br />
Tight passives<br />
Loose aggressives<br />
* I think there is value in these games if a player was dedicated enough to learn the late game ranges. <br />
<br />
* I also think it's possible for an experienced cash game player to build regular early tournament chip leads with skilled play and then play reasonably solid in the late game and win money in the long term.<br />
<br />
So in summary, I'll probably play a few more of these and use up my tickets. <br />
<br />
Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-64496670151679387942015-01-29T15:56:00.000-08:002015-01-29T15:56:26.388-08:00Big pot... Didn't go my way. What do you think of my river shove?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzy0UqMHqBuDY2iEMZuAHphOly92dqDA2-NLrPqSrQK9W9yBH1Vezb9EjDbx0Lx-NzCtA9621X478c5qzwsoA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
OK, so just got out of a session and it was defined by one large pot.<br />
<br />
My thinking for a typical opponent on the 4h6hKcJcKs river with trips is that most players would just shove their very best hands out of position here as they'd be afraid that I'd check back for showdown and therefore lose value where I'd also call a river bet. So I weighted his calling hands towards vulnerable trips types like KQ - which most villains at 25NL would probably call my river shove with. <br />
<br />
So it was a thin value play which didn't go my way. I put a couple of ranges into Stove and it seems that there was value here if villain is calling with KQ, especially if I'm right and the river check was an unusual way for someone to play such a strong hand. It's just a shame it didn't go my way - but that's thin value bets for you. You lose the pots nearly half of the time.<br />
<br />
So are there any better players out there who would have given different ranges here? Has play improved so much that regulars are snap folding KQ in this spot? Would love some input.<br />
<br />
By the way, to justify my pre-flop call, it was just a stack size thing. I didn't want to get all-in with large effective stacks so decided to play a pot in position with a hand which probably dominates much of his 3-betting range.<br />
<br />
<br />
Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-18648633174300471072015-01-22T15:47:00.000-08:002015-01-22T15:47:27.440-08:00To build a roll (again)...Good Evening.<br />
<br />
So a few days after my last post I find myself with a brand new swish laptop with PokerStars and Poker Tracker 4 ready and operational!<br />
<br />
Just played a few hands and lost a buy-in or so, mainly due to some loose passive who limp called a 5bb raise UTG w/ 47dd - winning obviously versus my AA in MP. Villain turns trips when I'm pot committed. Far from being pissed off though, this gives me hope - there is still sub optimal play in these games!<br />
<br />
So the situation is this, I have about $240 on Stars left, and a load of Full Tilt tickets that need cashing in. Probably $300 worth or so. The result is that I'm going to start at $25NL full ring Zoom and attempt to crawl my way back up to $50NL (I'll move back up when I've got $1000 in the cashier.<br />
<br />
Wish me luck! This will be a long and probably painful process, but last time I played somewhat regularly I had a lot of fun with the game and this blog so let's get this going again.<br />
<br />
I have no more reads - the database is new. To be fair all of the old info is probably way out of date anyway but I'm fascinated to see what the playing pool is like these days once PT4 starts to get some statistics again.<br />
<br />
Small warning - I'm still hugely busy so this will likely be made up of a 30 minute to an hour session in an evening every now and then, but I enjoyed the last few hands and it would be nice to see how much my game has held up / deteriorated in my absence from the tables.<br />
<br />
I'll try and convert those FT tickets to $ somehow and then update with the bankroll, and then as usual post graphs and hand histories to track my progress. The first goal is obviously $50NL and then we'll reassess - I think that will take long enough. And it's quite possible that my edge has permanently disappeared. Whatever happens though, I'll try and appraise my performance objectively and honestly and perhaps we can all learn something. <br />
<br />
Talk Soon!<br />
<br />
Simon<br />
Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-30191375393792730432015-01-16T15:23:00.000-08:002015-01-16T15:23:04.259-08:00Good evening 2015!Hi interspace.<br />
<br />
Nothing is worse than a blogger who does not post, so for that I apologise. Life is still very busy, and it's rare that I get a moment to play or post these days.<br />
<br />
Work is still progressing well, I almost have a fully fledged career now. Just got to get through my finals and I'll have a profession to call my own. My sincere hope is that when that happens, I'll have weekends and evenings back for my hobbies - in particular poker. I'm not sure how much effort would be required to become a winning player after such a long break but when I do play the odd hand these days, I still find that I remember the old ranges and think about hands somewhat logically - my fear is that the rest of the field has advanced so much that my knowledge is no longer my edge, but has become widely adopted and practiced.<br />
<br />
Part of the reason for my lack of play is my current setup. I still have an old PC that has served me well for several years, but I can't use it later at night due to it's location. Basically in the odd late night hour that I might play a few hands I only have an iPad - and while I can and do play poker on it, there's no HUD or database software. So I can either play standard ring games and take notes (difficult on an iPad) or just play read-less at Zoom. Even choosing the former option does not allow me to easily analyse hands after the occasion, so I just don't often choose to play.<br />
<br />
Perhaps I could invest in a good quality laptop and use one of the database licenses that I have for it. If I had a fast laptop set up to multi-table Zoom with a HUD - that I could boot up quickly at 10.30pm for an hour or two - then I might be tempted to play more often. Watch this space!<br />
<br />
Another part of the problem is that I'm playing quite a lot of chess. I'm not an expert, I'm probably about 'B' grade by USCF standard, but I used to play tons of chess when I was young and I still find the game fascinating. And it's easier to play on an iPad than poker!<br />
<br />
Anyway, to any who still check in on me - I hope you're all doing well.<br />
<br />
Simon.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-49243834421428018122014-04-30T15:12:00.000-07:002014-04-30T15:12:11.567-07:00When I hand read well/When I hand read poorlyHello.<br />
<br />
Just played some Zoom, played a really good session until the last hand (had to quit as I was gutted).<br />
<br />
I can't help but think that I wouldn't have made that kind of mistake when I was playing regularly, but before I explain let's look at a hand I played well tonight so that it's not all zoom and gloom.<br />
<br />
<br />
PokerStars Zoom Hand #115533679195: Hold'em No Limit ($0.10/$0.25) - 2014/04/30 21:54:02 WET [2014/04/30 16:54:02 ET]<br />
Table 'Whirlpool' 9-max Seat #1 is the button<br />
Seat 1: simdiggity ($29.16 in chips)<br />
Seat 2: player_musa ($15.43 in chips)<br />
Seat 3: angelAA315 ($30.43 in chips)<br />
Seat 4: kajos_126 ($78.16 in chips)<br />
Seat 5: robgomes ($28.61 in chips)<br />
Seat 6: BmwSport888 ($80.72 in chips)<br />
Seat 7: crazyfrancis ($26 in chips)<br />
Seat 8: <b>Me</b> ($29.76 in chips)<br />
Seat 9: syglaej ($12.50 in chips)<br />
player_musa: posts small blind $0.10<br />
angelAA315: posts big blind $0.25<br />
*** HOLE CARDS ***<br />
Dealt to <b>Me</b> [Js Qh]<br />
kajos_126: folds<br />
robgomes: folds<br />
BmwSport888: folds<br />
crazyfrancis: folds<br />
<b>Me</b>: raises $0.50 to $0.75<br />
syglaej: folds<br />
simdiggity: calls $0.75<br />
player_musa: folds<br />
angelAA315: folds<br />
*** FLOP *** [6s Qs 6c]<br />
<b>Me</b>: bets $1<br />
simdiggity: calls $1<br />
<br />
I don't think it's that thin despite my poor kicker, as most combinations of perhaps 77 through JJ might call a c-bet, and even worse sometimes. I don't know much about my opponent, although over a small sample he seems somewhat competent.<br />
<br />
*** TURN *** [6s Qs 6c] [Kc]<br />
<b>Me</b>: checks<br />
simdiggity: bets $1.50<br />
<b>Me</b>: calls $1.50<br />
<br />
His line doesn't seem that likely. There are very few feasible hands that can value bet here, like KQ or quads really. Plus something about his bet timing seemed off: In other words I had one of those gut feelings that he was trying it on.<br />
<br />
*** RIVER *** [6s Qs 6c Kc] [4c]<br />
<b>Me</b>: checks<br />
simdiggity: bets $3<br />
<b>Me</b>: calls $3<br />
*** SHOW DOWN ***<br />
simdiggity: shows [8s 8d] (two pair, Eights and Sixes)<br />
<b>Me</b>: shows [Js Qh] (two pair, Queens and Sixes)<br />
<b>Me</b> collected $12.27 from pot<br />
*** SUMMARY ***<br />
Total pot $12.85 | Rake $0.58<br />
Board [6s Qs 6c Kc 4c]<br />
Seat 1: simdiggity (button) showed [8s 8d] and lost with two pair, Eights and Sixes<br />
Seat 2: player_musa (small blind) folded before Flop<br />
Seat 3: angelAA315 (big blind) folded before Flop<br />
Seat 4: kajos_126 folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 5: robgomes folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 6: BmwSport888 folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 7: crazyfrancis folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
Seat 8: <b>Me</b> showed [Js Qh] and won ($12.27) with two pair, Queens and Sixes<br />
Seat 9: syglaej folded before Flop (didn't bet)<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
For the rest of the session I felt that I played so well, and then to misread the board (well, make a terrible call)...</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<div>
PokerStars Zoom Hand #115534863338: Hold'em No Limit ($0.10/$0.25) - 2014/04/30 22:19:19 WET [2014/04/30 17:19:19 ET]</div>
<div>
Table 'Whirlpool' 9-max Seat #1 is the button</div>
<div>
Seat 1: ercan008 ($49.61 in chips)</div>
<div>
Seat 2: Badger4515 ($25.71 in chips)</div>
<div>
Seat 3: <b>Me</b> ($29.60 in chips)</div>
<div>
Seat 4: space311 ($23.05 in chips)</div>
<div>
Seat 5: CrunkPIMP ($35.89 in chips)</div>
<div>
Seat 6: Vedmegatko ($25.71 in chips)</div>
<div>
Seat 7: tigriskem ($59.13 in chips)</div>
<div>
Seat 8: jr_stroke ($98.36 in chips)</div>
<div>
Seat 9: lepa308 ($31.06 in chips)</div>
<div>
Badger4515: posts small blind $0.10</div>
<div>
<b>Me</b>: posts big blind $0.25</div>
<div>
*** HOLE CARDS ***</div>
<div>
Dealt to <b>Me</b> [Ac As]</div>
<div>
space311: folds</div>
<div>
CrunkPIMP: folds</div>
<div>
Vedmegatko: folds</div>
<div>
tigriskem: folds</div>
<div>
jr_stroke: folds</div>
<div>
lepa308: folds</div>
<div>
ercan008: raises $0.50 to $0.75</div>
<div>
Badger4515: folds</div>
<div>
<b>Me</b>: raises $2 to $2.75</div>
<div>
ercan008: calls $2</div>
<div>
*** FLOP *** [7c 6s 5h]</div>
<div>
<b>Me</b>: bets $3</div>
<div>
ercan008: calls $3</div>
<div>
*** TURN *** [7c 6s 5h] [7d]</div>
<div>
<b>Me</b>: checks</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
My opponent is a semi - lag over a small sample and seemed to like playing turns so far. So the check was designed to allow him to bet - and I think he probably would have with his air and draws, so when he checks back I should assume he's got 'something'.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
ercan008: checks</div>
<div>
*** RIVER *** [7c 6s 5h 7d] [9h]</div>
<div>
<b>Me</b>: bets $5.50</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
My plan to induce the turn fails, so I tried to seek thin river value. Unfortunately I misread the board and didn't see that it was a gut-shot four-straight. When he shipped I just figured it extremely unlikely that he's got 99 (and I ruled out any flop set due to his turn play) and I snap called. Of course the extra 6 combinations of 88 that I didn't consider would probably have swayed me into choosing the correct play - which I'm sure was to fold. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<i>Even if the straight wasn't possible, I still think it would have been right to fold.</i> Perhaps I was over-confident after the earlier read, but river raises tend to be even more dangerous than turn ones. I can't remember the last time I caught a river raise bluff.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
ercan008: raises $38.36 to $43.86 and is all-in</div>
<div>
<b>Me</b>: calls $18.35 and is all-in</div>
<div>
Uncalled bet ($20.01) returned to ercan008</div>
<div>
*** SHOW DOWN ***</div>
<div>
ercan008: shows [8d 8c] (a straight, Five to Nine)</div>
<div>
<b>Me</b>: shows [Ac As] (two pair, Aces and Sevens)</div>
<div>
ercan008 collected $57.30 from pot</div>
<div>
*** SUMMARY ***</div>
<div>
Total pot $59.30 | Rake $2</div>
<div>
Board [7c 6s 5h 7d 9h]</div>
<div>
Seat 1: ercan008 (button) showed [8d 8c] and won ($57.30) with a straight, Five to Nine</div>
<div>
Seat 2: Badger4515 (small blind) folded before Flop</div>
<div>
Seat 3: <b>Me</b> (big blind) showed [Ac As] and lost with two pair, Aces and Sevens</div>
<div>
Seat 4: space311 folded before Flop (didn't bet)</div>
<div>
Seat 5: CrunkPIMP folded before Flop (didn't bet)</div>
<div>
Seat 6: Vedmegatko folded before Flop (didn't bet)</div>
<div>
Seat 7: tigriskem folded before Flop (didn't bet)</div>
<div>
Seat 8: jr_stroke folded before Flop (didn't bet)</div>
<div>
Seat 9: lepa308 folded before Flop (didn't bet)</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
So I played a great session, but then one hand that has probably wiped out every cent of profit I've made since my return. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Perhaps if I played more I could eradicate that sort of mistake from my game and become the solid reg that I once was. And maybe if I ever get enough free time to devote to poker again I'll try to regain that standard. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
For now though, I don't have enough time because of my career. But I won't stop playing and I'll share my mistakes - and I'll try not to get too upset about it!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
GL</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-66021195201154362232014-04-28T13:11:00.000-07:002014-04-28T13:11:21.220-07:00Musings<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijXCkqYu9IP6pteB2Aii-o2BX9IpjTp3R5nys2xNO0gjO5I-oj2ovkgy7ltRz5V5bq3KOAMuFUiO3IhdSgL45JARdhHyovkgUSk_-HrAmYQK0rtxqo-1-FjpXedFlImjiuaW1TxAsB56I/s1600/1500+Heater.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijXCkqYu9IP6pteB2Aii-o2BX9IpjTp3R5nys2xNO0gjO5I-oj2ovkgy7ltRz5V5bq3KOAMuFUiO3IhdSgL45JARdhHyovkgUSk_-HrAmYQK0rtxqo-1-FjpXedFlImjiuaW1TxAsB56I/s1600/1500+Heater.jpg" height="215" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Playing a bit of Zoom, running pretty well. Just the 32BB/100 over 1500 hands. Sustainable obv...<br />
<br />
Anyway, I sometimes forget how much fun Zoom/Rush poker is, and after playing nearly 1m hands of it, I think I probably burned myself out a little. But perhaps I can dip in a little more often than I have been lately.<br />
<br />
I still think I can beat these micro/small stakes tables, and I also still think that a determined player could make good pocket money from the Zoom games.<br />
<br />
I blame the Americans leaving the market for the stagnation in player standards. [Disclaimer: My observations are limited to two limits over a small number of hands, so my comments are pretty lol, but I'll keep going anyway :D] There's no doubt that a large number of the significant poker strategy developments were pioneered by talented US players that have now been denied the internet game. From the point of view of someone who used to crave new theory and used to watch hours of videos on GTO strategy, I think it's a shame. From the point of view of someone who is returning to playing somewhat after a near two year hiatus, it's quite pleasing!<br />
<br />
GLSimon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8335125188785114855.post-89969807627407707572014-04-24T15:05:00.000-07:002014-04-24T15:05:20.317-07:00Mission WeekAs we all know already, Stars are the only reason Poker is still alive and kicking (and perhaps once again growing?).<br />
<br />
Anyway, their latest brilliant idea - the Mission Week - is currently keeping me at the tables.<br />
<br />
For those not in the know, it's a reward system whereby a player opts in to a challenge level (even the 'hard' level is not difficult to achieve). Should the player achieve his/her challenge then they are awarded with a ticket to an All-in Shootout tournament. This basically amounts to a raffle for free money since there is no requirement to actually play cards.<br />
<br />
In other words, on top of the existing VIP scheme, Poker Stars is giving additional rakeback. And while I haven't done the maths to figure out how lucrative this is for regular grinders, it feels like great value - and for a bit of a lottery degen I can't get enough. And judging by Star's impressive traffic of late, it looks like I'm not the only one enjoying their new promotions.<br />
<br />
Long may it continue!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Simon Debankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04189650435940120817noreply@blogger.com0