The soul of wit

Iggy pretended (I think!) to be a dwarf whilst chatting with somebody the other day. Which reminds me of a top-notch movie recommendation: ‘The Station Agent’ is a really, really good film and is either out or imminent on DVD/video.

I need help. Not for all the usual things, but because I simply cannot work out how to create a list of bloglinks on the right of my page. Help? I’m sure I saw a button to do it a few weeks ago but now I am stuck.

Last night was okay. Four leisurely hours of PLO at a six-max table, reaping $56. Took a frustrating river beat on the biggest pot of the night unfortunately, and almost every cent of profit came from a series of bluffs. Call weak flop bet, call weak turn bet, bet or raise river when it’s checked or weakly bet again. I felt like a proper poker player.

Also played a couple of sit ‘n’ goes in the background, but only managed fourth and third place finishes. Still, if you keep putting close to the hole then a few will drop in.

Thank non-specific deity or mysterious higher power it’s the weekend! I’m tired and bored.

Forty minutes

It is quite rare that I get a comment left in my blog, but they are always welcome. Yesterday DoubleA’s emphasised that 6-max tables are indeed a good thing.

Based on my recent sessions, I would obviously agree, although that ethusiasm is tempered by some horrible batterings I have taken there in the past. As always (and I make no apology for using this phrase over and again) game selection is what it is all about. And there is no doubt that while two or three weaker players at a full table is good but nothing to write home about, two or three at a 6-max table represents a most marvellous opportunity.

There are other good things about the shorter-handed tables. First, you are in good position - on the button or next to it - one third of the time, which has certainly helped me (if not my opponents) to succumb far less frequently to the temptation of getting involved out of position. Secondly, I still play tighter than most of my opponents yet am involved in plenty of hands thanks to the slightly lower hand values and that frequency of being on the button or cut-off.

The results just keep on coming, for the moment. Last night I managed only forty minutes at the internet café after work (yes I stayed out all night again, I just can’t face going home and being talked at non-stop at the moment). I found myself two-tabling, one full table and one 6-max, and walked away with $97 profit. A combination of plenty good decisions and plenty good luck. The luck was typified by flopping the nut straight with minimal back-up and seeing no flush card or paired board on turn or river.

I made over a hundred bucks for the day because I also stuck a small wager on a football match. I backed Spurs to win by two goals or more and they promptly went and won 6-0.

I feel good about my game at the moment. Even during that bad run last week I don’t think I was doing too much wrong, and adding six max tables to my repertoire can only help with the game selection decisions - I didn’t even used to look at them.

I feel bad about everything else though. Work, money, women, my life. It is not like me to feel down for more than a few hours at a time, ever, but I have felt almost tearful more than once this week. I don’t like it.

More six-max

As promised, here is the skinny on the all-in hand I won on Monday evening. Taking my opponents’ cards into account, I had 10 outs from 36 remaining cards when I went all-in (first to act) on the turn. I was 2.6-1 and because they both called I received about 4-1 on my money.

So did I get lucky? Well, yeah. I was lucky to get those odds, because the third guy (who had 5 outs) should not have called. The other chap had bottom set, so he was a strong favourite. In a way, it was slightly better than I thought, because I figured my Jack-high flush draw must have been dead, but in fact I had non board-pairing diamonds going for me as well as the moderate straight draw.

I didn’t make a great play, but it wasn’t quite downright awful, and ten outs is plenty more than what people have been bad-beating me with lately.

Last night I played for a total of two hours; six-max PLO cash and a $10+1 sit and go.
The cash game went well again, and I think I played really well. I made a number of good decisions, ranging from preflop isolation re-raises against short stacks to well thought-out calls on the river. I played with appropriate boldness, and thoroughly enjoyed myself. It was ‘only’ a $39 win over two hours, but I’ll happily take that. I do intend to keep playing six-max when the lineup is okay; when there are one or two bad players in the game you stand far more chance of getting their chips than if you are at a full ring game, where your attempts to exploit them are more likely to run into big hands held by strong players. Six-max could be the way forward, with disciplined game selection.

I’ve been a bit quiet on the sit and goes recently, barely played any in at least a week. Last night I got into the rare situation of ending up all-in on the second or third hand – something I generally avoid with almost religious fervour. I had a big straight draw, bet big and got called on the flop. I missed the turn, but sensed weakness in my opponent so I went for it. He thought and thought before calling, and turned over two pair (a pretty dodgy call). Luckily I hit my straight and had a stack that meant I could comfortably play through the tourney and see a few flops when I fancied it.

I lost a little, won a little, and cruised into the money. Then I was lucky enough to knock out the other two guys in quick succession, and finally got my first win at the $10+1 level under my belt. Which felt good and, unless I am mistaken, puts me into profit at this sit ‘n’ go level at last.

I’m not sure why I have had a break from the sit ‘n’ goes lately, but I really must keep playing them. They are an excellent low-risk game for me, and a superb second (or third?) table because they require so little attention until the business end.

Warm glow

I played for an hour and twenty minutes in an internet café last night, after work and before the pub (Man U v Liverpool on TV). So I was paying a time charge as well as the table rake – very clever!

Despite that, and despite playing at a six-max table, I recorded a win of $42 and all was good in the world once again.

I don’t usually even consider playing at six-max tables, due to a few bad sessions there and the often-aggressive nature of the game. However, it didn’t look a bad line-up, and I have done okay lately when full tables have shrunk down to five or six-handed. I was quite pleased with my play overall in the session; I was quite aggressive, certainly the most aggressive player there for the most part, although (a) I certainly held some cards and (b) I certainly made a few mistakes.

In fact, when I was reflecting later over a Kentucky Fried Chicken my warm glow faded a little with the realisation that I may have simply got lucky. Early on I went all-in on the turn with a straight and non-nut flush draw, expecting both opponents to drop. In fact, both called. I hit my straight, but I need to check the hand history because I think I may have finally caught a very slim draw! Anyway, I finished the whole session ahead by no more than what I had when I won that hand, so I possibly have to put my profit down to a lucky catch; I will update tomorrow with the result of the hand history analysis.

Oh well, I won’t worry too much. In fact, I almost hope I did get lucky since it would make me feel a little less law about the recent run of beats. On the down side, several very weak players passed through the game, so to think that I may have only profited by a lucky river after over an hour playing some bad opponents short-handed - well, that’s not so good for the confidence!

I made one very good decision at the table. This guy who is a total slow-play junkie check-raised my small bet on the river one time, and I folded immediately; he had a flopped full house. That wasn’t the good decision; I was so sorely tempted to say to the guy that I knew he had the hand when he check-raised, and that it was because he is always most dangerous when he has checked or check-called and then raises the river. I wanted to show him that I have him sussed and he’s not as clever as he thinks he is… But I managed to stop myself. I want to keep him playing the same way, and I most certainly don’t want him to start check-raise bluffing me in future.

I made another good decision when I got home from the pub: I went straight to bed because I was tired and drunk. But I was in a far better mood than I started the day, and I finished it off by listening to a few tunes before sleep on my new MP3 player. Which I bought with poker money.

How I could make a very nice living

I am feeling rather low. Rather down. Almost depressed.

Hopefully it will pass; I had a really nice weekend in many ways, and enjoyed myself. It may be that I feel down simply because it sucks to go from a weekend of fun, drinking, playing snooker and spending time with my wonderful ex-girlfriend, back to the working week.

It was great to see her. We get on so well, we care about one another so much, we have so much history and so many good (and bad) times to remember. I miss her terribly – as a person, not really as a girlfriend. At least, I think so.

I also wonder sometimes if I made a mistake finishing with the recent Girl I Was Seeing. All my friends thought she was great; perhaps they should stop telling me that!

When I feel a little bit down (and I am generally one of the least depressive people you could ever meet) it is easy for some of the other issues in my life to pop up and add to the feeling; my pathetic money situation, and my lack of even a home to myself in particular. My mother returned from holiday on Saturday, and so I have to adjust back from three weeks of complete solitude and freedom to having somebody around all the time. Yes, I live with my mother at the moment - the result of my relationship ending and my financial woes.

On top of that, poker has really pissed me off over the last week or so. Two big PLO hands on Saturday morning summed it up. I got all-in on the flop with a big straight draw against two opponents. I missed and the guy with top set won; fair enough. And then I stuck a dude all-in on the flop when I had KKK on a board of something like KQ3, no flush draw. The river brought an Ace and he won with the broadway straight, for which he had only the weakest possible straight straight draw and nothing else. There was no way, based on my flop actions, that I could had any hand over which he was a favourite or even close to even-money.

Winning one of those two hands would have made for an okay session (actually, a very good session indeed if it had been the first hand). So it gets me down, especially losing to the bozo with eight outs who could still lose if he hit.

However, I am trying to look at the positive side as well: If I were granted the opportunity to play those two hands three times each per hour, eight hours a day, Monday to Friday, I would make a very, very nice living indeed thank you very much. In the first hand I was only 40% to win when the money went in, but was getting better than 2 to 1 on my money (the third guy in the pot had three outs in total, so me and the dude with the set basically carve up his money), and I was 70% to win the second hand.

So – I made exactly the right move both times. If you can keep getting good money in when you are huge favourite or you are getting way better than the right odds, then you win in the long run. Right? Right? All I have to do is not go stony broke in the short run…

Actually, I think the poker results have contributed to my feeling low. Or rather, if I were sitting here still running good then I think it would at least help. Instead I am back in a situation where - if this run continues - I could bust out. And that feels horrible. However, I have tended to have some of my best results when my back is against the wall like this.