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The Poker Thread

Jawsus-son Starship

14:17 / 08.05.06

We defo need a poker thread, we defo need to discuss stratergy. Lets talk about Poker Tournements, on t'internet or live. Let's talk about everything!

I'm actually on hiatus at the moment, I'm taking three weeks off from it completely as I'm getting a little bored of the game I was playing six hours a day so that when I come back, I'm gonna be back in love with it. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that Jazz.

So I know that Denfield plays, arn't you our resident pro Jackie Boy? Talk to us about your game. Any one else wanna dive in and yammer about the beautiful game, do it do it do it.

I play predominently no-limit hold 'em on Full Tilt at a $5/$10 level, just made the jump from $2/$4 and finding it a little struggle. Also play a $1/$2 seven stud. Trying to get good in the tournements, thats where the big bucks are, and I play in my local casinos in Brighton. Thats where I am, but where in hell are you guys at?

If this goes well, get ready for the barbelith tournements getting shout outs in the gathering fora.

Jawsus-son Starship

21:27 / 08.05.06

I'm gonna be in this thread on my own, arn't I? Ok, wanna tell a little story about what happened in one hand tonight on the t'internet.

I got dealt pocket 3's on the button in the $5/$10, I had just over $700 in front of me. One guy calls, we're playing six handed, so it folds to this guy who limps for the $10, then it's me, so I make it $25 to go with my 3's, small blind folds, big blind calls, limper calls. flop comes down 2 hearts, 2 diamonds, 7 clubs, good flop for me, but I'm a little worried about the blind, as while I figure the limpers hit nothing, the blind could have anything. Big blind checks, limper bets $75, so I re-raise up too $225, putting him on AK. Blind folds, he calls. Turns a Jack of Diamonds, limper checks, so I bet out another $250, leaving me with a little over $200. The guy calls again, and now I'm a little worried about the flush, or him hitting an Ace/King on the river. the river blanks (5 spades), and the guy pushes all in for $400+. Now I'm pretty sure I'm winning, but I think back on the hand, try and figure what else the guy might have - AK-AQ, A10-A8, maybe a small pocket pair like me? A2? I put him on AKdiamonds on the turn, AK on the flop, I figure he thinks I was bluffing, which I kind of was on the flop and turn so he pushes to take the $1k in the pot. So I call, and he turns over the AK off. And I think the guy might have had a heart attack when my three took the pot. He was shouting from the rail for the next ten minutes until I left.

Anyway, everyone at the table told me I was shite, asked me what I was doing etc. so oppinions telling em otherwise would be great. I ended up donking of $200 on the next few hands, but I'm still up $500 for the night, about £250. And I'm feeling like a genius. So bask in my reflective glory Barbelith - bask!

Jawsus-son Starship

21:42 / 19.05.06

And now I'm broke. Well, down to my last £500. Thinking of quitting for a while, but think I may be addicted. Anyone ever tried to stop the poker playing, and has anyone got any tips for a cold streak.

05:40 / 20.05.06

Cold streak= take a break, see a movie, play way below your normal limit, something like that. Cold streak does not equal playing higher stakes trying to catch up, trust me. Man, I jumped into poker head first not knowing a thing, you should search in conversation for my first poker post, I was so dumb and didn't know anything.

I think I'm off the game until I work a little more and save enough for an ok bankroll. Withdrawing all the time does not help. Seems you're playing pretty high limits over on Fulltilt. I've been playing mostly 2/4 limit Omaha8B, although I just found a home game that runs once or twice a week that is NL Hold Em of course, which is fun.

05:55 / 20.05.06

I got dealt pocket 3's on the button in the $5/$10, I had just over $700 in front of me. One guy calls, we're playing six handed, so it folds to this guy who limps for the $10, then it's me, so I make it $25 to go with my 3's,

2 1/2 times the big blind? A little smaller than the normal 3xBB raise. Is that to get a little more action, or just seemed like the average raise for that particular table?

small blind folds, big blind calls, limper calls. flop comes down 2 hearts, 2 diamonds, 7 clubs, good flop for me, but I'm a little worried about the blind, as while I figure the limpers hit nothing, the blind could have anything.

Yeah, A rag, maybe a 7? It's cool though, goof flop for you and you have position, plus your preflop raise.

Big blind checks, limper bets $75,

Pot size bet. A feeler bet? Surely he bets a little less with the 2 if not an outright check. Maybe A7?

so I re-raise up too $225, putting him on AK. Blind folds, he calls.

That call kind of scares me really.

Turns a Jack of Diamonds, limper checks, so I bet out another $250, leaving me with a little over $200. The guy calls again, and now I'm a little worried about the flush, or him hitting an Ace/King on the river. the river blanks (5 spades), and the guy pushes all in for $400+. Now I'm pretty sure I'm winning, but I think back on the hand, try and figure what else the guy might have - AK-AQ, A10-A8, maybe a small pocket pair like me? A2? I put him on AKdiamonds on the turn, AK on the flop, I figure he thinks I was bluffing, which I kind of was on the flop and turn so he pushes to take the $1k in the pot. So I call, and he turns over the AK off. And I think the guy might have had a heart attack when my three took the pot. He was shouting from the rail for the next ten minutes until I left.

Good read, and some of my most memorable calls have been when I've put a guy on AK. I like the raise on the flop to see what he's up to, and then if I'm going with my read I push on the turn if an ace or K doesn't fall.

Jawsus-son Starship

10:11 / 20.05.06

2 1/2 times the big blind? A little smaller than the normal 3xBB raise. Is that to get a little more action, or just seemed like the average raise for that particular table?

My standard raise used to be 3 1/2 times the bb, but people seemed to view it as a stealing raise, so I'd often get re-raised and have to play bigger pots. 2 1/2 keeps the pot smaller, and also allows for a wider range of hands to be played, so I'm playing more 'trash' hands, but usually getting good implied odds due to calls/chip stacks.

My quote used to be 'There are no bad hands, only bad flops.' Now it's 'And really bad rivers.'

10:34 / 20.05.06

My quote used to be 'There are no bad hands, only bad flops.
I imagine that's doubly true for your short handed play. Do you play tournaments at all? It's probably my biggest leak, and even when I do make a nice cash I pretend it's bonus money and end up withdrawing it, or entering a huge sng or 2. I find MTTs so interesting theory-wise though, always learning something new or hearing different opinions on situations.

Jawsus-son Starship

11:21 / 20.05.06

I play a hell of a lot of MTTs - one every time I play on average. The problem with MTTs is that most people don't take the long view - you normal payout for a first place is between 30-100 times the buy in, so I keep a seperate tournement fund to do this. And I always aim for the top two over just cashing. If you finish 10th in ten tournements, its not even close to the amount you win finishing first.

Overall, my tournement stratergy is loose, tight loose. If I lose roughly 20% of my chips on any one hand, I lock it down and tighten it up until I score a big win. I've cashed quite a few times, won two large ($1000+) first place prizes, but usually my game is all or nothing, so I bubble a hell of a lot.

I'm on a pretty bad run at the moment - the last three tournements I've played in I've been chip leader at the first break, and either bubbled or just cashed. I think that has more to do with beiung unable to slow down when I've got big chips. I just keep flinging them into the pot.

11:47 / 20.05.06

so I keep a seperate tournement fund to do this.
As I'm starting to want to play MTTs more frequently, I've been toying with the idea of a tournament only bankroll also. The thing is though you'd have to have a huge bankroll for tourneys only with the nature of one big cash for countless busts and bubbles. Maybe more of a increment bankroll where I put so much into it each week until I win a big one, and then keep the money in there.

Again, using cash game money for MTTs seems to be a leak of mine and I really need to work on bankroll management.

11:50 / 20.05.06

And I always aim for the top two over just cashing. If you finish 10th in ten tournements, its not even close to the amount you win finishing first.
Ack, no kidding. I'd rather bust out early and play a cash game instead of playing for hours only to just make it in the money for something a little over the initial buy in.

I like the $26 mtts on Fulltilt, the early morning ones usually have an overlay and I seem to do better in tourneys with less than 500 people.

Jawsus-son Starship

12:44 / 20.05.06

currently, the juciest tournement on full-tilt is the $30+3 double stack tournement at 17:00 there time (east coast I think). I play that one at least three times a week, and it has a real decent pay out, plus not to many people play it (usually only 150 ish).

THe guarantees are something of a false economy, as they usually fill to where the total buy-in prize poll exceeds the gurantee.

Gotta love the full tilt tournement structure - the ten minute blinds sound quick, but the slow increments of blinds ae great, and it has antes at the later levels (120-240). If anyone is thinking of joining a new site, I defo recomend full tilt. And its Mac enabled.

13:02 / 20.05.06

currently, the juciest tournement on full-tilt is the $30+3 double stack tournement at 17:00 there time (east coast I think).

Ah, I'm almost never home and/or awake for that one, I should check it out when I have a chance.

THe guarantees are something of a false economy, as they usually fill to where the total buy-in prize poll exceeds the gurantee.

Tell me about it. The 9am usually has an overlay, but the rest are very deceptive. Overlay until about 5 minutes before tourney when it seems 800 people decide to buy in all at once.

Gotta love the full tilt tournement structure - the ten minute blinds sound quick, but the slow increments of blinds ae great, and it has antes at the later levels (120-240).
Yeah, I do like that, and I'm sure it makes the deepstack tourneys even that much better.

Jawsus-son Starship

16:46 / 20.05.06

In regards to the bankroll question - do you play single table sit and gos? If so, and your successful, why not view them as a tournement, and use the money you make from them to fund your mtts. I guess it all depends how you view mtts. I think of them like a game, not for the money but for the game, just keep score in money. Cash games are the exact opposite, they never end, just one hand after anohter until you die. That sounds shite.

17:07 / 20.05.06

In regards to the bankroll question - do you play single table sit and gos? If so, and your successful, why not view them as a tournement,
That's actually a good idea. I occasionally play single table sattelites anyways for the mtt entries, so why not just play equivalent sngs where they pay 3 spots.

Jawsus-son Starship

10:15 / 21.05.06

Looking for an oppinion on how I played a hand in a tournement on friday night;

I was in 13th(ish) place with 80+ people to go (top 18 get paid), with a little over 8,000 in chips. I was in the cut off with qj of spades, and the blinds where 100/200. I raised it up to 500, get four calls, bb folds. I'm a little out of position, as another big chip stack is last to act behind me. Flop comes down jack high with two spades, so I bet half the pot and get two calls. Turn comes a blank, and as I've only got a bit under 6000 left I push for the 5000 in the pot. Big chip stack thinks for a while, then calls, the other person folds, and the big chip stack turns over AJoff, no spade, so I'm losing but I'm not in the worst shape as I still have 12 outs (any spade, and queen). The river blanks, and I bust out.
Oh, and I put him of a an ace-high flush draw.

Also, I'd been at the table all night, and people where really respecting my raises, but to be fair I was playing very tight.

I guess I want to hear from anyone who thinks I should've played this hand slower, or faster, I'm not sure. I don't feel too bad about the play, as the guy took a real long time to call, so there was a strong chance he could fold. Also, if I make my 4-1 card then I get a massive payoff (I'd have been fat with chips). But something about this hand just doesn't feel right, so any analysis would be appreciated.

02:03 / 22.05.06

I probably push on the flop. You raised preflop and got 4 callers, lotsa money in the pot, buncha checks on the flop with only one guy behind you. With the preflop raise, and then a push on the flop people should be thinking overpair or set, and if they do put you on a steal you're slightly less than even money against KJ or AJ off.

02:09 / 22.05.06

Especially as you were the only guy who could hurt the other big stack he should really think hard about folding if you push on the flop. Does he wanna gamble for most of his chips with the only other bigstack at his table with only a pair?

When you said he hesitated on the turn push it makes me think he folds on the flop if you push.

Jawsus-son Starship

21:41 / 24.05.06

Odd night tonight - played two tournements, 7 stud/omaha/nl hold em cash games, and am exactly ... even. At one point I was $200 to the good, but lost it all on one hand, when I pushed on the turn with top two pair, got called by trips, and failed to river the full house. I should never fail to river a full house.

Jack, tried the $26 $6000 gtd tonight, a deep stack tourne - went out first hand. And the entrants jumped from 114 to 250+ in 3 minutes, which is the new record.

Jawsus-son Starship

00:18 / 04.10.06

Where's Penfold whe I need to describe a hand to him? Just called an all in with A4s on the river, board of J-J-J-9-5, and won! £700 please!