nyaaaaargh
Date: Wed, Jun 25, 2008 Internet
On days like today, I just want to give up. I've been donking around in low buyin things because I don't feel well.
First of all, I played a triple draw tourney. I got a decent stack and lost half, drawing one card three times to a number one (75432 -- the best hand in triple draw) and pairing each time. I didn't even have a hand to show down. Then I bluffed the river after missing another draw, and a fish called. His pair of 3s beat my pair of 5s. Unreal. The number of unpaired hands I can be betting is huge, even if I'm bluffing. Then I got into a raising war with a draw to a 7 and missed. The other guy had been betting and raising with a hand I would have discarded. He showed an 86 high at the river. Really. The guy capped it on the first draw with a draw to an 86. He wasn't even made. He didn't have a 2 in his hand. Then I busted against the same guy. He stood pat with a T8 and I couldn't draw out on him.
Then in a $2 satellite, I raised with AJs, one caller and the flop came Q32. I cbet and the guy snapshoved. So I'm guessing that the retard called with QJ and got lucky. Then I raised with AdQd, got one caller in the SB and the flop comes Jxx with two diamonds. Guy bets out and I shove. He calls and shows JTs. I have 15 outs and I'm a favourite and he fades them all. So yet again, a horrible player makes a horrible call (preflop), a horrible bet (on the flop) and another horrible call (I'm never behind on that flop) and gets lucky.
Worse was to come in a 2/180:
PokerStars Game #18387213533: Tournament #93422690, $2.00+$0.20 Hold'em No Limit - Level I (10/20) - 2008/06/25 - 23:47:40 (ET)
Table '93422690 8' 9-max Seat #4 is the button
Seat 1: SlimmyPhatz (1500 in chips)
Seat 2: PWROFRED (2960 in chips)
Seat 3: shannan76 (1460 in chips)
Seat 4: FR Vessant (1460 in chips)
Seat 5: :Ambush187: (1660 in chips)
Seat 7: jpapc (1460 in chips)
Seat 8: Genoa Joe (1500 in chips)
Seat 9: tribaltat (1500 in chips)
:Ambush187:: posts small blind 10
jpapc: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Kc Ad]
Genoa Joe: folds
tribaltat: folds
SlimmyPhatz: folds
PWROFRED: folds
shannan76: folds
FR Vessant: raises 60 to 80
Standard raise.
:Ambush187:: folds
jpapc: calls 60
*** FLOP *** [Kh 8h 7s]
Great flop for me.
jpapc: checks
FR Vessant: bets 100
jpapc: raises 300 to 400
Never folding obv.
FR Vessant: raises 980 to 1380 and is all-in
jpapc: calls 980 and is all-in
He has 87.
I mean, wtf? Yeah, fishes will call with connectors because they have no conception of how often they make big hands and no idea how unlikely they are to be paid off by me, but do I have to flop pretty much the only flop I will go bust on?
Still. I improved right? I hit running cards for two pair, or I hit my ace? Right?
smiton is connected
*** TURN *** [Kh 8h 7s] [Jh]
*** RIVER *** [Kh 8h 7s Jh] [9s]
Are you kidding?
Hero to big fat zero
Date: Wed, Jun 25, 2008 Internet
Hero to zero in three hands:
PokerStars Game #18368240788: Tournament #93316971, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level VI (100/200) - 2008/06/25 - 02:36:39 (ET)
Table '93316971 1' 9-max Seat #6 is the button
Seat 4: FR Vessant (4020 in chips)
Seat 5: Robdog3464 (4180 in chips)
Seat 6: donkeykong88 (4185 in chips)
Seat 8: lfornadley (1115 in chips)
lfornadley: posts small blind 100
FR Vessant: posts big blind 200
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [As Tc]
Robdog3464: folds
donkeykong88: folds
lfornadley: raises 915 to 1115 and is all-in
FR Vessant: calls 915
Easy call. He shoves really wide here and I actually have a decent hand.
*** FLOP *** [9d 2d 3d]
Oh.
*** TURN *** [9d 2d 3d] [6h]
FR Vessant said, "OMFG"
I hate getting it right and still losing.
*** RIVER *** [9d 2d 3d 6h] [9s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
lfornadley: shows [6d Jd] (a flush, Jack high)
FR Vessant: shows [As Tc] (a pair of Nines)
lfornadley collected 2230 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2230 | Rake 0
Board [9d 2d 3d 6h 9s]
Seat 4: FR Vessant (big blind) showed [As Tc] and lost with a pair of Nines
Seat 5: Robdog3464 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 6: donkeykong88 (button) folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 8: lfornadley (small blind) showed [6d Jd] and won (2230) with a flush, Jack high
Well, we're still okay, right?
Two hands later:
PokerStars Game #18368247279: Tournament #93316971, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level VI (100/200) - 2008/06/25 - 02:37:19 (ET)
Table '93316971 1' 9-max Seat #4 is the button
Seat 4: FR Vessant (2805 in chips)
Seat 5: Robdog3464 (4280 in chips)
Seat 6: donkeykong88 (4185 in chips)
Seat 8: lfornadley (2230 in chips)
Robdog3464: posts small blind 100
donkeykong88: posts big blind 200
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Ad Td]
lfornadley: raises 2030 to 2230 and is all-in
He's raising pretty wide still, I think.
FR Vessant: raises 575 to 2805 and is all-in
But yet again I run into the top end. He has JJ.
Robdog3464: folds
donkeykong88: folds
Uncalled bet (575) returned to FR Vessant
*** FLOP *** [5s 8c 2c]
*** TURN *** [5s 8c 2c] [2d]
*** RIVER *** [5s 8c 2c 2d] [3c]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
lfornadley: shows [Jc Jh] (two pair, Jacks and Deuces)
FR Vessant: shows [Ad Td] (a pair of Deuces)
lfornadley collected 4760 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 4760 | Rake 0
Board [5s 8c 2c 2d 3c]
Seat 4: FR Vessant (button) showed [Ad Td] and lost with a pair of Deuces
Seat 5: Robdog3464 (small blind) folded before Flop
Seat 6: donkeykong88 (big blind) folded before Flop
Seat 8: lfornadley showed [Jc Jh] and won (4760) with two pair, Jacks and Deuces
Oh well. Next hand I pick up 22.
PokerStars Game #18368251406: Tournament #93316971, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level VI (100/200) - 2008/06/25 - 02:37:45 (ET)
Table '93316971 1' 9-max Seat #5 is the button
Seat 4: FR Vessant (575 in chips)
Seat 5: Robdog3464 (4180 in chips)
Seat 6: donkeykong88 (3985 in chips)
Seat 8: lfornadley (4760 in chips)
donkeykong88: posts small blind 100
lfornadley: posts big blind 200
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [2c 2d]
FR Vessant: raises 375 to 575 and is all-in
Robdog3464: folds
donkeykong88: folds
lfornadley: calls 375
He has T8, so I double up, right?
*** FLOP *** [4s 8s Jc]
Wrong.
Not the first time this has happened today. I'm turning decent stacks into dogmeat at every opportunity.
Roundabouts
Date: Wed, Jun 25, 2008 Internet
Up and down, down and up.
As usual I double up the shorties:
PokerStars Game #18366961679: Tournament #93309380, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level V (75/150) - 2008/06/25 - 00:49:10 (ET)
Table '93309380 1' 9-max Seat #9 is the button
Seat 2: FR Vessant (4425 in chips)
Seat 5: SpadinaD (1735 in chips)
Seat 6: Aodhan (2900 in chips)
Seat 7: jmlrondl (935 in chips)
Seat 9: lies5317 (3505 in chips)
FR Vessant: posts small blind 75
SpadinaD: posts big blind 150
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Tc Ah]
Aodhan: folds
jmlrondl: raises 785 to 935 and is all-in
lies5317: folds
FR Vessant: raises 3490 to 4425 and is all-in
Shove to shut out BB or make him play for stacks if he has small ace or a king.
SpadinaD: folds
Uncalled bet (3490) returned to FR Vessant
*** FLOP *** [Jc 6s Kh]
*** TURN *** [Jc 6s Kh] [5h]
*** RIVER *** [Jc 6s Kh 5h] [2c]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
FR Vessant: shows [Tc Ah] (high card Ace)
jmlrondl: shows [2s Ac] (a pair of Deuces)
FR Vessant said, "sigh"
Tell them, FR.
Aodhan said, "actually cardiac, he raised preflop and you called. he went all in on the flop and you called again"
Aodhan is explaining this hand. Cardiackid complained that I called an allin with A9. But of course I didn't:
PokerStars Game #18366918250: Tournament #93309380, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level V (75/150) - 2008/06/25 - 00:46:15 (ET)
Table '93309380 1' 9-max Seat #4 is the button
Seat 2: FR Vessant (2255 in chips)
Seat 3: Wrightnow (325 in chips)
Seat 4: cardiackid42 (1470 in chips)
Seat 5: SpadinaD (1810 in chips)
Seat 6: Aodhan (2825 in chips)
Seat 7: jmlrondl (1160 in chips)
Seat 8: andygnome (1425 in chips) is sitting out
Seat 9: lies5317 (2230 in chips)
SpadinaD: posts small blind 75
Aodhan: posts big blind 150
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [9s As]
jmlrondl: folds
andygnome: folds
lies5317: folds
FR Vessant: raises 300 to 450
I think this raise is okay because we're missing one guy and another is very short. I want to steal blinds though.
Wrightnow: calls 325 and is all-in
Don't mind that.
andygnome has returned
cardiackid42: calls 450
Not so happy about that. He's not all that tight, but you don't want a ton of callers with A9s and getting stuck OOP is not good either.
SpadinaD: folds
Aodhan: calls 300
I'll be needing a very decent flop to be continuing with this hand.
*** FLOP *** [9h Ad 3s]
That'll do it!
Aodhan: checks
FR Vessant: bets 1805 and is all-in
No fucking around. I only have pot behind, so I get it in. If they all fold, oh well.
cardiackid42: calls 1020 and is all-in
Lower the boom. He has AJ.
Aodhan: folds
Uncalled bet (785) returned to FR Vessant
*** TURN *** [9h Ad 3s] [2d]
*** RIVER *** [9h Ad 3s 2d] [Th]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
FR Vessant: shows [9s As] (two pair, Aces and Nines)
cardiackid42: shows [Jc Ac] (a pair of Aces)
FR Vessant collected 2415 from side pot
Wrightnow: shows [Qh Kd] (high card Ace)
cardiackid42 said, "i'm a ****ed up dude"
Well, you are now, son.
***
Shorty strikes again:
PokerStars Game #18367070365: Tournament #93309380, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level VI (100/200) - 2008/06/25 - 00:56:39 (ET)
Table '93309380 1' 9-max Seat #9 is the button
Seat 2: FR Vessant (3065 in chips)
Seat 5: SpadinaD (1910 in chips)
Seat 6: Aodhan (2320 in chips)
Seat 7: jmlrondl (1370 in chips)
Seat 9: lies5317 (4835 in chips)
FR Vessant: posts small blind 100
SpadinaD: posts big blind 200
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [9s As]
Aodhan: folds
jmlrondl: raises 1170 to 1370 and is all-in
lies5317: calls 1370
FR Vessant: folds
I found this fold easy, even though I probably play okay vs their ranges. I generally don't like to gamble at this level though.
SpadinaD: folds
Shorty has Qc6c; caller has AhJh. So nice fold me.
*** FLOP *** [Tc Ts 6d]
OMG shorty pairs.
*** TURN *** [Tc Ts 6d] [2c]
*** RIVER *** [Tc Ts 6d 2c] [7c]
OMG shorty flushes.
*** SHOW DOWN ***
jmlrondl: shows [Qc 6c] (a flush, Queen high)
lies5317: shows [Jh Ah] (a pair of Tens)
FR Vessant said, "wow"
His shove sucks. He's not short enough to shove Q6s from that position by a long chalk. Still, I should be glad lies called him, because if he didn't, I would have done.
***
Not that it mattered. I went completely card dead, and got blinded down to 1.5K. At t200a25, I shoved over a limp with A8. The guy who limped was terrible, so I was ahead of his range, but typically in this spot, I hit the top end and he called with AJ. So gg me. I hate that I turned a 4K stack into dogmeat but what can you do? If you get your money in good and they suck out, that's what happens.
Weird and wonderful tighty
Date: Mon, Jun 23, 2008 Internet
Here's a hand that makes you go wtf at first look, but I think it's pretty clear what they had if you put some thought into it.
Raiser is playing 16/9 over 30 hands. Caller is 6/0.
PokerStars Game #18343071820: Tournament #93184540, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level II (15/30) - 2008/06/23 - 23:13:09 (ET)
Table '93184540 1' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 3: Krusakcl (1190 in chips)
Seat 4: FR Vessant (1490 in chips)
Seat 5: 24-48 (2625 in chips)
Seat 6: PPDirector (3310 in chips)
Seat 7: mitmot83 (3010 in chips)
Seat 8: Philip2006 (1875 in chips)
FR Vessant: posts small blind 15
24-48: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [6c Jd]
PPDirector: folds
mitmot83: folds
Philip2006: folds
Krusakcl: calls 30
He has barely played a hand and limps, so his range is at the widest something like KJ+, A9+, 22+. And you'd probably weight it to pairs.
FR Vessant: folds
24-48: raises 60 to 90
That raise is too small after a limper. He should put in at least 3x + 1BB for the limper, and 4x + 1BB is not too much if they will call it.
Krusakcl: calls 60
Easy call with a pair.
*** FLOP *** [3c 3h 5s]
24-48: bets 150
Krusakcl: calls 150
That's a decent bet with 180 in the pot. Caller's range doesn't narrow too much but a tightie can be expected to have a pair more often than OCs.
*** TURN *** [3c 3h 5s] [9d]
24-48: bets 420
Krusakcl: calls 420
That's a very nice bet and still he calls.
His range is now only pairs. I would weight it to 55/99 but he can still have other hands.
He didn't shove. He's left himself 530 behind, which is just odd. Sometimes a passive player will do this because they just want to get to showdown, so he can easily have a hand like 88 here and just not believe that villain has AK/AQ.
*** RIVER *** [3c 3h 5s 9d] [Kc]
24-48: checks
Either has AQ/AJ (most likely) or TT and reasoned that he must be losing to a full on the turn (not likely).
Krusakcl: bets 530 and is all-in
Almost certainly has 99 or 55. KQ would be a real stretch. He could check behind hands like 88 here and hope they were good.
24-48: folds
His fold is just awful. It's hard to imagine what he has on the flop and turn that he bet hard and now cannot call getting such good odds.
***
Here's a hand I butchered, just for balance, against the tight guy from that hand.
PokerStars Game #18343400731: Tournament #93184540, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level IV (50/100) - 2008/06/23 - 23:31:10 (ET)
Table '93184540 1' 9-max Seat #4 is the button
Seat 3: Krusakcl (3695 in chips)
Seat 4: FR Vessant (4025 in chips)
Seat 5: 24-48 (1780 in chips)
Seat 6: PPDirector (2230 in chips)
Seat 7: mitmot83 (1770 in chips)
24-48: posts small blind 50
PPDirector: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Jd Ad]
mitmot83: folds
Krusakcl: raises 300 to 400
FR Vessant: calls 400
He's still very tight, so I'm probably doing no better than okay vs his range. I should probably just fold.
24-48: folds
PPDirector: folds
*** FLOP *** [3h Ks 4s]
Krusakcl: checks
FR Vessant: checks
He can be playing tricky with AK, but he probably just missed the flop. He probably also puts me on a pair.
*** TURN *** [3h Ks 4s] [Td]
Krusakcl: checks
BET FR.
FR Vessant: checks
Terrible. I should bet here because he has nothing. As it happens, he might have called with the hand he has, but not betting here is terrible because he's pretty much given up on it.
*** RIVER *** [3h Ks 4s Td] [Ts]
Krusakcl: checks
FR Vessant: checks
Can't bet river though. It's just too obvious a bluff with a pair and a flush in there.
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Krusakcl: shows [Qd Ah] (a pair of Tens)
So I get what I deserve out of that one.
AK is teh nutz
Date: Mon, Jun 23, 2008 Internet
AK, though, is teh fucking nutz bwaaaaiiiiii
No reads on either guy. This is only the fifth or sixth hand.
PokerStars Game #18323116777: Tournament #93079790, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level I (10/20) - 2008/06/23 - 02:18:26 (ET)
Table '93079790 1' 9-max Seat #5 is the button
Seat 1: FR Vessant (1605 in chips)
Seat 2: s_t_bux_a_x (1390 in chips)
Seat 3: mar414 (1410 in chips)
Seat 4: racethig (1880 in chips)
Seat 5: ZoNaRisK (1450 in chips)
Seat 6: BackStabb (1965 in chips)
Seat 7: Laviath (1240 in chips)
Seat 8: golflove21 (1100 in chips)
Seat 9: S.P.M (1460 in chips)
BackStabb: posts small blind 10
Laviath: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Kh Ac]
golflove21: raises 60 to 80
S.P.M: folds
FR Vessant: raises 240 to 320
Sometimes I'd just call here, but I've been playing AK a bit too softly, given that it is the nuts.
s_t_bux_a_x: folds
mar414: calls 320
Hmmmm. It's slightly worrying that I have a raiser and a guy who called my repop.
racethig: folds
ZoNaRisK: folds
BackStabb: folds
Laviath: folds
golflove21: raises 780 to 1100 and is all-in
This is slightly scary and I may have misjudged it, but I'm obv. not folding.
FR Vessant: raises 505 to 1605 and is all-in
mar414: calls 1090 and is all-in
Boom! Boom! AQ and 66 (!). The call by 66 is heroically bad. The original raise, he could call.
Uncalled bet (195) returned to FR Vessant
*** FLOP *** [2h Jc Kd]
Suck on that bitches.
*** TURN *** [2h Jc Kd] [3h]
*** RIVER *** [2h Jc Kd 3h] [2d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
FR Vessant: shows [Kh Ac] (two pair, Kings and Deuces)
mar414: shows [6h 6d] (two pair, Sixes and Deuces)
FR Vessant collected 620 from side pot
golflove21: shows [Qh As] (a pair of Deuces)
FR Vessant collected 3330 from main pot
Yo, triple up, Dr Zen represent!
But even AK cannot overcome the curse of the shortstack:
PokerStars Game #18323142795: Tournament #93079561, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level I (10/20) - 2008/06/23 - 02:21:07 (ET)
Table '93079561 1' 9-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: FR Vessant (1500 in chips)
Seat 2: ussro (80 in chips)
Seat 3: Coleh84 (1550 in chips)
Seat 4: jattila4 (1470 in chips)
Seat 6: num1euph (3250 in chips)
Seat 7: kmurti13 (2905 in chips)
Seat 8: pilotpa23 (1360 in chips)
Seat 9: Kamiunten (1385 in chips)
Coleh84: posts small blind 10
jattila4: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Ks Ah]
num1euph: folds
kmurti13: folds
pilotpa23: folds
Kamiunten: folds
FR Vessant: raises 60 to 80
ussro: calls 80 and is all-in
He has AJ.
Coleh84: folds
jattila4: folds
*** FLOP *** [9h 7c 2d]
*** TURN *** [9h 7c 2d] [8c]
*** RIVER *** [9h 7c 2d 8c] [Jd]
Bleh.
I'm still playing this as I write, and the suckout merchant is now up to 940 chips.
***
LOL. As soon as you say a thing, it becomes untrue in poker.
PokerStars Game #18323352092: Tournament #93079790, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level IV (50/100) - 2008/06/23 - 02:43:43 (ET)
Table '93079790 1' 9-max Seat #4 is the button
Seat 1: FR Vessant (3875 in chips)
Seat 2: s_t_bux_a_x (1260 in chips)
Seat 4: racethig (1595 in chips)
Seat 5: ZoNaRisK (1090 in chips)
Seat 6: BackStabb (1320 in chips)
Seat 7: Laviath (2440 in chips)
Seat 9: S.P.M (1920 in chips)
ZoNaRisK: posts small blind 50
BackStabb: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Kd Ac]
Laviath: folds
S.P.M: folds
FR Vessant: raises 200 to 300
Standard raise.
s_t_bux_a_x: folds
racethig: raises 500 to 800
He doesn't raise much but I'm not folding.
ZoNaRisK: folds
BackStabb: folds
FR Vessant: raises 3075 to 3875 and is all-in
racethig: calls 795 and is all-in
He has 77. His play is terrible. Calling my first raise would be terrible. Repopping it is awful. Unfortunately, poker is not only about who plays best, but also who gets luckiest.
Uncalled bet (2280) returned to FR Vessant
*** FLOP *** [Th 6s Jc]
*** TURN *** [Th 6s Jc] [2c]
*** RIVER *** [Th 6s Jc 2c] [Js]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
FR Vessant: shows [Kd Ac] (a pair of Jacks)
racethig: shows [7c 7d] (two pair, Jacks and Sevens)
racethig collected 3340 from pot
And this time it was him.
***
LOL. It hurt him more than it did me.
PokerStars Game #18323480957: Tournament #93079561, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level V (75/150) - 2008/06/23 - 02:58:36 (ET)
Table '93079561 1' 9-max Seat #4 is the button
Seat 1: FR Vessant (1830 in chips)
Seat 4: jattila4 (2733 in chips)
Seat 6: num1euph (1379 in chips)
Seat 7: kmurti13 (7558 in chips)
num1euph: posts small blind 75
kmurti13: posts big blind 150
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Kh As]
FR Vessant: raises 300 to 450
I'm wary of kmurti13, who has the bigstack and would probably not be scared to use it if he has anything resembling a hand, but I won't fold.
jattila4: folds
num1euph: calls 375
???
kmurti13: folds
*** FLOP *** [Ts 2c 8d]
num1euph: bets 929 and is all-in
FR Vessant: calls 929
Can't fold because this is a bluff so often and I do have outs.
FR Vessant said, "wow"
He called pre with 87s. Which is terrible obviously.
FR Vessant said, "so bad"
Don't tap the aquarium, FR.
*** TURN *** [Ts 2c 8d] [Th]
*** RIVER *** [Ts 2c 8d Th] [Kc]
Boom!
*** SHOW DOWN ***
num1euph: shows [8s 7s] (two pair, Tens and Eights)
Got what he deserved. Next time, fold, sucker.
FR Vessant: shows [Kh As]
The nuts!
Beeyatchesssssss
Date: Mon, Jun 23, 2008 Internet
I will never win a pot with QQ...
PokerStars Game #18323058804: Tournament #93079790, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level I (10/20) - 2008/06/23 - 02:12:36 (ET)
Table '93079790 1' 9-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: FR Vessant (1500 in chips)
Seat 2: s_t_bux_a_x (1500 in chips)
Seat 3: mar414 (1500 in chips)
Seat 4: racethig (1500 in chips)
Seat 5: ZoNaRisK (1500 in chips)
Seat 6: BackStabb (1500 in chips)
Seat 7: Laviath (1500 in chips)
Seat 8: golflove21 (1500 in chips)
Seat 9: S.P.M (1500 in chips)
s_t_bux_a_x: posts small blind 10
mar414: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Qd Qh]
racethig: calls 20
ZoNaRisK: folds
BackStabb: raises 80 to 100
Laviath: folds
golflove21: folds
S.P.M: folds
FR Vessant: raises 200 to 300
s_t_bux_a_x: folds
mar414: folds
racethig: calls 280
BackStabb: calls 200
*** FLOP *** [3s Ts 4c]
racethig: checks
BackStabb: bets 200
FR Vessant: raises 1000 to 1200 and is all-in
racethig: folds
BackStabb: calls 1000 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [3s Ts 4c] [5h]
FR Vessant said, "LOL nh"
*** RIVER *** [3s Ts 4c 5h] [9s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
BackStabb: shows [Qc Qs] (a pair of Queens)
FR Vessant: shows [Qd Qh] (a pair of Queens)
BackStabb collected 1665 from pot
FR Vessant collected 1665 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 3330 | Rake 0
Board [3s Ts 4c 5h 9s]
Seat 1: FR Vessant (button) showed [Qd Qh] and won (1665) with a pair of Queens
Seat 2: s_t_bux_a_x (small blind) folded before Flop
Seat 3: mar414 (big blind) folded before Flop
Seat 4: racethig folded on the Flop
Seat 5: ZoNaRisK folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 6: BackStabb showed [Qc Qs] and won (1665) with a pair of Queens
Seat 7: Laviath folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 8: golflove21 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 9: S.P.M folded before Flop (didn't bet)
whoosh
Date: Sun, Jun 22, 2008 Internet
This is why you should raise more against reetards.
PokerStars Game #18320350792: Tournament #93064398, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level II (15/30) - 2008/06/22 - 23:03:59 (ET)
Table '93064398 1' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 1: DrBLovemore (2750 in chips)
Seat 2: roadmasterh (3315 in chips)
Seat 3: Scratch14 (1335 in chips)
Seat 4: FR Vessant (1150 in chips)
Seat 6: Steve1107 (1660 in chips)
Seat 8: rbaccin (2325 in chips)
Seat 9: pokersam60 (965 in chips)
FR Vessant: posts small blind 15
Steve1107: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [6s 6h]
rbaccin: folds
pokersam60: raises 30 to 60
Has raised a ton. He minraised J9 earlier in the game.
DrBLovemore: folds
roadmasterh: folds
Scratch14: folds
FR Vessant: calls 45
So I call for set value.
Steve1107: folds
*** FLOP *** [Qd 5h Ts]
He probably didn't hit that.
FR Vessant: checks
pokersam60: bets 30
FR Vessant: calls 30
So I'll call the minbet and see what he does on the turn.
*** TURN *** [Qd 5h Ts] [6d]
There's my set.
FR Vessant: checks
pokersam60: bets 30
FR Vessant: raises 60 to 90
pokersam60: calls 60
That raise is far too small. My problem is that I put him on absolutely nothing, so don't expect him to call a decent raise. But you should play for the long run and bet what will on average be best. This wasn't it.
*** RIVER *** [Qd 5h Ts 6d] [Kh]
FR Vessant: bets 120
So I make a value bet on the river.
pokersam60: raises 665 to 785 and is all-in
I don't believe he has a hand good enough to beat me. He probably has a king here.
FR Vessant: calls 665
*** SHOW DOWN ***
pokersam60: shows [Jh Ac] (a straight, Ten to Ace)
Fuck. Well, he probably wasn't folding for any money on the turn.
Here's my bustout hand. I post it because it illustrates an interesting point.
PokerStars Game #18320407867: Tournament #93064398, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level II (15/30) - 2008/06/22 - 23:07:04 (ET)
Table '93064398 1' 9-max Seat #8 is the button
Seat 1: DrBLovemore (2660 in chips)
Seat 2: roadmasterh (3540 in chips)
Seat 3: Scratch14 (1395 in chips)
Seat 4: FR Vessant (185 in chips)
Seat 6: Steve1107 (1615 in chips)
Seat 8: rbaccin (2265 in chips)
Seat 9: pokersam60 (1840 in chips)
pokersam60: posts small blind 15
DrBLovemore: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Kd Ac]
roadmasterh: calls 30
Has been quite loose.
Scratch14: folds
FR Vessant: raises 155 to 185 and is all-in
Easy shove. I'll happily fold everyone out but I don't mind being called.
Steve1107: folds
rbaccin: folds
pokersam60: calls 170
DrBLovemore: folds
roadmasterh: calls 155
He has T9. Some guys will do this. If they are in the hand, they're in the hand.
*** FLOP *** [Th 3s 2c]
pokersam60: checks
roadmasterh: bets 420
pokersam60: folds
Uncalled bet (420) returned to roadmasterh
*** TURN *** [Th 3s 2c] [Jh]
*** RIVER *** [Th 3s 2c Jh] [8d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
roadmasterh: shows [9c Td] (a pair of Tens)
FR Vessant: shows [Kd Ac] (high card Ace)
roadmasterh collected 585 from pot
So meh.
But it doesn't always hurt you:
PokerStars Game #18320600526: Tournament #93064282, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level III (25/50) - 2008/06/22 - 23:17:42 (ET)
Table '93064282 1' 9-max Seat #5 is the button
Seat 1: Bobs Bet56 (1440 in chips)
Seat 2: txgrilledchz (1650 in chips)
Seat 4: DJGM7 (2165 in chips)
Seat 5: OggO PoggO (655 in chips)
Seat 6: 88
Seat 7: FR Vessant (1325 in chips)
Seat 8: no limp man (1585 in chips)
Seat 9: riverxratx (3070 in chips)
88
FR Vessant: posts big blind 50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Jh Ah]
no limp man: folds
riverxratx: folds
Bobs Bet56: folds
txgrilledchz: calls 50
DJGM7: calls 50
OggO PoggO: folds
88
FR Vessant: raises 1275 to 1325 and is all-in
Don't mind just taking this down.
txgrilledchz: calls 1275
Limpcalls a huge push with KQ.
DJGM7: folds
88
*** FLOP *** [7s 2s 8s]
*** TURN *** [7s 2s 8s] [2d]
*** RIVER *** [7s 2s 8s 2d] [6h]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
FR Vessant: shows [Jh Ah] (a pair of Deuces)
txgrilledchz: shows [Qc Kh] (a pair of Deuces - lower kicker)
FR Vessant collected 2750 from pot
Unreal.
That's it. Now I really am openfolding QQ:
PokerStars Game #18320636489: Tournament #93064041, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level IV (50/100) - 2008/06/22 - 23:19:44 (ET)
Table '93064041 1' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 2: FR Vessant (1980 in chips)
Seat 3: rebelhart (2465 in chips)
Seat 5: F4LL3N ANG3L (1755 in chips)
Seat 6: GBPoker31 (1240 in chips)
Seat 8: x Gauntlet x (4130 in chips)
Seat 9: uwcarolina (1930 in chips)
F4LL3N ANG3L: posts small blind 50
GBPoker31: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Qd Qh]
x Gauntlet x: folds
uwcarolina: folds
FR Vessant: raises 200 to 300
rebelhart: folds
F4LL3N ANG3L: folds
GBPoker31: raises 940 to 1240 and is all-in
FR Vessant: calls 940
*** FLOP *** [8d Kd 2c]
*** TURN *** [8d Kd 2c] [2d]
*** RIVER *** [8d Kd 2c 2d] [7s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
GBPoker31: shows [Ad Kc] (two pair, Kings and Deuces)
FR Vessant: shows [Qd Qh] (two pair, Queens and Deuces)
FR Vessant said, "sigh"
GBPoker31 collected 2530 from pot
Lesson: more about equity and ICM
Date: Wed, Jun 18, 2008 Internet
This is probably the most important thing to know about STTs and it's what will make you money in the long run. Just learning how ICM works is enough to make, I'd guess, 10% ROI at the 6.5s. If you knew it perfectly, more, but a good knowledge would be sufficient.
Why do I say that it's so important? Think about it. This is the blind structure on Stars (other sites are similar, but Tilt has a weird structure of its own): 20, 30, 50, 100, 150, 200, 200a25, 400a25, and so on. Each level is five minutes in a turbo and if the game goes fairly slowly, that can be as little as four or five hands. So you can easily arrive at t150 having not played a hand, and your stack will be about 1100. Remember, we are playing ultra tight, and letting the other guys knock themselves out. A golden rule of STTs is that with < 10BB you either push or fold. So what do you push, and what do you fold?
Remember that we said that your stack has a dollar value at all times in the tourney. When you begin, in a $10 tourney, it is worth $10. Its value does not strictly correlate to the amount of chips you have, but changes in relation to the other stacks. 1000 chips is worth more fourhanded with a guy with 100 chips than it is if no one is shorter than you are. Why that is becomes clear when you learn what the ICM is.
The best explanation I have seen of the ICM is that an STT where players have equal skill is a lottery, and each chip is a ticket to that lottery. You can win a prize with just one chip (but not often) but the more chips you have, the more chances you have. Remember what we said about EV. It is a value that represents how you will do over the long run, over the millions of hands you will play. It doesn't correspond to any particular value you will get in any particular game. It's an average. But it's the best measure we have of the value of our actions.
So when should you push and when should you fold? You should push when the value of your stack after pushing will be worth more than the value of your stack after folding. Hang on, you're saying, how do I know what value my stack will have?
Well, it's, kof, simple.
Say you are on the first hand of the tourney. Your stack is 1500 chips and it's worth $10. You are in the big blind. Someone shoves. What would you need to call?
Here's the equation. It looks scary but bear with me.
EVcall = (% wins x value of 3030 chips) in $
EVfold = 1480 chips in $
If EVcall > EVfold, call.
Well, that doesn't tell you whether you should call! How do you figure that out? Well, let's call "% wins" x, let's say that EVfold is $9.99 and the value of 3030 chips in dollars is $19 (it's a bit less, I think).
We need the value of EVcall to be more than 9.99. If x(19) = 9.99, the call is break even. To figure out what x needs to be, we can divide both sides by 19 (because we are multiplying x by 19, we can divide out the 19 to make it 1). So x is about 53%.
But how do I know whether I have a 53% chance against his hand? Well, this is the crux of it! You have to put your opponent on a range of hands. What does he do it with? Usually, you're asking what he calls with. Well, it's tough to know! Different players have different standards. How loose or tight they are will help you decide; how they've played; what the average player does (and this will very often be what you decide). Having fixed him with a range, you need to calculate your equity against it. You can do this by hand in Poker Stove, but generally, we do ICM calculations in SNG Wizard.
***
Now that all sounds pretty tough. Putting guys on ranges is tough and you need to do a ton of work with SNG Wizard to learn what is and what isn't a shove. Luckily, you can cheat a bit at the lower limits and it won't hurt you much.
A poster on 2p2, bighomeytim, posted a strategy for the 16s that you could probably print out and it would work okay. You'd definitely win with it at the 6.5s. Luckily, no one reads this blog, because this would probably be sufficient to win at a good clip at that level.
When blinds are 100+, you can do this. Do not limp. That's important. If you cannot raise, fold. Do not even limp in the small blind. Raise or fold. AJ+, 88+, raise 2.5BB when you have more than 14BB. If you face a shove, you need to use your discretion whether you call. In general, if you have AK, AQs or TT+, you're mostly calling. If the other guy is a LAGtard, calling with everything won't be far from correct. If he's very tight, JJ+, AK only, and you might even fold JJ. Shove over limpers with more than 14BB (shoving over limpers is art, not science and you'll learn how not to fuck up). Under 14BB, shove that range from any position. Only shove over raises with AK, JJ+. Under 10BB effective stack (if you were heads up, the effective stack is the smaller one; on the button, it's the smallest of yours or either blind's), shove ATC from the small blind into the big blind. This is often correct and you can assume BB won't call wide enough to make it wrong. You need a good reason not to do it, and "I'm a pussy" is not a good reason. bighomeytim recommends doing the same from the button at t200 with antes, but that's a bit loose. You should be shoving very wide though.
Shove the top 30% (T9s+, J8s+, Q8s+, K8s+, A2s+, JT+, QT+, KT+, A5+, 22+ -- this means these hands plus the corresponding ones higher, so T9s is a no-gap suited connector and you should also shove JTs, QJs, KQs, the corresponding hands at each higher rank, and so on) from button, or from cutoff at t200 plus antes (I'd go a little bit tighter than that from the cutoff but I don't know that I'm right). If you have less than 10BB, shove AT+, 66+, and a bit wider as your position improves.
Don't call too often. You generally need a very strong hand to call a shove, and I mean very strong. AA is very strong. AT is just ordinary. The shorter the shover gets, and the more cards he's shoving (which usually go hand in hand), the more you call. If you are being offered 2 to 1 pot odds, you call with ATC and hope that the poker gods love you one time. This will mostly happen when you're in the BB.
The bottom line is when you are shoving, tend to shove wild and loose; if you are calling, call tight. Err too wide for shoving and it's not so bad; err too narrow for calling, it's also not so bad. And be lucky.
Playing for third?
Date: Wed, Jun 18, 2008 Internet
I'm running okay but this hurt a bit:
PokerStars Game #18213326096: Tournament #92482124, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level VI (100/200) - 2008/06/18 - 02:47:27 (ET)
Table '92482124 1' 9-max Seat #4 is the button
Seat 1: FR Vessant (5700 in chips)
Seat 4: PSYCHOLOGIE (5600 in chips)
Seat 5: olmcdonal (2200 in chips)
olmcdonal: posts small blind 100
FR Vessant: posts big blind 200
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Jc Qc]
PSYCHOLOGIE: calls 200
olmcdonal: folds
FR Vessant: checks
I could raise but we are deep and he's pretty loose.
*** FLOP *** [9c Tc 5d]
Nice. I have a huge draw and this guy will pay me off if I hit somewhat. So I'm building the pot right now.
FR Vessant: bets 400
PSYCHOLOGIE: raises 1800 to 2200
Okay. I put him solidly on top pair.
I have 21 outs vs top pair. That means I'm a huge favourite if that's what he has.
FR Vessant: raises 3300 to 5500 and is all-in
I get it in, obv.
PSYCHOLOGIE: calls 3200 and is all-in
He has AcTh. I am a 65/35 favourite and brothers and sisters, I played that hand perfectly, and have no regrets.
Uncalled bet (100) returned to FR Vessant
*** TURN *** [9c Tc 5d] [6s]
*** RIVER *** [9c Tc 5d 6s] [Ah]
Even though he did fade all 20 outs.
Underdog? Me?
Date: Wed, Jun 18, 2008 Internet
This happens literally every time I'm all in against a shorty, or so it seems:
PokerStars Game #18211807276: Tournament #92474979, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level III (25/50) - 2008/06/18 - 00:39:19 (ET)
Table '92474979 1' 9-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: x park (1600 in chips)
Seat 2: 7$heaMoney7 (150 in chips)
Seat 3: smokerAce420 (2515 in chips)
Seat 4: pokecancer (470 in chips)
Seat 5: MoN$trMaGNeT (1630 in chips)
Seat 6: MetalSkin (1380 in chips)
Seat 7: FR Vessant (2075 in chips)
Seat 8: 888roger (1585 in chips)
Seat 9: MMennace (2095 in chips)
smokerAce420: posts small blind 25
pokecancer: posts big blind 50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Kh Ac]
MoN$trMaGNeT: folds
MetalSkin: folds
FR Vessant: raises 50 to 100
I actually misclicked and meant to raise bigger.
888roger: folds
MMennace: folds
x park: folds
7$heaMoney7: raises 50 to 150 and is all-in
smokerAce420: folds
pokecancer: folds
FR Vessant: calls 50
*** FLOP *** [7c 8s 7h]
FR Vessant said, "misclicked"
*** TURN *** [7c 8s 7h] [Js]
*** RIVER *** [7c 8s 7h Js] [9s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
FR Vessant: shows [Kh Ac] (a pair of Sevens)
7$heaMoney7: shows [9h Jc] (two pair, Jacks and Nines)
FR Vessant said, "sigh"
7$heaMoney7 collected 375 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 375 | Rake 0
Board [7c 8s 7h Js 9s]
Seat 1: x park folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 2: 7$heaMoney7 (button) showed [9h Jc] and won (375) with two pair, Jacks and Nines
Seat 3: smokerAce420 (small blind) folded before Flop
Seat 4: pokecancer (big blind) folded before Flop
Seat 5: MoN$trMaGNeT folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 6: MetalSkin folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 7: FR Vessant showed [Kh Ac] and lost with a pair of Sevens
Seat 8: 888roger folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 9: MMennace folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Worse followed at another table:
PokerStars Game #18211860220: Tournament #92473577, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level V (75/150) - 2008/06/18 - 00:42:57 (ET)
Table '92473577 1' 9-max Seat #7 is the button
Seat 2: FR Vessant (1565 in chips)
Seat 3: taylor725 (3330 in chips)
Seat 4: Deuce2 (2825 in chips)
Seat 7: Lalisa (3295 in chips)
Seat 8: kikini (2485 in chips)
kikini: posts small blind 75
FR Vessant: posts big blind 150
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [3d As]
taylor725: folds
Deuce2: raises 475 to 625
Has raised my blind at literally every opportunity in this game. I'm not kidding. A3 is several miles ahead of his range.
Lalisa: folds
kikini: folds
FR Vessant: raises 940 to 1565 and is all-in
Deuce2: calls 940
He has QJ.
*** FLOP *** [7h 2s 9d]
*** TURN *** [7h 2s 9d] [Qs]
*** RIVER *** [7h 2s 9d Qs] [Qd]
FR Vessant said, "sigh"
Yes.
Remind me that I wanted a call
Date: Wed, Jun 18, 2008 Internet
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh.
PokerStars Game #18211271776: Tournament #92474114, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level I (10/20) - 2008/06/18 - 00:03:22 (ET)
Table '92474114 1' 9-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: FR Vessant (1500 in chips)
Seat 2: sunnypm (1500 in chips)
Seat 3: eilsel (1500 in chips)
Seat 4: JibTechPoker (1500 in chips)
Seat 5: AGentlemans7 (1500 in chips)
Seat 6: jpadronKA (1500 in chips)
Seat 7: Stich62 (1500 in chips)
Seat 8: Solid Steam (1500 in chips)
Seat 9: longerlife (1500 in chips)
sunnypm: posts small blind 10
eilsel: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Ks Ah]
JibTechPoker: folds
AGentlemans7: raises 30 to 50
jpadronKA: calls 50
Stich62: folds
Solid Steam: calls 50
longerlife: folds
FR Vessant: calls 50
sunnypm: folds
eilsel: folds
Flatcalling is okay with AK. I could also have repopped.
*** FLOP *** [6h 3d Kd]
Nice.
AGentlemans7: bets 115
jpadronKA: folds
Solid Steam: calls 115
Calling has to be bad. He either has a flush draw or Kx. He might call a shove with either.
FR Vessant: raises 1335 to 1450 and is all-in
AGentlemans7: folds
Solid Steam: calls 1335 and is all-in
Qd9d.
jpadronKA said, "y rais idiot"
Because some fucking retard is liable to call my shove with a bare flush draw, making me a huge favourite.
*** TURN *** [6h 3d Kd] [7s]
*** RIVER *** [6h 3d Kd 7s] [2d]
Shit. Well, that's fair.
Two hands
Date: Tue, Jun 17, 2008 Internet
These hands look a bit perverse, but I had my reasons. I think getting these right is the key to doing very well rather than just quite well. Of course, I'm not sure I got them right. I wouldn't advise a beginner to play these hands in this way, because you're just asking for trouble.
PokerStars Game #18209349337: Tournament #92460769, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level IV (50/100) - 2008/06/17 - 22:15:48 (ET)
Table '92460769 1' 9-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: tookielover (2740 in chips)
Seat 2: Sheantu (1050 in chips)
Seat 3: FR Vessant (1370 in chips)
Seat 4: vaaaarga (2138 in chips)
Seat 5: mrjones415 (1912 in chips)
Seat 6: McDeezQueens (2150 in chips)
Seat 8: crtptrsn (1440 in chips)
Seat 9: Vildsvinet (700 in chips)
Sheantu: posts small blind 50
FR Vessant: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Jd Qd]
vaaaarga: folds
mrjones415: folds
McDeezQueens: folds
crtptrsn: folds
Vildsvinet: folds
tookielover: folds
Sheantu: raises 150 to 250
I think his range is fairly wide here. Normally I would fold, but his bet just looks a little small, so I think that I can put him on a wide range, play top pair like it's the nuts, and also push him off flops that don't seem likely to have hit him. I don't often make this call, but it felt right against a tight and fairly aggro player.
FR Vessant: calls 150
*** FLOP *** [Qs 2d 3h]
Boom.
Sheantu: checks
FR Vessant: bets 400
Easy to play from here.
Sheantu: calls 400
He is going to rep AQ by stopping and going it. But I would need to be really unlucky if he had it, not least because if he really did, he'd nearly always shove it over.
*** TURN *** [Qs 2d 3h] [3c]
Sheantu: bets 400 and is all-in
There's his SnG.
FR Vessant: calls 400
Easy call. He has KT.
*** RIVER *** [Qs 2d 3h 3c] [5c]
Villain in this hand is 33/14/8. That's super aggro and he calls our preflop raise with a wide range.
PokerStars Game #18209367062: Tournament #92460769, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level IV (50/100) - 2008/06/17 - 22:16:44 (ET)
Table '92460769 1' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 1: tookielover (2740 in chips)
Seat 3: FR Vessant (2420 in chips)
Seat 4: vaaaarga (2138 in chips)
Seat 5: mrjones415 (1912 in chips)
Seat 6: McDeezQueens (2150 in chips)
Seat 8: crtptrsn (1440 in chips)
Seat 9: Vildsvinet (700 in chips)
vaaaarga: posts small blind 50
mrjones415: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [As Tc]
McDeezQueens: folds
crtptrsn: folds
Vildsvinet: folds
tookielover: folds
FR Vessant: raises 150 to 250
vaaaarga: folds
mrjones415: calls 150
The call is not that great with the hand he actually had. Shoving over would have been better, if he wanted to play it at all.
*** FLOP *** [3c 6c 3d]
mrjones415: checks
FR Vessant: checks
I check behind. When an aggro player checks an obvious bluffing flop to you, it's okay to check it back. He likely plans to shove over my cbet, guessing that this did not hit me. If he had hit the flop, he probably bets it.
*** TURN *** [3c 6c 3d] [Jc]
mrjones415: bets 400
FR Vessant: calls 400
I simply do not believe him here and think I have the best hand. He's very very aggro, and I've shown weakness on the flop. You have to call at least some of the time in this spot because a player like him will not often have a jack, and will never have the flush. The former is just unlikely and the latter he will never bet here. Why would he? I clearly have overcards and cannot call a sizeable bet unless I have AJ, so a bet with the flush just won't get paid. Maybe he wants to stop me drawing to the Ac? Well, he can do that more cheaply and it's not the kind of thing aggrotards worry too much about anyway. I have 12 outs against a Jx hand that doesn't have a bigger club than mine, so I have a decent shot even when I have read him wrongly.
*** RIVER *** [3c 6c 3d Jc] [Kc]
I am ahead like always here, but I really doubt he can have anything that would call a bet. It's possible also that he was semibluffing on the turn, so I prefer to show down and lose bets from KJ or worse flushes, which I doubt are much of his range the way the hand played, than to pay off better ones.
mrjones415: checks
FR Vessant: checks
*** SHOW DOWN ***
mrjones415: shows [9h Qs] (a pair of Threes)
FR Vessant: shows [As Tc] (a flush, King high)
Nice. I'm sometimes going to lose this hand, but I think that it does you good sometimes not to let aggro players have an easy ride against your PF raises. I would usually fold on the turn, even though it looks like a bluff, but minimising risk does not mean taking none at all.
Queen it up
Date: Mon, Jun 16, 2008 Internet
Villain is a bit loose over the few hands so far. I haven't played a hand.
PokerStars Game #18171722806: Tournament #92258795, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level II (15/30) - 2008/06/16 - 06:49:45 (ET)
Table '92258795 1' 9-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: Sabrewolf (1440 in chips)
Seat 2: WazaAa86 (1670 in chips)
Seat 3: PeteythePete (1570 in chips)
Seat 4: Tackenberger (950 in chips)
Seat 5: HSB24 (1620 in chips)
Seat 6: FR Vessant (1470 in chips)
Seat 7: DocReno (1360 in chips)
Seat 8: rock020567 (1990 in chips)
Seat 9: guivess (1430 in chips)
PeteythePete: posts small blind 15
Tackenberger: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Qc Qh]
HSB24: folds
FR Vessant: raises 90 to 120
Standard raise early with QQ. I've taken to popping it up to 4x and it seems to work. You generally get one or two callers and much more rarely the four or five you can get with 3x.
DocReno: calls 120
They almost always have an ace. When you're running badly, an ace always flops. When you're going okay, you flop all undercards and the ace-rag guy hits his kicker and goes all the way.
rock020567: folds
guivess: folds
Sabrewolf: folds
WazaAa86: folds
PeteythePete: folds
Tackenberger: folds
*** FLOP *** [Kc 7c 5c]
Not as terrible as it looks at first glance. He has more aces than kings in his range, and I am at least drawing to the second nut flush
FR Vessant: bets 150
DocReno: calls 150
He most likely has a flush draw, possibly to the nuts, but I would expect him to play it harder if so
*** TURN *** [Kc 7c 5c] [Qd]
Now this presents an opportunity. I have a set and a flush draw that I have every reason to believe is to the nuts. So I don't mind giving a free card and if I check, I look a lot like someone who had a go on the flop and is now giving up.
FR Vessant: checks
DocReno: bets 420
And it works a treat.
FR Vessant: raises 780 to 1200 and is all-in
DocReno: calls 670 and is all-in
He has Ah8c. The call is beyond awful obv.
Uncalled bet (110) returned to FR Vessant
*** RIVER *** [Kc 7c 5c Qd] [Kh]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
FR Vessant: shows [Qc Qh] (a full house, Queens full of Kings)
DocReno: shows [Ah 8c] (a pair of Kings)
FR Vessant collected 2765 from pot
Nice. But then a few hands later...
Guivess is a weak player. He is decently tight but is far too aggro postflop and he'll stack off ridiculously light.
PokerStars Game #18171809228: Tournament #92258795, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level III (25/50) - 2008/06/16 - 06:59:45 (ET)
Table '92258795 1' 9-max Seat #4 is the button
Seat 1: Sabrewolf (1950 in chips)
Seat 2: WazaAa86 (3065 in chips)
Seat 3: PeteythePete (1495 in chips)
Seat 4: Tackenberger (2240 in chips)
Seat 6: FR Vessant (2690 in chips)
Seat 9: guivess (2060 in chips)
FR Vessant: posts small blind 25
guivess: posts big blind 50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Tc As]
Sabrewolf: folds
WazaAa86: folds
PeteythePete: folds
Tackenberger: folds
FR Vessant: raises 100 to 150
Worth putting in a raise. You basically don't mind winning the blinds.
guivess: calls 100
He'll call pretty wide.
*** FLOP *** [4d 6d Ad]
Meh. Another monotone flop but we are not too scared because we don't ever put other blind on a flush here.
FR Vessant: bets 200
Smallish bet, but it's enough to fold out anything not legitimate.
guivess: raises 400 to 600
We don't believe he has anything to scare us here.
FR Vessant: raises 1940 to 2540 and is all-in
Lower the boom, and he should be folding.
guivess: calls 1310 and is all-in
But he makes a bad call even by his low standards. He has QcJd. Basically, he's gambling with just the flush draw. He's actually priced himself in against the hand I have because his play is so bad. He is getting just better than 2 to 1.
I guess you could consider that he has the best of it, but basically, this kind of being priced in is achievable simply by making a horrible bet on the flop that leaves you with few enough chips that any bet you call is good.
Uncalled bet (630) returned to FR Vessant
*** TURN *** [4d 6d Ad] [Td]
Sigh.
*** RIVER *** [4d 6d Ad Td] [3c]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
FR Vessant: shows [Tc As] (two pair, Aces and Tens)
guivess: shows [Qc Jd] (a flush, Ace high)
guivess collected 4120 from pot
FR Vessant said, "wow"
He's actually been lucky against me before.
And in case you were thinking that because I had made one decent pot with QQ, the ladies love me...
PokerStars Game #18171943124: Tournament #92258766, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level V (75/150) - 2008/06/16 - 07:14:40 (ET)
Table '92258766 1' 9-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: boosh1313 (7850 in chips)
Seat 2: valueschka (1545 in chips)
Seat 3: FR Vessant (2740 in chips)
Seat 5: x walks x (1365 in chips)
FR Vessant: posts small blind 75
x walks x: posts big blind 150
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Qd Qs]
boosh1313: folds
valueschka: folds
FR Vessant: raises 300 to 450
Standard raise.
x walks x: raises 915 to 1365 and is all-in
Even BvB, his push is bad. I think I might have pushed on his blind once though, so he's maybe interpreting my raise as weak. But I'm not going to be raising anything I think I can fold for 900 more. He has KhTh.
FR Vessant: calls 915
Get ready for that sick feeling.
*** FLOP *** [Qc Kd Ad]
I am not even excited about flopping a set, because I see that there is a nice straight draw, and obviously that's coming in by the river.
*** TURN *** [Qc Kd Ad] [4s]
Wait for it...
*** RIVER *** [Qc Kd Ad 4s] [Jd]
Boom!
*** SHOW DOWN ***
FR Vessant: shows [Qd Qs] (three of a kind, Queens)
x walks x: shows [Kh Th] (a straight, Ten to Ace)
x walks x collected 2730 from pot
FR Vessant said, "oh man"
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2730 | Rake 0
Board [Qc Kd Ad 4s Jd]
Seat 1: boosh1313 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 2: valueschka (button) folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 3: FR Vessant (small blind) showed [Qd Qs] and lost with three of a kind, Queens
Seat 5: x walks x (big blind) showed [Kh Th] and won (2730) with a straight, Ten to Ace
It got worse because the same guy picked up QQ a couple of hands later when I pushed with A9. So not only did I not knock him out, he gained enough chips from me to eliminate me! Oh well. I shouldn't grumble. In that set of eight, I won three, ran up once, and came third in another.
Yes, they have monsters
Date: Fri, Jun 13, 2008 Internet
Grrrr.
PokerStars Game #18105204984: Tournament #91896658, $10+$1 Hold'em No Limit - Level VII (100/200) - 2008/06/13 - 07:13:40 (ET)
Table '91896658 1' 9-max Seat #6 is the button
Seat 1: royaluck (4830 in chips)
Seat 2: FR Vessant (3245 in chips)
Seat 6: Nikker333 (5425 in chips)
royaluck: posts the ante 25
FR Vessant: posts the ante 25
Nikker333: posts the ante 25
royaluck: posts small blind 100
FR Vessant: posts big blind 200
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to FR Vessant [Ts As]
Nikker333: raises 400 to 600
royaluck is disconnected
royaluck is connected
royaluck: folds
FR Vessant: calls 400
He's played quite tight so I'm not sure I'm ahead but I can't fold. Call and see what he does.
*** FLOP *** [9d Ah Jh]
FR Vessant: checks
Nikker333: bets 1000
FR Vessant: calls 1000
That bet was far too big. He isn't a good player but he's tight and aggressive, and if he had hit that, he would be betting for value, not trying to shut me out.
*** TURN *** [9d Ah Jh] [2d]
FR Vessant: checks
Nikker333: bets 3800 and is all-in
Hmmm. Well he could have A2, but I'm not folding.
FR Vessant: calls 1620 and is all-in
Uncalled bet (2180) returned to Nikker333
*** RIVER *** [9d Ah Jh 2d] [4s]
FR Vessant said, "omg"
What up FR?
*** SHOW DOWN ***
FR Vessant: shows [Ts As] (a pair of Aces)
Nikker333: shows [2s 2h] (three of a kind, Deuces)
royaluck said, "abus� !"
FR Vessant said, "you lucky reetard"
Well, that's fair.
On all my other tables, I take big stacks and run them into bigger hands. The guy who raises 25% of his hands? I shove over with AJ, he has QQ. Another guy raises, I have TT and call. We are ITM. So the flop comes Qxx and he bets out. I call. He shoves the turn and I call that too. I don't put him on a Q. I should have done though. I'm making a lot of mistakes like that at the moment. I play a lot better when I just credit them for something when they bet big, although as you can see, in the hand I've posted here, I got it right on the flop. I thought about raising though, and I think I should have done. I'd still be in the tourney now if I had.
So as I'm writing this, the guy who's abused the bubble, raising tons of hands, raises once more ITM. I push over with AT. He has AJ. Sigh.
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