My first ROYAL flush

Absolute stone call nuts. I hit it the first time today

Why I dont like limping with big pocket pairs

Texas Hold'em $4-$4 NL (real money), hand #1,120,389,995
Table Lausanne, 30 Jul 2005 03:29 AM


Seat 2: kneegar1 ($768 in chips)
Seat 4: tevez206 ($699 in chips)
Seat 5: etc5588ct [5S,8S] ($1,233 in chips)
Seat 6: piedestal2 ($394 in chips)
Seat 7: FourTensWins ($399 in chips)
Seat 8: akmofo12 ($94 in chips)
Seat 9: Archangel0 ($86 in chips)



ANTES/BLINDS
etc5588ct posts blind ($2), piedestal2 posts blind ($4).

PRE-FLOP
FourTensWins calls $4, akmofo12 folds, Archangel0 folds, kneegar1 folds, tevez206 folds, etc5588ct calls $2, piedestal2 checks.

FLOP [board cards QD,8C,5D ]
etc5588ct checks, piedestal2 checks, FourTensWins bets $25, etc5588ct bets $75, piedestal2 folds, FourTensWins bets $150, etc5588ct bets $1,154 and is all-in, FourTensWins calls $220 and is all-in.

TURN [board cards QD,8C,5D,10S ]


RIVER [board cards QD,8C,5D,10S,AH ]


SHOWDOWN
etc5588ct shows [ 5S,8S ]
FourTensWins shows [ KC,KH ]
etc5588ct wins $834, etc5588ct wins $799.



SUMMARY
Dealer: tevez206
Pot: $1,636, (including rake: $3)
kneegar1, loses $0
tevez206, loses $0
etc5588ct, bets $1,233, collects $1,633, net $400
piedestal2, loses $4
FourTensWins, loses $399
akmofo12, loses $0
Archangel0, loses $0

Where are you relationship articles?

I've spent the last hours looking for an online article on "relationship problems, problem communication, or relationship dissolution" from any popular magazine with exceptions of psychology today. It's for my class but it is much harder than I anticipated. So many articles in popular online magazines are about hooking up, sex techniques, and casual dating. No wonder people struggle to stay in relationships.

Better lucky than good

I wonder what's going through this guy's mind.

(This is play between me and the other big stack @ pokerchamps)

Cutoff seat raises and I call from SB with 55. Heads up play.

Me: 5h5c

Flop: 5d As Qs

I check, he bets the pot size, and I raise him 4x the pot, and then he promptly goes all in. At this point I think, for sure he has an A or AQ two pair even. I quickly call .
Turn brings a 10.
River a 3.

Spades didn't hit so I effectively trapped him for all his money.

Damn fool turns over KcJs. He re-raised my MASSIVE re-raise all in and he didn't even have a sensible holding. In fact he was drawing to 4 outs. That lucky lucky fool. Does he even know how bad he was playing?!

Did he really? really really?

I keep asking myself this. I'm in the Big Blind and the button calls and the small blind calls.

Flop comes K 2 K

I have 94, but I decided that a flop like that misses everyone, so I made a bet at it. $8 into a $10 dollar pot (blinds were $1/3) to deter an A high from calling. The man calls (SB folds) AND announces that he has trip Ks.

The turn comes a 6 and I say, I check to trip Ks then.
He quickly checks behind me.

River brings a 9. I think, now I have two pair and he didn't play like he had Ks. I value bet $10 and he announces that he's all in for $30 more. I didn't believe him, but I just couldn't call.

It's just a small pot in the grand scheme of things, but I just had to know if he had it. So I asked him, what did you have that hand? He claims that he had K 9. I thought, so he had a full house? But I had a nine in my hand, what are the chances he has one too and also has the K. And since he had the K, why did he check the turn?

I keep thinking, die he really? really really? really really actually have K9?
I decided that he was full of $hit. I decided though that my laydown was still justified because he probably had A9 or Q9.

I folded to him at the time because he was a really tight player in general. But he was also running low stacked. I think he was lying between his teeth. Damn poker players!

I won over 500 dollars this weekend but almost broke my neck!

While my poker play at Morongo Casino this weekend was facinating and I learned a lot on what adjustments to make to my game against a table full of mostly fish, the more awful thing is I could have died this Saturday night. Here's how it happen:

On the way to Morongo Casino, Randy and I were sitting in Steve's new (1 week old) car. He was driving a bit recklessly, although he did get us there in record speed. Steve weaved in and out of lanes at up to 100mph+. Randy and I were scared shitless most of the time because Steve rarely checks his blind spot. I saved us from dying at least 3 times because I check his blind spot ahead of time, weaving my head from side to side at speeds you cannot imagine then quickly warning him about the car he's about to ram at 100+ mph. Adrenaline, fear of losing my life, and the thrill of gambling can be quite motivating!

You'd think that's how I almost break my neck and get killed right? WRONG! At Morongo, I did quite well at first, I worked my stack up to about $400 from a $100 buy-in. Then lost 200 of it back before we left. (1.Trips to full house, 2.JJ to KK)

I'm up $100. We are heading back and Steve is driving just as recklessly before. This time I'm tired and I'm not weaving my head in and out. We're driving further and further away from the fish at Morongo Casino. Randy makes a foreboding comment, and says that he's too scared of Steve's driving so he's just going to sleep and hope that we get back safely. Basically, he threw all the responsibility on MY shoulders since Steve sure as hell wasn't demonstrating any of that responsibility.

I remember Steve changing 2 lanes over from the 3rd lane to the far left lane. Once we were "safely" and completely into the far left lane, he starts swerving. Steve announced, "It's cool, I got it! I got it under control!" Instantly, from past experience, I knew that he wasn't going to regain control of the car. At this point, I think, I knew this was going to happen. Then I think, I hope we don't die. I was thinking about the odds of surviving. I thought, we were going at fast freeway speeds of what I conjecture was about 80mph, he was swerving, and we're going to hit something and the odds of surviving are low. He bumps into the car directly to our right, but that car isn't heading into a spin. I factor in the fact that I have a seat belt on, unconsciously I grasp at my seat belt and end up grabbing my glasses hanging on my shirt as if I was trying to make sure the glasses survived the crash so it could tell the story of how I died. The swerving lasts maybe 5 seconds more and we hit the guard rail on the left and begin turning over. My lasts thoughts were actually quite lame - "What a horrible waste of my life if I just died right now."

I think I was on the verge of thinking of all the important stuff I would do if I survived or see the white tunnel, but luckily I didn't make it to the latter. Unfortunately, I didn't make it to the former either so I don't have any extra insight on life other than the typical cliches you hear in the movies or read in old white men's autobiographies.

The car finally after maybe 3 turns (I think), slams onto the road on its side. I climb out of the top window of the car which has been completely shattered. There's glass all over the car and the freeway, and I'm still grasping at my glasses. I hear Steve slammer, "Is everyone alright?!" Randy says, "Yeah." Then I'm out of the car safely. I'm stumbling a bit and a bit disoriented. I see a bunch of other cars stopping and watching the accident and one lady on her cell phone calling the cops no doubt. I turn around to see them both coming out of a car leaking gasoline that was completely totaled.

Steve comes out and angrily says, "That motherfucker tapped my bumper. Where the fuck is he!?" He's stretching his head as if trying to look over the totaled car to find the asshole who tapped the rear right side of his car and sent us into a near death tumble. Unfortunately, I don't think he found the other car that basically did a hit and run. He was bleeding all over the place with gumps of blood rolling down his left arm, and walking around like some frantic ant that was trying to avoid being squashed by a big man's big shoe.

After the initial shock wore off, I felt incredible soreness in my neck. A police car arrives. The ambulance arrives. We explain what happens as they copy down our driver's license and asks us more identifying information. They then put all of us into a body board and strap us into this clumsy neck restraint. I felt like an insane person on the way to an insane asylum. The worse part of this car accident is that I didn't even make it to the part where my life flashes before my eyes and I gain sudden and incontrovertible feelings about the meaning of life!


------

I'm okay, but my neck is still very sore.

(I do feel life is quite a bit more fragile and perhaps random then before. How awful and meaningless would it be just to die in a car accident. And I also find everything so much more humorous... at the hospital, everything was so funny. I don't know if I should be depressed and sad that I almost died but got lucky and survived w/ no fatal injuries or living life fuller and happier than before.)

(Note: I believe him about that fact that someone tapped the back of his bumper though I don't remember it happening. I do remember that same car pulling nearly up to his on the right and ended up getting side bumped by us while we were swerving. Piecing together what I remember about this, it makes sense that we were bumped on the back slightly. Steve also says that he was driving at about 65 mph to the cop, but I'm almost certain that's not true. I certainly know this is not true, but I told him I didn't know the EXACT speed he was driving, which means that I gave him a partial truth. I just didn't know if it was 78mph, 80mph, 81mph, 87mph, or 90mph and so on. I am pretty certain it was approx. 80mph+. He does call me the next day to tell me that if anybody calls me to say that he drove at 65mph. Since he did this, it made even more sense that he was driving faster than he claims. )

The next day, I had an appointment with my uncle to go to Morongo Casino. My uncle is the exact opposite of Steve. He never weaves in and out of lanes and always drives too slow. There's always a dozen cars passing us and he always seems to be behind some slow as big rig. I usually hate his slow driving, but this time... THANK GOODNESS. I slept like a baby on the way there, won $500+ at Morongo, and slept like a baby on the way back.

That's baloney!

I accidently screamed this out in class while the professor was lecturing. I think the professor must of found it quite offensive. Here's how it happen:

This one girl asks the professor, is the saying true, "Once a cheater, always a cheater?" The professor responds that research does show that if you cheat once, you are more likely to cheat again. He explained this line of reasoning followed by examples and a few analogies to thieves being more likely to steal after getting away with it once. I found myself nodding along in relative agreement. After all, its supported by the research!

Then I think finding the class quite depressed, he turns to an optimistic note. He begins to say that people do change, can do counseling, and can dedicate themselves to changing. True I thought, people could try to change. Then he suggested that cheaters can try to become faithful non cheater people. I agreed. Then he suggested that cheaters can ACTUALLY become faithful loyal non cheater people. At this juncture, the whole class is quiet in this lecture hall of over 100 (as they have for over the last hour). At the same second that the professor seems to pause to catch his breath and maybe wait for questions, I accidently blurted out the words, "That's baloney!" The whole class kind of turned around and glanced at me. A few with smiling faces (smirking/laughing at or with me, I'm not sure) and others with a curious glance. The professor looks at me sternly and sarcastically says, "Um okay." Then he continues right on lecturing. I think I might have pissed him off.

But, he was spewing out such baloney. I have personal experience with this one. Everyone knows, "once a cheater, always a cheater!"

Self Education and Review

As of late, I've spent a lot of thought on poker. After a horrible week in results, I decided it was time to do some poker research. Specifically, I re-read books, passages, and read some new books. I thought over and over again about my play of specific hands in specific situations and tried to apply what I read to the situation. I've been re-reading The Theory of Poker by David Sklansky. I also re-read Hold'em for Advanced Players, Improve Your Poker, Doyle Brunson's NL Section of the Super System, Internet Texas Hold'em by Hilger, NO-limit Texas HOld'em by Daugherty & McEnvoy, and Low Limit Hold'em by Lee Jones. With the exception of Daugherty and McEnvoy and Hilger's books being targeted toward beginners, all the other ones were worth the re-read. I also read Harrington on Hold'em both part 1 and part 2. This was an excellent book and I'll detail why I think so later. I also browsed The Making Of A Poker Player: How An Ivy League Math Geek Learned To Play Championship Poker by Matt Matros and various other poker books at the bookstore.

I think I'm pretty caught up on my reading. The problem I actually want to muse over is one about structure. On page 258 of Sklansky's The Theory of Poker, he details that it is important to evaulate the structure of the game and adjust to it. Low ante games with small blinds neccessitates tighter play and higher preflop standards and favors trapping in pots that are often smaller. Loosen your play is optimal in higher blind/ante structures. I've been thinking about this in my standard 100x BB buyin games online and I think it neccessitates that I tighten my game (w/ the exception of heads-up play and shorthanded). I typically avoid full ring games because it requires much more patience, and skills such as trapping and discipline go up in value. While at short handed tables, aggression, reading ability, and effective bluffing go up in value. The latter is more favorable to my strengths.

Now the real problem is Casino NL hold'em - I still don't know how to go about adjusting my style of play to suit the structure. For example, typical low limit NL games at casinos are usually about 30x to 40x the big blind buyin ($2-$5, $200 buyin, $5-10, $400) and play 9 handed with always at least a raise and many (2-4) callers. On one hand, since you are buying in with a small amount compared to the blinds and everyone else is as well, it seems you should loosen your play and be more aggressive. On the other hand, the table is still nine handed and loose preflop play (such as raising with K10) will almost invariably run into a bigger hand (such as AK, JJ) at a full ring game. Playing tight against these loose players still makes the pots very occassional because any time you are in the hand, there are 3-4 callers reducing your chances of winning the pot dramatically. Also the blinds are much more damaging since one standard raise (4x-5x BB) followed by not connecting on the board usually means you lose 10-15% of your stack since bluffing is not an option against 3-4 callers who are extremely loose and gambling types. Is tight aggressive still right here? Is loose aggressive? Is tight weak?

How should I adjust my preflop standards and flop deliberations? The players are such fish at these casinos (almost to the point of not knowing how to play) that I just have to figure out an effective strategy for this structure if there is one!

Personality Profile Online

Overview

By analyzing your answers to the Relationship Questionnaire we have created the following Personality Profile. Everyone has a set of subconscious wants and desires that drive their choices and attitudes. By asking you questions about a wide range of emotional issues, this report has established general patterns in your values.

Some of the following information may seem inaccurate or incomplete. Remember, that this profile is a snapshot of your personality at a specific moment. It is not intended as an in-depth analysis of your complete being, but as a tool to aid in self-discovery.

* You have a high interest in the new, the unusual and the adventurous. You may also be curious and have a wide range of interests, preferring an ever-changing environment.


* You respect those who win out against the odds and show persistence. You set high goals for yourself and others.


* You love challenges and competition. Those who know you may consider you to be a high risk-taker.


* You love challenges and competition. At the same time, you must realize and appreciate that others may not share your zest for challenges and competition.


* In social situations, you prefer variety, adventure and the unusual. You may lose interest if you feel a situation is becoming routine. As a result, you must be kept busy and involved with making things happen.


* You will take issue and not shy away from confrontation when others disagree with how you feel or think.


* You have a natural enthusiasm for the activities you prefer. Because of your enthusiasm, you may forget that others have different wants and needs.


* Your primary social strategy is making things happen and happen now. Usually very active, you thrive on challenge. When the going gets tough, you get going.

Communication

Each person has a unique way of communicating. We use a combination of body language, facial expression, verbal tone and word choice to share ourselves with others. The following statements offer a look at the natural behavior you bring to an interpersonal relationship.

* Having a variety of results at stake brings out the best in you. Your great strength is in directing yourself and others toward specific activities results.


* Your high ego traits coupled with impatience may have others read you as arrogant at times. This is only appreciated by others when they understand that you need quick results, challenges and competition.


* You are active in the things you do and in your communication. Your rapid mental activity becomes apparent when, rather than listening to others, you will be thinking of what you might say next.


* Not having a climate of challenges and competition may cause you to create such a climate. You perform best under pressure, and may assume that others want the same...your assumption is not always true.


* You have a natural competitive style. It is important for you to feed that competitive spirit, while also showing more patience with those who choose not to be so competitive.

Improving communication

Many different factors determine the communication styles with which you are most comfortable. Some individuals thrive on the challenge of pointed criticism, while others are at their best in a nurturing environment where criticism is offered as a suggestion for improvement. Each of us has a unique set of requirements and preferences. Below is a list of communication styles that will mesh well with your own. Having a partner who understands and practices these traits is important to your long-term happiness.

* Take issue with the facts, not the person, if you disagree.


* Plan interactions which support dreams and goals.


* Support results, not the person, if you agree.


* Talk about new ideas, innovations and activities.


* Provide options, rather than opinions.


* Be brief, clear and to the point.


* Plan sufficient time to talk and listen.


* Be ready at the exact time.


* Provide questions and choices for making decisions.


* Omit the details and get to the "bottom line."


* Ask specific questions--preferably "WHAT" questions.


* Talk about expectations.


Strengths

Following are some of the specific strengths and/or personal characteristics that you bring to a relationship. These may form the foundations of many of your friendships and dealings with other people. Some will seem obvious, but you may be surprised by others. Take a moment to reflect on each and consider what role it may have played in your past successes, and even failures.

* You generally dislike the "status quo," and are exhilarating to be around.


* You often have innovative ideas.


* You like to initiate new activities.


* You are a good planner and enjoy looking ahead to the future.


* You are socially poised and people-oriented.


* You tend to be influential in decision-making situations. Others often turn to you for advice.


* You tend to be very goal-oriented.


* You have an excellent sense of humor and tend to see humor in events spontaneously.


* You tend to be tenacious about solving problems, not liking to give up until something is resolved.


* You tend to enjoy life and share that enjoyment with others.

Needs

In general, human beings are defined by their needs and individuals by their wants. Your emotional wants are especially important when establishing with whom you are compatible. While answering the Relationship Questionnaire you established a pattern of basic, subconscious wants. This section of the report was produced by analyzing those patterns. Our wants change as we mature and obtain our life goals. You may find it valuable to revisit this section periodically to see how your wants have changed.

You may want:

* A friendly, favorable social environment.


* No close supervision--you don't want people to hang over your shoulder.


* Unusual, new or innovative activities.


* Recognition of skills and ability.


* Freedom from many rules and regulations and the ability to write your own rules.


* A chance to be seen and heard--to work hard and play hard.


* Freedom from detail.


* Exposure and recognition by those who really appreciate your results and achievements.


* Acceptance in a variety of groups.


* An outlet to vent your emotions frequently.


* Excitement and variety of activities.


* Many and varied activities.


-----

Took me so long to complete the profile, I had to save my results somewhere. Some of the things I find very true, a few slightly inaccurate, and many of them quite vague.

Impress Her

I found this funny joke about simplistic stereotypes about men and women are when it comes to intimacy.

"
How to impress a Woman:

Compliment her. Cuddle her. Kiss her, Caress her. Love her. Cofort her. Protect her. Hug her. Hold her. Spend money on her. Wine and dine her. Listen to her. Care for her. Stand by her. Support her. Go to the ends of the earth for her.

How to impress a Man:

Show up naked. Bring beer.
"

Poker play at Commerce Casino

My cousin, Ryan, and I went to Commerce to play. As he described, these people are "total fish." They are loose preflop, and they are loose calling raises. There is almost always a raise preflop and 3-4 people playing for the flop. I imagine random hands like K7, J9, A5, and 89 are all gunning for the pot. Even premiums such as AK has a hard time holding up to all of these hands at once. Essentially because AK and other premiums still hold up best heads up. Since non of these pots get heads-up despite a raise of more than 5x the blinds, it baffles us that there is so many callers.

We decided that these variations in play would require us to make adjustments in our play. But what adjustments, I'm not completely sure. Sklansky suggests raising less and just calling preflop with pretty premium hands like AQ. I don't agree because the quality of hands my opponents are playing are ridiculously worse, it seems they should be punished for their poor play right away and through the entire hand. But how do you deal with it when a raise doesn't eliminate ANY players... its a very odd situation.

In addition, after analyzing the set-up and blind structure, it seems the casino designed it in a way that heavily favors luck over skill. Most of the time buy-ins are about 100x the big blind, but at these casinos (Bicycle, Commerce, Morongo) the buyin only comes out to be about 30x or 40x the BB thus increasing the luck factor as it makes it harder to play many pots early on without risking a high percentage of your stack AND making it harder to bet enough to reduce a players pot odds for drawing. In short, it makes it hard to protect your hand, and makes it harder to use your more advanced post-pre-flop play as an overlay.

Solution?
1. Move up in stacks and play looser and aggressive
2. Play tight textbook hold'em
3. Move up in stacks where the blinds are maybe 50x instead of 30x, and play tight aggressive.

I don't know yet, but I'll figure out a best solution soon enough. Once that happens, I'm going fishing.

There's always tomorrow

I think this is a key piece of advice that I should take. Not every session can be a winning session. Don't chase your money, instead, take a break, and play tomorrow. How frustrating of a lesson to learn and remember: There's always tomorrow.