It is not easy getting out of this slump. I am trying to keep an open mind to all the little things contributing to it.
I read a good article on variance today and it goes hand in hand with tilt. In brief, if you are in a slump you will try to push situations that you know are bad and contribute to an already bad situation. Well put. I think I mentioned this before but it is good to see my logic backed up.
I have been trying to be patient but I get bored and eat. Then get tired and not pay attention and loose even more money.
I am trying to play poker when I go to play poker and nothing else. I almost have my area set up at home away from the tv but not yet. The key for me is going to be setting a time limit. I will play live for 4 hrs and leave. Not just a break but leave. I still have alot of drama in my life so if I can just put it aside for 4 hours a week I should be ok
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Friday, October 12, 2007
Doing Better
I joined Stoxpoker and started to watch a few videos. I picked up a few things that I forgot about or didn't know. I say forgot about, because I use to do some of them and stopped when I tried to play what I thought was better poker. I have to admit that I was doing them without realizing why. I chose Stoxpoker over Cardrunner because I think there is more beginner videos and articles then Cardrunner. Since I am starting over and filling in my gaps this meant more to me.
Nothing to exciting lately. Got schooled at PL holdem and then got it back at limit. I think I will stick to limit for now. I have alot to learn and I should do that before I take on more.
I am enjoying playing at the low limits and seeing what works and why. There was doubt in the back of my mind that it was all about the money, but I am still having fun without much at stake except my pride. So I guess I don't need to go to GA yet.
I did set one goal that I am making progress at. I was looking at my poker tracker data base and there were some red numbers (losses)at the low levels. I use to drop down to .02/.04 and blow off steam and a buy in by just raising and calling. Now that I am starting over I have been playing those levels just to turn the numbers green. Some by very little but they are still green.
Nothing to exciting lately. Got schooled at PL holdem and then got it back at limit. I think I will stick to limit for now. I have alot to learn and I should do that before I take on more.
I am enjoying playing at the low limits and seeing what works and why. There was doubt in the back of my mind that it was all about the money, but I am still having fun without much at stake except my pride. So I guess I don't need to go to GA yet.
I did set one goal that I am making progress at. I was looking at my poker tracker data base and there were some red numbers (losses)at the low levels. I use to drop down to .02/.04 and blow off steam and a buy in by just raising and calling. Now that I am starting over I have been playing those levels just to turn the numbers green. Some by very little but they are still green.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Still Running Bad
Took another shot at the live games over the weekend. This was the last weekend for the Pot of Gold so I figured why not. Well I can give you 500 reasons why not because that is how much I managed to loose.
I just can't get on a roll. I win one hand to make a few bucks and then build a nice pot in the next couple of hands only to be drawn out on and end up right back where I started. Then the game kept breaking up to boot. They couldn't keep it going so I switched to NL. Same result here but with being able to bet more and go all in I was soon all out of money.
Decided to join a poker site where they have videos of pros playing and concentrate on my game while playing on the Internet. I just signed up, but I think I found two places to tighten my game up already. Before, if I bled a few chips it didn't matter, now that I win so few pots every chip matters. I have been noticing that those few chips that I have wasted could have added up to an extra $100 a session, making the trip worth while.
I am now dedicated to playing a very regimented and straight forward game in the low limits while I rebuild my bankroll. It is hard to play mistake free, but that is where the money is.
I just can't get on a roll. I win one hand to make a few bucks and then build a nice pot in the next couple of hands only to be drawn out on and end up right back where I started. Then the game kept breaking up to boot. They couldn't keep it going so I switched to NL. Same result here but with being able to bet more and go all in I was soon all out of money.
Decided to join a poker site where they have videos of pros playing and concentrate on my game while playing on the Internet. I just signed up, but I think I found two places to tighten my game up already. Before, if I bled a few chips it didn't matter, now that I win so few pots every chip matters. I have been noticing that those few chips that I have wasted could have added up to an extra $100 a session, making the trip worth while.
I am now dedicated to playing a very regimented and straight forward game in the low limits while I rebuild my bankroll. It is hard to play mistake free, but that is where the money is.
Friday, October 5, 2007
Back On-Line
My deposit finnaly hit and I am playing again. I started at the .25/.5. I only have 192 bb but I think that should be plenty.
I was off to a great start up 12 dollars so I opened another table. On this table I proceeded to play bad, get suckout on, and miss all my draws. I lost the $10 buy in in an hour. Then it started to happen on the first table. I quit after an hour down 8.6 between the two table.
As of this morning at 4:30am I got it all back plus an additional $2. whew
Tonight it is back to the Grand Sierra in Reno. I was thinking about taking a shot at my old game to rebuild my bankroll quickly but haven't decided yet. I will have to see what the line up is like and go from there. I will let you know what happens.
I was off to a great start up 12 dollars so I opened another table. On this table I proceeded to play bad, get suckout on, and miss all my draws. I lost the $10 buy in in an hour. Then it started to happen on the first table. I quit after an hour down 8.6 between the two table.
As of this morning at 4:30am I got it all back plus an additional $2. whew
Tonight it is back to the Grand Sierra in Reno. I was thinking about taking a shot at my old game to rebuild my bankroll quickly but haven't decided yet. I will have to see what the line up is like and go from there. I will let you know what happens.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Goals for the Month
I have been reading some other blogs and they are setting goals for the month so I thought why not.
I am trying to set a schedule starting this month and three days in, I am off track. I was suppose to workout and read Monday night and that didn’t happen. I ended up doing the dishes, laundry, and general cleaning instead. I did go play live last night but stayed an extra hour and lost $100. Not in the last hour but over the whole session. Card dead.
Tonight it was suppose to be more working out and reading but instead I am going to do bookkeeping and taxes. I can make more money then playing poker but its not as fun. I only have 4 returns left to do so I was planning on just getting them done instead of waiting till the last minute. Lol
In general my goals for the month are these. Mon., Wed., and Sat. work out. Mon. and Wed study poker. Tues and Thur play on the internet. Two tables, low stakes, to build up a bankroll. Fri, Sat, and Sun. play live. It is still up in the air where and what. I am mostly a limit player but the NL games in Tahoe are so soft. So I will probable mix it up.
I am going to start with $85 and play the .1/.2 limit games. I could play higher but I want to work on my aggression and discipline of building a bankroll. If I loose then why play? I would rather figure out I am a loosing player at .1/.2 then 10/20.
I hope I am a winning player but by the end of the month I should know for sure.
I am trying to set a schedule starting this month and three days in, I am off track. I was suppose to workout and read Monday night and that didn’t happen. I ended up doing the dishes, laundry, and general cleaning instead. I did go play live last night but stayed an extra hour and lost $100. Not in the last hour but over the whole session. Card dead.
Tonight it was suppose to be more working out and reading but instead I am going to do bookkeeping and taxes. I can make more money then playing poker but its not as fun. I only have 4 returns left to do so I was planning on just getting them done instead of waiting till the last minute. Lol
In general my goals for the month are these. Mon., Wed., and Sat. work out. Mon. and Wed study poker. Tues and Thur play on the internet. Two tables, low stakes, to build up a bankroll. Fri, Sat, and Sun. play live. It is still up in the air where and what. I am mostly a limit player but the NL games in Tahoe are so soft. So I will probable mix it up.
I am going to start with $85 and play the .1/.2 limit games. I could play higher but I want to work on my aggression and discipline of building a bankroll. If I loose then why play? I would rather figure out I am a loosing player at .1/.2 then 10/20.
I hope I am a winning player but by the end of the month I should know for sure.
Friday, September 28, 2007
Pot of Gold
I was still hyped up from my huge wins this week that I had to play again last night. Now thats funny.
No, I didn't have anything else to do so I called Kevin to go play some cards. He wanted to go to the Peppermill but I am trying to avoid that place for awhile, so I suggested the Grand Sierra. Told you I liked the place. I left alittle late and Kevin called me to inform me the Pot of Gold tournaments just started. I had forgotten about this so it was a pleasnt supprise to see an extra 600 people playing poker.
The Pot of Gold is your normal 10 days of small tournaments, sit n goes, cash games, and then the "Main Event" at the end. I don't do many tournaments but the cash games are great. People come in from the Bay area, northern CA, Washington State, Oregon and northern Nevada, so there is alot of players, games and of course action.
I started off with 4/8 chatting it up with Kevin. Nothing exciting. I kept getting snapped off by a guy that was just catching cards. No skill all luck. Kevin left after an hour to play 1/2 NL. The line up looked tough with alot of locals so I passed. I battled up and down as we got short handed to end up stuck $10. Kevin came over to tell me that the locals moved to the bigger game and it was now very passive game, so I moved.
I was up a little most of the time but nothing special. My big $100 profit came from three hands. Not much detail but the jist was that I made Aces up on AQ for a nice pot, then lost with a set of fours to a set of Kings, and then beat JJ with AA. So I took my $100 and headed home before I gave it back.
An interesting thing happened on the way out. I stopped to talk to Joe, to see how his new job was going. He was a dealer that quit to play poker. He told me that he has been going up to Tahoe 4 nights a week and sitting in the 2/3 NL game. He has been cashing out everytime for $500 to $1000 a night. He is up $13,000 so far this month. I guess I underestimated him. With what he was telling me he is doing it right. Playing tight and letting them bet into him, leaving when the cards go cold, and general bankroll management.
Thinking back, I didn't do the last two. I would stay to long and spew chips. With this information I will have to go to Tahoe more often, once the tournaments are over.
No, I didn't have anything else to do so I called Kevin to go play some cards. He wanted to go to the Peppermill but I am trying to avoid that place for awhile, so I suggested the Grand Sierra. Told you I liked the place. I left alittle late and Kevin called me to inform me the Pot of Gold tournaments just started. I had forgotten about this so it was a pleasnt supprise to see an extra 600 people playing poker.
The Pot of Gold is your normal 10 days of small tournaments, sit n goes, cash games, and then the "Main Event" at the end. I don't do many tournaments but the cash games are great. People come in from the Bay area, northern CA, Washington State, Oregon and northern Nevada, so there is alot of players, games and of course action.
I started off with 4/8 chatting it up with Kevin. Nothing exciting. I kept getting snapped off by a guy that was just catching cards. No skill all luck. Kevin left after an hour to play 1/2 NL. The line up looked tough with alot of locals so I passed. I battled up and down as we got short handed to end up stuck $10. Kevin came over to tell me that the locals moved to the bigger game and it was now very passive game, so I moved.
I was up a little most of the time but nothing special. My big $100 profit came from three hands. Not much detail but the jist was that I made Aces up on AQ for a nice pot, then lost with a set of fours to a set of Kings, and then beat JJ with AA. So I took my $100 and headed home before I gave it back.
An interesting thing happened on the way out. I stopped to talk to Joe, to see how his new job was going. He was a dealer that quit to play poker. He told me that he has been going up to Tahoe 4 nights a week and sitting in the 2/3 NL game. He has been cashing out everytime for $500 to $1000 a night. He is up $13,000 so far this month. I guess I underestimated him. With what he was telling me he is doing it right. Playing tight and letting them bet into him, leaving when the cards go cold, and general bankroll management.
Thinking back, I didn't do the last two. I would stay to long and spew chips. With this information I will have to go to Tahoe more often, once the tournaments are over.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Nice Little Win
I went up to Lake Tahoe last night and sat in a 2/3 NL game for three hours. I was going to play 3/6 but the NL table was just starting, the 3/6 had a list, and I knew I could only play 3 hours. Started off very slow, folded a lot or every now and then limping in and then folding. I got a tight table image that helped me all night.
The first of the two notable hands I limped in with 9c7c in MP along with everyone else. A few people came from another table to limp in, that is how passive this game was. Everyone would limp and then hammer the flop.
The flop was K93 with 2 clubs. I am fuzzy on the betting but there was a bet and two calls before it got back to me. I didn’t give much credit to any of these guys because they were calling bets like this all night only to fold later on. The chances were good that someone had a K but with second pair and a flush draw I thought I could out draw them. Then I thought about my tight image. I figured if I checked raised then they would give me a lot of credit for a big hand. I was frustrated as usual so I went for it and went all in for another $70, $150 total. The original better called his remaining chips and after some thought and staring at me the other two players folded. The turn and rivers where no help and I showed my 97 and beat the 95o for a nice pot. Of course one of the folders said he had the K. Yes, he called all his chips with 95o and no draw. Got to love Lake Tahoe poker.
I splashed around some with my new chips and lost $45 semi-bluffing at a pot when the biggest hand of the night for me came up. With $200 in front of me I looked down at AdQd in early position and raised to $25. The button and UTG called. The flop came J 9 5 with 2 diamonds. I bet out $25 as a CB/stopper bet and the button raised to $75. UTG looked at his cards and called. I thought about my table image again and how these guys would bet and call this way with a draw and that my A is probably best right now. I also figured if I pushed the button would give me credit for a pocket pair and fold. He was tight compared to the UTG. It worked out just like I planned. The button folded and the UTG called. He made his K high flush on the turn but I made the A high flush, and just like that I was up over $300. I splashed around some more and walked with $275.
I went over to the BJ tables to meet my friend and he was still playing. With the $75 in my pocket I sat down with him. We were in the high limit area playing a shoe for $25 min a hand, so I could play 3 hands. I won the next 4 in a row and was up $250 before loosing a couple of double downs. With $120 in profit I was done. This put me up $395 for the night but as I said before I only track $100 dollar bills so I have been using the $95 for gas, valet, lunch, and so forth.
Plus $300 for the night: Bankroll $800. My bankroll is coming along nicely. I won’t be playing as much live during the weeks to come, but I will be getting more time in on the weekends. My goal was originally $500 a month, but I may have to raise it a bit.
On another note, I got some help searching for poker blogs and found some that were talking about what I was going through. No cards, can’t win a pot for 5 hours, etc. Misery loves company and I can see now that what I am going through is normal. The big wins I got use to for 10 months were not sustainable and I am back on the right track.
The first of the two notable hands I limped in with 9c7c in MP along with everyone else. A few people came from another table to limp in, that is how passive this game was. Everyone would limp and then hammer the flop.
The flop was K93 with 2 clubs. I am fuzzy on the betting but there was a bet and two calls before it got back to me. I didn’t give much credit to any of these guys because they were calling bets like this all night only to fold later on. The chances were good that someone had a K but with second pair and a flush draw I thought I could out draw them. Then I thought about my tight image. I figured if I checked raised then they would give me a lot of credit for a big hand. I was frustrated as usual so I went for it and went all in for another $70, $150 total. The original better called his remaining chips and after some thought and staring at me the other two players folded. The turn and rivers where no help and I showed my 97 and beat the 95o for a nice pot. Of course one of the folders said he had the K. Yes, he called all his chips with 95o and no draw. Got to love Lake Tahoe poker.
I splashed around some with my new chips and lost $45 semi-bluffing at a pot when the biggest hand of the night for me came up. With $200 in front of me I looked down at AdQd in early position and raised to $25. The button and UTG called. The flop came J 9 5 with 2 diamonds. I bet out $25 as a CB/stopper bet and the button raised to $75. UTG looked at his cards and called. I thought about my table image again and how these guys would bet and call this way with a draw and that my A is probably best right now. I also figured if I pushed the button would give me credit for a pocket pair and fold. He was tight compared to the UTG. It worked out just like I planned. The button folded and the UTG called. He made his K high flush on the turn but I made the A high flush, and just like that I was up over $300. I splashed around some more and walked with $275.
I went over to the BJ tables to meet my friend and he was still playing. With the $75 in my pocket I sat down with him. We were in the high limit area playing a shoe for $25 min a hand, so I could play 3 hands. I won the next 4 in a row and was up $250 before loosing a couple of double downs. With $120 in profit I was done. This put me up $395 for the night but as I said before I only track $100 dollar bills so I have been using the $95 for gas, valet, lunch, and so forth.
Plus $300 for the night: Bankroll $800. My bankroll is coming along nicely. I won’t be playing as much live during the weeks to come, but I will be getting more time in on the weekends. My goal was originally $500 a month, but I may have to raise it a bit.
On another note, I got some help searching for poker blogs and found some that were talking about what I was going through. No cards, can’t win a pot for 5 hours, etc. Misery loves company and I can see now that what I am going through is normal. The big wins I got use to for 10 months were not sustainable and I am back on the right track.
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