Down Swing

I have had a down swing already. I then proceeded to make it worse by playing badly. I was on the verge of having a loosing month until I pulled out of it last night, or atleast won last night.

I will give you 2 examples of sessions that make me belive it was a down swing. I realized I was making it worse by playing badly so I told myself I would only play hands that I know I should play in the correct position. On night one I played 3.5 hrs and didn't win one pot.

I played 2 pots of significance. Pot one I got top pair on the flop and when the flush draw came in on the turn I bluffed at it. I got called so I bluffed bigger on the river. The guy with the nut flush didn't buy it.

Pot 2 was a free ride from the big blind. I flopped 2 pair on a 345 rainbow board so I went all in. I got called by the 5 high and 6 high straights. End of the night.

The next night I told myself no bluffing. So I waited 4hrs before I got a straight on the turn. I got all of the money in against a set of nines. The board paired on the river. I was 78% to win. He took all of my money but when he saw he sucked out he gave me $5.

I ran that up in two hands to $40. I was feeling great thinking I could come back when I got AK. I moved in and got called by one other player with AK. Easy chop right? No. There was a 2% chance that he could make a flush, so of course that is what happened. I couldn't even tie.

Thinking back to other nights I know that I lost more then I should have or won less then I should have with bad play. I learned that that is the key over the long run. Controlling your emotions will help you lessen loses and increase small wins in just one or two key hands.

I hate downswings but they make you look at you game, improve it, and come out of them stronger.

Doing Well

I am finally healthy again and doing well. I am refining my game with good results. I still have to balance aggression with tight play but I am narrowing it down.

My live play is carrying me as expected. I am on track to make more this month then at my last job. I have had good luck taking money from the tourists up at Tahoe. Very few of the Reno regulars drive the hour + to play there so the competition is low.

I have resisted jumping into the 3/5 NL game for now. This is a big game with most players buying in for the 1k max. I want to build my bank roll more and I have to admit there are a few very good players in the game. These guys have no respect for the stakes and if they get lucky you could loose your whole stack quickly. In fact, last night a $800 winner at the 2/3 NL game went to the 3/5 game and lost all of it in his first hand at the table. He flopped top 2 with AK and one of the good players bet 200 on a gut shot draw. The weak player slow played and only called. The good player got there on the turn and thats all she wrote.

The Internet is were I am lacking. I have been using it and its low stakes to try out different strategies, styles of play and just to blow off steam. The result is that I have only been breaking even. Now that I see this I plan on taking it more seriously. I figure modest wins on line will add up and put me over the top for my monthly totals. It will also be a back stop if I have a down swing in my live play. In other words, plan B. It was always my goal to build my online play so that my live play was plan B. I guess I better get a move on.

January Recap

Not a stellar start but not a disaster either. I was sick for the whole month, especially the first 2 weeks. I had to take alot of time off and only got to play 13 days. Even when I played I was not 100%. In fact, I am still suffering with a sore throat and cough. I am going to drug up this afternoon and tonight and if that doesn't work I will have to go to the doctor.

Even with the set backs I managed to win a small amount. More importantly I learned alot about what it takes to win and have had some progress the last couple of times. Nothing to write about, but at least I go home with more then I went with. It is my theory that I will have many days with small wins and every once in a while I will get a big win. As long as I manage my losses, these big wins will put me over the top.

I am still mellow as I battle the last of the worst cold I have ever had.

Off to a Good Start

I am off to a good start for a shortened week. I came down with a cold that I probably got at the tables. I did manage to win 3 out of the 4 days I did play. The totals are within reason but I would have liked them to be a little higher.

I have already identified the leaks and plugged it up. As soon as I get rid of this cold I should be back on track.

I know this is short but my head is killing me.

The Time has Come

Starting Jan 1, 2009 I will be a Pro. Not entirely by choice but do to the economy. I will give myself a month to see if I can do it. If I win then I will go longer. If I loose I will start looking for a job. I have money saved and unemployment to collect so I an not up the creek without a paddle.

I will track everything starting on the first and will post more often.

Good Luck me.

Online is where it is at

I have been playing online almost exclusively. I signed up at Full Tilt for the $600 bonus plus rake back and have been clearing that. Along the way I realized that it is much more enjoyable to play online. It is more comfortable in your home, you can get your own drink without tipping, and you can play more then one game at a time. The only down side is that you become a hermit.

Playing more then one game at a time has become a big factor for me. You have to play even tighter at NL and can get very bored at the casino waiting for hands. The last time I played live I timed 17 min between playable hands.

I have been winning online and loosing live. The losses live come from the slow boring game but also from a huge leak I zeroed in on last night. I try to win every pot I enter and will call big bets even when I am very sure I am beat. This will be the focus as I continue to play. I added up at least $100 that I gave away last night because of this.

I will probably clear my bonus this week and hopefully increase my win rate.

I Love it When a Plan Comes Together

I know it could have been just a lucky night, but I am going to enjoy it anyway.

I put together all the dribble I have been saying and had a great night. I left work at noon and met some friends for lunch in Reno. Decent streak and salad to protein up before play. I arrived at the Eldorado and after having fun at the 1-5 stud game I was sat at the 1/2 NL table at 3pm. I was excited at first and splashed around to loose 50 bucks. I calmed down and started to play like I do on the Internet.

I waited and got JJ in early position. I raised and got two callers. It was a 9 high, rainbow flop and I slow played with 170 behind. The first caller bet 20 and was called by the third player. I raised it to 80 and the first caller folded. The second caller thought awhile and just called. My read on her was that she had a pair but not a strong one. I bet the 80 knowing I was going to go all in on the turn. The turn was a K but I still pushed right away. The longer she thought the more confident I became. She called and mucked TT to my JJ. More then doubled up.

The next hand of note was a luck hand. I was in MP with Ah5h when everyone started to limp. I limped too and the button raised 10. Again everyone called so I did too. The flop was a paired board with two hearts. The guy on my left bet 20 and only the button called to me. I had the nut flush and an ace so I raised it to 100, representing the set. I expect to pick up the pot but the original raiser went all in for 70 more. I hated to call but I did and got the flush on the river. He said a set was good so he must have been on a flush draw too.

Now that I had the biggest stack at the table a good natured drinker was trying to see if he could get more chips then me. We stayed out of each others way for awhile building our stacks even more. He kept saying that we were going to get all our money in with AA against KK and who would suck out and so forth. It was just for table talk and fun.

Then we started to tangle with each other. Twice I got a good hand UTG when he was on the button and after building a big pot he would raise big on the turn and I would have to fold. He kept showing the bluff so I was putting his betting patterns together. We got into another pot in the same positions and I felt I had the best hand but I only had third pair, 55. I called to the river and he put in a big bet. It was out of his pattern so I folded and again I had him. I just couldn't put in all my chips with such a weak hand.

Now he had a few chips more then me and I was getting tired. It was 7:30 so I decided to leave at 8pm with my winnings, just not as much. I went to the bathroom at 7:40 and on the way back I was debating to leave now. I decided to stay until 8pm as planned and would just stay out of this guys way unless I had the nuts. Not two hand after I got back I was dealt AA UTG. I did a normal raise to 20 and it was folded to the other guy. He was getting drunk by this time and starting to make wild bets. I am sure my folds were giving him confidence so thinking I would fold again he said all in. I called instantly. Even before it was my turn.

He turned over KK asking do you have AA. I said yup and he was stunned. An A fell on the flop and he didn't improve. The table was stunned that his prediction came true with the two big stacks at the table. I took a few steps away from the table as the dealer counted out our stacks. He had $12 left.

It was just so ironic with his predictions, my folds and the timing. A half hour earlier he asked the table if he could give $100 from his stack so his friend could play and I objected. Then his friend told him to rack up but he said he still wanted to play. Everything just fell into place. I gave the dealer a $25 tip I was so happy.

I played a few more hands and at 8:04 I racked up. Big win!! Going back tomorrow so I will see if it was just luck.