Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Level-Headed Thinking
My latest article for 2+2 Magazine, entitled Level-Headed Thinking, is now available. It's about the various levels of thinking about a poker hand and how these influence river ranges.
This month, I've also got some bonus material just for my blog readers. Because I don't learn from my mistakes, here's another losing call I made against the second player described in the article:
Full Tilt Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $6 BB (2 handed) Hand History converter Courtesy of PokerZion.com
Hero ($1792.75)
BB ($293.50)
Preflop: Hero is Button with As, 9d. Hero posts a blind of $6.
BB raises to $18, Hero (poster) calls $12.
Flop: ($33) 8d, 7h, Kh (2 players)
Hero checks, BB checks.
Turn: ($33) Ks (2 players)
Hero checks, BB checks.
River: ($33) 2c (2 players)
Hero checks, BB bets $36, Hero calls $36.
Final Pot: $105
Results in white below:
BB has 7s Ac (two pair, kings and sevens).
Hero has As 9d (one pair, kings).
Outcome: BB wins $105.
Most players just don't bet pot with bottom pair on the river. Even if they strongly suspect they have the best hand, as would be reasonable here, they don't expect worse hands to call, and so they don't bother to bet for value, especially not with a pot-sized bet.
Stumble It!
This month, I've also got some bonus material just for my blog readers. Because I don't learn from my mistakes, here's another losing call I made against the second player described in the article:
Full Tilt Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $6 BB (2 handed) Hand History converter Courtesy of PokerZion.com
Hero ($1792.75)
BB ($293.50)
Preflop: Hero is Button with As, 9d. Hero posts a blind of $6.
BB raises to $18, Hero (poster) calls $12.
Flop: ($33) 8d, 7h, Kh (2 players)
Hero checks, BB checks.
Turn: ($33) Ks (2 players)
Hero checks, BB checks.
River: ($33) 2c (2 players)
Hero checks, BB bets $36, Hero calls $36.
Final Pot: $105
Results in white below:
BB has 7s Ac (two pair, kings and sevens).
Hero has As 9d (one pair, kings).
Outcome: BB wins $105.
Most players just don't bet pot with bottom pair on the river. Even if they strongly suspect they have the best hand, as would be reasonable here, they don't expect worse hands to call, and so they don't bother to bet for value, especially not with a pot-sized bet.
Labels: poker, poker strategy
Stumble It!
Several 3-Bet Pots Vs Same LAGtard
For those who don't know, LAGtard refers to a player who is loose and aggressive to a fault. He's often a reasonably smart and tricky opponent who just gets too fancy and ends up making some fundamental mistakes such as playing too many pots out of position or calling too many 3-bets with weak hands.
I was really in the mood yesterday for a grinding session, where I just open like 8 tables of 5/10 NL and play until my eyes crust over. Unfortunately, the 5/10 games on FTP lately have been a real rock garden, and it was tough to find tables where I felt I had an appreciable edge. This opponent was the reason I was at this table. Here are all of the 3-bet pots we played, in order:
The Fake Overbet Check-Raise Bluff Representing a Draw
Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
SB: $1,110
BB: $1,659
Hero (UTG): $1,000
MP: $985
CO: $1,000
BTN: $1,531.50
Pre-Flop: K
K
dealt to Hero (UTG)
Hero raises to $35, 2 folds, BTN raises to $120, 2 folds, Hero calls $85
Flop: ($255) 3 4
5 (2 Players)
Hero checks, BTN bets $180, Hero raises to $880 and is All-In, BTN folds
Results: $615 Pot ($3 Rake)
Hero mucked K K and WON $612 (+$312 NET)
This was my first orbit at the table. Had we had a longer history of pre-flop aggression and had I not been UTG, I'd often 4-bet KK, particularly when out of position. This is a really nice flop to check-raise all in, though, since I could take the same line with something AK or Jh Th. I think I get called by a lot of pocket pairs here, but I guess that's not what LAGtard had.
Bad Flop Worse Turn
Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
BTN: $1,010
SB: $1,644
Hero (BB): $1,441
UTG: $977
MP: $1,000
CO: $1,216.50
Pre-Flop: Q Q
dealt to Hero (BB)
UTG calls $10, MP folds, CO raises to $45, BTN calls $45, SB folds, Hero raises to $201, UTG folds, CO calls $156, BTN folds
Flop: ($462) K 9 8 (2 Players)
Hero checks, CO bets $270, Hero calls $270
Turn: ($1,002) A (2 Players)
Hero checks, CO bets $745.50 and is All-In, Hero folds
Results: $1,002 Pot ($3 Rake)
CO mucked and WON $999 (+$528 NET)
This is a rough spot. QQ is actually much stronger than what I need to have to make a squeeze play against a LAGtard who's raising to isolate a limper. I fully expect LAGtard to know that and not give up easily, and I would have happily gotten my QQ all in pre-flop. In fact, given that he and I were 120 BB deep here, I think I should have made my re-raise size a little larger.
Nasty flop, too. I definitely think LAGtard is capable of calling something like KJ pre-flop, but I also expected him to make a move on the flop if he didn't hit anything since he has good reason to think I'm FOS. I was hoping to let him bluff at it, but I then I get an awful turn, too, and I just felt his range was too wide for me to call a shove. It's actually kind of close, but I reconciled myself with the thought that I'd take the same line with AK on this board and stack him.
You Bet My Hand
Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
BTN: $1,000
SB: $1,846
Hero (BB): $1,250.75
UTG: $946
MP: $1,052
CO: $2,495.25
Pre-Flop: A A dealt to Hero (BB)
2 folds, CO raises to $35, 2 folds, Hero raises to $125, CO calls $90
Flop: ($255) Q J J (2 Players)
Hero bets $175, CO calls $175
Turn: ($605) 5 (2 Players)
Hero checks, CO bets $390, Hero calls $390
River: ($1,385) 3 (2 Players)
Hero checks, CO bets $1,385, Hero calls $560.75 and is All-In
Results: $2,506.50 Pot ($3 Rake)
Hero showed A A (two pair, Aces and Jacks) and WON $2,503.50 (+$1,252.75 NET)
CO showed A Q (two pair, Queens and Jacks) and LOST (-$1,250.75 NET)
Because he's a smart LAGtard, I can play my hand like this without losing value against stuff like AQ. There's no way I can avoid losing my ass to this guy if he outflopped me, so my only concern is keeping as many weaker hands as I can in his stack-off range. He'd seen me check medium strength hands for pot control before, so I think betting this flop actually suggests it might be a bad one for me, such that he can call with almost anything.
Especially with my club draw, turn is an easy check to let him bluff at the flush. I maybe should have just check-raised all in. This might be giving him too much credit, but I didn't think he'd bet here with something like TT. I felt he'd have either a hand that would probably stack off to me on the river anyway (AQ, KK), a better hand than mine (again, doesn't matter what I do), or a bluff. I was hoping that my check-call and then river check would give him a chance to bluff shove the river even though it would be only a half-pot bet since I might have something like AcK planning on folding. The important thing is that I didn't think I was losing value against something like AQ because I fully expected him to "value bet" it for me. One can't make the same assumption against more passive players.
The only thing that occurs to me now is that I probably do lose my action from AQ if a fourth club comes on the river. I probably should have just check-raised all in on the turn.
Of Course You Do
Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
MP: $1,349
CO: $950
Hero (BTN): $2,433.50
SB: $1,127
BB: $1,052
UTG: $1,088.50
Pre-Flop: J J dealt to Hero (BTN)
UTG raises to $35, 2 folds, Hero raises to $120, 2 folds, UTG calls $85
Flop: ($255) Q 8 9 (2 Players)
UTG checks, Hero checks
Turn: ($255) 7 (2 Players)
UTG bets $170, Hero calls $170
River: ($595) K (2 Players)
UTG bets $420, Hero folds
Results: $595 Pot ($3 Rake)
UTG mucked and WON $592 (+$302 NET)
Such a gross spot. I really think I should just fold the turn without the Jd. Even with position, the board is just too ugly and my opponent too aggressive for me to expect an easy decision on the river. I think the flop check is fine and standard, but this is just too bad of a turn for me.
Stumble It!
I was really in the mood yesterday for a grinding session, where I just open like 8 tables of 5/10 NL and play until my eyes crust over. Unfortunately, the 5/10 games on FTP lately have been a real rock garden, and it was tough to find tables where I felt I had an appreciable edge. This opponent was the reason I was at this table. Here are all of the 3-bet pots we played, in order:
The Fake Overbet Check-Raise Bluff Representing a Draw
Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
SB: $1,110
BB: $1,659
Hero (UTG): $1,000
MP: $985
CO: $1,000
BTN: $1,531.50
Pre-Flop: K
K dealt to Hero (UTG)Hero raises to $35, 2 folds, BTN raises to $120, 2 folds, Hero calls $85
Flop: ($255) 3
4 5 (2 Players)Hero checks, BTN bets $180, Hero raises to $880 and is All-In, BTN folds
Results: $615 Pot ($3 Rake)
Hero mucked K
K and WON $612 (+$312 NET)This was my first orbit at the table. Had we had a longer history of pre-flop aggression and had I not been UTG, I'd often 4-bet KK, particularly when out of position. This is a really nice flop to check-raise all in, though, since I could take the same line with something AK or Jh Th. I think I get called by a lot of pocket pairs here, but I guess that's not what LAGtard had.
Bad Flop Worse Turn
Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
BTN: $1,010
SB: $1,644
Hero (BB): $1,441
UTG: $977
MP: $1,000
CO: $1,216.50
Pre-Flop: Q
Q dealt to Hero (BB)UTG calls $10, MP folds, CO raises to $45, BTN calls $45, SB folds, Hero raises to $201, UTG folds, CO calls $156, BTN folds
Flop: ($462) K
9 8 (2 Players)Hero checks, CO bets $270, Hero calls $270
Turn: ($1,002) A
(2 Players)Hero checks, CO bets $745.50 and is All-In, Hero folds
Results: $1,002 Pot ($3 Rake)
CO mucked and WON $999 (+$528 NET)
This is a rough spot. QQ is actually much stronger than what I need to have to make a squeeze play against a LAGtard who's raising to isolate a limper. I fully expect LAGtard to know that and not give up easily, and I would have happily gotten my QQ all in pre-flop. In fact, given that he and I were 120 BB deep here, I think I should have made my re-raise size a little larger.
Nasty flop, too. I definitely think LAGtard is capable of calling something like KJ pre-flop, but I also expected him to make a move on the flop if he didn't hit anything since he has good reason to think I'm FOS. I was hoping to let him bluff at it, but I then I get an awful turn, too, and I just felt his range was too wide for me to call a shove. It's actually kind of close, but I reconciled myself with the thought that I'd take the same line with AK on this board and stack him.
You Bet My Hand
Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
BTN: $1,000
SB: $1,846
Hero (BB): $1,250.75
UTG: $946
MP: $1,052
CO: $2,495.25
Pre-Flop: A
A dealt to Hero (BB)2 folds, CO raises to $35, 2 folds, Hero raises to $125, CO calls $90
Flop: ($255) Q
J J (2 Players)Hero bets $175, CO calls $175
Turn: ($605) 5
(2 Players)Hero checks, CO bets $390, Hero calls $390
River: ($1,385) 3
(2 Players)Hero checks, CO bets $1,385, Hero calls $560.75 and is All-In
Results: $2,506.50 Pot ($3 Rake)
Hero showed A
A (two pair, Aces and Jacks) and WON $2,503.50 (+$1,252.75 NET)CO showed A
Q (two pair, Queens and Jacks) and LOST (-$1,250.75 NET)Because he's a smart LAGtard, I can play my hand like this without losing value against stuff like AQ. There's no way I can avoid losing my ass to this guy if he outflopped me, so my only concern is keeping as many weaker hands as I can in his stack-off range. He'd seen me check medium strength hands for pot control before, so I think betting this flop actually suggests it might be a bad one for me, such that he can call with almost anything.
Especially with my club draw, turn is an easy check to let him bluff at the flush. I maybe should have just check-raised all in. This might be giving him too much credit, but I didn't think he'd bet here with something like TT. I felt he'd have either a hand that would probably stack off to me on the river anyway (AQ, KK), a better hand than mine (again, doesn't matter what I do), or a bluff. I was hoping that my check-call and then river check would give him a chance to bluff shove the river even though it would be only a half-pot bet since I might have something like AcK planning on folding. The important thing is that I didn't think I was losing value against something like AQ because I fully expected him to "value bet" it for me. One can't make the same assumption against more passive players.
The only thing that occurs to me now is that I probably do lose my action from AQ if a fourth club comes on the river. I probably should have just check-raised all in on the turn.
Of Course You Do
Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
MP: $1,349
CO: $950
Hero (BTN): $2,433.50
SB: $1,127
BB: $1,052
UTG: $1,088.50
Pre-Flop: J
J dealt to Hero (BTN)UTG raises to $35, 2 folds, Hero raises to $120, 2 folds, UTG calls $85
Flop: ($255) Q
8 9 (2 Players)UTG checks, Hero checks
Turn: ($255) 7
(2 Players)UTG bets $170, Hero calls $170
River: ($595) K
(2 Players)UTG bets $420, Hero folds
Results: $595 Pot ($3 Rake)
UTG mucked and WON $592 (+$302 NET)
Such a gross spot. I really think I should just fold the turn without the Jd. Even with position, the board is just too ugly and my opponent too aggressive for me to expect an easy decision on the river. I think the flop check is fine and standard, but this is just too bad of a turn for me.
Labels: poker, poker strategy, session review
Stumble It!
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Can You Spot The Tell?
Full Tilt Poker, $1.50/$3 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): $1,077.85
SB: $303.05
Pre-Flop: 2 T dealt to Hero (BB)
SB calls $1.50, Hero checks
Flop: ($6) T 4 6 (2 Players)
Hero checks, SB bets $3, Hero calls $3
Turn: ($12) 6 (2 Players)
Hero checks, SB bets $6, Hero wishes he had folded
Full Tilt Poker, NL Hold'em Tournament, 250/500 Blinds, 50 Ante, 9 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (UTG): 15,830
UTG+1: 17,291
UTG+2: 9,665
MP1: 16,690
MP2: 23,809
CO: 26,133
BTN: 20,413
SB: 4,220
BB: 9,806
Pre-Flop: (1,200) Q Q dealt to Hero (UTG)
Hero raises to 1,280, 7 folds, BB calls 780
Flop: (3,260) K 9 4 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero checks
Turn: (3,260) 6 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets 2,000, BB raises to 6,666, Hero wishes he had folded
Both of these players had very similar hands. Can you guess them?
Edit: Todd is not allowed to play.
Stumble It!
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): $1,077.85
SB: $303.05
Pre-Flop: 2
T dealt to Hero (BB)SB calls $1.50, Hero checks
Flop: ($6) T
4 6 (2 Players)Hero checks, SB bets $3, Hero calls $3
Turn: ($12) 6
(2 Players)Hero checks, SB bets $6, Hero wishes he had folded
Full Tilt Poker, NL Hold'em Tournament, 250/500 Blinds, 50 Ante, 9 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (UTG): 15,830
UTG+1: 17,291
UTG+2: 9,665
MP1: 16,690
MP2: 23,809
CO: 26,133
BTN: 20,413
SB: 4,220
BB: 9,806
Pre-Flop: (1,200) Q
Q dealt to Hero (UTG)Hero raises to 1,280, 7 folds, BB calls 780
Flop: (3,260) K
9 4 (2 Players)BB checks, Hero checks
Turn: (3,260) 6
(2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets 2,000, BB raises to 6,666, Hero wishes he had folded
Both of these players had very similar hands. Can you guess them?
Edit: Todd is not allowed to play.
Labels: poker, poker strategy
Stumble It!
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Largest Stud/8 Pot I've Played
This kind of thing happens in Stud/8 sometimes: the pot goes multiway, and the players leading for each half of the pot keep jamming small edges but everyone else is priced in to keep calling along. The guy showing the Q is nuts to 3-bet 3rd with a K calling behind him, but I didn't give him credit for AA or better and figured that pairing my Ace would be good for the high hand, which dramatically increases my equity.
Hand #12887077726
7 Card Stud *High-Low* ($5/$10), Ante $0.50
*3rd Street* - (0.70 SB)
Jshorts7: xx xx Ah___folds
foucault82: Ac 6c 3c___raises___raises
midinf: xx xx 2c___calls___calls
KoolAidKills: xx xx 3s___folds
jcards911: xx xx Qd___calls___raises___calls
Bad Beat Oz: xx xx Kd___calls___raises___calls
risti7: xx xx 7c___folds
*4th Street* - (16.70 SB)
foucault82: Ac 6c 3c 9s___calls___calls___calls
midinf: xx xx 2c 4d___raises___raises
jcards911: xx xx Qd 3h___calls___calls
Bad Beat Oz: xx xx Kd 5s___*bets*___raises___calls
*5th Street* - (16.35 BB)
foucault82: Ac 6c 3c 9s 4s___calls___raises
midinf: xx xx 2c 4d Jh___raises___calls $6.50 and is all-in
jcards911: xx xx Qd 3h 5d___calls $5.50 and is all-in
Bad Beat Oz: xx xx Kd 5s 7d___*bets*___raises___calls
*6th Street* - (27.55 BB)
foucault82: Ac 6c 3c 9s 4s 2s___raises
midinf: xx xx 2c 4d Jh Js___all-in
jcards911: xx xx Qd 3h 5d 2d___all-in
Bad Beat Oz: xx xx Kd 5s 7d 7s___*bets*___calls
*River* - (31.55 BB)
foucault82: Ac 6c 3c 9s 4s 2s Ks___bets
midinf: xx xx 2c 4d Jh Js xx___all-in
jcards911: xx xx Qd 3h 5d 2d xx___all-in
Bad Beat Oz: xx xx Kd 5s 7d 7s xx___*checks*___calls
*Total pot:* (33.55 BB)
Results:
Total pot $335.50 Main pot $182.50. Side pot-1 $63. Side pot-2 $87. | Rake $3
foucault82: [Ac 6c 3c 9s 4s 2s Ks] (HI: high card Ace; LO: 6,4,3,2,A)
midinf: [Ad 5h 2c 4d Jh Js 6s]
jcards911: [6d Qs Qd 3h 5d 2d As]
Bad Beat Oz: [Kc 9h Kd 5s 7d 7s 8h] (HI: two pair, Kings and Sevens)
The only thing that's a little questionable here is my 4th street play, but I still had three to a flush and probably an overcard to the best pair plus a fair shot at low in a large pot. How sweet would a river 5 have been?
Stumble It!
Hand #12887077726
7 Card Stud *High-Low* ($5/$10), Ante $0.50
*3rd Street* - (0.70 SB)
Jshorts7: xx xx Ah___folds
foucault82: Ac 6c 3c___raises___raises
midinf: xx xx 2c___calls___calls
KoolAidKills: xx xx 3s___folds
jcards911: xx xx Qd___calls___raises___calls
Bad Beat Oz: xx xx Kd___calls___raises___calls
risti7: xx xx 7c___folds
*4th Street* - (16.70 SB)
foucault82: Ac 6c 3c 9s___calls___calls___calls
midinf: xx xx 2c 4d___raises___raises
jcards911: xx xx Qd 3h___calls___calls
Bad Beat Oz: xx xx Kd 5s___*bets*___raises___calls
*5th Street* - (16.35 BB)
foucault82: Ac 6c 3c 9s 4s___calls___raises
midinf: xx xx 2c 4d Jh___raises___calls $6.50 and is all-in
jcards911: xx xx Qd 3h 5d___calls $5.50 and is all-in
Bad Beat Oz: xx xx Kd 5s 7d___*bets*___raises___calls
*6th Street* - (27.55 BB)
foucault82: Ac 6c 3c 9s 4s 2s___raises
midinf: xx xx 2c 4d Jh Js___all-in
jcards911: xx xx Qd 3h 5d 2d___all-in
Bad Beat Oz: xx xx Kd 5s 7d 7s___*bets*___calls
*River* - (31.55 BB)
foucault82: Ac 6c 3c 9s 4s 2s Ks___bets
midinf: xx xx 2c 4d Jh Js xx___all-in
jcards911: xx xx Qd 3h 5d 2d xx___all-in
Bad Beat Oz: xx xx Kd 5s 7d 7s xx___*checks*___calls
*Total pot:* (33.55 BB)
Results:
Total pot $335.50 Main pot $182.50. Side pot-1 $63. Side pot-2 $87. | Rake $3
foucault82: [Ac 6c 3c 9s 4s 2s Ks] (HI: high card Ace; LO: 6,4,3,2,A)
midinf: [Ad 5h 2c 4d Jh Js 6s]
jcards911: [6d Qs Qd 3h 5d 2d As]
Bad Beat Oz: [Kc 9h Kd 5s 7d 7s 8h] (HI: two pair, Kings and Sevens)
The only thing that's a little questionable here is my 4th street play, but I still had three to a flush and probably an overcard to the best pair plus a fair shot at low in a large pot. How sweet would a river 5 have been?
Labels: poker, poker strategy, session review, Stud/8
Stumble It!
Kinda Sexy Stud/8 Calldown
Hand #12886186626
7 Card Stud *High-Low* ($5/$10), Ante $0.50
*3rd Street* - (0.80 SB)
JRod34: xx xx 5d___folds
foucault82: Jc Jd 3c
360CF: xx xx 8d___calls
KoolAidKills: xx xx 6h___folds
jcards911: xx xx 6s___calls
panther44: xx xx 4d___calls
MR WHOOOPS: xx xx Qd___folds
lajollan: xx xx Jh___folds
*4th Street* - (2.40 SB)
foucault82: Jc Jd 3c 7h___bets
360CF: xx xx 8d Qh___folds
jcards911: xx xx 6s Tc___calls
panther44: xx xx 4d As___*checks*___calls
*5th Street* - (2.70 BB)
foucault82: Jc Jd 3c 7h 4h___bets
jcards911: xx xx 6s Tc 3d___calls
panther44: xx xx 4d As 3h___*checks*___calls
*6th Street* - (5.70 BB)
foucault82: Jc Jd 3c 7h 4h Qc___calls
jcards911: xx xx 6s Tc 3d 8h___folds
panther44: xx xx 4d As 3h 2s___*bets*
*River* - (7.70 BB)
foucault82: Jc Jd 3c 7h 4h Qc 7s___checks
panther44: xx xx 4d As 3h 2s xx___*checks*
*Total pot:* (7.70 BB)
Results:
Total pot $77 | Rake $3
foucault82: [Jc Jd 3c 7h 4h Qc 7s] (HI: two pair, Jacks and Sevens)
panther44: [2d 9d 4d As 3h 2s Ts]
Ordinarily, 6th street would be a fold, and in fact I was ready to give up on 4th street. It's a small pot, and with two opponents showing low boards and one showing an Ace, there's just no value in my going to showdown with a pair of Jacks and no shot at low. But the guy showing the Ace didn't bet it, which he would definitely want to do with a pair (and which any good player would do even without the pair as a semi-bluff).
By 6th street, he was showing A234, which was very scary for me. The pot was still relatively small, and I really couldn't hope for more than half with four babies showing. If my opponent had an A or a 5 in the hole, I was screwed. But I had already determined the A was unlikely, and I feel like even with a 5 in the hole he would have had such a strong draw earlier than in the hand that he wouldn't have played it so passively.
Stumble It!
7 Card Stud *High-Low* ($5/$10), Ante $0.50
*3rd Street* - (0.80 SB)
JRod34: xx xx 5d___folds
foucault82: Jc Jd 3c
360CF: xx xx 8d___calls
KoolAidKills: xx xx 6h___folds
jcards911: xx xx 6s___calls
panther44: xx xx 4d___calls
MR WHOOOPS: xx xx Qd___folds
lajollan: xx xx Jh___folds
*4th Street* - (2.40 SB)
foucault82: Jc Jd 3c 7h___bets
360CF: xx xx 8d Qh___folds
jcards911: xx xx 6s Tc___calls
panther44: xx xx 4d As___*checks*___calls
*5th Street* - (2.70 BB)
foucault82: Jc Jd 3c 7h 4h___bets
jcards911: xx xx 6s Tc 3d___calls
panther44: xx xx 4d As 3h___*checks*___calls
*6th Street* - (5.70 BB)
foucault82: Jc Jd 3c 7h 4h Qc___calls
jcards911: xx xx 6s Tc 3d 8h___folds
panther44: xx xx 4d As 3h 2s___*bets*
*River* - (7.70 BB)
foucault82: Jc Jd 3c 7h 4h Qc 7s___checks
panther44: xx xx 4d As 3h 2s xx___*checks*
*Total pot:* (7.70 BB)
Results:
Total pot $77 | Rake $3
foucault82: [Jc Jd 3c 7h 4h Qc 7s] (HI: two pair, Jacks and Sevens)
panther44: [2d 9d 4d As 3h 2s Ts]
Ordinarily, 6th street would be a fold, and in fact I was ready to give up on 4th street. It's a small pot, and with two opponents showing low boards and one showing an Ace, there's just no value in my going to showdown with a pair of Jacks and no shot at low. But the guy showing the Ace didn't bet it, which he would definitely want to do with a pair (and which any good player would do even without the pair as a semi-bluff).
By 6th street, he was showing A234, which was very scary for me. The pot was still relatively small, and I really couldn't hope for more than half with four babies showing. If my opponent had an A or a 5 in the hole, I was screwed. But I had already determined the A was unlikely, and I feel like even with a 5 in the hole he would have had such a strong draw earlier than in the hand that he wouldn't have played it so passively.
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Barry G on the Legalization of Internet Poker
Barry Greenstein has just launched a new website called Poker Road which looks pretty sweet. It features blogs by Barry himself, his son Joe Sebok, Kevin "BelowAbove" Saul, and others, plus regularly scheduled radio and TV shows, articles, and even a comic. The general tone seems to be fun and humorous, which is a welcome break from
Anyway, in his latest audio blog, Barry mentions that he recently met with some members of Congress and predicts that online poker will be explicitly legal in six months. I can't say I share his optimism. Though I haven't met the lawmakers he has, he admits that he is new to the legislative process, and he strikes me as too willing to take people at their words when they claim to be supportive. Beyond that, the six month timetable seems fairly unrealistic given the usual speed of government. But it's good to hear an optimistic voice nonetheless.
Labels: poker
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Fun Calls
Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): $1,142
UTG: $1,241
BTN: $3,029.05
SB: $1,411
Pre-Flop: A Q dealt to Hero (BB)
UTG folds, BTN raises to $30, SB folds, Hero raises to $102, BTN calls $72
Flop: ($209) 2 5 2 (2 Players)
Hero checks, BTN checks
Turn: ($209) K (2 Players)
Hero checks, BTN bets $140, Hero calls $140
River: ($489) T (2 Players)
Hero checks, BTN bets $330, Hero calls $330
Results: $1,149 Pot ($2 Rake)
Hero showed A Q (a pair of Twos) and WON $1,147 (+$575 NET)
BTN showed 9 Q (a pair of Twos) and LOST (-$572 NET)
This is a pretty standard polarized range spot. I feel like his range is either AK or better or a bluff. He's probably 4-betting KK/AA pre-flop, and if he's not, he's probably betting flop. He's probably 4-betting AK pre-flop, and if he's not, I think he's at least sometimes checking turn. Quads or 5's full (can't see him betting TT on the turn) is just plain unlikely, so I'm in good shape. I took my time before calling just to be sure, but I don't think this is really all that close unless your opponent is particularly passive.
This one I did snap-call, which was great fun:
Full Tilt Poker, $1.50/$3 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): $1,007.55
SB: $386.90
Pre-Flop: Q K dealt to Hero (BB)
SB calls $1.50, Hero raises to $9, SB calls $6
Flop: ($18) A 2 9 (2 Players)
Hero bets $18, SB calls $18
Turn: ($54) 9 (2 Players)
Hero checks, SB checks
River: ($54) T (2 Players)
Hero checks, SB bets $54, Hero calls $54
Results: $162 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed Q K (a pair of Nines) and WON $161.50 (+$80.50 NET)
SB showed 7 5 (a pair of Nines) and LOST (-$81 NET)
This guy just did not fold. On my first few buttons, I raised, potted the flop, and occasionally potted the turn, always showing down losers. But he determined from that that I never had anything and that he should feel free to call and/or raise me no matter how absurd his hand was. That strategy didn't end well for him:
Full Tilt Poker, $1.50/$3 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): $600
BB: $801.05
Pre-Flop: 7 6 dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $9, BB calls $6
Flop: ($18) 8 T 9 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $18, BB calls $18
Turn: ($54) 9 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $54, BB calls $54
River: ($162) K (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $162, BB calls $162
Results: $486 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed 7 6 (a straight, Ten high) and WON $485.50 (+$242.50 NET)
BB mucked J A (a pair of Nines) and LOST (-$243 NET)
Full Tilt Poker, $1.50/$3 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): $967.50
BB: $428.95
Pre-Flop: T Q dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $9, BB calls $6
Flop: ($18) Q 4 Q (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $18, BB calls $18
Turn: ($54) K (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $54, BB calls $54
River: ($162) J (2 Players)
BB bets $162, Hero calls $162
Results: $486 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed T Q (three of a kind, Queens) and WON $485.50 (+$242.50 NET)
BB showed 7 9 (a pair of Queens) and LOST (-$243 NET)
Nice double float from out of position, buddy. The river bet actually had me a little concerned just because the only way I could be ahead was if he was doing something wildly retarded. But given the opponent in question, it was still an easy call....
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LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): $1,142
UTG: $1,241
BTN: $3,029.05
SB: $1,411
Pre-Flop: A
Q dealt to Hero (BB)UTG folds, BTN raises to $30, SB folds, Hero raises to $102, BTN calls $72
Flop: ($209) 2
5 2 (2 Players)Hero checks, BTN checks
Turn: ($209) K
(2 Players)Hero checks, BTN bets $140, Hero calls $140
River: ($489) T
(2 Players)Hero checks, BTN bets $330, Hero calls $330
Results: $1,149 Pot ($2 Rake)
Hero showed A
Q (a pair of Twos) and WON $1,147 (+$575 NET)BTN showed 9
Q (a pair of Twos) and LOST (-$572 NET)This is a pretty standard polarized range spot. I feel like his range is either AK or better or a bluff. He's probably 4-betting KK/AA pre-flop, and if he's not, he's probably betting flop. He's probably 4-betting AK pre-flop, and if he's not, I think he's at least sometimes checking turn. Quads or 5's full (can't see him betting TT on the turn) is just plain unlikely, so I'm in good shape. I took my time before calling just to be sure, but I don't think this is really all that close unless your opponent is particularly passive.
This one I did snap-call, which was great fun:
Full Tilt Poker, $1.50/$3 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): $1,007.55
SB: $386.90
Pre-Flop: Q
K dealt to Hero (BB)SB calls $1.50, Hero raises to $9, SB calls $6
Flop: ($18) A
2 9 (2 Players)Hero bets $18, SB calls $18
Turn: ($54) 9
(2 Players)Hero checks, SB checks
River: ($54) T
(2 Players)Hero checks, SB bets $54, Hero calls $54
Results: $162 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed Q
K (a pair of Nines) and WON $161.50 (+$80.50 NET)SB showed 7
5 (a pair of Nines) and LOST (-$81 NET)This guy just did not fold. On my first few buttons, I raised, potted the flop, and occasionally potted the turn, always showing down losers. But he determined from that that I never had anything and that he should feel free to call and/or raise me no matter how absurd his hand was. That strategy didn't end well for him:
Full Tilt Poker, $1.50/$3 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): $600
BB: $801.05
Pre-Flop: 7
6 dealt to Hero (SB)Hero raises to $9, BB calls $6
Flop: ($18) 8
T 9 (2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets $18, BB calls $18
Turn: ($54) 9
(2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets $54, BB calls $54
River: ($162) K
(2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets $162, BB calls $162
Results: $486 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed 7
6 (a straight, Ten high) and WON $485.50 (+$242.50 NET)BB mucked J
A (a pair of Nines) and LOST (-$243 NET)Full Tilt Poker, $1.50/$3 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): $967.50
BB: $428.95
Pre-Flop: T
Q dealt to Hero (SB)Hero raises to $9, BB calls $6
Flop: ($18) Q
4 Q (2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets $18, BB calls $18
Turn: ($54) K
(2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets $54, BB calls $54
River: ($162) J
(2 Players)BB bets $162, Hero calls $162
Results: $486 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed T
Q (three of a kind, Queens) and WON $485.50 (+$242.50 NET)BB showed 7
9 (a pair of Queens) and LOST (-$243 NET)Nice double float from out of position, buddy. The river bet actually had me a little concerned just because the only way I could be ahead was if he was doing something wildly retarded. But given the opponent in question, it was still an easy call....
Labels: poker, poker strategy, session review
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Friday, October 26, 2007
"Mistakes" That Make You Money
Here's the hand that prompted this line of thinking:
Full Tilt Poker, $3/$6 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
SB: $704.60
BB: $791
UTG: $1,075.05
MP: $537.70
Hero (CO): $1,817.85
BTN: $731.65
Pre-Flop: T J dealt to Hero (CO)
2 folds, Hero raises to $21, 2 folds, BB calls $15
Flop: ($45) 6 T 4 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $36, BB calls $36
Turn: ($117) Q (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $90, BB calls $90
River: ($297) 5 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $220, BB calls $220
Results: $737 Pot ($3 Rake)
BB showed T K (a pair of Tens) and WON $734 (+$367 NET)
Hero showed T J (a pair of Tens) and LOST (-$367 NET)
I bet my hand for value on three streets only to learn that I was behind all along. Flop and turn, I think, are very clearly profitable bets, so the only question is how often worse hands will call on the river. In one sense, this bet was a 'mistake', since I didn't have the best hand.
But if you are not occasionally value betting into a better hand, then you are not value betting often enough. To show a profit, a bet in this spot only has to beat more 51% of your opponent's calling range (discounting the possibility of a check-raise bluff, which is pretty unlikely). So in fact, in a spot like this, you should be getting called by better hands something like 40% of the time.
Let's suppose that JT beats 60% of my opponent's calling range and that I am never check-raised. That means that 60% of the time that I bet I win an additional $220 and 40% of the time I lose $220, for an expected value of $44, or nearly 4.4 BB. That's about how much I make, on average, from playing QQ, which means that failing to bet in this spot costs me as much as open folding QQ pre-flop.
Hopefully you can see how similar analysis would apply to 'mistakes' like failed bluffs, failed squeeze plays, calling when you can only beat a bluff, etc. It's a pretty big mistake to never make these kinds of mistakes.
Stumble It!
Full Tilt Poker, $3/$6 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
SB: $704.60
BB: $791
UTG: $1,075.05
MP: $537.70
Hero (CO): $1,817.85
BTN: $731.65
Pre-Flop: T
J dealt to Hero (CO)2 folds, Hero raises to $21, 2 folds, BB calls $15
Flop: ($45) 6
T 4 (2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets $36, BB calls $36
Turn: ($117) Q
(2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets $90, BB calls $90
River: ($297) 5
(2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets $220, BB calls $220
Results: $737 Pot ($3 Rake)
BB showed T
K (a pair of Tens) and WON $734 (+$367 NET)Hero showed T
J (a pair of Tens) and LOST (-$367 NET)I bet my hand for value on three streets only to learn that I was behind all along. Flop and turn, I think, are very clearly profitable bets, so the only question is how often worse hands will call on the river. In one sense, this bet was a 'mistake', since I didn't have the best hand.
But if you are not occasionally value betting into a better hand, then you are not value betting often enough. To show a profit, a bet in this spot only has to beat more 51% of your opponent's calling range (discounting the possibility of a check-raise bluff, which is pretty unlikely). So in fact, in a spot like this, you should be getting called by better hands something like 40% of the time.
Let's suppose that JT beats 60% of my opponent's calling range and that I am never check-raised. That means that 60% of the time that I bet I win an additional $220 and 40% of the time I lose $220, for an expected value of $44, or nearly 4.4 BB. That's about how much I make, on average, from playing QQ, which means that failing to bet in this spot costs me as much as open folding QQ pre-flop.
Hopefully you can see how similar analysis would apply to 'mistakes' like failed bluffs, failed squeeze plays, calling when you can only beat a bluff, etc. It's a pretty big mistake to never make these kinds of mistakes.
Labels: poker, poker strategy, session review
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Thursday, October 25, 2007
Rough Spot 200 BB's Deep
Villain is a decent LAG but he does have trouble getting away from kinda strong hands when he should. I've got a pretty wild pre-flop image but have only shown down big hands when I play big pots. The guy in the middle is new to the table, don't know if my opponent had a read on him but I didn't.
Full Tilt Poker, $3/$6 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
BB: $724.90
UTG: $1,135.10
MP: $573
CO: $512.50
Hero (BTN): $1,671
SB: $651.45
Pre-Flop: T 9 dealt to Hero (BTN)
UTG raises to $21, MP calls $21, CO folds, Hero calls $21, SB calls $18, BB folds
Flop: ($90) 9 T 4 (4 Players)
SB checks, UTG bets $70, MP raises to $270, Hero raises to $470, SB folds, UTG raises to $1,114.10 and is All-In, MP folds, Hero calls $644.10
Turn: ($2,588.20) 8 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: ($2,588.20) K (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: $2,588.20 Pot ($3 Rake)
UTG showed 4 4 (three of a kind, Fours) and WON $2,585.20 (+$1,450.10 NET)
Hero showed T 9 (two pair, Tens and Nines) and LOST (-$1,135.10 NET)
Even for 200 BB's, I'm happy stacking off here if the guy in the middle doesn't get involved. The thing is, UTG shoved instantly, and even if he does decide to go with an overpair here, I think he would have thought about it, because it's a pretty shit spot to hold even AA. But on the other hand, I'm getting awfully good pot odds, so if he occasionally shows up with Ac Kc or something, that dramatically improves my equity. And 44 is much more likely for him than TT or 99, and I've got about 8% equity against that, which isn't great of course, but isn't trivial either given the odds I'm getting. Mostly I think it's just a bad spot that I needn't worry about too much since I won't often flop top two versus bottom set on a drawy flop facing multi-way action when 200 BB's deep.
Stumble It!
Full Tilt Poker, $3/$6 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
BB: $724.90
UTG: $1,135.10
MP: $573
CO: $512.50
Hero (BTN): $1,671
SB: $651.45
Pre-Flop: T
9 dealt to Hero (BTN)UTG raises to $21, MP calls $21, CO folds, Hero calls $21, SB calls $18, BB folds
Flop: ($90) 9
T 4 (4 Players)SB checks, UTG bets $70, MP raises to $270, Hero raises to $470, SB folds, UTG raises to $1,114.10 and is All-In, MP folds, Hero calls $644.10
Turn: ($2,588.20) 8
(2 Players - 1 is All-In)River: ($2,588.20) K
(2 Players - 1 is All-In)Results: $2,588.20 Pot ($3 Rake)
UTG showed 4
4 (three of a kind, Fours) and WON $2,585.20 (+$1,450.10 NET)Hero showed T
9 (two pair, Tens and Nines) and LOST (-$1,135.10 NET)Even for 200 BB's, I'm happy stacking off here if the guy in the middle doesn't get involved. The thing is, UTG shoved instantly, and even if he does decide to go with an overpair here, I think he would have thought about it, because it's a pretty shit spot to hold even AA. But on the other hand, I'm getting awfully good pot odds, so if he occasionally shows up with Ac Kc or something, that dramatically improves my equity. And 44 is much more likely for him than TT or 99, and I've got about 8% equity against that, which isn't great of course, but isn't trivial either given the odds I'm getting. Mostly I think it's just a bad spot that I needn't worry about too much since I won't often flop top two versus bottom set on a drawy flop facing multi-way action when 200 BB's deep.
Labels: poker, poker strategy, session review
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Imagining the Tenth Dimension
This animated visualization of higher dimensions is one of the cooler things I've come across on the internet. To be fair, I don't think it's consistent with the most widely accepted theories among physicists, but it's pretty interesting nonetheless.
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Wednesday, October 24, 2007
I Just Don't Believe 4-Bets Anymore
3-betting pre-flop has become very popular in the mid-stakes FTP cash games, in part because it's tough to counteract with 100BB stacks. Recently, though (and I am part of this trend), people have started making smallish 4-bets leaving themselves room to fold to an all in. Particularly when you are in position, this puts the pressure back on your opponent to put his stack on the line first. If you're out of position, they'll be more comfortable calling and taking a flop. This move also showed up in CTS' first video for CardRunners. CTS' is, by the way, one of the best CR videos I've seen, and I'd highly recommend it to any of you who are CR members.
Anyway, here's two ways I've been dealing with these little 4-bets:
Full Tilt Poker, $3/$6 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
BB: $1,048.95
UTG: $990.05
MP: $1,008.60
CO: $625.50
Hero (BTN): $662.85
SB: $711.45
Pre-Flop: 6 7 dealt to Hero (BTN)
2 folds, CO raises to $21, Hero raises to $72, 2 folds, CO raises to $183, Hero raises to $662.85 and is All-In, CO folds
Suited connectors are actually not the best hands to do this with because when you're called, you're pretty much always going to be against big pairs. Even guys who will call this shove with AK aren't usually going to make a 4-bet out of position like this with AK. That means this move is considerably more profitable with Ax than with a suited connector. If you are out of position, the equity of suited connectors versus Villain's calling range goes up and the equity of Ax goes down because of the increased likelihood that AK will be in his range.
Full Tilt Poker, $2.50/$5 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
SB: $1,000
Hero (BB): $1,163
Pre-Flop: Q A dealt to Hero (BB)
SB raises to $15, Hero raises to $53, SB raises to $138, Hero calls $85
Flop: ($276) 4 8 8 (2 Players)
Hero checks, SB bets $180, Hero calls $180
Turn: ($636) 6 (2 Players)
Hero checks, SB checks
River: ($636) 9 (2 Players)
Hero checks, SB checks
Results: $636 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
SB showed 3 K (a pair of Eights) and LOST (-$318 NET)
Hero showed Q A (a pair of Eights) and WON $635.50 (+$317.50 NET)
This was very early in our heads up match, but my opponent had already shown himself to be super loose-aggressive. The last time I was in the BB, I had 3-bet him with QJ and checked middle pair all the way to beat his 43s. I just had a feeling when I 3-bet him again that he was going to 4-bet with whatever. Stacks are a little awkward for it, but I really don't think just shoving pre-flop would have been bad at all given how wide I thought his range would be and the fact that stacks would still be kinda deep to play AQo from out of position..
On the flop, I probably should have check-raised all in, not that he's ever folding a better hand (probably not even AK, if he would bet that on this flop in the first place) but just because I don't know how likely he is to bluff again, at least not without picking up substantial equity. I was going (reluctantly) to call a turn shove, since the board was so draw-heavy. I also didn't think he was likely to make a thin value shove with like a pair of 6's or something, since I could easily have a higher pair with my line. But if he shoves like Js Ts or something on the turn, he's got plenty of equity and I'm better off folding it out on the flop.
Stumble It!
Anyway, here's two ways I've been dealing with these little 4-bets:
Full Tilt Poker, $3/$6 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
BB: $1,048.95
UTG: $990.05
MP: $1,008.60
CO: $625.50
Hero (BTN): $662.85
SB: $711.45
Pre-Flop: 6
7 dealt to Hero (BTN)2 folds, CO raises to $21, Hero raises to $72, 2 folds, CO raises to $183, Hero raises to $662.85 and is All-In, CO folds
Suited connectors are actually not the best hands to do this with because when you're called, you're pretty much always going to be against big pairs. Even guys who will call this shove with AK aren't usually going to make a 4-bet out of position like this with AK. That means this move is considerably more profitable with Ax than with a suited connector. If you are out of position, the equity of suited connectors versus Villain's calling range goes up and the equity of Ax goes down because of the increased likelihood that AK will be in his range.
Full Tilt Poker, $2.50/$5 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
SB: $1,000
Hero (BB): $1,163
Pre-Flop: Q
A dealt to Hero (BB)SB raises to $15, Hero raises to $53, SB raises to $138, Hero calls $85
Flop: ($276) 4
8 8 (2 Players)Hero checks, SB bets $180, Hero calls $180
Turn: ($636) 6
(2 Players)Hero checks, SB checks
River: ($636) 9
(2 Players)Hero checks, SB checks
Results: $636 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
SB showed 3
K (a pair of Eights) and LOST (-$318 NET)Hero showed Q
A (a pair of Eights) and WON $635.50 (+$317.50 NET)This was very early in our heads up match, but my opponent had already shown himself to be super loose-aggressive. The last time I was in the BB, I had 3-bet him with QJ and checked middle pair all the way to beat his 43s. I just had a feeling when I 3-bet him again that he was going to 4-bet with whatever. Stacks are a little awkward for it, but I really don't think just shoving pre-flop would have been bad at all given how wide I thought his range would be and the fact that stacks would still be kinda deep to play AQo from out of position..
On the flop, I probably should have check-raised all in, not that he's ever folding a better hand (probably not even AK, if he would bet that on this flop in the first place) but just because I don't know how likely he is to bluff again, at least not without picking up substantial equity. I was going (reluctantly) to call a turn shove, since the board was so draw-heavy. I also didn't think he was likely to make a thin value shove with like a pair of 6's or something, since I could easily have a higher pair with my line. But if he shoves like Js Ts or something on the turn, he's got plenty of equity and I'm better off folding it out on the flop.
Labels: poker, poker strategy, session review
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Jesus People Are Bad At Omaha
This hand is from a while ago, but I just bought Poker Tracker Omaha and so have been looking through old hand histories:
Full Tilt Poker
Pot Limit Omaha Ring game
Blinds: $2/$4
6 players
Converter
Stack sizes:
UTG: $179
UTG+1: $56.70
CO: $208.50
Button: $1029.90
Hero: $620.30
BB: $572.50
Pre-flop: (6 players) Hero is SB with :6d :kh :ks :9d
UTG calls, UTG+1 folds, CO calls, Button calls, Hero calls, BB checks.
Flop: :2s :4h :4s ($20, 5 players)
Hero checks, BB checks, UTG checks, CO checks, Button checks.
Turn: :kd ($20, 5 players)
Hero bets $20, BB raises to $80, 3 folds, Hero raises to $280, BB calls.
River: :jc ($580, 2 players)
Hero is all-in $356.3, BB calls all-in $308.5.
Uncalled bets: $47.8 returned to Hero.
Results:
Final pot: $1197
Hero showed 6d Kh Ks 9d
BB mucks Qc 7c 4c 3h
He put nearly 150 BB's in with 0% equity. It's really hard to have 0% equity in Omaha. And this is in no way a cold deck. He didn't have a full house, he didn't even have a good kicker with his trips. Honestly, in his shoes, I fold when the SB pots into three players. Maaaaybe you can warrant a call with his hand, but raising is just terrible, and calling the 3-bet is stab-me-in-the-eye awful. Frankly, I was a touch concerned about quads, since there are very few hands that should give me action in this situation.
Edit: Whoops, I guess he had about 2% equity on the turn since he could catch the case 4 to make quads.
Stumble It!
Full Tilt Poker
Pot Limit Omaha Ring game
Blinds: $2/$4
6 players
Converter
Stack sizes:
UTG: $179
UTG+1: $56.70
CO: $208.50
Button: $1029.90
Hero: $620.30
BB: $572.50
Pre-flop: (6 players) Hero is SB with :6d :kh :ks :9d
UTG calls, UTG+1 folds, CO calls, Button calls, Hero calls, BB checks.
Flop: :2s :4h :4s ($20, 5 players)
Hero checks, BB checks, UTG checks, CO checks, Button checks.
Turn: :kd ($20, 5 players)
Hero bets $20, BB raises to $80, 3 folds, Hero raises to $280, BB calls.
River: :jc ($580, 2 players)
Hero is all-in $356.3, BB calls all-in $308.5.
Uncalled bets: $47.8 returned to Hero.
Results:
Final pot: $1197
Hero showed 6d Kh Ks 9d
BB mucks Qc 7c 4c 3h
He put nearly 150 BB's in with 0% equity. It's really hard to have 0% equity in Omaha. And this is in no way a cold deck. He didn't have a full house, he didn't even have a good kicker with his trips. Honestly, in his shoes, I fold when the SB pots into three players. Maaaaybe you can warrant a call with his hand, but raising is just terrible, and calling the 3-bet is stab-me-in-the-eye awful. Frankly, I was a touch concerned about quads, since there are very few hands that should give me action in this situation.
Edit: Whoops, I guess he had about 2% equity on the turn since he could catch the case 4 to make quads.
Labels: poker, poker strategy, session review
Stumble It!
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
New Absolute Poker Drama Bomb
A site called "Point Spreads" is now claiming that the AP superuser cheating has been going on for much longer than previously suspected:
"Point-Spreads.com sources in Costa Rica are claiming the Absolute Poker Super-User account scam has been going on for three years and the actual amount that was skimmed from online poker players is estimated at close to $7 million, not the 700k amount that was previously reported."
I haven't seen any independent confirmation of this claim, though.
Stumble It!
"Point-Spreads.com sources in Costa Rica are claiming the Absolute Poker Super-User account scam has been going on for three years and the actual amount that was skimmed from online poker players is estimated at close to $7 million, not the 700k amount that was previously reported."
I haven't seen any independent confirmation of this claim, though.
Labels: poker
Stumble It!
Boston Debate League Tournament One
The first round of the first tournament of the Boston Debate League’s fourth season has just gotten underway. With about forty students competing, it is one of our largest events ever. Unfortunately, 90% of the debaters are from 50% of the schools in the League. While these schools are doing very well, the other half of the League has not gotten off to such a good start. It’s something we’ll need to work on during the year, but seeing the enthusiasm, and the nervousness, of all the students here makes it seem like a much more manageable problem than it did earlier this week.
There is such a hectic energy that surrounds these events, particularly the first one of the year, when there are so many kids who are trying debate out for the first time. Some are driven by their fear to arrive early and pace nervously outside of the school until I arrive to let them in. Others panic and can only be coaxed into coming by coaches and teammates who spend the arrival/breakfast hour furiously calling and texting their no-shows.
These coaches, veteran and novice alike, scramble to marshal their squads for the season opener. They have registered their students with me several days ago in teams of two, but I’ve learned to prepare for a barrage of 11th hour changes:
“Shanice isn’t coming, drop her and pair Marcus with Beni. Tarell can debate alone.”
“Chanelle and Kiki are having a spate; we need to split them up. Pair Chanelle with Dan and Kiki with Jemal.”
“I have a student who’s never been to a practice, but he’s here now and wants to debate. He’s not registered. Is that OK? Can we find him a partner from a different school?”
“Shanice is here, let’s put her back with Marcus, then Beni and Tarell will debate together after all.”
It takes me three drafts of the schedule for Round 1 to get everything straight. Almost half the teams in the Novice division are from the same school, meaning that they can not debate against each other, and my computer program has difficulty generating a schedule that meets this constraint. Meanwhile, there are only four teams in the Varsity division, and although two of them are from the same school, there is no way around pairing them against each other for one of the three rounds. But computers are not given to such compromises, and ultimately it becomes easier to print the closest approximation that the program can give me and then correct it by hand.
All of this logistical work occurs amidst a blur of commotion: stomping feet, pounding music, beeping timers, and the din of young voices echoing through the vast hallways of this big brick schoolhouse. I puzzle over the constantly shifting matrix of school names and student initials, all the while incorporating last minute changes, pointing late arrivals vaguely in the direction of the auditorium, where donuts and coffee await them, and fending off unimportant inquiries and requests to “hurry, the students are getting restless.” It is as demanding as playing eight tables of poker at once, and I love every second of it.
Finally, I’m ready to photocopy and distribute the pairings just ten minutes behind schedule. Only a few people notice that I’ve entered the auditorium and ascended the wooden stairs to the podium at center stage, but they quickly start a chorus of shushing the spreads quickly across the disparate huddles of well-dressed teenagers.
“Good morning, everyone. Thanks for your patience. The veterans among you know that it wouldn’t be a BDL tournament without some hectic activity in the morning. But you also know that we usually make up that time over the course of the day and finish ahead of schedule, because I’m just that good.” Usually my faux arrogance is a good for laughs or even a few cheers, but this crowd is anxious to get started. I skip my introductions and get right to business, making a few announcements and then handing out the pairings and the judge’s ballots.
A mob of people, coaches and students alike, converge on the pile of paper at the front of the auditorium. Papers are shuffled, sheets passed back and forth between friends and strangers alike, and everyone is scrambling to gather her things and get to her assigned room. It is now 9:45, and I have told them to start their debates at 9:30.
By 9:50, the auditorium is empty, save for a few coats, backpacks, and crumpled Dunkin’ Donuts boxes. Season Four is officially underway.
Stumble It!
There is such a hectic energy that surrounds these events, particularly the first one of the year, when there are so many kids who are trying debate out for the first time. Some are driven by their fear to arrive early and pace nervously outside of the school until I arrive to let them in. Others panic and can only be coaxed into coming by coaches and teammates who spend the arrival/breakfast hour furiously calling and texting their no-shows.
These coaches, veteran and novice alike, scramble to marshal their squads for the season opener. They have registered their students with me several days ago in teams of two, but I’ve learned to prepare for a barrage of 11th hour changes:
“Shanice isn’t coming, drop her and pair Marcus with Beni. Tarell can debate alone.”
“Chanelle and Kiki are having a spate; we need to split them up. Pair Chanelle with Dan and Kiki with Jemal.”
“I have a student who’s never been to a practice, but he’s here now and wants to debate. He’s not registered. Is that OK? Can we find him a partner from a different school?”
“Shanice is here, let’s put her back with Marcus, then Beni and Tarell will debate together after all.”
It takes me three drafts of the schedule for Round 1 to get everything straight. Almost half the teams in the Novice division are from the same school, meaning that they can not debate against each other, and my computer program has difficulty generating a schedule that meets this constraint. Meanwhile, there are only four teams in the Varsity division, and although two of them are from the same school, there is no way around pairing them against each other for one of the three rounds. But computers are not given to such compromises, and ultimately it becomes easier to print the closest approximation that the program can give me and then correct it by hand.
All of this logistical work occurs amidst a blur of commotion: stomping feet, pounding music, beeping timers, and the din of young voices echoing through the vast hallways of this big brick schoolhouse. I puzzle over the constantly shifting matrix of school names and student initials, all the while incorporating last minute changes, pointing late arrivals vaguely in the direction of the auditorium, where donuts and coffee await them, and fending off unimportant inquiries and requests to “hurry, the students are getting restless.” It is as demanding as playing eight tables of poker at once, and I love every second of it.
Finally, I’m ready to photocopy and distribute the pairings just ten minutes behind schedule. Only a few people notice that I’ve entered the auditorium and ascended the wooden stairs to the podium at center stage, but they quickly start a chorus of shushing the spreads quickly across the disparate huddles of well-dressed teenagers.
“Good morning, everyone. Thanks for your patience. The veterans among you know that it wouldn’t be a BDL tournament without some hectic activity in the morning. But you also know that we usually make up that time over the course of the day and finish ahead of schedule, because I’m just that good.” Usually my faux arrogance is a good for laughs or even a few cheers, but this crowd is anxious to get started. I skip my introductions and get right to business, making a few announcements and then handing out the pairings and the judge’s ballots.
A mob of people, coaches and students alike, converge on the pile of paper at the front of the auditorium. Papers are shuffled, sheets passed back and forth between friends and strangers alike, and everyone is scrambling to gather her things and get to her assigned room. It is now 9:45, and I have told them to start their debates at 9:30.
By 9:50, the auditorium is empty, save for a few coats, backpacks, and crumpled Dunkin’ Donuts boxes. Season Four is officially underway.
Labels: boston debate league, narrative, personal, urban debate league
Stumble It!
Monday, October 22, 2007
Absolute Poker Statement
As most of you probably know by now, there have been very credible allegations of cheating on a site called Absolute Poker. Many of the most reliable players in the highest stakes games online are taking these accusations seriously, and Nat Arem in particular has done some amazing investigative work on the data. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for AP's official response.
You can find a full account of the details and evidence in the most current 2+2 thread. The short version is that an owner or former owner of the site seems to have exploited a 'superuser' account, created during early testing of the site's software, that is able to see the hole cards of every player at the table. Using this information and some sham accounts, he 'won' nearly $1 million from the highest stakes ring games and tournaments offered at Absolute Poker.
After initially denying that any cheating occurred, AP recently released this statement:
"October 21, 2007
Dear AP Player:
I am the former Grand Chief of the Mohawk Territory of Kahnawake and the owner of Tokwiro Enterprises ENRG, which holds a 100% interest in Absolute Poker.
As many of our players are aware, there has been a security breach in our system that allowed unlawful access to player information that resulted in unfair play. I am writing to you today to let you know what we know so far in order to set the record straight, and to assure you of AP’s commitment to player security. I am sure that this letter will not address all of the questions and concerns you may have, nor will it extinguish the heated discussion surrounding this issue. At this point, our intention is to let you know all we can disclose and to assure you of our continued efforts to keep you informed as best we can as the investigations continue.
We deeply regret this situation has occurred. A breach in security in online poker is serious and of great concern to players and the industry worldwide, and this particular situation has been the subject of debate within the poker player community and in the media, giving rise to the creation of several websites and hundreds and hundreds of comments, opinions, and theories of what occurred – some of which are accurate, and some that are not.
Like you, I have not been happy that during the initial stage of our investigation, AP has not been more forthcoming in providing a timely or comprehensive explanation on this matter, giving rise to anger, suspicion, and concern on the part of our valued customers. I hope that our customers can appreciate that this remains an incredibly complex and sensitive issue, and I want to give you my strongest possible assurance that we will be as forthcoming as possible on how this breach occurred and what we are doing to remedy the situation.
What We Know and Actions We Have Taken
AP was notified by a customer that a possible cheating incident occurred during a recent tournament, and in response forwarded players’ hand logs. This disclosure of the hand logs prompted our customers to determine that a more serious security breach had occurred. We immediately launched an internal investigation and also requested a formal audit by Gaming Associates, an acknowledged world-wide expert in audits, interactive gaming tests, and information security.
Based upon our preliminary findings, it appears that the integrity of our poker system was compromised by a high-ranking trusted consultant employed by AP whose position gave him extraordinary access to certain security systems. As has been speculated in several online forums, this consultant devised a sophisticated scheme to manipulate internal systems to access third-party computers and accounts to view hole cards of other customers during play without their knowledge. As this consultant was aware of the details of our fraud detection process, the likelihood that the scheme would be uncovered through our normal procedures was minimized. We consider this security breach to be a horrendous and inexcusable offense.
We will pay for all losses suffered by the affected players as soon as our audit is finished and the amounts are determined. Although we are in the process of attempting to recover all the winnings of this consultant, any unrecovered losses of affected players will be paid by Absolute Poker so that all affected persons will be made whole.
Next Steps
We are still investigating whether the consultant was acting alone or in concert with others, and it appears at this time that all account holders are innocent of collusion and were unaware of any wrong-doing by the consultant, who was immediately terminated. We continue to investigate this matter aggressively, and all of these preliminary findings are subject to the audits currently underway. We have recently uncovered additional accounts used by the consultant that have not been publicly reported. So as to not compromise the investigation, we are not releasing the names of these additional accounts at this time, and will contact these affected customers individually.
The specific allegations of unlawful activity are being investigated both by AP and by the authorized authorities, including the Kahnawake Gaming Commission. We will continue to actively cooperate with these authorities in full compliance with the Regulations Concerning Interactive Gaming. In addition to our own investigation and the audit by Gaming Associates, we have also submitted to an audit by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission.
Please be assured that we have corrected the problem that allowed the system to be unfairly manipulated. We are working furiously to increase the safeguards within our systems. While we are satisfied that our systems are secured, we realize that our security systems must be continuously monitored and enhanced.
Without question, this incident has been unfortunate for all concerned, and we will emerge as a stronger company. I realize it will take some time and much more information for AP to re-earn the trust and confidence of our customers who are in doubt of our commitment to the highest levels of security, privacy and integrity. As we move to address and correct this situation, our valued customers have played a vital role in uncovering this scheme through various online forums and have become an active part of the solution.
With my full sincerity, I thank you, and I promise to keep you updated as we bring this situation to a close.
Sincerely,
Joe Norton"
Unfortunately, this statement consists largely of empty rhetoric and is downright misleading in several places. The statement claims that AP "immediately launched" an investigation and requested an audit, but in fact they initially denied any cheating. Only when overwhelming evidence was compiled did they begin to address the matter publicly and seriously.
Moreover, "Gaming Associations", the firm that will be conducting the audit, is affiliated with the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, which by the statement's own admissions "owns a 100% interest in Absolute Poker." Talk about leaving the fox in charge of the hen house.
I really see no reason for anyone ever to play on Absolute Poker again. There are so many other sites out there without this kind of smirch on their names. Even if the owners of the site are not tied to the cheating, as the statement suggests, their poor response to the matter is damning enough not to give them a second chance.
Finally, I hope this won't become fodder for suspicion against all online poker sites. There is no indication of malfeasance on well-known sites like Full Tilt Poker and Poker Stars. Hopefully, the prediction of Steven Levitt, New York Times blogger, University of Chicago economist, and Freakonomics author, will prove true:
"The real lesson of this all, however, is probably the following: guys who aren’t that smart will figure out ways to cheat. And, with a little luck and the right data, folks who are a lot smarter will catch them doing it."
Stumble It!
You can find a full account of the details and evidence in the most current 2+2 thread. The short version is that an owner or former owner of the site seems to have exploited a 'superuser' account, created during early testing of the site's software, that is able to see the hole cards of every player at the table. Using this information and some sham accounts, he 'won' nearly $1 million from the highest stakes ring games and tournaments offered at Absolute Poker.
After initially denying that any cheating occurred, AP recently released this statement:
"October 21, 2007
Dear AP Player:
I am the former Grand Chief of the Mohawk Territory of Kahnawake and the owner of Tokwiro Enterprises ENRG, which holds a 100% interest in Absolute Poker.
As many of our players are aware, there has been a security breach in our system that allowed unlawful access to player information that resulted in unfair play. I am writing to you today to let you know what we know so far in order to set the record straight, and to assure you of AP’s commitment to player security. I am sure that this letter will not address all of the questions and concerns you may have, nor will it extinguish the heated discussion surrounding this issue. At this point, our intention is to let you know all we can disclose and to assure you of our continued efforts to keep you informed as best we can as the investigations continue.
We deeply regret this situation has occurred. A breach in security in online poker is serious and of great concern to players and the industry worldwide, and this particular situation has been the subject of debate within the poker player community and in the media, giving rise to the creation of several websites and hundreds and hundreds of comments, opinions, and theories of what occurred – some of which are accurate, and some that are not.
Like you, I have not been happy that during the initial stage of our investigation, AP has not been more forthcoming in providing a timely or comprehensive explanation on this matter, giving rise to anger, suspicion, and concern on the part of our valued customers. I hope that our customers can appreciate that this remains an incredibly complex and sensitive issue, and I want to give you my strongest possible assurance that we will be as forthcoming as possible on how this breach occurred and what we are doing to remedy the situation.
What We Know and Actions We Have Taken
AP was notified by a customer that a possible cheating incident occurred during a recent tournament, and in response forwarded players’ hand logs. This disclosure of the hand logs prompted our customers to determine that a more serious security breach had occurred. We immediately launched an internal investigation and also requested a formal audit by Gaming Associates, an acknowledged world-wide expert in audits, interactive gaming tests, and information security.
Based upon our preliminary findings, it appears that the integrity of our poker system was compromised by a high-ranking trusted consultant employed by AP whose position gave him extraordinary access to certain security systems. As has been speculated in several online forums, this consultant devised a sophisticated scheme to manipulate internal systems to access third-party computers and accounts to view hole cards of other customers during play without their knowledge. As this consultant was aware of the details of our fraud detection process, the likelihood that the scheme would be uncovered through our normal procedures was minimized. We consider this security breach to be a horrendous and inexcusable offense.
We will pay for all losses suffered by the affected players as soon as our audit is finished and the amounts are determined. Although we are in the process of attempting to recover all the winnings of this consultant, any unrecovered losses of affected players will be paid by Absolute Poker so that all affected persons will be made whole.
Next Steps
We are still investigating whether the consultant was acting alone or in concert with others, and it appears at this time that all account holders are innocent of collusion and were unaware of any wrong-doing by the consultant, who was immediately terminated. We continue to investigate this matter aggressively, and all of these preliminary findings are subject to the audits currently underway. We have recently uncovered additional accounts used by the consultant that have not been publicly reported. So as to not compromise the investigation, we are not releasing the names of these additional accounts at this time, and will contact these affected customers individually.
The specific allegations of unlawful activity are being investigated both by AP and by the authorized authorities, including the Kahnawake Gaming Commission. We will continue to actively cooperate with these authorities in full compliance with the Regulations Concerning Interactive Gaming. In addition to our own investigation and the audit by Gaming Associates, we have also submitted to an audit by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission.
Please be assured that we have corrected the problem that allowed the system to be unfairly manipulated. We are working furiously to increase the safeguards within our systems. While we are satisfied that our systems are secured, we realize that our security systems must be continuously monitored and enhanced.
Without question, this incident has been unfortunate for all concerned, and we will emerge as a stronger company. I realize it will take some time and much more information for AP to re-earn the trust and confidence of our customers who are in doubt of our commitment to the highest levels of security, privacy and integrity. As we move to address and correct this situation, our valued customers have played a vital role in uncovering this scheme through various online forums and have become an active part of the solution.
With my full sincerity, I thank you, and I promise to keep you updated as we bring this situation to a close.
Sincerely,
Joe Norton"
Unfortunately, this statement consists largely of empty rhetoric and is downright misleading in several places. The statement claims that AP "immediately launched" an investigation and requested an audit, but in fact they initially denied any cheating. Only when overwhelming evidence was compiled did they begin to address the matter publicly and seriously.
Moreover, "Gaming Associations", the firm that will be conducting the audit, is affiliated with the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, which by the statement's own admissions "owns a 100% interest in Absolute Poker." Talk about leaving the fox in charge of the hen house.
I really see no reason for anyone ever to play on Absolute Poker again. There are so many other sites out there without this kind of smirch on their names. Even if the owners of the site are not tied to the cheating, as the statement suggests, their poor response to the matter is damning enough not to give them a second chance.
Finally, I hope this won't become fodder for suspicion against all online poker sites. There is no indication of malfeasance on well-known sites like Full Tilt Poker and Poker Stars. Hopefully, the prediction of Steven Levitt, New York Times blogger, University of Chicago economist, and Freakonomics author, will prove true:
"The real lesson of this all, however, is probably the following: guys who aren’t that smart will figure out ways to cheat. And, with a little luck and the right data, folks who are a lot smarter will catch them doing it."
Labels: poker
Stumble It!
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Sunday Whine
I can't even think of a hand worth posting.
Stars Million: Flop set under set to lose most of my chips, then AQ
UB 250K: K4s < 97s for my last 11 BB (nice limp-call sir)
PCA Satellite: Flop set under set to lose most of my chips, A4 < K9s for my last 10 BB (nice call sir)
FTP Million: KQs < 88
Stars Second Chance: Don't remember, probably nothing too egregious.
FTP Mulligan: AK < 44
Similar fun was had in the cash games I was playing at the same time.
Stumble It!
Stars Million: Flop set under set to lose most of my chips, then AQ
UB 250K: K4s < 97s for my last 11 BB (nice limp-call sir)
PCA Satellite: Flop set under set to lose most of my chips, A4 < K9s for my last 10 BB (nice call sir)
FTP Million: KQs < 88
Stars Second Chance: Don't remember, probably nothing too egregious.
FTP Mulligan: AK < 44
Similar fun was had in the cash games I was playing at the same time.
Labels: poker
Stumble It!
Saturday, October 20, 2007
An Instructive Final Table
On Thursday, I won this little $100 PLHE tournament with 6-person tables that Poker Stars runs every afternoon. For some reason most NLHE players don't play PLHE tournaments, so this always has small fields. There were 18 runners in this particular tournament, and 16 of them were awful. That's par for the course in this tournament.
Coming into the final table (which was the top 1/3 of the field!), I had the only other competent player to my immediate left, which wasn't ideal. He reraised me once preflop from his button and raised my blind a couple of times, but he didn't give me a ton of trouble. I had a feeling he was waiting for me to make a play at one of his raises, though, because I'd passed on a few decent squeezing opportunities already. Here's a key hand against him, after only player had already been eliminated from the final table:
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 150/300 Blinds, 5 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): 8,500
UTG: 14,430
CO: 3,855
BTN: 15,390
SB: 11,825
Pre-Flop: (450) 5 5 dealt to Hero (BB)
UTG raises to 900, CO calls 900, 2 folds, Hero calls 600
Flop: (2,850) 4 4 T (3 Players)
Hero checks, UTG checks, CO checks
Turn: (2,850) 9 (3 Players)
Hero bets 1,100, UTG raises to 3,000, CO folds, Hero raises to 7,600 and is All-In, UTG folds
Results: 8,850 Pot
Hero mucked 5 5 and WON 8,850 (+4,950 NET)
If you take a look at CO's stack, he called a raise for nearly 25% of his remaining chips. This either meant he had a monster or was an idiot. If he had bet the flop, I would have folded. I was still ready to go away if he gave me action on the turn. I was pretty sure he wouldn't do anything tricky, so I just bet small, ready to give up if he raised or called.
But then the good player on my left raised, which made no sense to me at all. I didn't think he would raise a 9 on the turn, and I felt like he would have bet a T on the flop. So maybe he was slow-playing a big pair or trips, but the more likely explanation was that he read my probe bet for exactly what it was and thought he could raise me off a small pair. No such luck for him. This pot gave me a chip advantage over him, which was huge, since I considered him the only real competition.
After this hand, I picked up a good number of chips through a combination of stealing, flopping well, and just generally outplaying the weaker players at the table. Then I lost some calling a short stack's all in with TT and losing to his JT. Those chips ended up in the other good player's pocket when his A8 busted the same short stack's KK a few orbits later.
There were only three spots to be paid in this tournament, with $400 for third, $500 for second, and $900 for first. The implication of this payout structure is that it really sucks to bubble and finish fourth, it doesn't much matter whether you finish second or third, and there's a big difference between coming first and second. Given this payout, the chip stacks were lined up quite nicely for me as we moved onto the bubble:
Seat 1: foucault82 (18545 in chips)
Seat 2: allinstevie (10440 in chips)
Seat 4: funngun (13490 in chips)
Seat 5: kausk (11525 in chips)
The other three are all close in chips, while I've got a pretty good lead on them. Since none of them wants to finish fourth, they should all be looking to stay out of my way without big hands. Hence:
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BTN): 20,890
SB: 11,540
BB: 12,590
UTG: 8,980
Pre-Flop: (600) T 9 dealt to Hero (BTN)
UTG folds, Hero raises to 1,040, 2 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BTN): 19,490
SB: 13,140
BB: 11,990
UTG: 9,380
Pre-Flop: (600) K 9 dealt to Hero (BTN)
UTG folds, Hero raises to 1,090, SB folds, BB calls 690
Flop: (2,380) Q A 3 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets 1,400, BB folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): 20,780
UTG: 12,940
BTN: 11,300
SB: 8,980
Pre-Flop: (600) 7 4 dealt to Hero (BB)
2 folds, SB calls 200, Hero checks
Flop: (800) 9 5 6 (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero bets 800, SB calls 800
Turn: (2,400) 3 (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero bets 2,080, SB folds
Unfortunately I got caught twice by the same guy:
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BTN): 21,780
SB: 11,740
BB: 12,700
UTG: 7,780
Pre-Flop: (600) K T dealt to Hero (BTN)
UTG folds, Hero raises to 1,080, SB folds, BB calls 680
Flop: (2,360) 7 4 6 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets 1,700, BB calls 1,700
Turn: (5,760) 7 (2 Players)
BB bets 2,000, Hero folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (UTG): 17,800
BTN: 5,940
SB: 22,880
BB: 7,380
Pre-Flop: (600) 4 Q dealt to Hero (UTG)
Hero raises to 1,200, BTN folds, SB calls 1,000, BB folds
Flop: (2,800) 2 9 2 (2 Players)
SB bets 1,200, Hero folds
He had picked up chips off of a few others as well, so now the stacks looked like this:
Seat 1: foucault82 (16600 in chips)
Seat 2: allinstevie (5940 in chips)
Seat 4: funngun (24480 in chips)
Seat 5: kausk (6980 in chips)
Not as favorable a situation for me anymore. At this point, the correct strategy for me is to stay out of funngun's way while putting as much pressure as possible on kausk and stevie. So what do I go and do?
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): 16,600
UTG: 5,940
BTN: 24,480
SB: 6,980
Pre-Flop: (600) 5 6 dealt to Hero (BB)
UTG folds, BTN raises to 1,200, SB calls 1,000, Hero calls 800
Flop: (3,600) 4 7 2 (3 Players)
SB bets 800, Hero raises to 5,400, BTN raises to 11,200, SB folds, Hero raises to 15,400 and is All-In, BTN calls 4,200
Turn: (35,200) 5 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (35,200) 6 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 35,200 Pot
Hero showed 5 6 (two pair, Sixes and Fives) and WON 35,200 (+18,600 NET)
BTN showed 9 9 (a pair of Nines) and LOST (-16,600 NET)
It was absolutely not my intention to tangle with the big stack here. I flopped a huge draw, much too big to fold, and I was hoping either to take down the pot or at least race with the short stack. He's got a lot more to lose from that encounter than I do, since I can eliminate him in fourth place, whereas losing to him would still give me a fighting chance. Unfortunately, the big stack did get involved, and at that point there was no turning back for me. Thankfully, I got there, and suddenly the chip distribution had taken a major swing in my favor:
Seat 1: foucault82 (35200 in chips)
Seat 2: allinstevie (5940 in chips)
Seat 4: funngun (7880 in chips)
Seat 5: kausk (4980 in chips)
At this point, I'm literally going to raise every pot. The correct strategy for all of these guys is to stay out of my way and hope one of the other ones gets himself eliminated in fourth. Remember, the difference between fourth and third places is much more significant than the difference between second and third, which means the other three should be more concerned about not finishing fourth than about trying to climb the ladder, especially since I was situated so firmly at the top.
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): 35,200
BB: 5,940
UTG: 7,880
BTN: 4,980
Pre-Flop: (600) Q 3 dealt to Hero (SB)
UTG calls 400, BTN calls 400, Hero raises to 2,000, 3 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (UTG): 36,400
BTN: 4,340
SB: 7,080
BB: 6,180
Pre-Flop: (600) 6 T dealt to Hero (UTG)
Hero raises to 1,200, 3 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): 36,600
BB: 4,340
UTG: 6,880
BTN: 6,180
Pre-Flop: (600) J A dealt to Hero (SB)
2 folds, Hero raises to 1,200, BB folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BTN): 37,000
SB: 3,940
BB: 6,880
UTG: 6,180
Pre-Flop: (600) 4 2 dealt to Hero (BTN)
UTG folds, Hero raises to 1,200, SB raises to 3,940 and is All-In, 2 folds
Results: 2,800 Pot
SB mucked and WON 2,800 (+1,600 NET)
I would have called with almost anything, getting practically 2:1 on my money, but as it happened, I had one of the worst possible hands. Plus, this was against the other good player, and I didn't want to risk doubling him up. I figured I could afford to give him 1200 and then grind him back down, whereas doubling him would give him more room to interfere with my larceny.
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (UTG): 35,800
BTN: 5,540
SB: 6,480
BB: 6,180
Pre-Flop: (900) T A dealt to Hero (UTG)
Hero raises to 2,100, 3 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): 36,700
UTG: 5,540
BTN: 6,180
SB: 5,580
Pre-Flop: (900) 6 Q dealt to Hero (BB)
2 folds, SB calls 300, Hero raises to 1,800, SB folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): 37,300
BB: 5,540
UTG: 6,180
BTN: 4,980
Pre-Flop: (900) 7 2 dealt to Hero (SB)
2 folds, Hero raises to 1,800, BB raises to 5,400 and is All-In, Hero raises to 9,000, BB calls 140 and is All-In
Flop: (11,080) T 5 J (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Turn: (11,080) 8 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (11,080) 4 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 11,080 Pot
Hero showed 7 2 (high card Jack) and LOST (-5,540 NET)
BB showed A 6 (high card Ace) and WON 11,080 (+5,540 NET)
This time, I was getting slightly better odds with a slightly better hand and in a spot where I expected my opponent to have a slightly wider range. Honestly, given the configuration of the stacks, I'm not sure it's correct for him to get all in with A6 there, even though he knows I'm raising anything. Maybe he thought I'd make another fold against the odds.
That hurt, but I still had a big lead, and my basic strategy remained the same:
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BTN): 31,760
SB: 11,080
BB: 6,180
UTG: 4,980
Pre-Flop: (900) J 4 dealt to Hero (BTN)
UTG folds, Hero raises to 1,760, 2 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (UTG): 32,660
BTN: 10,780
SB: 5,580
BB: 4,980
Pre-Flop: (900) 9 4 dealt to Hero (UTG)
Hero raises to 1,660, 3 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): 33,560
UTG: 10,780
BTN: 5,280
SB: 4,380
Pre-Flop: (900) K Q dealt to Hero (BB)
UTG folds, BTN raises to 2,100, SB folds, Hero raises to 6,000, BTN folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): 35,960
BB: 10,780
UTG: 3,180
BTN: 4,080
Pre-Flop: (900) 3 K dealt to Hero (SB)
2 folds, Hero calls 300, BB checks
Flop: (1,200) 5 3 2 (2 Players)
Hero bets 860, BB folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BTN): 36,560
SB: 10,180
BB: 3,180
UTG: 4,080
Pre-Flop: (900) 7 7 dealt to Hero (BTN)
UTG calls 600, Hero raises to 2,700, 3 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (UTG): 38,060
BTN: 9,880
SB: 2,580
BB: 3,480
Pre-Flop: (900) 4 2 dealt to Hero (UTG)
2 folds, SB raises to 1,800, BB raises to 3,480 and is All-In, SB calls 780 and is All-In
Flop: (5,160) 8 J 2 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Turn: (5,160) T (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (5,160) 6 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 5,160 Pot
SB showed Q 7 (high card Queen) and LOST (-2,580 NET)
BB showed T 9 (a pair of Tens) and WON 5,160 (+2,580 NET)
I hadn't been stealing as much from the player in the BB here because he was REALLY fishy, and I didn't trust him to fold as often as he should have. Here, since he was so short, I decided not to tempt fate. As it happened, he got lucky and busted the even shorter SB, bursting the bubble and ending my profitable situation:
Seat 1: foucault82 (38060 in chips)
Seat 2: allinstevie (9880 in chips)
Seat 5: kausk (6060 in chips)
I was still in great shape, of course, but now I expected these guys to gamble with me. We all had third prize money locked up, and there was very little difference between second and third, so the correct strategy now was to push any edge and play for first, not caring if you got unlucky and finished third instead.
Eventually I got lucky on a resteal against the other good player:
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 3 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): 36,000
BTN: 13,740
SB: 4,260
Pre-Flop: (900) 6 K dealt to Hero (BB)
BTN raises to 1,800, SB folds, Hero raises to 5,700, BTN raises to 13,740 and is All-In, Hero calls 8,040
Flop: (27,780) 6 2 K (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Turn: (27,780) 5 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (27,780) Q (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 27,780 Pot
Hero showed 6 K (two pair, Kings and Sixes) and WON 27,780 (+14,040 NET)
BTN showed A 8 (high card Ace) and LOST (-13,740 NET)
By this point, the other guy was so short that whoever got the button was just moving in preflop. After four hands, I won Q8 > K5 to KO him and take down first prize money. It was a very small prize pool, but it felt good to win something while running good and employing solid tournament strategy.
By the way, if you're looking to improve your ability to play final table situations like this, you should really spend some time playing one-table Sit-and-Go tournaments. It's a great way to simulate a final table and learn to think in terms of your cash equity ($EV) versus chip equity (cEV), which in bubble situations can sometimes diverge substantially. Sit and Go Power Tools is a really helpful application for analyzing these situations.
Stumble It!
Coming into the final table (which was the top 1/3 of the field!), I had the only other competent player to my immediate left, which wasn't ideal. He reraised me once preflop from his button and raised my blind a couple of times, but he didn't give me a ton of trouble. I had a feeling he was waiting for me to make a play at one of his raises, though, because I'd passed on a few decent squeezing opportunities already. Here's a key hand against him, after only player had already been eliminated from the final table:
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 150/300 Blinds, 5 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): 8,500
UTG: 14,430
CO: 3,855
BTN: 15,390
SB: 11,825
Pre-Flop: (450) 5
5 dealt to Hero (BB)UTG raises to 900, CO calls 900, 2 folds, Hero calls 600
Flop: (2,850) 4
4 T (3 Players)Hero checks, UTG checks, CO checks
Turn: (2,850) 9
(3 Players)Hero bets 1,100, UTG raises to 3,000, CO folds, Hero raises to 7,600 and is All-In, UTG folds
Results: 8,850 Pot
Hero mucked 5
5 and WON 8,850 (+4,950 NET)If you take a look at CO's stack, he called a raise for nearly 25% of his remaining chips. This either meant he had a monster or was an idiot. If he had bet the flop, I would have folded. I was still ready to go away if he gave me action on the turn. I was pretty sure he wouldn't do anything tricky, so I just bet small, ready to give up if he raised or called.
But then the good player on my left raised, which made no sense to me at all. I didn't think he would raise a 9 on the turn, and I felt like he would have bet a T on the flop. So maybe he was slow-playing a big pair or trips, but the more likely explanation was that he read my probe bet for exactly what it was and thought he could raise me off a small pair. No such luck for him. This pot gave me a chip advantage over him, which was huge, since I considered him the only real competition.
After this hand, I picked up a good number of chips through a combination of stealing, flopping well, and just generally outplaying the weaker players at the table. Then I lost some calling a short stack's all in with TT and losing to his JT. Those chips ended up in the other good player's pocket when his A8 busted the same short stack's KK a few orbits later.
There were only three spots to be paid in this tournament, with $400 for third, $500 for second, and $900 for first. The implication of this payout structure is that it really sucks to bubble and finish fourth, it doesn't much matter whether you finish second or third, and there's a big difference between coming first and second. Given this payout, the chip stacks were lined up quite nicely for me as we moved onto the bubble:
Seat 1: foucault82 (18545 in chips)
Seat 2: allinstevie (10440 in chips)
Seat 4: funngun (13490 in chips)
Seat 5: kausk (11525 in chips)
The other three are all close in chips, while I've got a pretty good lead on them. Since none of them wants to finish fourth, they should all be looking to stay out of my way without big hands. Hence:
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BTN): 20,890
SB: 11,540
BB: 12,590
UTG: 8,980
Pre-Flop: (600) T
9 dealt to Hero (BTN)UTG folds, Hero raises to 1,040, 2 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BTN): 19,490
SB: 13,140
BB: 11,990
UTG: 9,380
Pre-Flop: (600) K
9 dealt to Hero (BTN)UTG folds, Hero raises to 1,090, SB folds, BB calls 690
Flop: (2,380) Q
A 3 (2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets 1,400, BB folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): 20,780
UTG: 12,940
BTN: 11,300
SB: 8,980
Pre-Flop: (600) 7
4 dealt to Hero (BB)2 folds, SB calls 200, Hero checks
Flop: (800) 9
5 6 (2 Players)SB checks, Hero bets 800, SB calls 800
Turn: (2,400) 3
(2 Players)SB checks, Hero bets 2,080, SB folds
Unfortunately I got caught twice by the same guy:
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BTN): 21,780
SB: 11,740
BB: 12,700
UTG: 7,780
Pre-Flop: (600) K
T dealt to Hero (BTN)UTG folds, Hero raises to 1,080, SB folds, BB calls 680
Flop: (2,360) 7
4 6 (2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets 1,700, BB calls 1,700
Turn: (5,760) 7
(2 Players)BB bets 2,000, Hero folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (UTG): 17,800
BTN: 5,940
SB: 22,880
BB: 7,380
Pre-Flop: (600) 4
Q dealt to Hero (UTG)Hero raises to 1,200, BTN folds, SB calls 1,000, BB folds
Flop: (2,800) 2
9 2 (2 Players)SB bets 1,200, Hero folds
He had picked up chips off of a few others as well, so now the stacks looked like this:
Seat 1: foucault82 (16600 in chips)
Seat 2: allinstevie (5940 in chips)
Seat 4: funngun (24480 in chips)
Seat 5: kausk (6980 in chips)
Not as favorable a situation for me anymore. At this point, the correct strategy for me is to stay out of funngun's way while putting as much pressure as possible on kausk and stevie. So what do I go and do?
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): 16,600
UTG: 5,940
BTN: 24,480
SB: 6,980
Pre-Flop: (600) 5
6 dealt to Hero (BB)UTG folds, BTN raises to 1,200, SB calls 1,000, Hero calls 800
Flop: (3,600) 4
7 2 (3 Players)SB bets 800, Hero raises to 5,400, BTN raises to 11,200, SB folds, Hero raises to 15,400 and is All-In, BTN calls 4,200
Turn: (35,200) 5
(2 Players - 1 is All-In)River: (35,200) 6
(2 Players - 1 is All-In)Results: 35,200 Pot
Hero showed 5
6 (two pair, Sixes and Fives) and WON 35,200 (+18,600 NET)BTN showed 9
9 (a pair of Nines) and LOST (-16,600 NET)It was absolutely not my intention to tangle with the big stack here. I flopped a huge draw, much too big to fold, and I was hoping either to take down the pot or at least race with the short stack. He's got a lot more to lose from that encounter than I do, since I can eliminate him in fourth place, whereas losing to him would still give me a fighting chance. Unfortunately, the big stack did get involved, and at that point there was no turning back for me. Thankfully, I got there, and suddenly the chip distribution had taken a major swing in my favor:
Seat 1: foucault82 (35200 in chips)
Seat 2: allinstevie (5940 in chips)
Seat 4: funngun (7880 in chips)
Seat 5: kausk (4980 in chips)
At this point, I'm literally going to raise every pot. The correct strategy for all of these guys is to stay out of my way and hope one of the other ones gets himself eliminated in fourth. Remember, the difference between fourth and third places is much more significant than the difference between second and third, which means the other three should be more concerned about not finishing fourth than about trying to climb the ladder, especially since I was situated so firmly at the top.
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): 35,200
BB: 5,940
UTG: 7,880
BTN: 4,980
Pre-Flop: (600) Q
3 dealt to Hero (SB)UTG calls 400, BTN calls 400, Hero raises to 2,000, 3 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (UTG): 36,400
BTN: 4,340
SB: 7,080
BB: 6,180
Pre-Flop: (600) 6
T dealt to Hero (UTG)Hero raises to 1,200, 3 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): 36,600
BB: 4,340
UTG: 6,880
BTN: 6,180
Pre-Flop: (600) J
A dealt to Hero (SB)2 folds, Hero raises to 1,200, BB folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 200/400 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BTN): 37,000
SB: 3,940
BB: 6,880
UTG: 6,180
Pre-Flop: (600) 4
2 dealt to Hero (BTN)UTG folds, Hero raises to 1,200, SB raises to 3,940 and is All-In, 2 folds
Results: 2,800 Pot
SB mucked and WON 2,800 (+1,600 NET)
I would have called with almost anything, getting practically 2:1 on my money, but as it happened, I had one of the worst possible hands. Plus, this was against the other good player, and I didn't want to risk doubling him up. I figured I could afford to give him 1200 and then grind him back down, whereas doubling him would give him more room to interfere with my larceny.
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (UTG): 35,800
BTN: 5,540
SB: 6,480
BB: 6,180
Pre-Flop: (900) T
A dealt to Hero (UTG)Hero raises to 2,100, 3 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): 36,700
UTG: 5,540
BTN: 6,180
SB: 5,580
Pre-Flop: (900) 6
Q dealt to Hero (BB)2 folds, SB calls 300, Hero raises to 1,800, SB folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): 37,300
BB: 5,540
UTG: 6,180
BTN: 4,980
Pre-Flop: (900) 7
2 dealt to Hero (SB)2 folds, Hero raises to 1,800, BB raises to 5,400 and is All-In, Hero raises to 9,000, BB calls 140 and is All-In
Flop: (11,080) T
5 J (2 Players - 1 is All-In)Turn: (11,080) 8
(2 Players - 1 is All-In)River: (11,080) 4
(2 Players - 1 is All-In)Results: 11,080 Pot
Hero showed 7
2 (high card Jack) and LOST (-5,540 NET)BB showed A
6 (high card Ace) and WON 11,080 (+5,540 NET)This time, I was getting slightly better odds with a slightly better hand and in a spot where I expected my opponent to have a slightly wider range. Honestly, given the configuration of the stacks, I'm not sure it's correct for him to get all in with A6 there, even though he knows I'm raising anything. Maybe he thought I'd make another fold against the odds.
That hurt, but I still had a big lead, and my basic strategy remained the same:
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BTN): 31,760
SB: 11,080
BB: 6,180
UTG: 4,980
Pre-Flop: (900) J
4 dealt to Hero (BTN)UTG folds, Hero raises to 1,760, 2 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (UTG): 32,660
BTN: 10,780
SB: 5,580
BB: 4,980
Pre-Flop: (900) 9
4 dealt to Hero (UTG)Hero raises to 1,660, 3 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): 33,560
UTG: 10,780
BTN: 5,280
SB: 4,380
Pre-Flop: (900) K
Q dealt to Hero (BB)UTG folds, BTN raises to 2,100, SB folds, Hero raises to 6,000, BTN folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): 35,960
BB: 10,780
UTG: 3,180
BTN: 4,080
Pre-Flop: (900) 3
K dealt to Hero (SB)2 folds, Hero calls 300, BB checks
Flop: (1,200) 5
3 2 (2 Players)Hero bets 860, BB folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BTN): 36,560
SB: 10,180
BB: 3,180
UTG: 4,080
Pre-Flop: (900) 7
7 dealt to Hero (BTN)UTG calls 600, Hero raises to 2,700, 3 folds
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 4 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (UTG): 38,060
BTN: 9,880
SB: 2,580
BB: 3,480
Pre-Flop: (900) 4
2 dealt to Hero (UTG)2 folds, SB raises to 1,800, BB raises to 3,480 and is All-In, SB calls 780 and is All-In
Flop: (5,160) 8
J 2 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)Turn: (5,160) T
(2 Players - 1 is All-In)River: (5,160) 6
(2 Players - 1 is All-In)Results: 5,160 Pot
SB showed Q
7 (high card Queen) and LOST (-2,580 NET)BB showed T
9 (a pair of Tens) and WON 5,160 (+2,580 NET)I hadn't been stealing as much from the player in the BB here because he was REALLY fishy, and I didn't trust him to fold as often as he should have. Here, since he was so short, I decided not to tempt fate. As it happened, he got lucky and busted the even shorter SB, bursting the bubble and ending my profitable situation:
Seat 1: foucault82 (38060 in chips)
Seat 2: allinstevie (9880 in chips)
Seat 5: kausk (6060 in chips)
I was still in great shape, of course, but now I expected these guys to gamble with me. We all had third prize money locked up, and there was very little difference between second and third, so the correct strategy now was to push any edge and play for first, not caring if you got unlucky and finished third instead.
Eventually I got lucky on a resteal against the other good player:
Poker Stars, $100 + $9 PL Hold'em Tournament, 300/600 Blinds, 3 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
Hero (BB): 36,000
BTN: 13,740
SB: 4,260
Pre-Flop: (900) 6
K dealt to Hero (BB)BTN raises to 1,800, SB folds, Hero raises to 5,700, BTN raises to 13,740 and is All-In, Hero calls 8,040
Flop: (27,780) 6
2 K (2 Players - 1 is All-In)Turn: (27,780) 5
(2 Players - 1 is All-In)River: (27,780) Q
(2 Players - 1 is All-In)Results: 27,780 Pot
Hero showed 6
K (two pair, Kings and Sixes) and WON 27,780 (+14,040 NET)BTN showed A
8 (high card Ace) and LOST (-13,740 NET)By this point, the other guy was so short that whoever got the button was just moving in preflop. After four hands, I won Q8 > K5 to KO him and take down first prize money. It was a very small prize pool, but it felt good to win something while running good and employing solid tournament strategy.
By the way, if you're looking to improve your ability to play final table situations like this, you should really spend some time playing one-table Sit-and-Go tournaments. It's a great way to simulate a final table and learn to think in terms of your cash equity ($EV) versus chip equity (cEV), which in bubble situations can sometimes diverge substantially. Sit and Go Power Tools is a really helpful application for analyzing these situations.
Labels: poker, poker strategy, session review
Stumble It!
Friday, October 19, 2007
I can't believe this didn't work
Heads up against a decent player. He's not great by any means, but generally when I'm playing heads up I look for softer competition.
Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
BB: $1,000
Hero (SB): $1,517.50
Pre-Flop: A A dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $30, BB calls $20
Flop: ($60) Q J 8 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $47, BB calls $47
Turn: ($154) 3 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero checks
River: ($154) Q (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $90, BB raises to $180, Hero raises to $540, BB calls $360
Results: $1,234 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
BB showed 2 5 (a flush, Queen high) and WON $1,233.50 (+$616.50 NET)
Hero showed A A (two pair, Aces and Queens) and LOST (-$617 NET)
In retrospect, I don't like my turn check that much. Heads up matches play a lot more loose and aggressive than even 6-max games, and while I fold a lot to second barrels on scary turn cards, most of my opponents don't. I was worried about killing the value of my hand by chasing out stuff like middle pair, but that's probably not a huge concern. Anyway, the river is a good card for me, as it pretty much guarantees that any pair is calling a bet, and when he checks, I have an easy value bet.
Once he min-check-raises, though, I don't think my Aces are ever good. I put him on trips (NOT a full house, as that would almost have to be QJ or a set, and I thought those would have played earlier streets more aggressively, and not a flush, because I thought he would have raised more). This is maybe the second time in my life that I've 3-bet bluffed the river, and I can't imagine this guy sees it done all that often. If he had the nut flush, I wouldn't mind his call, but with basically the worse possible flush, he might as well have trips. The only thing he can beat is a bluff, and I really don't think he sees a bluff in this spot anywhere near often enough to call with a tiny flush.
Stumble It!
Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LegoPoker Hand History Converter
BB: $1,000
Hero (SB): $1,517.50
Pre-Flop: A
A dealt to Hero (SB)Hero raises to $30, BB calls $20
Flop: ($60) Q
J 8 (2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets $47, BB calls $47
Turn: ($154) 3
(2 Players)BB checks, Hero checks
River: ($154) Q
(2 Players)BB checks, Hero bets $90, BB raises to $180, Hero raises to $540, BB calls $360
Results: $1,234 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
BB showed 2
5 (a flush, Queen high) and WON $1,233.50 (+$616.50 NET)Hero showed A
A (two pair, Aces and Queens) and LOST (-$617 NET)In retrospect, I don't like my turn check that much. Heads up matches play a lot more loose and aggressive than even 6-max games, and while I fold a lot to second barrels on scary turn cards, most of my opponents don't. I was worried about killing the value of my hand by chasing out stuff like middle pair, but that's probably not a huge concern. Anyway, the river is a good card for me, as it pretty much guarantees that any pair is calling a bet, and when he checks, I have an easy value bet.
Once he min-check-raises, though, I don't think my Aces are ever good. I put him on trips (NOT a full house, as that would almost have to be QJ or a set, and I thought those would have played earlier streets more aggressively, and not a flush, because I thought he would have raised more). This is maybe the second time in my life that I've 3-bet bluffed the river, and I can't imagine this guy sees it done all that often. If he had the nut flush, I wouldn't mind his call, but with basically the worse possible flush, he might as well have trips. The only thing he can beat is a bluff, and I really don't think he sees a bluff in this spot anywhere near often enough to call with a tiny flush.
Labels: poker, poker strategy, session review
Stumble It!
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Very Rewarding Hand
So I was playing at a random 5/10 table the other day and had been at the table for only a few dozen hands when this happened:
Full Tilt Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $10 BB (6 handed) Hand History converter Courtesy of PokerZion.com
SB ($1753.50)
BB ($2343.75)
UTG ($1015)
MP ($725.10)
CO ($845)
Hero ($1115)
Preflop: Hero is Button with 5h, 3h.
3 folds, Hero raises to $35, SB calls $30, 1 fold.
Flop: ($80) Jd, 4h, 9s (2 players)
SB bets $47, Hero raises to $130, SB calls $83.
Turn: ($340) Ad (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $250, SB folds.
Final Pot: $590
arch777: ur so lucky and so bad
As you can see, I didn't even hit the Ace, although it was a lucky card for me nonetheless. But I have no idea what prompted that. Anyway, the
Full Tilt Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $10 BB (6 handed) Hand History converter Courtesy of PokerZion.com
SB ($1753.50)
BB ($2343.75)
UTG ($1015)
MP ($725.10)
CO ($845)
Hero ($1115)
Preflop: Hero is Button with 5h, 3h.
3 folds, Hero raises to $35, SB calls $30, 1 fold.
Flop: ($80) Jd, 4h, 9s (2 players)
SB bets $47, Hero raises to $130, SB calls $83.
Turn: ($340) Ad (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $250, SB folds.
Final Pot: $590
arch777: ur so lucky and so bad
As you can see, I didn't even hit the Ace, although it was a lucky card for me nonetheless. But I have no idea what prompted that. Anyway, the