Ten-Twenty-Five Live

I played about two hours of 10-25 NL at the Rio yesterday. The table wasn't full of spewmonkeys but I wasn't anticipating a lot of tough decisions. Mostly it was just a boring game. I say that, but I did actually bluff my entire $5K stack on my first hand.

Let me tell you another story first though. There was this wealthy Texan at the table who, when I first sat down, was on the phone placing sports bets. That's always a good sign. I later changed seats and ended up with him on my immediate left, meaning I was privy to the next two phone calls he made.

The first was to a woman named "Becky" whom he seemed to select somewhat arbitrarily from his address book. He hadn't seen her in a few months but turns out she was available for dinner on a few hours' notice.

His next call was a voicemail that I'll attempt to transcribe to the best of my memory: "Hey Jimmy, this is Dicky. Happy 20th birthday. That's a bit one. I'm sorry I won't be able to make it for your party tonight, I'm going to be tied up. I've got a little present for you, though- it's $50- you're mother will have that for you. You're growing into a fine young man. Hope you have fun."

Anyway, that big bluff I was talking about: I opened to $75 with AKs in late middle position and got 3-bet to $300 by a familiar-looking player on the button. I couldn't place where I'd seen him before, but he was young and serious-looking, which isn't a good sign. I assumed he was an internet pro whose face I'd randomly seen in a picture or something, but now that I think about it, I may actually have played with him at Foxwoods. It makes a huge difference which he is, but at the time, I was thinking internet, so anyway...

He 3-bets to $300, and I decided to make it $800 and fold to a 4-bet (he had me covered). He thinks for a while and calls. The flop comes down rags with two of my suit. I bet $1200, planning to unhappily call a shove. My hope was that he would just call and then I could shove the turn. That's exactly what happened. He tanked for a while but folded what was probably TT-QQ. I doubt anyone else at the table would make that fold, but then I wouldn't have 4-bet anyone else either.

So I made $2000 on my first hand, but I later misplayed a hand pretty badly and cost myself most of that profit. A new player had just joined the table, an older black man who seemed to be a regular in the Tunica games. He bought in deep enough to cover my nearly $7K stack.

I got AKs UTG+1 and raised to $75. Only the new guy called out of his BB. The flop came 862 and gave me my flush draw. He checked, I bet $125, and he raised to $400. I called. The turn was an off-suit 3, he checked, I bet $525, and he raised to $2000. I folded.

My turn bet is just atrocious. With less showdown value, it might be OK, like if I had a ten-high flush draw or something. But even then, I'm primarily relying on bluffing him off of bluffs, which assumes he's capable of check-raise bluffing the flop against an unknown early position raiser. With AK, I beat his bluffs anyway, so there's little value in betting and risking getting blown off a strong draw.

I ended up nearly dead even on the session and didn't play any other interesting pots.

This was one of the more interesting hands from a heads up match I played as part of a Poker Savvy Plus video. I think it illustrates at several different points how position and a solid read on an opponent enables you to navigate a tricky situation.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $2.00 BB (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) ($427.50)
SB ($260)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 2, 2
Hero bets $6, SB calls $4

Flop: ($12) K, 7, 5 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $8, SB raises to $24, Hero calls $16

Turn: ($60) 7 (2 players)
SB bets $42, Hero calls $42

River: ($144) 8 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $105, 1 fold

Total pot: $144 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero didn't show 2, 2 (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won $143.50


My opponent was not super-aggressive, but he did seem to be capable of check-raise bluffing some flops, and this was a good one for it. I think his check-raising range on the flop is good top pairs and better, draws (of which there are very few), and bluffs. He would have check-called a weaker pair or Ace-high type of hand. An underpair actually has very poor equity against that range, and if Villain were a trickier player, I think I'd have to fold the flop.

In this case, though, I felt I had a good handle on his turn tendencies. In particular, I didn't think he would follow up on his bluffs very often, allowing me to take my hand to showdown if it was best. That's a very important consideration when you're bluff-catching on early streets: even if you do have the best hand, will you be able to show it down or will you often get bluffed off it before the river?

I'd also seen that he was capable of betting again with a good top pair when the board paired on the turn. Thus, despite my read that he wouldn't often fire a second bluff, I thought he was more likely to have one pair (well, two pair technically, but you know what I mean) than trips or better when he bet the turn. There were just so few sevens/sets in his flop range that I thought bluffs and Kings were the majority of his turn range.

Obviously deuces are not in good shape against that range, particularly not with a pair on the board. At this point, I am not calling with the intention to showdown my hand. Rather, I'm floating the turn, expecting that Villain will check-fold often on the river. Although I'll sometimes be bluffing with the best hand, I also believe that I get him off of his top pair hands.

Basically, there's no reason why he would check a strong hand on the river. If he likes his hand, he'll shove. With a medium-strength hand like top pair moderate kicker, I think he'll check expecting me to check back very often. When I do bet, it's very hard for him to put me on something worse than a good K. I'd have to have been floating him twice to show up with a bluff on the river.

WSOPWSOP

Though I haven't played as many WSOP satellites this year as I did in years past, restricting myself only to those with $500+ buy-ins, I managed by yesterday to spend enough on satellites that I could have just bought in direct and paid myself the bonus money that comes with the FTP and Stars packages. Naturally, I hadn't yet won a seat.

Today, though, I played three satellites and won two of them! One was on Stars and one was, for the first time in my career, on FTP. The Stars sponsorship package sucks this year, and I haven't looked into FTP's but I doubt it's much better, so I'll probably go without and hope to negotiate something if I go deep.

I'm too tired to think through all the hands I played, but here's one moderately neat one against the most active player at the table:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $615+$35 Tournament, 700/1400 Blinds 175 Ante (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB (t28911)
UTG (t42460)
UTG+1 (t47562)
MP1 (t40961)
Hero (MP2) (t41997)
CO (t37399)
Button (t32798)
SB (t55403)

Hero's M: 12.00

Preflop: Hero is MP2 with Q, 7
3 folds, Hero bets t2888, 3 folds, BB calls t1488

Flop: (t7876) 2, J, 9 (2 players)
BB bets t3800, Hero raises to t8888, 1 fold

Total pot: t15476

Yeah, I'm representing a really narrow range, but what's he gonna do about it? Three-bet jam on me with air on the bubble of a satellite? I don't think he ever leads out here with a strong hand. For one thing, he's jamming anything that makes top pair good kicker or better pre-flop except for J9 (doubt he calls J2 or 92). If he has a draw or any pair, particularly at this stage of the tournament, he'd definitely prefer to be the one shoving in (ie by check-shoving) than the one calling by leading out to induce a shove from me.

I Hate Good Players

Full Tilt Poker, $40/$80 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 5 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

SB: $34,593
Hero (BB): $22,437
UTG: $19,010
CO: $22,366
BTN: $8,180

Pre-Flop: 8 6 dealt to Hero (BB)
3 folds, SB raises to $320, Hero calls $240

Flop: ($640) 5 4 5 (2 Players)
SB bets $420, Hero calls $420

Turn: ($1,480) A (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero bets $666, SB calls $666

River: ($2,812) K (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero checks

Results: $2,812 Pot ($3 Rake)
SB showed 9 Q (a pair of Fives) and WON $2,809 (+$1,403 NET)
Hero showed 8 6 (a pair of Fives) and LOST (-$1,406 NET)

This isn't really all that fancy or anything, and obviously my range on the turn is quite wide, but a lot of people just aren't capable of check-calling down with Q-high. I'm glad I didn't bluff the river, because I'm pretty sure he would have called.

A Critical Bet Sizing Tell

Let me say up front that I do this whole "check and figure it out" thing entirely too often against good players, and I have to stop. That said, in this case something about his turn bet led me to conclude that I ought to call the river.

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB ($2000.30)
Hero (UTG) ($2000)
MP ($1543.50)
CO ($1734.80)
Button ($2358.50)
SB ($2077.70)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with 5, A
Hero bets $33, 2 folds, Button raises to $106, 2 folds, Hero raises to $266, Button calls $160

Flop: ($556) 6, A, Q (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

Turn: ($556) 2 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $290, Hero calls $290

River: ($1136) 4 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $1801 (All-In), Hero calls $1442.50 (All-In)

Total pot: $4021 | Rake: $3

Results:
Button had 8, 9 (high card, Ace).
Hero had 5, A (one pair, Aces).
Outcome: Hero won $4018


Let me kick this one to you, dear readers. Can you figure out what it is about the sizing of his turn bet that led me to call his overbet shove on the river?

Nice River

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $50.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB ($9000.50)
UTG ($16025)
MP ($5309)
Hero (CO) ($10269)
Button ($10000)
SB ($10391)

Preflop: Hero is CO with A, J
2 folds, Hero bets $175, 1 fold, SB calls $150, 1 fold

Flop: ($400) J, 8, 9 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($400) K (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $269, SB raises to $1025, Hero calls $756

River: ($2450) K (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $1669, 1 fold

Total pot: $2450 | Rake: $3


A big part of my reason for checking the flop is that I so rarely check back a flush draw, and this is one of the best flush draws to check (ie also having top pair to go along with it, so that the fold equity of a semi-bluff isn't worth much to you). This means that when the flush comes in on the turn, my opponent is going to think I can't have it.

So, OK, I get the raise I wanted, which is probably a bluff but could be two pair or a set that's comfortable bloating the pot since I'll rarely have the flush. When I call, I don't know how often he'll continue bluffing. Rivers that pair the board are definitely going to be scary for him, though, as are diamonds, since my likely holding for calling is either set/two pair or a pair with a diamond.

Given that there are so many rivers that discourage bluffing, plus the fact that he may not continue bluffing anyway, plus the fact that his river bluff wouldn't be that big, I might be better off 3-betting the turn. I imagine he'll bluff less often, but when he does, it will have to be a far bigger amount than a river bluff would be. Plus, if he's check-raising for value, I can win a much bigger pot from him.

Pot Odds!

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($1000)
SB ($1195.75)
Hero (BB) ($2396)
UTG ($1232)
MP ($1679)
CO ($1052)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 9, 10
2 folds, CO bets $30, Button calls $30, SB calls $25, Hero raises to $150, CO raises to $300, 2 folds, Hero calls $150

Flop: ($660) 8, J, 4 (2 players)
Hero checks, CO checks

Turn: ($660) 6 (2 players)
Hero checks, CO checks

River: ($660) 4 (2 players)
Hero bets $111, 1 fold

Total pot: $660 | Rake: $3


I hope he wasn't planning on folding to a pre-flop shove. Even putting him on a very strong range, I don't want to fold getting 3.5:1. The flop is a tough decision. I surely fold to a shove, but I can't very well open shove myself. I'm probably just calling if I get the right odds and folding otherwise.

Shoving the turn is probably best. For some reason, I had a feeling he was trapping. I guess it was just that I thought he was really strong pre-flop.

On the river, I just wanted to have some fun. Obviously I don't need him to fold often at all for this to show a profit, plus it just puts a smile on your face when it works.

Pretty Sure He Ought to Call Me Here

It's very unlikely he has a straight- I think he bets virtually every 8 on the turn, and doesn't 3-bet that many hands with 8's in them in the first place- but realistically I don't know how often I check an 8 on the turn either. Though it might be a sexy way to play something like 98 that can also catch bluffs. Cool that he folded though:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $50.00 BB (5 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP ($7066)
Button ($5000)
Hero (SB) ($5000)
BB ($24469.50)
UTG ($3975)

Preflop: Hero is SB with A, Q
3 folds, Hero bets $177, BB raises to $450, Hero calls $273

Flop: ($900) 9, 6, 7 (2 players)
Hero checks, BB bets $400, Hero raises to $1111, BB calls $711

Turn: ($3122) 3 (2 players)
Hero checks, BB checks

River: ($3122) 10 (2 players)
Hero bets $3439 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: $3122 | Rake: $2

Results:
Hero didn't show A, Q (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won $3120

I Do Win the Big Ones Sometimes

I know I've whined about some big pots I've lost of late, so I figured I should reassure you all that I win some big ones too. It's actually been a pretty good month. Here's the biggest one of late:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $50.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($10916)
SB ($11889)
Hero (BB) ($11684)
UTG ($20794)
MP ($14585)
CO ($10344)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 10, 10
3 folds, Button bets $150, 1 fold, Hero raises to $550, Button calls $400

Flop: ($1185) A, Q, 10 (2 players)
Hero bets $799, Button calls $799

Turn: ($2783) Q (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $1800, Hero calls $1800

River: ($6383) 5 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $7757 (All-In), Hero calls $7757

Total pot: $21897 | Rake: $3

Results:
Button had 8, J (one pair, Queens).
Hero had 10, 10 (full house, tens over Queens).
Outcome: Hero won $21894

To be honest, I actually took my time before calling, so much so that a few railbirds accused me of slowrolling. Most of the big pots I've lost this month have been cold decks where I have the smaller set/flush/quads, so I guess I'm just a little gunshy. Not only is a bluff possible, but this Villain is very capable of big, thin value bets. I wouldn't be shocked to see him show up with as little as AK, and he probably does this for value with any Q. The fact that he can do that makes a bluff like this one more effective.

I believe this is the second largest pot I've won, trailing behind this one which was actually from a 10/20 game.

Book Review: Transitioning from NLHE to PLO by Tri Nguyen

My One Minute Recommendation: The Pot Limit Omaha Book: Transitioning from NLHE to PLO scores a 9/10. There are probably better books for all-around poker noobs, but experienced NLHE players looking to get better at “the other big bet game” would be hard-pressed to find a better resource.

The Good: Advanced tactics, high-level strategy, strong theoretical grounding, well-explained, genuinely insightful, appropriately calibrated for its target audience

The Bad: Some concepts, including but not limited to certain basic skills, not covered in great detail

The Ugly: A little unpolished, with some typos and minor grammatical errors; feels pretty much like reading a Word document, albeit a nicely laid out Word document

Tri “Slowhabit” Nguyen’s Transition from NLHE to PLO delivers just what the title promises: a strong guide to Pot-Limit Omaha, delivered at a pace and level appropriate for a poker player with a fairly sophisticated understanding of No Limit Hold ‘Em. Though there is plenty of practical advice and hand examples, this is not a soup to nuts “how to” guide offering a ready-to-play strategy. In fact, it could stand to be a bit more comprehensive in its advice for specific, common situations. Rather, it is a rigorously mathematical theoretical framework for approaching the game. It will require a thorough understanding of poker to appreciate the depth of this book, but for someone with such an understanding, it should prove an invaluable text, certainly worth its not inconsiderable $375 price tag.

Nguyen could be more explicit about his intended audience, though the title and I imagine the marketing strategy will likely make this clear enough. The introduction does promise, accurately enough, to “teach you the nuances of PLO and what variables you should consider during hands to turn yourself into a more profitable player,” with the ultimate goal of getting the reader “crushing small and mid-stakes PLO.” The text assumes a sophisticated understanding of crucial poker concepts such as equity, hand ranges, semi-bluffing, and planning ahead. None of it should be beyond an active reader of 2+2 or my blog, but this is not a mass market book. The Glossary includes only two terms and offers a superficial description even of those.

The only time this affects the quality of the discussion is with Nguyen’s use of the term “outs”. I’ve generally understood the term to mean something like “cards that could come to win you the pot when you are not currently ahead”, but Nguyen sometimes uses it to talk about cards that will improve a hand, whether or not that improvement is actually enough to win the pot. Given that it is so important in PLO to distinguish between nut and non-nut draws, it couldn’t hurt to define these terms more explicitly.

Though the book is definitely written with a NLHE player in mind, it should be useful to any serious poker player. There are a lot of helpful analogies, though, where Nguyen considers similarities and differences between how specific concepts function in the two games or explains that holding X hand in PLO is akin to holding Y hand in NLHE. Being primarily a NLHE player myself, I found these very insightful and helpful tools.

It also helps that many of the hand examples, integrated into every chapter via convenient sidebars alongside the relevant text, seem drawn from the author’s own transition from NLHE to PLO. It is both welcoming and encouraging to see him admit to misplaying a hand as a result of a misunderstanding common to NLHE players learning PLO. I found I was able to recognize specific mistakes that I had made and begin to understand why my past forays into PLO had not gone as well as I hoped- and that was before I got to the “Common Mistakes” chapter.

Such reinforcement is nice, because while Transitioning from NLHE to PLO rekindled my excitement for the game, it also made me realize how much I don’t know and how much work will be required to master hand reading and equity calculation, both of which are far more complicated than their NLHE equivalents. It’s not that the tools aren’t there. The text provides plenty of examples and in-depth analysis of advanced concepts like blockers, backdoor draws, and floating. It just makes me realized what a tall mountain there is to climb. Thankfully, Nguyen also emphasizes how many players in today’s PLO games don’t have an inkling about any of this stuff, which is reassuring.

It does beg the question of the book’s longevity, though. There’s a mix of tactics that seem fundamental to playing the game well in any context and those designed to exploit mistakes and tendencies common in contemporary PLO games. It will be interesting to see how long the latter remain viable. Since Transitioning is an e-book, Nguyen could theoretically update it, though to my knowledge he hasn’t promised anything like this.

I’m not particularly familiar with e-book technology, but I would guess that Transitioning falls somewhere in the middle of the spectrum with regard to balancing the reader’s convenience with the protection of the author’s intellectual property. The book is protected by LockLizard Safeguard, meaning that you need to download and install a special PDF viewer, then register your version of the book, before you can read it. This sounds like a hassle, but the instructions were clear, and it took me less than five minutes to set up. After that, I had full rights to read and print, though not copy and paste, the document indefinitely.

The other potentially intimidating aspect of the book is the math. It isn’t actually that complicated, and the author does a great job of explaining it, but there are a lot of graphs and calculations and even some algebra. Next to The Mathematics of Poker, it’s the most math-heavy poker book I’ve seen.

Not that that’s a bad thing. In fact, these were probably the best parts of the book. I particularly liked a chart enumerating the possible hands on each street in PLO vs. NLHE, and Nguyen’s quantification of the heretofore nebulous concept of “post-flop playability” struck me as pure genius. Understanding it does require interpreting a graph of hand equity on all possible flops, though. Again, the text offers a crystal clear explanation, but I’m sure a good high school math education helps.

The other concept I found very helpful, and which seems to motivate Nguyen’s general approach to the game, is equity realization. Basically, because hand values tend to run close together in PLO, Nguyen places a premium on bluffing, fold equity, and winning pots without showdown. He argues quite convincingly for making a lot of turn and river bluffs, often deferring aggressive action on an earlier street in order to make a better, often more aggressive, decision later in the hand.

Amidst all of the more advanced theory and strategy, certain concepts do feel a bit glossed over. Although the chapter on pre-flop hand selection is one of the longest, it still offers relatively vague advice about exactly which hands to play from which position and how to play them. It’s consistent with Nguyen’s general approach of “here are the key considerations, work through the specific situation yourself”, but readers will probably be accustomed to finding more specific starting hand advice in a poker book. That’s probably as much the nature of PLO as it is a flaw in the book, though.

More disappointing is the “River Play” chapter, which covers barely three pages. As much emphasis as Nguyen places on river bluffing, it was disappointing not to get more hand examples and an extended discussion of key concepts like value betting and inducing bluffs.

Nguyen’s writing style is less professional than I’m accustomed to seeing in a poker book. Some will find the casual tone welcoming, though nits like myself will be perturbed by minor grammatical errors, none of which influenced my understanding of the text.

Overall, Transitioning From NLHE to PLO is a fantastic book for a veteran No Limit Hold ‘Em player who wants to make a serious effort at learning Pot Limit Omaha. Nguyen requires a substantial investment of time, effort, and money from his readers, but it’s hard to imagine any smart poker player not getting very good at this quite complex game if he spent enough time working with this text.

We Both Got Outplayed

I took a sort of goofy line here turning my hand into a bluff, or so I thought. He "caught" my bluff but....

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $20.00 BB (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) ($2000)
SB ($1669)
BB ($3229)
UTG ($2000)
UTG+1 ($3617)
MP1 ($2000)
MP2 ($9484)
MP3 ($2000)
CO ($2040)

Preflop: Hero is Button with J, 8
2 folds, MP1 bets $40, 3 folds, Hero calls $40, 2 folds

Flop: ($110) 2, 9, 8 (2 players)
MP1 bets $80, Hero raises to $160, MP1 calls $80

Turn: ($430) 6 (2 players)
MP1 checks, Hero bets $300, MP1 calls $300

River: ($1030) Q (2 players)
MP1 checks, Hero bets $777, MP1 calls $777

Total pot: $2584 | Rake: $3

Results:
Hero had J, 8 (one pair, eights).
MP1 mucked 6, 7 (one pair, sixes).
Outcome: Hero won $2581

FTOPS NLHE Two-Day

I was not playing very well on Saturday, and it showed through in my results. I think I'm pretty good at letting bad beats and unlucky cards roll off my back, but I have a lot more trouble getting over a session where I played badly. Obviously a few mistakes can cost me quite a good deal of money, and it can be tilting to think how much could have been saved if I'd only...

Anyway, there were three key losses in these tournaments (I played the mini-FTOPS $250 as well). Here's how I busted from the $2500. I don't know for sure, and it's not particularly relevant, but I've heard that MP2 was Dmitri Nobles. I don't think this is awful, but it's not good either:

Full Tilt Poker, NL Hold'em Tournament, 25/50 Blinds, 9 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

MP2: 4,918
CO: 6,392
BTN: 2,862
SB: 6,260
Hero (BB): 4,310
UTG: 11,155
UTG+1: 2,120
UTG+2: 10,217
MP1: 11,918

Pre-Flop: (75) K A dealt to Hero (BB)
4 folds, MP2 raises to 150, CO calls 150, 2 folds, Hero raises to 750, MP2 folds, CO calls 600

Flop: (1,675) Q 2 T (2 Players)
Hero bets 660, CO calls 660

Turn: (2,995) 9 (2 Players)
Hero bets 2,900 and is All-In, CO calls 2,900

River: (8,795) 7 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

Results: 8,795 Pot
CO showed Q Q (three of a kind, Queens) and WON 8,795 (+4,485 NET)
Hero showed K A (Ace King high) and LOST (-4,310 NET)


This one, which cost me a big stack in the $250, may look the worst, but actually I think I would play it the same again:

Full Tilt Poker, NL Hold'em Tournament, 40/80 Blinds, 9 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

UTG+2: 8,807
MP1: 6,110
MP2: 3,765
CO: 3,755
Hero (BTN): 10,244
SB: 3,640
BB: 6,201
UTG: 5,675
UTG+1: 13,823

Pre-Flop: (120) A Q dealt to Hero (BTN)
3 folds, MP1 raises to 240, 2 folds, Hero calls 240, SB folds, BB calls 160

Flop: (760) 7 A K (3 Players)
BB checks, MP1 bets 400, Hero calls 400, BB folds

Turn: (1,560) 7 (2 Players)
MP1 checks, Hero checks

River: (1,560) J (2 Players)
MP1 bets 640, Hero raises to 9,604 and is All-In, MP1 calls 4,830 and is All-In

Results: 12,500 Pot
MP1 showed 8 9 (a flush, King high) and WON 12,500 (+6,390 NET)
Hero showed A Q (two pair, Aces and Sevens) and LOST (-6,110 NET)


It's very unlikely my hand is good on the river, but there's good reason to think Villain is on something like AJ/KJ. The river shove is a bit of an overbet, but that may be what it takes to get a bad player off of two pair. They perceive a huge difference, perhaps not wrongly, between a lot of their chips and all of their chips. It sucks that he had a flush, but there's really very little reason to think he can call a shove here.

This one, on the other hand, is shamefully bad:

Full Tilt Poker, NL Hold'em Tournament, 50/100 Blinds, 8 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

UTG+1: 8,687
MP1: 12,300
MP2: 3,795
CO: 2,115
Hero (BTN): 3,705
SB: 11,181
BB: 11,110
UTG: 9,127

Pre-Flop: (150) T T dealt to Hero (BTN)
UTG folds, UTG+1 raises to 300, 3 folds, Hero calls 300, 2 folds

Flop: (750) 8 3 7 (2 Players)
UTG+1 bets 400, Hero calls 400

Turn: (1,550) 7 (2 Players)
UTG+1 bets 1,000, Hero raises to 3,005 and is All-In, UTG+1 calls 2,005

River: (7,560) A (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

Results: 7,560 Pot
UTG+1 showed Q Q (two pair, Queens and Sevens) and WON 7,560 (+3,855 NET)
Hero showed T T (two pair, Tens and Sevens) and LOST (-3,705 NET)


I've seen Villain overvalue hands before, but that's no justification for this.

FTOPS Event 11: $200 PLO8

I always look forward to the PLO8 events, but I couldn't get anything going. The opposition was beyond awful:

Full Tilt Poker Game #12159019788: FTOPS Event #11 (84242375), Table 41 - 20/40 - Pot Limit Omaha H/L - 14:20:39 ET - 2009/05/11
Seat 1: babbelz (1,028)
Seat 2: Sensor (8,220)
Seat 3: dav713 (4,859)
Seat 4: ayyaahh91 (4,755)
Seat 5: nrock23 (7,886)
Seat 6: thegrizz1111 (3,986)
Seat 7: Greengoz (5,000)
Seat 8: TPackage1 (4,531)
Seat 9: Foucault (4,735)
nrock23 posts the small blind of 20
thegrizz1111 posts the big blind of 40
The button is in seat #4
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Foucault [9s Ad 2d Ts]
TPackage1 folds
Foucault raises to 80
babbelz calls 80
Sensor folds
dav713 calls 80
ayyaahh91 folds
nrock23 folds
thegrizz1111 calls 40
*** FLOP *** [6d 6c 8d]
thegrizz1111 checks
Foucault checks
babbelz bets 170
dav713 has 15 seconds left to act
dav713 raises to 400
thegrizz1111 folds
Foucault has 15 seconds left to act
Foucault calls 400
babbelz raises to 948, and is all in
dav713 calls 548
Foucault calls 548
*** TURN *** [6d 6c 8d] [9h]
Foucault checks
dav713 bets 600
Foucault calls 600
*** RIVER *** [6d 6c 8d 9h] [3h]
Foucault checks
dav713 checks
*** SHOW DOWN ***
dav713 shows [Jc 6h Qc Jh] three of a kind, Sixes, for high
Foucault shows [9s Ad 2d Ts] two pair, Nines and Sixes, for high and 8,6,3,2,A, for low
dav713 wins the high side pot (600) with three of a kind, Sixes
Foucault wins the low side pot (600) with 8,6,3,2,A
babbelz shows [2s 3c 8c Ac] two pair, Eights and Sixes, for high and 8,6,3,2,A, for low
dav713 wins the high main pot (1,592) with three of a kind, Sixes
Foucault ties for the low main pot (796) with 8,6,3,2,A
babbelz ties for the low main pot (796) with 8,6,3,2,A
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 4,384 Main pot 3,184. Side pot 1,200. | Rake 0
Board: [6d 6c 8d 9h 3h]
Seat 1: babbelz showed [2s 3c 8c Ac] and won (796) with HI: two pair, Eights and Sixes; LO: 8,6,3,2,A
Seat 2: Sensor didn't bet (folded)
Seat 3: dav713 showed [Jc 6h Qc Jh] and won (2,192) with HI: three of a kind, Sixes
Seat 4: ayyaahh91 (button) didn't bet (folded)
Seat 5: nrock23 (small blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 6: thegrizz1111 (big blind) folded on the Flop
Seat 7: Greengoz is sitting out
Seat 8: TPackage1 didn't bet (folded)
Seat 9: Foucault showed [9s Ad 2d Ts] and won (1,396) with HI: two pair, Nines and Sixes; LO: 8,6,3,2,A


The flop was a really awkward spot for me, and I'm not at all confident that I played it well. Even with my huge draws, I should probably fold with a bet and raise in front me from competent players. Since neither of these guys managed to have trips, though, it worked out OK.

Here I managed to run a bluff, which is pretty rare in PLO8. I just don't think the guy check-calls anything too strong on the turn:

Full Tilt Poker Game #12160227503: FTOPS Event #11 (84242375), Table 70 - 80/160 - Pot Limit Omaha H/L - 15:31:59 ET - 2009/05/11
Seat 1: NoNotReally (6,997)
Seat 2: Foucault (3,974)
Seat 3: Cardsharps_net (4,982)
Seat 4: pycb (3,764)
Seat 5: Shivalingus (6,164)
Seat 6: ColdBryan (7,386)
Seat 7: clarsonx (5,030)
Seat 8: Magik4678 (3,366)
Seat 9: aabomb09 (2,405)
ColdBryan posts the small blind of 80
clarsonx posts the big blind of 160
The button is in seat #5
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Foucault [As 4d 3c 2h]
Magik4678 calls 160
aabomb09 folds
NoNotReally has 15 seconds left to act
NoNotReally folds
Foucault has 15 seconds left to act
Foucault calls 160
Cardsharps_net folds
pycb folds
Shivalingus folds
ColdBryan folds
clarsonx checks
*** FLOP *** [Qc 5s Jc]
clarsonx checks
Magik4678 checks
Foucault has 15 seconds left to act
Foucault bets 269
clarsonx folds
Magik4678 calls 269
*** TURN *** [Qc 5s Jc] [6s]
Magik4678 checks
Foucault bets 1,098
Magik4678 calls 1,098
*** RIVER *** [Qc 5s Jc 6s] [9s]
Magik4678 checks
Foucault bets 2,447, and is all in
Magik4678 folds
Uncalled bet of 2,447 returned to Foucault
Foucault mucks
Foucault wins the pot (3,294)
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 3,294 | Rake 0
Board: [Qc 5s Jc 6s 9s]
Seat 1: NoNotReally didn't bet (folded)
Seat 2: Foucault collected (3,294), mucked
Seat 3: Cardsharps_net didn't bet (folded)
Seat 4: pycb didn't bet (folded)
Seat 5: Shivalingus (button) didn't bet (folded)
Seat 6: ColdBryan (small blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 7: clarsonx (big blind) folded on the Flop
Seat 8: Magik4678 folded on the River
Seat 9: aabomb09 didn't bet (folded)


This one I kinda spazzed out on. I didn't really want to fold for one pot-sized bet, and for some reason I decided it would be better to check and induce bluffs since he's not folding anything better. Stupid NLHE thinking to apply to PLO8. If I just pot the flop, I probably win it:

Full Tilt Poker Game #12160602843: FTOPS Event #11 (84242375), Table 70 - 100/200 - Pot Limit Omaha H/L - 15:52:05 ET - 2009/05/11
Seat 1: NoNotReally (6,489)
Seat 2: Foucault (2,673)
Seat 3: Cardsharps_net (5,718)
Seat 4: pycb (4,026)
Seat 5: Shivalingus (5,999)
Seat 6: ColdBryan (6,306)
Seat 7: clarsonx (6,950)
Seat 8: Magik4678 (3,802)
Seat 9: aabomb09 (2,105)
Foucault posts the small blind of 100
Cardsharps_net posts the big blind of 200
The button is in seat #1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Foucault [Ah 8h 4c Ts]
pycb folds
Shivalingus folds
ColdBryan folds
clarsonx folds
Magik4678 folds
aabomb09 folds
NoNotReally folds
Foucault raises to 600
Cardsharps_net calls 400
*** FLOP *** [Jc Jh 3d]
Foucault checks
Cardsharps_net bets 1,200
Foucault has 15 seconds left to act
Foucault has requested TIME
Foucault raises to 2,073, and is all in
Cardsharps_net calls 873
Foucault shows [Ah 8h 4c Ts]
Cardsharps_net shows [5s Kc 6s Ac]
Cardsharps_net: nh
*** TURN *** [Jc Jh 3d] [3s]
*** RIVER *** [Jc Jh 3d 3s] [5d]
Foucault shows a pair of Jacks, for high
Cardsharps_net shows two pair, Jacks and Fives, for high
Cardsharps_net wins the pot (5,346) with two pair, Jacks and Fives
No low hand qualified
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 5,346 | Rake 0
Board: [Jc Jh 3d 3s 5d]
Seat 1: NoNotReally (button) didn't bet (folded)
Seat 2: Foucault (small blind) showed [Ah 8h 4c Ts] and lost with HI: a pair of Jacks
Seat 3: Cardsharps_net (big blind) showed [5s Kc 6s Ac] and won (5,346) with HI: two pair, Jacks and Fives
Seat 4: pycb didn't bet (folded)
Seat 5: Shivalingus didn't bet (folded)
Seat 6: ColdBryan didn't bet (folded)
Seat 7: clarsonx didn't bet (folded)
Seat 8: Magik4678 didn't bet (folded)
Seat 9: aabomb09 didn't bet (folded)

Exhausting Heads Up Match

I was about halfway through last night's session, and a lot of the 6-max games I was in were kinda bad. I was at the end of a few long waiting lists, but mostly there just weren't many good games going at the time.

I'd been sitting alone, waiting for action as usual, at a few heads up tables. Really wanting to play some heads up, I got aggressive and tried to sit with a few people who were definitely going to sit out against me. They sat out. I sat with a few randoms. They mostly sat out, a few played long enough to look me up on OPR or whatever before sitting out, one played just his button and sat out (total douche move), and one played for a few minutes until I tried to sit at a second of his tables. Then he sat out on both.

I even tried sitting with a few regs who are probably better than I am, figuring I might as well challenge myself, but to my surprise even they sat out. Finally, a guy I recognized from higher stakes sat across from me at 10/20 deep. It had been over a year since we played heads up, but I've seen him as high as 50/100, and I am pretty confident he's solidly better than I am. After warning him that I not play for long, I sat in and we played one table of 10/20 and one of 5/10.

Again, I'm pretty sure he would have the edge long term. However, off the bat I think I knew more about how he was going to play than he did about me. He was extraordinarily aggressive, and I did some things to induce action that I don't think he was expecting. It takes a lot of concentration to deal with extreme aggression from a smart player, and after about 45 minutes, I was exhausted. I quit him and my other games, but I was up three buy-ins and felt I'd definitely gotten the better of him over that short match.

The thing about uber-aggressive opponents is that, at least when they're smart, you have to play very differently than you ordinarily would. You aren't going to induce bluffs just by checking and calling- you have to widen the range that you are going to check-raise, 3-bet, etc. for value and then be prepared to call down. A few examples:


Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $20.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) ($6980)
Button ($4060)

Preflop: Hero is SB with A, J
Button bets $60, Hero raises to $222, Button calls $162

Flop: ($444) 10, 3, 5 (2 players)
Hero bets $333, Button raises to $827, Hero raises to $1321, Button calls $494

Turn: ($3086) 4 (2 players)
Hero bets $5437 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: $3086 | Rake: $0.50


In this one, the "standard" play would probably be to make a big, pot committing 4-bet. Against this guy, though, my overs and nut flush draw is a big enough monster that I'm actually trying to induce a shove from him. I actually think it was a mistake for me to shove the turn (for like $2400 in reality- I had him well covered) rather than check-call. There's a chance he's trying to showdown something like 77, though he's probably calling turn with that anyway, but most likely is that he's either floating or has a monster. Obviously the money goes in no matter what if he has a monster, so I ought to have induced another bluff from his floats, especially when I turn the gutshot.

In this next one, I check-call flop with an underpair to the board, then lead into him on the turn to induce a bluff raise. Otherwise, I don't think he barrels this card; my hand looks too much like a bluff-catcher:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $20.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) ($8795.50)
Button ($4057.50)

Preflop: Hero is SB with 6, 6
Button bets $60, Hero calls $40

Flop: ($120) 9, 8, 2 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $100, Hero calls $100

Turn: ($320) 8 (2 players)
Hero bets $188, Button raises to $650, Hero calls $462

River: ($1620) 2 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

Total pot: $1620 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Button had Q, J (two pair, eights and twos).
Hero had 6, 6 (two pair, eights and sixes).
Outcome: Hero won $1619.50


Here I check-raise the flop for value with Ace-high, then check-call to induce from his floats. Guys like this do not give up easily on dry boards:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) ($3620.50)
Button ($2378)

Preflop: Hero is SB with 10, A
Button bets $30, Hero calls $20

Flop: ($60) 6, 6, 2 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $40, Hero raises to $120, Button calls $80

Turn: ($300) 6 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $150, Hero calls $150

River: ($600) 3 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

Total pot: $600 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Button had Q, 8 (three of a kind, sixes).
Hero had 10, A (three of a kind, sixes).
Outcome: Hero won $599.50


I was actually planning on checking this down on the river or turning it into a bluff and shoving if he bet again, but he didn't give me the chance:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $20.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) ($9195.50)
SB ($4428.50)

Preflop: Hero is Button with A, J
Hero bets $60, SB raises to $220, Hero calls $160

Flop: ($440) 8, 5, 3 (2 players)
SB bets $288, Hero calls $288

Turn: ($1016) 9 (2 players)
SB bets $711, Hero calls $711

River: ($2438) K (2 players)
SB bets $3209.50 (All-In), Hero folds

Total pot: $2438 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
SB didn't show
Outcome: SB won $2437.50


I think it's very likely he's overbetting for value, because the way he's been playing he expects to get looked up light but probably not for me to raise much on the river if he makes a normal-sized bet. If this is how he's playing his monsters, then it makes my plan to shove over a smaller bet even better.

This was the closest decision I had over the course of the match:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $20.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) ($4747)
SB ($4020)

Preflop: Hero is Button with A, 9
Hero bets $60, SB raises to $220, Hero raises to $522, SB calls $302

Flop: ($1044) 6, A, 2 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($1044) 4 (2 players)
SB bets $744, Hero calls $744

River: ($2532) 4 (2 players)
SB bets $2754 (All-In), Hero folds

Total pot: $2532 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
SB didn't show
Outcome: SB won $2531.50


A lot could be going on here. The thing is that when I check back the flop, it really looks like I'm planning on calling down. I could also have KK or QQ, though, so there's a chance he's trying to bluff me off those or maybe even value bet against with a worse Ace. I think as long as I also check back and then call down stuff like AK and AA, and of course if he bluffs club rivers, then this is an OK fold.

Go Back to 25/50, Ansky

Dani Stern, my fellow Poker Savvy Plus pro perhaps better known as Ansky, is one of the players whose game I respect the most. I love watching his videos, and I hate playing at his tables. Thus, I am more than a little upset that he's been "slumming it" in the 5/10 and 10/20 games of late.

Then again, playing against a great player can be a fun challenge that forces you to step up your own game. At least that's how it started out:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) ($2305.50)
Button ($5576)

Preflop: Hero is SB with 8, 8
Button bets $30, Hero calls $20

Flop: ($60) J, 9, Q (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

Turn: ($60) K (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

River: ($60) 10 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $40, Hero raises to $120, 1 fold

Total pot: $140 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero didn't show 8, 8 (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won $139.50


In general, I've found that people don't bluff nearly as often as they should when there is four or five to a straight on the board. The thing is that even when you are called, you usually chop the pot, so it's a very low-risk bluff. Still, I get shown a (better) straight way too often when I do look people up.

Ansky, of course, is an exception. I think that he will, appropriately, bet 100% of his range when I check it to him here. Further, I think he probably will not give me credit for being able to check-raise bluff in this kind of random spot.

This next hand is the one I'm most proud of. Ansky is the SB. The key to this hand is that I've seen Ansky cold call three-bets from out of the blinds with medium pocket pairs, so his range here is wider than you might think:


Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

CO ($2000)
Button ($637)
SB ($2005)
BB ($2391)
Hero (UTG) ($2590)
MP ($2000)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with J, A
Hero bets $20, MP raises to $70, 2 folds, SB calls $65, 1 fold, Hero raises to $290, MP calls $220, SB calls $220

Flop: ($880) K, 10, 8 (3 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $444, 1 fold, SB calls $444

Turn: ($1768) K (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks

River: ($1768) 2 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $1856 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: $1768 | Rake: $3

Results:
Hero didn't show J, A (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won $1765


To the extent that there's a golden opportunity for a 4-bet squeeze play, this is pretty close to it. Both Villains have wide-ish ranges, and the cold call will probably scare the original 3-better. Plus, with stacks as deep as they are, I still have room to get creative post-flop.

The other neat thing about this hand is the turn check. I was planning on shoving a lot of turns, but this was a pretty awful one. Obviously it's much harder to represent the K when another one comes.

It's very unlikely, though, that Ansky checks the top of his range to me on the river. It looks like I'm either giving up on a bluff or trying to check down a modest hand, so if he's got a big hand, I expect him to shove the river.

Having excluded the top of his range, I have to wonder how many of his "cheap showdown" hands call a river shove. Given my above assumptions, my shove is going to look pretty strong. He may think that if I needed to bluff, I would have done it on the turn, and that if I have showdown value, I would often opt just to check it down. Thus, I'm counting on my hand looking like a monster to him.

Of course, just as I am feeling pretty proud of myself, he goes and does this:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($1776)
BB ($2766)
UTG ($1253)
MP ($2262.25)
Hero (CO) ($2463)
Button ($6596)

Preflop: Hero is CO with K, 9
2 folds, Hero bets $35, Button calls $35, 2 folds

Flop: ($85) J, 2, 4 (2 players)
Hero bets $66, Button calls $66

Turn: ($217) K (2 players)
Hero bets $144, Button calls $144

River: ($505) 3 (2 players)
Hero bets $388, Button raises to $6351 (All-In), Hero calls $1830 (All-In)

Total pot: $4941 | Rake: $3

Results:
Button had 9, A (flush, Ace high).
Hero had K, 9 (one pair, Kings).
Outcome: Button won $4938


Obviously he backed into an unlikely monster here, making it a great spot for an overbet shove on the river. I generally don't beat myself up over paying off the very top of a guy's range, but here it's hard for me to imagine him showing up without the goods. If he wants to bluff, there's really no reason for him to overbet the pot. A pot-sized or smaller raise would entail less risk and potentially represent a wider range, since it could more plausibly represent thin value from something like a set. But gah, who knows. This is why it sucks having good players on your left...

SCOOP Main Event

I played all three tournaments: the $10K, the $1K, and the $100. Each was what I expected it to be. The $100 was monkeylicious. The 1K was soft enough for the buyin, certainly weaker play than would be found at a 5/10 cash table or a weekly 1K tournament. The 10K was fairly tough, maybe even a bit tougher than I'd expected. At least at my table, the closet thing to a soft spot was P5's donkamenteur BelowAbove.

Actually, at my first table, Ahhh Snap was making life hell from my immediate left. Thankfully, that one broke quickly. I still never got anything going, and eventually lost two coin flips plus chopped JJ to Below's AJ to bust.

I got off to a solid start in the 1K, and there were a few interesting hands. This first one was against wpr101, who I see a lot at the Stars MSNL full ring tables:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $1000+$50 Tournament, 40/80 Blinds (7 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG (t11530)
Hero (MP1) (t10850)
MP2 (t12305)
CO (t4930)
Button (t7215)
SB (t11790)
BB (t21380)

Hero's M: 90.42

Preflop: Hero is MP1 with A, J
1 fold, Hero bets t200, 1 fold, CO calls t200, 3 folds

Flop: (t520) 10, 8, 9 (2 players)
Hero bets t350, CO raises to t1040, Hero raises to t10650 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: t2600

Results:
Hero didn't show A, J (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won t2600


This was probably my favorite one, against this total spaz on my left who was calling every raise I made pre-flop and then monkeying around post-flop. Actually wait lemme show you why he pissed me off first:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $1000+$50 Tournament, 75/150 Blinds 20 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP3 (t12200)
Hero (CO) (t11676)
Button (t3845)
SB (t9220)
BB (t5106)
UTG (t11047)
UTG+1 (t17329)
MP1 (t13090)
MP2 (t22901)

Hero's M: 28.83

Preflop: Hero is CO with 9, A
5 folds, Hero bets t411, Button calls t411, 2 folds

Flop: (t1227) 4, A, 8 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

Turn: (t1227) 3 (2 players)
Hero bets t795, Button calls t795

River: (t2817) J (2 players)
Hero bets t10450 (All-In), Button calls t2619 (All-In)

Total pot: t8055

Results:
Button had J, 8 (two pair, Jacks and eights).
Hero had 9, A (one pair, Aces).
Outcome: Button won t8055


Note that he's calling off more than 10% of his stack pre-flop. It's not like shoving the river here is superawesome, but given stack sizes and this guy's general spazziness, I do think it was best. So here was my revenge:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $1000+$50 Tournament, 75/150 Blinds 20 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP3 (t11795)
Hero (CO) (t7485)
Button (t13288)
SB (t3124)
BB (t5505)
UTG (t13686)
UTG+1 (t21760)
MP1 (t10240)
MP2 (t19531)

Hero's M: 18.48

Preflop: Hero is CO with A, 3
5 folds, Hero bets t411, Button calls t411, 2 folds

Flop: (t1227) 4, 9, 5 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets t450, Hero calls t450

Turn: (t2127) K (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets t995, Hero raises to t3604, 1 fold

Total pot: t4117

Results:
Hero didn't show A, 3 (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won t4117


I didn't hold on to those chips for long though:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $1000+$50 Tournament, 75/150 Blinds 20 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP3 (t12445)
Hero (CO) (t11706)
Button (t9001)
SB (t20490)
BB (t5100)
UTG (t13031)
UTG+1 (t24034)
MP1 (t13180)
MP2 (t18127)

Hero's M: 28.90

Preflop: Hero is CO with 7, A
3 folds, MP2 bets t399, 1 fold, Hero calls t399, 2 folds, BB calls t249

Flop: (t1452) 9, J, K (3 players)
BB checks, MP2 bets t900, Hero calls t900, BB calls t900

Turn: (t4152) 6 (3 players)
BB checks, MP2 checks, Hero bets t1888, 1 fold, MP2 raises to t3776, Hero calls t1888

River: (t11704) 3 (2 players)
MP2 bets t13032 (All-In), Hero folds

Total pot: t11704

Results:
MP2 didn't show
Outcome: MP2 won t11704

BB was wpr101 again, I don't know who MP2 was. It's pretty obvious he has something betting into two of us on this flop, and being in position, I thought calling would be more profitable than trying to raise him off it. When wpr just calls, given his stack size, it seems very likely he has just a draw. I can't see how he wouldn't shove a made hand he wanted to go with or a strong draw.

I also didn't expect that MP2 would check a super strong hand (like KJ or better) on the turn with two of us still in the pot and a lot of draws on board. So, I went for the bluff, which admittedly probably is relying on him making something of a big fold. I really didn't expect a check-raise, but at least he gave me odds to chase. River- what can I do?

It's quite rare for me to open limp in a tournament, but I've been adding that into my full ring cash game, and this seemed like a good spot for it. Depending on who raised, I was probably going to re-raise, but this guy had been really loose passive, so I decided just to call. I was pretty shocked/pissed about what he showed down:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $1000+$50 Tournament, 100/200 Blinds 25 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB (t12875)
Hero (UTG) (t6536)
UTG+1 (t8476)
MP1 (t20320)
MP2 (t12603)
MP3 (t13747)
CO (t27939)
Button (t12785)
SB (t24461)

Hero's M: 12.45

Preflop: Hero is UTG with 9, 9
Hero calls t200, 3 folds, MP3 bets t600, 4 folds, Hero calls t400

Flop: (t1725) 5, J, 4 (2 players)
Hero checks, MP3 bets t1000, Hero calls t1000

Turn: (t3725) 10 (2 players)
Hero checks, MP3 checks

River: (t3725) Q (2 players)
Hero checks, MP3 bets t1800, Hero calls t1800

Total pot: t7325

Results:
Hero mucked 9, 9 (flush, Queen high).
MP3 had J, 7 (flush, Queen high).
Outcome: MP3 won t7325


The same guy busted me a few hands later when I once again got 99, open shoved, and lost a flip to his AQs.

The $100 was full of terrible play, and I ran up a huge stack just playing big hands. People were strangely aggressive, doing stuff like 4-bet shoving QTo over my button re-raise (I had AK). I shouldn't talk, though, as I kind of monkeyed off my own stack after busting from the big tournies, randomly shoving JTo from the SB over a CO open from a guy who'd just called a big shove the hand before with 55. This time he had AA.

Stupid SCOOP. I am so ready to be done with tournaments for a while. Too bad FTOPS is in less than a month. I may not play that as aggressively as I have in the past.

SCOOP Event 21: Heads Up NLHE

I didn't play the $25K, but the $2500 was plenty big enough for me. Emily and I even rearranged Easter brunch plans so that I could play it, which turned out to be a huge disappointment, as I lasted fewer than ten minutes against AJKHoosier1, my first round opponent. Obviously one of the most respected tournament players online was no slouch, but he also seemed to be running pretty hot. To wit:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $2500+$100 Tournament, 25/50 Blinds (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) (t4975)
Button (t5025)

Hero's M: 66.33

Preflop: Hero is SB with 3, K
Button bets t100, Hero calls t50

Flop: (t200) 6, 2, J (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets t125, Hero calls t125

Turn: (t450) 6 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

River: (t450) 5 (2 players)
Hero bets t250, Button calls t250

Total pot: t950

Results:
Button had J, 4 (two pair, Jacks and sixes).
Hero had 3, K (one pair, sixes).
Outcome: Button won t950


This might not seem like "running hot", but the outcome of run-of-the-mill spots like this often determine the winner of a heads up tournament between two good players. The variance is through the room. This is just a standard spot where his range ought to be ridiculously wide, I turn my hand into a bluff on the river to knock out Ax and better Kx, and he has top pair.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $2500+$100 Tournament, 25/50 Blinds (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) (t3175)
SB (t6825)

Hero's M: 42.33

Preflop: Hero is Button with 8, 9
Hero bets t150, SB calls t100

Flop: (t300) Q, 10, 9 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks

Turn: (t300) 10 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets t125, SB raises to t450, Hero calls t325

River: (t1200) 7 (2 players)
SB bets t950, Hero folds

Total pot: t1200

Results:
SB didn't show
Outcome: SB won t1200


Obviously didn't get to see his hand here, so I may just have been outplayed, but based on his timing and just generally how he plays, I'm pretty sure he had it.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $2500+$100 Tournament, 25/50 Blinds (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) (t4525)
Button (t5475)

Hero's M: 60.33

Preflop: Hero is SB with J, Q
Button bets t100, Hero calls t50

Flop: (t200) Q, A, 2 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets t125, Hero calls t125

Turn: (t450) 5 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets t325, Hero calls t325

River: (t1100) 10 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets t750, Hero calls t750

Total pot: t2600

Results:
Button had 8, Q (flush, Ace high).
Hero mucked J, Q (flush, Ace high).
Outcome: Button won t2600


PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $2500+$100 Tournament, 25/50 Blinds (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) (t2925)
SB (t7075)

Hero's M: 39.00

Preflop: Hero is Button with A, K
Hero bets t100, SB calls t50

Flop: (t200) 2, Q, 5 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks

Turn: (t200) A (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets t125, SB raises to t440, Hero raises to t1010, SB raises to t6975 (All-In), Hero calls t1815 (All-In)

River: (t5850) 6 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: t5850

Results:
Hero had A, K (one pair, Aces).
SB had 5, 5 (three of a kind, fives).
Outcome: SB won t5850


Honestly, this last one might have been a little tilty, though it's obviously a shit spot. I was trying to get him to 4-bet shove a draw on the turn, which I doubt he does.

In the $250, I draw a Round 1 Bye, which is pretty crazy considering that I'm pretty sure only one person out of the 1500+ field got one. In Round 2, I drew the curiously named Roothlus2. A quick google revealed that his last name is Levy, leading me to conclude that he is likely the brother of Adam "Roothlus" Levy. I say brother and not multi-account because he was way weaker than the real Roothlus, and I polished him off pretty handily.

My Round 3 opponent wasn't super-tough either, but he was better at making small bluffs than randoms usually are and I didn't adapt well. I never really caught the cards I wanted to play back at him, and eventually we got pretty shallow with him having a substantial chiplead. I open jammed KJs for about 12BB, he called with A5, and the flop came K52, giving me some hope of doubling back up to even, but the turn 5 drove the nail into the coffin.

SCOOP Event 14: 6-Max NLHE ($500)

I made a decent run in the $500 6-max on Wednesday, and though I didn't do as well in the $5K, there were interesting hands from both, so I'm going to do two different posts.

I lost about half my stack early on in the $500, but managed to recover. Then there was this hand that really gave me a boost:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $500+$30 Tournament, 100/200 Blinds 25 Ante (6 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) (t11229)
BB (t7109)
UTG (t4199)
MP (t11233)
CO (t11561)
Button (t21931)

Hero's M: 24.95

Preflop: Hero is SB with 7, A
3 folds, Button calls t200, Hero calls t100, BB checks

Flop: (t750) Q, A, K (3 players)
Hero checks, BB checks, Button bets t500, Hero calls t500, 1 fold

Turn: (t1750) 3 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets t2000, Hero calls t2000

River: (t5750) 10 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets t5200, Hero calls t5200

Total pot: t16150

Results:
Button had 9, 7 (high card, Ace).
Hero had 7, A (one pair, Aces).
Outcome: Hero won t16150


Not that his line makes a whole lot of sense anyway, but I'd previously seen him check the flop and lead out for half pot on the turn with a set, so I was even less inclined to believe his overbet. I doubt he's open limping AQ, AK, QQ, KK, or AA on the button, so JT is literally the only made hand I could expect him to have.

So things were going well, and I had a not-too-tough table, except for a guy some of you may know who plays under the handle teacuppoker. He's a good player who's been around for a while- I played with him in person at the 2007 WSOP, and recognized his screenname from before that. Sadly, I got into a tough spot against him and didn't play it brilliantly.

It just goes to show you how much it sucks to be out of position against a good player, when you can flop top pair top kicker and your first thought is "Shit, what am I going to do?" It's not that I was worried about getting beat, but just that I didn't know what line to take to get paid off without getting bluff out or paying off to much to the occasional better hand myself. I ultimately went for three streets of value, which in a cash game would be fine but is probably too optimistic in a tournament, even against a guy who does play MSNL and HSNL:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $500+$30 Tournament, 150/300 Blinds 40 Ante (6 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (UTG) (t19208)
MP (t26465)
CO (t23634)
Button (t9160)
SB (t5430)
BB (t11357)

Hero's M: 27.84

Preflop: Hero is UTG with K, A
Hero bets t777, 1 fold, CO calls t777, 3 folds

Flop: (t2244) 10, 4, K (2 players)
Hero bets t1111, CO calls t1111

Turn: (t4466) 3 (2 players)
Hero bets t2888, CO calls t2888

River: (t10242) 9 (2 players)
Hero bets t6666, CO calls t6666

Total pot: t23574

Results:
Hero had K, A (one pair, Kings).
CO had 10, 10 (three of a kind, tens).
Outcome: CO won t23574


Of course, I was destined to lose a big pot here. But check-folding the river might actually have been better. The most obvious draw got there, and although I'm sure he's capable, he doesn't have much reason to turn a pair into a bluff here.

Then I fought around for a while and eventually got sort of coolered in a blind battle, though based on how passive this guy had been on his big blind, I maybe could have just called flop. Even if I do, though, I don't see how we don't get it on this turn:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $500+$30 Tournament, 250/500 Blinds 60 Ante (6 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) (t13506)
BB (t19033)
UTG (t40954)
MP (t8136)
CO (t5030)
Button (t8595)

Hero's M: 12.17

Preflop: Hero is SB with 9, J
4 folds, Hero calls t250, BB checks

Flop: (t1360) 7, 10, 9 (2 players)
Hero checks, BB bets t897, Hero raises to t2444, BB raises to t18473 (All-In), Hero calls t10502 (All-In)

Turn: (t27252) 3 (2 players, 2 all-in)

River: (t27252) K (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: t27252

Results:
Hero had 9, J (one pair, nines).
BB had 9, 10 (two pair, tens and nines).
Outcome: BB won t27252

SCOOP Event 13: Razz

Unlike most players, I enjoy Razz. Yeah, it can be infuriating, but it's also kind of elegant in its simplicity. I spend most of this tournament catching well, so even though I didn't cash, it was fun. The only really interesting hand to come up was this one, where I slow-played my hand (rare to do in Razz, because it's usually very obvious when you've improved) and check-raised the river:

PokerStars Game #26871293549: Tournament #200904132, $200+$15 Razz Limit - Level V (100/200) - 2009/04/08 16:05:02 ET
Table '200904132 6' 8-max
Seat 1: dengladelaks (6761 in chips)
Seat 2: mattutaylor (3642 in chips)
Seat 4: foucault82 (6245 in chips)
Seat 5: raconteur (4232 in chips)
Seat 6: Mitchdubai (10797 in chips)
Seat 7: skootamatta (4353 in chips)
Seat 8: ImaLucSac (3970 in chips)

*** 3rd STREET ***
Dealt to dengladelaks [7h]
Dealt to mattutaylor [Jh]
Dealt to foucault82 [4h 3h 7s]
Dealt to raconteur [Qc]
Dealt to Mitchdubai [Ts]
Dealt to skootamatta [Ah]
Dealt to ImaLucSac [2c]

raconteur: brings in for 30
Mitchdubai: folds
skootamatta: raises 70 to 100
ImaLucSac: folds
dengladelaks: folds
mattutaylor: folds
foucault82: calls 100
raconteur: calls 70

*** 4th STREET ***
Dealt to foucault82 [4h 3h 7s] [Td]
Dealt to raconteur [Qc] [8d]
Dealt to skootamatta [Ah] [Ks]
foucault82: bets 100
raconteur: raises 100 to 200
skootamatta: calls 200
foucault82: calls 100

*** 5th STREET ***
Dealt to foucault82 [4h 3h 7s Td] [6h]
Dealt to raconteur [Qc 8d] [Qd]
Dealt to skootamatta [Ah Ks] [Kc]
foucault82: bets 200
raconteur: calls 200
skootamatta: calls 200

*** 6th STREET ***
Dealt to foucault82 [4h 3h 7s Td 6h] [Jc]
Dealt to raconteur [Qc 8d Qd] [8h]
Dealt to skootamatta [Ah Ks Kc] [Tc]
foucault82: checks
raconteur: checks
skootamatta: checks

*** RIVER ***
Dealt to foucault82 [4h 3h 7s Td 6h Jc] [9d]
foucault82: checks
raconteur: checks
skootamatta: bets 200
foucault82: raises 200 to 400
raconteur: folds
skootamatta: folds
Uncalled bet (200) returned to foucault82
foucault82 collected 2040 from pot
foucault82: doesn't show hand

*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2040 | Rake 0
Seat 1: dengladelaks folded on the 3rd Street (didn't bet)
Seat 2: mattutaylor folded on the 3rd Street (didn't bet)
Seat 4: foucault82 collected (2040)
Seat 5: raconteur folded on the River
Seat 6: Mitchdubai folded on the 3rd Street (didn't bet)
Seat 7: skootamatta folded on the River
Seat 8: ImaLucSac folded on the 3rd Street (didn't bet)

It says something about the quality of play in this tournament that I have a lock on 5th street in a three-way pot. When we call catch bad on 6th, I was afraid I might lose them with a bet. Plus, there's the chance that skoot will decide he has the best hand and/or fold equity and bet for me anyway.

When that didn't happen, I figure they either got there or they didn't on 7th. If they didn't, they aren't calling a bet, and if they did, one of them might bet. Or, if they missed, one of them might bluff.

It's maybe a bit of a decision whether to call or check-raise 7th, but really I think check-raise is best. It's far more likely for skoot to make a crying call (the pot odds are awfully juicy) than for raconteur to overcall.

There were about 900 players, and we were down to 130 or so when I lost most of my stack:

PokerStars Game #26879162778: Tournament #200904132, $200+$15 Razz Limit - Level XV (1200/2400) - 2009/04/08 19:51:41 ET
Table '200904132 24' 8-max
Seat 1: yellowsub86 (28272 in chips)
Seat 2: turtlman (5290 in chips)
Seat 3: mapocalyps (34210 in chips)
Seat 4: ozenc (25805 in chips)
Seat 5: foucault82 (12105 in chips)
Seat 6: cRRusher (25769 in chips)
Seat 7: .dfm.dfm. (7711 in chips)
Seat 8: oldegreybehr (13385 in chips)

*** 3rd STREET ***
Dealt to yellowsub86 [9c]
Dealt to turtlman [Ts]
Dealt to mapocalyps [6d]
Dealt to ozenc [3c]
Dealt to foucault82 [As 7s 3h]
Dealt to cRRusher [Qs]
Dealt to .dfm.dfm. [Jh]
Dealt to oldegreybehr [4d]

cRRusher: brings in for 360
.dfm.dfm.: folds
oldegreybehr: folds
yellowsub86: folds
turtlman: folds
mapocalyps: calls 360
ozenc: folds
foucault82: raises 840 to 1200
cRRusher: folds
mapocalyps: calls 840

*** 4th STREET ***
Dealt to mapocalyps [6d] [Ac]
Dealt to foucault82 [As 7s 3h] [4c]
foucault82: bets 1200
mapocalyps: calls 1200

*** 5th STREET ***
Dealt to mapocalyps [6d Ac] [7d]
Dealt to foucault82 [As 7s 3h 4c] [4h]
mapocalyps: bets 2400
foucault82: calls 2400

*** 6th STREET ***
Dealt to mapocalyps [6d Ac 7d] [Kh]
Dealt to foucault82 [As 7s 3h 4c 4h] [3s]
mapocalyps: bets 2400
foucault82: calls 2400

*** RIVER ***
Dealt to foucault82 [As 7s 3h 4c 4h 3s] [7c]
mapocalyps: checks
foucault82: checks

*** SHOW DOWN ***
mapocalyps: shows [8s 5d 6d Ac 7d Kh Ad] (Lo: 8,7,6,5,A)
foucault82: mucks hand
mapocalyps collected 16680 from pot

*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 16680 | Rake 0
Seat 1: yellowsub86 folded on the 3rd Street (didn't bet)
Seat 2: turtlman folded on the 3rd Street (didn't bet)
Seat 3: mapocalyps showed [8s 5d 6d Ac 7d Kh Ad] and won (16680) with Lo: 8,7,6,5,A
Seat 4: ozenc folded on the 3rd Street (didn't bet)
Seat 5: foucault82 mucked [As 7s 3h 4c 4h 3s 7c]
Seat 6: cRRusher folded on the 3rd Street
Seat 7: .dfm.dfm. folded on the 3rd Street (didn't bet)
Seat 8: oldegreybehr folded on the 3rd Street (didn't bet)


I think the only close decision here is 6th. I'm getting a little better than 4:1. I'm thinking a deuce or a 5 will give me a win almost always, a 6 pretty often, and an 8 often enough to make a river call +EV. Those cards are all very live, so I take one off, but I can't get there.

I threw the last of my chips in with 234 vs an A36 on 3rd but lost that one as well to bust a few spots off the bubble. Still, a good time was had by me.

SCOOP Event 10: NLHE Heads Up

Edit: Fixed title. This is SCOOP, not FTOPS. Was tired and tilted last night when posting this.

I was really looking forward to this event, as I've been working on my heads up game of late. I played both the $1500 and the $150 and had reasonable tough first round opponents in both. On the $150, I just a lot of small- and medium-pots to "mild cooler" spots where I had like the slightly worse hand or bluffed into the top of the guy's range and what not. I ultimately lost the match, don't even remember how.

Match 1

The $1500 was a really hard-fought match. I got off to an early lead, then lost a few big pots, the biggest with top pair vs a set and flopped top pair vs rivered higher pair. Villain was grinding me down pre-flop, raising, c-betting, and 3-betting well. Eventually I 4-bet shoved AJ on him pre-flop. He had AK, but I sucked out, and we were back to even.

We battled back and forth for a while, and eventually I made a big call to get into the lead. First, I'll give you a prior hand that made me suspicious:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $1500+$75 Tournament, 25/50 Blinds (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) (t4600)
SB (t5400)

Hero's M: 61.33

Preflop: Hero is Button with 6, K
Hero bets t150, SB calls t100

Flop: (t300) 5, 8, J (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets t175, SB calls t175

Turn: (t650) 9 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks

River: (t650) K (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets t425, SB raises to t1450, Hero folds

Total pot: t1500

Results:
SB didn't show
Outcome: SB won t1500


In this spot, my hand is almost always either a bluff or a thin value bet, so it's a good spot for a check-raise bluff. There are two problems with that: 1) It's also a good spot to check-raise for value; and 2) many players just don't check-raise bluff rivers very often, particularly not in tournaments where play tends toward the conservative. I folded, but I made a mental note, and eventually I made this call:


PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $1500+$75 Tournament, 30/60 Blinds (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) (t3770)
SB (t6230)

Hero's M: 41.89

Preflop: Hero is Button with 10, 9
Hero bets t155, SB calls t95

Flop: (t310) 6, 6, 8 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets t177, SB calls t177

Turn: (t664) 10 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks

River: (t664) Q (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets t388, SB raises to t1425, Hero calls t1037

Total pot: t3514

Results:
Hero had 10, 9 (two pair, tens and sixes).
SB had 5, 5 (two pair, sixes and fives).
Outcome: Hero won t3514


He fought back up to about even, then we got it in with TT vs. AK. My TT held, and that was the match!

Match 2

This opponent was easier than my first but still somewhat competent. It helped that he seemed to be catching a lot of cards. He did make one or two questionable calls against me, but then he made up for it by slowplaying what I'm pretty sure was a flush and getting me to go for three streets of value with top pair only to get check-raised on the river. This one also ended in a coin flip in my favor.

Match 3

This guy was one of the worst heads up players I've ever seen. I have no idea how he won his first two matches, nor what he was doing in this tournament at all for that matter. He was just ridiculously tight and passive, letting me steal oodles of pots with min-bets and min-raises and never playing back at me. He did bluff occasionally, but always in obvious spots and never for more than one barrel. He used his position so poorly that I was calling a lot of raises out of position, which is obviously a bad plan in most any heads up match. There was never any doubt in mind that I would win this one, and after grinding him down to just 20% of his starting stack, I won a coin flip to eliminate him.

Match 4

I was lucky enough to draw another very weak opponent. He tried to make some moves, but tended to do so in a very predictable way, making it easy to catch him. Prior to this hand, for instance, he'd re-raise me pre-flop several times. Since he didn't play back at me pre-flop, I was pretty sure he'd be itching to do so on such a dry flop:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $1500+$75 Tournament, 25/50 Blinds (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) (t6423)
SB (t3577)

Hero's M: 85.64

Preflop: Hero is Button with 9, 5
Hero bets t100, SB calls t50

Flop: (t200) 4, 2, 2 (2 players)

SB checks, Hero bets t123, SB raises to t350, Hero calls t227

Turn: (t900) 4 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets t333, 1 fold

Total pot: t900

Results:
Hero didn't show 9, 5 (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won t900


Unfortunately, before I could turn this guy's aggression against him, he managed to cooler me twice, once with a set vs. my two pair to get himself back in the match, then with bottom two vs. my top pair and gut shot. In the latter case, I actually had nearly 50% equity, but I suppose I was due to lose a coin flip.

SCOOP Event 8: NLHE Two-Day

I was going to play the HORSE event, but the buyins just didn't line up right for me. The 10K was out of the question, even the 1K was a touch high, and the $100 was too small for me to add two hours onto what was already a potentially long session (the day's second event was scheduled to run for 12 hours before stopping for the night).

I played the $300 and the $3000 two-days, but they ended up being one-day tournaments for me. The $3000 got nearly 1000 players, and my table was about what I was expecting: a lot of solid players, no one phenomenally good, and a soft spot or two. Unfortunately, the soft spot became a problem for me. Here, my attempt to isolate him got me into to trouble:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $3000+$150 Tournament, 25/50 Blinds (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

CO (t10875)
Button (t11839)
Hero (SB) (t8611)
BB (t10850)
UTG (t9775)
UTG+1 (t9900)
MP1 (t8075)
MP2 (t10075)

Hero's M: 114.81

Preflop: Hero is SB with 9, 9
3 folds, MP2 calls t50, 2 folds, Hero bets t250, BB calls t200, MP2 calls t200

Flop: (t750) 6, K, 5 (3 players)
Hero bets t567, BB calls t567, MP2 calls t567

Turn: (t2451) 5 (3 players)
Hero checks, BB bets t1450, 1 fold, Hero calls t1450

River: (t5351) A (2 players)
Hero checks, BB bets t8583 (All-In), Hero folds

Total pot: t5351

Results:
BB didn't show
Outcome: BB won t5351


The BB was possibly my most skilled opponent- unfortunate to have him on my left. The turn is a good spot for him to bluff with a draw, but the problem with calling is that it sets him up to shove the river. I guess I could call that, too, but I dunno. I guess folding turn is probably correct. You could argue for checking flop as well, but I was still looking at as an isolation play, hoping to get BB out, and if fishy calls, I'm comfortable playing out of position against him. Too bad it backfired.

The same fish took me out a bit later:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $3000+$150 Tournament, 50/100 Blinds 10 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

CO (t10245)
Button (t11004)
Hero (SB) (t3982)
BB (t11770)
UTG (t8571)
UTG+1 (t10015)
MP1 (t4040)
MP2 (t8516)
MP3 (t21223)

Hero's M: 16.59

Preflop: Hero is SB with K, K
2 folds, MP1 bets t300, 1 fold, MP3 calls t300, 2 folds, Hero raises to t1111, 2 folds, MP3 calls t811

Flop: (t2712) 5, 4, 3 (2 players)
Hero bets t2861 (All-In), MP3 calls t2861

Turn: (t8434) 4 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t8434) 6 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t8434

Results:
Hero had K, K (two pair, Kings and fours).
MP3 had A, 7 (straight, seven high).
Outcome: MP3 won t8434


I lasted a while longer in the $300, but eventually bluffed off my stack:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $300+$20 Tournament, 200/400 Blinds 50 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP2 (t26848)
MP3 (t24581)
CO (t3799)
Hero (Button) (t16360)
SB (t17599)
BB (t8725)
UTG (t24137)
UTG+1 (t4450)
MP1 (t16052)

Hero's M: 15.58

Preflop: Hero is Button with J, K
4 folds, MP3 bets t1000, 1 fold, Hero raises to t2666, 2 folds, MP3 calls t1666

Flop: (t6382) 5, 2, 9 (2 players)
MP3 checks, Hero bets t2444, MP3 calls t2444

Turn: (t11270) 10 (2 players)
MP3 checks, Hero bets t11200 (All-In), MP3 calls t11200

River: (t33670) 4 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t33670

Results:
Hero had J, K (high card, King).
MP3 had 10, 10 (three of a kind, tens).
Outcome: MP3 won t33670


Villain raised a fair bit from late position. This was the first time I'd 3-bet him, but I was fairly confident that even if he flatted a 3-bet with a big pair pre-flop, he wouldn't continue to slowplay the flop, especially not when I bet so small. I do think he'll fold some better (ie Ax) hands and also sometimes peel kinda light, making the turn shove more profitable. I wasn't going to shove just any turn, but I wanted to give myself the option. When I picked up the gutshot, it felt like a good spot.

He had the kind of hand I wanted him to have, he just happened to "suck out" on the turn. I'm inclined to say he would have folded unimproved on the turn, but then again you know tournament players and their overpairs! (Insert snarky comment about cash game LAGdonks and their crazy bluffs.)

Don't Be a Hero (Except Now)

Most players just don't know how to execute a good bluff raise on the river and won't even try, and I probably play the Hero a little more than I should in "good spots" that my opponents probably don't even recognize. This was against a smarter opponent, though, and while he doesn't make a lot of moves, I caught him here:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP ($840)
CO ($1099.85)
Button ($1910.10)
SB ($2159)
BB ($796)
Hero (UTG) ($2323)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with K, K
Hero bets $35, 3 folds, SB calls $30, 1 fold

Flop: ($80) 4, 3, 4 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $55, SB calls $55

Turn: ($190) 5 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks

River: ($190) 9 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $155, SB raises to $555, Hero calls $400

Total pot: $1300 | Rake: $3

Results:
SB had 7, 7 (two pair, sevens and fours).
Hero had K, K (two pair, Kings and fours).
Outcome: Hero won $1297


First off, this is a decent spot for him to bluff. My hand is pretty clearly defined as an overpair or worse. Since he's representing a flush or full house, my hand is just a bluff catcher, and as I said, most people just don't check-raise bluff the river as much as they should.

The thing that helped me to call is that I'm not sure he plays a flush draw like this, and even some of his full house combos are unlikely. He's calling my UTG raise from the SB, so I'm not expecting to see a lot of suited connectors. I guess something like As Qs makes sense- it helps that I have the Ks and can rule out AKs and KQs.

I also think he may not (or at least probably should not) be playing small pairs pre-flop, which makes 33, 44, and 55 less likely.

Really, I'm not sure calling 77 pre-flop is very good either. He's probably a bit of a dog to my UTG range, so he's losing something in immediate equity pre-flop. It's easy to be like "LOLSETODDS" but it's not going to be that easy to win a big pot from out of position just because he flops a set. Compared to all the times he gets forced off the best hand, plus the potential reverse implied odds spots (see above), I think he ought to just fold pre-flop. Playing out of position sucks.

Most Psychotic Bluff I've Ever Seen

Hmmm, 80:1 odds? I think I'll call:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) ($1802)
SB ($490)
BB ($1424)
UTG ($985)
MP ($1884)
CO ($1442.45)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 6, 8
1 fold, MP bets $35, 1 fold, Hero calls $35, 2 folds

Flop: ($85) 5, 7, 8 (2 players)
MP bets $45, Hero raises to $122, MP raises to $320, Hero raises to $678, MP raises to $1200, Hero raises to $1722, MP raises to $1849 (All-In), Hero calls $45 (All-In)

Turn: ($3619) 2 (2 players, 2 all-in)

River: ($3619) Q (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: $3619 | Rake: $3

Results:
Hero had 6, 8 (one pair, eights).
MP had J, 2 (one pair, twos).
Outcome: Hero won $3616


I tried to make the flop 3-bet kinda sketchy to maximize fold equity versus overpairs. Guess I was a little off there....

Not only is this an awful board to expect me to show up with air, but when he 7-bet bluffs (wow, what an awesome thing to be able to say), I have to call $45 into a $3600 pot. The best part is that I thought my 6-bet was all in. I just hit the raise button, but apparently that left me with just enough room to give him the illusion of fold equity.

You don't know you how nervous I was when that deuce rolled off on the turn.

Back in Black

For the second time this year, I've dug myself out of a big old hole. Let's hope it's the last (that I need to). Here's the hand that did it:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $50.00 BB (5 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($9411)
SB ($5550)
BB ($20776)
UTG ($5000)
Hero (MP) ($5444)

Preflop: Hero is MP with K, K
1 fold, Hero bets $150, 2 folds, BB calls $100

Flop: ($325) 5, 6, Q (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $222, BB raises to $950, Hero raises to $5294 (All-In), BB calls $4344

Turn: ($10913) 10 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: ($10913) 10 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $10913 | Rake: $2

Results:
BB had K, 5 (two pair, tens and fives).
Hero had K, K (two pair, Kings and tens).
Outcome: Hero won $10911


I actually thought for a bit on the flop about whether I wanted to ship it in or just call and look for a non-club turn. I think based on his bet-sizing he has clubs pretty much always, and most of the time he'll have other outs that will make him basically a coin flip with me (either a 5, an A, or a straight draw). That would seem to argue for a call, since I have position and this information about his hand.

Truthfully, though, I think a call gives him the advantage even though he's out of position. He knows his hand looks like a flush draw, and if I just call, he'll know that I'm looking for a non-club turn. So he has pretty much the same information that I do, but he also knows which other cards help his hand, which I do not.

Take this case, for instance. Say I just call. What if an Ace turns and he shoves? I could end up getting bluffed off the best hand. Better to suck it up, get it in, and hope I've got his kicker covered!

It was one of those nights where things were just going well. I was getting a lot of decisions right, even those I usually get wrong:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (4 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($1880)
Hero (SB) ($2047)
BB ($1005)
UTG ($5521)

Preflop: Hero is SB with A, A
UTG bets $35, 1 fold, Hero raises to $123, 1 fold, UTG calls $88

Flop: ($256) J, J, 10 (2 players)
Hero bets $188, UTG calls $188

Turn: ($632) 9 (2 players)
Hero checks, UTG bets $410, Hero calls $410

River: ($1452) 2 (2 players)
Hero checks, UTG bets $4800 (All-In), Hero calls $1326 (All-In)

Total pot: $4104 | Rake: $2

Results:
Hero had A, A (two pair, Aces and Jacks).
UTG had A, K (one pair, Jacks).
Outcome: Hero won $4102


Actually, I wasn't getting everything right. I made some big, questionable river bluffs in a heads up match. But, even that crazy image paid off eventually:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $6.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) ($2983.75)
Button ($2026.25)

Preflop: Hero is SB with A, A
Button bets $15, Hero raises to $55, Button raises to $149, Hero raises to $444, Button raises to $852, Hero raises to $2983.75 (All-In), Button calls $1174.25 (All-In)

Flop: ($4052.50) 2, Q, 4 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Turn: ($4052.50) 7 (2 players, 2 all-in)

River: ($4052.50) 2 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: $4052.50 | Rake: $0.50

Results:

Button had K, A (one pair, twos).
Hero had A, A (two pair, Aces and twos).
Outcome: Hero won $4052


This was really the first time we'd gone to war pre-flop, too. I mean, there are times when it might be reasonable to stack off 340 BBs to me with AK pre-flop, but this wasn't one of them.

I Still Play Poker

Sorry for the recent lack of posts, I've had a lot to catch up on since returning from vacation. But here's an interesting hand:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($2002.50)
Hero (SB) ($3412.50)

Preflop: Hero is SB with A, K
Button bets $30, Hero raises to $111, Button calls $81

Flop: ($222) 7, 5, 7 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

Turn: ($222) 3 (2 players)
Hero bets $66, Button calls $66

River: ($354) 5 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $275, Hero calls $275

Total pot: $904 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Button had Q, 10 (two pair, sevens and fives).
Hero had A, K (two pair, sevens and fives).
Outcome: Hero won $903.50


This player was really not very aggressive at all. It just goes to show you how unconventional play, like the tiny turn bet, can take people out of their comfort zones and induce mistakes they wouldn't otherwise make.

Bay 101 WPT Day 1AM

Edit: Important correction here. The non-bountied live pro I busted was not Bill Gazes but rather Bill Edler.

I decided to play the Bay 101 because of the combination of a nice location, great structure/tournament director (thanks Matt Savage!), and interesting people I thought it would attract, both because of the area and the number of pros who play as "shooting stars" with $5000 bounties on their heads.

At the outset, they distributed the bounties evenly, with one or two at every table in the 5 and/or 7 seats. I was fortunate to get probably the single softest bounty in the field at my table: 2007 WSOP main event champion Jerry Yang was seated to my immediate left. He was very quiet, but friendly enough. To my surprise, he made a lot of hopeless bluffs, especially in the early stages of the tournament. That's not exactly how I expected him to play, which is maybe what he was going for. I called him down correctly once with 8s 4s on a Js 8h 3s Qd 3d board.

I did some splashing around in the early going, got into pots with weak players but couldn't make anything happen and bled away about 10% of my chips in the first hour. I lost about the same in the next hour, but then just before the first break I picked up 77 in early position. Blinds were 50/100, and because the table was playing very loose, I just min-raised to 200. Small pairs are hell to play out of position in big pots, so I was mostly looking for set value.

A young, boisterous Asian kid who seemed to be a local regular rather than an internet phenom re-raised to 650. It was the first re-raise we'd seen at our table all day, and I was very sure what he had. I called, and got a nice but not perfect Tc 8c 7s flop. There was only 1300 in the pot but 16K in the effective stacks. This guy seemed like exactly the sort to overplay a big pair here, trying to "protect" his hand, and I wanted to get the money in before a scare card came off. I was afraid that if I check-raised him he might just call, which I didn't want. So I led out for 900, he raised to 2K, I moved all in, and he called so quickly that for a second I was afraid he might have TT. But he turned over AA, looked disgusted, and failed to hit his two-outer. I went into the first break with nearly 35K, well over the average of about 22K.

After the break, blinds were 100/200. I called a raise from a tight older Japanese guy who seemed not very good with Ah 7s in the SB. The flop came AJT with one heart, and we both checked. The turn brought the Qh, giving me a flush draw and the idiot end of a gutshot to go along with my top pair. To a more aggressive player, I check here, but against this guy, I decided to bet out 700 instead, thinking he'd call with a lot of draws and worse pairs that he wouldn't bet.

Instead, he raised to 3000, leaving about 3000 behind, which was pretty much the worst thing he could do. Especially from this player, this was a very strong line. I didn't want to shove, because I was sure I did not have the best hand. It was very close between call and fold. I ultimately decided to call, but in retrospect I'm not sure that was best. The river was an off-suit 4, and I check-folded. I'm still not sure whether leading out on the turn was actually better than just check-calling. Even if I also check-called the river, it probably would have cost me the same but I would have seen my opponent's hand.

I ran into a few interesting spots against Yang where his bounty influence my decision. In one, I opened to 500 with KJs on the button, and he made it 2000 from the SB with 8000 behind. Ordinarily I would fold, but relataive to this many chips the $5000 for busting him is a huge overlay. I opted to call and fold to a shove on a T74 flop with none of my suit. He told me he had KK, and I decided that even with the bounty my call was a bad one.

A little later, he had position and a somewhat deeper stack and repopped my 500 raise to 1500. I called with QTs and again check-folded a flop that whiffed me entirely. That one I think was justified.

The guy I'd busted was replaced with Bill Gazes Edler in the 7 seat. Bill wasn't actually a bounty, but because he was known to a lot of the dealers and sitting in the bounty seat, he had to keep explaining that he wasn't actually a shooting star. I don't think he actually felt snubbed at not having a bounty, but it would have been funny if he did since dealers kept assuming that and shouting for the floor when he was all in.

It was unfortunate for me that he wasn't a bounty, because I ended up busting him. The last hand before our first break, blinds were 150/300/25. Gazes Edler, sitting on about 12K, raised to 1000 UTG+1. I called with 88 in the SB, expecting him to be very strong, and Maria Ho (who had replaced Yang on my immediate left) called in the BB. I had about 20K, and she covered me.

The flop came Jd 9d 8s, and I had to think about how I wanted the money to go in. If we check to Bill, he probably bets, then I have to raise and Maria folds probably every hand worse than mine. Instead, I led out for 1800. Maria called, and Bill moved all in. I put on a show of thinking about whether to call, hoping to entice Maria in with a wider range, but she was paying no attention at all, which was actually bad for me. Either she was already planning to fold, or she had a huge hand and was doing the classic Caro "weak-means-strong" pretending to have no interest in the hand. I finally shoved in, and she quickly folded.

Bill actually had TT, giving him something like 40% equity, but my set held up. He was very gracious about it, chatting with me briefly about the hand, then clapping me on the back and saying, "Use them well my friend." Definitely left a very favorable impression with me.

There was a middle-aged Asian guy with bad teeth but a good sense of humor who initially seemed pretty fishy. In the early levels, he was playing almost every hand, often limp-calling raises out of position. As the blinds got bigger, though, he tightened up a bit, got a bit more aggressive, and started playing reasonably well post-flop. He still had his leaks, but for a while I was really overestimating how bad he was, and it cost me.

Blinds were 200/400/50, and he hadn't limped in in ages. He called for 400, and a very tight/straightforward South Asian guy named Bobby (probably not how he spells it, but I didn't ask) on my right made it 1600 on the Button. I was in the SB with AKo with 40K. The LAG had about 24K, but Bobby covered me and I didn't think I could get AK in pre-flop profitably against him. I elected to just call the raise, expecting both of them to overplay top pair if they flopped it, such that my implied odds were very good.

The limper made it 6K. Even though he was pretty LAG, he'd only limp-raised once before, and it was with KK. I thought for a long time and folded. He showed me the 6h, and I kicked myself for an awful weak-tight fold.

Towards the end of the night, I was moved to a new, tougher table. There were three shooting stars there: David "The Dragon" Pham across the table from me, Annie Duke a few seats to his left, and Kenny Tran on my immediate right. If Annie recognized me, she didn't give any indication of it, as she has in the past.

For her part, she was looking rough. It's a popular assertion on 2+2 and other poker forums that Annie is unattractive, but when I first met her three years ago, I thought she was pretty good looking for a 40-year-old mother of four. Now, though, there were rings under her eyes and a darkness in her face, perhaps a physical manifestation of the slow corruption that affiliation with Ultimate Bet was exacting on her soul.

The first time that she raised my blind, it was 400/800/100 and she raised to 2200. Kenny Tran called in the SB, and even before I looked at my cards, I was thinking squeeze. I looked down at 85s, straightened in my seat a bit, looked around, capped my cards, did some mental arithmetic, and raised to 8000. They both folded very quickly.

Kenny Tran, as I've already said, was on my right. On my left was a big, kinda doofy Italian guy whom I've seen around at Foxwoods and the WSOP. He and Kenny got into a conversation about how many players would be left at the end of the day, and the Italian somewhat off-handedly said that he'd take the under on 50.

"Ten thousand dollars?" Kenny asked.

"Book it." And just like that, a $10,000 prop bet was made. There was some quibbling over details, such as what would happen if exactly 50 players remained (technically, the Italian had volunteered to take the under, but they confirmed the accuracy of the posted number with the tournament director before finalizing the bet, and in that time they renegotiated that 50 would be a push), but there was no doubt in my mind that either man would pay if he lost.

"Cash only," Kenny said.

"Bellagio chips?"

"Yeah, yeah, that's fine. But just like, no check."

"Check? You're talkin' to the wrong guy, check. I haven't had a checking account since... I was born."

"OK, good."

"What about Circus, Circus? Will you take Circus, Circus chips?"

Kenny laughed, but then the Italian leaned over and whispered to him (though I could hear, because I was sitting between them), "Seriously, I'll get you cash no problem. I won't have it tonight, but a lot of people owe me money, and they will pay me by Wednesday. One hundred percent." Kenny waved him away, no problem, and I believed him as well. Like I said, he was Italian.

Maria Ho was moved to the same table I was, and despite reraising me three times at our last table, had generally been staying out of my way. She went so far as to open limp her button when I was in the BB, but I found AKs and popped it to 4K. She re-raised to 9K and change, but I had only 30ish left, so I just shipped it in. She tanked for a long time, staring at me, commenting on the tension in my neck, etc. but eventually folded. Although that is what I wanted her to do, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have minded a call either.

Two hands later, the action folded to me in the SB, where I had 99. I raised to 2500, and the Italian called. The flop came KJx with two diamonds, hardly what I wanted to see. I checked and reluctantly called a 2500 bet.

Bink! The turn was a 9, and I checked again. Unfortunately, so did my opponent.

Even worse, the river brought a T, putting four a straight on the board. I bet 4500, which he hemmed and hawed and called, only to crow about the bad beat when I showed my set.

That table broke with only half an hour left in the night, and I got moved to a new one with Freddy Deeb, Joe Sebok, and Daniel Alaei. The first hand I played, I raised Deeb's blind to 2400 with 44. He called and led into me for 5000 on an AQx rainbow flop. It seemed pretty unlikely to me that he had a super strong hand, so I called, figuring I'd turn my hand into a bluff if he checked the turn. He bet 13K, though, and I folded.

As for how the day finished up, most of you know how it went for me. There were exactly 50 players left, so the bet ended in a push. And there were more than 200 registered for Day 1B before the night was up, so I'm assuming there was good turnout today. Most likely we'll need to play down from 140 or so to 36 tomorrow, which should take roughly the same 10 hours as yesterday. Hopefully I'll still be among the 36, as tables will be 6-handed on Day 3!

Bay 101 Day 1 Results

Day started with something like 136 players and 20,000 chips each. I spend most of the day in good shape, never amassing a huge stack but maintaining near or above the average. Then I made a big move on Joe Sebok on the very last hand of the night:

Daniel Alaei was on my immediate right, with Joe seated to his right. The two had been openly joking about how ridiculously tight a youngish Asian player across the table from us was. That player caught the big blind on the last hand of the night. Joe made a joke about going all in blind pre-flop to steal from him.

Blinds were 400/800/100, and Sebok open raised to 2200 with 30K behind. I thought that especially on the last hand of the night with a super tight player in the BB he could have almost anything here. Alaei called, and I was pretty sure that since he knew Sebok knew he knew the guy was tight, he didn't have a huge hand and didn't want to get into a pre-flop leveling war. He was just calling to use his position and knowledge of Joe's wide range post-flop.

Neither of them knew a thing about me. It seemed like a great spot for a squeeze play, especially since there's a $5000 bounty on Joe, giving me an overlay in the worst case scenario where he has a hand. I make it 9000 with A3o, committing myself against Sebok but leaving room to fold to Alaei. Action folds to Sebok, who moves all in. Alaei folds, I call, and he shows me AKo.

The board comes out 7c 8c 9c Tc, and neither of us has a club. I have 15 outs to chop on the river and two to win, but it's an offsuit 4 and I get busted down to 17,400 on the last hand of the night. There's something like 50 left from today, and they are expecting close to 250 to play tomorrow.

The more I think about it, the more I like this play and think I was just unlucky that Sebok had a hand. I don't know a lot about him, but based on the information I had, I don't regret the squeeze.

Was a pretty fun day on the whole, got to play with Jerry Yang, Bill Gazes, Robert Williamson III, Maria Ho, David Pham, Annie Duke, Kenny Tran, and Freddie Deeb in addition to the guys I mentioned above. I'll post a more thorough report tomorrow, then I play again on Wednesday.

Thanks for following along!

Suicidal Bluff

Although this worked, I think it's really awful play on my part. I am representing a ridiculously narrow range (like QQ and maybe KK) and even those don't necessarily make sense. This guy was just frustrating me because he wasn't folding to 3-bets ever and was just generally being a pain in the ass.

I knew he would float a continuation bet on this flop, so I was hoping that a delayed c-bet would get me more credit. When he bet the flop, I didn't think he was all that strong, but calling with down with AJ unimproved didn't quite feel right either. For what it's worth, I think he usually 4-bets AK and KK pre-flop, and if he doesn't 4-bet QQ, he probably doesn't bet the flop either. When he just calls the turn, clubs are probably a non-trivial portion of his range. He tanked for a really long time before folding the river, though, so it seems like he did fold some kind of made hand.

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $20.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

CO ($3963)
Button ($6018)
Hero (SB) ($4937)
BB ($2357)
UTG ($2396)
MP ($2030)

Preflop: Hero is SB with A, J
3 folds, Button bets $50, Hero raises to $188, 1 fold, Button calls $138

Flop: ($396) 3, 8, K (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $260, Hero calls $260

Turn: ($916) Q (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $720, Hero raises to $1989, Button calls $1269

River: ($4894) 8 (2 players)
Hero bets $2500 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: $4894 | Rake: $3

Results:

Hero didn't show A, J (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won $4891

More on the durrrr/Greenstein Hand

OK, this has sparked a lot of interest among commenters, so I think I will offer a few of my own thoughts on the hand after all. In terms of what durrrr may have been thinking and why he was successful, I don't have a lot to add to the very good analysis I already linked. Instead, I'll focus on what I think Greenstein and Eastgate could have done differently.

(If you don't know the details of the hand, Geoff recently shared a link to a YouTube clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SKwhb_nJVQ)

I'll start with Eastgate, because my advice for him is easiest: fold pre-flop. By my count, the pot is $16,200 when it gets to Eastgate, who must call $2100 more with his 42o in the Small Blind. The 8:1 pot odds are nice, but he will be very deep out of position against 6-7 good to world-class players with a hand that virtually never makes the nuts or anything close to it. Even suited, this should probably be a fold, since with so many in the pot he's looking at reverse implied odds even when he makes a flush. Post-flop, his play is fine, and this is just a spot where he's going to lose money against a very good player. Hence why he should not be playing 24o.

For Greenstein to combat a bluff like this, he needs a strategy that will not turn his hand face-up. The deeper you get, the more you need to mix up your UTG range so that savvy opponents like Dwan can't take you off pots on "bad" flops. Barry needs to be capable of showing up with hands like A2s here. He might also benefit from limping in with AA UTG occasionally, along with a variety of other hands. This will enable him to limp-re-raise in a spot like this (again, sometimes with other hands as well as a bluff) to narrow the field and make stacks more shallow post-flop so that his Aces will be more resilient unimproved.

Post-flop, he needs to either check the Aces or be leading such a wide range here that AA will be at the top of it and he can more comfortably stack off to Dwan with it. The latter, bluffing frequently into seven players, is very hard to do, so I like checking better.

I also think he's got an easy fold when Eastgate cold calls out of the Small Blind. But the central thing is that, especially when very deep, he needs to play all of his hands in a way that Dwan can't put him on exactly an overpair or the VERY occasional (given the T in Dwan's own hand) quads/full house.

Great High Stakes Poker Bluff by Tom "Durrrr" Dwan

I'm not much for watching televised poker, but from what I've seen, if you're going to watch anything, High Stakes Poker is the show to watch. Although I didn't see this hand go down, I heard it discussed quite a bit by Aaron "aejones" Jones and Rob "Bobbfitos" Eckstut on the latest 2+2 Pokercast. PokerNews commentator picks up on just about every complex detail that Aaron and Rob covered on the show, so I don't have much to add to his commentary. It's just a fascinating hand that shows how a total sicko like Dwan can run circles around event world-class players like Barry Greenstein and Gabe Kaplan (who, from what I've heard of his commentary on the hand, didn't seem to get that Dwan was turning his pair into a bluff). So I definitely recommend that you have a look at Daniel Skolovy's recap and commentary:

"Now although even an amateur could read Barry's hand, it takes a real pro to have the stones to bluff into seven people and continue on the turn.

durrrr is that pro and Barry should know that, and thus should know that when his hand is as faceup as it is, durrrr has the potential to recognize this and bluff him off of it.

Which means you get into a leveling war of he knows that I know that he knows and he should be thinking just high enough to know that durrrr knows his hand and can thus bluff him off it, which could turn this from a fold to a call/shove."

Deeeep Bluff

When you get to about the 2/4 or 3/6 level, an important goal to set for yourself is to make it hell for your opponents to show down marginal hands against you when they are out of position. The deeper you get, the wider the definition of marginal becomes, and here the stars really aligned nicely for me. The Villain is an occasional short stacker, and although he had a bunch of money spread out across a few 10/20 tables tonight, I still felt that he'd be a little uncomfortable with the idea of a $17K pot:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $20.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB ($6735)
UTG ($2000)
MP ($11444)
Hero (CO) ($8761)
Button ($3940)
SB ($6294)

Preflop: Hero is CO with 6, 9
1 fold, MP bets $70, Hero calls $70, 2 folds, BB calls $50

Flop: ($220) 10, 2, 8 (3 players)
BB checks, MP bets $160, Hero calls $160, 1 fold

Turn: ($540) Q (2 players)
MP bets $400, Hero raises to $1555, MP calls $1155

River: ($3650) 5 (2 players)
MP checks, Hero bets $2977, 1 fold

Total pot: $3650 | Rake: $3


Honestly, my initial plan was not to bluff again on the river. I felt that the turn raise would be enough to threaten his stack and get him off of an overpair or AQ-type hand. He called so quickly, though, that I just felt he couldn't have a set. With the interest I'm showing in the pot and the draws on the board, I think he would at least consider jamming the turn with a big hand like that. So, I decided to throw a big river bluff at him to represent a set or straight.

You Could Have Been Value Betting Worse I Think?

I was playing a decent but not great player heads up, and the match had been close, with first him then me having the upper hand, until I tried to bluff him off of trips:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($2045.50)
Hero (Button) ($2488.75)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 8, Q
Hero bets $30, SB calls $20

Flop: ($60) J, 10, 10 (2 players)
SB bets $40, Hero calls $40

Turn: ($140) 3 (2 players)
SB bets $100, Hero raises to $333, SB calls $233

River: ($806) 5 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $2085.75 (All-In),

SB: sick... you hit the flush?

SB calls $1642.50 (All-In)

Total pot: $4091 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero had 8, Q (one pair, tens).
SB had K, 10 (three of a kind, tens).
Outcome: SB won $4090.50

SB: i am not good enough to fold trips

Foucault: evidently not


Of course it's not generally a good idea to try to bluff someone off of trips, and if the river hadn't flushed I wouldn't have attempted it. It's not that I was trying to represent a flush but rather that the flush coming in makes it a very good time for me to make a huge shove if I have a full house, most likely JT or JJ. The huge shove is designed to polarize my range, so that it won't matter that he has trips (except for decreasing the combinations of boats I could have). Basically, I am either bluffing or have him beat.

Here's the very next hand, where he once again can't lay down trips:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($4090.50)
Hero (SB) ($1000)

Preflop: Hero is SB with J, K
Button bets $30, Hero calls $20

Flop: ($60) 10, Q, 9 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $40, Hero raises to $120, Button calls $80

SB: also you could have been value betting worse I think?

Turn: ($300) 9 (2 players)
Hero bets $200, Button calls $200

River: ($700) 4 (2 players)

SB: like any T?

Hero bets $650 (All-In), Button calls $650

Total pot: $2000 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Button mucked 9, J (three of a kind, nines).
Hero had J, K (straight, King high).
Outcome: Hero won $1999.50


PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($3353.25)
Hero (Button) ($1717.25)

Preflop: Hero is Button with A, A
Hero bets $30, SB raises to $120, Hero calls $90

Flop: ($240) 4, 2, 7 (2 players)
SB bets $140, Hero calls $140

Turn: ($520) 6 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $222, SB calls $222

River: ($964) Q (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $1235.25 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: $964 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero didn't show A, A.
Outcome: Hero won $963.50


This wasn't a good value shove by me, but it did show me that the table dynamic had shifted as a result of his snapping off that big bluff. Now, he was going to give me credit on my shoves.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($2656.75)
Hero (Button) ($2410.75)

Preflop: Hero is Button with K, J
Hero bets $30, SB calls $20

Flop: ($60) K, 4, 5 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $40, SB calls $40

Turn: ($140) A (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $90, SB calls $90

River: ($320) K (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $250, SB calls $250

Total pot: $820 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero had K, J (three of a kind, Kings).
SB mucked 8, 8 (two pair, Kings and eights).
Outcome: Hero won $819.50


In this hand, I show him that I can value bet thinly (on the turn, here, nothing thin about the river) in a spot where he thinks I'm going to have a polarized range (hence his calldown with 88- he assumes I either hit the A or am bluffing in a common spot).

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($2261.75)
Hero (SB) ($2805.25)

Preflop: Hero is SB with Q, K
Button bets $30, Hero raises to $111, Button calls $81

Flop: ($222) 7, 10, 9 (2 players)
Hero bets $169, Button calls $169

Turn: ($560) 4 (2 players)
Hero bets $425, Button calls $425

River: ($1410) A (2 players)
Hero bets $2100.25 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: $1410 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero didn't show Q, K (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won $1409.50


This time, the big bluff works. Given the texture of the board, I think it's very likely that he raises flop or turn if he has two pair or better. Something like a pair and busted draw is more likely for him. And even if he does have two pair, I think it's now plausible for him to think I can shove Aces up, so his weaker two pair may not be good. Pretty much the only thing I'm worried about here is that he himself rivered Aces up. Otherwise, I expect this to work.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($1889.50)
Hero (Button) ($3175.50)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 3, 3
Hero bets $30, SB calls $20

Flop: ($60) 2, 6, 3 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $40, SB raises to $120, Hero raises to $269, SB calls $149

Turn: ($598) A (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $376, SB raises to $1590.50 (All-In), Hero calls $1214.50

River: ($3779) 7 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $3779 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero had 3, 3 (three of a kind, threes).
SB had K, 5 (high card, Ace).
Outcome: Hero won $3778.50


And that cleaned him out.

Recent Publications

This month I've got two publications to report. First, my latest article for 2+2 Magazine, titled Float On, is now appearing in the March issue. It's an analysis of when, whom, and how to bluff-call, including an in-depth example:

Suppose that when your opponent bets, you think there is a 30% chance that he has a hand strong enough to continue and a 70% chance that his hand is too weak to stand a raise. If you raise his bet, you will win the pot 70% of the time and lose the amount of your bluff 30% of the time. As long as you choose an appropriate raise size, that’s a very profitable proposition for you.

If your opponent will play predictably on the turn, though, and many will, then it may be even more profitable just to call his bet and see what he does on the turn. The 70% of the time that he does not have anything, he will check, and you can now wager the same amount that you would have with a raise, or maybe even a little less, but steal the pot 100% of the time. The 30% of the time that he does have a hand, he’ll bet again and you can fold, saving yourself the amount that a bluff-raise would have cost you.

I'm also featured in Kristy Arnett's new Run It Twice series on Cardplayer:

People want to be able to play a lot of hands from late position, which makes sense because that’s where you make most of your money. If you are getting three-bet a whole lot from the blinds, you have to fold some of the weaker hands that you are raising with, so some people have started making these small raises so that they can call more three-bets preflop and also lose less money if they fold when they get three-bet. It’s an adaptation some people have made to enable themselves to play more hands from late position.

Holy $%^& I Bluffed a Tourney Donk!

From yesterday's Sunday Million:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $200+$15 Tournament, 600/1200 Blinds 100 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (BB) (t30683)
UTG (t23180)
UTG+1 (t69583)
MP1 (t45234)
MP2 (t42249)
MP3 (t22891)
CO (t38571)
Button (t32005)
SB (t14539)

Hero's M: 11.36

Preflop: Hero is BB with 3, 5
5 folds, CO calls t1200, 2 folds, Hero checks

Flop: (t3900) 5, 9, 9 (2 players)
Hero checks, CO bets t2400, Hero calls t2400

Turn: (t8700) K (2 players)
Hero checks, CO checks

River: (t8700) J (2 players)
Hero checks, CO bets t4800, Hero raises to t26983 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: t18300

Results:
Hero didn't show 3, 5 (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won t18300

Hell, maybe I just had the best hand anyway.

There was also this:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $200+$15 Tournament, 1000/2000 Blinds 200 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (BB) (t37483)
UTG (t57104)
UTG+1 (t76633)
MP1 (t92084)
MP2 (t57631)
MP3 (t36141)
CO (t25460)
Button (t28135)
SB (t20528)

Hero's M: 7.81

Preflop: Hero is BB with 3, 3
5 folds, CO bets t6000, 2 folds, Hero calls t4000

Flop: (t14800) Q, 9, 6 (2 players)
Hero bets t31283 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: t14800

Results:

Hero didn't show 3, 3 (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won t14800

I don't use the stop-n-go very often, but this seemed like a good spot. The guy was almost certainly not folding pre-flop, and on a flop like this, he's likely to fold a hand that he would not (or should not, anyway) if he could see my cards. Note that he's only got like 18K behind.


I ended up going quite deep, making the top 200 (out of 8800), on a coin flip:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $200+$15 Tournament, 12500/25000 Blinds 2500 Ante (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB (t723763)
Hero (BB) (t515200)
UTG (t1486381)
UTG+1 (t618409)
MP1 (t264735)
MP2 (t489035)
MP3 (t337651)
CO (t1006328)
Button (t405851)

Hero's M: 8.59

Preflop: Hero is BB with A, K
3 folds, MP2 bets t61000, 3 folds, SB raises to t721263 (All-In), Hero calls t487700 (All-In), 1 fold

Flop: (t1108900) 6, Q, 2 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Turn: (t1108900) Q (2 players, 2 all-in)

River: (t1108900) 7 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: t1108900

Results:
SB had J, J (two pair, Queens and Jacks).
Hero had A, K (one pair, Queens).
Outcome: SB won t1108900

Elaboration

On my recent post, "Defining His Range Into Oblivion", tce left a comment that I felt warranted a new post:

This is a tantalizing post with some really interesting ideas that need more meat. Can you say more? In my experience, trying to blow someone off an Ax hand is just too disruptive to my bankroll. Many players are just too stubborn and will chk-call all three streets. I finally learned that my best counter-strategy is to simply bet the hell out of my hand when I can beat Ax. Turning 2nd pair into a bluff in the hopes of blowing someone off Ax? I dunno, I need to hear more.

It's a good question. This concept isn't just a neat way to bluff. The point is that when you have position and a good sense of your opponent's range, you have a generous edge because of your ability to make better decisions on the river. You want to have a big pot and also enough money behind for a big river bet, ideally with nothing left over in the effective stacks, to maximize that edge. Then, it's just a matter of actually making that river decision.

Against this opponent, I'm confident that in a 4-bet pot, a bluff in that spot would be very profitable. Against a looser opponent who will not fold Ax, then you will value shove more hands and bluff less.

Before I could even get around to posting that, I found myself in another heads up match against the same opponent where several exemplary hands arose. Here's one where I employ the same line for value with AA:

Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (SB): $2,937.50
BB: $2,044.50

Pre-Flop: A A dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $30, BB raises to $120, Hero raises to $270, BB calls $150

Flop: ($540) 3 T 9 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $222, BB calls $222

Turn: ($984) 9 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $444, BB folds

Results: $984 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero mucked A A and WON $983.50 (+$491.50 NET)


And an example of how one might defend against such a line:

Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

SB: $3,578
Hero (BB): $3,958.50

Pre-Flop: J J dealt to Hero (BB)
SB raises to $30, Hero raises to $111, SB raises to $265, Hero calls $154

Flop: ($530) 5 5 9 (2 Players)
Hero checks, SB bets $285, Hero calls $285

Turn: ($1,100) J (2 Players)
Hero checks, SB bets $865, Hero calls $865

River: ($2,830) T (2 Players)
Hero checks, SB bets $2,163 and is All-In, Hero calls $2,163

Results: $7,156 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
SB showed 3 5 (three of a kind, Fives) and LOST (-$3,578 NET)
Hero showed J J (a full house, Jacks full of Fives) and WON $7,155.50 (+$3,577.50 NET)


The point here isn't just that I coolered him. I put him on either a big hand (which would probably include KK and AA) or a bluff. No matter which he has, I can just check-call my boat and let him stick the money in by the river, since that's what he'll do with either type of hand. Not only do I induce bluffs, but I also make it tougher for him to bluff and value bet me with a line like this in the future.

Before you start feeling too bad for this guy, realize that this was payback for the last time he re-raised me with garbage:

Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (SB): $3,829
BB: $2,000

Pre-Flop: J J dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $30, BB raises to $120, Hero calls $90

Flop: ($240) 3 2 T (2 Players)
BB bets $125, Hero calls $125

Turn: ($490) 5 (2 Players)
BB bets $365, Hero raises to $3,584 and is All-In, BB calls $1,390 and is All-In

River: ($4,000) 9 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

Results: $4,000 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed J J (a pair of Jacks) and LOST (-$2,000 NET)
BB showed 6 4 (a straight, Six high) and WON $3,999.50 (+$1,999.50 NET)


Honestly, this is a bad turn shove by me. Against a lot of people, it would be fine, but this guy really wasn't aggressive enough to warrant it. JJ is good often enough, but my equity is so bad that I can't profitably shove. Mayyyyybe I could get away with calling and then folding the river unimproved, but folding is probably the best option.

Defining His Range Into Oblivion

Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (SB): $2,434.50
BB: $3,954.50

Pre-Flop: T K dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $30, BB raises to $100, Hero raises to $255, BB calls $155

Flop: ($510) 3 A 2 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $199, BB calls $199

Turn: ($908) K (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $480, BB folds

Results: $908 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero mucked T K and WON $907.50 (+$453.50 NET)


If he called the turn, I was shoving the river. Position, deep stacks, and judiciously employed small bets are a lethal combination. It's exceedingly difficult for him to show up with enough big hands to prevent me from exploiting him with river shoves.

If both players employ game theoretically optimal strategy, the advantage will obviously go to the player in position. His EV in the game will be a function of the pot size and the number of betting rounds, meaning that it behooves him to structure the betting so that there is roughly a pot-sized bet remaining on the river. He can then maximize his edge by making better decisions than his opponent about when he wants that last bet to go into the pot.

The player out of position is fighting an uphill battle. To balance his range, he needs to slowplay big hands quite frequently, make some heroic call downs, and float the flop out of position with the intention of check-raising the turn on a bluff. Most players can't do any of those things, let alone all three.

Heads Up With a Maniac

This guy was decent in some ways but pretty insanely loose and aggressive. I don't think he ever folded to a 3-bet pre-flop (I probably should have made my raise size bigger), and there was a lot of 4-betting going on. For the most part, I just hung back, made some thin call downs, and pushed my big hands hard. He was tough to bluff because he wouldn't fold anything and would re-bluff with ridiculous frequency. I was trying to bluff just enough to ensure that he knew I hadn't given up completely.

Faster!

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($1092.25)
Hero (Button) ($2109.50)

Preflop: Hero is Button with K, J
Hero raises to $30, SB raises to $110, Hero calls $80

Flop: ($220) K, K, J (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($220) 4 (2 players)
SB bets $85, Hero calls $85

River: ($390) 5 (2 players)
SB bets $285, Hero raises to $1914.50 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: $960 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero didn't show K, J
Outcome: Hero won $959.50

This was early in the match- I probably would have bet the flop based on the dynamic we later established. I guarantee he wasn't folding, whatever he had.



A Little Too Thin

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) ($3549.50)
SB ($3023.50)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 9, 8
Hero raises to $30, SB raises to $110, Hero calls $80

Flop: ($220) 2, Q, 8 (2 players)
SB bets $145, Hero calls $145

Turn: ($510) 9 (2 players)
SB bets $345, Hero calls $345

River: ($1200) 10 (2 players)
SB bets $455, Hero calls $455

Total pot: $2110 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero had 9, 8 (two pair, nines and eights).
SB had 10, A (one pair, tens).
Outcome: Hero won $2109.50



One of His Better Value Bets

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($2320.50)
Hero (SB) ($4791)

Preflop: Hero is SB with A, 10
Button raises to $30, Hero calls $20

Flop: ($60) Q, 2, 6 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $40, Hero raises to $111, Button calls $71

Turn: ($282) 2 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

River: ($282) Q (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $245, Hero calls $245

Total pot: $772 | Rake: $0.50
Results:
Button had 8, 8 (two pair, Queens and eights).
Hero had A, 10 (two pair, Queens and twos).
Outcome: Button won $771.50


A lot of busted draws here, though maybe he bets those on the turn? Whatever, folding too often to this guy was not a good idea.



Lucky Turn

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($1794)
Hero (Button) ($3150.50)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 10, 8
Hero raises to $30, SB calls $20

Flop: ($60) 2, 8, 7 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $44, SB raises to $118, Hero calls $74

Turn: ($296) 10 (2 players)
SB bets $235, Hero raises to $1002, SB raises to $1646 (All-In), Hero calls $644

River: ($3588) 10 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $3588 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero had 10, 8 (full house, tens over eights).
SB had 7, 8 (two pair, tens and eights).
Outcome: Hero won $3587.50



Psycho Call

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($2736)
Hero (SB) ($4375)

Preflop: Hero is SB with A, 10
Button raises to $20, Hero raises to $80, Button calls $60

Flop: ($160) 9, K, A (2 players)
Hero bets $120, Button raises to $260, Hero raises to $795, Button calls $535

Turn: ($1750) 2 (2 players)
Hero bets $3500 (All-In), Button calls $1861 (All-In)

River: ($5472) 5 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: $5472 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Button had 7, Q (high card, Ace).
Hero had A, 10 (one pair, Aces).
Outcome: Hero won $5471.50


I was expecting calls from worse Aces and maybe Kings. I don't know how he talked himself into this one. Maybe he decided I could be on a worse flush draw?



Tough Fold

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($2000)
Hero (Button) ($7110.50)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 5, A
Hero raises to $30, SB raises to $110, Hero raises to $222, SB calls $112

Flop: ($444) Q, J, A (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($444) J (2 players)
SB bets $225, Hero calls $225

River: ($894) 10 (2 players)
SB bets $665, Hero folds

Total pot: $894 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
SB didn't show
Outcome: SB won $893.50


I'm far from certain this was correct. It's obviously a scary card, but that also makes it a good bluff card. I don't think he has a K too often on the turn, but trips and clubs are both very possible. Ultimately the turn bet sizing is what swayed me.



Bluff It Off

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) ($4110)
Button ($2462)

Preflop: Hero is SB with A, 10
Button raises to $30, Hero raises to $111, Button calls $81

Flop: ($222) 8, 10, Q (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $145, Hero calls $145

Turn: ($512) Q (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $345, Hero calls $345

River: ($1202) 5 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $875, Hero calls $875

Total pot: $2952 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Button had K, 4 (one pair, Queens).
Hero had A, 10 (two pair, Queens and tens).
Outcome: Hero won $2951.50



Turning Second Pair Into a River Check-Raise Bluff

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) ($6043)
SB ($3207)

Preflop: Hero is Button with K, J
Hero raises to $30, SB calls $20

Flop: ($60) A, 8, K (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($60) 2 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $44, SB calls $44

River: ($148) 4 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $111, SB raises to $345, Hero calls $234

Total pot: $838 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero had K, J (one pair, Kings).
SB had 5, K (one pair, Kings).
Outcome: Hero won $837.50

I'm pretty sure he expects me to call the river almost always but not to bet very often. So it doesn't really make sense for him to check a big hand to me.



Lucky Turn

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) ($5693)
Button ($2275)

Preflop: Hero is SB with Q, A
Button raises to $30, Hero raises to $111, Button calls $81

Flop: ($222) J, 8, K (2 players)
Hero bets $166, Button calls $166

Turn: ($554) 9 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $345, Hero raises to $5416 (All-In), Button calls $1653 (All-In)

River: ($4550) 2 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: $4550 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Button had J, 9 (two pair, Jacks and nines).
Hero had Q, A (high card, Ace).
Outcome: Button won $4549.50



Not This Time

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($2478)
Hero (SB) ($2468)

Preflop: Hero is SB with A, 9
Button raises to $30, Hero raises to $111, Button calls $81

Flop: ($222) J, 7, 8 (2 players)
Hero bets $166, Button calls $166

Turn: ($554) Q (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $345, Hero raises to $2191 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: $1244 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero didn't show A, 9 (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won $1243.50


This one actually happened simultaneously with the above (we were playing on two tables).



Insane

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) ($3943)
SB ($4021)

Preflop: Hero is Button with A, A
Hero raises to $30, SB raises to $110, Hero raises to $222, SB calls $112

Flop: ($444) 6, K, 7 (2 players)
SB bets $325, Hero raises to $966, SB raises to $2445, Hero raises to $3721 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: $5334 | Rake: $0.50


There are so many good semi-bluff hands on this board that there's no reason to ever be 3-betting the flop with air, but that seems to be what he was doing here. Best example of his over-aggressiveness.



Bluffing With the Best

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) ($6885)
Button ($2370)

Preflop: Hero is SB with 8, 7
Button raises to $30, Hero calls $20

Flop: ($60) 7, 7, Q (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

Turn: ($60) 4 (2 players)
Hero bets $44, Button calls $44

River: ($148) 4 (2 players)
Hero bets $111, Button raises to $445, Hero calls $334

Total pot: $1038 | Rake: $0.50

He had Ace-high on this one, which makes it that much crazier of a bluff, since he had some showdown value.



Lucky River

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) ($6066.50)
SB ($3180.50)

Preflop: Hero is Button with A, 10
Hero raises to $30, SB raises to $110, Hero raises to $266, SB calls $156

Flop: ($532) 7, 5, 5 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $222, SB raises to $655, Hero calls $433

Turn: ($1842) 6 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $666, SB calls $666

River: ($3174) A (2 players)
SB bets $1593.50 (All-In), Hero calls $1593.50

Total pot: $6361 | Rake: $0.50

Never mind bluffs, he's value shoving worse on this river. He called me a lucky retard and quit immediately after this hand. Later he was nice though- he sat at another of my tables as I was getting ready to quit but didn't give me a hard time about it and even returned a blind that I didn't mean to post.

Just so I don't look like a total luckbox, remember that the above were hands selected to show how aggressive he was, and hence generally hands that I won. He did win a few big pots that I didn't post here. Also, there was this, against a different opponent:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) ($2323.50)
SB ($1692.50)

Preflop: Hero is Button with K, A
Hero raises to $30, SB raises to $90, Hero raises to $222, SB calls $132

Flop: ($444) 3, 10, Q (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $166, SB raises to $1470.50 (All-In), Hero calls $1304.50

Turn: ($3385) 8 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: ($3385) K (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $3385 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Hero had K, A (one pair, Kings).
SB had J, 9 (straight, King high).
Outcome: SB won $3384.50

Good Reads

It's embarrassing how, after three years of playing poker very seriously, I'm still affected so dramatically by short-term results. For two weeks, I was getting brutalized, doubting my instincts, and not playing my best. Then I have one big day and I'm back to making good reads and following through on them.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (2 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (SB) ($1168.50)
Button ($1144)

Preflop: Hero is SB with A, 8
Button raises to $30, Hero calls $20

Flop: ($60) 9, J, 4 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $30, Hero raises to $88, Button calls $58

Turn: ($236) J (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

River: ($236) 7 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $175, Hero calls $175

Total pot: $586 | Rake: $0.50

Results:
Button had 8, Q (one pair, Jacks).
Hero had A, 8 (one pair, Jacks).
Outcome: Hero won $585.50


This one isn't anything special, but it's a spot where I probably would have folded last week. When you're running bad, you always think they have it. But really, I think his value betting range, at least for a bet of this size, is like K9+. And the best hands in that range probably bet the turn. Throw in the fact that some draws missed and that he's probably floating pretty wide on the flop, and this is practically a standard river call.

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (9 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB ($1514)
UTG ($1449)
UTG+1 ($1273)
MP1 ($2032)
Hero (MP2) ($1317)
MP3 ($1000)
Button ($1607.50)
SB ($1092)

Preflop: Hero is MP2 with Q, K
3 folds, Hero raises to $35, MP3 raises to $75, 3 folds, Hero calls $40

Flop: ($165) A, Q, 9 (2 players)
Hero checks, MP3 checks

Turn: ($165) 8 (2 players)
Hero checks, MP3 checks

River: ($165) 7 (2 players)
Hero bets $123, MP3 raises to $377, Hero raises to $1242 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: $919 | Rake: $3

Results:
Hero didn't show Q, K (nothing).
Outcome: Hero won $916

This one is tough to explain. Villain is a very unconventionally tricky LAG. The jury's still out on how good he is, but he can definitely do some confusing things.

The river raise is bizarre and feels bluffy, since I doubt he's ever checking a monster on the turn. But I also think he knows how it looks, and I do think he's very capable of raising for value with a bad two pair and maybe even a strangely played AK or something. So while I contemplated calling, I eventually decided that unless he got there on the river with 77 or 65 (and even 65 probably bluffs the flop or turn), he's not calling a shove.

Calling for Information

My latest poker article, Calling for Information, is now appearing in the February issue of 2+2 Magazine. It's a relatively low-level strategy article, compared to some of the stuff I've published, but even more advanced players may find parts of it useful.

My central argument is that if you balance your ranges well, so that you are not revealing too much information about your own hand, then you will not generally need to raise for information. You will be able to determine from your opponent’s actions whether your hand is good enough to continue. Underlying this claim is the often-misunderstood premise that your opponent’s actual hand does not matter.

Please let me know if you find it useful or thought-provoking (or, I guess, if you find it otherwise- but be gentle!).

Right Line, Wrong Guy

I like this line a lot in this spot, but not against the table fish:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $20.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP ($2000)
CO ($1850)
Button ($1329)
SB ($8366)
Hero (BB) ($2197)
UTG ($2274)

Preflop: Hero is BB with Q, K
3 folds, Button raises to $40, 1 fold, Hero raises to $144, Button calls $104

Flop: ($298) J, A, 3 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

Turn: ($298) 2 (2 players)
Hero bets $203, Button calls $203

River: ($704) 7 (2 players)
Hero bets $550, Button calls $550

Total pot: $1804 | Rake: $3

Results:
Button had A, 10 (one pair, Aces).
Hero had Q, K (high card, Ace).
Outcome: Button won $1801


Most of the time that I check this flop after 3-betting pre-flop, I'm going to have something with some showdown value. And if I then bet hard at the turn and river, it will be because I was slowplaying a monster or at least pot controlling something pretty good like AK.

So, I like a similar line with a big draw, as compared to just betting the flop and then making a pot-committing turn bet. Maybe I'll get to check-raise the flop if Villain throws out a feeler bet/bluff, or make a concealed flush (since he probably wouldn't expect me to check a flush draw on the flop)- with all my outs, I certainly don't mind seeing a free turn card.

AT is exactly the kind of hand I'd expect a better player to drop on the river. But this was not a better player, and I should have known better.

Oh You Wanna Get Stubborn?

I'll get you off of it eventually...

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $6.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($4886.05)
BB ($300)
UTG ($600)
Hero (MP) ($1311.80)
CO ($1318.60)
Button ($1711.10)

Preflop: Hero is MP with 10, A
1 fold, Hero raises to $21, CO calls $21, 1 fold, SB raises to $84, 1 fold, Hero raises to $190, 1 fold, SB calls $106

Flop: ($407) 7, 3, Q (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $166, SB calls $166

Turn: ($739) 6 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $255, SB calls $255

River: ($1249) K (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $700.80 (All-In), 1 fold

Total pot: $1249 | Rake: $3


I like this because the value of my opponent's hand is so clearly capped (if he had a QQ+ or AK, he'd have shoved pre-flop, if he had a set he'd have shoved before the river) while I've shown strength at every opportunity. The river K is icing on the cake, connecting with AK, the single most plausible hand he was still beating on the turn with whatever pocket pair he had.

I imagine he realized all of this as well, because he tanked for a really long time but eventually gave it up.

The Third Barrel is the Value Barrel

Not my best double barrel ever, but the A is a good bluff card on the river. That makes it a good time for him to call down light, which makes it a good time for me to value bet light, which makes it a better bluff card in the future....

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (9 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

CO ($1958.75)
Hero (Button) ($1000)
SB ($1273)
BB ($1000)
UTG ($287)
UTG+1 ($1000)
MP1 ($2117.50)
MP2 ($215)
MP3 ($1187)

Preflop: Hero is Button with A, 8
6 folds, Hero raises to $35, SB calls $30, BB calls $25

Flop: ($105) J, 4, 9 (3 players)
SB checks, BB checks, Hero bets $66, 1 fold, BB calls $66

Turn: ($237) 6 (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $177, BB calls $177

River: ($591) A (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $377, BB calls $377

Total pot: $1345 | Rake: $3

Results:
Hero had A, 8 (one pair, Aces).
BB had 10, J (one pair, Jacks).
Outcome: Hero won $1342

How Not to Overplay Bottom Set

A few days ago I posted a hand where we were very deep and I feared I may have overplayed a small set/full house. Once again I was deep here against a pretty good player. Were I to fire a third barrel, I'd be showing a ton of strength, so much so that he could probably to fold all worse hands. More importantly, I felt that he wouldn't expect me to check any strong hand since I already had the betting impetus. Thus, not only can I induce bluffs, but I can also probably get him to value bet most hands that would have called the river anyway:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $6.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

CO ($864.80)
Button ($2075.80)
SB ($603)
Hero (BB) ($2065.20)
UTG ($428.70)
MP ($2007.80)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 7, 7
1 fold, MP raises to $21, 1 fold, Button calls $21, 1 fold, Hero calls $15

Flop: ($66) 10, A, 7 (3 players)
Hero checks, MP bets $44, Button calls $44, Hero raises to $199, 1 fold, Button calls $155

Turn: ($508) 8 (2 players)
Hero bets $345, Button calls $345

River: ($1198) 5 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $800, Hero calls $800

Total pot: $2798 | Rake: $3

Results:
Button had K, J (high card, Ace).
Hero had 7, 7 (three of a kind, sevens).
Outcome: Hero won $2795


Also important is the fact that I think my river checks are in general far too exploitable. For the most part, if I've bet the flop and turn but then check the river, it means I'm giving up. Thus, I've been on the look-out for opportunities to bet (or raise) the flop and turn then check the river when out of position with a big hand.

Some Shit Spots

These are all from tonight. Fair warning: this is pretty much a whine post, but I'm trying to include at least some insight into how precisely running bad can lead to playing bad (aside from the obvious straight-up frustration/tilt). This is the worst one of the night, one of two gin cards falls on the river:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $20.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB ($1000)
Hero (UTG) ($4229)
MP ($2197)
CO ($4117.25)
Button ($3109)
SB ($5835)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with 10, 10
Hero raises to $70, 2 folds, Button calls $70, 2 folds

Flop: ($170) A, 2, 7 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks

Turn: ($170) 6 (2 players)
Hero bets $111, Button calls $111

River: ($392) 10 (2 players)
Hero bets $288, Button raises to $1000, Hero calls $712

Total pot: $2392 | Rake: $3

Results:
Button had 8, 9 (straight, ten high).
Hero had 10, 10 (three of a kind, tens).
Outcome: Button won $2389


Honestly I was pretty unhappy about the river raise but in this case my hand is so under-repped and this opponent is generally an aggro monkey, though I didn't think it was too likely he was bluffing here. Pretty much just shit luck and a spot where he's going to get paid. Rightly or wrongly, it probably did contribute to my folding here (different opponent, I just mean that it may have made me a little gunshy):


Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (7 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP1 ($1723.05)
MP2 ($175)
CO ($154.25)
SB ($1060.50)
Hero (BB) ($2340.50)
UTG ($1010)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 3, 3
1 fold, MP1 raises to $22, 3 folds, Hero calls $12

Flop: ($49) 3, 7, 9 (2 players)
Hero checks, MP1 bets $18, Hero raises to $88, MP1 calls $70

Turn: ($225) 2 (2 players)
Hero bets $188, MP1 calls $188

River: ($601) 2 (2 players)
Hero bets $477, MP1 raises to $1425.05 (All-In), Hero folds

Total pot: $1555 | Rake: $3

Results:
MP1 didn't show
Outcome: MP1 won $1552


To be honest, though, I think this is actually a very good and disciplined fold, not a bad play. I can't imagine he's shoving anything worse for value, and I just don't think a bluff like this is in his repertoire. My range is pretty polarized to either a busted draw or a boat, and I don't he'd try to bluff me off of either.

Trying to bluff your opponent off of quads is generally not a good idea:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (8 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

CO ($1114.75)
Hero (Button) ($1000)
BB ($1092)
UTG ($1394)
UTG+1 ($516)
MP1 ($2003)
MP2 ($176.35)

Preflop: Hero is Button with A, 6
4 folds, CO raises to $30, Hero raises to $100, 1 fold, CO calls $70

Flop: ($210) A, J, 3 (2 players
CO checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($210) 8 (2 players)
CO bets $120, Hero calls $120

River: ($450) J (2 players)
CO bets $250, Hero raises to $780 (All-In), CO calls $530

Total pot: $2010 | Rake: $3

Results:
Hero had A, 6 (two pair, Aces and Jacks).
CO had J, J (four of a kind, Jacks).
Outcome: CO won $2007


I thought this would be a good spot for me to bluff my opponent off of a better Ace. There are far more Jacks in my range than in his, because I don't think he's betting a bare pair of Jacks on the turn. That means he has to have AJ or JJ to call the river.

This is the kind of thing I have in mind when I say that run bad leads to play bad. This probably is a good spot to bluff, but when you're just constantly running into the nuts, it's hard to keep pulling the trigger on thin plays. Of course, that can save you money, when your opponents really do always have fucking quads:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $20.00 BB (3 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB ($5702)
Hero (Button) ($5197)
SB ($4411)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 5, 4
BB raises to $60, Hero calls $60, 1 fold

Flop: ($140) 5, 3, 2 (2 players)
BB bets $120, Hero raises to $322, BB calls $202

Turn: ($784) K (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $615, BB calls $615

River: ($2014) K (2 players)
BB checks, Hero checks

Total pot: $2014 | Rake: $1

Results:
Hero had 5, 4 (two pair, Kings and fives).
BB had K, K (four of a kind, Kings).
Outcome: BB won $2013


I really think I should have bluffed this river, since my opponent will often have something like a big pocket pair with one diamond that isn't going to call. Obviously in this case I'm glad I chickened out though.

Last but not least, here's another thin play, this time a value bet, where I got burned:

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $10.00 BB (6 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($985)
SB ($3062.75)
Hero (BB) ($2029)
UTG ($1516)
MP ($1089.50)
CO ($1136.25)

Preflop: Hero is BB with K, Q
1 fold, MP calls $10, 2 folds, SB calls $5, Hero raises to $50, MP calls $40, SB calls $40

Flop: ($150) K, 9, 6 (3 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $99, MP calls $99, 1 fold

Turn: ($348) 2 (2 players)
Hero checks, MP bets $100, Hero calls $100

River: ($548) 7 (2 players)
Hero bets $330, MP calls $330

Total pot: $1208 | Rake: $3

Results:
Hero had K, Q (one pair, Kings).
MP had K, 2 (two pair, Kings and twos).
Outcome: MP won $1205

The guy, obviously, was a total fish. I wouldn't take such a transparent line against a good player, but I'm sure that he pays off with way worse on the river. It's really tough to keep plugging away and to maintain confidence in your decisions when you're just constantly getting raised, re-raised, called down, and shown monster hands. I think maybe I'm going to go play some PLO.

2008 Year in Review

Having already posted an analysis of last year's resolutions (One, Two, and Three), I'll turn now to some year-end miscellany:

Largest Pot Won

Though I played as high as 50/100 last year, my biggest win was in a recent 10/20 heads up game. It's both the largest pot I've won in absolute dollars and also (I think) the largest in BB's, nearly 1200 of them.

Full Tilt Poker, $10/$20 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (SB): $16,884.50
BB: $11,606

Pre-Flop: 6 T dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $60, BB raises to $220, Hero raises to $588, BB raises to $1,225, Hero calls $637

Flop: ($2,450) 6 J 6 (2 Players)
BB bets $1,425, Hero raises to $3,659, BB raises to $10,381 and is All-In, Hero calls $6,722

Turn: ($23,212) T (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

River: ($23,212) 9 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

Results: $23,212 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed 6 T (a full house, Sixes full of Tens) and WON $23,211.50 (+$11,605.50 NET)
BB showed A A (two pair, Aces and Sixes) and LOST (-$11,606 NET)


A little epilogue here: I saw this guy sitting alone at a 50/100 table recently and took a seat. He played one hand and quit.

Largest Pot Lost

I wish I could say it was a bad beat or cold deck, but mostly it was just bad play:

Full Tilt Poker, $25/$50 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (BB): $10,050
SB: $24,967.75

Pre-Flop: 4 A dealt to Hero (BB)
SB raises to $124, Hero raises to $411, SB calls $287

Flop: ($822) Q 8 Q (2 Players)
Hero bets $589, SB raises to $1,670, Hero calls $1,081

Turn: ($4,162) 2 (2 Players)
Hero checks, SB bets $2,575, Hero raises to $7,969 and is All-In, SB calls $5,394

River: ($20,100) 9 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

Results: $20,100 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed 4 A (a pair of Queens) and LOST (-$10,050 NET)
SB showed K Q (three of a kind, Queens) and WON $20,099.50 (+$10,049.50 NET)


Worst Bad Beat

As it happens, those are both from December. But I had to go all the way back to March and my days in the UB 25/50 heads up game to find the most annoying bad beat, defined as some combination of long odds and big pot:

Free hand converter brought to you by CardRunners

Seat 0: GASSITT ($4297.50) -
Seat 1: Foucault ($4500) - -

PRE-FLOP:

Foucault posts small blind $25
GASSITT posts BIG blind $50
Dealt To: Foucault


RAISE Foucault ($150)
CALL GASSITT ($150)


FLOP:

Pot: $350


CHECK GASSITT
BET Foucault ($200)
CALL Foucault ($200)


TURN:

Pot: $750


BET GASSITT ($525)
RAISE Foucault ($1650)
RAISE GASSITT ($3947.50)
CALL Foucault ($3947.50)


RIVER:

Pot: $10295




SHOWDOWN:
GASSITT:

MUCK Foucault

GASSITT collected $8594.5 from main pot with full house, fives full of jacks

SUMMARY:
Total pot: $8595 Rake: $.50

Final Board:


Seat 0: 5s Js 5h 5d Jd: full house, fives full of jacks. - Net Gain/Loss: ($3772)



Free hand converter brought to you by CardRunners

Largest Tournament Score



Yearly Profits Graph

Thanks to you all for following along this year, and best of luck at the tables (or wherever you ply your trade) in 2009.

Happy New Year!

Misclicking for Fun and Profit

It never ceases to amuse me when my mistakes make me money. Here I meant to bet $99 on the river and accidentally bet $9. The result was inducing a huge check-raise bluff from a hand that almost certainly would have folded to my intended bet:

Full Tilt Poker, $3/$6 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

BTN: $705
SB: $1,359.35
Hero (BB): $1,230
UTG: $1,336.25
MP: $600
CO: $1,828

Pre-Flop: A 7 dealt to Hero (BB)
4 folds, SB calls $3, Hero raises to $18, SB calls $12

Flop: ($36) 3 9 4 (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($36) 8 (2 Players)
SB bets $13, Hero raises to $42, SB calls $29

River: ($120) 3 (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero bets $9, SB raises to $234, Hero calls $225

Results: $588 Pot ($3 Rake)
SB showed T Q (a pair of Threes) and LOST (-$294 NET)
Hero showed A 7 (a flush, Ace high) and WON $585 (+$291 NET)


Unfortunately, I decided to flush the profits and then some on an ill-conceived river check-raise bluff of my own:

Full Tilt Poker, $3/$6 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 5 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

CO: $998
BTN: $597
Hero (SB): $1,713.20
BB: $352.10
UTG: $1,896.60

Pre-Flop: 8 8 dealt to Hero (SB)
UTG folds, CO raises to $21, BTN folds, Hero calls $18, BB folds

Flop: ($48) 2 J 5 (2 Players)
Hero checks, CO bets $35, Hero calls $35

Turn: ($118) 5 (2 Players)
Hero checks, CO bets $111, Hero calls $111

River: ($340) 7 (2 Players)
Hero checks, CO bets $200, Hero raises to $1,546.20 and is All-In, CO calls $631 and is All-In

Results: $2,002 Pot ($3 Rake)
CO showed J J (a full house, Jacks full of Fives) and WON $1,999 (+$1,001 NET)
Hero showed 8 8 (two pair, Eights and Fives) and LOST (-$998 NET)


First off, I hate the turn call. My thinking was that his range when he near-pots it is polarized to bluffs and boats, but it's probably so waited towards boats that I don't belong in the hand anyway. Then I disregard that read on the river and decide based on his bet-sizing that he has an overpair after all and maybe I can take him off of it. Pure sloppiness on my part.

Npnpnpnpnpasd

Absolutely murdered this guy at 10/20 heads up this afternoon. He was decent but overly loose and aggressive and did not adapt well to playing super-deep. As you'll see, we had a very aggressive pre-flop dynamic going on, but it occurred almost exclusively on my button. The deeper we got, the more I kept pots small when I was out of position, since he was so willing to play big ones when I had the button. I won't give a lot of commentary on each hand but you can get a general sense of how the game went.

He started off with a 150BB lead but it didnt' last:

Full Tilt Poker, $10/$20 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (BB): $4,000
SB: $7,053.50

Pre-Flop: T 7 dealt to Hero (BB)
SB raises to $60, Hero raises to $222, SB calls $162

Flop: ($444) 2 K 3 (2 Players)
Hero bets $333, SB calls $333

Turn: ($1,110) 2 (2 Players)
Hero checks, SB checks

River: ($1,110) 4 (2 Players)
Hero bets $895, SB raises to $1,790, Hero raises to $3,445 and is All-In, SB calls $1,655

Results: $8,000 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed T 7 (a flush, King high) and WON $7,999.50 (+$3,999.50 NET)
SB mucked 5 6 (a straight, Six high) and LOST (-$4,000 NET)


Full Tilt Poker, $10/$20 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (SB): $9,832.50
BB: $4,030

Pre-Flop: A A dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $60, BB raises to $220, Hero raises to $555, BB raises to $4,030 and is All-In, Hero calls $3,475

Flop: ($8,060) 9 T T (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

Turn: ($8,060) 9 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

River: ($8,060) 3 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

Results: $8,060 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed A A (two pair, Aces and Tens) and WON $8,059.50 (+$4,029.50 NET)
BB showed A K (two pair, Tens and Nines) and LOST (-$4,030 NET)


Full Tilt Poker, $10/$20 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (SB): $16,180
BB: $4,337.50

Pre-Flop: Q A dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $60, BB raises to $220, Hero raises to $555, BB raises to $1,125, Hero calls $570

Flop: ($2,250) A 9 A (2 Players)
BB bets $1,750, Hero raises to $3,500, BB calls $1,462.50 and is All-In

Turn: ($8,675) 8 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

River: ($8,675) 9 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

Results: $8,675 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed Q A (a full house, Aces full of Nines) and WON $8,674.50 (+$4,337 NET)
BB showed K 4 (two pair, Aces and Nines) and LOST (-$4,337.50 NET)


Full Tilt Poker, $10/$20 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (SB): $18,454.50
BB: $6,05

Pre-Flop: K Q dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $60, BB raises to $220, Hero raises to $588, BB calls $368

Flop: ($1,176) Q 9 8 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($1,176) 6 (2 Players)
BB bets $900, Hero calls $900

River: ($2,976) 7 (2 Players)
BB bets $2,750, Hero calls $2,750

Results: $8,476 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero mucked K Q (a pair of Queens) and LOST (-$4,238 NET)
BB showed 5 4 (a straight, Nine high) and WON $8,475.50 (+$4,237.50 NET)


On the one hand that's a scary river but for precisely that reason I felt obliged to call. I was playing my hand to induce a bluff so I can't very well fold to a very aggressive opponent when the perfect bluff card hits.

Full Tilt Poker, $10/$20 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (SB): $16,308
BB: $8,195.50

Pre-Flop: A J dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $60, BB raises to $220, Hero raises to $588, BB calls $368

Flop: ($1,176) Q 7 A (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $777, BB calls $777

Turn: ($2,730) J (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $1,643, BB raises to $6,830.50 and is All-In, Hero calls $5,187.50

River: ($16,391) 2 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

Results: $16,391 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed A J (two pair, Aces and Jacks) and WON $16,390.50 (+$8,195 NET)
BB showed 9 8 (Ace Queen high) and LOST (-$8,195.50 NET)


This one is just fucked up:

Full Tilt Poker, $10/$20 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (SB): $16,884.50
BB: $11,606

Pre-Flop: 6 T dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $60, BB raises to $220, Hero raises to $588, BB raises to $1,225, Hero calls $637

Flop: ($2,450) 6 J 6 (2 Players)
BB bets $1,425, Hero raises to $3,659, BB raises to $10,381 and is All-In, Hero calls $6,722

Turn: ($23,212) T (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

River: ($23,212) 9 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

Results: $23,212 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed 6 T (a full house, Sixes full of Tens) and WON $23,211.50 (+$11,605.50 NET)
BB showed A A (two pair, Aces and Sixes) and LOST (-$11,606 NET)


Felt kinda bad for him but come on we are 600BB deep don't min-5-bet your Aces.

Full Tilt Poker, $10/$20 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (SB): $28,557
BB: $3,931.50

Pre-Flop: 7 7 dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $60, BB raises to $220, Hero calls $160

Flop: ($440) 2 6 T (2 Players)
BB bets $310, Hero calls $310

Turn: ($1,060) 9 (2 Players)
BB bets $780, Hero calls $780

River: ($2,620) 8 (2 Players)
BB bets $2,621.50 and is All-In, Hero calls $2,621.50

Results: $7,863 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
Hero showed 7 7 (a straight, Ten high) and WON $7,862.50 (+$3,931 NET)
BB showed 9 T (two pair, Tens and Nines) and LOST (-$3,931.50 NET)


Villain: np i win 23k in 5 bet pots np with 6T npnpnpnpnpnppasd
Villain: f'
Villain: asgkjaf'lsdf
Villain is sitting out
Villain: sd
Villain: h


The Boston Debate League had an even bigger day than I did, though, receiving a $35,000 check from the Boston Foundation. They are hands down the most prominent philanthropic foundation in the Boston area, so a grant from them is huge not only for the amount of money involved but because of the visibility and credibility that it will lend us with other members of the philanthropic community.

Now... to celebrate!

Big Triple Barrel

I guess this is fairly standard and notable mostly for the sum of money involved:

Full Tilt Poker, $25/$50 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

CO: $12,483
BTN: $16,645
Hero (SB): $10,000
BB: $17,688
UTG: $5,000
MP: $9,875

Pre-Flop: 9 8 dealt to Hero (SB)
3 folds, BTN raises to $150, Hero raises to $555, BB folds, BTN calls $405

Flop: ($1,160) 7 4 2 (2 Players)
Hero bets $777, BTN calls $777

Turn: ($2,714) J (2 Players)
Hero bets $1,888, BTN calls $1,888

River: ($6,490) 2 (2 Players)
Hero bets $6,780 and is All-In, BTN folds

Results: $6,490 Pot ($3 Rake)
Hero mucked 9 8 and WON $6,487 (+$3,267 NET)


Naturally I double barrel when I turn the gut shot and a potential overcard to whatever pair my opponent may have. I do wish I had bet a hair more so that river would be a slightly less than pot shove rather than slightly more. Basically I think without history and at stakes that are higher than either of us usually play, I am getting called only by AQ or better (and even AQ is close). Given that the deuce on the river makes sets less likely and Villain is probably 4-betting QQ-AA a decent amount of the time pre-flop, I think this is a highly profitable shove in a vaccuum. Of course, a reputation for stuff like this will get you called down by 66- which then again is not bad at all as long as you can adjust.

The Spaz Factor

Villain was some random I'd never seen before and knew nothing about:

Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

UTG: $534.20
MP: $2,144.40
CO: $2,000
Hero (BTN): $2,000
SB: $2,215
BB: $1,015

Pre-Flop: J J dealt to Hero (BTN)
UTG folds, MP raises to $30, CO folds, Hero raises to $105, 2 folds, MP calls $75

Flop: ($225) 2 J T (2 Players)
MP checks, Hero bets $177, MP calls $177

Turn: ($579) 4 (2 Players)
MP checks, Hero checks

River: ($579) 9 (2 Players)
MP bets $214, Hero raises to $888, MP raises to $1,862.40 and is All-In

Results: $2,355 Pot ($2,355 Rake)
MP showed AQo and LOST (-$1,170 NET)
Hero showed J J and LOST (-$1,170 NET)


I generally don't give even fairly good players, let alone a random, credit for being able to 3-bet bluff the river for such a small amount, even though this is a decent spot for it. However, when playing against randoms, you do need to allow for the spaz factor. Because they generally are not thinking through a hand in a disciplined and systematic way, there is always the chance that they will go and do something crazy for reasons that they couldn't explain if they tried. In this case, I think the guy just decided I had nothing and then refused to change that read even when I raised him on the river. Whereas a better player would revise the range of hands he assigns me and contemplate whether he should call, fold, or raise (whether for value or as a bluff), the spaz factor causes a player to say, "pfft, he's got nothing, I'm all in".

Incidentally, checking the turn was an accident. I had big pots on a few other tables and timed out. It's nice when such an error, which usually causes substantial frustration, actually plays to my favor to the tune of nearly $2000.

Big Night

Last night was my biggest to date playing exclusively cash games, topped only by the WSOP (obviously- not sure that even counts since it took two weeks) and my win in the UB 200K last November. Funny thing is while I wasn't playing badly I don't think I was playing particularly great poker either. There were just a lot of cards falling my way. For once I won the vast majority of my flips at 25/50 Cap, which was nice since I was playing as many as four tables of it. The big night was also despite getting thoroughly owned by a very good player in this hand:


Full Tilt Poker, $10/$20 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 5 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

SB: $2,227
BB: $4,711
UTG: $7,963
Hero (CO): $7,237.50
BTN: $1,144.50

Pre-Flop: J 9 dealt to Hero (CO)
UTG folds, Hero raises to $70, 2 folds, BB raises to $260, Hero calls $190

Flop: ($530) 3 T K (2 Players)
BB bets $375, Hero calls $375

Turn: ($1,280) 8 (2 Players)
BB bets $875, Hero calls $875

River: ($3,030) 5 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $2,222, BB raises to $3,201 and is All-In, Hero folds

Results: $7,474 Pot ($3 Rake)
BB mucked and WON $7,471 (+$3,739 NET)


Pre-flop we're nearly 300 BBs deep plus he'd been 3-betting me a ton from out of position so I was looking to get tricky on him. The reason I say I was owned is that I feel in retrospect that he was just inside my head. He was simply thinking on a higher level than I was and knew what I was up to. He knew I was trying to mess with him and he knew how I was going to do it. Whether he was bluffing or not on the river, it's a great check-raise.

I was thinking I could steal because you so rarely see people bet flop and turn then check river witha monster. Either he had the As and knew I couldn't call but would bluff or he had nothing but knew I'd often be bluffing and made a sick re-bluff. In retrospect, this is a clear turn shove, and I'm pissed at myself for getting fancier than was necessary.

Honestly the best hand I can point to where I played well was a pretty thin value bet against a cap game fish:

Full Tilt Poker, $25/$50 NL Hold'em Cash Game, $1500 Betting Cap, 4 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

BB: $5,987
Hero (UTG): $10,000
BTN: $5,437
SB: $5,816

Pre-Flop: 9 9 dealt to Hero (UTG)
Hero raises to $122, BTN folds, SB calls $97, BB folds

Flop: ($294) Q K 2 (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($294) 8 (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero checks

River: ($294) 3 (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero bets $123, SB calls $123

Results: $540 Pot ($2 Rake)
Hero showed 9 9 (a pair of Nines) and WON $538 (+$293 NET)
SB mucked 5 5 (a pair of Fives) and LOST (-$245 NET)


I'd taken this check-down line against him before and was pretty sure that he would have made a blocking bet with almost anything that beat my 9's. Plus the guy was a station so I definitely thought he could call with worse, maybe even A-high if I bet small enough.

Standard River 3-Bet Bluff

Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 4 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

BB: $1,154
Hero (UTG): $2,707
BTN: $1,072
SB: $5,637.50

Pre-Flop: 2 2 dealt to Hero (UTG)
Hero raises to $35, BTN folds, SB calls $30, BB folds

Flop: ($80) 5 8 Q (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero bets $55, SB calls $55

Turn: ($190) A (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero checks

River: ($190) J (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero bets $144, SB raises to $622, Hero raises to $2,617 and is All-In, SB folds

Results: $1,434 Pot ($2 Rake)
Hero mucked 2 2 and WON $1,432 (+$720 NET)


To the extent that there is a "standard" spot for such a play, this is it. Opponent is either bluffing with a hand that is better than mine (hard to put him on air when he calls out of position on a dry flop) or trying to value raise something like two-pair, but it's extremely unlikely that he has the nuts or something close to it (doubtful he calls pre-flop or flop with KT or T9, strange line with JJ/QQ/AA as well).

A Random Call, Part Two

Eugene asked a great question about my recent post, A Random Call, which reminded me that I'd meant to post this hand as well. It happened not long after I snapped off a 2x pot river bluff with top pair, weak kicker. This was against the same opponent but on a different table:

Full Tilt Poker, $10/$20 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (CO): $4,732.50
BTN: $4,231
SB: $4,144.50
BB: $5,019.50
UTG: $2,000
MP: $7,734.50

Pre-Flop: 9 9 dealt to Hero (CO)
2 folds, Hero raises to $70, BTN raises to $240, 2 folds, Hero calls $170

Flop: ($510) 4 2 2 (2 Players)
Hero bets $222, BTN raises to $700, Hero raises to $1,178, BTN calls $478

Turn: ($2,866) 7 (2 Players)
Hero checks, BTN bets $2,813 and is All-In, Hero calls $2,813

River: ($8,492) 6 (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

Results: $8,492 Pot ($3 Rake)
Hero showed 9 9 (two pair, Nines and Twos) and LOST (-$4,231 NET)
BTN showed K K (two pair, Kings and Twos) and WON $8,489 (+$4,258 NET)


I chose this line to induce as many bluffs as possible, but in light of my recent call I think trying to play my hand as a bluff-catcher is a bad idea. Villain is probably not expecting me to make a big fold after he'd just shown down a big bluff, which means he's not going to try to bluff me off an overpair. Of course I could get into the whole, "but does he know that I don't expect him to bluff?" thing, but in this case I don't think he knows enough about me to expect that. He's probably just not going to bluff much in this spot, which means I ought to be playing the 99 with the intention of folding to heavy pressure.

In general, catching an opponent in a big bluff will induce one or both of the following dynamics for at least the near future:

1. Villain will stop bluffing in spots where he can only represent a narrow range or where you clearly have a relatively strong hand (ie better than top pair).

2. Villain will try to restore his ego and/or take advantage of the new table dynamic by running another big bluff.

These are not necessarily mutually exclusive, because the former only assumes he will stop bluffing in certain situations. When you appear to have a relatively weak hand, he may actually bluff with renewed vigor in order to reassert his castrated manhood.

River 3-Bet Bluff

I think the river 3-bet bluff is one of the sexiest plays in poker. Precisely because it's so hard to pull off, it's something I rarely attempt. But today I managed a good one:

Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

SB: $2,829.95
BB: $2,542.50
UTG: $1,143.95
Hero (MP): $2,087
CO: $2,000
BTN: $1,032

Pre-Flop: A K dealt to Hero (MP)
UTG folds, Hero raises to $35, CO calls $35, 3 folds

Flop: ($85) 3 8 2 (2 Players)
Hero bets $66, CO raises to $150, Hero calls $84

Turn: ($385) 7 (2 Players)
Hero checks, CO checks

River: ($385) 5 (2 Players)
Hero bets $277, CO raises to $710, Hero raises to $1,902 and is All-In, CO folds

Results: $1,805 Pot ($3 Rake)
Hero mucked A K and WON $1,802 (+$907 NET)


Let's start with the flop. In a 100BB game, I'm happily 3-betting the flop and getting the money. But with these stacks, his flop raising range is different and when the money goes in I'm usually going to be facing a set, not one pair. AK-high beats most of his bluffs anyway, so I just called.

The turn puts a ton of draws on the board, so when my opponent doesn't bet it, I ruled strong hands out of his range. I'd expect him to check two pair or better almost never on the turn. When I bet the river, it's to represent an overpair and try to bluff him off of one pair.

Because I'd previously ruled out two pair or better on the turn, the river raise is more than a little suspicious. Could the 5 have improved his hand? I doubt he's playing 64 like this pre-flop or on the flop, and if he is, I'd expect him to bluff the turn. 96 seems pretty unlikely for the flop raise. So I conclude that he's almost certainly bluffing.

Frankly, calling with AK would not be bad here, even though initially I was bluffing. But I also think it's very likely that he may be turning a pair into a bluff to get me off of the overpair I'm representing. So I decided that I'd be better off shoving to knock him off better bluffs and maybe even a 53 or something that he was raising for thin value.

A Random Call

I am a strong advocate of exploitive poker strategy. That is, I believe that you ought to tailor your play to exploit specific mistakes that you believe your opponents will make, even if this means that you are yourself open to exploitation. By definition, the more skillful player will do a better job of exploiting his opponents than they will do of exploiting him.

However, should you find yourself in a sticky spot against a player whom you believe to be more skillful than you are, you may occasionally prefer to employ game theory to help you avoid getting exploited rather than focus on exploiting that opponent.

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $20.00 BB (5 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP ($2087)
Button ($4197)
SB ($4659)
Hero (BB) ($8452)
UTG ($6115)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 7, A
2 folds, Button raises to $70, 1 fold, Hero calls $50

Flop: ($150) A, 3, 4 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $120, Hero calls $120

Turn: ($390) K (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $372, Hero calls $372

River: ($1134) 4 (2 players)

Hero checks, Button bets $2200


The way I've played my hand so far makes it pretty clear that I have a weak Ace. The question is what my opponent will do about that. I generally don't give my opponents credit for being able to overbet bluff the river, at least not with a good frequency. They might do it occasionally, but the vast majority of the time that they overbet the pot, they will have the nuts or very close to it. So in this spot, I would expect them to be overbetting for value, daring me to call with my weak top pair, but not to try to bluff me off of top pair, at least not with an overbet.

This is an easy strategy to exploit. With top pair weak kicker facing a bet like this from a standard opponent, I fold.

Notice how exploiting this tendency of my opponents leaves me open to exploitation as well. If my opponents were to stop overbetting their strong hands and overbet the river any time they don't have a strong hand, I would be in trouble. But for the most part I trust in my ability to adapt to my opponents more quickly than they adapt to me.

Against this particular opponent, however, I didn't feel so confident. I knew him to be smart, creative, and daring. I was sure he put me on exactly the kind of hand that I had, but I didn't know what he would try to do about it. Thus, I was lost as to what I ought to do on the river.

Because he's capable of betting for value or bluffing like this, my decision to call has to be based on what percentage of the time he will be bluffing. His bet lays me odds. If he will bluff here more than 33% of the time, I should call. Otherwise, I should fold.

The problem is that I don't know how often he is bluffing. The best that I can do, then, is choose a calling frequency that cannot be exploited. Since the pot is laying me 2:3, I should call 1/3 of the time.

No matter how often my opponent bluffs in this spot, then, he cannot exploit me. If he bluffs more than 1/3 of the time, he'll steal a few more pots but he'll lose too much on his bluffs. If he bluffs less than 1/3 of the time, he'll win more on his value bets but won't steal as many pots as he could.

If I knew that he was making one or the other of these mistakes, I could adapt my calling frequency to take advantage of them more fully. But then if he figured out what I was doing he could adapt his bluffing frequency to exploit me. Since I was not confident in my ability to win this battle of wits, I decided to default to an unexploitable calling strategy. I would look at the clock, and if the last digit was 7-9, I would call. If it was 1-6, I would fold. If it was 0, I would look at the next digit.

The time was 9:47. I called. He showed K8o, and I won the pot. But that's not the important part.

ur running so hot dude

I was feeling so on top of my game the other day. I was just really alert and creative, picking up on a ton of spots where I could steal pots if I applied enough pressure in the right way. This was the best one. Unless they have exactly Khxh, most people aren't going to check call a flush draw on the flop. I bet the flop just to set up an opportunity to steal the pot later. When the flush came in, it was just a matter of pouring on the pressure:

Full Tilt Poker, $3/$6 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 5 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

Hero (UTG): $2,697.85
CO: $937
BTN: $2,296.05
SB: $2,240.30
BB: $344.80

Pre-Flop: 7 9 dealt to Hero (UTG)
Hero raises to $21, 2 folds, SB raises to $72, BB folds, Hero calls $51

Flop: ($150) T K 6 (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero bets $88, SB calls $88

Turn: ($326) 2 (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero bets $377, SB calls $377

River: ($1,080) J (2 Players)
SB checks, Hero bets $2,160.85 and is All-In, SB folds

Results: $1,080 Pot ($3 Rake)
Hero mucked 7 9 and WON $1,077 (+$540 NET)


The best part of the hand was what my opponent said after he folded:

Villain: aa ur running so hot dude

Poker Vortices

I spent the better part of last week in Sedona, Arizona, which is a beautiful part of the American Southwest featuring tremendous red rock structures. Unfortunately, someone decided that these red rock formations have somehow created spiritual vortexes (and yes that is the correct pluralization, not vortices, I checked):

"In Sedona vortexes are created, not by wind or water, but from spiraling spiritual energy. The vortexes of Sedona are named because they are believed to be spiritual locations where the energy is right to facilitate prayer, mediation and healing. Vortex sites are believed to be locations having energy flow that exists on multiple dimensions. The energy of the vortexes interacts with a person’s inner self."

Consequently, Sedona is a hotbed of new age spiritualism, home to dozens of fortune tellers, spirit healers, mystical book stores, and all-around crazy people. I'm mad that I lost the exact language, but the visitor's guide provided by the National Parks Service specifically prohibits the rearranging of sticks and stones to create "medicine wheels" in the park and asks guests to "pray, chant, sign, drum, or meditate quietly" so as not to disturb others.

I spent about an hour playing poker and watching the sun rise from the porch of our hotel room while waiting for my girlfriend to wake up one day, though, and I must admit that maybe there is something to those vortexes after all (ugh apparently I don't FTP set to save hand histories on my laptop- sorry for botching the hell out of this post).

I was playing 10/20 heads up with a relatively weak regular. She was ridiculously over-aggressive, and I didn't respond to it quite as well as I should have. Still, I four-bet bluffed her twice pre-flop and flopped huge both times.

The first time, I had 54o, put $440 in pre-flop, and flopped the nuts on a 236 board. Since I knew my opponent could have a wide range pre-flop and it was my first time four-betting, I checked it back. The turn brought a J, she potted, and I shoved. She tanked and called with 95o for a gutshot which did not get there.

The second time, I 4-bet with Q7 and flopped Q77 for the second nuts. This time we were 4K deep, so I bet like 1/3 pot on the flop. In retrospect I probably should have just checked but I feared it would look too strong given how I played last time and the fact that my opponent knew I knew she could have almost anything.

The best one was when I called one of her 3-bets with T9o (again, 4K stacks) and flopped Q83. She bet, and I called. The turn brought another Q, and she bet smallish. I was pretty sure she didn't have a Queen, so decided to execute one of my new favorite moves where I make a raise I know my opponent will call and set myself up to bluff shove a future street when I am almost sure she will fold. I raised like 2.5x, enough to leave slightly less than a pot-sized bet in the effective stacks. Sure enough, she called and check-folded to a shove on a river 8. Sadly, she also quit after that.

50K Day Ship It!

Had a decent morning at the tables but the real brag is for the Boston Debate League, which was awarded today a $50,000 grant from the Carl and Ruth Shapiro Foundation. The grant will support the BDL's work with debate programs in the Boston Public Schools over the next two years, most especially that of the League's new director (who's probably reading this- congratulations, Steve!).

Here's another random brag, this one from the Stars weekly $500. Sorry was having trouble with the converter, basically I had an open-ended draw on the turn and overbet shoved when a flush card came on the river:

PokerStars Game #21709641365: Tournament #116152197, $500+$30 Hold'em No Limit - Level III (100/200) - 2008/11/02 18:23:05 ET
Table '116152197 23' 9-max Seat #7 is the button
Seat 1: nofingclue11 (11900 in chips)
Seat 2: tiger76 (9370 in chips)
Seat 3: jesseluke82 (5480 in chips)
Seat 4: berra86 (13699 in chips)
Seat 5: lowlife039 (13250 in chips)
Seat 6: Mia_121 (9276 in chips)
Seat 7: Joao M. (10835 in chips)
Seat 8: foucault82 (8390 in chips)
Seat 9: Psychout (8600 in chips)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to foucault82 [Tc 9s]
nofingclue11: folds
tiger76: folds
jesseluke82: folds
berra86: folds
lowlife039: folds
Mia_121: folds
Joao M.: folds
foucault82: calls 100
Psychout: checks

*** FLOP *** [Qc 8s 7c]
foucault82: bets 299
Psychout: calls 299

*** TURN *** [Qc 8s 7c] [5d]
foucault82: bets 666
Psychout: raises 666 to 1332
foucault82: calls 666

*** RIVER *** [Qc 8s 7c 5d] [2c]
foucault82: bets 6559 and is all-in
Psychout: folds
Uncalled bet (6559) returned to foucault82
foucault82 collected 3662 from pot
foucault82: doesn't show hand


He pretty much can't have a flush because he's not min-raising a flush draw on the turn. It just doesn't make sense to minimize his fold equity and re-open the betting, giving me the opportunity to blow him off his draw. So it's a great bluffing opportunity when the flush comes in. The only problem is that people are stubborn, especially when they have pretty hands (which the min-raise suggests he does), so I made the only bet that I thought I could force a tough lay down. I expected it to work damn near 100% of the time, though, which is why I found it interesting.

Triple Barrel Bet Sizing

A triple barrel bluff will by definition involve at least three bets. Especially when dealing with a player who can read hands well, sizing these bets will often be the difference between success and failure.

As I discussed in a previous post, your objective on early streets may actually be to get called. Since you are going to be bluffing later anyway, it behooves you to build a bigger pot to steal. Your other objective on early streets is to lay the groundwork that will enable you to represent a monster by the river. That means your betsizing must be consistent with the hand(s) you want to represent.

On the river, your objective is to make the most +EV bluff that you can. Remember that this is not always the bluff that succeeds most often. Tripling your bet size to double your fold equity is not a winning proposition.

Let's start by looking at how not to do that. I played this hand against a very good player, one of the best at these stakes:

Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

CO: $1,022
Hero (BTN): $2,349.75
SB: $2,169
BB: $3,128
UTG: $779.75
MP: $1,309

Pre-Flop: 8 T dealt to Hero (BTN)
3 folds, Hero raises to $35, SB folds, BB raises to $130, Hero calls $95

Flop: ($265) 4 K 6 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $111, BB calls $111

Turn: ($487) 4 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $333, BB calls $333

River: ($1,153) 2 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $1,275, BB calls $1,275

Results: $3,703 Pot ($3 Rake)
Hero showed 8 T (a pair of Fours) and LOST (-$1,849 NET)
BB showed K Q (two pair, Kings and Fours) and WON $3,700 (+$1,851 NET)


First off, this isn't the greatest spot for a triple barrel bluff. My opponent is announcing that he has a medium-strength hand, but he's also playing it in a way that will invite bluffs. And this particular opponent definitely has the hand-reading skills and the stomach to call down.

Since there aren't any plausible two pair combinations, the river overbet represents either a full house or air (or 53 for a straight, I suppose). And Villain probably expects me to 4-bet KK pre-flop often, so really I can only have three combinations of 66, one combination of 44, or the rare 22 that was bluffing and then backed into a boat. Since he's played his hand to entice a bluff, he's got an easy call with KQ.

I like this one better, even though it didn't work:

Full Tilt Poker, $5/$10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 2 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

BB: $2,203.50
Hero (SB): $6,798

Pre-Flop: 7 9 dealt to Hero (SB)
Hero raises to $30, BB calls $20

Flop: ($60) 4 2 8 (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $44, BB raises to $144, Hero raises to $366, BB calls $222

Turn: ($792) Q (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $444, BB calls $444

River: ($1,680) J (2 Players)
BB checks, Hero bets $888, BB calls $888

Results: $3,456 Pot ($0.50 Rake)
BB showed 7 7 (a pair of Sevens) and WON $3,455.50 (+$1,727.50 NET)
Hero showed 7 9 (Queen Jack high) and LOST (-$1,728 NET)


First off, my range is intrinsically much wider because we are heads up. It's not inconceivable that I have 84, 82, or 42 for two pair. My smallish bet sizing on future streets is consistent with this; by the river, 82 can expect to be best but can't expect worse hands to call a big bet. I also felt this bet sizing would be consistent with air that turned or rivered a pair and is now making a thinnish value bet.

Unfortunately, this was another poorly chosen opponent. He wasn't so much a good hand-reader as he was just plain old-fashioned stubborn. Oh well.

In New York

Sorry for the lack of updates, I was at a BDL tournament on Friday then a wedding reception in New York yesterday. The good news I'm staying in New York with a friend from the old Harvard Law School game I used to play in, so we got in some friendly 3-handed action with another of the guys yesterday. We played a .25/.50 NLHE game with a $100 buyin. I found myself rebuying a few times but somehow managed to avoid playing too many interesting hands.

Probably the most interesting was when I was in the BB with Q8s. Joe opened for $2 on the button, Darren folded in the SB, and I raised to $7.5