Created a New Blog for Misplayed/Tough Hands

I created a new blog titled "My Misplayed/Tough Hands." You can find it on the right hand side of this blog. I got this idea from Dodgyken and hopefully it will help me improve at a faster rate.

Check it out and comment when you can. I added my own thoughts into each hand in red.

As for poker, haven't been playing much. I'm taking a little break until 2008 and hoping to put in 10-20k hands or more in January. I am able to deposit with Instant E Check now on FTP, so it's much easier for me to deposit/withdraw when I need to.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year,

AppleSeed

10k plus hands at $50 nl he sh

I've run so bad at $50 nl he sh at FTP. I reviewed all my hands at this level and I am running terrible. Most of the stacks that I lost involves me being suck out on the turn/river or coolered. I did play terrible on some spots due to tilt but overall ran very bad. Out of the 10 buy ins I lost, I would contribute 6 buy ins to suck outs and about 4 buy ins to tilt.

I'm going to move back down to $25 nl he sh and regain my confidence. I'll play another 10k hands at 25 and see where I stand. I want to move up slowly and really evaluate my play. I really hope to be able to beat $200 nl he sh by the end of 2008. That is only a dream though because it seems so far away.

Here are 5 leaks that I need to improve upon.

1)Making too many hero calls with no reads
2)Overplaying TPTK with no reads
3)Learn to fold over pairs on draw heavy flops when villain shows aggression.
4)Need to quit when tilting because I will never fold draws/TPTK/Over Pairs on scary flops.
5)3 bet more out of the blinds vs lags

I'm going to post hand histories where I find big leaks, so I can remind myself not to make it again.

I need to work on my game and reevaluate it. I need to be more aggressive when draws are out and if villain shows resistance, I need to slow down/fold TPTK and over pairs. I see that there are not too many bluffers at 25 and 50 nl he sh. I rarely ran into bluffs when I called down. I couldn't believe the hands I was being shown down on the river.

Here are my stats. If you see any leaks, let me know.

Thanks for any input.

10k hands at 25 nl he sh at FTP

Here are my stats so far. I have been playing my Solid Tag game and making great c bets on flops that are unlikely to hit my opponents. I still need to fix a few leaks because I find that I'm trying to make too many hero calls on the river when villain hits their 2-5 outers.

Overall, I am very satisfied with the way I have been playing these past 10k hands.





I plan on moving up to $50 nl he sh and 4-6 tbl for 10k hands. I will then reassess my game and see if I should move up or not.

So Far So Good over 7k hands

I've played 7k hands so far and I am up 4 buy ins at 25 nl he sh. I'm running at about 19/15/2.7 and winning about 2.9 PTBB/100 hands.

I will post up a PT screen shot when I hit 10k hands.

I'm Back

Hi,

I'm back. I redeposited $1k into FTP and will be 4-6 tabling $25 nl he sh for 10k hands and then reassess where I stand. I doubt anyone is reading my blog now since I haven't posted in months but hope to get a few readers along the way.

My mind is clearer and my last downswing/terrible play is now out of my head. I'm also in better physical shape, so that should help me focus better at the poker table. I've been going to the local YMCA 3-5 times a week. I lift every other day and play basketball in between. It's a schedule that compliments each other well because my lifting helps improve my basketball game. So it keeps me motivated to keep the weekly routine.

I'm excited to have a bankroll online again and play some poker.

Calling it Quits For Now

I've managed to blow my $5.2k bankroll to $3.6k playing $100 and $200 nl he hu. I'm pretty sure if I keep playing I'm going to bust my account because I feel no motivation to play my A game anymore. I'm cashing out and calling it quits for now. I'll probably just play free roll MTT for fun.

Overall, I've made over $15k playing poker for about 2 years. I feel that I've overachieved actually because I started out playing 0.50/$1 limit holdem with a $200 bank roll and gradually moved to nl he. I've been able to beat $25, $50, and $100 nl he sh but have failed at $200 nl he sh and HU play.

It's so sickening that I'm actually going to quit poker indefinitely. I'm sure I'll be back playing online in the future when the US government decides to regulate online poker so that it is easier for the average American to deposit/withdrawal.

I just need to focus on my life right now. I still volunteer at my school with research (U of M TC) and work full time at a Group Home for Adults with Mental Illness. I plan on attending Grad School in Fall 2008 and earn a Masters in Psychology so that I can practice therapy. I also need to get back in shape and live a more active/healthier lifestyle.

I'm sure I'll be a happier person because I won't have to deal with the variance of poker anymore. Plus, my parents and brothers don't actually support me playing poker. They think that I am wasting my time and money. It would be nice to have their support but it is not necessary because it is ultimately up to me if I play or not. I don't share with them how much I've made or lost because it would blow their minds. They don't want to hear that I swing hundreds and even thousands daily.

I really admire the players who can lose 10-plus buyins and still play their A game. Poker is a very tough game and it's all about personal management. If you can't play within your bankroll and manage tilt, you will never be a winning player. This game is so sick and addicting, I love it but I will have to walk away.

I'll read and respond when I feel I can help. I really hope all of you accomplish all your poker/life goals. Some of you guys are very dedicated and I'm sure some of you will be playing higher and higher stakes eventually.

Good Luck,

AppleSeed

July Stats and my biggest pot ever (BRAG)

Here are my July Stats.




I didn't play too much hands because I was focus on improving my play. I mainly studied and tried to improve my hand reading ability and participated in reading/answering blogs. I also experimented with HU cash game play.

I found a real maniac at $100 nl he hu. I played him on day one and took about 4 buy ins off of him. After he played me, he went straight up to $1k nl he hu and won about $3k. The next day I found him again playing at the heads up tables. He sat at the $1k hu tables with $400. I decided to sit since I had a good read on him and knew he would tilt like a mad man.

Then this happened. He's such a maniac that I got priced in with my two overs. I had to call, and I was basically flipping a coin with him on the flop.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1334452

I lost and reloaded to $1k. I would consider this tilting even though I knew I had a edge on this guy. I was in the heat of the moment and if I lost this $1k, I would of been sick to my stomach and regret it.

Here's a hand to show you how sick this guy is. I made a good read and went with my instinct. He was the sort of player that would bet when he had nothing and check when he had a medium/strong hand for pot control/deceptiveness.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1334552

Luckily, I stack him for my biggest pot ever.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1334465

He was such a maniac that I decided to call him with any two on the button because he would stack off with the worst of it. I flop TPWK and decide to play it passively because if I raise, he would usually fold with air and push with draws. Once I hit two pairs on the turn it was a easy call. My biggest pot ever, even though I only won about $371 on this session.

If you see this guy sitting, I recommend sitting with him. Very profitable, even though it's high variance. I got up after that hand because too much of my BR was on the line. He reloaded to $1k but I wouldn't dare play that guy again with $1k. I would consider this a +ev shot because I had a good read on him. I played him with my $4.8k br. Now I'm sitting at about $5.2k. Yeah, HU is so sick.

Funny thing is, I followed him around after that match. He went up to $2k nl he hu and lost it all. That guy is a sick gambler, trying to run it up quickly or go bust.

Shout out to LuckySOB for organizing the Free Roll at FTP

LuckySob organized and hosted the Free Roll at FTP. There were 9 of us who participated. 1st = $50, 2nd = $30, and 3rd =$20. MirrorRobin put a bounty on his head for $20 if he lost with the worst hand or $10 if he lost with the best hand going into the River.

1) Dwarrior, 2) BassStretcher (Dodgyken), 3)Blitzkrieg Pkr (LuckySob), 4) MirrorRobin, 5) nxbigthang (Noel), 6) Soshhsb (Rasputin), 7) phantom Aces (Jonathan), and 8) me (AppleSeed).

Here's the hand where MirrorRobin had to pay the $20 bounty to Noel.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1318340

I chipped my way up from the starting chip stack of $1500 to $3417 without showing down much. I've been min raising in position and this happens.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1318289

My stack is now at $5,242 with 5 left. Blinds are at 60/120.

I tighten up and pick my spots to steal while everyone tries to accumlate and knock each other out.

We are now 3 handed. I have $4,487, Dwarior = 2717, and BassStretcher = $4,796. Blinds are at 80/160 and this hand comes up that gives me the momentum.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1318299

I didn't like the low flop because I felt bass was capable of putting on a check raise bluff. So I waited for a delayed bluff on the turn. Once the turn hit, making a 3 to the str8 and Bass checked. I felt he didn't have it because he would have betted. I had the flush draw now and wanted to just take the pot down right now.
I betted $300 into a $560 pot. A little over half the pot. Bass check raises me to $1,350 and leaves himself about $3,000 in chips. I was going to fold but I felt that he wouldn't have check twice if he had a hand he would go to the felt with, so I raised all in. I figured I had 15 outs if he called and wouldn't be in too bad of shape. Bass folds and I take it down.

A few hands latter. Standard call vs Bass.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1318316

I lose it but I'm still in the race. A few hands later I suck out vs Dwarrior.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1318320

It's now heads up between me and Bass. Here is the final hand.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1318323

Hope you enjoy the recap. Dodgyken, what did you have when I semibluff you with KQs? I'm thinking you had a stone cold bluff, it almost worked though because it was either fold/raise all in. I don't like the call because if I miss and you bet the river, I would have to fold.

We should do this again next month. A $10 buy-in private tourney would be nice.

Great List of Reading for the aspiring poker player

I think I found this at CR or 2plus2. I remembered I bookmarked it but I just never got to it. I'm definitely going to read as much as possible. There is a big list. Maybe we can talk about some of the posts/ideas/theory over Aim.

Link

It was originally made by Pr0crast of 2plus2.

Enjoy

Pock 10 on the Button against a 4 tabling Tag

I was playing tight passive. I was running around 21/10/1.3 over 75 hands. I like be passive preflop and play flops. I tend to be aggressive post flop vs the lags/loose passives and passive vs the tags ( my normal total agg is around 2.5).

This might be a leak in my game. I'm thinking of experimenting with a more aggressive pre flop game so I can take down more small pots and better define villain hand ranges. Something around 20/18/3.

Hand in question.
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1290749

Villian saw me make a donk play vs a unknown. (This is definitely a big leak in my game, Fancy Play Syndrome vs unknowns).

My donk hand. I need to fix this leak.
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1290741

Villian was a 4 tabling Tag (probably around 20/17/2.5 over 60 hands). My PAHud wasn't working at the time so I didn't have any stats on him. I'm looking at his stats right now and he played 27/23/6 over 158 hands. He probably Taged it up in the beginning and opened up his game afterwards with reads. He seemed pretty ABC post flop and wasn't getting to showdown very much.

How would you play Pock 10 on the button? Preflop, flop, and turn? I was just hoping he was bluffing because I didn't have any reads on him. He probably had JJ-AA, AK, AQ, AJ. He might be on a random bluff because he's betting awfully thin on the river when the 4 to the str8 hits. I doubt he has a set or two pairs because he wouldn't 3 bet me preflop with a small pocket pair or garbage on the SB given my tight passive image.

thanks,

AppleSeed

Playing 10J H on a 7s Jd 5s flop in position (tpgk)

I didn't have much read on this guy. My PAhud wasn't working at the time but he was pretty tight passive (probably 15/9/1 over 20-30 hands). He wasn't too active and wasn't showing down much. I had a tag image and been showing down big hands.

(I'm looking at his stats right now on PT on this session and it is 26/0.58/0.68 over 112 hands)

Hand in question.
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1290619

He did see me get sucked out on in this hand (about 10 hands ago or so) so he knew i was pretty tricky/aggressive with my big hands.

Suck out hand.
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1290634

What are your thoughts when you see someone get sucked out on? Do you try to bluff them or not? I tend not to bluff because they will call lightly. Honestly, I felt a little hot because the guy who stacked me was a donk.

Do you raise or fold the turn bet? I felt that he had Pock 10-A, AK, AQ, AJ. I didn't think he would 3 bet with pock 5 or 7 on the SB. I doubt he would have 64 for the str8 on the turn. Against his range, what would you do? He might be on a flush draw and pushing his fold equity against my calling range. I hate this spot.

thanks,

AppleSeed

Just got back from my younger sister's wedding at Madison, WI

The wedding was held in Madison, WI this past Saturday. The night before all the guys went out to Wandos and had a blast. I drank a shot of tequila, 2 coronas, and who knows how many fishbowls. I felt it but I wasn't too wasted. Afterwards, we ate at Denny's and I didn't get back to my hotel room until 5 in the morning.

I read that U W Madison is one of the biggest party schools in the nation. I see why. Bars are everywhere in that college area. Everyone was real nice too. Would love to do it again in the future.

I just finished a 436 hand session. Won a little over $200 bucks 2 tbl $50 and 2 tbl $100 nl he sh at FTP. It feels good to be running so well. I'll put up some trouble hands after i get home from work and respond to all the blogs. I'm committed to this CR Low Limit Community. It has tremendously improved my play. I actually play with reads now and not just emotions. I have trouble finding leaks now, haha. Yeah, it feels good.

Had a bad cough and headache

Had a bad cough and headache. Taken some cough syrup these past 4 days and feeling better. I will be putting in a good session tonight by 3 tabling $50 and 1 tabling $100 nl he sh at FTP. On pace to get at least 10k hands this month.

My logic on bluffing.

Ok, here is my logic on bluffing. I will usually shut down but i had a few reads that I went on and went ahead and 2 barrel and 3 barrel.

Hand 1. http://www.pokerhand.org/?1236716

Villian here is 47/37/2.92. His WtoSD = 18.18 and W$atSD = 50%. I had 69 hands on him.

This guy had a wide range and i wasn't sure what he CC me preflop. I had a tight image and I was going to rep a big overpair. I felt that he was on a flush draw and betted all the way. I felt that if he had a 8x on the flop he would of raised me. He was pretty solid post flop too and I like to put pressure on these guys because they can fold hands.

Would you play it differently? Would you bluff on the river or just give up?


Hand 2. http://www.pokerhand.org/?1236742

Villian here is 28/10/1.25. His WtoSD = 21.45 and W$atSD = 33.33. I had 50 hands on him.

This guy was loose passive. I had a rocky image.

On the flop, I always bet my nut flush draws.

On turn, I check for pot control and felt he was going to call me down with a pair of 2, 4, or flush draw.

On the river, he checked and felt i had to bluff to win the pot. I dont think he would be ck calling with a pair of Jacks or better.

Yikes, he check raises me. I wonder what he had? Possibly a set of 10 or a weird 2 pr. Do you bluff this river too?

thanks for all the comments. Be as critical as possible, I won't feel bad. I'm trying to improve.

Trying to figure out the math of chasing draws.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1218043

I'm trying to figure out the math here. This is the weakest part of my game and i never bothered to learn it properly. I ususally just play by feel, instinct, and aggression.

hero stack = $50
villian stack = $51.85

preflop. pot equals = $3.25

flop. pot equals = $21.25

turn. pot equals = $76


I need to call call $23.75 more to win $76. So i'm getting about 3 to 1 on my money to make this call. Is it profitable to make this call in the long run? I figure I probably have 8 good outs.

8/46 = 17% chance of hitting and getting 3 to 1 on my money.

Can someone please explain the theory behind pot odds like i'm retarded?
I hear people talk about it all the time likes it's nothing and I never bothered to fully understand it.

If you think it's too elementary, you can post a good link for me and i'll read up on it.

thanks,

AppleSeed

My current state of mind before the storm

Hi guys,

Just letting you guys know my state of mind right now. I haven't played poker since March. I took a two month break because I was sort of burnt out playing for over a 1.7 years without a significant break. I was just sick of the grind.

In March, I set a 30k hand goal but only played 28k hands because I wanted to watch the NCAA Final Four. I 6 tabled $100 nl he sh and took another shot at $200 nl he sh but was not successful. I was down about 1k but basically broke even because of bonus/rakeback.

My head is not on str8 right now and that is why i'm playing $50 nl he even though i'm rolled for $100. Once I get my head back on i'm going to go jump back up to $100 nl he.

I only plan on playing 3-4 tables and then jump back up to my normal 6 table. I may even add more tables, who knows. I'm always looking to experiment and improve my grinding/playing abilities.

One of my friends on CR (Dahlig763) rail birded one of my $50 nl he session yesterday and I won a buyin. I 3 tabled and got about 300 hands in (I appreciated it, I hope you jump into this community). From my experience with him, he's a serious student of the game and looks like a strong player.

I plan on playing between 15-25k hands in July because I have a full time job. I may play more if i go on a massive heater.

later,

AppleSeed

Introduction

Hi, my name is John and I play poker as a hobby. I am 24 years old and have a BA in Psychology at the U of M Twin Cities. I'm currently working as a Residential Counselor at a group home for adults with mental illness. One day, I hope to go back to grad school and earn a Masters in Psychology so I can be a therapist.

I am new to blogging and have never done this before. My intention is to use this blog to help improve my poker game. I give credit to peterpjames at CardRunners for inspiring me to create this blog and start to actively improve my poker game.

I am currently playing $50 and $100 nl he online at Full Tilt Poker. My goal is to be able to consistently beat $200 nl he. I have taken two stabs at it and have failed. I probably played about 10-15k hands at that level and I am probably down about 5 buyins. I plan on taking another stab when my bankroll hits 6-8k. My bankroll is currently at 4.2k.

Later,

AppleSeed