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.