Last 2 weeks or so; Lost Value

11/21/13-Home Game

5:00 1/2 Mixed (Mostly Big O and NLHE) -$1,100

11/26/13-MD Live

25 mins 2/2 PLO +$653
11:10 2/5 NLHE +$542
11/29/13-MD Live

10:23 2/5 NLHE +$1,557

The theme of this post is lost value. I feel like the last two sessions I have played well but not optimally. In particular this last session I may have played a bit too conservative in a spot or two. I will post some specific hands.

Overall though, November continued to end well. I ran really poorly in the home game session (my bi-weekly Thursday night game) losing flips, getting coolered, etc. No big deal as it was all mostly standard stuff. The stacks get deeper as the night goes on and some big pots are often played.

Anyway here are the hands.

Welcome to the Table

I had doubled up on my first table and then the fish went broke and the table got really bad. So I immediately asked for a table change and got one. Problem is on a table change you can only buy in for the table max-$500. So I had to pocket the table 1 profit. Anyway I got moved to a new table and unwittingly got the God seat. Both of the competent big stacks on my immediate right with 2 big stacked mega fish on their immediate right. Probably the best seat I could ask for. This hand is totally standard though.

First hand I am dealt, one of the competents is walking around so I am in the BB. Few limpers and BTN who is a terri-bad fish raises to $35. I peel JJ and decide to 3b to $125. He is a massive losing fish that I have played with before and will call with a lot of hands...I figured any pair he would set mine, any 2 broadways, and AT+, etc. Folds to him and he calls.

(Pot ~$270) Flop QJ4 I lead $150, he ships and I snap obv. River runs out clean and he says "Your Kings are good". I table and he says "Oh god, you got lucky sir...nice hit". I'm sorry what? If KK is good then I was good the whole way...lol. I'm assuming he had AQ. Of course, he played the hand like the fish that he is (by flatting pre-flop) but that is beside the point.

I posted the next hand on 2p2 and everyone agreed a flop flat was in order. Here it is:

Flop the World

There are 2 massive donators in this game. They are SB and BB in this hand. They each are sitting on 1.2k+ and I cover. They are running like 100/10 both and show down hands like K3o, J6o, etc. Once they make a pair postflop regardless of the action they simply aren't folding. Anyway I overlimp in LP with A8 SB completes, BB raises to 20, 2 limpers call, I call, SB calls-5 to flop. (Pot ~100) Flop 679 Blinds check, UTG bets 35 with only 125 behind. Limper #2 folds and on me. Obv smashed the flop and given deepish stacks with the 2 fish and their stickiness I'm thinking raise to 125-ish? Anyone want to flat and for sure keep them in? Again if they have a pair they are likely to call anything...If they have 2 overs (ie KQ, KJ) they are literally 50/50 to peel if I flat.

I elected to flat the 35 as did one of the fish. Turn was K. Short stack shoved, I called and fish folded. I held for a medium sized pot that probably should have/could have been bigger.

I just wonder if I can get more $$$ in there even by doing something dumb on the flop like min-raising and getting the fish stuck in a bigger pot. There is not a single hand he can have that I am scared of obviously and deep stacked I just wonder about building pots here.

Flopped Set on Drawy Turn

I think I probably lost value here too. I was playing really TAG due to the 100% VPIP of the 2 fish in the game and their complete inability to fold post flop with any pair. Just had to adjust and felt this was the optimal way to play them. For whatever reason, however, I decided to play this pre-flop a little un-TAG.

Few limps to me and I decide to raise 77 in the c/o to $25. Not sure how good this is given the stickiness of the table but I wanted BTN to fold as he had just sat down and was a good player. Both fish call as does one other limper. 4 to the flop.

(Pot ~$110) Flop 723 All check and I bet $75...only the two fish call.

(Pot ~$335) Turn 8 First fish leads at the pot now for $125. Second fish jams $450 total. First fish has about $725 behind. If I flat he will have ~$400 behind if he flats. If I jam I think he will have a hard time calling without 2 pair +. However, if I flat he can easily fold any combination of all of his draws unimproved on the river. So that coupled with his lead just convince me that he is not folding, so I rejam. He tanks and finally folds claiming he had 69. IDK if that is true but if so I made the right play jamming. Really hard to put him on a hand there that is not a draw but I guess he could just be clicking buttons.

Anyway I hold vs. A5 versus fish #2 and win a nice sized pot.

Perhaps I am overthinking the hand with respect to Fish #1 but I just wonder if flatting could have yielded more value. Even if he flats the $450 and folds river I still pick up an extra $325.

Any thoughts here?

Overpair in a 3b Pot

I've been watching some Bart Hanson videos at night and watched one on bloated 3b pots. It made a lot of sense and got me thinking if I played this hand a little too fast.

Fish #1 from above opens to $25 and gets 2 callers. I 3b to $110 from the BTN with QQ. Only fish calls. He starts hand with $700 and I cover by a lot. His range remains pretty wide even after the 3b and includes stuff as weak as JTs+, KJs+, AXs, small pairs, etc.

(Pot ~$275) Flop J73 Now here is where I think I make a sizing mistake. He checks and I bet $200. I don't think this sizing is terrible but I do think I can bet smaller both to induce or get value. If he has or JX he is going with it anyway so my sizing doesn't matter. But he might peel 88-TT, hell even 44-66 to try and turn a straight draw. He is a massive fish and effective stacks are 2x the pot. I think I can bet like $140...maybe he tries to "outplay" me and shoves or maybe he calls. then stacks are ~$450ish with $655 in the pot.

Obviously he folded and I won but I'm just not sure this was optimal sizing. May start a new thread in LLSNL about sizing in bloated, 3b pots.

So no $10k November for me but a very good month nontheless. I also just recently clipped 1k hours in in live play since Black Friday when we all thought the poker world was ending. I may do a post about that with results, what I learned, where I still think I need to get better, etc. if there is interest so let me know.

November-$10k Month?

It's possible though might be a bit of a stretch.  Here is a review of a good session the other night.

15 min 5/10 NLHE +$885
9:08 2/5 NLHE +$1,805

Well my card dead/run bad from October is officially disengaged. Running pretty well, coolering a few people and playing well has added up to a really good stretch over my last ~5-6 sessions. Did a better job tracking some interesting hands so will have a bunch in this post.

I arrived yesterday afternoon and was immediately seated at 5/10. I only had $2k on me so I really wanted to play 2/5 as this reps only 2 bullets. anyway 1 hand was enough.

Some times the Game is Easy

This is literally like my 3rd hand at 5/10. Table was 6/7 handed with a dude that had played every pot for a raise. He is Villain in this hand. He opens to $50 with XX and I 3b in the BB with KK. He calls. My read was that he was spewy just based on the 3 hands and didn't want to give up like ever.

(Pot $305) Flop KT9 I lead $175 and he starts cutting out chips like he is going to raise but ultimately just calls. I think he has a pretty wide range still with a lot of TJ, QT, J9, AJ type hands being a big part of his range. Pair with gutters, bare gutters, etc.

(Pot $655) Turn 8 This is obv a brick. My man has like $575 left and although I can easily shove I think I can bet small and get him to commit thinking he has fold equity or just get 2 streets of value here. So i decide on $225. he calls pretty quickly.

(Pot $1105) River 8 Seems like a good card . I put him in for his remaining $340-350 and he calls saying "I can't put you on a hand". I table and obv MHIG.

Right after that I got called for 2/5. Thought about it for a minute and said fuck it, I'm gonna hit and run this game. So off to 2/5 I went when the following happens:

If your plan is to bet/fold you gotta bet/fold

I fold a few hands then on cue I get KK in MP. 2 limps in front and I go $25. only 1 of limpers calls. he appears young, good with chips, kinda talkative but never seen him in the room before.

(Pot $60) Flop QQ8 He ch and I decide to ch it back

(Pot $60) Turn 7 He ch, I bet $40 he call

(Pot $140) River 6 I decide to bet/fold targeting like 99/TT, 89, 8T, maybe 87, etc. So I bet $75 and he pretty quickly c/r to $250. His line doesn't really make much sense at all. But it's 2/5 and they don't a lot of time. I start talking to him asking him what he thinks I have. he says "I think you have a Q". When he says this I really think he is bluffing like he is trying to say he thinks I'm strong, yet he still made this play. But I went with my initial plan and folded. he showed JT for an odd bluff that worked.

Turning a meh hand into a bluff

A bad non-thinking player opens to $10 in LP over a limp or 2. I had a pretty good read on him that he bet big with big hands and smaller with smaller hands. He had earlier bet $25 pre, then bet $125 on the flop with $75 in the pot on Qxx board and showed the table QQ. Anyway I call BTN with AJ. 6 to flop.

(Pot $60) Flop QJ6 He bets $25, I call, SB calls.

(Pot $135) Turn 8 He bets $60 only I call. I think he has some weakish Q's here (QTs, etc.), maybe some hands I beat like AK or 99/TT and just doesn't know what to do so he bets kinda small. I obv pick up the NFD so I'm not folding.

(Pot $255) River 8 Not the card I was looking for. He fumbles around and bets $100 and I start thinking. I can't really call but he's a fish and I don't really like bluffing fish. Anyway I really decide to go with my read about his betting patterns. Although he has bet 3 streets, none of them have been very strong bets. So I decide to cram $375 more. He then starts thinking and quickly confirms he has a Q so I was right to raise or fold. Finally he says "You must have a full house so I fold".

Paying attention there and being engaged in the hand won me that pot for sure.

Stacking a meh LAG-set up hand tho

I open prob my fave QJ to $20 in MP. 3 callers including a LAG in SB. He was playing a lot of pots, raising every single time he straddled. He wasn't bad but wasn't a star either. Anyway 4 to flop.

(Pot $80) Flop AT8 Welp I'm not folding now, 2nd flush draw, double gutted is pretty good! Checks to me and I bet $55, only SB calls.

(Pot $190) Turn 3. he checks and I bet $125. He calls. I range him on 2 pair, sets, maybe like KQx, J9 (least likely I guess). I think he 3b AK preflop so I don't think he has AxK

(Pot $440) River 5 He checks a 3rd time and I decide to bet bigger. I bet $350 relatively quickly. He starts tanking and finally gives me the "Why so much?" speech. I try to look nervous and he finally calls with what he said was 88.

Nice pot. I wonder if I can bet even more on the end. Always hard to know.

Flopped world-just cram it

This is with the same Villain I bluffed above. He again min-raises and gets 1 caller. i decide to try and iso on him and raise KQ to $45, Folds and he calls, caller calls as well. 3 to flop.

(Pot $140) Flop K36 Villain leads $60 and other dude folds. I'm clearly raising but just not sure how much. Anything looks strong IMO. I finally settle on a jam and so I do jam effectively for his stack of $435. He thinks for a moment and then calls with KJo....lol. I hold and am off and running.

In this hand I just felt like he could find a fold if a bad card came on the turn (ie I made my flush). Once he led I put him on TP type hand so I thought my jam would look bluffier than a smallish raise. Also he probably thinks I am picking on him a bit.

I level myself into a bad call

Here is a hand that I hate the way I played. There are 2 limps and I raise to $25 with 99. 3 call and we go to the flop.

(Pot $100) Flop 457r Checks to me, I bet $65 and only young asian kid calls. I have played with before. Decent player that plays 5/T some and PLO at times.

(Pot $230) Turn 6. Now he leads $75 and I call. IDK this is probably a fold but the only hand that makes sense here is 88 and maybe 87s.

(Pot $380) River 9 He leads $115 and I puke in my mouth a little bit. I beat 77, 76, 66, etc but obv nothing with a 3 or 8 in it. I am getting in the neighborhood of 4.5-1 so I need 20-22% to call. I decide that he doesn't just have a straight and I beat all hands but the straight. So I puke call to see 88.

Blah. Don't like the way I played this hand at all.


Little over 60% of the way to a $10k month but will put in some grind over the next ~10days.