Overall, it's been a great poker year for me. I've fallen madly IN love with the game, and I've managed to come out of it about $400 ahead. That's the good news.
The bad news, is that I'm probably not just in love, but almost unhealthily obsessed with the game. So I'd like to resolve the following:
I resolve to continue to play poker and love it, and maybe even play more poker than last year; BUT - I resolve to set firm guidelines that should help me achieve this in a sane and responsible manner, insuring that I keep my family and work as the top priorities.
I'm not a problem gambler yet, (at least I don't think I am) but by setting hard and fast limits; I feel I can stay well ahead of this danger. If I look back mid-year 2008 and find I am in violation of these very reasonable tenets, it will be clearly time to hang it up.
Still, I'm a bit giddy at the prospect of having and maintaining an actual poker bank roll. Here's what I plan.
Using Chris "Jesus" Ferguson's guidelines on maintaining a bank roll, I know I can keep my poker money completely separate from the money I work for and earn for my family.
That's step number one. KEEP MY POKER MONEY COMPLETELY SEPERATE FROM ALL OF THE MONEY I MAKE FROM WORK.
To do this:
I plan to open my own checking account, and to deposit the $300+ I won in my online poker league this year. Plus about another $100 that I've been keeping track of since my cash win in Vegas and my recent cash win at home.
This account is my poker money, and it will be used for:
1) Playing online. This includes my poker league and possibly (if I can figure out how to do it safe and legally) a real money account on Full Tilt.
Online play will be restricted to two sessions a week, one will be my weekly Tuesday night league tournament and the other will be up to 3 hours on Sunday nights. This may SOUND LIKE A LOT, but actually - I have been playing for play chips ALMOST EVERY NIGHT OF THE WEEK for a few months. The wife is over it, and I am to. I can see that it's been a bit of a problem. I have currently stopped doing this - though it has been difficult, I feel keeping myself down to two nights max a week, under 5 hours total, is very reasonable.
2) Live home games. Including my monthly home game, and possibly others I am invited to.
Live home game play will be restricted to two games per month max; one at my place and one entirely optional home game elsewhere (if I am invited, last year I didn't go to many outside games).
For all of this play (which seems like a lot, but actually is many fewer hours than I've played in 2007) I will be restricted by Chris "Jesus" Ferguson's guide to bankroll management.
-I'll never buy into a cash game or a Sit & Go with more than 5 percent of my total bankroll (there is an exception for the lowest limits: I'm allowed to buy into any game with a buy-in of $2.50 or less).
-I won't buy into a multi-table tournament for more than 2 percent of my total bankroll and I'm allowed to buy into any multi-table tournament that costs $1.
-If at any time during a No-Limit or Pot-Limit cash-game session the money on the table represents more than 10 percent of my total bankroll, I must leave the game when the blinds reach me.
This should keep me financially in good shape, especially when I limit ALL of my poker money to my poker account only.
I'm keeping in mind that the buy-ins for my home game, my online league tournaments any and all home games I've ever been to fall WELL WITHIN Ferguson's guidelines with my current bankroll of $400+. Hopefully when I get a real money Full Tilt account, following these guidelines and playing micro-stakes, will keep me in good shape as well.
I am confident that I will continue to show profit, as I have at home games for the past 6 years and online for the past 8 months. But if my bankroll begins to drop, I am prepared to return to free play and instructional software until my game improves enough to warrant a return to real money play.
Now, having resolved all of this there will of course be a couple of "fun" and "gambling" exceptions:
1). My schedule and family life permitting, I plan to play once a month in the HPC Sunday 10K guaranteed multi-tourney. The buy in, with multi-rebuys, should average around $60. I plan to cap it at $120 max, though I am unlikely to spend this amount. This tournament I will treat as a once a month fun trip, and entertainment and yes - gambling. Hopefully, I'll be able to cash at some point - but if I don't, I'm there to have fun and gain live experience. My usual budget for purchasing DVD's and other "fun" items, will have to be curtailed to make room for this expenditure.
2). I will also allow myself 2 trips to Vegas this year. One is a planned trip with my online league buddies. The other one is as yet unplanned, but I know I will find myself in Vegas with my family at some point (maybe multiple points) during the year.
On only ONE of these family trips will I allow myself to "gamble".
For the planned trip my budget will be $200 a day. This sounds like a lot, but I doubt very much it will reach that point. I play low stakes cash limit, and low entry fee tournaments. I do want to have a cap though, if for some reason it seems that I can't control myself. Thankfully up to this point, the most I've ever lost on a Vegas poker day was just over $100; and I got a lot of play value on that trip.
For the inevitable unplanned trip, my budget will be $100 a day. I plan to hopefully play just a single low entry tournament, and possible low stakes cash if I get to go to the casino more than once.
All in all, I look forward to the New Year, and taking my poker cash and my family commitments a little more seriously. After playing the game for a couple of years at a semi-serious level, I've come to realize that limits are VERY important, and downright necessary for a productive and less stressful amateur poker career.
I feel it is also important, more so than the money even; to resolve to stick to limiting myself to online and live play; so that family and work remain my absolute priorities in that order.
-I will only play in the Flatline league once per week, Tuesday nights at 930pm. (We have been talking about a regular cash game, I will have to skip it if I plan to play in the tournaments).
-I will only play online poker for money once a week for less than 3 hours.
OR
-Failing that, I will allow myself the same session playing for play chips online, or using instructional software for the same designated time frame.
-I will not exceed my once a month live tournament play allowance at Hollywood Park Casino. I type this out, because I could easily see myself sneaking off for a weeknight tourney at Hollywood Park Casino (close to my work with LOW buy-ins. Very seductive and dangerous).
-I will only play in friendly home games that meet my bankroll requirements. (Currently less than $20 buy in). I will limit myself to hosting a home game only once a month; and give myself the option of also attending a single outside home game once a month as well.
I am very confident that with these simple yet reasonable guidelines, I can not only safely play more this next year - but play more sensibly, and win more, and be less stressed about squeezing poker into my schedule. I plan to give my wife the gist of this, and believe it or not it should provide actually a lot more time for family and grown up responsibilities.
Most of all, I must resolve that if my bankroll fails to meet these requirements, or if I violate my playing time allotment - that I will take a break from the game for the rest of the year. If this happens from September on, I resolve to break from the game until the following June.
I am confident that this will not be necessary. I have become aware of my wife's annoyance at me playing online free poker almost every night - I have already stopped doing this. I feel with hard fast guidelines that still allow for quality poker time, I can achieve my bankroll goals. I have done the same thing in my life with my weight and health, and this poker thing is very, very, doable. Especially since, I don't really have too much of a "problem" to begin with, yet.
I can do it!
Happy New Year!
Friday, December 28, 2007
Sunday, December 16, 2007
PSP Cash Game 12/15/07
Having literally grown up playing poker, my first and truest love of the game was always low stakes LIMIT. Card-centric, patient, "boring" limit betting mixed games. I typically have a cash game at my home every couple of months or so these days, and I always ponder at the beginning of the night, changing the format from low stakes ($1-$2 friendly spread limit) to something sexier like Pot or No Limit. It's what everybody knows and loves these days. I typically hear grumbling and mumbling over the first few rounds from these players that they "can't bluff anyone off a hand".
Well, by the end of the night, I'm always more convinced than ever that low LIMIT is the way to go, for my home cash game. Without exception, the grumbling settles down, and the fun grows. People love to play hands, and even at a full table of 9, there is great incentive to limp with speculative hands, and even chase an unlikely river - when all you stand to lose is a couple of bucks.
Even our biggest "loser" managed to only drop $80, four buy-ins. The two biggest "winners" approached $100 each, not bad for four hours of jovial, low pressure, highly social card playing. We had two tables and at one point 17 bodies. I was at the less fun table, we only had quads show up once - the other table had it six times!
I did manage to turn a profit as well, almost $40 ahead at the end of the night. Thanks to patience and pushing when the time was right. I didn't mind folding middling hands pre-flop in Omaha/8. I was in a tiny minority in this respect - I think most of the gang fell in love with whatever starting cards they happened to have. I was able to save a lot of bets, simply by not playing cards like 9 7 J 3 - yet I routinely saw similar ones like this at showdowns - almost always coming up second or third best.
I was also able to capitalize in Hold-Em, believe it or not, by instinctively/subconsciously reading other players hands; and popping it when I knew I was ahead. Given the calling station nature of the group, who are used to a lot more bluffing in the No Limit arena - I was able to appropriately punish marginal drawing hands and middle pairs. Most memorably, I had Ac Qs in middle position; I raised pre flop and got two callers behind me. The flop came three low spades, I fired my obligatory continuation and both players called automatically. Then came a red queen, without thinking I checked hoping to check raise. Both players checked behind me. An inconsequential card came on the river and I led out with the now allowable $2 max bet. The first player begrudgingly folded (I guessed a baby ace or a single spade that didn't fill out) and the second player tanked a while before calling disgustedly. I showed my TPTK and he mucked. I'm guessing he had a middle pair or some such nonsense - he said he was calling just to see what I could have. (A little late in the night for that, but I got an extra bet out of it.)
I took time at one point to indulge in a found of a silly game of my own imagining - triple draw, but instead of the typical 2-7 loball, I made it an A5 split pot game with an 8 qualifier. I got a big pot on the first hand, but then called off all of those chips for the rest of the round. Still very fun.
All in all a great night, with the biggest turnout yet. I now have over 30 friendly and enthusiastic players on my invite list - January's NL Hold-em tournament looks to be a big one, we might even have 3 tables! I did an informal survey at the game last night, to see what kind of tourney folks were most interested in playing - NLHE won by a landslide. I confess, I love it too - but my heart always longs for old school mixed games.
Well, by the end of the night, I'm always more convinced than ever that low LIMIT is the way to go, for my home cash game. Without exception, the grumbling settles down, and the fun grows. People love to play hands, and even at a full table of 9, there is great incentive to limp with speculative hands, and even chase an unlikely river - when all you stand to lose is a couple of bucks.
Even our biggest "loser" managed to only drop $80, four buy-ins. The two biggest "winners" approached $100 each, not bad for four hours of jovial, low pressure, highly social card playing. We had two tables and at one point 17 bodies. I was at the less fun table, we only had quads show up once - the other table had it six times!
I did manage to turn a profit as well, almost $40 ahead at the end of the night. Thanks to patience and pushing when the time was right. I didn't mind folding middling hands pre-flop in Omaha/8. I was in a tiny minority in this respect - I think most of the gang fell in love with whatever starting cards they happened to have. I was able to save a lot of bets, simply by not playing cards like 9 7 J 3 - yet I routinely saw similar ones like this at showdowns - almost always coming up second or third best.
I was also able to capitalize in Hold-Em, believe it or not, by instinctively/subconsciously reading other players hands; and popping it when I knew I was ahead. Given the calling station nature of the group, who are used to a lot more bluffing in the No Limit arena - I was able to appropriately punish marginal drawing hands and middle pairs. Most memorably, I had Ac Qs in middle position; I raised pre flop and got two callers behind me. The flop came three low spades, I fired my obligatory continuation and both players called automatically. Then came a red queen, without thinking I checked hoping to check raise. Both players checked behind me. An inconsequential card came on the river and I led out with the now allowable $2 max bet. The first player begrudgingly folded (I guessed a baby ace or a single spade that didn't fill out) and the second player tanked a while before calling disgustedly. I showed my TPTK and he mucked. I'm guessing he had a middle pair or some such nonsense - he said he was calling just to see what I could have. (A little late in the night for that, but I got an extra bet out of it.)
I took time at one point to indulge in a found of a silly game of my own imagining - triple draw, but instead of the typical 2-7 loball, I made it an A5 split pot game with an 8 qualifier. I got a big pot on the first hand, but then called off all of those chips for the rest of the round. Still very fun.
All in all a great night, with the biggest turnout yet. I now have over 30 friendly and enthusiastic players on my invite list - January's NL Hold-em tournament looks to be a big one, we might even have 3 tables! I did an informal survey at the game last night, to see what kind of tourney folks were most interested in playing - NLHE won by a landslide. I confess, I love it too - but my heart always longs for old school mixed games.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Flatline Poker League, TOC
Our first ever Tournament of Champions, conceived initially as a bonus tournament for the season's top ten finishers (it evolved into an open event - double stack, slower blinds) took place last night.
I was running great on all cylinders, I had a really great feel for the table. For the most part I was card dead, but it didn't matter. I was able to position bet my way to a healthy stack. My timing was just on, all night long.
On one hand I did wake up with Aces out of position and still managed to get all the chips in against the chip leader on a ragged flop. My opponent (the eventual winner of the night) had a pair of tens. Thankfully he blanked on his two outer on the turn and river - and I scooped a big pot. This would be the only time when he (hereafter known as Scamp) didn't have a monster suck-out against Aces or similar.
I was in great form, and I was paying particular attention to the hand history of one player (hereafter known as Rowser) who was donking it up in spectacular fashion with repeated semi-bluff betting out of position and on marginal draws. Because of his aggression, even though I thought it was pretty transparently bad aggression, he had a tasty stack that was ripe to be devoured.
My chance came in this hand I was in middle position, villain was on the BB.
3) scamp2 $12,212 ?? ??
4) Manzoni $5,850 Qs Kd
6) Miles 2 Go * $5,788 ?? ??
8) YourDinero $4,150 ?? ??
9) rowser $5,000 8c 9c
YourDinero posts small blind $150
rowser posts big blind $300
scamp2 folds
Manzoni raises $750
Miles 2 Go folds
YourDinero folds
rowser calls $750
This call of my 2 and a half times the BB raise is very typical of his passive and transparent "calling station" play. By calling, I know pretty much that he doesn't have a premium hand, or a higher to middle pair - he might have a small pair or two face cards. More than likely, based on his history, he has a suited or unsuited connecter. Whatever. I'm in position; I can read him like a book after the flop.
FLOP: 8h Jh 2c
rowser checks
Manzoni checks
Big fat blank of a flop for both of us. Top pair for him is probably out. He could be slow playing a set (88 in the hole). But with such a scary board (heart flush draw) even he is unlikely to get tricky. More than likely, based on his history, he has just what his check represents, a heart flush draw - and probably a bad one.
Now in all honesty I screwed up here. This is my one mistake in this hand, though it is a BIG one. I should have bit the bullet and fired a continuation bet of about half the pot here. By checking, I gave up the lead in the betting and allowed him to fire no matter what he had on the turn. I effectively told him that the flop missed me, and giving people information is just bad poker.
Turns out, that with the cards that he actually had (two low clubs) there is a somewhat reasonable chance that he would have gone away if I had made the correct continuation bet. A good player would have definitely gone away, but even more important - if he had flat called (AGAIN) I would have known for sure that he had what he had. And at least I wouldn't have had the second-guessing moment that I had after the turn card hit. I would have bet the same, but I would have been even more certain of my read.
TURN: 8h Jh 2c Kc
rowser bets $600
He bet. Hmmm. For most players, this is a poorly timed probe bet. He is out of position and hit a baby king (k5 in the hole) or some such nonsense. But I know Rowser, and I've been watching his stats all night. Time and time again he has bet "on the come" as old school home players like to say. He has a club flush draw, and again - probably a lousy one. I know it, I feel it, I AM ABSOLUTELY CORRECT. I also know at this point he won't respect any sort of half pot, or even full pot raise. I have top pair, big kicker, I know if he hit that king, the only thing that can beat me is AK which I know he doesn't have. I want those chips now, and the only way I'm likely to get them is to....
Manzoni raises $4,200 (all-in)
rowser calls $3,350 (all-in)
Great, an insta-call. Maybe I was wrong. Does he have a set? I just don't see it. He's risking his tournament life on a draw? No way. He must have a monster.
Manzoni shows Qs Kd
rowser shows 8c 9c
Oh, so he is a total donk and I was 100% right on my read. Still, I'm upset at the call even before the next inevitable card hits. How can he call, risk everything on a 1 in 4 shot plus 2 other outs? Bad play, bad poker. Yet totally consistent with his level of skill. I should have been happy he stuck his foot in it - regardless of the outcome.
RIVER: 8h Jh 2c Kc 3c
rowser wins $10,150 with a Flush, King High
That's poker. And in the long run it's very good news. Unless he reads this and really absorbs just how much I am onto his play (he might as well have his cards up half the time) I will absolutely crush him in the long run.
Still, I was a bit miffed that my shot at taking down this prestigious second chance tourney was foiled by such a level 1 play.
I have considered that maybe I need to lower my expectations on certain players; my hero Cali (who has crushed our game and recently 229 other players at a big live event) has demonstrated that he is a virtuoso at playing donkeys. He plays the players first and the cards second. He doesn't go for the giant moves, when he knows that eventually the fish will try stupid giant moves of their own and get clobbered by his stone cold nuts.
I do definitely try to emulate this as much as I can. But I don't think it will be beneficial to me to play with a fear of being drawn out on, especially If I KNOW with as much certainty as I can, what someone has. I must absolutely go for the jugular every time. Though I may get stung by other people's lack of skill on occasion, in the long run I will win out.
I was running great on all cylinders, I had a really great feel for the table. For the most part I was card dead, but it didn't matter. I was able to position bet my way to a healthy stack. My timing was just on, all night long.
On one hand I did wake up with Aces out of position and still managed to get all the chips in against the chip leader on a ragged flop. My opponent (the eventual winner of the night) had a pair of tens. Thankfully he blanked on his two outer on the turn and river - and I scooped a big pot. This would be the only time when he (hereafter known as Scamp) didn't have a monster suck-out against Aces or similar.
I was in great form, and I was paying particular attention to the hand history of one player (hereafter known as Rowser) who was donking it up in spectacular fashion with repeated semi-bluff betting out of position and on marginal draws. Because of his aggression, even though I thought it was pretty transparently bad aggression, he had a tasty stack that was ripe to be devoured.
My chance came in this hand I was in middle position, villain was on the BB.
3) scamp2 $12,212 ?? ??
4) Manzoni $5,850 Qs Kd
6) Miles 2 Go * $5,788 ?? ??
8) YourDinero $4,150 ?? ??
9) rowser $5,000 8c 9c
YourDinero posts small blind $150
rowser posts big blind $300
scamp2 folds
Manzoni raises $750
Miles 2 Go folds
YourDinero folds
rowser calls $750
This call of my 2 and a half times the BB raise is very typical of his passive and transparent "calling station" play. By calling, I know pretty much that he doesn't have a premium hand, or a higher to middle pair - he might have a small pair or two face cards. More than likely, based on his history, he has a suited or unsuited connecter. Whatever. I'm in position; I can read him like a book after the flop.
FLOP: 8h Jh 2c
rowser checks
Manzoni checks
Big fat blank of a flop for both of us. Top pair for him is probably out. He could be slow playing a set (88 in the hole). But with such a scary board (heart flush draw) even he is unlikely to get tricky. More than likely, based on his history, he has just what his check represents, a heart flush draw - and probably a bad one.
Now in all honesty I screwed up here. This is my one mistake in this hand, though it is a BIG one. I should have bit the bullet and fired a continuation bet of about half the pot here. By checking, I gave up the lead in the betting and allowed him to fire no matter what he had on the turn. I effectively told him that the flop missed me, and giving people information is just bad poker.
Turns out, that with the cards that he actually had (two low clubs) there is a somewhat reasonable chance that he would have gone away if I had made the correct continuation bet. A good player would have definitely gone away, but even more important - if he had flat called (AGAIN) I would have known for sure that he had what he had. And at least I wouldn't have had the second-guessing moment that I had after the turn card hit. I would have bet the same, but I would have been even more certain of my read.
TURN: 8h Jh 2c Kc
rowser bets $600
He bet. Hmmm. For most players, this is a poorly timed probe bet. He is out of position and hit a baby king (k5 in the hole) or some such nonsense. But I know Rowser, and I've been watching his stats all night. Time and time again he has bet "on the come" as old school home players like to say. He has a club flush draw, and again - probably a lousy one. I know it, I feel it, I AM ABSOLUTELY CORRECT. I also know at this point he won't respect any sort of half pot, or even full pot raise. I have top pair, big kicker, I know if he hit that king, the only thing that can beat me is AK which I know he doesn't have. I want those chips now, and the only way I'm likely to get them is to....
Manzoni raises $4,200 (all-in)
rowser calls $3,350 (all-in)
Great, an insta-call. Maybe I was wrong. Does he have a set? I just don't see it. He's risking his tournament life on a draw? No way. He must have a monster.
Manzoni shows Qs Kd
rowser shows 8c 9c
Oh, so he is a total donk and I was 100% right on my read. Still, I'm upset at the call even before the next inevitable card hits. How can he call, risk everything on a 1 in 4 shot plus 2 other outs? Bad play, bad poker. Yet totally consistent with his level of skill. I should have been happy he stuck his foot in it - regardless of the outcome.
RIVER: 8h Jh 2c Kc 3c
rowser wins $10,150 with a Flush, King High
That's poker. And in the long run it's very good news. Unless he reads this and really absorbs just how much I am onto his play (he might as well have his cards up half the time) I will absolutely crush him in the long run.
Still, I was a bit miffed that my shot at taking down this prestigious second chance tourney was foiled by such a level 1 play.
I have considered that maybe I need to lower my expectations on certain players; my hero Cali (who has crushed our game and recently 229 other players at a big live event) has demonstrated that he is a virtuoso at playing donkeys. He plays the players first and the cards second. He doesn't go for the giant moves, when he knows that eventually the fish will try stupid giant moves of their own and get clobbered by his stone cold nuts.
I do definitely try to emulate this as much as I can. But I don't think it will be beneficial to me to play with a fear of being drawn out on, especially If I KNOW with as much certainty as I can, what someone has. I must absolutely go for the jugular every time. Though I may get stung by other people's lack of skill on occasion, in the long run I will win out.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
December HPC Poker and Ponies Live Tournament
240 entries, $35 buy-in with multi-rebuys. My friend (who is the often spoken of points leader in my online league, hereafter known as Cali) and I ponied up our dough and drew random cards from two different ladies checking people in. Naturally we drew seats right next to each other at the same table.
I had a great time in the two hours that I played, especially enjoyable was being able to chat with Cali about the various hands that unfolded before us. To avoid getting a nasty stare or a punch in the throat, we chatted under our breath, and in a kind of code speak that only friends who have been playing cards together for over 5 years can understand. Good times.
Then I donked out in a major way - not because my decision was horrifically bad, which it was; but because I wasn't employing the necessary "situational awareness" ABSOLUTELY REQUIRED to play poker. I wasn't focused, and I was preoccupied with my chip stack, which I thought at the time was low. In hindsight, I needed to be patient. My stack was just under x20 the BB after the break. Not great, and almost about short stacked, but not nearly critical. When I looked down at a beautiful suited Big-Slick, I over-bet; then called a monster raise.
I wasn't paying attention to the size of the raise, it was made by some guy who had just lost a big pot. I thought he was all in, but he still had plenty of chips to hurt me. If I had merely taken the time to turn my head, to look at the chips he put forward; I might have had the common sense to lay down my over-bet. Instead, I passively and stupidly called. Then, when a raggedy flop came, I compounded my mistake by going all-in. He turned over aces.
I'm not going to dwell on it, but it was three really bad decisions. The good news is (for my education) that all three of my mistakes could have been avoided if I just had a smidgen of patience. Patience to recognize that I was in the Yellow zone, not the Orange or Red zone. Patience to stop and think about what kind of bet would have gotten the job done - I was in early position, a raise of 3x the BB (instead of my stupid x6) would have had exactly the same result. Patience to stop, look at the raiser's chips, and ASK him how much he had left; this FOR SURE would have given me all the information needed to make the obviously correct decision; so the disastrous post-flop scenario would have never even happened.
More good news, from an educational standpoint, is that after I left Cali went on to finish 11th out of 240 players. Holy shit.
Amazing, amazing, amazing. And when he called me he sounded disappointed that he hadn't finished higher. I have to laugh at that, because I think he is genuinely unaware at how hard it is to do something like what he did.
Needless to say, Cali hopes to make this tourney a monthly event. Hopefully, God willing and wife permission giving, I can join him most of the time.
Cali's high finish gives me hope, because I know when I am paying attention, I can play just about as well as he can. (I've given up thinking I'm better, the numbers don't lie.) And I know if I can focus, and reign in some of the aggression that I employ online - that a much higher finish is definitely in the cards for me.
I had a great time in the two hours that I played, especially enjoyable was being able to chat with Cali about the various hands that unfolded before us. To avoid getting a nasty stare or a punch in the throat, we chatted under our breath, and in a kind of code speak that only friends who have been playing cards together for over 5 years can understand. Good times.
Then I donked out in a major way - not because my decision was horrifically bad, which it was; but because I wasn't employing the necessary "situational awareness" ABSOLUTELY REQUIRED to play poker. I wasn't focused, and I was preoccupied with my chip stack, which I thought at the time was low. In hindsight, I needed to be patient. My stack was just under x20 the BB after the break. Not great, and almost about short stacked, but not nearly critical. When I looked down at a beautiful suited Big-Slick, I over-bet; then called a monster raise.
I wasn't paying attention to the size of the raise, it was made by some guy who had just lost a big pot. I thought he was all in, but he still had plenty of chips to hurt me. If I had merely taken the time to turn my head, to look at the chips he put forward; I might have had the common sense to lay down my over-bet. Instead, I passively and stupidly called. Then, when a raggedy flop came, I compounded my mistake by going all-in. He turned over aces.
I'm not going to dwell on it, but it was three really bad decisions. The good news is (for my education) that all three of my mistakes could have been avoided if I just had a smidgen of patience. Patience to recognize that I was in the Yellow zone, not the Orange or Red zone. Patience to stop and think about what kind of bet would have gotten the job done - I was in early position, a raise of 3x the BB (instead of my stupid x6) would have had exactly the same result. Patience to stop, look at the raiser's chips, and ASK him how much he had left; this FOR SURE would have given me all the information needed to make the obviously correct decision; so the disastrous post-flop scenario would have never even happened.
More good news, from an educational standpoint, is that after I left Cali went on to finish 11th out of 240 players. Holy shit.
Amazing, amazing, amazing. And when he called me he sounded disappointed that he hadn't finished higher. I have to laugh at that, because I think he is genuinely unaware at how hard it is to do something like what he did.
Needless to say, Cali hopes to make this tourney a monthly event. Hopefully, God willing and wife permission giving, I can join him most of the time.
Cali's high finish gives me hope, because I know when I am paying attention, I can play just about as well as he can. (I've given up thinking I'm better, the numbers don't lie.) And I know if I can focus, and reign in some of the aggression that I employ online - that a much higher finish is definitely in the cards for me.
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