Butch Howard Gambles

Cashed Out

2011-06-01T14:26:00.003-04:00

I cashed out the last bit of change that I had on Pokerstars. It was an amount large enough to pay for my wife and me to have nice burgers at The Counter perhaps, but not enough to do much else. I am not going to bother cashing out the 28 cents I have on FullTilt.

I also deleted the program icons from my desktop. I do not expect to play any online for 3-5 years as that business gets sorted out. I really wish the closest live (legal) poker wasn't 7 hours away. But, then again, maybe that is for the best also.

For good news: My wife and I will be going to Kansas City for a wedding at the end of the month where, I have heard, they still have casinos that have not been sucked out of the state by tornadoes. I plan to play some while we are there.

PokerStars Home Games

2011-03-29T22:02:00.001-04:00

You are invited to join my private poker club for Home Games online.

- If you don't already have it, download the free PokerStars software from www.pokerstars.com
- Open the main poker lobby, then click on the Home Games tab
- Click the 'Join a Poker Club' button
- Enter my Club ID number: 386329
- Enter my Invitation Code: poker kicks

That's it! Once I've approved your membership request, we'll be ready to start playing Home Games online together.

If you want to find out more, visit www.pokerstars.com/homegames

WPBT

2009-12-20T12:27:00.002-05:00

Trip report coming soon. I have posted the few photos I took. Even though I carried my little camera everywhere, I ended up not taking very many photos.

This is the one that stands out to me right now.

From 2009 December Vegas

I was going to leave this one out because it was so blurry, but decided that it needed to be there because that is just the way the week is starting to feel about now. The memories are fading and blurring. Mary and I sat at lunch yesterday (Saturday) trying to outline the week and had trouble remembering which events happened on which days. This only two days after getting home.

Here are the rest

2009 December Vegas

WPBT Tick Tock

2009-11-17T22:53:00.002-05:00

A bit over a year ago the girls went to Vegas and the boys stayed home. And I don't mean 'girls' as in the wives took on the town; that was a gaggle of teenagers with a couple of chaperons.

This time the adults are going and the kids are staying home.

Mary and I are combining a long needed vacation with an anniversary trip of sorts. Since our anniversary is 28May it lands right in a really rotten time of year to do anything by ourselves. Kids and widely scattered family have lots of things happening right around that part of the year. Added to that this was the Great Job Disaster. Things are on track December will be a great time to go off on our own for a bit.

Mary seems very willing to mix in some adventures in Vegas with meeting some of these somewhat-invisible-internet folks. As reluctant as I usually am about going out in a crowd, I am looking forward to putting 3D, full-color, live action faces to some of the monikers I follow online. I just have to work really hard at splitting it fairly between Us-time, Mary-time, and poker-time while keeping in mind the IfMamaAintHappy¹ rule.

So, here we come Winter 2009 WPBT Gathering. Be gentle, it's our first time.

¹IfMamaAintHappy If Mama Ain't Happy, Ain't Nobody Happy

Mmmm Poker

2009-11-17T21:53:00.003-05:00

Post? What Post? Oh, yeah.

9:53 PM Skidoo: MOOOOK
9:55 PM me: full tilt or stars?
Skidoo: ft
9:56 PM me: yeah, I have $0.12 left there...
cause i suck

Made it to third in the Mookie last week. Had no intention of playing since I was down to $0.12 on FullTilt, but 23(Warsaw|Skidoo) talked me into it with a backing offer. It worked out and now I have a tiny bit more than $0.12 to mess about with.

I've been away so long and so many have changed their names, it was a bit hard to keep track of who was who. I just played it pretty ABC and let the kids have their fun. An early double up with KK and then some suckouts when I was short let me squeak past the better players to end at third. Thanks to 23(Warsaw|Skidoo) for backing me and to the gang for making me laugh.

See some of you in 23 days at the WPBT gathering.

Cheap stuff to do in Vegas

2009-09-21T22:49:00.002-04:00

From the Poker Grump

...L.A. Times article about things to do in Vegas for under $21. It listed a bunch of stuff I had never heard of before, so I assume it will be helpful to others, too.

Hand of The Day

2009-09-17T23:20:00.003-04:00

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.25 BB (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
UTG+1 ($51.75)
MP1 ($30.05)
Hero (MP2) ($24.75)
CO ($14.50)
Button ($25)
SB ($16.35)
BB ($16.30)
UTG ($5)
Preflop: Hero is MP2 with Q, Q
1 fold, UTG+1 bets $1, 1 fold, Hero raises to $3, 2 folds, SB calls $2.90, BB calls $2.75, UTG+1 calls $2
Flop: ($12) Q, 6, 9 (4 players)
SB checks, BB bets $5.75, UTG+1 calls $5.75, Hero calls $5.75, 1 fold
Turn: ($29.25) A (3 players)
BB bets $7.55 (All-In), UTG+1 calls $7.55, Hero calls $7.55
River: ($51.90) Q (3 players, 1 all-in)
UTG+1 checks, Hero bets $8.45 (All-In), UTG+1 calls $8.45
Total pot: $68.80 | Rake: $3
Results:
BB had 9, A (two pair, Aces and Queens).
UTG+1 had 6, 6 (full house, sixes over Queens).
Hero had Q, Q (four of a kind, Queens).
Outcome: Hero won $65.80

WPBT WInter Gathering

2009-08-18T12:09:00.002-04:00

OK, Mary and I have booked rooms for the Winter Gathering. If I can just find a job between now and then, we will keep to the schedule and have some fun in Vegas.

Just Saying...

2009-01-18T22:03:00.002-05:00

You know it's time to shut down the internet and stop playing when two or three hands within a few minutes go wrong because your brain mysteriously forgets that a straight loses to a flush or misreads a 6 for an 8 giving you a weak two pair where you thought you had a poker full house. While the former might be helped some by keeping hand chart open, they both can only really be fixed by sleep.

Just saying those are some signs, should you ever need to know.

What He Said

2009-01-12T17:02:00.000-05:00

Ed Felton:

This story might help to illustrate why experienced engineers assume that any large software program will contain errors, and why they distrust anyone who claims otherwise. Getting a big program to run at all is an impressive feat of engineering. Making it error-free is too much to hope for. For the foreseeable future, software errors will be a fact of life.

Pokerstars WBCOOP

2008-12-03T22:27:00.003-05:00

UPDATE:

thhpppttt! No Freerolls for me (not a big loss given the crappy schedule)! Then No free advertising for you!

And when I tried to re-register with my other blog that is updated more often, I am rejected.

Hello PokerStars Player,

You recently applied to take part in this year's World Blogger Championship Of Online Poker (WBCOOP).

In response to complaints received in 2007, the eligibility guidelines for this year's WBCOOP are slightly stricter than those in previous years. In order to be eligible, a blog must:

- Have been online for at least two months
- Have been regularly updated in that time
- Have substantial, unique and original content
- Be a blog (not a forum thread)
- Be available to the public
- Not be libellous or defamatory towards PokerStars

PokerStars also reserves the right to limit the number of entries from the same web domain (for example, online poker communities).

Unfortunately, your blog does not meet the eligibility criteria for this year's WBCOOP.

It's likely that PokerStars' will run this promotion again in the future, so keep on writing! We hope to see you again next year with an eligible blog.

Best Regards,

The PokerStars Team

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

2008-07-19T08:50:00.000-04:00

Another Joss Whedon hit.

F-Train Big Game Free Roll

2008-06-01T22:31:00.002-04:00

My prize for the guessing game was a buy in to the Blogger Big Game. Many Thanks to F-Train for that. The current state of my bank roll forbids play in those stakes, so this is quite the treat for me.

The following is the live-blog of the event.

10:30 So for I have made it to the first break with my stack still about average. We have lost 17 of the 70 starters. I have about a third the stack of the current leader.

Nothing special has happened to me either way. I have played pretty tight and people have noticed. We'll see how it goes after the break. I might be playing too tight, but everyone seems to be doing about the same as me.

I had one hand I probably should have folded on the river. It had a small suited connector in the small blind with everyone else limping and called along with the rest. The flop came two of my suit, paired one of my cards and gave me a draw to a straight flush. I bet pot, it folded to the chip leader who called and then it folded the rest of the way around. The turn gave me two pair. I checked, which I thought at the time was weak, but it wouldn't matter in the end. He checked behind. The flush filled on the river. I bet half the pot, he raised about three times that and for some dumb reason I called. He of course, had a bigger flush. It turns out he started with a pair of eights which gave him an overpair and a straight draw on the flop which filled on the turn with the flush filling on the river. I might have been able to bet him off the flop had I bet, but probably not and certainly not after that.

10:45 50/100 Trip sevens just won against a pair of jacks jumping me up to 6k.

10:55 60/120 I gave away to much with AK UTG that missed the flop against an AQ that caught a Q.

10:58 Back up to 5k with a bluff with 99 on a K high flop.

11:01 3.5k after a pair of 22 took a big chunk off of my QQ when it made trips

11:07 My Trip Tens on an all spade flop took my chips back from the same fellow

11:17 My stupidest play of the night. So bad I will publish it here:

Full Tilt Poker Game #6658711403: Blogger Big Game (41741046), Table 7 - 100/200 - No Limit Hold'em - 23:16:50 ET - 2008/06/01
Seat 1: Astin (2,660)
Seat 2: Chippy McStacks (3,880)
Seat 3: butchhoward (5,699)
Seat 4: Julkeus (7,620)
Seat 5: columbo (4,430)
Seat 6: pokerfaze (15,022)
Seat 7: TuscaloosaJohn (5,213)
Seat 8: corron10 (5,162)
Seat 9: bayne_s (4,389)
Chippy McStacks posts the small blind of 100
butchhoward posts the big blind of 200
The button is in seat #1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to butchhoward [7d 6d]
Julkeus folds
columbo folds
pokerfaze calls 200
TuscaloosaJohn folds
corron10 folds
bayne_s folds
Astin raises to 800
Chippy McStacks folds
butchhoward calls 600
pokerfaze calls 600
*** FLOP *** [5c 4d Ks]
butchhoward checks
pokerfaze checks
Astin checks
*** TURN *** [5c 4d Ks] [Jh]
butchhoward checks
pokerfaze checks
Astin bets 1,200
butchhoward has 15 seconds left to act
butchhoward calls 1,200
pokerfaze folds
*** RIVER *** [5c 4d Ks Jh] [Qd]
butchhoward has 15 seconds left to act
butchhoward checks
Astin bets 660, and is all in
butchhoward folds
Uncalled bet of 660 returned to Astin
Astin mucks
Astin wins the pot (4,900)
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 4,900 | Rake 0
Board: [5c 4d Ks Jh Qd]
Seat 1: Astin (button) collected (4,900), mucked
Seat 2: Chippy McStacks (small blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 3: butchhoward (big blind) folded on the River
Seat 4: Julkeus didn't bet (folded)
Seat 5: columbo didn't bet (folded)
Seat 6: pokerfaze folded on the Turn
Seat 7: TuscaloosaJohn didn't bet (folded)
Seat 8: corron10 didn't bet (folded)
Seat 9: bayne_s didn't bet (folded)

Out of position with suited connectors and only two other players? Why am I playing this hand? Check Call the flop? Idjit. I know I should have raised if I was going to play it at all. Why do I do stupid crap like that when I really sort of seem to know better when I am not actually playing a hand?

11:19 UTG raises. I have TT and my M is about 10 so I push. He calls of course. My TT is less that his KK so IGHN out at 36th. I know he likely had a big pair or a big hand, but not likely to fold TT. I might could have called and folded if the flop did not come with a ten, but that amounts to just folding preflop so might as well push at this point.

Anyway.

Thanks to F-Train for the chance at the Big Game, sorry it was not a better showing.

For My Next Trick

2008-05-28T22:55:00.004-04:00

F-Train and CK took a trip across the country and sort of live-blogged most of it.

F-Train also ran a contest to guess the amount they would spend on gas for the trip. I used the 3275 miles he said Google mapped for them, some fuel economy numbers I found from a Google search for the car they drove, and used $4.00 per gallon for the gas. Out popped $614.06.

What do you know, I won.

Can't win a coin toss at the tables, but I can guess the right mileage and cost to win F-Train's Fuel Fun. Figures. Of course, whatever I have won here will be more than I have won at poker lately so, Woo Hoo!

Not Lost In Translation

2008-05-28T15:15:00.004-04:00

Google's Language Translator is pretty amazing. You can give it a bit of text or a URL and it will spin it back to you in some other language. When you translate an entire web page it does a nice job of showing you the page pretty much unaltered except for the text changes. Most of this is possible because of the structure of web pages in general where all the pretty stuff is defined in HTML and CSS with the content stuffed into well-defined areas. The meat of it is yet another of the cool tools from the Google House of Smarts.

Take this poker site in Estonia for example. You can easily tell it is a Poker portal from the ads on the right and some of the links on the page. It does not have a lot of Flash and so is a good candidate for translation. Unless you lived over there or worked for a company in Espoo, you might not catch on right away that it's likely from one of the Scandinavian countries. So you have to find a way to figure out the language.

You could make some guesses and eliminate many of the languages. It is certainly not from the Far East, Arabic, or Greek since those languages have distinctive character sets. It doesn't have enough -ous and -ette endings to be French. Spanish and its relatives look nothing like this. It doesn't have the tell-tale -ski signs of being Slavic.

That leaves just a few other languages that Google can handle. So, try each one of those to see if something that looks like English pops out. This is reasonable because Google Translate takes just a few seconds on each of these attempts. In a couple of minutes you have a page that shows the English text fitted into the original layout. You can be reasonably sure that the original is Finnish or some language close to Finnish.

They also do some other cool things with the page. You can hover over the translated text and it will pop up the original text. This is probably handy for those cases where you have some notion of the language and the Google Translator does it best but misses the mark or comes out with some odd grammar or technical terms. For instance, on this page while it knows that 'pokeri' is 'poker' it does not know that 'nettipokeri' means 'online poker' in Finnish. But even cooler, is that the pop up form offers you a chance to contribute to the translator's improvement by suggesting a better translation for that phrase. Your translation suggestion is sent off to Google and added to the translation tool eventually.

So the next time you want to visit some strange poker site across the Gulf of Finland from Espoo, but would rather to do it in English instead of Finnish, you can use Google Translate to help out. If you are really feeling useful, you can also improve the translation for the next poor English speaker (at least somewhere in the future) by correcting some of the bad grammar or technical terms as when Google applies my change of 'nettipokeri' -> 'online poker'.

Of course, it would be nice if these sites allow players from the United States to play, but that's just not in the game plan yet.

That Was Quick

2008-05-03T00:00:00.002-04:00

I played at Skidoo's tonight in honor of his brother's visit. I played one hand.

Pocket aces on the button. UTG raised, it folded around to me or there was one call maybe, I re-raised 3x UTG's raise, he called and it was just him and me. Flop comes all middle cards three suits two black, he checks I bet pot he calls. Turn is something of the same suit as one of the cards out there, he bets I raise he goes all in.

I should be able to fold in these situations, but I still cannot seem to do it. And that is why I have no bankroll on any site I play on.

He had pocket nines with a nine on the flop. I was toast.

One hand. sheesh.

I played dealer until the two tables shrank to one. Then I rode my sweet sweet motorcycle home.

Ninth

2008-04-23T00:48:00.002-04:00

Made it to 9th out of 117 in a 6-handed tournament. Probably the most notable point about this tournament and the last few that I have played is that I have been able to lay down hands that I know are lost. That has been a problem for me and is the main reason my bankroll is in such dire straits. I find it hard to accept that the other guy might really have a hand and that it would be better with marginal hands to just give up. Giving them up as been easier lately. I have gotten deeper in the (super cheap) tournaments I have been playing and added some meager dough to the bankroll in the cash games.

Hope springs. Or something like that.

Squirrels and Nuts

2008-04-20T00:12:00.002-04:00

I don't play much and there's not much in the bankroll, but I do find a nut once in a while.

Presto + 1

2008-04-16T23:38:00.004-04:00

I have not been playing much since the DVT, but I am trying to find some time for a game here and there. This one turned out pretty good.

Seat 2: Interrex ($12.45)
Seat 3: peepleschamp ($34.10) -
Seat 4: 42itusAces ($12.30) -
Seat 5: ProBeach7421 ($5) -
Seat 6: hitmankf ($56.05)
Seat 8: butchhoward ($26.70)
Seat 9: FleaManAA ($5.55)

PRE-FLOP:

42itusAces posts small blind $0.10
ProBeach7421 posts BIG blind $0.25
Dealt To: butchhoward

FOLD hitmankf
RAISE butchhoward ($0.70)
CALL FleaManAA ($0.70)
FOLD Interrex
FOLD peepleschamp
RAISE 42itusAces ($2)
FOLD ProBeach7421
CALL butchhoward ($1.30)
CALL FleaManAA ($1.30)

FLOP:

Pot: $6.35


CHECK 42itusAces
BET butchhoward ($4)
CALL FleaManAA ($3.55)
CALL 42itusAces ($4)

TURN:

Pot: $17.9


CHECK 42itusAces
BET butchhoward ($6.30)
CALL 42itusAces ($6.30)

RIVER:

Pot: $30.5


SHOWDOWN:
42itusAces:

butchhoward:

MUCK FleaManAA

butchhoward collected $12.85 from side pot 1butchhoward collected $16.1 from main pot

SUMMARY:
Total pot: $30Main pot: $16
Side pot: $12

Predictable

2008-03-26T22:01:00.001-04:00

What do you know?

Missing Month

2008-03-24T10:11:00.001-04:00

I have not played much this past month. Maybe I will get to play more in the coming month or two as things improve.

I Will Whinge and Then I Will Not

2008-02-07T00:45:00.000-05:00

I will get this out of my system and start writing in a positive vein as soon as my head heals from pounding on my desk. I have been looking over my Poker Tracker data today for some clues. I don't think I know enough about the game to really evaluate what is there, but it is good to see the common things and use it to yell at myself for doing what I know I should not be doing (Look how much you are losing with one pair you idjit!). Every bit of reinforcement is good, I think.

I do think I am getting somewhat better, even it the bankroll does not show it (and what is the measure if that is not, I must me fooling myself). I am also certain that I am being pounded by an incredible string of bad cards right now. This little stat from the Tracker gives a flavor of it I think.

In these few days of February I have played 1200 hands of No Limit (not many, but that what it is). In the database for those 1200 hands there are 122 hands with known final hands that were not folded before the flop. Of those, 13 were Three Of A Kind. I won a total of 10 out of the 13. Seven went to show down and I Won Money at Show Down 57% of the time.

For those Three of a Kind hands my winnings are Net negative by 24.5 BB. Negative because of one hand. It was folded to me in MP with JJ. I raised to 3BB, the cutoff raises to 5BB, it folds around to me and I reraise to 20BB and get called. Flop comes 789 with two spades, I have no spades. The pot is 41.5BB, I bet 50BB, he calls. The turn is a 3d. I bet 44BB and get called (yeah this should have gone in on the flop). The river is the Jack of Spades to make the straight that takes a 114BB chunk that leaves that negative value in the Three of a Kind row of the database.

So a bit of a whinge there. Likely should have either slowed down on that flop or just jammed given how wild that guy was playing earlier. Anyway, that is just a sample hand. With a few big down hands like that coming along with the many little mistakes I make, my bankroll just does not have a chance.

OK, deep breath, good night's sleep and go again tomorrow.

Broken Break

2008-01-29T23:10:00.000-05:00

This one is somewhat whinging. I got exactly the action I wanted, just not the results. In the hand just before this the villain folded when I made almost exactly the same bet on a King-high flop after calling his preflop bet with KQ. I don't think he believed me this time.

Poker Stars, $15 + $1.50 NL Hold'em Tournament, 50/100 Blinds, 9 Players
timmin99 (CO): 5,755
mopoff (BTN): 8,721
butchhoward (SB): 2,355
heron23 (BB): 2,035
cattraxdc (UTG): 1,640
DAYMATT (UTG+1): 1,500
Chpshots (UTG+2): 3,715
ProfessorNo2 (MP1): 2,785
funkyc (MP2): 3,150
Pre-Flop: (150) Ad Qd dealt to butchhoward (SB)
6 folds, mopoff raises to 400, butchhoward calls 350, heron23 folds
Flop: (900) As 7h 2h (2 Players)
butchhoward bets 650, mopoff raises to 3,400, butchhoward calls 1,305 and is All-In
Turn: (4,810) 9h (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (4,810) 4h (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 4,810 Pot
mopoff showed Ah 5s (a flush, Ace high) and WON 4,810 (+2,455 NET)
butchhoward showed Ad Qd (a pair of Aces) and LOST (-2,355 NET)

Too bad the runner-runner-runner-runner flush came out for him knocking me out on the last hand before the break.

Whinge of the Day

2008-01-27T16:23:00.000-05:00

Let's see if I can change my luck for the rest of the day.

Full Tilt Poker, NL Hold'em Tournament, $3 + $0.30 Knockout, 15/30 Blinds, 9 Players
Hero (SB): 1,500
ScottKAZ34 (BB): 1,500
chipswillfall (UTG): 1,500
mamaholly (UTG+1): 1,500
brit94 (UTG+2): 1,500
jack-pot 70 (MP1): 1,500
jamie2318 (MP2): 1,500
repo_man456 (CO): 1,500
daddysir (BTN): 1,500
Pre-Flop: (45) 4c 4d dealt to Hero (SB)
chipswillfall folds, mamaholly calls 30, brit94 calls 30, 3 folds, daddysir calls 30, Hero calls 15, ScottKAZ34 checks
Flop: (150) Th 4h Ah (5 Players)
Hero checks, ScottKAZ34 checks, mamaholly bets 150, 2 folds, Hero raises to 500, ScottKAZ34 folds, mamaholly calls 350
Turn: (1,150) 6c (2 Players)
Hero bets 970 and is All-In, mamaholly calls 970 and is All-In
River: (3,090) 8h (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 3,090 Pot
Hero showed 4c 4d (three of a kind, Fours) and LOST (-1,500 NET)
mamaholly showed Ac 9h (a flush, Ace high) and WON 3,090 (+1,590 NET)

Maybe I didn't make quite a large enough check raise, but still the first hand of the tournament, please.

APBT Games

2008-01-27T10:07:00.000-05:00

It was a good evening of poker at CC's with Kuro, Francase, Skidoo, and Ben. It will be great if we can make this a regular event. I certainly need to get out of the house, away from the computer, experience more physical card handling, and get in some live play. This was good for all of those.

So what did I learn? Other than that I suck, but I knew that going in, so no learning there. I think I only played about 3 hands well the entire night. Those where the only hands that I was not talking, thought the hand through, and bet like I meant it. The rest of the time I was either too tight, weakly folding to reraises, calling trash trying to not to look too tight, or floundering in mixed games that I don't play well enough to do anything but get lucky.

Yeah, writing that is giving it away, but not so much that you wouldn't be able to learn within ten minutes across the table from me so I am not worried. It's not nearly as big a tell as dropping the pneumatic on the chair every time I had a big hand: Get Dealt a decent hand, shift leg to sit up, SSSSHHTTTSSSTHHT, CLUNK, I am six inches shorter betting with my chin on the table edge. Everybody folds. I tried faking it a couple of times, but it just did not have the same affect. Gotta work on that.

These are the games I remember playing:

NL Hold Em
PLO
PLO8
Pineapple
Pot Limit Pineapple
2-7 Triple Draw
Razz
Stud
7 Stud 8

See you guys next time.

Now where did I stash that copy of Super System...

Was it Something I Said?

2008-01-20T02:15:00.000-05:00

Whinge Whinge Whinge.

And then have a great run in a tournament. Is that all it takes? A bunch of complaining? Or is it because the television is off, the wife and active child are out of town leaving me with just the very quiet daughter and poker?

Maybe, just maybe being able to focus helps the game somewhat. Hmmm. I might have to find some way to try this more often (without the Beautiful Wife and Darling Child being a couple of hundred miles away driving in winter snow advisory weather of course).

ITM in $15 tournament on PokerStars. I have been the chip leader for the past hour and have been in the top ten for the past 2.5 hours (I wrote this at the beginning of the 3rd break). ABC, no special moves good or bad, folding instead of not, just getting hit with the deck.

(I added some details later)
This is where I jumped to the top of the leader board. Blinds were 75/150 at this point. I had nothing good or bad happen up to this point. I had just basically held level with the blinds and not much more.

BB: 6,815
UTG: 5,045
UTG+1: 1,780
UTG+2: 2,845
MP1: 1,360
MP2: 4,895
CO: 3,240
Hero (BTN): 2,880
SB: 3,295
Pre-Flop: (150) Tc Th dealt to Hero (BTN)
5 folds, CO raises to 200, Hero calls 200, SB folds, BB raises to 1,100, CO calls 900, Hero raises to 2,880 and is All-In, BB raises to 6,815 and is All-In, CO folds
Flop: (6,910) 5d Ts Js (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Turn: (6,910) 9h (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (6,910) Jh (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 6,910 Pot
BB showed Jd Ad (three of a kind, Jacks) and LOST (-2,880 NET)
Hero showed Tc Th (a full house, Tens full of Jacks) and WON 6,910 (+4,030 NET)

The very next hand, I had Presto and played it in what I thought was just fine and dandy. The fellow I busted had some negative opinions about the play that he voiced for a while.

MP1: 3,860
MP2: 5,270
CO: 1,555
BTN: 2,620
SB: 1,210
BB: 7,485
Hero (UTG): 6,910
UTG+1: 3,245
Pre-Flop: (225) 5s 5c dealt to Hero (UTG)
Hero raises to 375, 4 folds, BTN calls 375, SB raises to 1,210 and is All-In, BB folds, Hero calls 835, BTN raises to 2,620 and is All-In, Hero calls 1,410
Flop: (6,600) Ac 2s 5d (3 Players - 1 is All-In)
Turn: (6,600) 2h (3 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (6,600) Qh (3 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 6,600 Pot
BTN showed Ah Kh (two pair, Aces and Deuces) and LOST (-2,620 NET)
SB showed Ts Js (a pair of Deuces) and LOST (-1,210 NET)
Hero showed 5s 5c (a full house, Fives full of Deuces) and WON 6,600 (+3,980 NET)

The initial raise might have been a bit aggressive, but I figured with the TT hand that just went on no one would believe I was playing a small pair. Once the other bets were made and it came back around to me, the odds were right (in my head at least) to make the call. Going through the math just now, I think I am right. Calling the all in from SB was certainly right from the math. The pot was 2110 when got back to me and I needed to call 835 giving me 2.5 to 1 from the pot. Even if I would have guessed the button would shove and I would really be calling 2245 and getting even money which isn't great, but not horrible since nothing else is going in and if I lose I still have about 20BB to work with.

Pushing to try to get the button to fold may have been an option, but it seemed like he was in for the ride no matter what. I assumed he would call and try to keep me in for more if he had a big hand. When he shoved I felt he had AK, AQ or a medium pair. Since the numbers were pretty close and there would be no more betting, I called.

PokerStove numbers match in the ballpark of what I was thinking at the time. I put the SB on a fairly wide range of something like 22+, A2s+, KTs+, QTs+, JTs, A6o+, KTo+, QTo+, JTo and the button on a range of JJ-77, AQs+, AQo+, and I have exactly 5c5s, then it says I am 27% to win, the button is 41%, and the SB is 31%.

Of course, hitting the 5 on the flop was handy.

This is the rest of the tournament. [I ended up in 13th place out of 994]

94 players remaining

BTN: 45,021
SB: 32,695
BB: 18,788
UTG: 5,895
Hero (UTG+1): 43,165
MP1: 26,475
MP2: 12,116
CO: 19,220
Pre-Flop: (1,800) Jd Js dealt to Hero (UTG+1)
UTG calls 800, Hero raises to 2,851, 5 folds, BB calls 2,051, UTG raises to 5,820 and is All-In, Hero raises to 43,090 and is All-In, BB folds
Flop: (15,491) Jh 4d Td (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Turn: (15,491) Ts (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (15,491) Kh (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 15,491 Pot
UTG showed Ah Qs (a straight, Ten to Ace) and LOST (-5,895 NET)
Hero showed Jd Js (a full house, Jacks full of Tens) and WON 15,491 (+9,596 NET)

75 players remaining

MP1: 5,925
MP2: 15,893
CO: 17,004
BTN: 12,667
SB: 48,178
Hero (BB): 56,911
UTG: 14,736
UTG+1: 12,620
Pre-Flop: (2,400) Ks Ah dealt to Hero (BB)
7 folds, SB calls 500, Hero raises to 4,903, SB calls 3,903
Flop: (10,706) 7s 5s Td (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
SB checks, Hero bets 7,000, SB calls 7,000
Turn: (24,706) 3s (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
SB checks, Hero checks
River: (24,706) 4s (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
SB checks, Hero bets 15,000, SB calls 15,000
Results: 54,706 Pot
SB mucked 7c 7d and LOST (-27,003 NET)
Hero showed Ks Ah (a flush, King high) and WON 54,706 (+27,703 NET)

64 players remaining

I should have folded AK instead of calling on this one.

MP2: 11,150
CO: 18,393
BTN: 14,804
SB: 25,787
BB: 22,975
Hero (UTG): 83,514
UTG+1: 7,411
MP1: 4,186
Pre-Flop: (2,400) Kd As dealt to Hero (UTG)
Hero raises to 3,907, 2 folds, MP2 raises to 11,050 and is All-In, 3 folds, SB raises to 25,687 and is All-In, BB folds, Hero calls 21,780
Flop: (64,324) 6s 9c 8h (3 Players - 2 are All-In)
Turn: (64,324) 5c (3 Players - 2 are All-In)
River: (64,324) Kc (3 Players - 2 are All-In)
Results: 64,324 Pot
MP2 showed 9d 9h (three of a kind, Nines) and WON 35,050 (+23,900 NET)
SB showed Ah Ac (a pair of Aces) and WON 29,274 (+3,487 NET)
Hero showed Kd As (a pair of Kings) and LOST (-25,787 NET)

I think my big stack lured me into hoping that this was two non-hands making moves, but that was just stupid at this point in the game. I should be able to let go in these spots.

54 players remaining.

I called with 78s after checking down on a [5d 7d 2s Tc Ts] to bust [4h 2d].

500/1000/100 Blinds
UTG: 34,950
UTG+1: 18,193
MP: 14,604
CO: 38,685
BTN: 21,275
Hero (SB): 56,627
BB: 3,986
Pre-Flop: (2,200) 8h 7h dealt to Hero (SB)
3 folds, CO calls 1,000, BTN folds, Hero calls 500, BB checks
Flop: (3,700) 5d 7d 2s (3 Players)
Hero checks, BB checks, CO checks
Turn: (3,700) Tc (3 Players)
Hero checks, BB checks, CO checks
River: (3,700) Ts (3 Players)
Hero checks, BB bets 2,886 and is All-In, CO folds, Hero calls 2,886
Results: 9,472 Pot
Hero showed 8h 7h (two pair, Tens and Sevens) and WON 9,472 (+5,486 NET)
BB showed 4h 2d (two pair, Tens and Deuces) and LOST (-3,986 NET)

If he had anything he would have bet it when it hit so I did not believe him when he did bet.

1:00am 4th of 50 players stack 60k

Took out the fellow who lost the 777 vs. Spade flush hand to me earlier.

UTG+2: 60,329
MP1: 13,118
MP2: 20,358
CO: 11,754
BTN: 38,635
SB: 12,900
Hero (BB): 45,909
UTG: 49,280
UTG+1: 20,882
Pre-Flop: (2,925) 6d Ad dealt to Hero (BB)
7 folds, SB raises to 12,775 and is All-In, Hero calls 11,575
Flop: (26,675) Jd 7d 9d (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Turn: (26,675) As (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (26,675) 3s (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 26,675 Pot
SB showed 9c Qc (a pair of Nines) and LOST (-12,900 NET)
Hero showed 6d Ad (a flush, Ace high) and WON 26,675 (+13,775 NET)

1:30 am. 7th of 30 remaining. 58k stack. 1000/2000/200 blinds.

99 on the button. The chip leader is UTG and Raises. Folds to me. I have about half his stack. I shove, the blinds fold, he folds.

Ouch. My AK runs into KK and leaves me with less than 2k.

A6 makes two pair

A8 splits the pot

I now have 1ok

I have QQ and the big stack calls. The girls hold to double me up to 18k.

20 players left.

I have QJo and shove. Two big stacks call, I pair a jack on the flop and it holds up. I triple up to 45k. 19 remaining.

KQo shove all fold. 52k.

2:00 am 2000/4000/400 blinds 19 players remaining. I am in 11th place with a 45k stack.

33 push, all fold, 45k. 15 remaining.

2:15 Last Hand:

SB: 202,477
BB: 87,105
UTG: 253,378
UTG+1: 210,174
MP: 25,840
Hero (CO): 37,382
BTN: 83,034
Pre-Flop: (8,800) Ks 5s dealt to Hero (CO)
3 folds, Hero raises to 36,982 and is All-In, BTN folds, SB calls 34,982, BB raises to 86,705 and is All-In, SB folds
Flop: (113,746) Qd Jh 9h (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Turn: (113,746) As (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (113,746) Kh (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 113,746 Pot
BB showed Qh Ad (two pair, Aces and Queens) and WON 113,746 (+76,364 NET)
Hero showed Ks 5s (a pair of Kings) and LOST (-37,382 NET)

Finished in 13th place. That was fun. I need more like that one.

Hand Histories formatted using LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

In Cash Games Too

2008-01-19T22:30:00.000-05:00

Full Tilt Poker, $0.05/$0.10 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 9 Players
AceInMyHole (UTG+2): $7.65
butchhoward (MP1): $9.20
mrmelty (MP2): $22.30
basstardos (CO): $18.70
ts24chavez (BTN): $15.15
MC70 (SB): $4.05
blindcow (BB): $10
bruddah99502 (UTG): $3.25
Flying_Snow (UTG+1): $1.70
Pre-Flop: 2d 2s dealt to butchhoward (MP1)
3 folds, butchhoward calls $0.10, mrmelty folds, basstardos calls $0.10, ts24chavez calls $0.10, MC70 calls $0.05, blindcow checks
Flop: ($0.50) Ac Ad 2c (5 Players)
MC70 checks, blindcow bets $0.30, butchhoward raises to $0.60, 2 folds, MC70 calls $0.60, blindcow raises to $1.15, butchhoward raises to $1.70, MC70 calls $1.10, blindcow raises to $9.90 and is All-In, butchhoward calls $7.40 and is All-In, MC70 calls $2.25 and is All-In
Turn: ($22.65) Tc (3 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: ($22.65) Ts (3 Players - 1 is All-In)
MC70 says "nh"
Results: $22.65 Pot ($2 Rake)
butchhoward showed 2d 2s (a full house, Twos full of Aces) and LOST (-$9.20 NET)
MC70 showed 5c Kc (a flush, Ace high) and LOST (-$4.05 NET)
blindcow showed Ah Th (a full house, Aces full of Tens) and WON $20.65 (+$11.45 NET)

The min-raise on the flop was an accident from being on the phone with Mary. The min-raise on the turn was just to goad him since I was certain he had an ace by then. Little did I know he had found one of his two outs by that time and was happy to be poked.

Whinge Whinge Whinge some more.

This is Wearing Me Down

2008-01-19T20:14:00.000-05:00

This is the way many of the tournaments I play have gone lately. Yes I am whinging on about it, but its my blog so I can. I only lasted 12 hands in this one, but the way I was knocked out is typical for the way I have been going out. I know I am supposed to be happy to be playing with folks who will play trash like this, but I am not there yet. I am also not to the point where I can fold in a hand like the 10th below. At least I got one KO before getting smacked.

Whinge Whinge Whinge. I love that word.

Full Tilt Poker, NL Hold'em Tournament, $5 + $0.50 Knockout, 15/30 Blinds, 9 Players

Pre-Flop: (45) 5c 8h dealt to butchhoward (MP1)
Jimmy2006ca folds, Loo-p-loo calls 30, 2 folds, G_man234 raises to 135, 3 folds, WickedOne raises to 1,500 and is All-In, Loo-p-loo folds, G_man234 calls 1,365 and is All-In
Flop: (3,045) Js 5s 7s (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Turn: (3,045) 3h (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (3,045) 3s (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 3,045 Pot
WickedOne showed Tc As (a flush, Ace high) and WON 3,045 (+1,545 NET)
G_man234 showed Kd Ac (a pair of Threes) and LOST (-1,500 NET)

Pre-Flop: (45) Ks 6h dealt to butchhoward (MP1)
3 folds, j-villejagz1 raises to 90, 4 folds
Results: 75 Pot
j-villejagz1 mucked and WON 75 (+45 NET)

hotmamma3 (CO): 1,485
WickedOne (BTN): 3,030
Jimmy2006ca (SB): 1,470
Loo-p-loo (BB): 1,470
jared1977 (UTG): 1,500
butchhoward (UTG+1): 1,500
AA JUSTME683 (UTG+2): 1,500
j-villejagz1 (MP1): 1,545
ca_24 (MP2): 1,500
Pre-Flop: (45) Ad Ah dealt to butchhoward (UTG+1)
jared1977 folds, butchhoward raises to 100, AA JUSTME683 calls 100, j-villejagz1 calls 100, 5 folds
Flop: (345) Th 6d Td (3 Players)
butchhoward bets 300, AA JUSTME683 calls 300, j-villejagz1 folds
Turn: (945) 5h (2 Players)
butchhoward bets 1,100 and is All-In, AA JUSTME683 calls 1,100 and is All-In
River: (3,145) 4h (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 3,145 Pot
butchhoward showed Ad Ah (two pair, Aces and Tens) and WON 3,145 (+1,645 NET)
AA JUSTME683 showed 8d 8h (two pair, Tens and Eights) and LOST (-1,500 NET)

Pre-Flop: (45) 6s 7c dealt to butchhoward (UTG)
butchhoward folds, j-villejagz1 raises to 90, ca_24 folds, hotmamma3 calls 90, 4 folds
Flop: (225) 2c 5c As (2 Players)
j-villejagz1 bets 150, hotmamma3 calls 150
Turn: (525) Ah (2 Players)
j-villejagz1 bets 30, hotmamma3 calls 30
River: (585) 9d (2 Players)
j-villejagz1 bets 345, hotmamma3 raises to 1,215 and is All-In, j-villejagz1 folds
Results: 1,275 Pot
hotmamma3 mucked and WON 1,275 (+660 NET)

Pre-Flop: (45) 4s 2d dealt to butchhoward (BB)
WickedOne calls 30, jared1977 calls 15, butchhoward checks
Flop: (90) 5c Tc 4h (3 Players)
jared1977 checks, butchhoward checks, WickedOne checks
Turn: (90) Ad (3 Players)
jared1977 checks, butchhoward checks, WickedOne bets 60, jared1977 calls 60
River: (210) Ks (2 Players)
jared1977 checks, WickedOne checks
Results: 210 Pot
WickedOne showed 8h Kh (a pair of Kings) and WON 210 (+120 NET)
jared1977 mucked 3c Jd (Ace King high) and LOST (-90 NET)

Pre-Flop: (45) Jh 4s dealt to butchhoward (SB)
2 folds, hotmamma3 calls 30, WickedOne raises to 60, 4 folds, Rem_The_Man calls 30, hotmamma3 calls 30
Flop: (195) 4h 3d 7h (3 Players)
Rem_The_Man checks, hotmamma3 checks, WickedOne checks
Turn: (195) 3c (3 Players)
Rem_The_Man checks, hotmamma3 bets 30, WickedOne folds, Rem_The_Man calls 30
River: (255) 4c (2 Players)
Rem_The_Man checks, hotmamma3 checks
Results: 255 Pot
hotmamma3 showed 5h Ad (two pair, Fours and Threes) and WON 127 (+37 NET)
Rem_The_Man showed Ah 9c (two pair, Fours and Threes) and WON 128 (+38 NET)

Pre-Flop: (45) Td 8h dealt to butchhoward (BTN)
ca_24 folds, hotmamma3 calls 30, 3 folds, jared1977 raises to 60, 2 folds, j-villejagz1 raises to 225, hotmamma3 folds, jared1977 calls 165
Flop: (495) Ts Jh Qd (2 Players)
j-villejagz1 bets 205, jared1977 raises to 1,155 and is All-In, j-villejagz1 calls 400 and is All-In
Turn: (1,705) Js (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (1,705) 6c (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 1,705 Pot
jared1977 showed Qc Kc (two pair, Queens and Jacks) and WON 1,705 (+875 NET)
j-villejagz1 showed As 9d (a pair of Jacks) and LOST (-830 NET)

hotmamma3 (BB): 2,152
WickedOne (UTG): 3,090
Jimmy2006ca (UTG+1): 1,455
Loo-p-loo (MP1): 1,425
jared1977 (MP2): 2,255
butchhoward (CO): 3,100
Rem_The_Man (BTN): 3,113
ca_24 (SB): 1,500
Pre-Flop: (30) 9h 8h dealt to butchhoward (CO)
5 folds, butchhoward raises to 100, Rem_The_Man folds, ca_24 calls 70
Flop: (200) 5c 8c 6h (2 Players)
ca_24 bets 150, butchhoward calls 150
Turn: (500) Kd (2 Players)
ca_24 bets 500, butchhoward folds
Results: 500 Pot
ca_24 mucked and WON 500 (+250 NET)

hotmamma3 (BB): 2,152
WickedOne (UTG): 3,090
Jimmy2006ca (UTG+1): 1,455
Loo-p-loo (UTG+2): 1,425
jared1977 (MP1): 2,255
butchhoward (MP2): 2,850
Rem_The_Man (CO): 3,113
golfing1963 (BTN): 1,136
ca_24 (SB): 1,750
Pre-Flop: (45) Ks Kd dealt to butchhoward (MP2)
2 folds, Loo-p-loo calls 30, jared1977 folds, butchhoward raises to 100, Rem_The_Man folds, golfing1963 calls 100, ca_24 folds, hotmamma3 calls 70, Loo-p-loo folds
Flop: (345) Kc 3s Ts (3 Players)
hotmamma3 checks, butchhoward bets 300, golfing1963 calls 300, hotmamma3 calls 300
Turn: (1,245) Ah (3 Players)
hotmamma3 checks, butchhoward checks, golfing1963 bets 736 and is All-In, hotmamma3 raises to 1,752 and is All-In, butchhoward calls 1,752
River: (5,485) 9c (3 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 5,485 Pot
hotmamma3 showed Jc Qc (a straight, Ace high) and WON 5,485 (+3,333 NET)
butchhoward showed Ks Kd (three of a kind, Kings) and LOST (-2,152 NET)
golfing1963 showed 6h Th (a pair of Tens) and LOST (-1,136 NET)

I don't think it would have come out any differently had I bet the turn instead of checked. The straight should have slowed me down, but I was just too happy with the trips and the two shoves on the turn given the crap they had been playing to that point.

Pre-Flop: (45) 9h Js dealt to butchhoward (MP2)
2 folds, jared1977 calls 30, hotmamma3 calls 15, WickedOne raises to 90, jared1977 calls 60, hotmamma3 calls 60
Flop: (270) 6h Th 3c (3 Players)
hotmamma3 checks, WickedOne bets 180, jared1977 calls 180, hotmamma3 folds
Turn: (630) Kh (2 Players)
WickedOne checks, jared1977 bets 180, WickedOne folds
Results: 630 Pot
jared1977 mucked and WON 630 (+360 NET)

Pre-Flop: (60) Qd 2d dealt to butchhoward (UTG+2)
Loo-p-loo calls 40, 2 folds, Rem_The_Man calls 40, 2 folds, hotmamma3 calls 40, WickedOne calls 20, Jimmy2006ca checks
Flop: (200) Jc 3s Qc (5 Players)
WickedOne checks, Jimmy2006ca checks, Loo-p-loo checks, Rem_The_Man checks, hotmamma3 checks
Turn: (200) 9d (5 Players)
WickedOne checks, Jimmy2006ca checks, Loo-p-loo bets 200, 4 folds
Results: 200 Pot
Loo-p-loo mucked and WON 200 (+160 NET)

hotmamma3 (CO): 5,355
WickedOne (BTN): 2,780
Jimmy2006ca (SB): 1,415
Loo-p-loo (BB): 1,555
jared1977 (UTG): 2,615
butchhoward (UTG+1): 698
Rem_The_Man (UTG+2): 3,073
fortworthgp (MP1): 3,690
ca_24 (MP2): 1,735
Pre-Flop: (60) Kd Jd dealt to butchhoward (UTG+1)
jared1977 folds, butchhoward raises to 120, 4 folds, WickedOne calls 120, Jimmy2006ca folds, Loo-p-loo calls 80
Flop: (380) 6c 2s Kc (3 Players)
Loo-p-loo checks, butchhoward bets 578 and is All-In, WickedOne raises to 2,660 and is All-In, Loo-p-loo folds
Turn: (1,536) 2h (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
River: (1,536) 8h (2 Players - 1 is All-In)
Results: 1,536 Pot
WickedOne showed Ac 2c (three of a kind, Twos) and WON 1,536 (+838 NET)
butchhoward showed Kd Jd (two pair, Kings and Twos) and LOST (-698 NET)

And of course I cannot get a hand to hold so IGHN.

Post Migration

2008-01-19T15:33:00.000-05:00

I migrated most of the Poker, gambling, fun, and excitement posts over from my other blog. I did not migrate the comments. I suppose were I a higher on the blogger food chain and using a professional, privately hosted tool, and hand hundreds or posts with thousands of comments generating tens of dollars of income, it might have been worth it. None of those is true, so a year's worth copy-pasted by hand is what you get.

Sorry also about this tripping the vanity alarms for every post I reposted here. Good thing it was only 20 and not 2000 posts being moved to a new domain.

This is where I plan on writing about poker and other exciting adventures in reckless behavior. This is partly an experiment in writing more on more than one blog, messing about with ad revenue, and partly having a separate place where I can be a bit coarse with an easier out for that part of the family that does not want to read it.

Action's on me? Here we go.

I Owe You

2008-01-13T10:18:00.000-05:00

My TT didn't feel good with all the limpers. One or two of them had been limping or just calling with big pairs several times before this, too. So, feel pretty good on the flop. Not so good on the river. The good news is this is how I have died more often in tournaments lately than the way I died in the Donkament Friday.

I'm just saying that to make myself feel better about it.

Seat 1: Biskey ($9,038)
Seat 2: Jeff_J119 ($9,655)
Seat 3: riverdancer12 ($8,140) -
Seat 4: xcarlitoxxx ($7,000) -
Seat 6: butchhoward ($3,114) -
Seat 7: Buffty ($2,720)
Seat 8: Areusl82 ($6,850)
Seat 9: tolate58 ($12,200)

PRE-FLOP:
xcarlitoxxx posts small blind $80
butchhoward posts BIG blind $160
Dealt To: butchhoward

FOLD Buffty
CALL Areusl82 ($160)
FOLD tolate58
CALL Biskey ($160)
CALL Jeff_J119 ($160)
CALL riverdancer12 ($160)
CALL xcarlitoxxx ($80)
CHECK butchhoward

FLOP:

Pot: $960

CHECK xcarlitoxxx
BET butchhoward ($350)
CALL Areusl82 ($350)
CALL Biskey ($350)
FOLD Jeff_J119
RAISE riverdancer12 ($1250)
FOLD xcarlitoxxx
RAISE butchhoward ($2954)
RAISE Areusl82 ($6690)
FOLD Biskey
FOLD riverdancer12
UNCALLED Areusl82 ($3736)

TURN:

Pot: $8468

RIVER:

Pot: $8468

SHOWDOWN:
Areusl82:

butchhoward:

Areusl82 collected $8468 from main pot with four of a kind, Twos

Free hand converter brought to you by CardRunners

First Cash in 2008

2008-01-12T00:13:00.001-05:00

It seems totally appropriate that the first tournament cash I win this year (or actually in the past 2 months) is in a Donkament and that I go out in 2nd with a donkey move pushing K9o against Hoy's reraise. Just can't wait for his rant.

Still, it's good to actually win money in a tournament.

Vacation and New Year

2008-01-08T08:47:00.001-05:00

I took three weeks of vacation at the end of the year to try to get my head clear and decide what to do in the future. My head is not clear and I still do not know what I want to be when I grow up. At 49, I better get busy deciding I think.

I did play a fair amount of poker over the break. The beautiful wife was tolerant of my degenerate ways as long as I also occaisonally marked an item off the small list we made of things to get done around the house.

Poker results for the three week span exactly echoed my annual result: no big wins, no big losses, but lots of little losses. So the bankroll got a bit smaller.

My cash game has improved quite a bit in No Limit Hold Em, at least. I have one huge problem I am trying to rein in, though. I have dubbed it the "Prove Mary Is Wrong Play" or the "Prove I Am Right" depending on what the mood is in the house at the time.

You know the play. Middle position player limps, you raise to 3x with 99, it folds back to MP who re-raises to 10x. You think he either has JJ+ or nothing. Mary says "These poker players are always bluffing, you should call." You say, "It's not worth the call to find out." She says, "Gutless." You say, "Ok Fine, Call." He has KK.

The fact that this conversation happens in my head changes nothing, I know better than to call or raise in these cases where I am certainly beat, but do it anyway. That sucking sound is my bankroll going down the drain. My best wins keep it to slight suck, but it still sucks.

I bubbled about half the large-field tournaments I played, but I usually went out with a large bang instead being chipped away with a whimper as in the past. I consider this great progress in my play. In most of these cases I was in the top third or better in chips and got busted close to the money. I would say that half the busts were bad beats and half were stupid plays no my part. In either case, being able to be at the money bubble with play if I could continue to play smart is considerable better than being there with three times the blinds and barely making it into the money.

So even though I made no money to speak of in tournament play other than that one lucky win last February, I think my game has improved a great deal over the year.

Or I am just blowing smoke up my own butt to make myself feel better as I start a new year. I never know for sure.

APBT II - Mary Wins!

2007-12-16T15:24:00.000-05:00

My beautiful wife won the APBT II tournament! Yeah Mary!

Well, she won the turbo SNG that ran after the main tournament, but the win in the main tournament went to some non-blogger so does not count in the record books. Since Mary already has a blog, her win is the one counts. So there.

It was a really good night. Folks came from all over the world and seemed to have a good time. I know we both had a good time.

I played passive no-guts poker all night long and have the results to show for it. Mary chickened out on the plan to switch the channel on the big screen over to Life Time at some point to see whether anyone would say anything.

Skidoo ran a good show. Thanks to him for having us over. Thanks to the poker crowd for making Mary feel welcome and for not abusing me for playing crap poker. We are both very much looking forward to the next gathering.

APBT II Final Table
Originally uploaded by butchhoward

Me, BrainMc, Surflexus, Surly Poker Gnome, Non-Blogger with arms wrapped around the huge stack that will eventually win, and 23Skidoo.

[edited to add links I was too stupid to put in to begin with]

WPBT Nutcracker Trip Recital 2008 Report

2007-12-12T22:51:00.000-05:00

The first thing I did when I got to the casino Friday night was find a group of familiar faces and get the plan for the weekend. I found a gang in the middle of a crowd and headed their way dodging the strange characters and gawking at the madness going on around me. It is amazing how much noise the rattle and clatter of the business makes when added to the voices and laughter and shouts. The lights and sights and sounds and costumes are all a bit overwhelming to someone who does not get out very much.

I was taking in some of the people and servers and players when I noticed one in particular that was wearing a chef's hat and top. "Wow," I thought, "That girl looks just like my daughter Caitlin." After a second look and a long pause I had to say, "Hey that is my daughter! What is she doing here!"

Then I looked around and realized to my horror that this was NOT a casino in Vegas but the backstage of a local high school auditorium. These characters around me were not playing poker. They were all dressed to dance as angels, princesses, flowers, candy canes, mice, and toy soldiers. Not only that, by I was dressed in a period costume and so must be dancing in that show too! What happened? How did I get shanghaied into a small town production of the Nutcracker instead of joining the degenerates in poker mecca?

Actually I was not shanghaied. This is the sixth year I have danced in my childrens' dance recitals as either comic relief with other dads in the spring recitals or as background in the winter production with other couples. The beautiful daughter has been dancing for 9 years and the son has been mixed in a few of those when he felt the urge.

It is always a lot of fun. The kids and the instructors (both groups the real dancers) never make too much fun of how badly we do. At least not while we are within earshot anyway. We all have a pretty good time, get to dance with our children and see how hard they work and how hard it is to do what they make seem easy.

I did take cards and chips in case we had time to get a game going backstage during the break between shows. While Caitlin was all for it, I got the evil eye from the wife and so kept them hidden in my pack instead. Maybe next time I will manage to get table going without getting busted by the moms.

Now if someone will just schedule a blogger event that does not land on top of one of the kids' events maybe Mary and I can use it as an excuse to get away for a few days. Let's see, I think we will have a month free after Nelson turns 18 and that's only six years away...

They Forgot Some Factors in the Calculation

2007-11-27T03:53:00.000-05:00

It would take 33 bottles of McMenamins Dry Irish Stout to kill me

By the time I had finished the second bottle I would be very nearly asleep and unable to hoist any more. I would be soundly snoring by the end of the three hour drinking period used in the calculations. The next morning I would have, not just a hangover, but a raging migraine that would almost certainly turn to a level 7 puke fest by noon. I would most likely aspirate a gob and die during one of the porcelain-god prayer sessions.

It clearly would only take two beers to kill me.

Note that I used that stout because the site did not list Mackeson's Triple Stout as an option. If I am going to uncork my head by uncorking a brew, it well better be my favored stout.

Fifty-Fifty Seat For Cheap

2007-10-28T21:56:00.000-04:00

I played in the RakeTheRake $32.5k freeroll for the players in their rakeback program today. Pretty much played like the donkey I am and went out really early with TT falling to JJ. My head has been aching since I cut the grass this afternoon and has me a bit distracted. I wish that was the only excuse for the crappy play, but I have been playing badly for a while now. I took some magic potions the brain wizard prescribed for me, ate a sammich, and played some FTPoints satellites for distractions. I went out 4th in the first one and won the second for a seat in tonight's 50-50. Woo Hoo!

So, I'll be playing the 50-50 tonight at 9:30 eastern and, if I can get this donkey head removed from my shoulders, maybe something good will happen. I'm sure the ranks will swell when we are closer to the start, but two hours out there are only 74 players signed on. The only one I recognize is Annette_15, the big winner of the WSPOE. There is one red-letter player, PearlJammer, who research shows is a hotshot in the 99.97 percentile of the Pocket Fives player database (whatever that means).

I am too much of a fonkey for any of this to worry me, it just means, this is going to be a fun game. Watch the twitter panel for the play-by-play. I'll update with a summary after I'm done.

Update: 1.5 Hours in.

Out in 477th of 982. Dealt AA in middle position. Make the 3x bet. Called by one. flop comes KJT. ick. bet pot, reraised all in. I really should be able to fold those. Lots of hand that would call beat me. But this time I lost to Q9o. double ick.

New Toy

2007-10-11T00:12:00.000-04:00

Woo Hoo!

I got the bike: 2007 Suzuki V-Strom DL1000.

Why

Getting a motorcycle was not a really easy decision. I have wanted another bike since the day after my Suzuki 850 was stolen in 1981, but things just have not come together to make it happen until this year. Why now? The Jeep has 275k miles on it and is getting close to the point where I will have to spend some money to keep it going or replace it. I would rather spend less to keep it going than spend more to replace it. Even when the Jeep is in top shape it does not get spectacular gas mileage. So getting a new ride in 2007 or 2008 is almost a certainty. Well, maybe not a new ride, but something else to ride that has less wear on it than the Jeep.

Last January, Nelson and I spent a Saturday at a big motorcycle show on a whim. I did not go to shop for bikes. It was just something to do on a cold Saturday to let the boy ogle the rides and watch the crazy riders do their little show. The wide variety of bikes and the relatively low prices on the bikes that sparked my interest really got my attention. Of course, Nelson had a blast.

A few days later I mentioned to Mary that the prices of some of the bikes that attracted me were a lot lower than I thought they would be. I kind of jokingly said that I could get a bike to ride it for half the days of the year given the weather around here and stretch the life of the jeep out by a couple of years. She surprised me by saying that was a great idea and that I should get a bike. So I started shopping after I did a little Happy Dance.

The Happy Dance faded out a bit. Getting a bike would be definitely fun. The weather here is good enough on enough days that I can commute on it and save a goodly amount on fuel over what the Jeep uses (and I will continue to use that justification, thank you very much). Mary says she would like it and she liked the 850 when I had that so she has some experience to back up that thinking. Caitlin, in her quiet way, has shown some enthusiasm for riding with me on it. The Boy is overdosing in excitement at the mere the thought of having one.

But even getting a modest bike would cost enough to get a decent used Box of some kind. It would also cost twice as much as repairing both the mechanical and cosmetic issues with the Jeep well enough to make it useful for at least another 5 years. Getting the bike would not make all of these costs go away. There would be fewer miles put on the Jeep, but it would still need some input beyond basic maintenance to keep it useful. The oily drip would need to be tended, the headliner is falling, and it is old so something is bound wear out in the next couple of years. Even if I do not make it top notch, I can expect to spend another $1k-$2k on the Jeep over the next 5 years to keep it worth driving.

Mary and I kicked these costs around pretty hard and decided that weighing it all in still tips the scale toward getting the bike. So we do the Happy Dance some more.

What

The big cruisers don't excite me much and the street racers don't do it for me at all. Some of the big scooters look cute and Mary really likes the idea of having one of these for herself, but they are not really what I want ride every day. The sport cruisers seem to fit the bill pretty well. The sitting posture is not face down on the tank or sprawled out with both feet and hands stuck out the front. The body is well balanced over the bike and the saddle is mostly flat so the passenger is not hoisted a foot over the driver. A cruiser would give the passenger more comfort with more possibilities for a couch on the back end, but the loss to the driver comfort, for what I need, is too much. I expect to do quite a bit of commuting with the bike so want a good bit of agility in traffic. The street bikes are the extreme on this, but they are out for both the rider posture and lack of passenger comfort. Cruisers might be good on the open road, but I want something a bit more nimble for working thicker traffic. The sport cruisers look to be the best mix.

If I had a bigger pile of cash, I would get a BMW R1200RT. The styling and ride suited both Mary and my fancy quite nicely. After looking around at a few others including the Honda ST1300 and Suzuki Bandit, we settled on the Suzuki V-Strom DL1000 as the right fit with a nice sporty look.

It's a Big Bike and It Only Has Two Seats

I love my kids. A lot. But I do not get very much private time with my wife when we are both awake. I don't get much even when we are asleep given our polar work schedules (Mary works several nights a week) and a certain 12-year-old's lingering habit of crawling into our bed in the middle of the night. It occurred to us both about two weeks before picking up the bike that this sweet vehicle can carry no more than two passengers. This is going to be great. "Sorry we're taking the bike and there is no room for you. Clean your room while we are gone."

The kids knew getting a motorcycle was in the plans and would likely happen within a few months, but did not know exactly when it would happen. We wanted to make it one of those surprises where we came home on it and then waited to see how long it took for them to notice it was in the garage (I expected microseconds). For the couple of weeks before collecting it from the shop sometimes when I hugged Mary I would whisper in her ear, "It's a Big Bike and It Only Has Two Seats" and she would whisper back, "I know" and then we would giggle. I think the kids thought we were being silly old married folk.

Got It

This evening Mary and I went to the dealer to wrap up the paperwork and pick up the bike.

Mary insists on having something against her back to ride. At first we were going with the hard trunk, but I found a decent looking back rest that fits instead and gets good reviews which should be here within a week. She says she is good to ride some until it gets here. We will get some Nelson-Rigg side cases later when we start to take more trips. Until then I will make due with a smaller bag or backpack strapped to the backrest for the commute. Helmets and jackets are the only other gear for now. We will add other goodies as we go along.

I rode it around the lot and the tside streets a bit to get used to it. The thing has a lot of power and I'm a little twitchy with the clutch and gas so was not comfortable throwing Mary on the back right away. I drove it home and Mary followed in the Jeep. I felt familiar enough by then to take her on a trip around the local neighborhoods. Then we hid it in the garage while we went to get Caitlin from a friends house across town. Once we got back, I called Nelson in from his friend's across the street and, after much effort, got him home. I sent them to the garage on some pretense and there they found it. I had time before it got too dark to give them both a trip around the neighborhood.

I will start riding it to work after I have ridden it enough to feel settled. I think that should take about two weeks or so. That should be about the time I need to get the 600 mile service so that is the marker I am using for adequate familiarization.

Getting new toys is exciting.

WBCOOP

2007-10-03T23:55:00.000-04:00

You have a blog. It's a freeroll. $40k of prizes plus the winner gets a trip to the Bahamas. How could we not play?

I have registered to play in the PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker!

This Online Poker Tournament is a No Limit Texas Holdem event exclusive to Bloggers.

Registration code: 3020358

Nerd Score

2007-09-29T01:24:00.000-04:00

See also:

Kat

And The Uber-Dorky Non-Nerd

PokerStars 100G

2007-08-26T22:52:00.000-04:00

That was fun. 18218 players. I finished 141st with a small but pleasing cash. Nothing special happened, especially after the 2nd break where it was all short-stack play. It was made even better because I got in through a 70FPP SnG.

First Live Poker

2007-06-12T01:22:00.000-04:00

I had never played poker in a casino before this weekend. I set a limit on the amount I could lose and fully expected to lose it all. I am not really comfortable around people, not used to handling chips and the other details of play that are different from online, and not a very good poker player anyway. So I had a plan. Play fairly tight until I got comfortable (if at all); get acclimated to the felt, chips, chairs, dealers, noise, and everything else going on; figure out whether it was something I wanted to do again. Smaller goals in the plan were to see if Mary cared for the casino or at least did not mind being there while I played and whether the kids could be entertained while there.

The results were not bad. I relaxed enough eventually to enjoy and would like to try it again. I end up a little ahead for the weekend, which was very good. There was enough things to do close by that Mary and the kids were entertained during the day.

Mary had a not bad time in the casino, but was not really thrilled with playing the machines (she might have to get into poker some more to see how that goes). She got a lot of rest, saw those movies (Pirates and Shrek), and we had some more time together after the kids headed to bed.

We stayed at the Gold Strike and chose it for no reason other than some friends said that's where they stay when they go. All in all it was a good time and I think we will go back soon.

My Wife is the Greatest

2007-06-12T00:58:00.000-04:00

May 28th was our 25th anniversary. I took a week plus off work spanning two weekends including Memorial Day to get almost 2 full weeks break. The first part of the trip was to Branson, MO for the wedding of Mary's oldest niece. Mary and the kids drove out to Branson the week before to start helping with the wedding preparations. I flew out later to try to finish up some work, not burn too many vacation days, and to avoid as much of the pre-wedding work as possible (and it was a LOT of work).

The second part of the trip was to stop in Tunica on the way home so I could try out live poker and she could sleep a lot and relax without any pressing plans. My plan was to play as much as possible without losing the limited amount I had budgeted for a 'bankroll'. Her plan was to sleep, watch a movie or two with the kids, and watch them at the pool. The kids' plan was to have as much fun as possible while letting the adults make the most of our plans.

We all seemed happy with the plan and happy with the way it turned out.

How Cool is That!

2007-05-24T03:08:00.000-04:00

Dr. Pauly live blogs poker.

Samantha Larson live blogs climbing Everest.

Blogging from the mountain. I spent part of my childhood in a town that only had party lines for phones and now we can write blogs and use Google from Mount Everest.

Well, not really we. But she can and that's really cool.

Should I Play the Hammer?

2007-05-10T18:39:00.000-04:00

I am shopping for a motorcycle. This one is calling to me:

Victory Motorcycles Hammer

Mary will veto this one because it has no passenger seat. Still, I feel it calling to me.

You Don't Say?

2007-05-05T03:03:00.000-04:00

Reading poker blogs turned out an unexpected benefit for me tonight and one that had almost nothing to do with poker strategy or how to explain away crazy donkey moves.

I read a story on one of the blogs about a home game where the hero was surprised to discover that it was a raked game. (sorry cannot recall who and have not been able to dig it up with Google)

Thanks to that story I knew something was out of whack with the dealer getting tokes and pulling a rake in what was supposed to be 'friendly' game with a bunch of guys from the office.

I got out as quickly and graciously as I felt I could.

On the way down the driveway my friend apologized and said it took him by surprise too. We chalked it up as a lesson learned (ask more questions before hand).

[I had a lot more to say about this, but decided to delete it all. I am having some trouble being that open in my writing yet. That and giving out some of those details, even if not very specific, kind of makes me nervous.]

Me == Donkey

2007-04-28T06:03:00.000-04:00

Played some poker tonight. First with Katitude on a NL25 table while I waited for the Grand Blogger's NL200 table to open. The waiting list was long and the three or four that were there decided to open a new table where I was able to jump in. I made some stupid plays, got amazingly lucky in a few spots, and ticked off the True Poker Playing Bloggers.

The first suckout was against Hoyazo. I had 77 in the CO, raised to 6 was called in two places. The flop came out 5TA. The pot is $21, I bet $15. Hoy raises to $35. I think for a bit and make a WTF call. Turn comes a marvelous 7 bringing in my 9% chance. Pot is $91, I bet $50, Hoy makes it $100, I push to $161 and he calls.

hoyazo: ARGRRGRJRHGJHGH

He left after that hand. MiamiDon lead the crowd in giving me a well-deserved ration for that play.

I passed my ill-gotten gains on to SixthStr when I had T9 on a limped semi-live-pseudo-straddled hand and caught a 998 flop with a turn that made SixthStr's JT straight. No ten or nine to suck out and I go from 200 up to 20 down.

I got up again later when my AA played against jeciimd's QQ. I bet 3x he raises to 9x everyone else folds and I call. Flop is 39Q, pot is $39. I bet $20, he makes it $60, I stupidly push to $237 and he calls. Turn is a 2, River is an Ace.

More ragging from the better players.

I sucked out a few more times and made some more bad bets. For example, I could not lay my KK down against Smokkee on a board of 4AA33 against his QJd on a flush draw. I bet and he called every street until the river then I check-called his 3/4 pot bet.

I tightened up a lot after about half the Greater Bloggers left. I committed to not leaving before MiamiDon left. As much crap as he gave me for playing badly, I wanted to make sure he had every chance to win it off me. When he left at 2:45am (GMT-5), I checked out on my next blind. Waffles bailed right behind me.

I did not win any other really big pots, but won several small and medium pots to end the night up $500.

I solemnly promise to give it all back some other night.

[Update] Hoyazo comments on my play and then comments on his comment. Note that I do not take exception to his analysis. He is dead on. Worse that that , in each of those donkey plays where the deck ended up being so kind to me, I was telling myself "fold-fold-fold" , but was clicking the call button instead. That discipline thing is a problem I have in this game.

CC's Bash

2007-04-13T02:24:00.000-04:00

I made it to CC's Bash tonight (the Jeep does not have to drive on the internet). I finished 7th out of 12.

The key hand for me was against 23Skidoo after which I was always short stack. We still had 6 people at the table. I am on the button, Skidoo is the big blind. I had KcQd, two folds, one limp, I raise to 4xBB, SB folds, Skidoo calls and the limper folds. Flop comes 9sKh3h. Skidoo bets 120 (a bit less than half pot). I raise to 350 and he calls. Ad on the turn and Skidoo bets 420 which is about half the pot and 3/4 my remaining stack. If figure if I'm calling I'm pushing and if I fold I have 15M. I fold. I can't decide whether I made the right play or chickened out. Skidoo says he had KJ.

I did get to play the Hammer once after that. From the BB all fold to the SB who bets 3x. My stack is about 3/4 his. I push and he thinks for a bit before folding. While he was thinking I had time to switch my muck options so I could show the hand.

I might get to play at Skidoo's tomorrow or at Kat's Donkament (or both maybe?).

Blogger Poker

2007-04-12T18:51:00.000-04:00

I played in the Wheatie and the Mookie so far this week. I made it to 19th out of XX in the Wheaties and 8th of 77 in the Mookie for a tiny gain. The ITM in the Mookie puts me at 46th on the Mookie Money Board and 56th on the BBT board. Not that I care about those, I just think it is interesting that my Pathetic Poker Powers make any mark at all. I expect to play in CC's Bash tonight if everything comes together.

Monday At The Hoy

2007-04-03T22:30:00.000-04:00

Played in the MATH last night. No great shakes. Got a bit over anxious with my 77 in the cutoff. Raised was called by one. Flop was not coordinated, but did not have a 7. I go all in, get called, go home. [insert donkey sound here].

Played some at a non-blogger cash table while waiting on the blogger table and made a bit. Then played the blogger table and wound up about even. Laughed at some of the gang playing musical chairs for a while. To Say Nothing of the Dog, Fuel55's dog that is. I hope it survived the night.

It was a pleasant evening of pokering, all in all.

[edited to take out the Amazon link because it was taking a very long time to load the page with it in and it is easier to edit it out than figure out why the link is broken]

Dookie and Wheatie

2007-03-30T01:54:00.000-04:00

I played both the Dookie Limit Razz and the WWdN Lee Jones Special PLO8 Wednesday. That was wacky. I played with SS2 opened to the PLO8 chapter and tried to apply what little I could recall from the 2-7TD chapter to the Razz. Went out 16th (Gigli) in the Dookie and 7th (Gigli-1) in the Wheatie. I missed the Mookie by 5 minutes because I was talking with my daughter trying to pick a movie to watch (we ended up with Howl's Moving Castle which was pretty good) and forgot to register.

I won't be able to play Katitude's Birthday Tournament, but you should go sign up now and play. Happy birthday, Kat.

Mary is not working Friday night for a rare change. She is pretty good about letting me play, but firing up the machine on one of the only Fridays she has been off in a month would be a bad idea. My sister and brother-in-law are coming over for the evening. I will practice my martini mixing skills (Mary loves them Sour Appletinis), whip up some guacamole, and cook some boudin.

So no poker Friday, but good luck to you and see you sometime Saturday most likely.

Tournament BuyIns are Strange

2007-03-23T21:28:00.000-04:00

When I played the 26k Guaranteed this week at Full Tilt, I selected it on a whim mostly. I was looking at the tournament list, it was coming up in 15 minutes, and the fee was about what I had won in cash games over the weekend. I thought the worst and most like thing that could happen is that I would end up with a backroll about the same as it was the Friday before. So, not thought really given to the buyin or how it related to the guarantee.

Looking over the guaranteed tournaments last night, it struck me as odd the way some of them are priced:

$26 for the 26K
$75 for the 22k (double stack)
$26 for the 3k (limit)
$163 for the 40k (double stack)
$26 for the 19k
$26 for the 2k (limit Razz)
$33 for the 14k (rebuy)
$11 for the 10k (rebuy)
$109 for the 30k (double stack 6 max)

I just do not see a pattern to the buyin to guarantee ratio. What are their goals when setting the buyins for these things? Or are they just experimenting to see what gets them the best return?

Full Tilt 26k Guaranteed

2007-03-21T07:04:00.000-04:00

This will be a boring post. I have decided to play the $26k Guaranteed at Full Tilt for $26 of my very few dollars. I am going to write it up as I go more or less.

Update: It got interesting. The short story is that I got 3rd.

1135 players. Prize pool is $27,240
180 Paid.
1 = 5k
2 = 3k
3= 2k
6 = 926
15 = 247
36 = 100
81 = 54
180 = 35

40 hands in. Playing nothing. Limping a few times. Bleeding. I must be playing way too tight.

M=12. QJo. Two limpers in front. Chicken out. Flop comes QJx two clubs. River is another Q. feck.

60 hands in. table change.

80 hands in. 100/200 1860 KQ Board: [2c Th 9d 9s Js] Called in two places. New Stack 5760.

Three hands latter TT. Bet 600 all fold.

94 hands in. 120/240/25. 275 remaining. I am 130th.

77 all in. All fold. 6025 stack. M=10.

150/300/25. 5565. 261 remaining.

A7o in the cutoff. All in. all fold. 6165.

KQ. all in. 6265. ll fold 6935.

Next hand. KK. All in. Called by AJo. I win. 13825. m=20. 20th of 245.

New table.

39o. Fold.
T3o. Fold.
K4o. Fold.
T6o (BB) Fold to a raise from early.
K3o (SB) Folded to me. Raise to 900. BB Folds.

2nd Break. 13875. 23rd of 223.
Largest 27,905
Average 7,634
Smallest 290

200/400/50. M=13.

J4o on the button. fold to raise.
QJo in the cutoff. folded to me. Raise 3xBB. all fold.
48d. fold
A8o. fold to 4xBB raise.
A4o. fold.
K7s. Fold.

A guy with a 13k Stack raised allin with 99 called by 5k stack with QT. Flop comes TTQ.

39o. fold.
35o (BB). Given a walk.
58o (SB) fold to 4k all in.
T4h. Fold to min raise.
K5o. Fold.
Radiohead's Optimisitic is playing on the music channel.
34o. Fold.
Q6s. Fold.
The stacks at the table starting with me and going left:
14725, 2445, 12k, 11k, 13k, 5k, 17k, 31k, 4k

2Th. Fold.
new table
new stacks. 14k, 11k,8k, 25k, 6k, 8k, 8k, 14k, 29k
250/500/50. 30 of 187.
T2s. Fold.
89o. Fold to 2700 raise from 25k stack.
30 of 181.
Q6s. Fold.
33 of 180.
65o. Fold.
Q2o. Fold.
75o (BB). Check option. 6QT. 1300 bet from the other guy. fold.
Q8o (SB). 2200 bet from button. fold.
45o. raise to 1k from 23k stack in EP. fold.
5To. fold.
300/600/50. M=10.
K6o. fold.
There are 3 m<5 stacks at the table spread evenly around.
K3o. Fold.
75o. fold.
T6o. Fold.
It is 12:40am. I should be in bed.
ATo UTG. Fold. Wimp? From the IHO phrasebook (buried in a long story): Question? Answer.
T2o (BB). Check with one limper ahead. board JJ723. check. 29k stack thinks then checks. check. check. check. I win against QT.
62o (SB) fold.
77. 1800. raise to 3000. all fold.
K5o. Fold.
82s. Fold.
TT. 3.5k allin. me all in with 17k. KQ against me. I hold up.
22k stack now. 18th of 125.
new table. stacks: 22k, 36k, 6k, 22k, 19k, 4k, 12k, 8k, 21k
400/800/100.
6To. fold.
J5s. fold.
K3o. Fold.
77 (BB). folded to SB who completes. I raise to 3k. he goes all in 19k. I fold.
QJo (SB) folded to me. raise to 3k. BB goes all in 34k. I fold. he shows QQ.
Q7o. Fold.
15k stack. 46th of 108.
Kqo. Folded to one before me. he rases to 2222. I go all in 15k. folds back to him. he folds. 19k.
J5o. fold.
Q3o. fold.
500/1000/125. M=7. Big stack is 51k. Average stack is 17k. I have 19k.
35o. fold.
J9o. Fold.
Q8o. fold.
J3o (BB) fold to min raise from 26k stack in EP.
J2o (Sb). fold to 3k bet from 35k stack in ep.
AJo. hmmm. folds to me. all in. folds all around.
T2d. Fold.
ATo. folds to me. all in 19k. folds to bb 13k. he thinks then folds. 22k.M=8.
T4o. fold.
KTs. folds to me. all in 22k. called by AA with 19k. Board comes: 63982 three spades. I win.
J9o. fold.
79o. fold.
AKh. 36k stack raise to 4k. 20k stack goes all in. I fold. 36k calls with kq. allin had QQ 36k had KQ. QQ held.
J2o. fold.
QJo. (button). folds to me. raise to 5k. folds all around.
J6o. fold.
6th of 83. 600/1200/150. M=13
53o. fold.
QJo. Fold.
52d. Fold.
J9o. Fold.
92h. Fold.
58o (BB) fold to 10k allin.
53o (SB) fold to 7k all in followed by 22kallin. 77 against AK, 7 on the flop seals it.
A4o. fold to 12k all in.
K5o. fold to 4k bet from 36k stack.
AJh. fold to 15k all in. Question? Answer.
Q6o. fold.

break.
800/1600/200
40284. 8 of 70. M=9. Stacks ahead of me: 43k, 50k, 60k, 66k, 70k, 104k, 118k
stacks at my table: 40k, 39k, 10k, 28k, 40k, 23k, 19k, 13k, 18k

Q9c. fold. UTG+1.
T7o. fold.
9Td (BB) fold to SB. he thinks and folds.
K4c (SB). 18k stack raise to 7k. I fold.
84o. fold.
42o. Fold.
A7h. Folds to me. All in 40k. all fold.
58o. fold to 9k all in.
K6o. fold.
A8h. UTG. Fold. I am definitely a wimp it seems.
94o (BB). fold to 5k raise by 40k stack.
J3o (Sb). fold to 5k raise.
KTo. fold to 10k all in.
T3o. fold.
69o. fold.

1000/2000/250. M=7. 13 of 55. New Table.

K7o. Fold to 5k raise.
Hey, there's the big stack 114k guy.
86s. Fold.
K4o. fold to 6k bet.
53o UTG. Fold.
KJo (BB). SB completes. I go all in,. he folds.
K9o (SB). 7k bet ahead by 114k stack. I fold.
QQ. 9k bet by 34k stack with k8. QQ holds. I am at 81k now. My heart is kind of pounding.
T3o. fold.
67o. fold.
92o. fold.
5th of 44.
J7s. fold.
Q9o. fold.
94o (BB) fold to 17k all in
58o (SB). fold to 6k bet from The Big Stack.
QTo.folds to me on the button. I raise to 8k. blinds fold.
J3o. fold to 7k bet.
74o. fold.
93o. Fold.

1200/2400/300 80758. M=13. 5th of 41.

Q9o. fold.
92d. Fold.
JTo (BB). SB completes. I check. both check the flop. J onthe turn. I bet 5k he folds.
AQo. Folded to me. 10k bet. BB folds.
63o. Fold.
Q8h. fold to 8k bet from The Big Stack.
42c. fold.
ATd. folds to me. 10k bet. folds to 8k stack. he thinks and folds.
K9o. fold.
A5o. fold

93k stack. 4th of 37.

24o (BB). fold to 6k bet from UTG (Vincent Gambini)
K9o (SB). fold to 8k bet from cutoff's 70k stack.

1500/3000/400 M=12. 5th of 34.

AJo. folds to me on the button. bet 12k. all fold.
T7o. fold to 9k from The Big Stack.
Q5o. fold.

Small stack at the table is also small stack overall and has been all his time everytime hoping to get below 36 for the extra $20. He is there now and is all in on every hand with a 3k stack. 3 times and now he is at 12k.

Q2o. Fold.
35o. Fold.
94o. Fold.
82o. Fold.
AQo (BB). The Big Stack bet 9k. I raise to 25k. He folds.
38o. Fold.
Q6o. Fold.
93h. Fold.
7To. Fold.
92o. Fold.
36o. Fold.
Q9o (BB) folds to me
Q6o. fold to 12k bet.
75o. Fold.

2000/4000/500 M=9 4th of 26.

23o. Fold.
Q5o. Fold.
J5o. Fold.
J9o. Fold.
57h. Fold.
98h UTG. Fold.
K4o. fold to 67k all in.
A6h (Sb). fold to 15k bet.
QJo. fold to 87k all in.
59o. fold.
K7o. fold to 67k all in (87k above that lost AT to 44).
KQd. folded to me raise to 20k. folds all around.
46c. fold. QQ v. AQ. v TT. TT wins when a t hits the flop and triples up.
K2o. Fold.
7Td (BB). fold to 12k bet from Ep.
49d (Sb) folds to me. bet 20k. SB folds.
2500/5000/600
35o. fold to 50k all in followed by 100k all in. T9 v JJ. board comes AAKKQ for a chop.
35s. fold.
Q4o. fold.
36c. fold.
J8o. Fold.
The new Biog Stack is 188k now. Average is 77k. I have 103k. He sits on my right.
38o. fold.
57o (BB). fold.
A5o (SB). fold to 5k bet.
KQo on the button. all in. folds around.
JTs. fold to 15k bet from Mr. 188k.
89o. Fold.
J7o. Fold.
A7d vs KK i go all in with 102k get called by 50k. A7x on the flop for two pair.
92o (BB) fold.

On a break.

3000/6000/750 150k. 4th of 20. M=9.

I'm not bored any more, are you?

34o (SB). folds to me. raise to 20k. BB folds.
Q9o. fold.
46h. fold to 20k bet.
Q7o. fold
63o. fold
93o. fold
Q6c (BB) folds to me
94o. fold
K5h. fold
A9o. fold to 20k bet from Mr. Big.
5To. fold
85o. fold
A2o (BB) fold to 2kall in followed by 91k all in. A5 v A6 with a 6 on the flop.
48c fold to 56k all in
A9o fold to 58k bet from 100k stack
46h fold to 86k all in
J2o. fold
Q5o. fold
79o. fold
JTo UTG. fold

Folding these marginal hands because there are 4 30-60k stacks scattered around the table going all in a lot.

35o (BB) folds around to me
46o fold to 30k all in
5To fold

4000/8000/1000 m=7

J3o fold
J5d fold
T3o fold
59c fold
52o (BB) fold to 35k all in folled by 100k al in KK v A9. 55x on the flop.
Q2o fold
Q5o fold
56o fold
J3o fold
64o fold
8Tc (BB) 8th of 10. Folded to SB who completes. I check. Flop has Axx one club. Turn in Jc. Sb checks. I go all in. he folds.
82o fold
47o fold to 33k bet
5Th fold

5000/1000/1000 130k stack m=5 7th of 10

J7o fold
56o (BB) fold to 26k bet from 200k stack
J2h fold to 30k bet from 200k stack
77 on the button. all on 110k. folds around.
K5s fold to 30 bet from Mr. Big who showed KK

6th of 9

52o fold
34o (BB) walk in the park
T7o (SB) fold to 30k bet from 450k stack.

I have to get up and let the dog out before he pees on the carpet. I manage it between hands.

KKvQQ Mr450k against 100k. now there are 8. My hands are shaking.

2To. fold. [134k] now there are 7
J2d fold to 30k bet followed by 118k allin 77vAq not help. now there are 5
KTo. all in folds around.
AA allin folds around [173k)
A2c fold.
J8o (BB) walk in the park
36h (Sb) fold in fear of 250k BB
J3o fold.
There are two 50k stacks, a 900k, me at 200k
JJ all in folds around [200k]
Q5o fold
83o fold

down to 5

65o (BB) missing SB. fold to big bet from 900k stack
J8o fold to 46k all in and now there are 4

I am afraid to look at the payouts for fear it will make me more nervous.

75h fold.
J5o (BB) fold to 137k allin

I looked. 4th is 1700

T6o fold to 36k bet from Mr900k.
62c fold
KJo. all in. 149k called by Mr 400k with AJ. K on the turn and I have 300k.
KQo 35k bet from 260k stack I go all in he folds.
AKc I bet 200k all fold
Ako I 120k all fold
A5c I bet 60k all fold
Q4o (BB) fold to 100k all in follow bu all in from Mr, Big makes his flush and we are 3
KT bet 100k all fold
Q8c fold to 54k bet from Mr. Big

Nelson just woke up from sleeping on the couch and asked if I was crazy for being up so late. I asked him to come watch while I finished up. He does and is very excited.

8000/16000/2000

A2s fold
73o fold

400km 200k 1M

Q8o fold to MrBig

99 (Sb) MrBig bets 62k I go all in for 380k. He thinks and thinks and calls with A7. A on the river and IGHN.

$2206.44 for 3rd.

Nelson went back to bed.

Mary is at work tonight. I sent her a text message:

Me: Played tournament got third of 1100 for $2200.
Mary: Is that $22.00 or $2200
Me: The big number
Mary: WOW

I am going to bed now.