I'm fine with preflop and flop (I think most are too incorrectly aggressive here, I like our passive play).

If I've counted right, the pot is $260 by the time it gets to us on the turn and we only have $115 left. Obviously we're a little worried our flush ain't good (although against this crowd there's still a very good chance it is), but I think we have to shove now since we won't be able to fold on the river plus we charge hands that won't pay when whiffing the river.

GcluelessNLnoobG

We're way too short to be calling an EP raise with KJs (and likely often shouldn't anyways), imo. Facing a cbet from EP raiser and a call and our shortish stack behind, I think this is all-in versus fold (and I might lean to fold depending on multiwayness and cbetter tendencies).

A9s, think I'd rather just call the small open in position as we know this small raise will go very multiway. If we're getting out-of-line and 3betting I think we have to 3bet much larger as this sizing has no FE (one of the only reasons to light 3bet). I'm ok with postflop although river decision I find difficult.

GcluelessNLnoobG

His iso-raise was so weak so I pounced. It was extremely unlikely he made it $11 over two limpers with a premium. Plus at this table I didn't think I had to make it much more to get HU with him (I hadn't 3! once), hence the slightly smaller sizing. I was fine with him calling to be honest. As you can see from the way he played 22, I probably want to play post-flop with him rather than take it down pre!

I'm not so sure we should be attempting to light 3bet people who don't have a fold button. He has a fairly terrible preflop/flop hand and yet he called both times (correctly, lol) which means we're just tossing money into the abyss on these streets unless we're prepared to barrel multiple streets.

If he's a one-and-doner and will fold the flop to a cbet the majority of the time then I can't hate as much, but overall I still feel it's meh. But then again, I think light 3betting in smallstacked LLSNL is highly overrated, so that's me.

GcluelessNLnoobG

We were much deeper at this point. Sorry wasn’t clear about that. I’d won a few good pots so sitting on $500 effective.

Yeah not sure you make money flatting KJs vs typical 1/3 EP ranges. Just so many scenarios where you get kicker problems and/or up against overpairs.

This V should be opening a pretty standard range. KJs is probably just good enough to call, but it’s close. I certainly wouldn’t always make this call.

Two short session separated by a little free poker to see old friends. Up $124 and $60 in 2 and 1 hour.

First session, raised $12 UTG with KK, six callers, BB 3! $75 with $80 behind, I jam $150, all fold to him and he calls. I hold on J-J-A-8-7 runout.

Then call raise with QJhh in BB five ways, flop Ah-Th-7x. Pfr cbets, I call. He double-barrels a brick turn, I call. I miss and he fires big otr, I fold and he rivered a straight with 98o (SB was all in for less).

3! AQo and cbet A-high flop, took it down. Missed with AK.

Second session, iso'd two limpers with KQhh, one limper donked into me on Q-8-7cc flop, I raised to $75, he folded. Then 3! same donker with AKo and took it down pre. That's pretty much it.

Snow is coming tomorrow afternoon. Might get in an AM session before it hits, but it's unlikely since I'm not really a morning person, especially on weekends. In all likelihood I'll take Saturday and Sunday off. A much needed break.

Well, I surprise even myself sometimes. Ended up waking up at god-awful early 9:30 AM and stayed up, headed to MGM to meet Jeff who was there for the $400 lucky table promo for morning/early afternoon sesh before snow hit. As usual, we agreed to split any promo money 50/50. (Neither of us hit....)

Ran well at an extremely loose-passive rec-filled table, so naturally I made a lot of money. Up $650 in 3.5 hours. First hand called $10 raise in BB multiway with A2cc and GII against shorter stack on J-6-8cc flop and make the nuts on 2c turn, hold on 2s river. Shorty didn't show. Interestingly, I CRAI and player with betting lead folded a J face up.

3! my AK, raised AQss to $30 in straddle, and flopped top pair both times. Later got value from a limp/called A4o a second AK hand. Overlimped Q9dd multiway in limped pot, turned nut straight and jammed, got called by worse straight. Opened in MP with 65dd ($600 effective), raised donk to $75 on T-6-5hh flop, took it down. That's pretty much it.

Now if only I can find an affordable Uber to my poker buddy Elena's birthday/home game in this snow..... Yeah, and unicorns exist, too.

No casino poker for the next couple days due to snow . . . and I need a break. For those who like numbers, 1/3 hourly is $12 something now and combined BB/hr. (1/3, 2/5, PLO) is 3.5/hr.

Snow has landed. The last time we had a big snow fall in January three years ago (granted, it was bigger than this one), I was being hospitalized for first-episode psychosis. It's unfortunate that the bright and fluffy snow rekindles images of the darkest and heaviest days of my life, but it's also a good reminder of how far I've come. Stable, happy, earning a decent living as a lawyer and poker player, and surrounded by good friends and family?

In the words of Amy Poehler, "Yes, please!"

To kill time while snowed in, been watching a bunch of Crush Live Poker videos. Roads are still icy, so as much as it pains me, it'll be two days off in a row from MGM. Hopefully back at it tomorrow.

Will have some fun on (free) PokerStars trying to apply the concepts from the training videos (thin value betting, getting involved with fun players) and maybe satellite in to an ACR cash game with my buddy Dennis.

Graph porn:

Fine session back after weekend off. Nothing too out of line. Got AA two hands in a row for the first time dare I say ever? L/rr UTG first time and GII against another $100 something shorty who had JJ. I held. Next hand HJ makes it $18, BTN calls, I bump it to $65 with AdAc and only HJ calls. I flop nut flush draw and overpair on Qxxddd. He folds AQo no diamond to my 1/2 pot cbet.

Later raise TT UTG, two callers, flop Q-T-5r. Bet/bet $25/$50 on board pairing 5 turn and they both folded turn.

Up $202 in under four hours. Now a shock top and karaoke. Thinking some 90s alt rock.

Oh, and more news from the "who do I look like" crowd. Last night it was Adam Levine. Then this blond chick railing someone at the table said she thought I looked more like this guy from the TV show Catfish (which I've never watched).

I'm not sure I want to look like anyone from a show with that name...!

And I didn't know MTV was still a thing?

If I recall, I think I may have done this 3 times. My memory is very hazy on this, but I'm pretty sure the first two times I did it I was on my last orbit with my chips in a rack.

The third time (unless there were others) sticks out cuz it just happened on New Years eve. I posted about it in the Winrates thread:

"Also funny how poker gods are mainly at the controls. So I'm playing my last session of the year on New Years Eve and I've only got 2 hours left in my session before I have to leave for a party. I'm stuck a few hundred dollars and I'm doing the hour-by-hour math on my hourly and realize I'm now below my best hourly since 2013. But then the biggest maniac in the room sits down. Here we go. He blows thru two BIs in his first 2 hands but then builds up a monster stack. I finally get AA. And he... open folds preflop. Literally the first hand he's folded in an hour at the table (raising 50% of them), obviously balancing his range no doubt, but I sigh take down $10 preflop. Anyhoo, onwards. We play another hour and I can't get into a single pot, and now the floor comes over with racks for his massive stack and says his table change has come in. Ug. So he plays two more hands as he's stacking his mountain of chips and in both hands... I get dealt AA. I double up thru him on my first hand, and then take down $100 preflop on the next. And that's it, he goes over to his other table, and I book an ok session profit and ship my best year since 2013."

Gcluelessback-to-back-AAnoobG

Lost this one. -$249 in 4 hours. Lots of raising and missing. Called a shorty’s open jam in straddle for $65 with AQ and lost the flip v. 99.

Then flopped a set of 8s on 8-9-Kss flop and got it in against another shorty for $85. His 56ss combo draw got there. I said nice hand. That’s all.

Sigh.

Last night was typical uphill battle session. Getting rivered, bluffed, not enough big hands. Down $300, my stop loss.

Got AA once, raised BB/fun player defended and check/folded flop. Next hand got JJ, fun played min 3! in SB, I call with an OMC. Flop Q-x-x, SB bets $50, we fold.

Iso'd TT in EP over one good player's limp, rec player calls in SB, limper calls. Flop: 6-5-5. SB donks $20, we both call. Turn: 6 (bringing bd and fd flush draws). SB checks, limper checks, I bet $50, only limper calls. River: 2c, bringing bdf. Limper donks $100, I cringe and fold.

Made a preflop mistake, raising KJo in MP1 and calling a BTN min 3! getting over 3:1 (fun player/SB cold called). Flop: K-Q-x, low runout, I call flop cbet and river "same bet" ($50 each time), he has set of Qs. Couldn't fold for that price on the river expecting to be beat a decent amount of the time. Oh well.

Iso'd AQo IP, got three callers. Flop: K-J-8d. We all check. Turn: Td. BB donks $50, MP calls, I jam $130, both call. River: Qs. BB has A3dd for the chop....

Raised TT, got called by whale in straddle. Flop: 3-6-7. I cbet $30, he calls. Turn: 8. I bet $55, he calls. He checked river dark and I check behind a Kx. I show and he has K6o. :/

Then iso with A8hh over two limpers on BTN and same fun player calls in SB. He donks $50 on 5-6-Acc flop and I call. Turn: 2c. He bets the same bet. I let it go...he shows 76o no club. I said nice bluff, folded an ace, he said it wasn't a bluff because he had a 6. Lol.

Finally, got AQcc in MP and jammed my last $65 over two limpers, same fun player/whale/straddler calls with 52o and flops a pair, beating no pair. Rofl.

New Kem decks arrived today! Paisley with jumbo font. Can't wait to crack them open. Love new decks.

Couple good sessions over the last two days. Up $247 and $414. First session ran it up rather quickly at 1/3 where I 4! jammed JJ over a tilted player's 3!. Got called by AK and AQ and rivered straight on A-Q-4-T-K runout. Then won a couple medium-sized raised pots with T9cc and 98dd. My name was called for 2/5 and I decide to give it a shot for the first time this month since I was up a cool $450 in 1/3 in just an hour.

Didn't play a single hand at 2/5 for the first 30 minutes until I got AKo in SB over one EP limper and limped behind. BB made it $35, limper folded, I l/rr $135, he says "if you trapped me, you trapped me" and jams. I snap and he instantly tables KQo. Runout: Q-x-x-x-x. There goes $300.

Headed back to 1/3 again where I basically ran over the table. Made $100, then left.

Yesterday went to a home game that really wasn't that fun. Lots of new players from a different game who acted way too seriously, hardly speaking. One old fart had nothing nice to say ever. It was miserable. On top of that my KK got cracked in 3! pot by someone who cold called 88 and flopped top set. Down $150 in the home game, left early for MGM where things turned around.

Got 88 three times and flopped a set all three times. (Funny, flopped a set of 8s the other night too and got cracked. 2/4 on sets...?) First time, A-T-8ss flop, V had AsKd and four-flushed me on the river. I slowplayed heads up, so I didn't get stacked. Next raised 88 in CO over several limps and flop 4-8-Qhh. I cbet, shorty who barely has me covered jams, BTN re-jams, I call and hold against bottom set and top pair+flush draw. Third time, limped behind in MP, flop 8-K-4cc. Shorty is all in, BB calls, I call. Turn: Ad. BB bets $30, I raise $90, he calls. River: Qs. I bet $125, he folds (later claims he had A4cc for 2p plus fd). Shorty had JTcc for the nuts, but I made good side pot money.

Lastly, got AQhh, raised, flopped nut flush draw on T-high flop, GII against shorty for $80 and made the nuts. Changed tables to play with a couple buddies who had arrived from the home game, 3! KK once and took it down pre, raised AKss and AQo and took them down pre, drank a pineapple juice, and went home. That's pretty much it.

Not a whole lot to report. Changed tables early from stupid nitty one with a bunch of OMCs. Next table was also nitty but inexperienced. Stole a ton of limps and blinds. Then got coolered KK into AA. That’s all. -$225 in 4 hours.

Got paid for work which is awesome.

Time for karaoke and shock top.

Yeah, really dislike the KJo hand, both opening to begin with and of course calling the raise. Immediate odds aren't really something we should be concerned too much about preflop *unless* we're all in; the postflop RIO vs IO are much more important with stacks behind (as this hand proves).

Another thing to consider is not letting your stack dwindle too much. Unlike lots of others that give you heat in the HH forums, I'm fine with your shortstacking method, and I even use one myself. However, I always keep my stack topped off to $200 in my 1/3 NL game (which is a very easy shortstack to play and yet still gives us lots of value on our good hands plus we can still play speculative hands in position for cheap). Letting our stack drop to a super super super short $65 I believe loses us too much value when we pick up a big hand (and of course big hands are all we can play this short).

ETA: Congrats on your 2/5 shot, nice hand, unlucky, imo.

Gsomethingtoconsider,imoG

Because I have a stop loss of $300, I normally just leave when I drop below $100 and am out of chips/can't top off. This time, I didn't because of the whale in the game.

I can't argue too much against a stop/loss as if you go on tilt once you reach it then obviously that's no good. Although I will say a 1.5 BI / 150bb stop/loss seems like quite a small one to me.

Being super overfunded for the game really does wonders for the mental game, which is why I take $2K to the poker room and yet I only BI for $200 and have only lost > $1000 twice.

I just think you're giving up too much sitting on a $65 stack as opposed to a $200 one, where TP type hands can be played equivalently in a 1/3 NL game (and the same argument can't be made for sitting on $300+, which others are encouraging you to do, where it becomes much more difficult to play these hands).

GimoG

Last night was no good. Broke my stop-loss rule and bought in twice, lost $680. Lots of second best hands, a couple suckouts, a big blind special that got rivered. Some looser-than-usual play also contributed. Gotta tighten up.

The losing streak continues. -$145 in 4 hours this time. Played tight, raised only premiums. Lost JcJd v. QcJh on Ac-8c-4x-2c-Tc runout and AQ v. limp/called slowplayed KK in straddled pot on Q-high flop. Those were the only two hands of note. Happy with how I played overall though. Made a good laydown pre with AQhh to 3! from BB (he had AA of course, because blockers don't really matter in these situations at low stakes!).

Back at it tonight.

Yesterday was another losing session. Played 2/5 while I waited for 1/3 and won a limped pot with KQo in the BB, so up $37 in that game. My AA got cracked in 1/3 by Qx on a Q-pairing turn when OMC V donked into me and I folded (he showed a Q). Got overflushed by a short stack too. Then lost a chunky 3! pot with 65cc when V bet his semi-bluff ott and got there otr (I flopped a pair and made the right call ott). Bluffed this nitty OMC off a flush when I jammed river thinking he was betting his Ax and I repped the flush draw that got there. Turns out, he was semi-bluffing with his 8-high flush draw! He showed and folded anyway.... Lost $170 in 1/3.

Back at it tonight. Things will turn around. They always do.

nice thread subbing my man gl