following this one

thanks man, and yeah i could breathe a bit easier with a 10k roll. also the 2/5 games that run here look pretty soft, most buy in with $200-$300 lol. i can probably take shots now, but rather not. just gunna stick to 1/2 for this challenge. also realizing that volume is super important. obviously if you put in the time, the money will come. i feel like i need to push myself in terms of volume, i usually end up quitting around the 4-5 hour mark. my back starts hurting and feel a bit dazed for sitting around too long. something i need to get use to i guess.

Yeah I havent played since my last update in March!
I burned myself out in the last 8 days trying to make Goldstar, and even though I won like 22bi at 25nl that month, I was just over it a bit and never logged back on. Got me thinking a bit that I had worked so hard to be a decent winner at 25NL, that the hourly I was making wasn't worth how much effort I was putting in. If I wanted to play 50NL+ I knew I'd have to probably put even more time studying, +get a coach and I just don't have the time.

I Played a few live sessions and really enjoyed it, the games felt so soft and my jaw was sitting on the table when I would hear that things that come out of live regs mouths, they honestly had no idea.

The closest casino is like 30 minutes from my house so I'm gonna start playing there twice a week. I'm fairly certain I will make a much better hourly with much less effort. I just dont have 10-12 hours a week to study poker, discuss HH and get involved with study groups. But i'm still keen to make some money and apply all the things I have learnt over the years. I always wondered if the standard of 200NL live games in 2013 was around the same standard as Online 200nl around the Party Poker days...

Anyway, keep up the updates, after logging back onto 2+2 after 8 weeks this is one of my favourite threads!

thanks again. im sure you can crush nl50, u have sick work ethic, and i haven't seen anyone fix their redline leak like you!

yeah i wish i would of found poker during the party poker days. im pretty sure party poker played like live 200nl now lol, basically printing money.

lol at bolded! so true, im just facepalming at the things i hear at live 1/2!

dropped -$449 today. was in for $780 at one point. decided to just call it a day. table was juicy. had 2 players to my right who was just clicking buttons lol, and somewhat aggro. rest of the table was just filled with reg fish who were also clicking buttons lol. these guys were bluffing quite a bit, and their lines made no sense lol. basically just reg fish vs reg fish and pushing each other off pots.





got AIPF AK vs KK 6 handed early in the session, flop J74, turn A, river K, puke.





also lost a 50bb pot where i opened QT and bet a flop of Q85. reg fish called and bet 9 turn when i checked to him. i check/call turn, and check/called a gay bet on a blank river. he tabled AA lol. think i lost the minimum here. and i don't think i could of folded river, i think he bet like 1/4 of the pot.




soul reading, couldn't pull the trigger..

1 limp, i make it $12 with T7 in late, SB calls, BB calls, limper calls.

flop($48): T23

SB checks, BB checks, limper checks, i cbet $25, SB crai to $125, BB folds, limper folds, and it's back to me.

im getting 2 to 1 on a call. so need 33% equity vs his range here. villan was quite passive before this hand. he showed a hand earlier where he had a FD to go along with a straight draw. im quite tempted to call and tank for about 30 seconds or so and muck. i tell him to show his 45 and he does shows 45o lol. i think its a good fold either way, im crushed vs any Tx, over-pairs such as JJ/QQ, and all the sets. plus he's been quite passive up until this hand where he went ape **** lol.




other then that it was just a grind. couldn't really get anything going today. back to the grind tomorrow!

Hey Number1hater interesting thread and nice read, thanks for sharing.

I'm also in a similar position as you and plan to take a shot like this in the very near future, so GL and thanks for inspiring me. I like a lot of the hands/lines you've posted and this just keeps reminding me of all the free money at the local casino near me. Nice to read that you're starting to notice tendencies in these live players and adjusting your strategy to take even more money off them. I'm rooting for you. Keep it up.

Also, it seems like you should try to trust your (first) instinct more, cause it was right again in the 10-7 hand. I realized the same thing when I started playing a lot of live poker, my instinct was much more on point and I had a hard time just trusting it in tough spots, but once I did I became much happier with my play. It's hard, but you can do it!

One last thing... that tracking program on your phone looks pretty convenient. What's the name?

thanks man, gl on your journey too.

yeah im finding out my first instincts are dead on correct. i think in the T7 hand i didn't call because i was already stuck in the game, and it got to me a little bit. gunna try and just go with my reads from now on

program is called 'poker income'. first 8-10 sessions are free, but then you have to purchase it for $5.99 i believe for unlimited session entry. there are free apps out there, but i really liked this one the best, so i just paid the $6 to get the upgrade.

made a good laydown yesterday.(probably a very easy fold for most of you.)

reg fish($400) raises in early to $8, im($200) next to act and make it $25 to go with AK, all fold, back to reg fish who calls OOP.

flop($53): AJT

reg fish donks $35, i call.

turn($123): 7

reg fish donks $75, i tank a minute and fold.

being the reg fish that he is, he shows KQ.

my first instincts were to check back this flop if he checked it to me. instead he donked, and i have no other choice to call one. turn is a clear fold. instincts say JJ/TT/AJ/AT/KQ. i don't think he is capable of bet/bet/jamming AQ here.(the only hand i beat.) glad he showed, my reads are pretty much dead on.




getting ready for the grind in a couple hours, hopefully i can put in a good 8 hours or so. i end up just quitting if im stuck early

good lay down on the AK hand. the call on the flop was fine. But he's making it too much on the turn. Small hand small pot. If villain hasn't shown tendency to make large bets like that w/draws or top pair type hands assume he's got a made hand which he did. I thought that $75 bet on the turn basically screamed "I have a set". Turns out he was doin a little better than that.

I think the T7 hand was a good fold. You're not beating much and you can always find a better spot to get your money in. Sucks that you lose the 25 on the flop though. When I get that many callers to a flop, TPMK is almost always a check for me.
1. pot control
2. information
You're last to act. If you check you get a free card, more information and you prob take the hand down because even fish know they aren't suppose to chase w/one card to come (so villain most likely doesn't shove). He might call a bet on the turn. But what happens is, he calls the $25 turn bet and misses on the river most times and the river goes check/check. You make a little extra $. Thoughts?

i think its villan dependent. vs passive/weak players, i think u can check it back. they won't be making moves on you, or plan on bluffing. also my hand is kind of vulnerable, any A/K/Q/J(total of 16 cards) can spike on the turn and lose, when a cbet on the flop folds out stuff like QJ/KJ type hands and i take the pot down. i agree pot control is something you should be doing a lot with these types of hands vs certain villans.

put in a 6 hour session, +$216. was in for $200 and built up a nice stack up to $650ish, but kinda got fps at the end. tell me what you think about that hand.




session started out good. raised AK in late, and got 1 caller. flop was KKK, i checked flopped oop, then gay bet 7 turn, then got the money in on a J river. villan was short stacked, im guessing $50ish and he just called down with a full house i guess.




im playing tight for a while, then i get a rush of some nice cards in late postion. im isoing limpers, taking the pot down without seeing flops. other times im just cbetting and they are playing fit/fold on flops. kinda have a laggy image at this point and this hand happens.

2 limp, i make it $20 to go with AA from late, BTN stares at me for a bit and 3bets, folds to BB who jams $200, i jam $300 more, BTN folds. BB shows TT, and i scoop the pot on a nice run out.

BTN in that hand probably thought i was light preflop. he has 3bet me earlier and i just folded that time. didn't seem like a reg, more of a rec player than anything, but he probably thought i was being the table bully.





i've toned down my agression and im card dead.

losing with style

build a nice $650ish stack, and this hand happens.

4 limp, i limp A3 in late, folds around to SB who makes it $17 to go. BB folds, 4 limpers all call. i am $600 deep vs SB. i notice this and call hoping for a nice flop to go with my hand.

flop($102): T45

SB leads $70, 4 limpers fold, and its back to me. i make it $170 to go. im pretty sure this guy has an overpair. back to SB and he really doesn't like this situation as his face says it all. he thinking for a bit, and is asking himself if i have a set here. yes, i do have a set, throw your hand away. im 1/2 way there for this bluff to work. he grabs his cards and looks like he's about to muck it, 75% there. he annouces AI, mission failed, 0%, and i muck.

villan is somewhat of a thinking player. i wouldn't label him as a 2+2er, but better and less fishy than your average 1/2 live player. he did however shove $100 on a 924 flop with $100 left earlier with 77, and got called by KQ. turn and river faded, and he scooped the pot.

what do u think about flop line? would u rather call here with gutter+bdfd+1 over, or raise? villan led $70 on flop and i made it $170, i think this needs to work more than 1/2 the time. but given we are deep, ive been playing tight and have a nitty image, do u think this is a good raise? i also thought that if i raise here and he just flats flop, i am pretty sure im getting a free river. so on the flop the pot is $102, and he leads $70. if i call $70 here, im sure he is betting anywhere around $100-$150 on the turn. so my bluff raise on the flop is pretty much giving me the same price to buy the turn, but i add fold equity with a raise on the flop. get what im saying? also a turn would be a very nice card, giving me another 2barrel and more FE. let me know what you think.

what i've learned from that hand: don't try to rep/get FPS when villans have overpairs. they don't fold.

also made some really nice laydowns today. your first instincts is usually correct.

Just my 2c, I would keep all that cash in the bank and just withdraw what you need prior to your sessions. Keeping that much cash in your dresser can end badly.

Keep it up tho.

AK vs KQs hand vs the fish I would bet flop if he checks to us fwiw.

True. My scenario only works if the turn doesn't help any of the villains still in the hand. So I concede that I perhaps loose some value long term by checking there because there are, as you said, 16 cards that can hurt me. But I guess, when I can, I prefer to keep the pot small and see the hand develop. Guess I'm a bit of a nit that way lol .



When I first started reading the A3 hand I was like, ok 4 limpers great. Limp behind. What sb raises? ok Fold.... wait what?! all 4 limpers call... yikes I don't really wana call but I call reluctantly. I like the flop because it's gonna give me a chance to barrel the turn in position should a club or straight come. Sb leads for $70. This screams over pair to me. He got way more callers than he wanted and he wants to end the hand right here. I don't oblige. I'd rather call and leave him to make tougher decisions later in the hand when the pots bloated. Also, this gives me a chance to leave the hand should the turn not go my way and perhaps gives me a chance to see a free river. If the turn comes a club I raise or bet big (to the point where he know's he's gonna have to stack off or fold).

Cliffs: I call the flop. Bet/raise the turn assuming it goes my way.
I prefer to let the hand develop more because of how I personally like to play and because fish don't play well post flop. When you raise the flop in that situation you're basically getting it in on the turn regardless of what the turn card is. If he calls the flop bet, the pot is about $440 and your stacks at $500ish I think. maybe less. That's how I see the hand. Thoughts? I'd like to hear other 2+2er's thoughts on this as well. The more the merrier.

dropped -$381 today.

started off real bad. 2nd hand into the session, a couple limp and i limp in 54 2 away from BTN. probably 7way to the flop, and i hit a flop of J79. checks to me and i bet, then SB c/r to $50. he only started the hand with $100 or so. i just got it in on the flop and he showed Q6 for bigger flush. first instinct said to fold. ive played with this guy quite a bit and he is not check/raising a pair+fd here. bells were ringing in my head telling me im beat, but i just shoved anyway.. im still not disciplined..

other then that i was literally card dead for 5 hours lol, to the point where i had to play some crappy hands or the whole table would know how tight i have been playing. couldn't get going today, just a lot of missed flops and folding to bets where i wasn't getting odds to draw.

one hand where i had AK and raised pre. got called by SB who is a older casino reg fish. i checked back QT8 as i dont wanna get check/raised with my equity here. turn was A. villan check/called my bet on the turn. he checked 2 river, and im pretty sure he has a raggy Ace. i vbet river, and he snap check/raised. i snap folded and he showed KJ. is river bet too thin? or would u bet it?




another situation. would u call a flop check/raise?

i raise to $12 with AJ in late, CO calls, and so does SB.

flop($38): 737

SB checks to me and i cbet $20, CO folds, and SB check/raises to $50. he has about $100 left. is this a call??

villan is a casino reg/fish losing player. im 100% sure he has 7x here. this guy isn't check/raising a FD or worse. ive played with him a lot and i know his tendencies. my though process was i have 8 clean outs. and A or a J isn't good. if i do bink a on the turn, he always has the redraw to the full house. i can also be drawing dead here if he holds 33.

results:




also saw the sickest run ever by an Indian gentleman. he seemed to know what he was doing, his bet sizing and all was really good. but ive seen him limp some stuff and saw what he had at showdown and snap labeled him as a fish lol. he seemed really douchey though as he's staring people down and taking it all serious. relax buddy, your playing 1/2 lol.. so this guy sits for literally 30 minutes and turns $200 into $900. i think in 1 orbit he hit 2 full houses and got paid off in both. he also stacked someone with AA and was just running like god. and here i am sitting on my leatherass for 5 hours just folding and giving my money away.. OFC 5 minutes after he stacks another person, he goes south. seriously nothing tilts me more than this...




May has been brutal:

81h played
-$155
-$1.93/hr

i should have just folded on the flop. i mean i have to know 100% sure i have FE in the hand. got kinda FPS here, and tried repping a hand vs a novice player. 'you dont beat them strategically, you beat them with cards.' i constantly remind myself this when im playing.

also i kept my flop raise small, as i still have $400ish behind. something about live players is they have no clue on bet sizing/stack to pot ratio. so on the turn a $100 bet seems really big to them. its $100 dollars! they are not thinking in terms of pot odds, but dollar amounts. so on the turn the pot would be around $400ish if he elected to call my flop raise. then a $125-$150ish bet on the turn might force them to fold, and if i have the 3rd barrel in me, i would have a $250ish bet left.

true.

What do you think about the flop call, turn bet/raise? I think that's the line I lean towards.

update?

has it really been two months?

haven't played live since the last update. sis found a job and im stuck with no car. i was looking for a used one, but i think im burning money investing in a car that's going to break down sooner or later. might as well save up a bit more and buy a decent one.

im back online though! results have been decent. and i think playing all that live poker saved my game.

1. you realize you never want to bluff fish ever again.
2. they are not playing back at you.
3. certain villans have really really wide ranges, and i wasn't vbetting thinly enough.

and the key important thing ive learned from live is to FOLD. its ok to fold lol. this was one of my biggest leaks, not folding enough, and just paying people off everytime. STOP PAYING THEM OFF, money saved is money earned.



so i treated online the same as live and have had good results up to now.




around $2.2k with rb




also my mental game has improved a ton. i can't recall a time where i went on tilt the past 4 months, live or online. im sure i have and don't realize it, but not to the point where im spewing/taking shots at higher levels. also went on a 15bi downer yesterday, but ended the day down only 5 bi's. was proud of my mental game more than anything.




i guess the rest of this challenge will be done online. i have no way of getting to the casino

What city do you live in, is a car literally the only option? I used to grind live a lot when I lived in London, England where the underground/train service took me everywhere, they also had 24 hour buses and taxis weren't too costly if you were within the city.

I live in Spain now, but sometimes I forget just how great London is.

OP is lazy as ****. car is the only option