Hi Matt,

Good luck with your journey. I got one question; how does the rakeback works? Does every new player gets ?% rakeback?

Let me know, thnx.

Everyone gets something on GG at least.

Most sites have a slightly different approach. On GGPoker there's a few elements:
1. Events (e.g. we had a big Christmas then New Years event that added at least 10% in EV to my rakeback during December & January)
2. Fish Buffet - Either RNG "loot crate" style, or flat %. This % is multiplied by the Player Value Index on GG (e.g. are you a losing player).
3. GG Cares - Flipout tournament tickets daily based on big pots won or big pots lost where you were the equity favorite.

1 & 3 tend to be pretty high variance, but it's roughly calcuable what your EV is in them.

2 currently has a promo of 100 days in a pretty high (50%) tier for everyone.

Then there's the added "Deposit Bonus" I'm getting from my initial deposit as a new member still. That goes away soon.

Here's a hand where I'm leaning on the aggressive side, but I don't believe out of line. I believe finding spots like this drives a part of my red line. I do need to find a few less calls in some spots which will bring it down.


Pre: This is a mix, but I do it a bit more than the 30%ish in ranges knowing I get under 4bet & overfolded to.
Flop: Range betting here.
Turn: I find the continue here knowing the population is going to overfold to continuing on the turn. I believe our default should be to give up and enjoy our implied odds when we hit. I may stab favorable (high card) rivers.

GG Poker - $0.02 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players

BTN: 280 BB
SB: 140.5 BB
BB: 28 BB
UTG: 133.5 BB
MP: 107.5 BB
Hero (CO): 210 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has 6 5

fold, MP raises to 2 BB, Hero raises to 6 BB, fold, fold, fold, MP calls 4 BB

Flop: (13.5 BB, 2 players) 4 T Q
MP checks, Hero bets 4.5 BB, MP calls 4.5 BB

Turn: (22.5 BB, 2 players) 3
MP checks, Hero bets 18 BB, fold,

Going to mostly err back towards general updates, and focusing on my studies, but I'll mix in some hands where I'm unsure moving forward.

I've had a few very short winning sessions recently which is nice. I intentionally cut them short to capture the win feeling a little frustrated after an immediate big loss recently once I hit the break-even point.

Still slightly in the red (in the green after rakeback), but I feel like I'm doing all the right things and will be ready for 5NL shots very soon.

Yeah I don't think you have to post hands every day.

nh with the 65s

A more general update...

Balance wise, I'm ready to take a shot. Post rakeback (even looking at all in ev) I'm in the green.

Skill wise, still unsure. It's not like it's a huge risk given the amounts of money at 2NL and 5NL, so there's a very good chance I will @ 25k hands (this weekend).


It's very apparent to me that I am playing well in many spots, but finding way too many calls vs aggression from weaker players.

E.g. Today I got donked into in a 3b pot, while I had an overpair.

Called down 3 streets. They flopped a set of 6s.

Am I surprised? Nope.

Why did I call? I fixated on someone telling me donks tend to have a lot of bluffs.

Regardless of if that's true, there's the 2 bets that came immediately following... They also had somewhat nitty preflop stats that should suggest to me they're probably NOT particularly out of line aggressive.

Just a little reminder for myself to slow down and think a bit more when facing aggression. I do a pretty good of properly evaluating when betting, but am way too quick to just call when facing aggression and I have a strong hand (without necessarily considering how strong it is relative to the spot).

You don't have to full on shot take. You can try one table added on at a time of shot taking stake in place of normal grinding stake. This is a lot less pressure and you can almost forget about the stakes if you play in BB. Imo easy way to introduce next stage and get over nerves without much risk.

I feel a bit lost about how to navigate this.

I also wonder a bit how much navigating this is actually going to make me a better player... This is all in the past 500 hands.

The more I dive into my database, it's pretty clear that I call in some spots that should be obvious folds.

Vs normal players, it's fine... I understand how to fix this, and am actively working on it. I've been getting better.

Vs maniacs, I'm a bit lost on when to adapt and how far to adapt.

All hands below are played vs players with truly maniac stats... (50%+ pfr, 50%+ 3bet)... I'm kind of lost on where to draw the line when there's so much air mixed in. I don't even know if I'm winning or losing in these spots on average, but feel like I'm probably not playing them quite right.

GG Poker - $0.02 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players

BTN: 83 BB
SB: 99 BB
Hero (BB): 120 BB
UTG: 100.5 BB
MP: 118 BB
CO: 100 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, Hero posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has A A

fold, fold, fold, fold, SB raises to 2.5 BB, Hero raises to 7 BB, SB calls 4.5 BB

Flop: (14 BB, 2 players) 7 2 6
SB checks, Hero checks

Turn: (14 BB, 2 players) 6
SB bets 10.5 BB, Hero calls 10.5 BB

River: (35 BB, 2 players) 7
SB bets 81.5 BB and is all-in, Hero calls 81.5 BB

SB shows Q 8 (Two Pair, Sevens and Sixes)
(Pre 18%, Flop 10%, Turn 18%)
Hero shows A A (Two Pair, Aces and Sevens)
(Pre 82%, Flop 90%, Turn 82%)
Hero wins 193.5 BB


GG Poker - $0.02 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players

BTN: 106 BB
SB: 89 BB
Hero (BB): 104 BB
UTG: 113 BB
MP: 94 BB
CO: 105.5 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, Hero posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has A J

fold, MP raises to 3 BB, fold, fold, SB calls 2.5 BB, Hero raises to 15 BB, MP calls 12 BB, fold

Flop: (33 BB, 2 players) A 9 7
Hero bets 25 BB, MP raises to 79 BB and is all-in, Hero calls 54 BB

Turn: (191 BB, 2 players) 2

River: (191 BB, 2 players) T

MP shows Q Q (One Pair, Queens)
(Pre 71%, Flop 8%, Turn 5%)
Hero shows A J (One Pair, Aces)
(Pre 29%, Flop 92%, Turn 95%)
Hero wins 186.5 BB

GG Poker - $0.02 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: 311 BB
SB: 102 BB
BB: 72 BB
UTG: 121 BB
Hero (MP): 338 BB
CO: 82.5 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has T T

UTG raises to 2.5 BB, Hero raises to 7.5 BB, fold, BTN raises to 18 BB, fold, fold, fold, Hero raises to 52 BB, BTN raises to 311 BB and is all-in, Hero calls 259 BB

Flop: (626 BB, 2 players) K Q 3

Turn: (626 BB, 2 players) K

River: (626 BB, 2 players) K

Players agreed to run it twice.

Flop #2: (626 BB, 2 players) 9 4 9

Turn #2: (626 BB, 2 players) 2

River #2: (626 BB, 2 players) 7

BTN shows A A (Full House, Kings full of Aces)
Board #1 (Pre 81%, Flop 90%, Turn 95%)
(Two Pair, Aces and Nines)
Board #2 (Pre 79%, Flop 91%, Turn 95%)

Hero shows T T (Full House, Kings full of Tens)
Board #1 (Pre 19%, Flop 10%, Turn 5%)
(Two Pair, Tens and Nines)
Board #2 (Pre 21%, Flop 9%, Turn 5%)

BTN wins 311 BB
BTN wins 310.5 BB


GG Poker - $0.02 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

Hero (BTN): 117.5 BB
SB: 458 BB
BB: 100 BB
UTG: 130 BB
MP: 183.5 BB
CO: 54 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has Q A

UTG raises to 2.5 BB, fold, fold, Hero raises to 7.5 BB, fold, fold, UTG raises to 21 BB, Hero raises to 117.5 BB and is all-in, UTG calls 96.5 BB

Flop: (236.5 BB, 2 players) K 2 Q

Turn: (236.5 BB, 2 players) 9

River: (236.5 BB, 2 players) A

Hero shows Q A (Two Pair, Aces and Queens)
(Pre 24%, Flop 7%, Turn 5%)
UTG shows A K (Two Pair, Aces and Kings)
(Pre 76%, Flop 93%, Turn 95%)
UTG wins 232 BB

GG Poker - $0.02 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: 132.5 BB
Hero (SB): 102 BB
BB: 362.5 BB
UTG: 100 BB
MP: 121.5 BB
CO: 106.5 BB

Hero posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has K A

fold, MP raises to 2.5 BB, fold, BTN raises to 7.5 BB, Hero raises to 28 BB, fold, fold, BTN raises to 132.5 BB and is all-in, Hero calls 74 BB and is all-in

Flop: (207.5 BB, 2 players) J 7 9

Turn: (207.5 BB, 2 players) T

River: (207.5 BB, 2 players) 4

Players agreed to run it twice.

Flop #2: (207.5 BB, 2 players) 8 2 K

Turn #2: (207.5 BB, 2 players) A

River #2: (207.5 BB, 2 players) 4

BTN shows A 5 (High Card, Ace)
Board #1 (Pre 32%, Flop 20%, Turn 11%)
(One Pair, Aces)
Board #2 (Pre 32%, Flop 6%, Turn 0%)

Hero shows K A (High Card, Ace)
Board #1 (Pre 68%, Flop 80%, Turn 89%)
(Two Pair, Aces and Kings)
Board #2 (Pre 68%, Flop 94%, Turn 100%)

Hero wins 101.5 BB
Hero wins 101.5 BB

GG Poker - $0.02 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: 126.5 BB
Hero (SB): 114 BB
BB: 48.5 BB
UTG: 243 BB
MP: 64 BB
CO: 194 BB

Hero posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has A K

fold, fold, fold, fold, Hero raises to 3.5 BB, BB raises to 48.5 BB and is all-in, Hero calls 45 BB

Flop: (97 BB, 2 players) J 9 8

Turn: (97 BB, 2 players) 3

River: (97 BB, 2 players) A

Players agreed to run it twice.

Flop #2: (97 BB, 2 players) 7 5 J

Turn #2: (97 BB, 2 players) 3

River #2: (97 BB, 2 players) 6

BB shows Q A (One Pair, Aces)
Board #1 (Pre 26%, Flop 17%, Turn 0%)
(High Card, Ace)
Board #2 (Pre 28%, Flop 15%, Turn 8%)

Hero shows A K (Flush, Ace High)
Board #1 (Pre 74%, Flop 83%, Turn 100%)
(High Card, Ace)
Board #2 (Pre 72%, Flop 85%, Turn 92%)

Hero wins 46.5 BB
Hero wins 46 BB

All-in ev is heading straight down today. At least I'm running good once all in.

After rakeback it's another break even day. Still fluctuating right around $60 (incl pending rakeback that I get each Monday).

I've done some review myself and learned a few things...

Trying to determine how I should determine my calling frequencies against maniac players, I think I've discovered I'm asking myself the wrong question.
- There are things I can improve (e.g. if 300bb deep, adjustments can be more like finding the 5b call with QQ, maybe, sometimes, but not TT)
- I'm way too focused on exact spot decisions, rather than the line leading to the spot. E.g. facing a maniac who is going to 5bet too much, I can adjust by 4betting only extremely strong hands and calling a lot of 3bets. I also actually have stats on maniacs over 3betting, GG's HUD doesn't give me information on 4b/5b which leaves me open to making much bigger mistakes in my assumptions.

Another area I've kind of skipped over strategy-wise:
- My framework for calling a cbet (disregarding raises for a moment) has been "Do I have a draw, a bluff catcher, or better?". While this is okay-ish for 2NL, I think I can take a huge step up and ask myself "Is villain going to find too few / too many natural bluffs here? Do I have specific reads to adapt to that let me find more/less folds?". I've overlooked this spot a lot as somewhere I can squeeze out extra EV finding more folds (and in some cases more calls) on the flop vs turn/river.

In the green actual balance after rakeback, but regardless of winning or not (probably not all-in-adj), I have clear issues to work through where moving up quicker isn't going to make a difference. Getting through a winning 10-20k hands if anything will probably help me to build up some confidence.


I've been reviewing a lot of my own hands, studying alongside, etc...

I pretty much know where I'm going wrong at this point, I randomly go on autopilot and catch myself "clicking buttons" where I can't really explain my play, and often find myself catching this seconds later (after making a quick decision...)

I don't need feedback on this hand, I know exactly what I did wrong, just a good example...

- Preflop this is a call, not a 4b. It's not even a close one given UTG vs HJ I guess I just autopilot to "I want to take this down pre" and was kind of mindlessly acting here.
- First intuition that a 4b pot monotone isn't that scary and flushes are probably even underrepresented here at 2nl. Probably OK.
- But then I throw that logic out the window and completely skip over how I expect to be facing a lot of other overpairs here and... value bet.
- 4b calling ranges are going to be value/pair heavy, AQs is going to make it into ranges a lot less than it should.
- there aren't going to be enough 5bs, many players AA only and some of those even calling with AA
- I'm not mistaking this for protection vs ak/aq, etc... If I had the thought process of protection I still think I'd be wrong but at least I'd be more happy with myself truly thinking through and justifying my actions.

So.. why am I just clicking this off so quickly? I'm not too sure, I wasn't on tilt, I was running pretty well until this point. I guess this falls into mental game and I need to dive in more on that topic. I can identify I'm playing my C game or worse when this happens and end the session, but how do I minimize it in the first place? This is an extreme example where I can identify it right after, there are many smaller examples that I don't notice in the moment but do while reviewing.

GG Poker - $0.02 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players

BTN: 171 BB
SB: 117.5 BB
BB: 109 BB
Hero (UTG): 122.5 BB
MP: 115 BB
CO: 129.5 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has T T

Hero raises to 2.5 BB, MP raises to 7.5 BB, fold, fold, fold, fold, Hero raises to 24 BB, MP calls 16.5 BB

Flop: (49.5 BB, 2 players) 9 4 3
Hero bets 14 BB, MP raises to 91 BB and is all-in, Hero calls 77 BB



Next Steps
- Day off today
- Pause on theory content for at least a few days, maybe a week.
- Focus on mental game. Not really sure exactly where to start, but I'm sure I can find plenty of resources with a little searching.

Recognizing instances where you go on autopilot and make decisions without a clear thought process is a crucial step in enhancing your game.

Consider reading books or articles on the mental game of poker. Two recommended titles are "The Mental Game of Poker" by Jared Tendler and "Poker Mindset" by Ian Taylor.
Practice mindfulness and self-awareness techniques. This can help you stay present during your sessions and catch yourself before making autopilot decisions.

Improving your mental game is an ongoing process, and consistency is key. Experiment with different techniques and find what works best for you.

Best of luck with your continued progress!

Thank you! Picking up Kindle ebooks for both of these now and will dive in over the next few days.

I still second guess myself what falls on mental game vs giving myself the excuse that I just autopilot because my strategy isn't clearly defined enough yet (and in turn studying the thing I want to study - theory). I guess the answer doesn't actually matter, mental game is 100% a part of the equation and 100% something I need to spend time on.

Yeah auto piloting is a leak of mine as well. It's even more frustrating when I consciously make a plan, but then immediately go into auto pilot, and disregard said plan.

Ex.from the other day.

Bad player opens UTG, nitty reg 3b small in the SB, I cold 4b with AKo in the BB

Before I do, I say to myself, "Okay, if UTG ships and SB folds, you snap call. If the SB puts anymore money in preflop, you are out of there. He's a nit and does not deserve your money"

So what happens? UTG folds, SB jams and I snap...call. Of course SB has KK.

I feel like I can relate... and another related mental game leak.

Realized I won't actually be going out today so decided to spend more time on poker, started reading "The Mental Game of Poker" and decided to break it up with 45 mins play / 45 mins reading, repeat...

Just played this hand... As I'm reading about improving mental game lol...

Preflop: He has 6% VPIP 4% PFR, I should just fold, but, we're kinda deep, I think I can have skill edge vs 6% vpip player... (at least I should do this with suited hands, I know better...)
Flop: Well I have a 2 pair, but he can have all the sets here and probably gets away pretty easy with underpairs.
Turn: I guess I can peel 1 street. -- I don't hate finding this call.
River: My thought process...
- Weak players don't overbet bluff
- I'm behind pretty much all of his value bets.
- He has AK++ here, aka a better 2pair, sets, and more... Yes, I block 2 of the sets, but... there's not much else in his range that wants to go for value here.
- He won't have many flushes here, and my Jd blocks at least one of the combos... I'm not so worried about that but.. not having suited connectors makes it EVEN MORE LIKELY he has me crushed with better 2 pairs and sets.
- time is running out on timebank
- Click call because it's just a bad beat if he has it......
- This is already going to be an underbluffed spot, by a player type thats underbluffing, where there are no obvious bluffs and a weak player (aka someone who doesn't have a strategy beyond play 6% of hands) isn't going to be turning QQ into a bluff here (which would be a mistake to turn bet.. trying to think of a balanced play here with 4% pfr is hard lol)....

GG Poker - $0.02 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players

Hero (BTN): 100.5 BB
SB: 60 BB
BB: 191 BB
UTG: 122.5 BB
MP: 132.5 BB
CO: 167.5 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has J K

fold, MP calls 1 BB, fold, Hero raises to 4 BB, fold, fold, MP raises to 9 BB, Hero calls 5 BB

Flop: (19.5 BB, 2 players) J K A
MP checks, Hero checks

Turn: (19.5 BB, 2 players) 6
MP bets 10 BB, Hero calls 10 BB

River: (39.5 BB, 2 players) 7
MP bets 43.5 BB, Hero calls 43.5 BB


Yeah.. mental game study time

It's frustrating to do these things, but at the same time, if I have these massive leaks that I'm seeing now and I'm right around break even (both on this current graph and the 20k hands before, so around 45k sample), that actually makes me confident that I'll be able to move past 2NL pretty quickly once I get this fixed.

A more interesting hand from today that's a bit less about me being bad at mental game...

Against another very tight player.

Thought Process:
Preflop: Standard
Flop: Amazing. He can have bigger sets, but also overpairs, easy call.
Turn: Starting to think a little deeper about this. I don't think I can ever fold turn.
River: I tunnel visioned in on this being AK at such a high frequency that I can justify calling here. I think I have one of my best bluff catchers. Do I call AK a bluff here though, or a fish overvaluing absolute hand strength. In either case, this just stuck out to me as "weak player AK line" and I found the call pretty quickly.

Looking back, I think this hand is worth a deeper think on the strategy side. Thinking through that even though this is an obvious "AK" line, is it also a reasonable line for many Tx combos, occasional flushes, etc.

This may have been a mistake, but probably not a mental game issue.

GG Poker - $0.02 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players

BTN: 114.5 BB
SB: 290 BB
BB: 125.5 BB
UTG: 119 BB
Hero (MP): 105 BB
CO: 194.5 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has 8 8

fold, Hero raises to 2.5 BB, fold, fold, fold, BB raises to 10 BB, Hero calls 7.5 BB

Flop: (20.5 BB, 2 players) 8 Q J
BB bets 7 BB, Hero calls 7 BB

Turn: (34.5 BB, 2 players) K
BB bets 9 BB, Hero calls 9 BB

River: (52.5 BB, 2 players) 9
BB bets 39.5 BB, Hero calls 39.5 BB

BB shows K A (One Pair, Kings)
(Pre 45%, Flop 14%, Turn 9%)
Hero shows 8 8 (Three of a Kind, Eights)
(Pre 55%, Flop 86%, Turn 91%)
Hero wins 127 BB

Re: 88 hand

88 isn't a pure call at 500nl. So at a much higher rake structure with people massively under 3betting from the BB, especially if this player is a nit. Then folding to the 3b is going to be better.



I don't understand this line of thinking...
Yes, you can never fold the turn. Raising is the clear play here against villain's small sizing, and you have the nut combo to do it with since you are unblocking both FDs and he has plenty worse hands that can call.

OTR, I'm honestly not confident enough in my knowledge of MDA to know whether people are over or under bluffing here to say that calling or folding is better.

I assume his 3b range is substantially narrower here.

With that:
- K upgrades some of their overpairs to sets (bad)
- brings in the pair for AK (good)
- I think I discounted the 2 pair combos in the moment, which probably helps to sway my opinion a bit here.

More so my note is along the lines of "alarm bells are going off not to do a specific action on the river, but to think very carefully about it".

I've just come so accustomed to extremely nitty players playing very straight forward strategies that this raises some red flags for me, other than "AK spew", the lines that I'd typically see from nits here are beating me. I'm definitely a little bias though, and need to dive into my actual hand histories / data on this and shouldn't make any huge leaps/conclusions here.

I think the bigger focus for me from this: I need to study how to exploit/adjust preflop to different common player types. I couldn't have told you that I should be folding more vs tighter players, I didn't really know how I should be adjusting. I need to ask myself things like does that change (e.g. set mining encouraged) as we get way deeper, etc...

Felt like a pretty rough start to today.


Hand 1 - Overbet Shoving River

I feel like theory wise, this is a sound line.

1. Flop: 50% pot should've immediately sensed me in to this being a weaker player. I overlooked it. I guess I could combine this with the 3bb open size being fish-leaning as well...
2. Turn: He had reg-ish stats, so not reading into the flop correctly I assumed the large sizing is a common-ish mistake at these stakes on the 2 flush draw turns, both with value and draws.
3. River: This feels like reasonable bluff selection. I like having the 7s although it isn't that important, but this puts me towards the bottom of my range. I like the sizing since I'll want to shove with a lot of my flushes that just got here.

Theoretically, I'm on board with my play.

I don't think I'd make this play vs a fish, so I guess the mistake is overlooking the flop 50% sizing as a strong fish tell.

When I get snapped off, I start to question myself if I should ever make bluffs like this at 2NL...

To be clear, I don't expect JJ to always fold here, but I expect it to be a spot where they at least think about it. If I'm getting snapped off by JJ I'm almost certainly being called by enough that makes this unprofitable.

GG Poker - $0.02 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players

BTN: 100 BB
SB: 111 BB
Hero (BB): 118 BB
UTG: 218 BB
MP: 74.5 BB
CO: 100 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, Hero posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has A 7

fold, fold, fold, fold, SB raises to 3 BB, Hero calls 2 BB

Flop: (6 BB, 2 players) 6 2 5
SB bets 3 BB, Hero calls 3 BB

Turn: (12 BB, 2 players) 9
SB bets 12 BB, Hero calls 12 BB

River: (36 BB, 2 players) Q
SB checks, Hero bets 100 BB and is all-in, SB calls 93 BB and is all-in

Hero shows A 7 (High Card, Ace)
(Pre 29%, Flop 16%, Turn 16%)
SB shows J J (One Pair, Jacks)
(Pre 71%, Flop 84%, Turn 84%)
SB wins 217.5 BB


Another one...

This time I did read into the 50% pots and correctly assume I'm playing against a weaker player.

My thoughts...
He had 4% 3bet over 3,000 hands.
BXB (50% sizings) = Weaker player. Weaker players tend to overvalue pocket pairs, and sizing tends to give some indication of hand strength. This could Be A5/AJ/AQ/AK, TJ/TQ/TK, KK/QQ/JJ/99/88/77/66

Turn checks.. I start to think he doesn't have much Ax, maybe the A5 still...

Bets river again for 50%, I feel like this is a weaker player going for value with middling strength hands. I'm right there, but completely missing the mark on his range when he has a3s.

I guess...
1. Folding pre vs tight 3b range is an option.
2. Am I making a mistake by overly reading into the tiny 3b frequency postflop? I expect players to understand position a bit and that they should be even tighter UTG vs HJ.
3. Is this fine, can't expect reads to be right every time, and a reasonable play often enough to just move on and not worry about it?

GG Poker - $0.02 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players

BTN: 290.5 BB
SB: 117 BB
BB: 170.5 BB
Hero (UTG): 110 BB
MP: 112 BB
CO: 112 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has J J

Hero raises to 2.5 BB, MP raises to 9 BB, fold, fold, fold, fold, Hero calls 6.5 BB

Flop: (19.5 BB, 2 players) A 5 T
Hero checks, MP bets 10 BB, Hero calls 10 BB

Turn: (39.5 BB, 2 players) 7
Hero checks, MP checks

River: (39.5 BB, 2 players) 5
Hero checks, MP bets 20 BB, Hero calls 20 BB

MP shows 3 A (Two Pair, Aces and Fives)
(Pre 33%, Flop 91%, Turn 95%)
Hero shows J J (Two Pair, Jacks and Fives)
(Pre 67%, Flop 9%, Turn 5%)
MP wins 75 BB




Got my rakeback today, and I was very torn on moving up as I originally typed this, came to a conclusion below.

Pros:
- Better players will put me in more interesting spots that I'll learn more from.
- Faster progress towards my eventual goals.
- I'm hoping a lot less of these 20bb stacks that seem particularly common in my morning, I don't necessarily feel I'm losing against short stacks, but rake that's effectively uncapped vs them really sucks.

Cons:
- Not sure if I'm beating 2NL yet post-variance. This isn't much of a con in itself.
- Beating 2NL will probably help with confidence a bit.

Actual bankroll isn't really a con, the money isn't really much of a consideration until I get to 100nl+. If I thought I was going to progress faster rolling myself for 25-50NL, I'd do that right now. I'm however not convinced jumping into that much bigger of a game will really help me enough to justify.

The actual numbers:
$32.65 lost (all in ev)
~$11 paid to BBJP, which is basically a 0EV long-term-loan to GG (I already hit a BBJP at 2nl, and removed it from my roll to avoid shot taking too quickly, but I'm in the green on this number atm)
~$25 in rakeback (EV in flipouts, leaderboards, standard rakeback, +20% deposit bonus)
= +3.35 profit

Feels like a bit of a stretch to do math this way even though it's 100% accurate, but considering I've unquestionably improved during the past 26k hands, I think there's a 60%+ probability that I'm a break even or slightly winning player if I was to stop studying and just grind out 100k+ hands right now. I guess the graph compared to the actual math just feels weird, but everyone constantly reminds me rake is huge on GG so I guess its fine.

Good enough for me, off to 5NL I go

Probably going to just make this a permanent move and add to my BR a bit if needed.

Not going to post specific hands for this, but I've caught myself various times thinking "is this a spot I can value bet my strong ace highs".

Adding that to my study list for this week, trying to identify a few places where I can river value bet ace highs in my small sizing, and where exactly to draw the line.

Learned a lot diving into the above hands, both on these forums and a few discord servers.


I'm a bit confused by my progress...

It doesn't look great, pretty mediocre graph at best.



Yet, when I look at my balance, the number still fluctuates mostly between 45-60, including pending rakeback I'm at $62.50 right now ($59.07 actual)...

Here's my best guesses:
- PokerTracker ignores hands that run it 3x on GG Poker. I don't click this myself, but often accept it (the underdog chooses, so it makes sense that I'm weighted towards winning in these all in spots, and they're untracked). I've been aware of this, but it just isn't top of mind to reject these. I'm +$10 today alone in these spots, but today is probably above-average.
- I still have a great PVI for rakeback (haven't measured exact number, but it makes sense if I'm a slightly losing player that I'd still be getting a good PVI).

How can I fix this:
1. Keep studying, more study = bigger winrate = less noticeable of a "problem".
2. I'll give hand2note a try to see if it reports drastically different numbers.
3. Reject run it 3x when I notice it.

I have a busy work week ahead, and want to take it a bit easy. I'll play for an hour or two a few days this week, and get more study in next weekend. I'm also actively reading The Mental Game of Poker, aiming to get through that this week.

Only 4 error hands (run it 3x), so really hard for that to explain anywhere near the difference.

Rake Contrib: $40.55
My C Won: -$50.41

The 4 hands could explain the difference if I'm actually getting very close to 100% rakeback I guess. This number actually seems possible when I consider high PVI, leaderboards, flipouts, and recent promotions.

Looks like redownloading everything there was a small down session at the start that got missed, which makes the differences even bigger.

Hand2Note reports -$48.87, so a $1.54 difference. (Also reporting 4 errors, so I assume neither can handle run it 3x)



Reviewing rakeback a bit:
GG Cares Flipout: $13.20 (I'm near EV, +/- a few $s, not doing the math again right now)
Leaderboards: $3.10
Main Rakeback: $16.49
Deposit Bonus: $9
= $41.79 total rakeback

I guess 4 run-it-3x pots excluded (2 at 5nl), it all makes sense now... Although it's really surprising to see, and really shows how absurd the rake is at GG to support this (I guess I can be thankful though that I personally pay practically 0 rake since I guess I'm good for the games lol)


+ updated pt graph for comparison with that missing session.


Tldr, this is what a breakeven graph looks like on GGPoker with rakeback apparently lol

It's been a pretty busy week for me outside of poker.

I played 5k hands at normal 2nl tables hoping to get some winning sessions in and rebuild confidence. Small sample set doesn't mean much, but winning did help a lot with confidence (+$30 / 1500bb in 5k hands).

I'm not sure if I'm beating 2NL R&C or 5NL R&C over a proper sample set, but I am confident that mental game is my biggest weakness right now.

Trying to be as realistic as I can, while playing my A game, I think there's a...
80% chance I'm beating 2NL R&C
50% chance I'm beating 5NL R&C

But... I barely ever play my A Game.

Recording play and explains for myself, I feel like I'm getting worse in some areas.

Setting some conservative goals for this month:
1. Finish reading The Mental Game Of Poker #1
2. Read The Mental Game Of Poker #2
3. Figure out strategies or techniques to improve my mental game. Create some sort of actionable plan to keep working on it.

Undecided if I'll pick up coaching sessions again this month. I expect to be pretty busy with work and will continue to slow down a lot.

Thinking through things while playing is fine, but maybe actually trying to explain them is having an effect on how you play.

Try just recording yourself without any commentary, and then do the explaining in post audio.

Study paying off, and a fun day I decided to play live yesterday and today.

I'm not really keeping a roll for live at the moment, just playing for fun. I can set aside a roll immediately if I decide to take live more seriously, but I don't expect I'll be able to play more than once a week most weeks.

Yesterday - -40k -- In 40k, out 0 @ 50/100
Today - +160k -- In 20k, out 180k @ 100/200 (started as 50/100)

50/100 is the smallest live game that runs here.

This is not USD, 100 = $3 USD.

Here's what I did right / how I've improved:
- Reasonable preflop ranges today (yesterday was a bit looser than I'm supposed to be, committed to myself to tighten up on this).
- Implemented overbets in a few spots both for value and bluffs (incl a 5x river shove where I had nut advantage and the bottom of my range, and would've liked shoving my value too)
- Actually thought through my bluffs in detail. Remembering how much value I have in a particular spot, letting value determine sizing, thinking through player types, etc.
- When I felt like I was the 2nd weakest player left at the table, I quit.
- Implemented my donking range, thought people might react poorly.

I also snap called vs a BXB line with 3rd pair on a dry board. While I was right, with the combo of the player and the line that it was going to be hugely overbluffed, I realize thinking back on the session that I probably shouldn't snap call here. Might disincentive future overbluffing vs me.

Winning aside (I was down 10k very early on, and felt good about my play at that point too), today feels like the same poker I was playing earlier on. Where I was actually thinking through everything properly (except my knowledge is better).

I just need to figure out how to be "in the zone" and play my A game more often, then back to studying strategy.

No doubt I ran amazingly well today, but I feel like I should be winning at live low stakes long term when I play well, given I play my C and D game insanely often and am breaking even at micros rush & cash.