hey man...not me everytime but it seems like I get it in good and they hit on the river.

played again today, made a straight, 3 clubs. I shove on the turn. He calls with Aclubs K, hits club on river.

And guys calling my all-ins with pocket 10's, when I try stealing with AK. No respect and can't win flips right now.

a $40 buy-in? wtf...that's not even poker.

damn nice cash out..i need a session like that.

Another hand I have KJ diamonds, hit my flush on the turn, I raise, he calls.

4th diamond on river and of course he has the A diamond. Sick **** like that...

I'll shortly this shortly.. After a few days in OC went to LA, then to vegas for 5 nights to party and fit in a little bit of pokerz. In Texas now getting ready to fly home on Saturday. Yuk.

And so it is. Here I am, in Houston, in the BA lounge getting ready to fly back to London Town.

The last update was a win at Hawaiian gardens. I went back a day later and thought I would take a shot at 5/T - the first time I have. It started pretty well, played quite solidly for the first couple of hours and turned my $1,000 into $1,100. Then this hand happened. In hindsight I don't know if I played it well.

So I open raise on the button with Q9cc to 35 and BB, who covers me, calls. He's a young Asian guy, haven't played a hand yet with him although earlier my neighbour had told me he's "tricky". Anyhow. The pot is 75 and the flop comes down J82cc. I have a flush draw and a gut shot, cool. I'll cbet. It checks to me and I make it 50. Quick as a flash V makes it 200. Hmm. The way the game had been playing this was done with top pair and occasionally weaker.

What to do? Fold? No way, I have too much equity. Call? Meh. Maybe but on a brick turn i just lose far too much equity and will likely have to face another barrel. A club might also kill my action if it comes in. So I'm gonna raise here. I ship it. V tanks - good sign. Any set and he snaps. He then asks the dealer "if I call, do I have to show my cards if I lose?" - well, obviously not. He calls. Ok, here goes.

Pot - 2,200. I'd love club right now, T would be even better. Turn... Brick.. River... Brick. Yuk.

V turns over AA after I announce I have Q high. Damn. Against AA I had 48% equity on the flop so I don't hate my raise. I just wonder whether a smaller raise might have achieved a fold, especially as if he were to raise he'd have to show first which he seemingly didn't want to do considering the way he played his aces.

Anyway. Next day I go back to 2/5 at HG and win 500. The next day I try commerce and win $1,200. Gooooood. I then spend a couple days in Santa Monica as my girlfriend flies across with a couple of our friends. So poker is on lockdown really. We then roadtrip to vegas to meet 5 other friends and party hard for 5 nights. Wet Republic, Tao, Hakkasan, the works. Pretty epic. I manage to sneak in about 4 sessions of poker for a couple hours and generally do well. I'm $1,200 until the last session. I lose $300 quickly, my flush hitting a full house at 1/2. I buy in for another 200, and manage to spin it up to 550 when this hand happens.

villain, young European guy raises pre to 8 UTG. About 30 mins earlier he had raised me all in on a board of QJJ74cccc when he had 180 behind and the pot was 180. The way the hand played out I just didn't believe him, and my QT (no clubs) was good when I called.

So there's about 4 callers, and I have KK in the SB. I make it 40. V snap raises to 100 and it folds to me. I think about folding as every fibre in my body tells me he has AA and he isn't bluffing this time, but figure I'll call and shut down if there's no K on the flop as he has another 350 behind.

Pot 235

So it flops KQTr. Get in.

I check. He checks. Turn is a 2. I check. He makes it 100, and I raise all in. He calls and says "you're so lucky".

Pot 935.

River ... A jack. FCKKKKKK. Obviously he flips over AA for the straight. Pah. Bad river, but hey, it feels good that i outplayed the **** out of him anyway. I think!

So that was my last session. I then flew to Austin, Texas and was literally caught in the eye of the storm. Spent a night there with my girlfriend and then drove to Houston where we chilled for another 4 days.

This trip was epic in total. I spent 5 weeks in the states - San Fran, vegas, California, vegas again, then texas. I came out with $2,500 and am flying back with $4,500. If I was sensible it would be more but I've lived like a king, have rented cars (usually a mustang convertible) everywhere I've been, stayed in great hotels for the most part, eaten like a fat mother****er, had a ****load of lobster and steak, and have literally done everything I wanted.

Maybe next time I'll be a bit more frugal, but it's been totally worth it.

Now I just need to figure out my next poker goals. Spin up $60k to buy a 2 bed condo in LV? Maybe...

cool man, sounds like a good time!! that 5/10 day, pretty standard. You could have just called to see turn/river. Cause an overpair or set isn't gonna fold no matter what.

That way if you miss river you can get away. You probably know he's got top pair minimum or an overpair. A set and you're drawing thin.

I played a session tonight and had a similar hand.

AJ clubs, I raise pre to $10, 2 callers. Flop is 9 xx 2 clubs. A guy leads out for $20. I can shove it (I got $150, Villain covers)...and it's a flip if he has any pair. So I just flat and see the turn. Brick. Same $20 bet, same call.

River is gin, K clubs. He still bets $40, I shove and he folds. Probably lost value, but I prefer to get stacks in as a favourite.

Funny how KK and AA come up so often, and guys can't get them go.

Last hand of the day, guy raises to $7. I got AA and just say what the heck, I snap shove all in over $200. Guy thinks for 10 secs, says I gotta call and my AA's hold.

You played the KK's well. Nothing you can do about it.

Good to spend some coin and live the life. What's the point of $ if you ain't gonna use it.