Hello! I'm twenty years old, I'm from Sweden and I'm sick and tired of going nowhere with my life. I've supported myself through playing poker for the past two years. I screwed up school due to poker, I never move up in stakes comfortably due to poor bankroll management, I don't put enough time and effort into poker and I only play periodically. I want to see progress, and I want to prove to myself that I can live up to the potential I thought I had.

~Lifetime graph



(All hands 50NL+ in this database. Missing ~100-200k lifetime).

Goal one

- Make €30000 before the end of 2011.

How and why?

My current bankroll is very small (~€2k). I currently have enough to comfortably play 50NL and 50PLO. However, I only have about one third of my roll available right now, so my actual roll is larger. I haven't played for almost three months, so I am rusty and will need some time to get back into playing. My plan is to start playing regularly again and to continue working hard on my game, my game theoretical knowledge and overall improvement. I currently play almost only 6-max NLHE, but I play 6-max PLO, heads up NLHE and heads up PLO on occasion and will strive to play a lot more heads up in the near future, both NLHE and PLO.

Succeeding with this goal basically comes down to getting back into a "rhythm" where I play a lot and feel confident about my game, as well as improving and adjusting quickly, moving up in stakes as quickly as possible and running well.

I think the figure chosen is a somewhat reasonable, yet sizable goal to strive for given my current situation and bankroll. (Even though setting a monetary goal is quite unreasonable in the first place). The amount would give me a fairly comfortable bankroll for crossing over to midstakes, and it would also be enough for me to have living expenses for the beginning of next year set, allowing me to focus entirely on moving up further and continuing to improve.

Good luck. Your goal seems a little ambitious but certainly achievable given your experience.

What's the highest stakes you've played? Do you have much omaha experience?

Thank you.

Yes, it will be very hard unless I manage to move up in stakes and adjust quickly. If I manage to move up something like one stake a month it can be done. I'm not great at putting in a lot of volume so upping the stakes and winrate is likely be what I'll be relying on mostly.

The highest I've ever played is 2kNL, but for an insignificant number of hands. The highest stake I've won at over a significant sample (~250k hands, ~5bb/100) is 400NL. However that was almost two years ago.

I have a fair amount of PLO experience. I spent about six months last year playing almost exclusively PLO, and I've given the game a lot of analysis and thought. I probably have around 200k hands of PLO played total, although I'm just about breaking even due to a longer stretch of playing 12-16 tables in order to cash bonuses at Stars, where I got raped in all small pots and in my non-showdown winnings (I didn't realize this at the time). I think I have a decent understanding of the game though, and most people suck at it. It's a far more complex game than NLHE, and I think it's a lot more interesting given how much more depth and how many more situations and opportunities it offers.

Yea I spent a small amount of time a month ago trying to learn it but decided against continuing on. From the little that I've read, the variance is nuts which is a problem since I share the same problem as you: putting in volume. In fact I'd say it's the weakest part of my poker mindset. I really need to work on it.

For the time being I'm going to try make some $ at 50 & 100NL HU. Although at some point in the future I'd still like to learn plo given that there's very little action at 200NL+ HU on stars.

I think you should devote at least a somewhat significant amount time to learning it if you would like to do so. I suppose you have to. If you are a smart and winning NLHE player there's no doubt that you could carry a lot of your skill and knowledge over to PLO, as long as you can make the necessary adjustments and take in the new knowledge needed.

The first thing to learn would of course be relative hand strengths, which are extremely different in NLHE and PLO. It's my impression that some players struggle with this transition, but if you only give it a few weeks of thought, watch videos, play lower stakes and do some analysis on your own then it will surely come. My best tip would be to keep propokertools open while you are playing to check out the equities of various hands in various situations. First you can guess what the equities are, then see how close you were. Then you can change some cards to see how much the equities can change when you edit a pair, an additional straight out, a backdoor flush draw, maybe a blocker, and so on.

The variance is definitely insane and I have the same concern as you do. When I'm playing NLHE I at least know that I'm likely to win over a reasonable sample even if I could end up having a really bad stretch. PLO is slower (less hands/hour) and it feels like the long run takes so long to get to that I sometimes shy away from playing it just because it feels like things can go so wrong so quickly. However, variance is two-sided and you can obviously go on sick heaters as well, which is nice. Very weak players can also go on sick heaters and think that they are better than they really are, which is of course also very nice.

I would certainly advice you to learn PLO if you're looking for future HU action. Looking at the lobby on any site will show you how dry NLHE HU action seems to be, whilst it's not the case for PLO HU. I'd also advice you to spread your roll across several sites if you want to increase your chances of getting action. This is something that I've been looking to do for a long time, but never gotten to.

I realize that I need to set a lot of very small goals to make sure that I spend my time wisely. I have a tendency to push things forward to the last minute very often, and having a large and open goal like this makes that very easy to do. I will come up with something concrete for next month, and I will likely look to do some bonus whoring as well. (I think I could get above 100% rakeback). It's a nice and quick way to get me a good start. As for now, I will simply set a goal for tomorrow:

Goal for 2011-08-18

- Play at least 4 hours.

I have always set large and grand goals. It has rarely worked out. From now on I will do it one step at a time!

There are few things I appreciate more than music, so I figured I'd share some songs that I like every now and then.

Muffler - Uplifter
Nero - Innocence
Fytch ft. Carmen Forbes - Winter Wind

2011-08-18

Hours: 4.12
Hands: 1407
Money: +€68.59
Graph

I played my four hours today and didn't have time for much more. I played two separate sessions, one where I won about 4BI and one where I lost about 3BI. I played well and was confident in the first session. In the second session I started off feeling rusty but managed to pull it together.


Largest pot won

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 5 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

BTN: $84.31
SB: $40.48
Hero (BB): $56.87
UTG: $74.34
CO: $69.43

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is BB with 4 K 2 K
1 fold, CO raises to $1.75, BTN raises to $6, 1 fold, Hero calls $5.50, CO raises to $24.25, BTN calls $18.25, Hero calls $18.25

Flop: ($73.00) 2 5 J (3 players)
Hero bets $32.12, CO raises to $45.18, BTN folds

Turn: ($137.24) 5 (2 players)

River: ($137.24) 2 (2 players)

Final Pot: $137.24
Hero shows 4 K 2 K
CO mucks A 6 4 A
Hero wins $134.24
CO wins $13.06
(Rake: $-10.06)

I think cold calling the 3-bet is fine, and calling the 4-bet is fine given that it's multiway. I think check/calling the flop is slightly better, just so that BTN won't know that he will be playing against two opponents (he might fold some 5x or something versus this action).


Largest pot lost

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 6 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

Hero (BTN): $145.71
SB: $11.84
BB: $50.50
UTG: $79.36
MP: $50.00
CO: $72.11

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is BTN with A 6 T A
UTG raises to $1, 2 folds, Hero raises to $3.75, 1 fold, BB calls $3.25, UTG calls $2.75

Flop: ($11.50) 8 J A (3 players)
BB checks, UTG checks, Hero bets $6.50, BB calls $6.50, UTG calls $6.50

Turn: ($31.00) 6 (3 players)
BB checks, UTG checks, Hero bets $31.00, BB folds, UTG calls $31

River: ($93.00) 5 (2 players)
UTG bets $38.11, Hero calls $38.11

Final Pot: $169.22
Hero mucks A 6 T A
UTG shows 2 9 7 9
UTG wins $166.22
(Rake: $3.00)

I think that my flop c-bet is too small given the stack depths. €7.5-9 or so would be fine. I think that a turn pot is the only option given two callers and me blocking top pair. On the river there is no way to fold.


Most interesting pot

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 6 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

SB: $49.25
Hero (BB): $96.69
UTG: $89.23
MP: $93.50
CO: $26.56
BTN: $96.56

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is BB with Q A A 5
1 fold, MP raises to $1.50, 1 fold, BTN calls $1.50, 1 fold, Hero calls $1

Flop: ($4.75) 7 Q K (3 players)
Hero bets $4.00, MP calls $4, BTN calls $4

Turn: ($16.75) 4 (3 players)
Hero bets $15.00, MP calls $15, BTN raises to $30, Hero?

If anyone would like to have a go at this hand with an analysis and whether or not it's interesting I will reply with my thought process.


DJ Isaac - Impressed
Stellamara - Prituri Se Planinata (NiT GriT Remix)
Rusko - Everyday (Netsky Remix)

I won't have as much time to play tomorrow (today since 40 minutes) so I'll set another small goal to make sure that I get something done.

Goal for 2011-08-19

- Play at least three hours.

2011-08-19

Hours: 2.60
Hands: 992
Money: +€236.43
Graph

I played one long session today (by my standards, at least). I was aiming for three hours but I haven't eaten all day and I noticed myself losing focus after about two hours, so I will call it a day. I'm going out later and won't be able to play more. I think I played well the entire session apart from a few small mistakes, and I also got into good spots.


Largest pot won

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 6 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

MP: $78.82
CO: $58.43
BTN: $50.00
SB: $49.75
BB: $36.66
Hero (UTG): $98.81

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is UTG with 6 7 4 5
Hero raises to $1.50, MP calls $1.50, CO calls $1.50, 1 fold, SB calls $1.25, BB calls $1

Flop: ($7.50) 3 J 5 (5 players)
SB bets $6.50, BB folds, Hero calls $6.50, MP folds, CO calls $6.50

Turn: ($27.00) Q (3 players)
SB bets $24.50, Hero calls $24.50, CO calls $24.50

River: ($100.50) 6 (3 players)
SB bets $17.00, Hero calls $17, CO folds

Final Pot: $134.50
SB shows 5 6 7 J
Hero shows 6 7 4 5
Hero wins $131.50
(Rake: $3.00)

I think this hand pretty much plays itself. Villain's flop lead is extremely strong (I'm sure his actual hand is close to the bottom of his leading range) so I simply call twice to hit, which I do. Given that SB is all-in on the river I think I would rather call than stick the last few dollars in, just so that my hand isn't face up as a straight, allowing CO to perhaps make some mistaken hero calls (with what I don't really know).


Largest pot lost

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 6 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

Hero (BB): $55.04
UTG: $120.14
MP: $45.75
CO: $67.31
BTN: $40.01
SB: $50.25

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is BB with 4 8 9 8
UTG calls $0.50, 3 folds, SB calls $0.25, Hero checks

Flop: ($1.50) T 4 8 (3 players)
SB checks, Hero checks, UTG bets $1.50, SB folds, Hero raises to $6, UTG raises to $19.50, Hero raises to $54.04, UTG calls $34.54

Turn: ($109.58) A (2 players)

River: ($109.58) Q (2 players)

Final Pot: $109.58
Hero shows 4 8 9 8
UTG shows T T 9 6
UTG wins $106.58
(Rake: $3.00)

This hand also plays itself. I had a read on villain that he always bet pot when you checked it to him in a limped pot, so I'm obviously going to check/raise the flop. When he 3-bets I'm more or less thrilled and just get it in, especially because he was loose pre-flop and aggressive post-flop. There are spots in PLO where you could fold middle or bottom set in a small pot against some opponents, but this was not one of those spots or one of those opponents.


Most interesting pot

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 5 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

CO: $96.87
BTN: $43.17
SB: $76.38
Hero (BB): $87.52
UTG: $96.69

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is BB with 6 A 8 A
2 folds, BTN raises to $1.75, 1 fold, Hero raises to $5.50, BTN calls $3.75

Flop: ($11.25) 9 5 2 (2 players)
Hero bets $6.00, BTN calls $6

Turn: ($23.25) 3 (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN bets $23.25, Hero raises to $46.50, BTN calls $8.42 all in

River: ($86.59) Q (2 players - 1 is all in)

Final Pot: $86.59
BTN shows 7 4 T 6
Hero shows 6 A 8 A
BTN wins $83.59
(Rake: $3.00)

There wasn't really any interesting pots so this hand will have to do. I suppose my turn line might be slightly unorthodox but, yeah, it's not too interesting. Again, if anyone would like to have a go at the hand with an analysis and their thoughts, I will reply with my thought process.


AK1200 - Drowning (Terravita Remix)
Ephixa - Lost Woods (Dubstep Remix)
Cutline - Die For You (Shock One Remix)

Goal for 2011-08-21

- Play at least four hours.

2011-08-21

Hours: 2.86
Hands: 1051
Money: +€55.87
Graph

I actually played just short of four hours "today", but I went into the next day by an hour. Given that my sleeping schedule can be weird at times I have just decided to go by the calendar and not my own waking hours. By that logic I only played just short of three hours.

I played two separate sessions, one where I played well and one where started to play worse through the second half of it. I made no major mistakes, but I rather failed to take advantage of a lot of profitable situations that were given to me. A large part of this is due to playing too many tables (only six!). I'm not used to playing too many tables so when I exceed four or five I start to time out and also give up too easily in a lot of small pots. For this reason I will not exceed five tables in the near future unless I'm feeling very in tune. I would rather play my very best at four or five tables than play "well" but miss a fair amount of small pots and profitable situations (that require some deeper thought - and thus more time - to notice and take advantage of) on five tables.


Largest pot won

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 6 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

MP: $50.92
CO: $28.05
BTN: $52.71
SB: $70.10
BB: $76.98
Hero (UTG): $106.41

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is UTG with Q 3 2 Q
Hero raises to $1.50, 1 fold, CO calls $1.50, BTN raises to $6.75, 2 folds, Hero calls $5.25, CO calls $5.25

Flop: ($21.00) 4 5 A (3 players)
Hero checks, CO bets $21.00, BTN raises to $45.96, Hero raises to $70.92, CO calls $0.30 all in

Turn: ($134.22) 6 (3 players - 1 is all in)

River: ($134.22) J (3 players - 1 is all in)

Final Pot: $134.22
CO mucks 6 A 7 Q
BTN mucks A A K 8
Hero shows Q 3 2 Q
Hero wins $24.36
Hero wins $24.96
Hero wins $81.90
(Rake: $3.00)

This hand really plays itself. I see no other action to take that would be more profitable than this line.


Largest pot lost

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 6 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

BB: $68.90
UTG: $56.36
Hero (MP): $79.54
CO: $17.83
BTN: $48.50
SB: $86.08

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is MP with 3 2 A A
UTG raises to $1.50, Hero raises to $5.25, CO raises to $11.50, 3 folds, UTG calls $10, Hero raises to $46.75, CO calls $6.33 all in, UTG raises to $56.36, Hero calls $9.61

Flop: ($131.30) 7 6 8 (3 players - 1 is all in)

Turn: ($131.30) 9 (3 players - 1 is all in)

River: ($131.30) Q (3 players - 1 is all in)

Final Pot: $131.30
UTG shows K K Q Q
Hero mucks 3 2 A A
CO shows 6 5 4 7
CO wins $51.53
UTG wins $76.77
(Rake: $3.00)

The same goes for this hand, of course.


Most interesting pot

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 5 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

CO: $73.91
BTN: $49.79
Hero (SB): $70.10
BB: $50.50
UTG: $49.88

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is SB with 9 K A J
2 folds, BTN raises to $1.50, Hero raises to $5, BB calls $4.50, BTN calls $3.50

Flop: ($15.00) T 6 J (3 players)
Hero?

Again, I didn't encounter any super interesting spots, but I felt that this one at least deserved some thought. In this situation I think I have a rare case where a bet can fold out some better hands and get it in versus some worse hands (although obviously vice versa). There are some hands I would like to check here (both stronger and weaker) but I felt this hand was just in the middle and was best to bet. If anyone would like to discuss it, let's do so.


Vaski - Blackout
Jamiroquai - Blue Skies (Flux Pavillion Remix)
Nero - Guilt

Goal for 2011-08-22

- Play at least four hours.

2011-08-22

Hours: 2.30
Hands: 773
Money: +€276.66
Graph

I didn't play too much today, although my latest session stretched about an hour into the next day. I woke up late and had some things to do, so my time to play was limited. My first session was the end of yesterday's session, and I think I played pretty poorly. I was unfocused and weak due to being tired and playing a few too many tables. I played strongly in my second session though, and kept the amount of tables at five almost the entire session.


Largest pot won

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 6 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

UTG: $127.62
MP: $50.82
CO: $47.69
BTN: $43.75
SB: $44.00
Hero (BB): $57.09

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is BB with 6 5 A A
1 fold, MP raises to $1.50, CO calls $1.50, BTN raises to $6.75, SB calls $6.50, Hero raises to $30, 2 folds, BTN raises to $43.75, SB calls $37, Hero calls $13.75

Flop: ($134.25) 3 8 J (3 players)

Turn: ($134.25) 8 (3 players)

River: ($134.25) 5 (3 players)

Final Pot: $134.25
BTN shows 5 3 K K
SB mucks 6 T 2 6
Hero shows 6 5 A A
Hero wins $131.25
(Rake: $3.00)

There's not really anything to add here. I just get as much money in as possible with AA before the flop at this stack depth and manage to hold. I suppose there could be some room for a smaller re-raise or call with certain types of AA** hands here, but I'm a bit too tired to think it through and put nicely in to words (I might also be wrong).


Largest pot lost

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 6 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

BB: $59.47
UTG: $49.83
MP: $189.39
Hero (CO): $180.63
BTN: $81.39
SB: $59.88

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is CO with A 8 6 A
1 fold, MP raises to $1.75, Hero raises to $6, 1 fold, SB calls $5.75, 1 fold, MP calls $4.25

Flop: ($18.50) 2 2 4 (3 players)
SB checks, MP checks, Hero bets $8.50, SB raises to $44, MP folds, Hero raises to $79.50, SB calls $9.88 all in

Turn: ($126.26) 8 (2 players - 1 is all in)

River: ($126.26) K (2 players - 1 is all in)

Final Pot: $126.26
Hero mucks A 8 6 A
SB shows Q Q 8 2
SB wins $122.76
Hero wins $0.25
(Rake: $3.25)

This hand is played the best way possible, for sure. Although I should probably bet the flop a bit larger given how deep I am with MP, so that I can get stacks in by the river. Finding a good default bet size is a little bit problematic when multi-way against different stack sizes.


Most interesting pot

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 5 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

BTN: $91.80
SB: $32.35
BB: $140.68
Hero (UTG): $50.00
CO: $67.67

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is UTG with T Q J 4
Hero raises to $1.50, 1 fold, BTN calls $1.50, 1 fold, BB raises to $6.25, Hero calls $4.75, BTN calls $4.75

Flop: ($19.00) Q 6 8 (3 players)
BB bets $19.00, Hero?

I think this spot was somewhat interesting. The 3-bettor is a maniacal 95/34 with 30% 3-bet. The BTN is a loose passive 42/9. The decision is of course between shoving or calling, and they both have merits and drawbacks. I'm tired so I haven't thought this hand through. Again, if anyone would like to discuss it I'll do my best to analyze it and post my thought process.


Bare & Muffler - Megatronik
Terravita - Lockdown
Ivan Carsten - Loverdrive

I'm going to resume a solid routine of going to the gym every other day or so, and I will be starting that today. I always find that I have a lot of trouble putting in any significant amount of volume on days where I work out due to the amount of time the entire process takes (2-4 hours to get to the gym, work out, get back home, cook and eat an extra meal and shower afterwards). Because of this I will play less on days where I work out, but I will make up for it by playing more on the days where I do not work out.

I think my current goal in terms of hours played per day on average is about four hours per day. Once I get to the point where I'm putting in ~120 hours per month I can look to expand on that. To get there currently I need to play roughly three hours on "busy" days and five hours on "free" days.

Goal for 2011-08-23

- Play at least three hours.

2011-08-23

Hours: 2.70
Hands: 843
Money: -€394.69
Graph

Today was quite rough. My first session was the end of yesterday's session where I felt a bit tired and unsure in some spots. I had the same uncertainty in some spots in the second session, and would say that I played my B-game or so. Towards the end of the second session I sat at a €100PLO table to take a "shot" (small bankroll, not really a shot) because there was a large fish there, but I got into a lot of questionable spots and also ran really bad, which fueled my frustration. So I probably played my C-game for some minutes as well.


Largest pot won

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 5 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

Hero (BTN): $127.02
SB: $63.89
BB: $50.50
UTG: $23.17
CO: $76.80

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is BTN with 9 7 K K
UTG calls $0.50, 1 fold, Hero raises to $2, SB calls $1.75, BB calls $1.50, UTG calls $1.50

Flop: ($8.00) 3 K 2 (4 players)
SB checks, BB checks, UTG checks, Hero bets $5.00, SB calls $5, BB folds, UTG folds

Turn: ($18.00) 3 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $8.00, SB calls $8

River: ($34.00) T (2 players)
SB bets $22.00, Hero raises to $100, SB folds

Final Pot: $78.00
Hero wins $75.00
(Rake: $3.00)

I think this hand was well played. I bet small on the turn because villain was a loose and weak player, and I wanted to entice him to come along with worse flush draws and straight draws and to build the pot for the times he hits the river. He's likely calling any bet size with trips but I felt this size targeted his entire range best. I obviously ship the river with the effective nuts and he folds what is probably a missed draw, or maybe weak trips.


Largest pot lost

$100.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 5 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

BB: $111.64
UTG: $73.44
CO: $215.60
BTN: $190.50
Hero (SB): $119.39

Pre Flop: ($1.50) Hero is SB with 5 3 Q Q
3 folds, Hero raises to $3, BB raises to $9, Hero raises to $27, BB calls $18

Flop: ($54.00) 8 A J (2 players)
Hero bets $54.00, BB raises to $83.64, Hero calls $29.64

Turn: ($221.28) T (2 players)

River: ($221.28) 3 (2 players)

Final Pot: $221.28
BB shows 9 8 8 T
Hero mucks 5 3 Q Q
BB wins $218.28
(Rake: $3.00)

My pre-flop play here is normally a bit thin (mainly due to the poor/low side cards), but villain was crazy and loose with a 40% 3-bet, so in this situation the best play is a clearly a 4-bet for value. On the flop I simply mash the pot and go for maximum fold equity with my draw, expecting to fold out some stronger hands (weak top pair) and typically get it in with okay equity even if he doesn't fold. He ends up having hit pretty damn hard and I miss. I think I played the hand perfectly.


Most interesting pot

$100.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 5 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

UTG: $226.18
CO: $68.94
BTN: $212.48
SB: $100.50
Hero (BB): $101.00

Pre Flop: ($1.50) Hero is BB with T Q 3 K
UTG raises to $3.50, 3 folds, Hero raises to $11, UTG calls $7.50

Flop: ($22.50) A 8 J (2 players)
Hero bets $15.00, UTG calls $15

Turn: ($52.50) 7 (2 players)
Hero?

I thought this hand was very interesting. I made a thread about it here.


Angels & Airwaves - Call To Arms
Elliot Minor - Let's Turn This Around
Elliot Minor - Solaris

Now that I'm back into a routine of playing somewhat regularly, I need to set up some well defined bankroll management rules that encourage shot taking and moving up, so that I can get closer to my goal. I'm looking to do that within the next few days.

Given that I haven't succeeded in playing four hours on some days where I set that as a goal, I don't think I should set a goal of playing five hours yet (which is what I would otherwise do for today). I can certainly strive for it, though.

Goal for 2011-08-24

- Play at least four hours.

I gave my current bankroll management some thought and came to conclusions. I need to set an interval of buy-ins for a given stake at which point I will actively shot-take and attempt to move up to that stake. I would define moving up as transferring the majority of my volume to that stake, and having built my bankroll to more buy-ins than the previously mentioned interval. If I make it my priority to shot-take and move up as soon as I can then I'm likely to reach my goal quicker. Sitting around and grinding a low stake won't do it, especially given the luck and rungood element needed to complete this goal (unless I put in massive volume, which I can't).

Goal one bankroll guidelines

NLHE: Actively shot-take and attempt to move up to a given stake when I have 30-50 BI for it.

PLO: Actively shot-take and attempt to move up to a given stake when I have 50-75 BI for it.

I think these are solid intervals that I'm comfortable with. I wouldn't want to play a stake with less than 30 or 50 BI respectively, and when I have more than 50 or 75 BI I feel somewhat comfortably bankrolled, at least at this stage. When it comes to heads up play I would likely make the NLHE interval 50-75 BI and the PLO interval 75-100 BI.

2011-08-24

Hours: 3.94
Hands: 1457
Money: +€261.54
Graph

Today I did something I have basically never done. I made the decision to only play on tables that had at least one fish sitting. I have always had pretty non-existent game selection and have not cared much for who I'm playing with. I've lately realized that that's a pretty sub-par approach. I only play four or five tables, and there are plenty of games going, so there's no reason for me to play in any but the best games. If there were no games going I would certainly start them and keep them going as I usually do, but today there was no need. I should probably make a rule of only playing on tables that has at least one fish on them for the time being. It will of course make my winrate higher and my results come faster.


Largest pot won

$100.00 No Limit Hold'em - 5 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

CO: $75.50
Hero (BTN): $123.06
SB: $100.50
BB: $115.31
UTG: $122.51

Pre Flop: ($1.50) Hero is BTN with K 5
1 fold, CO calls $1, Hero raises to $3.50, 2 folds, CO calls $2.50

Flop: ($8.50) 5 8 K (2 players)
CO checks, Hero bets $5.00, CO raises to $10, Hero calls $5

Turn: ($28.50) 6 (2 players)
CO bets $7.00, Hero raises to $22, CO raises to $62, Hero calls $40

River: ($152.50) 2 (2 players)

Final Pot: $152.50
CO shows J K
Hero shows K 5
Hero wins $149.50
(Rake: $3.00)

This hand was well played. The pre-flop raise is good to isolate the limper, which was thus far a relatively unknown weaker player. The blinds were fairly weak too, making it that much easier. On the flop I make a normal bet and call his raise. I could have 3-bet the flop but I didn't know anything about him yet and I didn't want to fold out his bluffs. On the turn he's betting too small so I have to raise to be able to get stacks in, to protect my hand and to prevent scare-cards from coming off. When he 3-bets all-in I happily call, expecting him to turn over top pair, some pair plus draw type hands and the rare set or straight.


Largest pot lost

$100.00 No Limit Hold'em - 5 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

CO: $97.00
BTN: $65.08
SB: $178.85
Hero (BB): $101.00
UTG: $56.50

Pre Flop: ($1.50) Hero is BB with J K
UTG raises to $3, 1 fold, BTN calls $3, 1 fold, Hero calls $2

Flop: ($9.50) J 2 4 (3 players)
Hero checks, UTG bets $7.00, BTN calls $7, Hero calls $7

Turn: ($30.50) Q (3 players)
Hero checks, UTG checks, BTN checks

River: ($30.50) 7 (3 players)
Hero checks, UTG checks, BTN bets $37.00, Hero calls $37, UTG folds

Final Pot: $104.50
BTN shows A 5
Hero mucks J K
BTN wins $101.50
(Rake: $3.00)

Normally this is a fold pre-flop given the positions, but against two weaker players it's an easy call. On the flop check/calling is certainly the best option. On the turn checking is also best. On the river I think I prefer a check, and I think that calling any normal to large bet from BTN is good, but I'm not sure about calling the overbet. He snap called the flop c-bet so I weighed his range more towards draws (A5, A3, 65, 53) than made hands, and he would still bet any better made hand than KJ on the turn.

On the river I'm fairly unlikely to be beat. He's representing very few combos (Ac5c, Ac3c, Ac2c, 6c5c, 5c3c and some JcXc) and I thought he would still have checked back all weaker draws on the turn because I am in the hand, and that he might bluff some of them like this. However, I have a general rule of not calling recreational players' overbets without a very good reason to. But I did end up doing just that after some time banking (I have no reason to think he can overbet bluff), and this is what I get for it. Had he bet pot or less I think it's a fairly easy call, but against an overbet it's a fold (regardless of results, of course).


Most interesting pot

$100.00 No Limit Hold'em - 5 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

BTN: $110.70
Hero (SB): $100.50
BB: $101.00
UTG: $39.23
CO: $159.28

Pre Flop: ($1.50) Hero is SB with A K
2 folds, BTN raises to $2.50, Hero raises to $8.50, 1 fold, BTN calls $6

Flop: ($18.00) 2 7 T (2 players)
Hero bets $10.00, BTN raises to $24, Hero?

This hand is not super interesting, but at least a little bit. Villain was a regular on the tighter side, and I had no particular post-flop read on him. If anyone would like to give their thoughts on the hand I will reply with my thought process.


Ivan Carsten - Evolution Beat
Dubba Jonny - VIP Dubstep Tutorial
Plan B - Love Goes Down (Doctor P Remix)

H2 I'd much rather bet OTR because I believe BTN's betting range is narrower than his calling range given texture and his turn action. Check/calling will lose value against BTN's J6s type hands because he might sometimes check back or bet smaller than you would bet initially. I also think crai vs a smaller bet is a possible line.

H3 is an interesting spot because not much of villain's range is going to hit this texture. How broadway heavy is your 3betting range from the sb? (this is going to affect whether it's worth playing back with AK here) Also I think it might be a good idea for your entire continuing range to click it back/small 3b in this spot. What do you think?

I thought a bit about this, but to be honest I felt so sure of the fact that BTN had a draw on the flop due to his timing that I felt there was no value in betting. In game I scrapped the thought of betting very quickly due to this. I've found that the vast majority of times, people snap call with draws and floats and think a bit with their pairs. I realize it might seem far fetched to draw this kind of conclusion (especially without a stellar read on villain) but I felt it was very likely.

If I thought BTN's range contained many pairs as well then I would lean more towards a bet. I don't think UTG has me beat often (as I imagine he would bet a Q or better or a flush draw on the turn most of the time) and when BTN has me beat it will be with the above mentioned flush hands, J7 and 77. So I would have to make a pretty small bet like <$12 (possibly smaller) given that I'm good often, but not that often. (No need to make it look like a bluff against these opponents).

Against this villain I'm not really 3-betting too much from this position, because he was so tight (23% BTN raise first, 26% CO raise first and tighter in earlier positions - over ~170 hands). I have no reason to bluff 3-bet him here, really. So I probably 3-bet JJ+, AK most of the time, then some suited air. I will not have many Tx hands at all though, if that's what you're thinking. Given this I actually probably have no obligation to defend with all AKo versus his raise, but exploitively I felt I should because he's not representing much and I thought he might feel that the only way to continue with his overcards was to raise.

3-betting my entire continuing range? I actually wrote up a response to your question but it would probably be more interesting and beneficial if I ask you a few questions first, and then reply. Why do you feel that we should only bet/continue here by 3-betting? What do you think villain's raising range likely is and how would this be connected to us bet/calling or bet/3-betting with our continuing range?

Today I both have a lot of things to do and I'm going to the gym, so I won't have much time to play at all.

Goal for 2011-08-25

- Play at least two hours.

Well I was trying to form a balanced strategy in this spot and I think small 3betting has benefits for both the value and bluff parts of your range. I'd be willing to discuss these reasons on skype if you wanna pm me but ATM I can't be asked to write a huge post detailing all my thoughts.

2011-08-25

Hours: 1.01
Hands: 304
Money: -€141.27
Graph

I had even less time to play today than I thought I would, so I only put in one small session. It started off well with me winning four buy-ins, then from that point on I went on one of the worst runs I've probably ever had, losing almost seven buy-ins in 150 hands. At the same time I witnessed a top five all time good run from one of my opponents, as he took down probably four buy-ins from me in those hands and was also stacking people left and right. That's PLO for you. I didn't start to tilt and play bad because of this as I wasn't unhappy with my own plays, but I felt some frustration coming on so I quit.

Largest pot won

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 6 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

BB: $50.50
UTG: $147.06
MP: $50.40
Hero (CO): $115.75
BTN: $100.59
SB: $0.25

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is CO with A 5 A 8
1 fold, MP raises to $1.75, Hero raises to $6, 1 fold, SB calls $0 all in, BB raises to $25.75, 1 fold, Hero raises to $85, SB calls $0 all in, BB calls $24.75 all in

Flop: ($103.00) T 3 6 (3 players - 3 are all in)

Turn: ($103.00) 2 (3 players - 3 are all in)

River: ($103.00) 4 (3 players - 3 are all in)

Final Pot: $103.00
BB shows J 9 A A
Hero shows A 5 A 8
SB mucks 8 7 T K
Hero wins $114.25
Hero wins $35.00
(Rake: $-46.25)

There's not much to add here. This is how it's supposed to be played.


Largest pot lost

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 6 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

CO: $65.47
BTN: $185.25
SB: $56.60
Hero (BB): $213.50
UTG: $52.29
MP: $61.72

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is BB with 6 4 5 7
UTG raises to $1.75, 1 fold, CO raises to $6, 2 folds, Hero calls $5.50, UTG calls $4.25

Flop: ($18.25) 8 9 6 (3 players)
Hero bets $9.50, UTG raises to $46.29, CO folds, Hero calls $36.79

Turn: ($110.83) 8 (2 players)

River: ($110.83) 8 (2 players)

Final Pot: $110.83
Hero mucks 6 4 5 7
UTG shows 8 T 7 J
UTG wins $107.83
(Rake: $3.00)

I think this hand was played fine overall, but I'm not sure about my flop sizing. The pre-flop call is correct with such a nice rundown. On the flop I want to get the money in against one player. I don't expect this pot to get c-bet (or donk lead by UTG) unless either player is already crushing it with KKJT, QJT* or T7** and similar hands, so I think I need to lead to protect my hand and to get value. UTG has been showing very little respect versus my leads in all situations, so I was quite pleased when he stuck it in.

The issue with my sizing when I lead this board is that I'm realistically never bet/folding here. There are boards where I could lead/fold in a 3-way pot with this pre-flop action, but this isn't one of them. For this reason I don't really gain anything by betting smaller like this (unless either or both of my opponents are very bad hand readers) and all I do is give some draws good odds to peel. Now, I don't really expect too many hands to just peel here rather than shove (apart from maybe a weak JT**) but I still don't want to open up for that. Although if I bet $9.5 I could lead and fold if both players get all-in (as I'm sure to be doing quite poorly against their combined ranges, I think) but that happens quite rarely. Sort of a weird spot, I will have to give it more thought.


Most interesting pot

$50.00 Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 6 players
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

Hero (CO): $52.65
BTN: $184.77
SB: $60.15
BB: $139.63
UTG: $30.13
MP: $63.81

Pre Flop: ($0.75) Hero is CO with 8 9 T J
2 folds, Hero raises to $1.50, BTN raises to $5.25, 2 folds, Hero calls $3.75

Flop: ($11.25) J J K (2 players)
Hero bets $6.50, BTN calls $6.50

Turn: ($24.25) 7 (2 players)
Hero bets $8.50, BTN calls $8.50

River: ($41.25) T (2 players)
Hero bets $32.40

BTN in this hand is the same player that is UTG in the previous hand (although this hand happened before). He has a high 3-bet from BTN (~20%) but I can't really 4-bet this for value at this stack depth. So far he has shown very little respect to my leads, even when I have lead in spots where it's very strong (such as a 4-way single raised pot with him as PFR OTB, with me in CO). He also c-bets very infrequently, so the flop is a clear lead.

On the turn I decide to bet small again. I had previously lead twice and folded using a small sizing, so in game I decided to use this size here. This sizing could definitely be perceived as me setting up a river bluff versus Kx or AA with a hand like a straight draw. However the fact that it is a good size to set up a river bluff makes it a bit worse for value, given that we're left with a 3/4 bet on the river. With this in mind I slightly prefer a $11.5 bet or so, with this hand.

On the river I boat up and I have to bet for value. The problem is that realistically, I'm not really getting called by too many worse hands (I expect most J's to raise me on the turn, and only KJ**, KK** and weaker to call). So unless he rivered a straight or TT somehow (or is a hero versus this bet, which I have no great reason to suspect) this isn't a great value bet. (More so due to the sizing). Although I'm representing quite a narrow range when I shove this river, so he might surprise me and hero call Kx (mainly due to blocking KK and KJ). If I thought he would bluff with a hand like Kx when I check to fold me out if I have AJ**, AQ**, Q9** or 98** then a check/call would be awesome (and I think my hand is quite ideal for it) but I didn't know if villain was this sophisticated.

I could certainly consider a turn CRAI but he hadn't bet much when checked to. If I expected him to bet a hand like Kx or AA it might be best, but he likely won't. Or he will at least bet/fold. I think the largest problem with this hand is my turn sizing which sets up for a bad river situation. Then again, to me this sizing looks the most like a bluff, so it's not terrible. Leading three streets is the way to go though, for sure.


Nero - My Eyes
Terravita - Up In The Club
Tuneboy - Tunebeat

Fair enough. I've also done some work on creating a balanced strategy when facing raises in 3-bet pots, with the idea of mainly 3-betting the flop to defend against raises. I never got as far as trying to balance a bet/3-bet and bet/call range, though. Naturally some hands would like to bet/call and some hands are better to 3-bet (on any board) but it gets relatively complicated at that point. Largely because it's hard to balance bet/calling with bluffs (especially given the play on future streets) and because it's very hard to make both ranges solid and well balanced (would have to play so many hands so many different ways with varying frequencies). That said, I don't necessarily think villain should have much of a raising range on this type of board (but it can obviously have its merits given the right circumstances) and felt that I could simply play exploitively against him.

I expected his raising range to be almost exclusively overcards, because he has no good reason to raise any hand for value on the flop, and might feel that a flop raise is the only way to be able to win the pot. For this reason I would simply 3-bet all my bluffs small and call with my value hands, using a completely unbalanced and exploitive strategy. I'm not sure if this would stretch so far as to me wanting to do so against a complete unknown (in other words, it being my default strategy) but it still goes back to the point that I don't really think anyone should have much of a raising range here (against a relative unknown / without a good reason to) so I might just play exploitively against it and assume the same as here (that he's mainly FOS).