0 for 2 in the Denny Crum. Got the opportunity to play w the hall of fame coach. Very classy dude. They had 90 runners in the $360nl, and I exited w around 16th left. 7 from the money. My last hand still has me perplexed a bit. Mayb I shd hv folded. What u think? Any insight helpful.
The blinds r 300/1k/2k. We redrew at 18 and playing w a few new players w no history. I make it $4400 from utg+1 w AsJs. +3 calls, HJ calls, cutoff calls. All stacks r 50-60k, I hv 50k. The flop is Ac9c10d. I check, +2 makes a pot(ish) size bet of 18k. 2 folds, and then back to me. After sm tanking, I decided to just jam it in there. 45k. I was reading his bet as a draw. Mayb smthing like straight draw, flush draw, or both. But also cd b many hands that beat me. Of course it was the latter. He flopped a set of 10s and had me covered by 5k.
One mistake cost me today. Another bone headed play. Tell me, how bad was it?
Trying the main event tomorrow. Getting closer
Down -$2,020 in tournaments this year. 0 for 9
+$26,121 in cash ytd
+$24,101 overall.

I think you played it fine. I think I like the check/raise on flop as opposed to bet/call off. Ill pass it along to some tourney grinder friends of mine and see what they say.

perhaps I anticipated the hand as a bust hand so I was inclined to say fold but that's not the case I don't think, in this multi way pot, when villain leads for pot he's pretty darn strong, I instinctively thought fold if u are at ~30 bb effective. u opened UTG, I would expect villain to have a fairly tight pf calling range, and that is an extremely wet board, hitting calling ranges in this spot, quite hard. any typical live player here has a very strong hand here and if it's not a made hand better than yours already, it's 4 flush + straight draws.

Respect and appreciate the insight @absherrj and @p2dogp2. I feel it was a mistake, and one the cost me the chance of getting itm. I can see arguments from both sides, but I think 60%+ (if I take this line) of the time I have to fold. I can see utg+3 calling my preflop raise (2.4x) w KcQc, JcQc, 7c8c, and maybe 8cJc, Ac2c, Ac3c, Ac4c, Ac5c, Ac6c, Ac7c, Ac8c. These are the hands I was hoping Villain had, and it's still it's a pretty much a flip if I want to jam it in. He is never folding to the shove, and it's either I'm hammered to many made hands that crush me, or flipping to a few hands he may have. I think it was a bad play on my part.
Got to do better today. Must cash today to show a profit from these 3 Denny Tourneys I played.
#believe

A friend of mine whose tourney game I respect says he likes bet fold better on flop due to you not having great equity against opponents get it in range. (sets, two pairs, combo draws, big A's, pair +flush draw)

When I first read the hand/his flop bet, I was thinking it was definitely a draw and likely a combo draw. When I went back to check how many players called pre, I think this bet shows a lot of strength. It seems weak, but it's probably a fold since calling is about 40% of your stack and you're doing to get it in on the turn if you call flop.

In action it's tough, but I definitely peg him for 2 pair plus when he leads into this many people. Even against a combo draw like 78ss or jqss, you are actually a slight underdog. It's one of those hands that is tough to fold though because villain will show up with your same hand some!

0 for 3 in Denny Crum 0 for 10 in 2014.
Only good thing is I got a little discount on the last 3 buy ins.

Today's bust out hand came early. blinds were 50/100. Everyone still has 20-30k (start w 23K).
utg opens to 350, +1calls, I call in +2 w AQ, HJ calls, Button calls. pot is 1750ish, The flop is 5Q6. Utg checks, +1 bets 700, I call, Hj folds, button raises to 6100, utg folds, +1(flop bettor) folds, and I am in a dilemma. Now heads up, I asked him "why so much", and got nothing from him. It was a huge over bet that I had to either shove or fold. I went ahead and shoved it all in 22k, and he called w set of 5s. 2 bricks came out and that was my big main event showing.
Right after the bust I lined up a tennis match. Off to the courts, and then to church w the fam. Always blessed. Gonna grind the roll up in cash, and try another tournament when I feel I can spare the buy in.
gl have a safe wkend

With AQ suited in that spot I would definitely 3 bet. Probably gets the small pocket pair out, but hindsight is always 20/20.

@3betforlife it crossed my mind, but I showed sm respect for the utg opening 3.5x. Plus I don't like 3betting much early in tournaments w 200+bbs w these types fo hands. Instead of 3betting and picking up an irrelevant few hundred chips, I rather try to win big pots. Later in tourney w less bbs I prob wd.

After yesterday's early exit from the main, I went to play sm tennis and then chilled w the family. Later that evening my babe and the girls went school shopping, so I just decided to chill at the house. An empty quiet house was peaceful for a bit, but mostly it was me sitting there thinking of the horrible end to my week. The quietness became my misery as the reminders of failing spoke loudly in my mind. I hate losing, and the only way to cope with that feeling is winning. Fifteen more minutes went by before I decided I needed to get back to the felt. Losing a grand in the last few days wasn't sitting right w me. It was time to do what I do best...play straight cash homie. I didn't want to wait until tomorrow to start getting back what I lost on these tourneys, I wanted to start now! I felt I was in the right frame of mind to play, and put the tourneys completely behind me. I get to the room around 7p and was stuck $500 after a few hours of 2/5/10nl. Then after my pocket 10s got a player to lay down his pocket jacks on a 9 hi dry turn board I was feeling alive again. If he wd hv called my turn shove for $700 more, it would hv been a very bad night for me. Luckily for me he said, "guess u flopped a set" and folded Jacks face up. I peeled back my tens in the 1 seat to show the dealer how epically awesome I am, and then tossed them in. After few more hrs of grinding the chips start to build. Around midnight, I get the text from my babe, "eta?". My reply, "Don't wait up, I'll be alright. Gonna work a night shift. Gd night". Of course she replies back w, "u know I'll worry until u get home! B CAREFUL!" 3:30am I get home and see all my girls snuggled up in my bed. At that point it wdnt hv mattered if I won or lost, seeing my precious family sleeping so sweetly is worth more than any silver or gold. Although, the $520 I earned in cash was a nice pick-me-up. After late night munchies, I crashed around 4am in my youngest daughter's room covered up w a Princess comforter.

Great post sir!! Way to run it up and earn some back in cash! That big tourney score will fall sometime!

Where is the July video?
How does the family feel about you playing poker for a living? Does the wife ever get mad at you for losing big amounts? Do you discuss your wins and losses with her?
Enjoying the thread.

Ike Haxton said it best (im paraphrasing but ill still use quotes). "If I play cash games I may be a 60% favorite to win in any given session. If I play a tournament im a favorite to lose as only 10-15% make the money". Tournaments require volume to see results. In order to calculate an accurate expected value in any given tournament you need a very large sample size to draw from.
Put the Denny Crum where it belongs, in the past, and move forward. Good luck this week! Might be in town for my nephews first bday. Ill drop a message if i make it to town.

Do you still play 5/10 holdem on Fridays? Do they still use the rock in that game? Who are the best players in the game? Any weak players? Do you see a lot of 3bets preflop in that game? What's average chips?
I am thinking about sitting Friday of Labor Weekend. Thank you for any information you can provide.
Cool thread.

@Harby33 thanks and happy bday! Hope your weekend is full of bliss!

@Ashberrj gd advice. Thanks for the support. Really means a lot.

@seamsclean no video this month. Those vids may hv been a big mistake. It’s a little out of my comfort zone. To answer your question on how the fam feels about me playing poker…Well the kids are a little too young to know any different. The oldest (11yr old) is though starting to ask more questions about my poker, but I tell her just the basics wo going into too much detail. I will explain that Dad is really good at what he does, but it’s a tough profession and wdnt advise it as a career choice for anyone. The other day she was asking me how much I won. I will usually say, I did alright or they got me today. I never give her the $ amounts. About a month ago we had a little talk where I remember telling her that I play against other poker players where 70% of the time I win $. I made it a math learning lesson with her, and asked her “How many times out of 100 is 70%?” When she answered correctly, I challenged her w a harder questions like, “Given the 70% winrate, If my avg win session is $100, and avg loss session is $100; then what will be my earnings over 100 sessions?” She had sm serious trouble with that one. Answer is ($100x70) - ($100X30) = $4000. As far as the “wife” well we aren’t married (complicated story), but she is my life partner. She means the world to me, and is the most awesome mother to our 2 kids. She has seen all the ups and downs of my poker career, and helps me deal w all those 1 and 2 outers. Mostly though she doesn’t really ask much about my poker, but I do let her know on occasion that I may be the best no limit holdem’ cash player in the world. Then she will roll her eyes and tell me to simmer down. She will remind me that life isn’t all about $. Then I will explain, it’s not really the money, but winning and being the best at what u do, the $ is the way of keeping score. Usually after a couple minutes of talking poker, she is ready to move the conversation in a different direction. She just doesn’t care much about it, but does respect what I do. She understands I am very responsible, track my play, practice gd br management, and never risk more than I can afford to lose. In real talk though, she hates talking poker, so it’s not really brought up too much. Which is prob best. We do hv separate accts, so I’m always playing w my own $. Every since we been together, I have always been responsible w my $, paying bills, making gd investments, etc, so she has full trust in me and my abilities. She has seen the results and knows I’m gd, so she just lets me do my thing. She is very supportive of my work and when I need to go out of town to play, but we always strive to put family functions first. I never play a tournament or play cash if there is some kind of fam function to attend. We both work during the days and are usually home around 6p. On an occasion I may play nights, but for most part we may it work out. She def has a heart of gold, and the most caring person I know. She da best

Sidenote: “wife thing”…well here’s the scoop. We were once married 13yrs ago when I was 24, but it just didn’t work. We dated for a few years before we married and it was awesome, but once we got married things changed and it was really tough. The first year of marriage she was still in school and I was sole provider. Also during this time we had a daughter, and a few month later I lost my mom to cancer. The first year the relationship was difficult to say the least and we were growing apart rapidly. I take a lot of the blame, for I should have drawn closer instead of being distant. The times were extremely tough, and after losing my mom nothing really seemed real to me, or matter. It was weird, my life became like a big cartoon, and I had trouble finding meaning. All I knew was I wanted to be alone, so after just one year we divorced. It was done very applicably, and I agreed to pay her rent while she finished school. We then spent 5 years apart, both dating other people, but we still held a special bond for one another. It was always pretty cordial between us, and the time away from each other may hv been gd therapy for both. Our main priority during this time was our daughter, and making the most of a difficult situation. Because of our daughter together, we communicated and saw each other daily. After a year she finished her schooling and was working at the hospital (xray tech) at nights. I worked during the days, so our daughter wd be with her during the day and w me at nights. It was a gd schedule that we kept for the 6 years apart. As the many years went by, our feelings started to sway. Crazy as it sounds, we gave it another shot. We started having dinners together w our daughter, watching movies together w our daughter, and just going out and having fun together w our daughter. Through the years I grew deeper in my faith, and renewed my trust in God. I really think putting him out in front, and laying everything at the cross really transformed my life. Sara and I finally decided to gv it another try and moved in together back in 2007. The last 7 years we have been very happily together and was blessed w another awesome daughter. It’s been so good the last 7 years that I’m actually scared to get remarried. So we r just living happily w are arrangement of bf/gf and 2 awesome girls 3yr and 11yr. If ain’t broke, then don’t fix it.
…I’m not perfect.
@Callygal it’s been a couple months since I played 5/10/20 Friday game. I was prepared to play it a couple weeks ago, but it didn’t go. It was prob the first time in over a year the game didn’t run. They called the names on the 2/5/10 game first and it killed the 5/10/20 game. I am steadily building the roll, and looking to jump in it again when the time is right. No they don’t have the “rock” ($20 chip), but they do play it w a winner straddle every week. Straddles usually $20 (90% of the time), but smtimes more if players r feeling froggy. As far as 3 betting preflop u will see it just like u may at a 1/2nl. I don’t think itd any more or less. I hv noticed the post flop play can be a little tricky at times. Players will take sm crafty lines, and u may see more check raising than a normal 1/2. Not too many weak links in the game, usually it’s a pretty tough line up. I usually just wait for sm great spots to attack. W avg stacks being $2500 early, $3500 late; I always tread carefully and try not to get too caught up in bad spots. They will put u to the test. Be ready.
Week recap: I have had a great week so far. Tuesday I won 3 out of 4 $50 splash pot promotions. HSI has a promo on Tuesdays where they splash $50 into pot every hr. I usually like to straddle when they do this, and see if I can smhow take it down pre or get 3handed post flop. I won’t get crazy though, and will check the straddle many times, or fold to a raise. It’s only $50, but it’s worth a lil fight. On the first splash I straddled $5 (1/2nl) and utg+1 makes a min raise to $10, 5 callers behind, and then it’s to me. I look at 6h8h on the straddle and call me crazy but I shove $300 to try to win $100. I knew my chances of getting called was less than 50%, and if called not that big of a dog (as long as it wasn’t 99s-AAs which wasn’t likely considering the action). I know from experience that whenever smone min raises the straddle it’s usually a blocker raise. Meaning, they min raise to keep the straddle from popping it up. If it was a big hand, utg+2 guy is def making it 3+x, not minraising utg oop. Therefore, I jam, they fold, gv me that Benjamin.
On another splash hand, the right players called the straddle where I feel I could pop it and outplay post flop in position if called. Needless to say, I had to 3 barrel bluff and the guy luckily folded the river. Close one/Whew. After he checked the river, I was tanking whether to wave white flag or go for the 3rd barrel. I dug deep into my arsenal of tricks, and said “Well u can’t fold now” to the villain and put out $120 river bet. He said, “Yes I can” and showed 3rd pair 9s. The dealer pushes me the $275 pot and my Jhi goes proudly back in the deck. I end up winning $729 on 4hrs 20mins playing 1/2 that Tuesday. Yesterday, +$54 on 1/2, and +$483 on the 2/5/10 (Wed game)..5 total hrs of play.
Building the roll to hopefully not dump in more tournaments. Need to capitalize one flipping time. tourney validation hunting.

Sidenote: Proud to say the Wed game I got going is still strong after 3 months. Hopefully here for the long haul. Thanks to a couple of regs that gave me a list of emails/phone#s of some higher stake players. After sending out a few messages to them, that’s all it took to get the game off the ground.

@RayzRayl

Great post. Thanks for sharing.

^+1

Thanks for answering my questions!
I'm a fan of the videos!
Keep it up.

Lost pretty much all my winnings from the week today. -$1010 today, but gonna brush it off and b back Monday.

I think I'm gonna hit this $200k bad beat at HSI today.

You never answered the second question. You care to respond?

I dont think he is allowed to mention peoples names in the forum. I know I wouldn't like it if someone mentioned my actual name on here.

@yster I wd say there are a total 3 players in that game that play on a higher level than the rest. Although, I mostly respect this one dude's play who plays strictly no limit. He tries hard to keep a low profile, so I'm gonna respect that, and not gv up his name. He is easily top 1 or 2 that plays the HSI's big cash games.


Update on cash games:

Last for 4 sessions in baseball talk...1 for 4 w a home run.

1st AB (Sat.) backwards K -$1010
2nd AB (Mon.) Pop up to 2nd baseman. -$238
3rd AB (Wed.) 2run homer +$2203
4th AB (Thurs.) reached on E5 then caught stealing -$400.
Cubs still win the series. +$555 thanks to a clutch 2run homer.

Highlight of the week: Tuesday attending the Western Southern Tennis Open in Cincy. Standing 5 feet away from Andy Murray during his 11a practice time, and about 20 feet away from Fed's 4p practice. Ridiculously surreal for me. Enjoyed watching sm quality matches, but prob watching Fed's practice was the apex. #bestever

Because of the crazy fans I couldnt get a gd pic of Fed, but here's a gd one of Murray. During this time he was practicing his deuce side service returns w his coach.

Keep up the good work!
Are you playing any wsop events when it comes to our home casino in October? Which ones?

Hold up... Did you win a tourney at HSI in November last year? I think that you did! Congratulations! How did I miss that?

Thanks. Prolly just play the Main, and a few no limits. Gd l to u

I don't count this as "shipping a big one". All my tourney wins comes in charity events, home games, and small field sizes...like this one n November. I think 16 players entered the main event, and I believe I won somewhere around $2500 in a 3 way chop. We high carded for the trophy. I do remember the 5 hi taking it down! :

Now if I win the MSPT main event in Evansville this weekend, or the Labor Day Deepstack n Cincy the following weekend, then I will consider that a ship.

But still thank u for the congrats.

+64 playing 1/2nl Friday while trying not to peek over my shoulder at the 5/10nl. No Play Sat or Sun. Bb monday.