An NJ Grinder's Journey as a Pro
02-20-2018
, 11:17 PM
Timeline since last post:
4:30ET: Leave my house and drive to Stephens house on Conn/NY border
5:30: Arrive at Stephens, leave for JFK in uber right away
6:30: Arrive at JFK, get through security pretty smoothly
7:30: Walk past an airport Buffalo Wild Wings, laugh at the idea of having wings at 7:30AM, realize there are actually people eating wings and it's open, walk in, eat wings.
8:30: On the plane and ready to go. I sleep for maybe 90 minutes then can't fall asleep again. I woke up around 10AM on Saturday and this was my first sleep since then for perspective.
14:30ET/11:30PT: Land in Vegas
12:00PT: Take Uber to bank. Attempt to enter bank. It's Presidents' Day. Get what we can from ATM. Call another Uber, get the same driver which was pretty funny. Drive to our Air bnb which is already prepared for us which is really nice!
1:00: Review some of Stephens hands from a tourney he went deep in the night before. The kid is a beast and I think he's gonna help me rethink the way I evaluate some spots and really improve my game.
3:00: Uber to the Rio, grab some food, hop in $365 6 max bb ante circuit event, 10K SS.
5:00: Bust bullet 1, KK<TT on JT4hh
6:00: Bust bullet 2, 99<AK all in pre just to get back to starting.
7:30: Bullet 3 gets rolling, I open QJ in EP get 4 flats and double+ on the QJ8 flop vs Q8
11:00: Half hour dinner break. I've now had 90 minutes of sleep in the past 40 hours and my body feels like it's 2am. I go to a gift shop and grab some Gatorade, Swedish fish, and my favorite, pretzels.
Tuesday, 0:00:
1:00: We hit the money with 24 left, I have around 80K at 2Kbb. Side note, the entire tourney has been BB only ante, meaning he antes for the whole table. The ante size is the same as the BB, effectively making the tournament a big ante structure throughout. 221 entrants, 24 paid, 18k up top.
2:30: I'm now at a new table with a kid named Soheb who is a solid player and always fun to talk to. He shoves 40K UTG at 5 handed table at 2K/4K, I iso my 65K stack with 88, he has A2s. We just talk **** the entire runout, and I'm so exhausted that when I see the 832 flop I think it's an 822 flop and I tell him I like his hand more than mine now. As dealers putting out the turn I realize actual flop but turn is an ace so it's moot lol
I fold UTG next hand then post the 4K ante and 4K bb, leaving me with 16k behind. UTG goes 9K and I defend the BB, which Soheb finds hilarious, with T9o. Flop comes KQ2 and I jam, Soheb loving the stop n go. UTG takes his time calling with KQ and the board runs TJ for all the justice.
Soheb busts a few hands earlier and we are now playing 4 handed. UTG/CO opens to 9K. He's a pretty old dude but has been opening a ton on my bb. I doubt he's targeting me but he's clearly not afraid to open wider than the typical OMC. SB peels with heaps and I have 40K in BB with A4s. I think peeling is fine but decided I actually had reasonable fold equity, CO being afraid of big stack behind him and SB often 3 betting better hands. CO folds SB snap calls KJo and we do not hold to bust 13th for $797. Needed 12th to profit on the 3 bullets lol.
3:00: Make my way back to the air bnb and finally sleep, the first time in 44 hours!
12:00: Wake up feeling alright. The realization that I'm in Vegas with nothing to do but play poker and get in trouble is setting in and it feels amazing.
13:00: I walk to the 7-11 across the street, get some necessities, then Uber to the win for a $400 40K. 9 handed with bb antes seems pretty sweet.
14:00 Register and get the strange 18K SS. I like the room and the chips and see myself playing most the tourneys in this series. I drop to 12k early and open Q9cc from EP at 500bb (questionable), 3 calls, I cbet small on A82r, one club (questionable), 1 caller, turn Jc I shove (standard) get called by AJ, and feel really confident in gonna bink river lol. River 7c and I double.
I'm not great at the game so I drop to 19k at 600bb. 3 limps to me I go 3100 from CO with TT, UTG calls, the 3rd limper shoves for my stack effective. I call and lose to AQo. Shrug.
15:30: Uber over to Rio for 4PM $365 turbo ring event. When I walk in I realize I'm in the hall where the WSOP takes place which was actually pretty cool. I register the tourney on time and after an up and down start I currently sitting at 25K (10K SS) as we start 800bb. Gl me!
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4:30ET: Leave my house and drive to Stephens house on Conn/NY border
5:30: Arrive at Stephens, leave for JFK in uber right away
6:30: Arrive at JFK, get through security pretty smoothly
7:30: Walk past an airport Buffalo Wild Wings, laugh at the idea of having wings at 7:30AM, realize there are actually people eating wings and it's open, walk in, eat wings.
8:30: On the plane and ready to go. I sleep for maybe 90 minutes then can't fall asleep again. I woke up around 10AM on Saturday and this was my first sleep since then for perspective.
14:30ET/11:30PT: Land in Vegas
12:00PT: Take Uber to bank. Attempt to enter bank. It's Presidents' Day. Get what we can from ATM. Call another Uber, get the same driver which was pretty funny. Drive to our Air bnb which is already prepared for us which is really nice!
1:00: Review some of Stephens hands from a tourney he went deep in the night before. The kid is a beast and I think he's gonna help me rethink the way I evaluate some spots and really improve my game.
3:00: Uber to the Rio, grab some food, hop in $365 6 max bb ante circuit event, 10K SS.
5:00: Bust bullet 1, KK<TT on JT4hh
6:00: Bust bullet 2, 99<AK all in pre just to get back to starting.
7:30: Bullet 3 gets rolling, I open QJ in EP get 4 flats and double+ on the QJ8 flop vs Q8
11:00: Half hour dinner break. I've now had 90 minutes of sleep in the past 40 hours and my body feels like it's 2am. I go to a gift shop and grab some Gatorade, Swedish fish, and my favorite, pretzels.
Tuesday, 0:00:
1:00: We hit the money with 24 left, I have around 80K at 2Kbb. Side note, the entire tourney has been BB only ante, meaning he antes for the whole table. The ante size is the same as the BB, effectively making the tournament a big ante structure throughout. 221 entrants, 24 paid, 18k up top.
2:30: I'm now at a new table with a kid named Soheb who is a solid player and always fun to talk to. He shoves 40K UTG at 5 handed table at 2K/4K, I iso my 65K stack with 88, he has A2s. We just talk **** the entire runout, and I'm so exhausted that when I see the 832 flop I think it's an 822 flop and I tell him I like his hand more than mine now. As dealers putting out the turn I realize actual flop but turn is an ace so it's moot lol
I fold UTG next hand then post the 4K ante and 4K bb, leaving me with 16k behind. UTG goes 9K and I defend the BB, which Soheb finds hilarious, with T9o. Flop comes KQ2 and I jam, Soheb loving the stop n go. UTG takes his time calling with KQ and the board runs TJ for all the justice.
Soheb busts a few hands earlier and we are now playing 4 handed. UTG/CO opens to 9K. He's a pretty old dude but has been opening a ton on my bb. I doubt he's targeting me but he's clearly not afraid to open wider than the typical OMC. SB peels with heaps and I have 40K in BB with A4s. I think peeling is fine but decided I actually had reasonable fold equity, CO being afraid of big stack behind him and SB often 3 betting better hands. CO folds SB snap calls KJo and we do not hold to bust 13th for $797. Needed 12th to profit on the 3 bullets lol.
3:00: Make my way back to the air bnb and finally sleep, the first time in 44 hours!
12:00: Wake up feeling alright. The realization that I'm in Vegas with nothing to do but play poker and get in trouble is setting in and it feels amazing.
13:00: I walk to the 7-11 across the street, get some necessities, then Uber to the win for a $400 40K. 9 handed with bb antes seems pretty sweet.
14:00 Register and get the strange 18K SS. I like the room and the chips and see myself playing most the tourneys in this series. I drop to 12k early and open Q9cc from EP at 500bb (questionable), 3 calls, I cbet small on A82r, one club (questionable), 1 caller, turn Jc I shove (standard) get called by AJ, and feel really confident in gonna bink river lol. River 7c and I double.
I'm not great at the game so I drop to 19k at 600bb. 3 limps to me I go 3100 from CO with TT, UTG calls, the 3rd limper shoves for my stack effective. I call and lose to AQo. Shrug.
15:30: Uber over to Rio for 4PM $365 turbo ring event. When I walk in I realize I'm in the hall where the WSOP takes place which was actually pretty cool. I register the tourney on time and after an up and down start I currently sitting at 25K (10K SS) as we start 800bb. Gl me!
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02-21-2018
, 03:18 PM
Dammit I messed up a bunch in last post lol. Meant to keep it military time throughout, but messed up the Monday time stamps, obviously everything that took place during the tournament was PM. Also wrote flop was 832 with 88 vs A2, was actually 632 or whatever didn't flop me a set, so 2 on turn left me dead to 2 outs.
Ended up finishing 19th in the turbo last night for $687. Busted jamming 6bbs in CO with A5o and not being in the best of shape vs AJ and TT. Kid with AJ also busted on the hand so we talked a bit afterwards and we're both surprised to see the other might have just had a clue when it came to poker, despite the fact we were both playing a $365 turbo circuit event. I come to find out he grinds the **** outta ACR and knows all my friends who do the same. Shout out to Mitch if he ever stumbles upon this, hopefully we hang out a bit this trip.
Another $365 at the Rio today, single re-entry, standard otherwise, looking to make it 3 for 3 in this series and maybe even profit today!
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Ended up finishing 19th in the turbo last night for $687. Busted jamming 6bbs in CO with A5o and not being in the best of shape vs AJ and TT. Kid with AJ also busted on the hand so we talked a bit afterwards and we're both surprised to see the other might have just had a clue when it came to poker, despite the fact we were both playing a $365 turbo circuit event. I come to find out he grinds the **** outta ACR and knows all my friends who do the same. Shout out to Mitch if he ever stumbles upon this, hopefully we hang out a bit this trip.
Another $365 at the Rio today, single re-entry, standard otherwise, looking to make it 3 for 3 in this series and maybe even profit today!
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02-22-2018
, 07:21 AM
Wednesday the 21st
12:00: Get to the Rio on time and register another $365 ring event. It starts off with a 10 seat in play but never fills and we get to play 9 handed all tourney. 10K SS with 25/50 blinds to start.
Hand 1: EP limps 100, I 400 A5o in CO, SB flats. Flop (1000): QT2r I cbet 600 he calls. Turn (2200): QT2 4 I bet 1300 he calls. River (4800): QT2 4 3 I bet 3100 he calls I show he confidently shows 77 then is PISSED when he realizes what's happened
Hand 2: EP jams 2400 at 300bb, CO flats, I reshove 17k in bb with 99, CO folds, I win flip vs QT
Hand 3: Middle aged guy with sunglasses beard and serious face is clearly tired of my ****. I open MP to 1k at 400bb with ATo, he defends bb. Flop (2600): T42hhc I bet 1k he calls. Turn (4600): T42hhc 8c I bet 3.3k he calls. River (11.2k): T42hhc 8c 7c he checks and im pretty torn to be honest. I don't think he's folding KT/QT/JT but a lot else has ran into better than one pair. I check and beat 98o. People peeling air on flop becomes a theme of the day.
Hand 4: I'm cruising around 40k now at 500bb and have 2 guys who seem like they do not have any intention of letting me get away with anything. I open utg to 1250 with AK, one of those guys 3b's to 3800 from CO, I shove his 18k and he tanks a bit then calls with 99. I remember thinking "wow if I win this one I'll have heaps and just cruise from here on." Ace in the window is followed by a 9 right behind it! I sorta slink my head and start counting out my stack. A92 flop is followed by a 2 turn, im aware I have 2 outs but that sorta stuff only happens in the rigged online games.
River ace!!! We bink the 2 outter and now have 60k on break as registration closes.
Hand 5: I open to 2300 utg at 1kbb with TT, MP flats, sunglasses guy jams 20K, I iso, he has KQ, runs xxxxQ and I'm down to 40k.
Hand 6: I open 2300 on button with 65dd, bb defends. Flop (6k): J32cc I bet 2k he calls. Turn (10k): J32cc Ac. I bet 5500 he snap shoves I snap fold. Bluff is too ambitious, I don't rep enough, and villain was probably better than the average dolt making the bluff worse.
Hand 7: I open to 2300 with KTo in HJ, CO calls all in for 2100, bb defends. BB asks if I have 2 stacks of yellow, I show him I don't even have 1 stack left anymore. "Oh you took another hit, I knew you took that first hit (TT<KQ) but didn't see you take another one." "Ok nice needle"
Flop (7.3k main / 400 side): K53dd I bet 2300 he calls. Turn (7.3k / 5k): K53dd 9d x/x. River (7.3k / 5k): K53dd 9d Td he bets 5500, I fold, he shows Q2 no diamond to win the side. CO shows A3 no diamond to win the main. Not really sure what to say about this one.
Hand 8: I jam 10.8 utg1 with ATo at 1200bn, bb snaps with QQ, board runs AJ7TQ and I am put out of my misery.
18:30: Uber back to air bnb, call Tee Dubs, book flight for London on march 31. Let's go.
20:00: Download WSOP NV on my phone, create a screen name, deposit some money, max late reg 30r satty to $1675 Rio Circuit Main. Rebuy and add on so in for $87, 1st gets seat 2nd gets $1200 3rd gets 0, 48 entrants. Turn on tv and watch sick women's Olympic hockey gold medal game.
22:30: Win satellite! Sweet.
1:00: Order Buffalo Wild Wings from Grubhub, gets delivered to our door. Sweet.
3:00: Get into bed, write 2p2 update, go to sleep ready to play Wynn $400 40k tomorrow. Circuit main 1a Saturday and 1b Sunday. Excited!
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12:00: Get to the Rio on time and register another $365 ring event. It starts off with a 10 seat in play but never fills and we get to play 9 handed all tourney. 10K SS with 25/50 blinds to start.
Hand 1: EP limps 100, I 400 A5o in CO, SB flats. Flop (1000): QT2r I cbet 600 he calls. Turn (2200): QT2 4 I bet 1300 he calls. River (4800): QT2 4 3 I bet 3100 he calls I show he confidently shows 77 then is PISSED when he realizes what's happened
Hand 2: EP jams 2400 at 300bb, CO flats, I reshove 17k in bb with 99, CO folds, I win flip vs QT
Hand 3: Middle aged guy with sunglasses beard and serious face is clearly tired of my ****. I open MP to 1k at 400bb with ATo, he defends bb. Flop (2600): T42hhc I bet 1k he calls. Turn (4600): T42hhc 8c I bet 3.3k he calls. River (11.2k): T42hhc 8c 7c he checks and im pretty torn to be honest. I don't think he's folding KT/QT/JT but a lot else has ran into better than one pair. I check and beat 98o. People peeling air on flop becomes a theme of the day.
Hand 4: I'm cruising around 40k now at 500bb and have 2 guys who seem like they do not have any intention of letting me get away with anything. I open utg to 1250 with AK, one of those guys 3b's to 3800 from CO, I shove his 18k and he tanks a bit then calls with 99. I remember thinking "wow if I win this one I'll have heaps and just cruise from here on." Ace in the window is followed by a 9 right behind it! I sorta slink my head and start counting out my stack. A92 flop is followed by a 2 turn, im aware I have 2 outs but that sorta stuff only happens in the rigged online games.
River ace!!! We bink the 2 outter and now have 60k on break as registration closes.
Hand 5: I open to 2300 utg at 1kbb with TT, MP flats, sunglasses guy jams 20K, I iso, he has KQ, runs xxxxQ and I'm down to 40k.
Hand 6: I open 2300 on button with 65dd, bb defends. Flop (6k): J32cc I bet 2k he calls. Turn (10k): J32cc Ac. I bet 5500 he snap shoves I snap fold. Bluff is too ambitious, I don't rep enough, and villain was probably better than the average dolt making the bluff worse.
Hand 7: I open to 2300 with KTo in HJ, CO calls all in for 2100, bb defends. BB asks if I have 2 stacks of yellow, I show him I don't even have 1 stack left anymore. "Oh you took another hit, I knew you took that first hit (TT<KQ) but didn't see you take another one." "Ok nice needle"
Flop (7.3k main / 400 side): K53dd I bet 2300 he calls. Turn (7.3k / 5k): K53dd 9d x/x. River (7.3k / 5k): K53dd 9d Td he bets 5500, I fold, he shows Q2 no diamond to win the side. CO shows A3 no diamond to win the main. Not really sure what to say about this one.
Hand 8: I jam 10.8 utg1 with ATo at 1200bn, bb snaps with QQ, board runs AJ7TQ and I am put out of my misery.
18:30: Uber back to air bnb, call Tee Dubs, book flight for London on march 31. Let's go.
20:00: Download WSOP NV on my phone, create a screen name, deposit some money, max late reg 30r satty to $1675 Rio Circuit Main. Rebuy and add on so in for $87, 1st gets seat 2nd gets $1200 3rd gets 0, 48 entrants. Turn on tv and watch sick women's Olympic hockey gold medal game.
22:30: Win satellite! Sweet.
1:00: Order Buffalo Wild Wings from Grubhub, gets delivered to our door. Sweet.
3:00: Get into bed, write 2p2 update, go to sleep ready to play Wynn $400 40k tomorrow. Circuit main 1a Saturday and 1b Sunday. Excited!
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02-23-2018
, 08:28 AM
Thursday
12:00: Go grocery shopping with roommate, spend $180, get a lot of food.
14:00: Register Wynn $400 40K
Friday
1:00: Win tournament for 14K!
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12:00: Go grocery shopping with roommate, spend $180, get a lot of food.
14:00: Register Wynn $400 40K
Friday
1:00: Win tournament for 14K!
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02-24-2018
, 07:05 AM
02-24-2018
, 04:38 PM
Thanks guys!
Returned to the Wynn for a $550 100k yesterday and had the 20k SS up to 180k at 2kbb! Moved tables and lost every pot I played and ended up folding to the money. Took a very long time to get from 33 to the 27 that paid so I was at 36k at 8kbb by the time we got there! Found AK and got a shove through (lol) then posted the 8k ante and 8k bb from the bb. EP, who had been properly going crazy on the bubble with a big stack, opens to 19k and I somehow find QQ! He doesn't snap when I go all in, to the point where he gets a count and doesn't snap when he sees it's 29k more so I tell him "damn this must be a REALLY bad hand" and we both start laughing.
Finally he calls with K3hh and since I'm in the 1 seat I'm the first to see the king in the window. I go to get up but there's a queen right behind it! There's also one heart on the flop and when the turn is a heart we get a sweat. I've been running so good though that I fully expected to fade it; unfortunately the Jh river ended my day in 24th for a $1200 mincash.
So we're up to 4 live cashes in 5 days. Prior to this week I had 4 live cashes in the past 14 months. I believe yesterday's cash will have me just slightly eclipse the 100k live earnings mark. Hopefully that number multiplies this year.
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Returned to the Wynn for a $550 100k yesterday and had the 20k SS up to 180k at 2kbb! Moved tables and lost every pot I played and ended up folding to the money. Took a very long time to get from 33 to the 27 that paid so I was at 36k at 8kbb by the time we got there! Found AK and got a shove through (lol) then posted the 8k ante and 8k bb from the bb. EP, who had been properly going crazy on the bubble with a big stack, opens to 19k and I somehow find QQ! He doesn't snap when I go all in, to the point where he gets a count and doesn't snap when he sees it's 29k more so I tell him "damn this must be a REALLY bad hand" and we both start laughing
. Finally he calls with K3hh and since I'm in the 1 seat I'm the first to see the king in the window. I go to get up but there's a queen right behind it! There's also one heart on the flop and when the turn is a heart we get a sweat. I've been running so good though that I fully expected to fade it; unfortunately the Jh river ended my day in 24th for a $1200 mincash.
So we're up to 4 live cashes in 5 days. Prior to this week I had 4 live cashes in the past 14 months. I believe yesterday's cash will have me just slightly eclipse the 100k live earnings mark. Hopefully that number multiplies this year.
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02-24-2018
, 05:46 PM
02-26-2018
, 04:38 PM
Bagged up 83K from 20K SS yesterday in the $1675 Rio WSOP circuit main. Coming back to 3Kbb today at 2PM PT.
Started the day by meeting up with pureaggression and doing an interview for his YouTube channel. Cool guy and I think it went really well, shoutout to Carl, check out his channel and PGC thread! I'll post a link when it gets posted online.
I got to the tournament on time and had a great table draw. The guy on my left 3b me every time I opened and I found myself with 9K at 200bb. I was playing a lot of hands and it was clear people were tired of my ****. Eventually EP opens to 500, next seat flats off 5K, I 3b to 2K from SB with AA, both call, flop Q87hh, I bet 2K into 6K, EP shoves for my 7K effective, next seat calls off for 3K, I call and beat EP's 33(!!) and next seat's QJo to get back over starting. People have really not been doing any folding to me lately
The next few hours go quite smoothly and I find myself with 60K on the last break of the day going to 1600bb. I find AA and open 3600 in MP. CO jams over 30K and button calls quickly. I shove button calls and I beat AK and JJ to get to 140K! Easy game! I get QQ next hand as I'm stacking my chips and go 3600 again. Guy who just doubled me flats, new kid goes 11K in SB and only has like 20K back. I shove, button folds, kid snaps with A9o(!!!!). Ace in the window and I'm back to around 100K.
I continue to build and the hand before our table breaks CO shoves 25K at 2K, i call with QQ and lose to AK on the xxxxK runout. I bring 100K to next table for last level at 2400bb.
Only one eventful hand occurs at the new table. I open 5200 in CO with KQo with about 110K to start. SB, middle aged guy in sunglasses who has been friendly and chatty since I've sat down, 3b's to 16.5K. He covers by a good amount, I call. Flop K97ssc, he bets 12K I call. Turn 4c and he rather quickly sticks out a stack of 100K to put me all in. BLAH!
From the theoretical perspective we really cannot be folding this hand. 99 and 77 are the only better hands I get here with, and maaaaybe the 2 combos of 97s peel pre but I'm not sure we were deep enough to peel that hand. Probably not. However, while this kind of screams big draw, 3b ranges are often tighter live, and randoms often will shove here with AA/AK to "win the pot now" and deny equity to draws.
I have the Qc which eliminates AQcc KQcc QJcc QTcc. But again I don't know if he's even gonna 3b hands like KQs, QJs, JTs, T9s, etc. I personally mix between 3 betting and flatting these hands from SB; some people don't have a SB 3b range, some people don't have a basic strategy and just do whatever they feel like in game. I have no idea where this guy sits on that spectrum.
I tank for quite some time then fold and beg him to show lol. I eventually get him to agree to tell me after the day ends. After we bag he tells me he had T9cc. Dammit!
So 83K in the bag and day 2 starts at 3Kbb in 90 mins. 155 of 887 entrants remain with a prize pool over $1.33M. I have all of myself and am in for $87. This would be a good one to win!
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Started the day by meeting up with pureaggression and doing an interview for his YouTube channel. Cool guy and I think it went really well, shoutout to Carl, check out his channel and PGC thread! I'll post a link when it gets posted online.
I got to the tournament on time and had a great table draw. The guy on my left 3b me every time I opened and I found myself with 9K at 200bb. I was playing a lot of hands and it was clear people were tired of my ****. Eventually EP opens to 500, next seat flats off 5K, I 3b to 2K from SB with AA, both call, flop Q87hh, I bet 2K into 6K, EP shoves for my 7K effective, next seat calls off for 3K, I call and beat EP's 33(!!) and next seat's QJo to get back over starting. People have really not been doing any folding to me lately
The next few hours go quite smoothly and I find myself with 60K on the last break of the day going to 1600bb. I find AA and open 3600 in MP. CO jams over 30K and button calls quickly. I shove button calls and I beat AK and JJ to get to 140K! Easy game! I get QQ next hand as I'm stacking my chips and go 3600 again. Guy who just doubled me flats, new kid goes 11K in SB and only has like 20K back. I shove, button folds, kid snaps with A9o(!!!!). Ace in the window and I'm back to around 100K.
I continue to build and the hand before our table breaks CO shoves 25K at 2K, i call with QQ and lose to AK on the xxxxK runout. I bring 100K to next table for last level at 2400bb.
Only one eventful hand occurs at the new table. I open 5200 in CO with KQo with about 110K to start. SB, middle aged guy in sunglasses who has been friendly and chatty since I've sat down, 3b's to 16.5K. He covers by a good amount, I call. Flop K97ssc, he bets 12K I call. Turn 4c and he rather quickly sticks out a stack of 100K to put me all in. BLAH!
From the theoretical perspective we really cannot be folding this hand. 99 and 77 are the only better hands I get here with, and maaaaybe the 2 combos of 97s peel pre but I'm not sure we were deep enough to peel that hand. Probably not. However, while this kind of screams big draw, 3b ranges are often tighter live, and randoms often will shove here with AA/AK to "win the pot now" and deny equity to draws.
I have the Qc which eliminates AQcc KQcc QJcc QTcc. But again I don't know if he's even gonna 3b hands like KQs, QJs, JTs, T9s, etc. I personally mix between 3 betting and flatting these hands from SB; some people don't have a SB 3b range, some people don't have a basic strategy and just do whatever they feel like in game. I have no idea where this guy sits on that spectrum.
I tank for quite some time then fold and beg him to show lol. I eventually get him to agree to tell me after the day ends. After we bag he tells me he had T9cc. Dammit!
So 83K in the bag and day 2 starts at 3Kbb in 90 mins. 155 of 887 entrants remain with a prize pool over $1.33M. I have all of myself and am in for $87. This would be a good one to win!
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02-26-2018
, 07:53 PM
02-27-2018
, 02:30 AM
03-04-2018
, 05:44 AM
03-04-2018
, 02:07 PM
Quote:
In the 1/3nl hands, 3betting the AJo is too wide. Barrel was fine, shutting down on river def fine without the diamond although could prob get away with overbluffing this runout as the 3bettor vs most live players. 69s iso is spew and cbetting into 2 players there is pretty meh as well. KQ hand obv super standard.
gl spinning up for the 240k!
gl spinning up for the 240k!
Thanks! I want to start 3 betting lighter out of the bb in cash, what sort of hands would you recommend for that? Yeah 96s prob too wide pre but limper was bad so I went for it. Probably shutting down turn if I don't pick up equity but have to imagine I have the most Kx as preflop raiser and I think cbet still get through often enough to justify it. Idk I'm still new with a lot of this so I just try experimenting sometimes
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03-05-2018
, 12:47 AM
03-05-2018
, 08:58 AM
03-20-2018
, 12:58 AM
Will never match the live goat but will definitely keep trying
03-20-2018
, 02:26 AM
Past Two Weeks
Damn two weeks since I've updated. Have been on the move for almost a full month now, hardly any time spent at home in Fair Lawn. I have been at my parents's house quite a bit the last 2 weeks playing Parx tourneys.
Parx $550
Last weekend was the $550, fired 3 bullets and did not make day 2. Lost a 200K pot at 2400bb on day 1A Thursday, went to the Big East semis at Madison Square Garden Friday night since my dad was turning 60 and he went to Villanova (they crushed and we had a blast), then went back to Parx and lost another 200K pot at 2400bb
. 40K SS! Oh well.
Harrah's AC WSOP Circuit
This past week I was at Harrah's AC from Monday-Thursday. What a circuit stop. The absurdity of some of the things the floor and dealers did there was so surreal that I laughed more than I got mad. At one point a dealer calls floor over and asks about what constitutes forward motion at this casino. I actually respect that dealer for trying to make sure he knows the rule before it comes up. Floor responds "it depends" then gives the most ridiculous response ever lmao. He takes a guys stack of chips, puts them across the line still holding them in his hand, floating above the table. "If you do this, or if you do this" put his hand down on table without releasing chips "you still have not made a bet. BUT, if the guy next to you says call while you're doing that, you're going to be held to at least the minimum bet."
I don't even know how to explain how ridiculous that ruling is.
I also had a dealer who was just super out of it, forgot to collect antes, stuff like that. She sits down, 10 minutes later we go on break, so when we come back she is still dealing. I sit down with about 2 minutes left on break. With 30 seconds left on break clock I look down and see 2 cards in front of me. I'm like what is going on here?? She says something about getting the cards out quick. I don't think she realized we were on break. The level before break was 100/200, level after break was 100/200 with a 25 chip ante. I put my ante chip out there and cap my cards with a chip cuz I'm like wtf is happening. Break clock gets to 0, she kicks back our antes and says "next hand we go up." Oh. My. God. I have never seen that before and seriously doubt I ever will again.
All 4 tourneys I played there I busted in pretty wild fashion. Probably gonna be some whining involved so feel free to skip ahead
Monday's $365 "double stack" starts you with 20K. At 500/1000 two limps to my SB I complete T4cc, flop Q94cc checks to button who jams like 14K, I iso my 19K, EP calls off for 20K or so, I turn a club vs KQ and QJ (neither had a club) and am up to 55K. Next hand I open KsKc on button to 2300, both blinds call, QT7ss flop SB jams 25K into 7K, I do not beat his 54ss. Back to 20K and didn't get anything going and slowly busted.
Tuesday $365 6 max I was cruising with 27K at break coming back to 600bb (10K starting). I actually doubled through Ylon Schwartz (08 November Niner) in a hand where I defend BB then x/c x/c x/shove on KQQ89 and get paid with my KQ. I sit down and open ATo UTG to 1500, SB all in for 2400 and I lose to JT, whatever. Next hand button opens to 1300 with 10K to start, I defend AcAs in BB, flop T53cc I x/c 1500, turn Jx I x/c his shove, he says nice call and starts to walk away. They tell him to turn his hand over so he does and has AK. I tell him "you have outs why you giving up!" River Q.
Our table breaks and I move to next table, open to 1500 with AJo in CO with 15K to start, everyone calls. K52r checks through. Turn J SB leads 3500 I call. River 6 SB bets 2500 into 13.5K. I call expecting to see a K quite often but hoping he has some Jx and some dumb bluffs, he says "nuts." I'm like "what?" He turns over 43o. He eventually won the tournament. A few hands later he goes 1500 UTG I shove 9600 in SB with KQo and lose to his 55. GG.
On a happy note, bbissick, fellow NJ grinder and thread writer here at 2p2, let me stay in his room Tues-Thurs night and had a nice little live tourney run, a nice break from his usual online cash grind, and finished 3rd in this tournament. I got to rail his FT for a while and brought him some McDonalds which made the rest of the table very jealous. I had a great time hanging out with him and was honestly really really impressed at just how good he has gotten at the game. Undoubtedly better than me (though he'd argue otherwise) at poker in general, but I might still have the tourney edge. He played quite well at the FT and got boned pretty hard, losing AQ to A7 for heaps and AT to A2 for heaps of the same guy who got me with the 43o and 55. Can't do anything about it sometimes!
Wednesday was a $365 turbo, 10K SS, 25/50 to start and I got there on time. My lord this table I was at was ready to gamble. Bunch of older live regs who all actually have some swag and aren't gonna sit around and nit it up...Andrew Klein, Michael Dobbs, Roland Israelashvili, and hell I'll call Craig Rubinstein an older guy too. They all just seemed desperate to get stacks in ASAP though. I 400 UTG at 50/100 with KQ and get 5 (I think) calls, flop Q22hh I bet 1100, 2 calls, Dobbs goes 3500, he did not seem like one of the guys trying to blast off, seemed to take pride in playing the game properly, and I think he was going to just pile Axhh, so I folded. He got it in on turn with 42cc vs a flush draw and held and I patted myself on the back. Few orbits later it's 100/200 no ante and 6 players limp to my BB where I have 99 and 8500. I start to try to think of a size I can make it that has fold equity and no number seems big enough, so I go all in. MP calls with 5500 to start hand and I lose to A9s. Few hands later I jam 3K UTG at 100/200/25 with KQo, button stares me down forever then flats with A7s. GG.
No heart left in me after that one so I just hung out and then headed to my friend's house later that day in Galloway (near AC) and took part in a March Madness Calcutta draft. I paid a bunch for Villanova, Purdue, Kansas, and Duke, and normally you'd say "well the 1s and 2s made the Sweet 16 whoopdie do" but given none of the other 1s and 2s did, I'm feeling pretty good right now. I also got Florida State for cheap so things are looking nice.
Finally I come back Thursday for the $580 double stack, 24K starting now, and the player pool seems a lot tougher than the last few days, but still pretty soft. I open in EP with T9s at 1Kbb and around starting stack, guy who was on my left in 6 max and VPIPed every time I put money in calls, BB calls. For perspective on the first caller. In the 6 max I open A5hh on button he calls SB, flop T94 one heart he x/c's, turn 3h he x/c's about 70% pot bet now, river 8x I decide I can't think of any hands he's gonna fold now so I give up and lose to A7o.
So anyway flop comes T94hhd and I'm like yay I'm gonna double up. I bet they both call, turn Qd I shove pot the 6 max guy calls BB tank folds what he later says was ATdd! Other guy has ATo and I hold to get to 55Kish. I move tables and open K8dd in HJ, BB defends (I play a lot with him on NJ sites), J53dd flop he x/c's, turn 9x he x/c's, river 2d I jam his 18K into 24K and he calls with AdJx. Pretty unfortunate for him to have Ad in his hand since he prob has to call that combo. I'm over 80K on dinner.
I lose some chips after dinner to drop under 70K at 2Kbb, MP jams 20K and I call with AJ in BB and lose to 99, chip down a bit from there, eventually 3b jam 66 from SB with 30K over an Alex Rocha CO open at 2400bb, he calls with 55 and gives me a big eye roll when he sees my hand, I'm in the 1 seat so I see the 5 in the window before anyone else! I get the **** out of AC and head home ready to play the Parx $1600.
Parx $1600
I do not last long on bullet one despite the 50K starting stack. UTG limps 600 SB completes I check J5o in BB flop comes JT5r, UTG bets 1100 I x/r to 3500 he makes it 16.1K. Meh. 1 combo of 55, I think he opens JJ/TT pre, might not open limp JTo so 2 JTs (maybe only 1 idk what suit my J was), and I imagine he does have some AA and KK as played. I jam and lose to JTs. L8r. I decide to go home and come back for 1B the next day.
I get there at 500BB and have my 50K up to 170K by dinner. Played a lot of hands, won AQ>A9 all in pre for 20K each early, then won 66>98s all in on K76ss2x and held, then played some big pots with this Russian kid who just does not like giving up ever, got to dinner with 170K back to 1200bb. Unfortunately I couldn't continue to chip up despite trying pretty hard and bagged 106K back to 5Kbb the next day. Came back and immediately lost half of it after opening AQhh in CO, BB defends off 50K, flop TT3cc and he x/shoves over my 10K cbet. I think my play is fine and must be a call off now but unfortunately he had QT. I double ATs>A8s a little later, then 3b jam 90K from SB w A9o over a CO open and bust to QQ. Tourney poker.
I go home and fire up an online session. I've been playing some ACR lately and my mindset has just been changing in big ways the last month or so. I'll get back to that at the end of this post because it's the most important thing I'm going to write about. I brick all the ACR stuff but good ol NJ keeps me alive with a chip lead on the bubble of the $215 60K, part of the Party Poker GSSS or w/e the **** it's called. I think I played the tourney really well, especially given I was one tabling, after busting a bunch of other online MTTs, after busting a big live MTT. It would have been easy to be oi but I just continued sticking to my guns and trying hard to accumulate all the chips. Went into the FT 3/9 but immediately lost an annoying pot to CL to fall back into the pack. Continued battling hard, played well with ICM in mind but didn't use it as an excuse to be a nit *****, dropped to 6BBs at one point then won an exciting 3 way all in with K5s vs A9 vs 73s where the turn was a 7 but the river made my straight and consequently busted the other 6BB stack. Eventually found myself 3/4 with 400K at 24Kbb. CO (1M) folds, button (100K) folds, and I find myself with a pretty weird ICM spot with KQo in the SB and BB having around 2M in chips. I decide jamming is best and credit to him, he realized how tight I needed to be there and tanked with 88. Eventually he did call and we lost the flip to bust 4th for $4500. Still a nice way to end the day.
Parx $2500
So that leads into today, where I was planning on driving home to Fair Lawn but was feeling good after that online tourney so decided to see if anyone wanted to buy any action in me in the Big Stax $2500. Luckily a bunch did so off I went to play it. 100K starting stack, 12 levels today ending with 1K/2K, so it's gonna be a long tourney despite the smallish number of entrants. I have never been at a table where starting stack is still over 100BBs and I felt like my stack could be at risk every time I played a hand. I'd have to estimate it was hands down the toughest table I've ever played at. There weren't any real superstars or anything but just a bunch of guys who realized the goal of the tourney is to get all the chips, not to just survive to the next day.
Ryan Pochedly on my direct left, Thai Ha, Taj (might go by Neil) Patel, Arkadiy Tsinis, and a couple other guy's whose names I don't know who were just down to put money in. I'm not exaggerating when I say I think I got 3b 80% of the time when I VPIP'ed (outside of bb defend). It was to the point that I was pretty confident I was just gonna win a big pot if I ever got dealt a hand. I played a ton of wild hands but ended up with 50K at 2Kbb, last level of the day, with about a half hour left. UTG goes 5K, I have KK UTG2 and decide they're just gonna squeeze so often based on what I've seen so I flat. Pochedly goes 19K on my direct left, UTG flats, I jam the 50K, Pochedly tanks and folds, UTG calls with QTs and I hold to get back to 125K. I 3b squeeze the 2nd to last hand of day, cbet flop, shove turn and get it through to end up bagging 167.7K going to 2400bb tomorrow. Should be fun.
The Important Stuff
My mindset has been the best it ever has been by a long shot these last few weeks. I don't know what it is but my confidence is sky high and I'm thinking about hands the way they are supposed to be thought about. I feel like my timid/scared lid has been blown off and replaced with confidence and the desire to go get every chip at every opportunity. I've just decided nothing is going to stop me so when I face a bunch of run bad in a row, I just shrug and because the confidence is high, I genuinely believe that it's negative variance and not just me being exposed as a bad player or something.
I've said before that the point of this blog is to be open and expose the good and the bad of being a professional poker player. Since winning the trophy at the Wynn I am down $6800 in live tourneys, and I've sold off a ton of that (and had all of myself in the Wynn tourney). It's easy to see people have success and then wonder how they could be selling action or how they're broke or whatever, but it's so easy for things to turn in tournament poker, especially live. And a lot of live players who have had big scores aren't good at poker to begin with, so the well dries up even faster. This is also why I never shot take and sold action to the Wynn 1600 the next week despite having just binked 14K. Not to mention I had to pay for the Vegas trip, pay for rent at a house I wasn't staying in most of that month, pay other bills, and all of this money is coming from poker winnings. There's no other source of income to help slow the bleeding of a downswing when you play this game professionally. Just something to think about for those who don't play full time who wonder how so and so went broke. It's so easy.
But anyway the point is that I'm battling now. I'm trying to accumulate instead of trying to survive. And that goes for off the tables as well. I want to have some actual money in my bank account. No more settling with making 1K a week in NJ and shrugging at the 50K year at the end. It could blow up in my face and I could go broke and have to find backing or find a real job. Or it could go quite well and I could have six figures tucked away in no time. Here's to hoping it's the latter.
Damn two weeks since I've updated. Have been on the move for almost a full month now, hardly any time spent at home in Fair Lawn. I have been at my parents's house quite a bit the last 2 weeks playing Parx tourneys.
Parx $550
Last weekend was the $550, fired 3 bullets and did not make day 2. Lost a 200K pot at 2400bb on day 1A Thursday, went to the Big East semis at Madison Square Garden Friday night since my dad was turning 60 and he went to Villanova (they crushed and we had a blast), then went back to Parx and lost another 200K pot at 2400bb
. 40K SS! Oh well.Harrah's AC WSOP Circuit
This past week I was at Harrah's AC from Monday-Thursday. What a circuit stop. The absurdity of some of the things the floor and dealers did there was so surreal that I laughed more than I got mad. At one point a dealer calls floor over and asks about what constitutes forward motion at this casino. I actually respect that dealer for trying to make sure he knows the rule before it comes up. Floor responds "it depends" then gives the most ridiculous response ever lmao. He takes a guys stack of chips, puts them across the line still holding them in his hand, floating above the table. "If you do this, or if you do this" put his hand down on table without releasing chips "you still have not made a bet. BUT, if the guy next to you says call while you're doing that, you're going to be held to at least the minimum bet."
I don't even know how to explain how ridiculous that ruling is.
I also had a dealer who was just super out of it, forgot to collect antes, stuff like that. She sits down, 10 minutes later we go on break, so when we come back she is still dealing. I sit down with about 2 minutes left on break. With 30 seconds left on break clock I look down and see 2 cards in front of me. I'm like what is going on here?? She says something about getting the cards out quick. I don't think she realized we were on break. The level before break was 100/200, level after break was 100/200 with a 25 chip ante. I put my ante chip out there and cap my cards with a chip cuz I'm like wtf is happening. Break clock gets to 0, she kicks back our antes and says "next hand we go up." Oh. My. God. I have never seen that before and seriously doubt I ever will again.
All 4 tourneys I played there I busted in pretty wild fashion. Probably gonna be some whining involved so feel free to skip ahead
Monday's $365 "double stack" starts you with 20K. At 500/1000 two limps to my SB I complete T4cc, flop Q94cc checks to button who jams like 14K, I iso my 19K, EP calls off for 20K or so, I turn a club vs KQ and QJ (neither had a club) and am up to 55K. Next hand I open KsKc on button to 2300, both blinds call, QT7ss flop SB jams 25K into 7K, I do not beat his 54ss. Back to 20K and didn't get anything going and slowly busted.
Tuesday $365 6 max I was cruising with 27K at break coming back to 600bb (10K starting). I actually doubled through Ylon Schwartz (08 November Niner) in a hand where I defend BB then x/c x/c x/shove on KQQ89 and get paid with my KQ. I sit down and open ATo UTG to 1500, SB all in for 2400 and I lose to JT, whatever. Next hand button opens to 1300 with 10K to start, I defend AcAs in BB, flop T53cc I x/c 1500, turn Jx I x/c his shove, he says nice call and starts to walk away. They tell him to turn his hand over so he does and has AK. I tell him "you have outs why you giving up!" River Q.
Our table breaks and I move to next table, open to 1500 with AJo in CO with 15K to start, everyone calls. K52r checks through. Turn J SB leads 3500 I call. River 6 SB bets 2500 into 13.5K. I call expecting to see a K quite often but hoping he has some Jx and some dumb bluffs, he says "nuts." I'm like "what?" He turns over 43o. He eventually won the tournament. A few hands later he goes 1500 UTG I shove 9600 in SB with KQo and lose to his 55. GG.
On a happy note, bbissick, fellow NJ grinder and thread writer here at 2p2, let me stay in his room Tues-Thurs night and had a nice little live tourney run, a nice break from his usual online cash grind, and finished 3rd in this tournament. I got to rail his FT for a while and brought him some McDonalds which made the rest of the table very jealous. I had a great time hanging out with him and was honestly really really impressed at just how good he has gotten at the game. Undoubtedly better than me (though he'd argue otherwise) at poker in general, but I might still have the tourney edge
. He played quite well at the FT and got boned pretty hard, losing AQ to A7 for heaps and AT to A2 for heaps of the same guy who got me with the 43o and 55. Can't do anything about it sometimes!Wednesday was a $365 turbo, 10K SS, 25/50 to start and I got there on time. My lord this table I was at was ready to gamble. Bunch of older live regs who all actually have some swag and aren't gonna sit around and nit it up...Andrew Klein, Michael Dobbs, Roland Israelashvili, and hell I'll call Craig Rubinstein an older guy too
. They all just seemed desperate to get stacks in ASAP though. I 400 UTG at 50/100 with KQ and get 5 (I think) calls, flop Q22hh I bet 1100, 2 calls, Dobbs goes 3500, he did not seem like one of the guys trying to blast off, seemed to take pride in playing the game properly, and I think he was going to just pile Axhh, so I folded. He got it in on turn with 42cc vs a flush draw and held and I patted myself on the back. Few orbits later it's 100/200 no ante and 6 players limp to my BB where I have 99 and 8500. I start to try to think of a size I can make it that has fold equity and no number seems big enough, so I go all in. MP calls with 5500 to start hand and I lose to A9s. Few hands later I jam 3K UTG at 100/200/25 with KQo, button stares me down forever then flats with A7s. GG.No heart left in me after that one so I just hung out and then headed to my friend's house later that day in Galloway (near AC) and took part in a March Madness Calcutta draft. I paid a bunch for Villanova, Purdue, Kansas, and Duke, and normally you'd say "well the 1s and 2s made the Sweet 16 whoopdie do" but given none of the other 1s and 2s did, I'm feeling pretty good right now. I also got Florida State for cheap so things are looking nice.
Finally I come back Thursday for the $580 double stack, 24K starting now, and the player pool seems a lot tougher than the last few days, but still pretty soft. I open in EP with T9s at 1Kbb and around starting stack, guy who was on my left in 6 max and VPIPed every time I put money in calls, BB calls. For perspective on the first caller. In the 6 max I open A5hh on button he calls SB, flop T94 one heart he x/c's, turn 3h he x/c's about 70% pot bet now, river 8x I decide I can't think of any hands he's gonna fold now so I give up and lose to A7o.
So anyway flop comes T94hhd and I'm like yay I'm gonna double up. I bet they both call, turn Qd I shove pot the 6 max guy calls BB tank folds what he later says was ATdd! Other guy has ATo and I hold to get to 55Kish. I move tables and open K8dd in HJ, BB defends (I play a lot with him on NJ sites), J53dd flop he x/c's, turn 9x he x/c's, river 2d I jam his 18K into 24K and he calls with AdJx. Pretty unfortunate for him to have Ad in his hand since he prob has to call that combo. I'm over 80K on dinner.
I lose some chips after dinner to drop under 70K at 2Kbb, MP jams 20K and I call with AJ in BB and lose to 99, chip down a bit from there, eventually 3b jam 66 from SB with 30K over an Alex Rocha CO open at 2400bb, he calls with 55 and gives me a big eye roll when he sees my hand, I'm in the 1 seat so I see the 5 in the window before anyone else! I get the **** out of AC and head home ready to play the Parx $1600.
Parx $1600
I do not last long on bullet one despite the 50K starting stack. UTG limps 600 SB completes I check J5o in BB flop comes JT5r, UTG bets 1100 I x/r to 3500 he makes it 16.1K. Meh. 1 combo of 55, I think he opens JJ/TT pre, might not open limp JTo so 2 JTs (maybe only 1 idk what suit my J was), and I imagine he does have some AA and KK as played. I jam and lose to JTs. L8r. I decide to go home and come back for 1B the next day.
I get there at 500BB and have my 50K up to 170K by dinner. Played a lot of hands, won AQ>A9 all in pre for 20K each early, then won 66>98s all in on K76ss2x and held, then played some big pots with this Russian kid who just does not like giving up ever, got to dinner with 170K back to 1200bb. Unfortunately I couldn't continue to chip up despite trying pretty hard and bagged 106K back to 5Kbb the next day. Came back and immediately lost half of it after opening AQhh in CO, BB defends off 50K, flop TT3cc and he x/shoves over my 10K cbet. I think my play is fine and must be a call off now but unfortunately he had QT. I double ATs>A8s a little later, then 3b jam 90K from SB w A9o over a CO open and bust to QQ. Tourney poker.
I go home and fire up an online session. I've been playing some ACR lately and my mindset has just been changing in big ways the last month or so. I'll get back to that at the end of this post because it's the most important thing I'm going to write about. I brick all the ACR stuff but good ol NJ keeps me alive with a chip lead on the bubble of the $215 60K, part of the Party Poker GSSS or w/e the **** it's called. I think I played the tourney really well, especially given I was one tabling, after busting a bunch of other online MTTs, after busting a big live MTT. It would have been easy to be oi but I just continued sticking to my guns and trying hard to accumulate all the chips. Went into the FT 3/9 but immediately lost an annoying pot to CL to fall back into the pack. Continued battling hard, played well with ICM in mind but didn't use it as an excuse to be a nit *****, dropped to 6BBs at one point then won an exciting 3 way all in with K5s vs A9 vs 73s where the turn was a 7 but the river made my straight and consequently busted the other 6BB stack. Eventually found myself 3/4 with 400K at 24Kbb. CO (1M) folds, button (100K) folds, and I find myself with a pretty weird ICM spot with KQo in the SB and BB having around 2M in chips. I decide jamming is best and credit to him, he realized how tight I needed to be there and tanked with 88. Eventually he did call and we lost the flip to bust 4th for $4500. Still a nice way to end the day.
Parx $2500
So that leads into today, where I was planning on driving home to Fair Lawn but was feeling good after that online tourney so decided to see if anyone wanted to buy any action in me in the Big Stax $2500. Luckily a bunch did so off I went to play it. 100K starting stack, 12 levels today ending with 1K/2K, so it's gonna be a long tourney despite the smallish number of entrants. I have never been at a table where starting stack is still over 100BBs and I felt like my stack could be at risk every time I played a hand. I'd have to estimate it was hands down the toughest table I've ever played at. There weren't any real superstars or anything but just a bunch of guys who realized the goal of the tourney is to get all the chips, not to just survive to the next day.
Ryan Pochedly on my direct left, Thai Ha, Taj (might go by Neil) Patel, Arkadiy Tsinis, and a couple other guy's whose names I don't know who were just down to put money in. I'm not exaggerating when I say I think I got 3b 80% of the time when I VPIP'ed (outside of bb defend). It was to the point that I was pretty confident I was just gonna win a big pot if I ever got dealt a hand. I played a ton of wild hands but ended up with 50K at 2Kbb, last level of the day, with about a half hour left. UTG goes 5K, I have KK UTG2 and decide they're just gonna squeeze so often based on what I've seen so I flat. Pochedly goes 19K on my direct left, UTG flats, I jam the 50K, Pochedly tanks and folds, UTG calls with QTs and I hold to get back to 125K. I 3b squeeze the 2nd to last hand of day, cbet flop, shove turn and get it through to end up bagging 167.7K going to 2400bb tomorrow. Should be fun.
The Important Stuff
My mindset has been the best it ever has been by a long shot these last few weeks. I don't know what it is but my confidence is sky high and I'm thinking about hands the way they are supposed to be thought about. I feel like my timid/scared lid has been blown off and replaced with confidence and the desire to go get every chip at every opportunity. I've just decided nothing is going to stop me so when I face a bunch of run bad in a row, I just shrug and because the confidence is high, I genuinely believe that it's negative variance and not just me being exposed as a bad player or something.
I've said before that the point of this blog is to be open and expose the good and the bad of being a professional poker player. Since winning the trophy at the Wynn I am down $6800 in live tourneys, and I've sold off a ton of that (and had all of myself in the Wynn tourney). It's easy to see people have success and then wonder how they could be selling action or how they're broke or whatever, but it's so easy for things to turn in tournament poker, especially live. And a lot of live players who have had big scores aren't good at poker to begin with, so the well dries up even faster. This is also why I never shot take and sold action to the Wynn 1600 the next week despite having just binked 14K. Not to mention I had to pay for the Vegas trip, pay for rent at a house I wasn't staying in most of that month, pay other bills, and all of this money is coming from poker winnings. There's no other source of income to help slow the bleeding of a downswing when you play this game professionally. Just something to think about for those who don't play full time who wonder how so and so went broke. It's so easy.
But anyway the point is that I'm battling now. I'm trying to accumulate instead of trying to survive. And that goes for off the tables as well. I want to have some actual money in my bank account. No more settling with making 1K a week in NJ and shrugging at the 50K year at the end. It could blow up in my face and I could go broke and have to find backing or find a real job. Or it could go quite well and I could have six figures tucked away in no time. Here's to hoping it's the latter.