Very busy w work this week, so didn't get to play until yesterday, and even then my time was short.

I played very few hands didn't really run into any spots, except for this one interesting hand:

PREFLOP: 2/3/5 NL
UTG +1 opens for $15
MP, HIJACK, CUTOFF, BUTTON all call $15
HERO ($750) calls $15 with A10

FLOP ($87): A43
Checks to the button, who is a super loose, bad player with about $800 in his stack. He bets $40.

I call $40, and to my surprise the CUTOFF, a very good pro, calls as well. He didn't bet when it had checked around to him, so I doubt he has an ace. And bc he didn't lead or raise, he certainly doesn't have 2-pair or a set. Most likely he has a diamond draw or 5-6.

TURN ($207): Q
I check
CUTOFF checks
The fish on the button bets $40

He makes the same bet on the turn, which is now tiny in relation to the pot. He's obviously weak. And with the cutoff behind me likely drawing, I decide even though I don't have a very strong hand, it's likely best. I want to raise to get the draw (the cutoff) out and keep the weak made hand (the button) in.

I raise to $110.

I try to size it right to get the draw out and keep the weaker made hand in, but to my surprise the cutoff (after some thought) calls $110 and then the fish on the button folds - p much the opposite of what I was going for. Ok.

RIVER ($467): 5
I check
The cutoff thinks for a while, and finally checks



Multiway pots are always interesting.

Session results:
2 hours, 15 minutes
+$306

Year-to-date results:
195 hours, 55 minutes
+$6,455

Btw, my raise on the turn was definitely too small. I gave the cutoff 3.2 to 1 on a call, and the button 5.1 to 1. A raise to $150ish would have been a lot better.

Got a nice little Saturday afternoon session in today. I was mostly card-dead, but here's two interesting hands - one I played pretty good, and one I played hilariously badly.


HAND 1:

PREFLOP
Nitty prop player ($800) opens from MP to $20
HERO calls $20 next to act with AA
BUTTON, SB, and BB all call $20

FLOP ($94): JJ2
2 checks, and the prop in MP bets $45
HERO calls $45
All others fold

TURN ($184): 5
MP checks
HERO checks

RIVER ($184): 4
MP bets $60
HERO raises to $120
MP calls $120



I mean, literally LOL at everything I did in this hand. I didn't 3-bet AA for some unknown reason (at the time, there was a lot of 3-betting so I was hoping I could catch someone up. But it's still dumb) and played the hand 5 ways. Then I min-raised the river (LOL @ me trying to get value from 8-8 or whatever) when I was behind and value-owned myself. Just launch me right into the sun for this hand.


HAND 2:

PREFLOP:
MP ($800) opens to $20
LOJACK ($400) calls $20
CUTOFF ($1000) calls $20
HERO ($650) calls $20 on the button with AJ
BB ($1000) calls $20

I could have 3-bet and I think that would have been a good play. But also fine with calling, and that's the route I took here.

FLOP ($97): 842
BB checks
MP checks
LOJACK (a loose player) bets $35
CUTOFF folds
HERO calls $35
BB folds
MP (the original raiser) calls $35

I think MP can't have much, he just check/called as the original raiser. Pretty sure he's just got two overs and is looking to hit for cheap. The guy who led out made a weak bet, that's usually a weak pair. So I'm calling not to hit, but to take the pot away from the chuckle****s later in the hand, using the power of my position.

TURN ($202): 9
MP checks
LOJACK checks
HERO bets $125
Both MP and the LOJACK fold




But like I said, for the most part I was card dead and playing very few hands. And when I did play, I was real good at missing flops.

I got ground down from $800 (what I usually start with) to just over $500, and I decide I'm gonna take off at the next dealer change, to get one last bomb pot in.

However, the dealer is late for the change and I decide I'm just going to rack up if the new dealer doesn't get there by my BB. Just as my UTG hand ends, the new dealer comes in just in time, and this hands happens:

PREFLOP: BOMB POT - 9 players all see the flop for $25
HERO is dealt K7

FLOP ($219): K102
All players, including HERO, check until it gets to the CUTOFF, a good solid aggressive area pro
CUTOFF ($2300) bets $130
Folds to HERO ($547), who calls $130
All other players fold

Top-pair/med-kicker is a really tricky hand to play in a bomb pot. I start out with a check, because if I get raised I pretty much just have to fold; I'm way behind a range of Kx with a good kicker+2 pairs+sets+flush draws+straight draws.

When it checks all the way around to the cutoff and he bets, I think he could be doing this with a ton of hands, he certainly doesn't need to have me beat here. I call to re-evaluate the turn.


TURN ($479): 8
HERO checks
CUTOFF bets $220
HERO raises to $394, and is all-in
CUTOFF thinks and calls $394

The turn is a brick and I decide to check instead of jam, which I certainly could have done. Maybe I should have, idk. He bets again and I just decide he's barreling with so many hands, and I'm under-repped; from his perspective it must look like I have a draw of some sort. The turn card is safe and he's now pot-stuck. I jam it, and he doesn't call immediately. Takes maybe 20 seconds, a little longer than I'd expect with a draw since he'd clearly getting the right price. Now it feels like he's got a made hand. I guess we'll find out.

RIVER ($1267): K




WHEW. He never showed but I'm thinking he prob had a good 10 and thought I was on a draw, right up until the time I showed him trip kings.

Great hand to go out on, changed the whole session. I immediately racked up and bounced.


Session results:
4 hours, 40 minutes
+$464

Year-to-date results:
200 hours, 35 minutes
+$6,919

So last night I played on the Stones Live stream again, and when I got there, I got a cool surprise - I was gonna play on the stream with Chris Moneymaker.

I'll drop the Youtube link and do a little write-up later today when I have a little more time.

Alright. Here we go with the stream breakdown. I'm gonna throw it on and go though the hands that I played, with timestamps.

Here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6AGzJWaYxU

The game is $2/$3 with $1 on the button. Almost every hand is straddled to between $7 and $10, so essentially we're playing 1/2/3/10. You can match stacks, so most of players are $800+ deep.

Hand 1 (4:51)

PREFLOP: $10 straddle is on
MONEYMAKER ($615) limps UTG with 75 for $10
SINGH ($809) limps in MP with 108 for $10
HERO ($960) picks up AQ on the button and raises to $55
POSTLE ($670) calls $55 in the straddle with K6
MONEYMAKER calls $55
SINGH calls $55

FLOP ($225): 25J
All 3 players check to HERO, who bets $100
POSTLE folds
MONEYMAKER calls $100
SINGH folds

TURN ($425): 10
MONEYMAKER checks
HERO bets $250
MONEYMAKER folds

Hero wins $675

On the turn, Moneymaker's hand looks exactly like what it is - a middling pair. He can really only call here with Jx, and even with weaker jacks he's in a tough spot; I'm threatening his whole stack with this bet.

One thing I've gotten much better at is being aggressive on the turn, and I use that in this hand. I have a significant range advantage and equity if I get called. Making a stack-threatening bet here is sooooo much better than checking behind and relying on hitting one of my 10 outs on the river, all while basically turning my hand face-up.

I also need to protect my turn betting range with these semi-bluffs; if I'm only firing big second barrels with overpairs here, I'd be really easy to play against.

After the hand, Postle and Moneymaker both say they put me on QQ. I say, "man, you guys are good at this"

----------------------------------------------

HAND 2 (13:30)

PREFLOP: No straddle in this hand
SINGH ($661) limps in EP with 42 for $3
HERO ($1200) raises to $20 with 66
A-ARON ($1300) calls $20 in MP with A10
YAHAV ($455) calls $20 in the SB with Q10
DAVE (1400) calls $20 in the BB with 75
SINGH calls $20

FLOP ($102): J3J
3 checks to HERO, who bets $35 (the graphics say wrongly says $30)
All fold except DAVE with his flush draw, he calls $35

TURN ($172): K
DAVE checks
HERO checks

I could barrel again here to put pressure on medium pair hands like 7-7 and 8-8, and charge flush draws. I probably should have, but I check back like a cuck to see what he does on the river.

RIVER ($172): 5
DAVE checks
HERO checks

No real reason to bet for value or as a bluff on the river here.

Hero wins $172

----------------------------------------

HAND 3 (1:07:00)

PREFLOP: $10 straddle is on
MONEYMAKER ($655) opens to $35 in EP with 1010
SINGH ($1100) calls $35 in the hijack with QJ
DJ ($649) calls $35 in the cutoff with KQ
HERO ($1100) calls $35 on the button with AJ
WATBRI ($1100) calls $35 in the BB with 66
POSTLE ($1200) calls $35 from the straddle with 72

FLOP ($212): 955
WATBRI checks
POSTLE checks
MONEYMAKER bets $75
SINGH folds
DJ folds
HERO calls $75
Everyone else folds

I call here because this is a pretty small bet relative to the pot, and I hold the nut flush blocker. This pot is getting big, and I have plans to use that blocker to bluff later in the hand if a heart falls.

TURN ($362): 3
MONEYMAKER checks
HERO bets $150
MONEYMAKER calls $150

(the announcers aren't paying that close of attention so they think Moneymaker has led and I've called, but he check/called my bet)

Perfect. My money card came and now it's time to barrel off. Moneymaker has about $550 in his stack, I'm going to bet smaller, expecting to get called a lot by pairs, and then jam $400 on the river. Sometimes that'll get called, but usually it won't. I think I have a solid image so far so this should work.


RIVER ($662): K
MONEYMAKER checks
HERO bets $360
MONEYMAKER folds

Hero wins $1022

When you barrel with outs, sometimes you get there. This isn't a big deal since I was planning to bluff the river and win anyway, but if he has something like jacks with the J I might get a call, so that's nice. Unfortunately he doesn't hold a heart, and folds pretty quickly.

------------------------------------------------------

HAND 4 (1:18:00)

PREFLOP: $10 straddle is on
HERO raises to $30 UTG with AQ
POSTLE calls in MP with KJ
SINGH calls $30 in the BB with 52
DJ calls $30 in the straddle with 33

FLOP ($126): Q97
SINGH checks
DJ checks
HERO checks
POSTLE checks

It's standard to c-bet here with top-top, and I think most ABC players would do so. However, I choose to check for a couple reasons.

First, Postle loves to bet when he sees weakness, and top-top is good hand to trap him with. Also, if I c-bet into 3 other players after raising UTG, my hand is fairly face-up to a good hand-reader like him, and if the board gets scary he's going to be able to play much better than I will with superior information and position. To my surprise, he checks, even though it looks like he was considering betting.

Secondly, I'm not really afraid of overcards; I hold an ace, so only a King is really that bad for me. And if one of my opponents hold a King, there's only 3 of them left in the deck anyway.

Third, I'm protecting my checking range. Against most of these players, that's not important at all - you can just play exploitatively and profit. But against Postle - a very talented and sharp player - he needs to know that you will sometimes check with very good hands.

TURN ($126): K
SINGH checks
DJ checks
HERO checks
POSTLE bets $80
SINGH and DJ fold
HERO calls $80

Well, one of the 3 Kings fell. However, I'm not all that afraid of it - I think Postle bets the turn with an over-and-a-gutshot hands, and he 3-bets AK pre, and he bets KQ on the flop.

So I continue my trap, and gladly call when he bets the turn. I think everyone has shown weakness and he'll try to take the pot when he sees that.

RIVER ($286): 7
HERO checks
POSTLE bets $190
HERO calls $190

POSTLE wins $466 with a pair of Kings

Welp. My assumption about him betting his king-high gutters on the flop was wrong, and it cost me $. Still, I think he's fairly bluff heavy when he takes this line, so tbh I can't be too mad about the call.

Overall I'm quite fine with the way I played the hand, even though most in-the-box players wouldn't like it. The reality is if I c-bet the flop, he's calling anyway and hitting his hard anyway and taking me to the woodshed anyway. C'est la vie.

-----------------------------------------------------

HAND 5 (2:01:00)
DJ ($459) opens in the hijack with JJ to $30
HERO ($1000) 3bets in the cutoff with KJ to $100
Everyone else folds
DJ calls $100

FLOP ($206): 376
DJ checks
HERO bets $120
DJ tank-folds JJ face-up

The hand before, I'd folded KJo pre in the hijack to an UTG open. This time, I 3-bet it. DJ was a guy I wanted to play a pot with HU in position, and I had a good table image.

I have very little showdown value, so I bet a third of his remaining stack with a range advantage to get him off his ace-highs. Obviously he'll have some pairs in his range, and when he does, I'm losing this pot (without putting any more money in obvs; if he calls the flop, I doubt I'm getting him to fold anything).

But ... he folds Jacks! Woooooooow. He told me later I was playing so solid he just thought I had to have a better hand. It's true I hadn't picked up too many hands thus far and hadn't been caught getting out of line, but folding JJ on a 7-6-3 flop with an SPR under 2 is something else.

-----------------------------------------------------

HAND 6 (2:06:00)

PREFLOP: No straddle is on
DJ ($339) opens in MP with J9 to $15
HERO ($1100) calls $15 in MP with Q10
POSTLE calls $15 on the button with 106
JAHAV calls $15 in the SB with J9
MONEYMAKER calls $15 in the BB with 87

FLOP ($75): 6104
Checks to HERO, who bets $35
POSTLE raises to $100
JAHAV folds
MONEYMAKER calls $100
DJ folds
HERO calls $100

When Moneymaker check/cold-calls Postle's raise, he's definitely on a draw. Postle's raise could mean a lot of things, anywhere from a set to a combo draw. With top pair and a backdoor flush draw, I'm not folding the flop to an aggressive player.

TURN ($375): K
MONEYMAKER and HERO check
POSTLE bets $230
MONEYMAKER calls $230
HERO calls $230

Here's where I make a big mistake. I decide I don't believe Postle and I'm calling turn and safe rivers. I let his aggressive image play me into paying him off in a spot where when he barrels big on the turn in a multi-way pot, he's usually got it more often that not. The fact that Moneymaker is in there with a draw makes it less likely that Postle has one too.

RIVER ($1065): 4
MONEYMAKER and HERO check
POSTLE bets $270
MONEYMAKER folds
HERO calls

Postle wins $1605 with two pairs, Tens and Sixes

And on the river, he suckers me in with a small, callable bet. I ended up putting in over $600 on a single-raised hand to $15 with a medium top pair, which frankly is just really bad. The time to fold was on the turn, but instead I spewed off $500 more than I should have in true fish fashion. Egregiously bad job by your boy Sammy here (and really well-played by Postle).

------------------------------------------------

HAND 7 (2:34:00)

PREFLOP: No straddle is on
MONEYMAKER raises UTG to $15 with 74
DAVE C calls UTG +1 with 53
SINGH ($509) calls $15 in MP with Q9
HERO ($539) picks up KQ in the hijack and 3-bets to $60
Everyone folds except SINGH, who calls $60

KQo is not a hand I often 3-bet, but we've been playing for a couple hours and I recognize that these MFers are limping with a ton of weak hands. I decide to 3-bet for value and play a bigger pot in position against these weaker hands. I should have gone a bit bigger, however, to like $75.

FLOP ($156): 510J
SINGH checks
HERO bets $85
SINGH calls $85

Great flop for me. This flop actually doesn't hit his range all that hard; he often has small pairs, suited aces, etc. Even if he does have a hand, it's likely to be one pair which is fine. I'm planning to barrel all 3 streets all-in pretty much no matter what comes.

TURN ($326): 7
SINGH checks
HERO bets $150
SINGH calls $150

I barrel again, and he calls fairly quickly. Still feels like he's drawing. The graphics are a little wrong - he's got $424 in his stack to start this street (the graphics say $528). As long as the river bricks, I'm jamming.

RIVER ($626): 2
SINGH jams for $274
HERO tank-folds

AGGGGHHHHHH. He took the play away from me. And I tank, because I reaaaallly think he's bluffing. Like, this is just never a value-bet. My issue is that I lose to many of his bluffs - the ace-high flush draw, all flush draws that have a pair (7, 5, 2), and a missed straight draw like AQ. What I do beat are baby flush draws and the Q9 straight draw, which I have a blocker to.

In the end, I fold, and I'm not going to lie that perhaps the specter of wrongly calling off with King-high on a live stream probably played too much into that decision. In retrospect (and trying not to just be results-oriented), I should have called. Yes, I lose to some of his bluffs. But I do feel very strongly that he's bluffing and I'm getting better than 3:1 on a call, which should have pushed me toward a call, and I lost sight of that in the heat of battle. Pretty disappointed in myself here.

-------------------------------------------------

HAND 8 (3:25:30)

PREFLOP: Straddle to $16 is on
POSTLE ($5500) raises UTG to $32 with QJ
YAHAV ($1000) calls $32 UTG+1 with A10
HERO ($600) calls $32 in the SB with QJ
WATBRI ($945) calls $32 in the straddle with A4

FLOP ($132): 766
WATBRI check
POSTLE bets $56
Everyone folds

Postle wins $188

Even though this wasn't much of a hand, I wanted to put it out here because I played it badly. Preflop, calling from the worst position isn't great. I prefer a 3-bet, esp since Postle had really opened up and was steamrolling the table now that he had a giant stack. However, the call is fine, but the 3-bet is superior.

Postflop is really what I have an issue with. Hands like two-overs-with-a-backdoor-FD tends to be a really good hand to put in your flop check-raising range, because it A) has solid equity-when-called and B) helps protect your flop c/r range so it's not all just nutted hands. Plus in this case, my perceived SB calling range really connects well with this board. Instead of c/r'ing tho, I just check-fold like a dickless cuck. $188 was sitting there just asking to be taken and I missed the spot. Woof.

---------------------------------------------

HAND 9: (3:40:00)

PREFLOP: Bomb pot - all players put in $20 blind and go to the flop
HERO is dealt 42 on the button

FLOP ($180): 2A6
Checks to MONEYMAKER ($2000) in MP with AQ, who bets $75
Folds to HERO ($540), who calls $75
A-ARON ($1200) calls in the SB with A3

I'm stuck and I have bottom pair, a backdoor flush draw, a backdoor straight draw, and I'm getting 3.4 to 1. Of course I'm calling.

TURN ($405): K
A-ARON checks
MONEYMAKER bets $250
HERO calls $250
A-ARON folds

So here's the big inflection point. When Moneymaker bets $250, he's saying he has at least a big ace - and there's no reason not to believe him.

I have $445 left in my stack. Jamming is out of the question, since I have the worst hand I have zero fold equity. And there's no reason to lose the extra $195 if I don't hit on the river.

So I do the quick math, and I think a call is reasonable. I have about 32% equity against top pair, tho I should really be take a couple ticks off of that, since not all of my outs are assured.

But if we take the pot ($405) plus the bet ($250) plus the amount I expect I'll win from him on the river if I hit ($195), I'm calling $250 for $850, or 3.4 to 1. Therefore I only need 29% equity to make the call. So, I call.

RIVER ($905): 9
MONEYMAKER actually jams all-in for $195 in the dark before the river is flipped
HERO says, "I got there" and snap-calls $195
MONEYMAKER is big mad

HERO wins $1,295 with a flush

Hoooooooooly **** I can't believe I got there. I played against Chris Moneymaker, and I sucked out on him in a $1300 pot. What an experience. What a moment. What a story.




Overall, this session was a ton of fun. Getting to play with Chris Moneymaker was really cool. He's super humble and a just very real dude. I talked with him for a minute after the stream, and I told him that he was the reason we were all here and that I appreciated him. And by that, I mean what he did for poker made it what it is today.

I don't think I played my A-game on this night, but I also picked up no real hands for 4+ hours. I didn't pick up AA, KK, QQ, JJ, 10-10, AK, AQs, AJs, or A-10s once. That's not a complaint - it's standard to not get any premium hands over a multi-hour stretch in live poker. But considering my lack of cards I'm fine with the end result. I'll def be doing this again.

Session results:
4 hours, 30 minutes
-$185

Year-to-date results:
205 hours, 5 minutes
+$6,736

Just dropped in to say I am coming along with you for the ride.

The hand played well, hand played badly and the Meh hand format is fun.

glgl

You say you reignited your poker career at the 2/2 level with a starting roll of 400 bucks? lol do tell

Rec players with full time jobs don't need a bankroll - they have recurring income and can stop or start again at any time.

Thanks my man. Good to have you along!


At 2/2/3 ($300 max buy), but yeah. At the time it wasn't really a bankroll, I just took $400 to go play my first session with and had a really hot run to start off.

My first 2 months/20 sessions:


After that I just started keeping all my winnings in cash as a dedicated poker bankroll, completely separate from my life roll.

After about 8 months (~365 hours) grinding 2/2/3 last year I had enough to move up to 2/3/5 at the start of this year - I still usually buy in for $800 instead of the $1k max to keep my bankroll variance a little lower.

Very true. Although I do think if you're a serious player you should always try to keep a separate poker bankroll if possible.

So you like to play really early in the day and short sessions?

More out of necessity with my schedule than preference. Obv the best times to play are Fri/Sat nights when more rec players are out. Overall my average length of session is about 4 hours

Played a session at Graton Casino, and it didn't go well. The table was ripe, just a bunch of dopey rec players who overvalued hands and played loose/passive. Unfortunately, they kept making hands against me, plus I was only working on 4 hours of sleep and wasn't playing sharply at all. It was a session full of playing big multi-way pots and not winning them.

One hand was the microcosm for the session:

A weak player opens for $15 UTG, I 3-bet him to $50 with JJ ... and 4 players end up calling (bad job me - when people are calling a bunch pf like they were, I should have sized up to $60-$75).

The flop comes 4-5-7 rainbow. UTG checks and I bet $100 into the field. They all fold except UTG, who check/calls.

The turn is the K, putting two spades on board. He checks, and I check back (questionable decision).

The river is an offsuit 3

He bets $85, and I call out of annoyance (NOT a good reason) and because the bet is so small compared to the pot and could be a desperation bluff with 8-9 or something.

He shows 5-3 of spades and takes it down with 2 pair. I suck.


Session results:
3 hours, 5 minutes
-$713

Year-to-date results:
208 hours, 5 minutes
+$6,024

Yesterday, played a session on my home court at the California Grand, and it got lit.

Early in the session, I called a raise to $30 from a gambly rec player in MP with 910

A loose reg lady called behind on the button, and the BB called also. With ~$120 in the pot, we went 4 ways to a flop of 567

The BB checked, and the gambly initial raiser checked.

I bet $75, and the lady on the button (who has $620 in her stack) quickly raises to $225.

She has about $395 left after the raise, and when it folds back around to me, I decide to jam it. I highly doubt I'm getting any folds here, but I'm not folding my hand. And just calling to see one card and then check/folding to a jam on the turn seems bad - with my hand, I want to see the turn and the river.

So I jam (I cover) and she snap-calls.

The turn is the 4, and the river is the 4

I turn over my flush, and she mucks in disgust. She must have flopped a straight or possibly top two pair. Either way, I'm happy and she's sad.

------------------------------------

About half an hour later, I pick up 65 in MP and open to $20

The same lady I busted (she's up to $1300 now, about the same as me) calls in the cuttoff. The button and the BB also call, so we go 4 ways to the flop.

The flop comes 655, and my testes tingle under the table.

BB checks, and I bet $35 into $80.

The lady quickly raises to $110, and the other two fold.

I have two choices: Flat and keep her range wide, potentially check/raising the turn ... or 3-bet the flop and try to get it in now.

I decide on the latter route. If she's got a big draw, it's super unlikely she'll fold. I'd love for her to put in piles with A2 drawing dead. Also if she somehow has a 5, she'll just re-shove all in, since my hand looks like an overpair.

And if she has something like 8-8 here, I'm fairly unlikely to get more money from her. That would mean her flop raise is to move me off overcard equity, but if I call her raise it looks like I've got a better pair. Plus the board is likely to get scarier. Basically, I doubt I'm getting stacks in if she has those hands no matter what I do.

So, I 3-bet to $300.

And unfortunately, she folds.

-------------------------------------------

I'm not in much action for a couple hours, and then I run really hot in a couple hands and pick up stacks.

In one hand I raise 97 from the button after 2 limps, and get 4 callers. I flop a flush, and stack an old dude for maybe $250.

Not much later, I raise 10-10 to $35 and get multiple callers again. The flop comes K-10-7 rainbow and I stack a lady for $500 who has KQos.

Things are lit.

-------------------------------------

This last hand is one I'm pretty proud of.

A weak old guy in EP opens for $15, and I call in MP with KJ

The lady from the first two hands calls behind me, as does the button. So does the big blind, and we go 5 ways to the flop with ~$75 in the pot.

The flop comes KJ10

****ing gin. Top two with a backdoor royal flush draw.

The original raiser bets $35, and for some reason I decide to just call. I guess I want to make it look like I have a draw, so I can really get paid if the turn bricks? Honestly I don't really know.

The lady right behind me (with $505 in her stack) quickly raises to $205 (leaving her $300 behind). Everyone folds and it gets back to me.

I tank, and the more I think about it, the more I don't like it. I doubt this is a bluff in a 5-way pot, and even if it's a draw like Q10 or 109, we're about even money.

But with the house royal flush and high hand promotions, I'm doubting she'd make such a massive raise to fold everyone out. A lot of people call there and try to hit for the promotion $. (The high hand is only $100 but the royal flush is over $1000).

What it feels like to me is a made hand trying to push the many draws out. And if we look at actual value hands, I'm not in great shape: The only value hands I beat are the lower 2-pairs - K-10 and J-10. And I have blockers to those two hands; there are only 2 Kings and 2 Jacks left in the deck.

Meanwhile, I'm crushed by the straights (AQ and Q9) and the sets (10-10).

And after I while I look at her and say, "I'm gonna fold and collect my Nit of the Year award" ... And I fold.

She smiles and shows me AQos and says, "I didn't want the flush draw to draw out on me".

Whew.

--------------------------------------

Session results:
5 hours
+$1,820

Year-to-date results:
213 hours, 10 minutes
+$7,844

Got my last session in of the month today. It's late so I'm not going to post any hands, but I profited $535 to cap off the best month (+$7,072) I've had in a year of playing live.

Looking back, it's been a really cool year. I started with $400 and now have a healthy 5-figure bankroll. I graduated from 2/3 to 2/5 and in the process have learned a lot and developed my game a ton. I've played at 10 different card rooms in 3 different states. I've played with Chris Moneymaker, Lon McEachern, Andrew Neeme, Brad Owen, and Bill Klein. I've been on a live steam, twice. This summer, I'm going to go play in the WSOP for the first time.

These aren't the biggest accomplishments or anything, but for a guy who just rediscovered poker a year ago, these are things that have made the journey great.

I'm grateful that poker is back in my life and I'm looking forward to what the future will bring. There's so much still to learn, so much still to accomplish.


Session results:
4 hours
+$535

Year-to-date results:
217 hours, 10 minutes
+$8,379

Keep at it, great month!


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Thanks my dude. Still behind pace of my $35k yearly goal, but I am on pace to hit my 600 hour goal for the year. And I've been focusing mostly on that, since it's the thing I'm more in control of. And hopefully if I hit that, by the end of the year the money part will work out too.

care to discuss common betting lines you use? Opening sizes, 3bet sizing, cbet sizing etc. Or do you tailor every bet for the opponent

That’s a great attitude, and just the kind of perspective I needed to be reassured of right this minute! Keeping on top of the things that are within your control is all you can do, and the rest as they say take care of themselves. Respect.


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Preflop I'm pretty standard - in $5 BB games I open for $20 with all my hands and usually $25 if there's a limper and $30 if there's two, etc. However there are certainly times where I'll size up on that if the field is really call-heavy. Obv you want to get more money in the pot vs weak hands and thin the field a bit so you're not going 4-way every hand.

More than tailoring bet-sizing for opponent, I usually tailor bet sizes for the board texture. IE, if I'm c-betting I'll bet less than half-pot on static boards like Q-7-3 rain and more on dynamic boards like 9-8-5. And I try to bet all the hands in my range similarly so I'm tougher to play against.

Generally on the turn is where I start betting big, whether it's for value or a bluff/semi-bluff. The more poker I play, the more I believe that the turn is the most important street in today's game. And the best players play the turn really well; it's the part of my game I've worked on improving the most.

What about the 1/2 or 2/3 games or whatever is the lowest limit? It seems to me like these games often run like a half-stacked 2/5 game.

It depends on the game but when I played 2/3 I generally opened to $13-$15 depending on how call-y the table was and added BBs for every limper.

In general I don't think your exact open raise sizing is all that important. More important is that your raise sizing is consistent so that it doesn't betray the strength of your hand, and that it's enough that you're not getting a cascade of callers every hand that you raise.

Very cool thread, OP! I used to live in Walnut Creek and went to CA Grand a dozen times or so. It was a while ago so I don't think I ever saw you there. The games are usually decent on the weekends but I think you get better action elsewhere. At least you seem to be up quite a bit. I started off losing every time for 6 sessions straight then won everything back and some in a single session. Overall, I'm up $1k in 50 hours lol (not great).

Thanks man! I actually live in WC, I love it.

Cali Grand definitely not the best place for action, the 2/3/5 is usually a table full of rocks on the weekdays. It's forced me to learn new tricks to win in that kind of game.

And there's nothing wrong with $1k in 50 hours. $20 an hour playing poker is great if it's not your job. And besides it would take a lot more than 50 hours to start figuring out your true winrate anyways.

Very nice, I liked Walnut Creek a lot. It's a good place to live and there is nearly 1 of everything there. I was particularly pleased when Slice House opened up downtown. I lived near BART (both downtown and pleasant hill/contra costa stops) in the 5 years I was in the city. Hopefully you work in the east bay as well since the commute to SF during rush hour sucks.

I never tried 2/3/5 during the week but I generally assume anyone playing poker mid-day during the week is a nit lol.

The $1k win at CA Grand was offset by 2 bad sessions are Aria though. I played like 90 hours of poker total in 1.5 years so clearly not a significant sample. I find it a fun game and don't take the winning and losing too seriously. I'd never get to the point where I'd make more money playing poker than working so I'll keep it a hobby.

Hope you can work your way toward the $35k yearly goal. It's a big number to hit.