View Full Version : Poker discussion thread...
Some of us here play poker fairly regularly so I thought it might be cool to have a thread where you can post about your game's key hands.
Personally, I took some time off online poker a while back (only playing here and there rather than seriously) because although I turned enough profit to buy tasty hifi and PC bits, I could have bad times where I would lose badly enough to be a huge setback (I didnt build a bankroll because I was too busy enjoying the winnings). I sledged the last of my bankroll in a dramatic ~£180 all-in with AK having hit AKK on the flop only to be called by someone else with AA.
So anyway, a month ago I logged into my account and found ~£6, played a Sit n Go, doubled my cash and headed for the cash tables. Lost a few quid of it just through variance by playing at the wrong level for my balance.
Fast forward to the tail end of last week. Loaded up the £2 minimum so I could play in a £5 low-risk SNG with the remnants. Won a couple of these and from a combination of this, some MTT success and being extremely frugal on the cash tables I have made that £43.
Some hands from tonight then:
Dealt JA off, called the BB from mid position, 2 callers + the big blind
Flop JT6 (rainbowed), checked to me, made a 4x BB raise, one guy left goes over the top all in - I called
He turned over T2 - wtf?
Turn card: T (GRR :mad: )
River: J (:D)
2nd nice hand from tonight:
Dealer: DRZ wins pot ($68.46) with Three of a kind, Tens, King high
I was in the doldrums of a bad run of cards for that one, hit the set on the flop and decided to try and make it pay. Thankfully it did! That proved to be just a blip from the doldrums though so I cut and ran to fight another day.
I am trying to minimise my variance by setting myself a target amount to leave the table with. If I pass that amount I will play on for a few more hands to see if there is more to be made but as soon as it looks like I am dipping back to the target I will leave.
Once I have my bankroll up I will start looking at getting back into the MTT play (because I really prefer them to ring games) :)
Long OP I suppose but the rest of the thread I hope to be interesting hands from your games :)
Davey_Pitch
04-12-2007, 10:05
I really need to get back into my online poker, but the last time I played I lost $50 in a single hand by being absolutely perfectly trapped by someone playing extremely weakly (and I had trips), yet he had the nuts from the flop onwards. I'd built up from about $5 to around $120 as well, yet thanks to that I'm barely over $50 so I decided to take a break. It would be nice to get back into it as there's decent money to be made if you're good enough, and patient enough not to chase weak hands.
I'd really like to get into Poker properly... I love it so much - thanks to MB really and teaching Picky and I how to play texas hold em on the xbox (which we ended up obsessed with!)
We're getting xbox gold thingy soon (hopefully... if they blooming well deliver it this time!) and hope like monkeys we can play with you guys online... it would mean I could learn proper and not play silly bots!
Will read this thread with great interest - good idea this DRZ :)
Justsomebloke
04-12-2007, 10:29
I am Bang up for some Texas Hold'em.
I tried that Poker game I've got on the 360 the other night. It plays well enough but like Kit says, Bots Sux.
What Poker game on the 360 does everyone have ?
I would be well up for a few hands but Not for money as i don't have any :p I am a Real bad loser though so no matter what i play i play to win & play to the best of my ability whether money is at stake or not.
My most recent best hand is after bluffing i picked up a 9 on the river to get a straight. I love coming in on the river it buzzes my tits off :cool:
360 game i have is called Texas Hold'em Poker.
Once I have my bankroll up I will start looking at getting back into the MTT play (because I really prefer them to ring games) :)
I prefer MTT too but the variance is so much more, tend to play short handed STTs most of the time when playing online
Been playing a bit of PL Omaha recently too
I suck at poker, I guess it doesn't help that I don't know how to play properly :( Really need to learn how to play at some point.
I suck at poker, I guess it doesn't help that I don't know how to play properly :( Really need to learn how to play at some point.
you will have to come round to one of our games, newcomers are always welcome ;) ;D
Yester afternoon/eve [layed for a giggle on Hold em (not for long though but long enough to realise I was playing with a lot of people who were more n00b than me... and I'm uber n00b!)
Had managed to win a couple of hundred dollars (obviously fake monies! lol) on about 2 hands over 45min and decided it would be my last hand before leaving.
Turned up AH 9C
I wasn't on planning on playing it and I thought "screw it" and just called to see what came up (4 others were in too)
Flop: 3H 8H JH
People started betting lots and I figured with my 50% chance I would stick around..
8C turned... *EAK*
Once again some aggressive people started raising the stakes quite steeply and eventually I thought - welll.... if I leave even stevens that'll be fiine... so decided to keep playing..
2H
YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY! *mmf mff mff mmmf* :) Was so happy :D Looking around the board the highest there was a pair of jacks... the other 2 (only 3 stayed in play) had nadda! Bunch of bezaar people!
Was super dooper chuffed though :) I know I'm not a brilliant player but from 45mins of playing with real people and not bots made me learn lots! Loads of people always call... it's very interesting to watch!
Davey_Pitch
06-12-2007, 11:07
Nice one Pheebs :) Just remember that people will often play very strangely on the 360 poker simply because they can't lose any money. If you ever start playing online with any of the poker sites for real money you'll find a lot more people will fold before the flop even hits the board (I find I probably only play about 10% of the hands I'm dealt). 360 poker is a great way to learn the ins and outs of the game though, I need to play it more often :)
Yeh I figured as far... people were being really random... they were playing on things like 2H and 9C....
It was hard to kind of judge what they may have! Would love to play for dosh but certainly don't have the guts nor experience/skill!
Justsomebloke
06-12-2007, 12:27
Play Table Limit poker or whatever its called. Basically you put in say 30 quid each and 1st 2nd & 3rd get a share. Good fun & people play properly.
Play Table Limit poker or whatever its called. Basically you put in say 30 quid each and 1st 2nd & 3rd get a share. Good fun & people play properly.
That would be STTs ( single table tournaments ) also called SNGs ( sit n goes )
even at £1 a game this seems to make people play in a proper manner
as said "play money" games are nothing like real poker but are a good way of learning the basics
On Friday night a hand I was playing was worth £1000 ( £1000 extra for winner as they finished at least one place higher in a £100 buy in MTT ), good job I was slaughtered or I would have been a right mess ;D
Justsomebloke
06-12-2007, 12:39
^^ So that is what STT stands for in your earlier posts then :o + ;D
This is where it's at though as your Loss limit is set before the match starts & Everyone plays proper poker.
You really cannot beat sweating over a hand that involves you losing money.
I don't have £30 to lose though and don't think I'm good enough at poker to come 1st 2nd or 3rd (knowing that chances are I would be playing against goooooood people :))
I would love to give it a go though. Might do sometime in the future :)
Like I said - I know my cribbage better than poker... and would probably be more willing to put money on cribbage. But I think I'm picking poker up quite quickly... it's the same in the respect that you have to figure out your players weaknesses and strengths, calculate your chances and sometimes take some risks :) In fact... now I think about it there's much less to worry about with Poker than there is Cribbage!
Used to love playing cribbage , don't think I would even know how to play any more
Just got back from playing the £50+5 freeze out at DTD
132 runners , came 38th so nowt special
notable hands
2d 5d on button , blinds were 50/100 so thought I would limp and see a flop
Flop A Q T rainbow, checked to me so time to steal I thought , bet 300 and got one caller , bugger
Turn was a 3 , other bloke checked so I tested him with 600 and still he called , mmmm not working this , River comes a 4 , giviing me a flukey straight , he bets 300 , I raise to 1200 and he calls with an Ace , felt embarrassed to show the winning hand :D
later UTG I get QQ , blinds are 200/400 so I raise to 1000 , two shortish stacks ( 3-4k ) go all in and I call ( had them covered ) , they show 7,8 :shocked: and AA , oops
flop comes with a Q and I take it down ;D
last hand , blinds and antes running at 1350 a round and I am down to 4100 when I get 88 on the button and go all in , BB calls with AJ and spikes a Jack on the river :angry:
What does "DTD" Mean? Also what do you mean by "A Q T rainbow"? What's the rainbow about? I'm guessing mix of suits but not sure! Also what does "UTG" mean?
Sorry I'm such a noob :(
Nice playing though! :D Boo to the last round :(
What does "DTD" Mean? Also what do you mean by "A Q T rainbow"? What's the rainbow about? I'm guessing mix of suits but not sure! Also what does "UTG" mean?
Sorry I'm such a noob :(
Nice playing though! :D Boo to the last round :(
DTD , is Dusk Till Dawn , Europes largest poker club which is in Nottingham
You are correct re "rainbow" which is all 3 cards of different suits
UTG means "under the gun" which is the first player to act in a round of betting , i.e. first after Big Blind pre flop and the player sat at small blind for the other betting rounds
also re the AQT hand it was AQ7 , not that it makes a big difference
Just got back from playing a £30 freeze out, only 17 players but I managed to win it for £200
not played any tournaments ( other than Vegas trip ) for a while so entered a £85 buy in one last night , 124 players , finshed 3rd for £1209 :)
Wow well done you!
I'm about to have a fiddle with the xbox and play some online poker (I hopes!)
I would love to think one day I could enter some competitions like you Grandad! Need to get soooooooooooo much better though before that!
I hope when we start arranging a summer BBQ/Poker weekend you'll be up for popping down to play! :D
sounds good :)
God knows how I managed to cash last night I was so **** faced I have no recollection of the last couple of the hours of the game :p
Well of all the poker tables on the internet, I happen to sit down opposite Grandad!
How random!
:}
I did rubbish too ( won the other 2 I was playing at same time )
how did you finish up ?
Although I've read enough to have a fair idea of what i'm doing I've not actually played a lot of poker, in fact my previous experience has been limited to playing on 2 occasions at meets when I was either too drunk to learn anything useful or joining a game late when the blinds were so big that my starting stack wasn't enough for me to play more than a couple of hands.
This weekend we were playing and a hand came up where me and someone else (I think it was Mic) had equal pairs and equal first kickers. From what I've read I was under the impression that the hand was decided by second kickers however MB insisted that second kickers were irrelevant and the pot was to be split. Although I felt I was right I didn't really argue the point as Mat is obviously a more experienced player than me.
Seeing this thread just reminded me to check on this and some googling would appear to suggest that I was right, what do the BD Poker experts say?
Have to agree with Phil here. All of the sites I can find explaining the winning hands say it goes to two kickers. Only one site I came across mentioned one kicker, but it didn't say what to do if both players had the same value. My knowledge of poker is very limited though.
Its the best hand of 5 cards. Anything after that is irrelevant and is a split pot, and I have never ever played to any different rules.
In the case of a single pair splitting the pot, its whoever has the best hand of 5 cards so yeah, Phil you are right :)
@Grandad, I won that game (only one I played last night)
was it one pair or 2 pairs that were equal
eg player 1 has A9 player 2 A8
board
AQ642 , player 1 wins
board
AQ664 is a split pot
also if all ( that make up the 5 ) board cards are above the kicker it is a split pot
eg palyer 1 has A2 , player 2 A9
board AKQT8
Was basically your first example except the river was still to be shown and the actual discussion was over what card(s) Mic needed it to be to prevent me winning the hand and the game.
Wasn't important in the end as I won the game anyway a few hands later, was just hoping to get things clear in my head.
Davey_Pitch
07-02-2008, 00:09
If you both have equal pairs (ie, a pair of aces) then it can go to the 3rd card if it has to. The only way to split a pot is for both people to have identical hands. If kickers are different, the one with the higher ones wins.
Sorry for stating the obvious (to some), but since it took me a minute to figure out what Grandad was saying, I've posted the reasoning:
Example 1 - P1 A9, P2 A8, board AQ642. Player 1 has AAQ96, Player 2 AAQ86. Player 1 wins.
Example 2 - P1 A9, P2 A8, board AQ664. Both have AA66Q, hence the split pot.
Just gone out on the bubble in a MTT
pushed from BB to a raise from a hyper aggressive big stack
my AJ went down to KK :(
My online stats on DTD, ok but not great, tend to do better in live games where I am £2000 up over last 10 weeks
Username
rotty
Games Played
971
Av. Profit
$1
Av. Stake
$12
Total Profit
$602
killerkebab
07-02-2008, 02:20
Where do you guys play?
killerkebab
07-02-2008, 03:48
Tried it, put my £10 in, went down to £4, up to £13, and straight back to £10.30 :/
currently chip leader in a 83 player $25 buy in MTT , 11 players left
8 left, still first
6 left , still first , twice as many chips as 2nd
Break 5 left
chips
Rotty 53k
2nd 28k
3rd 17k
4th 16k
5th 10k
killerkebab
08-02-2008, 02:51
Not working for me on the other hand, I can't seem to find a decent way to play. I tend to fold 70-80% of hands and whilst I don't lose much money, I don't make much either... how do you guys play?
3 left
rotty 73k
2nd 37k
3rd 12k
Not working for me on the other hand, I can't seem to find a decent way to play. I tend to fold 70-80% of hands and whilst I don't lose much money, I don't make much either... how do you guys play?
what are you playing , cash , STT , MTT ?
killerkebab
08-02-2008, 03:40
Sit down cash table thing, small stakes (£0.05/£0.10). I'm afraid to go into higher tables. Put in £10 into the program and went to see how well I can do.
Sit down cash table thing, small stakes (£0.05/£0.10)
cash games are bad for a new player , STTs are best bet
but in cash play tight but play aggressive when u have the cards ( mixing a bit of slow playing in so you don't become obvious ) , position is all important
won the tournament, heads up took 45 mins
3 times was 10-1 chip leader and twice went behind before winning it for $622.50
Nice. I guess that'll cover several more 'rolex' then. ;D
killerkebab
09-02-2008, 02:51
I decided to try an STT with £1 buy in, 10 player tournament, top 3 places pay out.
Knocked out in fourth place... not too bad for a first tournament, few tips needed though (if you don't mind :))
I played a total 30 hands (ish), and I think I must have folded about 25 pre-flop. Every time the flop came down I thought I was right to fold because whoever won the pot had better than I did (had I stayed in long enough to see the flop, if that makes sense).
When I finally did decide to play a hand it ended up costing me chips and eventually, the tournament :/
basically your play sounds fine, there is a natural variance due to luck which you will not notice over a few games
the only other thing to learn as a beginner is that position is massively important
steal in late position but don't enter a pot from an early position unless you are prepared to call a raise
raise or fold are nearly always better plays than call
oh and just to add trapping is a great tool in a STT when the players have not had time to get a handle on you
killerkebab
09-02-2008, 03:10
Trapping?
simple scenario
you raise with AJ from early position and get a call
flop come AQ4
you check ( this may happen after any street ) , player bets , you the reraise thus increasing the size of the pot where you are favourite when a initial raise may have induced a fold
traps can be much more complex in reality though
the above is also an example of a check/raise which is trapping in its simplist form
here is a more complex trap
you are on SB with 95 and it is checked to you ( 3 other players ) , you call
flop is 555
now 3 players with 2 live cards each gives approx a 75% chance that one will hit a full house
you are first to act so check, a big bet will scare others off ( maybe with exception fo a abig pair )
others probably check
same happens on the turn
on the river you are first to act and the pot is 400
a bet of 600-800 indictes strength
200-300 will give the impression of trapping
1500-2000 looks like a steal and a player wih a FH will prbably call or raise
then again a clever player may see 200 as a double bluff and walk right intoi the trap so that is an option too depending on your perception of the other players
hope this makes snese as I have had a few :)
killerkebab
09-02-2008, 03:49
Jesus christ! Just had a scary hand...
Decided to play another tournament. Once again bleeding chips (6 players left, my stack hasn't changed much from the 1000 it started with) and I get dealt AA :D
Don't want to scare people out of it so I decide to call BB. Flop goes 2J5 rainbow. Made a small BB bet to test waters (I was first), everyone does a call. Turn is 4H (all suits are down, no flush here) but I start to worry someone may have a straight draw so I make another small bet.
One player raised, so I reraised him, only for him to go all-in. I call. He turns over 22 (ouch :(). River comes down... its an ACE :D
First hand I've won tonight... and it doubled my stack :D
here is a more complex trap
you are on SB with 95 and it is checked to you ( 3 other players ) , you call
flop is 555
now 3 players with 2 live cards each gives approx a 75% chance that one will hit a full house
you are first to act so check, a big bet will scare others off ( maybe with exception fo a abig pair )
others probably check
same happens on the turn
on the river you are first to act and the pot is 400
a bet of 600-800 indictes strength
200-300 will give the impression of trapping
1500-2000 looks like a steal and a player wih a FH will prbably call or raise
then again a clever player may see 200 as a double bluff and walk right intoi the trap so that is an option too depending on your perception of the other players
hope this makes snese as I have had a few :)All that sounds like is that no matter what you do, the other guy might think at least three different things and we're back to the whole 'luck' element ;)
sorry, was hammered when I typed that, will try and do a more coherent version later :D
Played in the regional finals of poker down the pub today
came 12th out of 101 , didn't play well tbh but had a fun day anyway :)
Davey_Pitch
11-02-2008, 11:57
Every time the flop came down I thought I was right to fold because whoever won the pot had better than I did (had I stayed in long enough to see the flop, if that makes sense).
Try not to think like that. You can only make judgments based on the cards you have and what you can see on the board (if anything at all). If you drop a certain hand because you think it'll lose, and then you find out it's the winner, you may be more inclined to play it again in another game even though the correct decision was to fold.
Always remember you can't lose what you don't bet, so if you feel the smart play is to fold, then do it, and don't regret it no matter how the cards turn out. If you're playing against several people then there's likely someone else who folded who could have beaten you anyway :)
Stan_Lite
11-02-2008, 13:01
I agree with Davey. Also, bear in mind you don't have to have the best hand to win the pot. If you can make the other players think you have a better hand than them and make them fold, you win - regardless of what you have in your hand. It can be dangerous but it's extremely satisfying when it works :D
Try not to think like that. You can only make judgments based on the cards you have and what you can see on the board ()
and of course the actions and playing styles of the others not forgetting the all importany matter of position too :)
killerkebab
11-02-2008, 19:43
I agree with Davey. Also, bear in mind you don't have to have the best hand to win the pot. If you can make the other players think you have a better hand than them and make them fold, you win - regardless of what you have in your hand. It can be dangerous but it's extremely satisfying when it works :DApparently the later stages of the games are decided by who can win the most hands when they're losing rather than the other way round. That said, I can never make it to late stage because every single time (3 times so far) I've been knocked out 4th when top 3 places pay out :(
killerkebab
31-03-2008, 23:51
Sorry to make a shameless bump, but any of you pros out there ever tried a freeroll? Found a freeroll MTT I wanted to try for fun - 1st place pays £15. Any ideas on strat?
Expect insanity at first, after any of the breaks and just before the bubble.
Avoid the all-ins at the start really, just not worth getting involved if you want to place in the money.
Davey_Pitch
01-04-2008, 11:15
Freerolls are great because they're free.
Freerolls are awful because they're free, which means you get absolutely loads of idiots playing which often means a normal strategy won't work (people call you with something daft like a 1% chance of winning the hand, yet still sometimes manage to beat you). Like Durz says, expect some mad playing at the start and don't get sucked into it. I'd play fairly tight to start with while the insane people get themselves busted out. Just be careful you don't play too tight too long as you'll need to make a move at some point otherwise you'll end up miles behind the chips leaders :)
Matblack
15-04-2008, 09:08
I've gone back to playing a bit recently, I looked at the old Virgin Poker account and there was a few euros in there which I left when I took most of the balance out last time I had a bit of a losing streak and decided to give it a rest.
I started with a few short handed sit and go's at 3euros a pop to see if I could get my balance up, although I did OK I found them a little bit too punchy, I think a combination of low stakes and being on a short time limit due to the blind times. So I have gone over to playing full table sometimes even 2/3 table games which seem to suit my playing style at the moment despite needing a lot more patience you can play quite a tight game style there and wait for a good hand to drop before you have to commit, totally the opposite to my old punchy style but it seems to be working for me as I placed on a 3 table sit and go and boosted my bankroll.
I'm sticking with full table sit and go's for the time being although I might play a tourney tonight when I get in, this new found patience might work well with those but they are always so variable and with 150 players I often feel more at the mercy of the cards than my lack of skill :)
I'm still very keen to do some live play on small stakes tables
MB
Davey_Pitch
15-04-2008, 09:21
I go through phases where I can't stop playing myself, and I had one recently, placing 1st in a STT and winning 40 Euros. My playing was stopped when I caught 2 bad breaks in one night, getting pocket jacks in 2 different tournaments and getting beaten on the river :/ Still want to play more though as I definitely feel there's good money to be won if I'm patient enough and carry on reading more about it.
Matblack
17-04-2008, 21:34
Hmmmmmmm bankroll is up to 120 euros from 5 euros about a week ago
I've been playing 2/3 table sit and go's, mostly I get in the final 4 and get my stake back at the least.
Here is how I went out of the last game tonight it might amuse you
http://img183.imageshack.us/img183/3039/openingex5.jpg
http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/2766/flopjy6.jpg
Ouch!
MB
ouch indeed
hard to do but with 3 all ins in front of me I would have put it down
I actually put QQ down pre flop in a £85 buy in tourney at DTD a couple of months ago, had 3 all ins in front of me, turns out they were JJ,99 and AK , so maybe I could have called but it leaves a lot of stuff to dodge
any J 9 A K put me behind
2 Jacks
2 Nines
3 Aces
3 Kings
in the deck
10 cards 5 times - 50 outs with 44 undeclared cards, almost certainly means I would need to improve my QQ to win
Matblack
17-04-2008, 23:07
I LOL'd to be honest, still got 11 euros for the 3rd place, 9 euro profit and a laugh :D
MB
oops by the time I had explained my thinking you had replied :D
Matblack
17-04-2008, 23:16
I wish I could do those odds calculations on the fly
MB
If you want to keep it simple then count cards as 2% ( its approximate )
so you have Ah Qh flop comes 2h 6h Ts so another heart almost certainly wins it and someone goes all in of front of you, there are 9 in the deck and the turn and river to come so 2% x 9 cards by 2 cards to come = 36% so if your bet to call is less than 36% of the pot you call
done accurately ( he has a 76% chance of holding a heart ) 8.24 cards with 45 in deck followed by 8.24 in 44 , so 16.48/44.5 = 37%
Matblack
18-04-2008, 17:39
I don't see these too often
http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/8271/capturekg3.jpg
MB
nice, had 2 hands ( 1 live and 1 onlne ) recently where I have lost with str8 flushes, both times I had the thick end of the str8 and lost to a bigger one
/edit oops just noticed it wasn't your hand :)
Matblack
18-04-2008, 18:05
Nah, just posted it because you don't see it all that often :)
MB
One of mine :)
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y267/rotty66/SP_A0056.jpg
The bloke ahead of me had AQ and went all in ;D
Matblack
18-04-2008, 21:39
Amazing given the odds!
Royal Flush 1 in 649,740
Straight Flush 1 in 72,193.33
4 of a Kind 1 in 4,165
I had a poor run of form last night but I'm back up to 110 again :)
MB
those odds are the ones of getting it in 5 cards ( originally from 5 card draw but applicable to after the flop in HE)
Matblack
19-04-2008, 01:36
W00T 60euros in a 3 table game 5euro entry :)
MB
Matblack
19-04-2008, 01:55
Yep :)
5 places paid 60, 36, 24, 18,12
MB
Matblack
19-04-2008, 16:03
Current balance 178euros :)
Playing 2/3 table games at 3/5 euros almost exclusively now.
MB
Matblack
20-04-2008, 21:02
Well I played a lot today, usually running a low cash table along side a tourney, upshot is 280 euros on the bankroll, I'm pretty happy with that considering the most I can lose in a tourney is 3/5 euros, the cash tables seem a little more profitable but its east to lose your head, if you go tilt on them then you could lose a lot. :)
At some point I need to either graduate to true multi table tourneys or hight stakes 2/3 tables but I can't quite get over the fact the 10 euros seems a fair sum to lose :/
MB
I enjoy tourneys more but as you say cash is easier to make money, you just have to try and avoid playing too many hands out of boredom
if you play multiple tables then you should be involved somewhere most of time
killerkebab
26-04-2008, 19:12
Did I make a mistake here? (I know I won the hand, but bear with me)
Started off, got dealt AA, I'm 4 places left of dealer so in middle position wise.
Raised the BB by 10p (so 20p), called by two players. Lets call them A and C (call me B, since I am second to act by now)
Flop is Th 8d Qd. Player A puts 50p in. I consider my AA to be too good to fold, I raise to £1. Other player does a simple call.
Turn is Ts. Player A checks, I check (afraid of someone having a 10), and player C goes all in (~£3). Goes back to player A who calls the all-in. I decide to not only call player Cs all-in, but raise it so that it puts player A all in too.
River is 7c. Since we're all-in (well I'm not but they are), player A shows Qs 6s, and player C mucks, leaving me to win the ~£16 pot.
Hurrah for me, but I do have a couple questions:
Would you have done the same?
What do you think player C (who made the all-in in the first place and is the only person not to show anything at the end) had?
Why the hell would player A call all-in with a pair of queens?
I would have made my initial raise bigger, one caller is optimal against aces
again after flop my raise may have been a bit bigger, with 2 diamonds on flop you don't want flush drawers to have pot odds
again after the turn and player A checking I would have made a bet of 50-75% of the pot
player C prob had A-x diamonds
why did A call an all in with a pair of queens and a small kicker , cos he's a muppet tbh
killerkebab
26-04-2008, 21:39
So I dodged a bullet from player C, but I can't work out why call with the queens :/
So I dodged a bullet from player C, but I can't work out why call with the queens :/
online poker is full of idiots, I certainly wouldn't have called
killerkebab
27-04-2008, 01:58
Sorry to ask loads and loads of questions, but...
I left the stats thing running for a month without a reset and wondered if the numbers are good:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v59/KillerKebab/Games/poker.png
The amount of times I bet seems very low - but then I don't win any more than half the showdowns I get put into. Lack of aggression?
Davey_Pitch
27-04-2008, 02:45
Just checked my own stats, and I win 16% of games, but I only see 22% of the flops (38% of the flops I see I win), so my personal play is obviously much tighter in that I'll only play premium hands. I think I'm aggressive when I'm playing though, as I bet 9% of the time, and raise 13% of the time, though that's easier to do with premium hands.
Personally, I think if you're seeing 51% of the flops you're playing too many hands. That's just my opinion though and I'm by no means an expert player.
Sorry to ask loads and loads of questions, but...
I left the stats thing running for a month without a reset and wondered if the numbers are good:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v59/KillerKebab/Games/poker.png
The amount of times I bet seems very low - but then I don't win any more than half the showdowns I get put into. Lack of aggression?
you're seeing far too many flops ( if playing 10 handed tables )
also bet/raise precentages very low
summary, be more selective with your starting hands and mpore aggressive with decent ones
killerkebab
17-05-2008, 01:43
Gem today:
killakebab has won the hand (£74.07) with Two Pairs, Aces and Queens (AD, AS, QS, QC, 6H)
Muppetry of the first order
SB is getting 14:1 to call my all in but I can just about see his logic as if BB gets beaten he is in money
BB is getting 28:1 and has SB next which covers his remaining chips
Game #6081532173: THUNDER Sixpak £5 (ID7646175) £5+£0.50 - Hold'em NL (300/600) - 2008/07/10 - 00:09:04 (UK)
Table "7646175 - 1" Seat 2 is the button.
Seat 1: Tomanne57 (658 in chips)
Seat 2: rotty (7960 in chips)
Seat 4: Chinch (382 in chips)
Chinch: posts small blind 300
Tomanne57: posts big blind 600
----- HOLE CARDS -----
dealt to rotty [3h 3c]
rotty: raises to 7960 and is all-in
Chinch: folds
Tomanne57: folds
Returned uncalled bets 7,360 to rotty
rotty: doesn't show hand
rotty collected 1500 from Main pot
----- SUMMARY -----
Total pot 1500 Main pot 1500 Rake 0
Seat 1: Tomanne57 (big blind) folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 2: rotty (button) collected 1500
Seat 4: Chinch (small blind) folded before Flop (didn't bet)
mate had a nice one recently, entered a £4 satellite which he won and got entry to the £40k gtd touney
over 1000 runners and he won it taking £10,200
he had a verbal agreement with his mate that they would split any big wins, he paid up straight away :)
leowyatt
10-07-2008, 07:35
For the Liverpool crowd I saw an advert for a texas holdem tournament I think at the Stonebridge Inn on July 10th. I'll try and grab the phone number tonight on the way home.
Had a night down at DTD tonight
main game was a £50 FO, doing well , over double average stack with 62 left
get AA in early pos, raise 3x bb ( 600 ) , BB reraises to 3k , I come over top for 18k all in , he calls ( only bigger stack on table )
He show AK and promptly hits straight on river
decided then on a 10 quid donkathon which was satellite to a £750 event, 12 left and again I had Aces when there is an all in ahead of me from big stack ( par for the course in this one )
I call and he shows 67 off, 7 on the flop and another on turn :shocked:
I'm taking up chess :'(
Graaaaaaaaaandaaaaaaaaaad...
What does:
DTD
FO (I'm guessing not f*** off!)
BB (not bb, though just as a check does bb mean bigger blind?)
mean?
Boo though :( You win some you lose some! Don't give up!
FO (I'm guessing not f*** off!)
mean?
!
hahaha i thought that ;D
Graaaaaaaaaandaaaaaaaaaad...
What does:
DTD
FO (I'm guessing not f*** off!)
BB (not bb, though just as a check does bb mean bigger blind?)
mean?
Boo though :( You win some you lose some! Don't give up!
DTD (dusktilldawn) is the name of Europe's biggest poker club ( in Nottingham )
FO is a freeze out, where you buy in once and have no option to buy more chips ( though after what happened tonight your other suggestion isn't far off :p )
BB is the blig blind
killerkebab
31-07-2008, 13:13
Here's a quick question - I'm currently doing cash tables a lot and breaking even after a major bad run the last couple weeks. I've noticed when I raise 3/4BB with AK and get called by one or two players I'm stuck on the flop (when I miss). Ideas?
I recently started betting about 3/4 of the pot and getting a lot of folds, but I know eventually it will blow up in my face when I get called - is it a good play to bet when you miss? (assuming I am OOP, or if I have position, that it is checked to me)
Matblack
31-07-2008, 14:30
Here's a quick question - I'm currently doing cash tables a lot and breaking even after a major bad run the last couple weeks. I've noticed when I raise 3/4BB with AK and get called by one or two players I'm stuck on the flop (when I miss). Ideas?
I recently started betting about 3/4 of the pot and getting a lot of folds, but I know eventually it will blow up in my face when I get called - is it a good play to bet when you miss? (assuming I am OOP, or if I have position, that it is checked to me)
Thats the crunch with poker, if you get called with a decent drawing hand but you miss you either take it on the chin and fold or you put up the money and see if you hit on the next card, sometimes its going to happen, people do get delt good hands at the same time you do. Always be aware that people can come in with a small pair and flop a set, many of us play tight and don't get this happen but you will get called and if you are playing a non pair then you have to decide if you want to see the turn and river or if its easier to just fold it.
I tend to play a lot of sit and gos so I usually have the chance to come back if this happens to me but with a cash game you are going to take swings. I have been known to go in over the top of a flop call or raise but thats a lot easier when you have a limited loss like in a sit and go.
MB
A raise with AK and 1-2 callers is what you want
After a missed flop I will usually fire out a continuation bet of 2/3 to 3/4 of pot, this will often take the pot there and then and produce good value compared to the times you lose
Don't do this on a 3 suited board, if doing it on a 2 suited or obvious straighting board then the bet needs to be higher
If a decent size bet is made in front of you then your options are a bluff re raise or fold, with fold being by far the thing you should do most
always remember AK is ony Ace high
Got a game at my house Sat afternoon/night
Normally use a fold out table top
Missus is going to go Radio Rental when she sees what I have in the garage :p
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y267/rotty66/14082008010.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y267/rotty66/14082008011.jpg
Busy Poker time coming up
£75+10 f/o at DTD Friday
East midlands poker final at Gala Saturday
then off to Atlantic City ( leave home about 4am to get flight ) for anywhere between 4 and 10 tournaments ( the less the better :p ) getting back next Friday :)
Played in pokerdownthepub national final yesterday
you start with a league format played in over 100 venues with 4000+ people entering
the top folks go through to a number of regional finals, the top 9 from each region go to the national final
so the last 134 played the national final yesterday, after 11hrs I finished 2nd
only downer was that just before the event the gaming commission stuck their oar in and limited the prize fund because the first levels had been played in pubs, I won £1094 but it would have been much more
killerkebab
20-04-2009, 14:54
Still pretty good mate, well played :)
Are you going to the DTD event in June?
Still pretty good mate, well played :)
Are you going to the DTD event in June?
which one? the Sky poker tour ?
that's a qualifier only one for players on Sky poker, have a couple of mates qualified but it's not a site I use
in the Great Britain and Ireland team championships in August, got a good team for this, me ( well the others can carry me ;) ) , my brother and 2 mates who have already won $60k this year
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y267/rotty66/2857_1132483865951_1042899917_39533.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y267/rotty66/2857_1132484985979_1042899917_39533.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y267/rotty66/2857_1132485065981_1042899917_39533.jpg
Grandad, I hope that's not your typical poker face in those pics ;)
Davey_Pitch
21-04-2009, 22:04
I do hate poker sometimes. Decided to play my first MTT for a while, a 460 player 3 Euro tourney, with 345 Euros to the winner. Played my usual tight but aggressive game, came close to going out with around 300 players left in, but a few good all-ins let me double up and I ended up hovering around middle position for about 2 hours.
Only 43 players left, and the antes and blinds were starting to eat into my stack as I was getting crap cards. I finally got a decent hand, KQ suited, and a guy before me went all in with about 20k chips (I had 8k). He'd done it the previous 3 hands, bullying people and getting easy wins. I couldn't lay my first decent hand in about 30 mins down, so called him. He turned over JJ, and the community cards were no help. I went out in 42nd place, with the top 40 getting money :angry:
cant see a lot with your play, always nicer to be pushing than calling but beggars cant be choosers sometimes
Davey_Pitch
22-04-2009, 08:45
Yup, if the action had been on me first I would be probably raised 3xBB (which were 1k and 2k at the time, with a 100 chip ante, hence my need to act quickly) and then re-raised all in against anyone who had raised against me. I know the strategy for KQ suited is to be facing as few players as possible with it (it's still only King high after all), so I wasn't unhappy when this guy went all-in and pushed everyone but me out. I'd make the same call again in the same situation I think, didn't have the chips or time to hold out for a good pocket pair to try and double up with.
with 8k and those chips/antes there would be no point with 3xBB, just stick it in, more chance of taking it down uncontested, after all you aren't going to fold to a re raise
Davey_Pitch
22-04-2009, 10:14
I've gotta ask as well, how did you get to be as good as you are? I know you play a lot which obviously helps, but did you use any books to improve your play? If so, any you can recommend? I don't think I'm a bad player but there's a ton I still need to learn so any help would be appreciated.
Who said I am any good ? :p
If you want some good books the Harrington on hold'em are the ones to go for
There are 3 volumes re tournament play though vol 3 was brought out when poker book cames and IMO is just milking it a bit, 1+2 ahould be all you need
other that that the practice,practice,practice :)
learn the basics such as position,pot odds and how to adjust game in relation to stack sizes, then move on to impied odds, table image etc
I prob average 30-50 online games and 2-3 live ones a week
correny ROI 11% online STT , 36% online MTT and well into 3 figures for large field live games
Davey_Pitch
22-04-2009, 12:20
Do the Harrington books cover stuff like pot odds and implied odds?
Do the Harrington books cover stuff like pot odds and implied odds?
Yes, they avoid the very basics of the game but cover those and stack size play in Vol1 ( the blue one ) the 2nd ( red ) goes into more detail and also short handed/heads up play
both have loads and loads of exmaples and scenarios to work through
book 3 is more a problem and answer book, I have not read it yet
would have leant you my copies but they are out on loan at moment
Davey_Pitch
22-04-2009, 12:28
Awesome, thanks. I'll go into town at the weekend and see if I can find it in Borders or Waterstones :)
Matblack
24-04-2009, 19:21
Came first out of 86 in a tourny tonight, it was only one step up from a free roll but I was still quite pleased and won a ticket to another round :)
http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/1972/77190116.jpg
Er, you may have noticed that my avatar isn't exactly a dead ringer for me :o
MB
Nice
and the poker win too ;)
Davey_Pitch
17-05-2009, 18:35
Had my best result in ages today. Played a €2 100 player tournament, won a few good hands early to get a good size stack, then basically had to post and fold for ages as I had complete rubbish almost all the time, or semi-decent hands but in completely the wrong position.
With about 30 players left I was sat in 29th place with 1260 chips, with the leader having over 10,000. Finally got a decent hand, a pair of 7s, and went all in, with 3 other people calling (though one was forced out through a re-raise). The other players turned over A-K and A-A. The flop and turn were useless, but the river came a 7! Quadrupled up, which is a first for me.
Came 2nd in the end. When I was heads up I had less than half the chips of the leader, so when I had A-3 on the first hand I went all-in to try and steal the blinds and try to rebuild my stack. He called and turned over 6-6, which held up. Still won €39 for my troubles, which is my best win in some time. The 1st Harrington book has already made a difference to my play, so hopefully by the time I finish it, and get through the 2nd book I'll be able to win tournaments like this on a regular basis :)
leowyatt
17-05-2009, 18:46
Er, you may have noticed that my avatar isn't exactly a dead ringer for me :o
MB
We recognise her though ;)
Well done Davey, good result
Well done Davey :) glad the books are working for you
had a bit of a bad run last 2 or 3 weeks, nothing much planned for next couple of months but have the UK and Ireland team championship in August with a £250k prize fund followed by a couple of weeks in Vegas
Davey_Pitch
24-05-2009, 04:37
Urg, had an absolutely awful run of cards today. Played about 6 cheap SNG tournaments in the afternoon, and in 5 of them I went out in a showdown against a hand I was at least an 80% favourite against, yet lost every time. Thankfully ended up the night with a win of a STT and a 7th place finish in a 30 man tourney, so at least some improvement there.
Davey_Pitch
25-05-2009, 21:54
Woot! Won a €5 30 man tournament for €60. Small change compared to Grandad of course (:p), but my biggest win yet. Very nearly went out on the bubble when I had A-10 on the BB, and the button went all in (as he'd been doing every round). I called and he turned over 7-4, yet managed to flop a 7 and 4. Went down to around 1600 chips (the leader had around 14k), but doubled up on the very next hand and started playing more aggressive, attacking the blinds and raising heavily. Ended up heads up against a really aggressive player (the same one who beat me with 7-4), who was actually really weak whenever I re-raised him. Heads up only took about 10 hands and I beat him when my A-8 suited beat his K-J.
That's me happy again after another run of crappy cards today. I was nearly considering giving up! :D
Matblack
28-05-2009, 15:48
Pleased with this
4th in a $5 game for ~$40 :)
MB
Davey_Pitch
28-05-2009, 15:53
Nicely done MB. How many players in total, 100?
Matblack
28-05-2009, 15:54
Nicely done MB. How many players in total, 100?
93 :)
MB
Davey_Pitch
28-05-2009, 23:36
I'm on a really good roll lately. As well as the €60 win a couple of days ago, I won a 30 man tournament last night (only €1 buy in so payout was minimal), and I won a €2 20 man tournament tonight, for a €24 payout. It about evened out the night as I went out before the money in 2 previous tournaments today. All in all though I think I've won something like 4 out of my last 8 tournaments. If I keep that record up I'll hopefully keep seeing my bankroll increase nicely :)
Davey_Pitch
30-05-2009, 02:43
I seem to be taking over this thread lately :o Just played one tournament tonight, a 20 man €10 tourney. Nearly went out twice but caught a few lucky cards, ended up finishing 2nd for €58. A bit disappointed I didn't win as at one point with 4 players left I had more chips than the rest combined, but didn't use that chip lead enough to bully people around. Still a €48 profit from one tournament is good enough for me :D
big stack, short handed agression is a fiundamental of late game play, watch the other stacks though, pick on middle stacks, big stacks can hurt you and short stacks get desperate
nothing much to report here,though have a few coming up
got a £75 buy in tourney at DTD friday
redtooth regional final Sunday
local pub monthly £30 f/o week after
and a bit further on, have a 2 day outdoor event at my house in July, £75 rebuy
and the UK and Ireland team championships in August
Davey_Pitch
31-05-2009, 02:52
I think I officially hate poker again today, or I should say, poker hates me. I played in 7 different tournaments, and in every single one I went out against a hand when I was a clear pre-flop favourite, every time. Hands busted included a pair of Aces, a pair of Kings, K-J against 6-4, and others like that. Some days you're the pigeon, others you're the statue. Today I was definitely the statue. Hopefully I can sh*t on a few people tomorrow instead :D
Davey_Pitch
31-05-2009, 15:44
Yay, just been the pigeon! Played a 30 man €10 tournament, and fought back from 18th with 20 people left to win it all for €120, my biggest win yet. Might be time to treat myself to an Xbox game now :D
Matblack
09-07-2009, 00:37
http://email.pkr.com/servlet/website/PersonalizedForm?irkE3hg0hNkgHtLgm9HtiHpngE.26tHps bKEUUYYCUAV
Pleased with that :)
Would have been more pleased if it had been a cash game rather than a points freeroll but it's still a win :) 1st out of 626 is pretty good I think!
MB
it's very good mate, not got the patience to play freerolls myself
Davey_Pitch
09-07-2009, 08:59
Me neither, I tend to stick to 10/20/30 man tournaments as I always do quite well in them and they seem to suit my playing style. Will be moving on to bigger MTTs as soon as I build my bankroll up a bit more though, probably when I get back from Florida though.
Well done though MB, 1st out of that many players is always a hard thing to do :)
Matblack
09-07-2009, 12:03
My BR was low and you get all these points from PKR which you can use to buy stuff (I already have the stuff I want) or use in freerolls, so I thought I'd have a punt. Helped out on the payroll side of things :)
MB
Me neither, I tend to stick to 10/20/30 man tournaments as I always do quite well in them and they seem to suit my playing style. Will be moving on to bigger MTTs as soon as I build my bankroll up a bit more though, probably when I get back from Florida though.
Well done though MB, 1st out of that many players is always a hard thing to do :)
why "move up" you just increase variance, turbo 6 man SNGs suit me so that's what I play, save the large field poker for live games where I don't have other distractions
Matblack
24-07-2009, 13:13
Two more wins in the last week, Wednesday 3rd out of 208 in a Terminator Speed Tourney for $70 and today 2nd in a Omaha Regular Tourney of 29 players for $37.
My problem is that despite having built a $150 payroll I'm not happy about putting in more than $5 entry fee which restricts my win levels, I really should move up but I'm quite happy at the moment :)
MB
Matblack
24-07-2009, 13:20
Heres a summary of my recent activities
Recent activity
http://www.pkr.com/images/common/transparent.png
Matb1ack (http://www.pkr.com/en/community/players/1984206/) finished in position 2 of 29 in the Regular PLO tournament and won $36.25
24/07/2009 11:38
http://www.pkr.com/images/common/transparent.png
Matb1ack (http://www.pkr.com/en/community/players/1984206/) finished in position 21 of 102 in the Break Thru tournament and won $15.96
23/07/2009 21:19
http://www.pkr.com/images/common/transparent.png
Matb1ack (http://www.pkr.com/en/community/players/1984206/) finished in position 11 of 855 in the $250 Premium Freeroll tournament and won $2.25
23/07/2009 19:53
http://www.pkr.com/images/common/transparent.png
Matb1ack (http://www.pkr.com/en/community/players/1984206/) finished in position 3 of 208 in the Terminator (Speed) tournament and won $67.86
22/07/2009 20:24
http://www.pkr.com/images/common/transparent.png
Matb1ack (http://www.pkr.com/en/community/players/1984206/) finished in position 8 of 52 in the Regular PLO tournament and won $13
13/07/2009 18:42
Not bad really :)
What I'm pleased about though is having got to grips with Omaha so quickly, what I need to so now is to learn Ohama HiLo, my end game also needs some work as I am in the money a lot but not winning the Tourneys as often as I would like :D
MB
Matblack
25-07-2009, 19:54
What a day! I've played about 6 games of 6 man speed $3 and $5 entry and won 4 of them, boosted my BR by $45 today which might not seem much but its not bad considering the level I play at :) Dead chuffed, although I did lose about $8 playing Omaha :D
MB
Matblack
25-07-2009, 19:56
This is in no way an endorsement of gambling but if anyone wants to sign up to PKR I have a code which can get you $50, although you do have to make an initial deposit and play a bit to get it back.
MB
Matblack
26-07-2009, 19:43
Get in, 4 more $3 table wins today and a Omaha cash win taking $10 away from a $1.60 stake :)
MB
Davey_Pitch
26-07-2009, 19:44
Nicely done MB. I had a bad day, 3 tournaments, 3 exits before the cash, each time losing when I was a pre-flop favourite. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day :)
Just watched Rounders for the first time, what a film!
Matblack
26-07-2009, 22:30
Welcome, I really must get around to watching that :) I haven't seen many poker movies, apart from the usual casino films.
MB
Davey_Pitch
26-07-2009, 23:08
Rounders is an awesome film, excellent performances from Damon, Norton and Malkovich (as usual).
Matblack
26-07-2009, 23:14
\o/ chalks up another $21 \o/
I've moved from $3 to $5 speed tables :)
MB
Lolololololol
90 mins into a charity game today
Player "dealer I have pocket Queens"
Dealer "yes, and ? "
Player "of clubs"
:p
Ah, the antithesis of the poker face. LOL! :D
after a quick game last night to teach a mate i'm looking to get some practice in before we play again, any suggestions of decent free play sites?
TBH you won't learn much on free play sites, you may even learn to play very badly
as it is for free and they can just reload then people do npt play in a "normal" manner
Poker stars have $0.25 tournaments and even this tiny amount makes folks play in a better manner
coolski, i shall take a looky at that then :)
been playing on the 2/4c tables to get a hang of things, dropped a bit, gained a bit, all in all i'm sitting about steady over the last few days.
had a look at the tourneys but don't understand the crazy naming so ran far far away :P
im presuming there's more detail in there i can't see, as all it shows is the name in the wee box and not the other information the headers say it should contain.
Just watched Rounders for the first time, what a film!
A lot of it filmed in the Taj Mahal poker room in Atlantic city, played there last year, huge but run down these days, having said that it was quite profitable and I will be back there in December :)
been playing on the 2/4c tables to get a hang of things, dropped a bit, gained a bit, all in all i'm sitting about steady over the last few days.
had a look at the tourneys but don't understand the crazy naming so ran far far away :P
im presuming there's more detail in there i can't see, as all it shows is the name in the wee box and not the other information the headers say it should contain.
2/4 limit ot no limit ?
re tthe tourneys
MTT is multi table
STT single table
SNG , sit and go , plays when full
Turbo, Speed etc , fast blind structure
any you want to know post here
2/4 limit ot no limit ?
flitted between both, but i was usually far too careless on no limit so went back to limited.
flitted between both, but i was usually far too careless on no limit so went back to limited.
the games are very different in how you should play them, for example the +ev of a small pair is much lower in limit than no limit with the reverse applying to suited connectors
choose one or the other to start with, Limit will teach you much more about pot odds / implied odds etc whereas no limit will teach you more about strategic play
yea that makes alot of sense.
i think i'm going to stick to limit to get a better feel for it.
i'm doing a chunk of reading as well, really enjoying the number crunching and stuff behind it without even playing.
for limit the Sklansky books are good, for no limit Harrington
I have bought the Sklansky one from Ebay a few weeks ago before I realised it is limit based , I paid a tenner + post for it but as it is no use to me if you want it for a tenner inc let me know
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280355183013
its says for advanced as in it wont teach you the basics of the game, it more about the maths and strategy
That's one of the classic poker books that should be on the shelves of all players who want to play seriously. In it Sklansky defines some classic things like the starting hands chart that everyone understands as being (typically) optimal.
One of several I have on my shelf.
:)
it is but it is heavily biased to limit play which I do little of, maybe a little spread limit at times but no often
I have just bought his "theory and practice" book which suits no limit more
This will no doubt look familiar to you then:
http://molehills.net/sklansky.jpg
Just a small part of my collection. :)
good collection, I have the first two Harrington tourney ones ( the 3rd was just milking it ) as well
have loads in ebook format too
So my complete bookshelf looks something like this:
Super System - Doyle Brunson
Super System 2 - Doyle Brunson
Poker Wisdom of a Champion - Doyle Brunson
The Theory of Poker - David Sklansky
Hold'em Poker for Advanced Players - David Sklansky
Tournament Poker for Advanced Players - David Sklansky
No Limit Hold'em Theory and Practice - David Sklansky
Harrington on Hold'em Vol. 1 - Dan Harrington
Harrington on Hold'em Vol. 2 - Dan Harrington
Harrington on Hold'em Vol. 3 - Dan Harrington
Harrington on Cash Games Vol. 1 - Dan Harrington
Harrington on Cash Games Vol. 2 - Dan Harrington
Caro's Book of Poker Tells - Mike Care
The Book of Bluffs: How to bluff and win at poker - Matt Lessinger
How to Win No Limit Hold'em Tournaments - Vines & McEvoy
Every Hand Revealed - Gus Hansen
and I'm not finished there as I want to expand my collection into PLO, Stud and Draw games too.
I hear the Hansen book is good
I know Caro is the definitive book on the subject but have you found it useful ?
The Hansen book is a very good read.
The Caro book is good no doubt, but the photo's are in desperate need of updating as they are black and white and old - so unclear. Combined with a good book on body language and you have a good combination for reading people - just so long as you don't base your whole game around it!
Davey_Pitch
24-08-2009, 11:47
I've got Sklansky's Theorem of Poker book somewhere, and Harrington's first two books. I quite fancy getting Daniel Negreanu's books on small ball poker as he advocates a more aggressive style than I play and I feel it would be useful to try and add that style to my own.
I've got Sklansky's Theorem of Poker book somewhere, and Harrington's first two books. I quite fancy getting Daniel Negreanu's books on small ball poker as he advocates a more aggressive style than I play and I feel it would be useful to try and add that style to my own.
Small ball is a very specific style of poker that is best suited to people who are very good at playing post flop. The main feature of it is that it is a loose aggressive style that has you going into (statistically) too many pots, but seeing the cheaply by making smaller than usual raises and therefore (hopefully) controlling the size of the pot. You do this mainly from position obviously.
This means that it is much harder for your opponents to put you on a hand, you steal more pots and hopefully when you hit an unlikely monster you get paid off big time.
However the big problem with it is you are basically playing a style that leaves you open to traps yourself - hence the reason you must be a very good post flop player to not lose the shirt from your back.
If you play this style at a table and your table image shows you are obviously playing this style, then you can expect two reactions from your more observant opponents - Firstly you will be re-raised preflop alot more, Secondly the good players will slow play the nuts against you aiming to get all your chips in on the river. If someone else is still in the hand with you on the turn you are very likely holding the second best hand.
It's usually a good idea when other players pick up on what you are doing to tighten up significantly so protecting yourself and hopefully getting a call when you do have the nuts.
Very fun style to play though - if you can handle it. :)
Davey_Pitch
24-08-2009, 14:14
Yup, sounds exactly how I thought it would. I tend to play a tight but aggressive game, playing premium hands but raising when I have them, mixing in some slow play and trapping just so my opponents can't get an easy read on me. I think trying small ball in some cheap tournaments would be interesting as playing tight as I do tends to make post-flop play a little easier - I either hit my hand or I don't, making decision making a little easier. Trying different styles can only benefit me as a player I think, even it means being able to spot people playing the same style easier.
Huge game in Nottingham tomorrow at DTD
Line up includes
Doyle Brunson
Phil Hellmuth
Annette Obestrad
and loads of others
couple of weeks ago was looking for a late night tourney on Fremont St, had choice of the $75 at Binions or the $60 at the Nugget
Chose Binions and heard next morning that loads of the pros had been out on the beer and turned up to play the Nugget $60 game
missed out on playing with the likes of Hellmuth,Ivey, Gavin Smith and about 20 others :mad:
had a shocker in Vegas, cashed 1 touney in 2 weeks
TBH all the tourmeys under about $150 are a joke out there, off to Atlantic City in Novemeber, poker is loads better there
May not mean a lot to the non poker folks but I was playing Daniel Negreanu in an online cash game last night
By some way the biggest name I have ever played against
Even I know that name :D
Nice one :)
Even I know that name :D
well that I didn't expect ;D
Never heard of him :) Vut more importantly, did you win?
well that I didn't expect ;D
I pick up really random bits of knowledge at times :D
Never heard of him :) Vut more importantly, did you win?
very marginally
he is the world all time tournament cash winner :)
Davey_Pitch
01-02-2010, 14:56
Decided it was high time I got back into poker, so on Friday I downloaded and installed Poker Stars, and put £35 in which got converted to about $56. After a slow first day I had a great Saturday and Sunday, placing in all 3 tournaments I played, as well as making decent profits in the cash games. I've always stayed away from cash games previously, but decided to give them a try here and I'm glad I did. The standard of players at Poker Stars seems higher than at Paradise Poker where I used to play, even at a low level, which actually seems to suit me better, as I can read them easier and when I make a move, most people seem intelligent enough to actually spot it (which is nice for bluffing when I have a tight table image). It's taking a little while to get used to the software as I don't think it's as user friendly as Paradise was.
After 3 nights I've already doubled my bank roll (up to $117 now), and hope the streak can continue. I've fallen back in love with poker again :D
bloody hell I didn't think amywhere had a worse standard that Stars
having said that I managed my first ever annual loss on there ( nothing significant ) problem I have is playing bigger stakes when ****ed :p
sounds like you doing well mate
if ever you fancy coming down for a weekend we can go to DTD and the girlies can do what girlies do ( get pissed probably )
Davey_Pitch
03-02-2010, 22:49
Heh, I may have over-estimated the skill level, as I've lost several of my most recent tournaments through idiots being in the hand when they have no business, and getting lucky. Now a little down overall since I started, but early days and I know it'll get better.
Sounds like a plan that, may well take you up on it at some point when I get enough spare cash :)
leowyatt
03-02-2010, 22:57
sounds like sour grapes to me Davey :p
Davey_Pitch
03-02-2010, 23:03
Not at all, when I raise 4xBB with J-J, I don't expect some muppet to call with 10-4, and then flop a 10 and a 4. That hand has no business calling a 4xBB raise whatsoever. :p
leowyatt
03-02-2010, 23:12
but surely "that's poker!" ;)
oh and don't worry I'd probably be that muppet :p
Davey_Pitch
04-02-2010, 00:53
Heh, "that's poker" is my pair of queens getting beaten by a pair of jacks. It's annoying but it happens. Someone calling a big raise with 10-4 is just plain silly. :p
...but they won, right? Is that what you're saying?
Davey_Pitch
04-02-2010, 11:42
Yes, they won :p
Fair play to them then ;D
This will prob really mean nothing to anyone but had a coaching day with some of top UK pros
Paul Jackson
Marc Goodwin
Paul Zimbler and James Browning
the level of thought analysis these guys apply is amazing
at end of day we had a small tournament and I won a seat to next seminar ( worth £325 ) :)
Fair play to them then ;D
They won because they got lucky, not because they were good. Whilst losing hands to these players is annoying, I love to see them at my table because they are idiots and you can read them like a book - very easy to beat.
Davey_Pitch
22-02-2010, 22:12
They won because they got lucky, not because they were good. Whilst losing hands to these players is annoying, I love to see them at my table because they are idiots and you can read them like a book - very easy to beat.
Indeed, just really annoying when you read them so well and then they get lucky and beat you. Sometimes you just need to realise it's not your day :)
I don't care whether they're good or not - they won - so as I said, fair play to them!
I don't care whether they're good or not - they won - so as I said, fair play to them!
Your excellent contribution to this thread duly noted.
:p ;D
My current library of Poker reading material, for those who are interested. :D
http://molehills.net/filedump/pokerbooks.jpg
Davey_Pitch
23-02-2010, 19:21
Nice colllection! I've only got three of them but I definitely want to expand my collection with some of them. Which would you recommend after the two Harrington on Hold 'Em books?
Nice colllection! I've only got three of them but I definitely want to expand my collection with some of them. Which would you recommend after the two Harrington on Hold 'Em books?
Depends on what you plan to play (cash, STT, MTT) and what level you consider your game to be at.
Harrington on Hold'em 1-3 should be on everyones shelf as should "The Theory of Poker" and "Hold'em Poker for advanced players".
If you are playing cash games then obviously Harrington on Cash Games.
If you are playing MTTs then Every Hand Revealed is a great insight into the mind of a winning player.
If you are relatively new to tournaments then one book I don't have but you should get is "Kill Phil" - it's the fore runner to "Kill Everyone".
"Kill Everyone" is probably the most advanced book of the lot and teaches effective modern MTT strategy - but it's tough reading in someplaces and I find I often have to go back over what I've read.
The Phil Gordon Books are very good reading - they're not strategy books as such but anyone taking their game seriously (and new to the game) can benefit from the contents.
If you are looking at other games aside from NLHE then "Play Poker like the Pros" and the SuperSystem books are excellent reading.
I consider my collection to be a good starting point for anyone wanting to play good poker - but it's far from complete. I expect to double it's size over the next year or two!
I would say Harrington 1+2 but not 3, 3 is just a load of example stuff brought out to exploit the poker boom
I haven't read tha Harrington on cash books but unless there is a big change from his tourney style I can't see it suiting modern cash games
The Sklansky books are regarded as the best for cash players
Most of the collection above constitutes all the regarded standards that you should read
Well apart from the Hellmuth one which would make a good doorstop :)
Well apart from the Hellmuth one which would make a good doorstop :)
Quoted for the truth! Actually it's handy to have on the shelf when I want to try something other than NLHE for a change, it's sections on Omaha, Stud and Razz are a reasonable introduction on how to play to win.
EDIT: The Harrington on cash games books are totally different to the HoH books - to the extent that I've not finished them yet. I'm crap at cash games and reading the first few chapters I can see why, but I'm sticking to stt and mtt games for the time being.
My cash play is still behind my tourney play, too many maniacs for my liking
have a couple of the Sklansky books but not read them, may try the Harrington ones then, I was just worried that if he continues with his mega tight strategies then that would not work in a modern cash game
My cash play is still behind my tourney play, too many maniacs for my liking
have a couple of the Sklansky books but not read them, may try the Harrington ones then, I was just worried that if he continues with his mega tight strategies then that would not work in a modern cash game
Oh god no, he goes to pains to point out that in cash games your standard top ten hands (pre-flop) are actually poor payers and you want to be playing hard to dominate middle suited connectors and the like (when it's cheap to do so) in order to take your opponents entire stack when you hit your straight or flush and he can't see it coming. Kill everyone has similar strategy for early stages in tournaments - basically when you are deep stacked you can afford to take chances with speculative hands that will likely double you up when you hit.
You must be able to play well post flop to properly play the aggressive style recommended.
Been on quite a run last couple of days
4/2/2010 4:16 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 1 $46.80
4/2/2010 3:32 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 1 $46.80
4/2/2010 3:04 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 1 $46.80
4/2/2010 12:54 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 2 $25.20
4/2/2010 6:53 AM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 1 $46.80
4/1/2010 9:04 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 2 $25.20
4/1/2010 8:31 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 1 $46.80
4/1/2010 8:01 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 3 $0.00
4/1/2010 7:20 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 1 $46.80
4/1/2010 5:44 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 1 $46.80
3/31/2010 7:37 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 1 $46.80
3/31/2010 7:28 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 5 $0.00
3/31/2010 7:08 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 1 $46.80
3/31/2010 6:33 PM $13 NL Hold'em [turbo - 6-max] $12.00+$1.00 6 1 $46.80
Looks like my brother had a nice result last night :)
http://www.dusktilldawnpoker.com/resultplayers.php?id=1423
I spy with my little eye something beginning with "Rotty".
:D
Just gone back to playing uNL cash games with a new way of playing and I'm cleaning up - need to sharpen up a few rough edges in my game and build the bankroll a little more and I'll start moving up soon.
Cash isn't the crap beast I thought it was but you must play good post-flop - which has always been a problem in my game that I am working on fixing. So far looking good.
:)
Been down DTD tonight, I did nothing (33rd out of 131) but my brother final tabled again
anyway my brother has about 6 x BB so ships the lot with 77 from button
he gets snap called by BB who has AA
flop is dealt 1 card at a time
4
7 ooooh from folks watching
A wow
turn
7 - place erupts
floor puts a tannoy out for "box of tissues to table 0"
river
J
as was said at the time if this was online everyone would scream "FIX" :p
I spy with my little eye something beginning with "Rotty".
:)
shhh ;)
some recent stats :)
http://img16.imageshack.us/img16/6034/69788986.jpg
Got the new Harrington book today and signed up on Pokerstars. Up 200 big blinds this evening - I wish someone had told me before how fishy stars is!
:D
All set up for tomorrow/sundays game :)
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y267/rotty66/Photo0185.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y267/rotty66/Photo0186.jpg
any suggestion that these are last years pics and not this years because it is raining and its all covered up will be entirely correct
it looks exactly the same anyway
took all day to set up, over £200 of food for the weekend and stupid amounts of booze are all sorted :)
Got the new Harrington book today and signed up on Pokerstars. Up 200 big blinds this evening - I wish someone had told me before how fishy stars is!
:D
be careful, Stars isn't fishy in general
If you want fishy try Ladbrokes
Stars is full of poker players
Ladbrokes is full of gamblers
be careful, Stars isn't fishy in general
If you want fishy try Ladbrokes
Stars is full of poker players
Ladbrokes is full of gamblers
Microstakes at stars is awfully fishy.
Microstakes at stars is awfully fishy.
ah, never played the microstakes stuff :)
My mate is playing in a WSOP Europe bracelet in London, most of the world's top players have been in this game
he is now down to the final table with £10.6k guaranteed and a 1st prize of £133k though his chip stack is not great
off to Vegas with him Friday so he should be a happy bunny :)
£40k (4th place) sounds like a fun time in Vegas to me. Well done to him! :)
£40k (4th place) sounds like a fun time in Vegas to me. Well done to him! :)
Thanks Mark
I went down to watch, amazing achievement seeing as he won the seat to the game
Just got back from the pub where he put a free bar on
Got a **** hangover and off to play at DTD in an hour, £45k prize money and televised, just what I need :p
If anyone still looking at this thread I though I would post a blatant brag ;)
just spent a few days playing in Vegas, played 12 tournaments, 2 wins, 1 two way chop and a 2nd
also had this beauty in ther Golden Nugget
http://img534.imageshack.us/img534/5552/royalf.jpg
Davey_Pitch
17-07-2011, 16:02
I'm assuming the flop was Q-5-10? That would be awesome, flopping the nut flush then watching it turn into the Royal on the river.
I take it you had a good time then? :)
Yes , thats how it played out, other bloke had 55 so that's how all money went in
That was my 5th Royal ( 2 live and 3 online ) , was nice to get it in a prestigeous place though
Had a great time thanks, next stop Atlantic City at end of August
Where do you play online now Grandad? I was FTP but now trying to find a decent replacement with a decent amount of rakeback.
Using Pokerstars at moment but so no rakeback as such, going to go over to the DTD online one shortly as their points scheme gives points that you can spend at the club so that suits me well
Winner winner, chicken dinner
http://www.dusktilldawnpokerclub.com/result-info.php?id=2509
Davey_Pitch
30-12-2011, 02:17
Nicely done, a nice present just before Christmas there :)
nothing serious but this humoured me
playing a game today with £100k prize money and it was reported by the poker press
I didn't cash but the report made me laugh
Gary Colclough - Rotty - is berating another player
"I'd love to know your thought process when you called on the flop?!"
Apparently he raised pre with AK, loved the flop of A 2 4, but clearly so did his opponent who called a chunky bet holding pocket threes, obviously forgetting an open ended draw needs to be able to hit at either end to qualify.
Fortune favours the brave, but fate loves the foolhardy and sure enough, he binks his five on the turn to catch his straight. Just to make matters worse, Rotty picks up trip aces on the river but manages to keep his loss to 31K in total.
Ten minutes later and I can still hear him asking why!
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