Vacationing and Poker

I have been in Destin, FL since Saturday, the weather has been great, sun is shining, what else could one ask for. We rented an "almost perfect" beach house with another couple... both happen to be poker players as well, both happen to play in the home league so it would be unrealistic to think there wouldn't be some poker playing happening this week.

First couple nights Chris and I played online. Chris plays at Bodog and I play at PokerStars. I played 3 MTT's and cashed in two. We brought us some poker chips and had a family night of poker. Kids bought in for $3, adults for $5. 2nd place got $5, 1st place took home the rest; I was the winner!!!

For the home tournament I had downloaded an app for my iPhone called the Poker Clock Lite. It's free app which works really good. It comes pre-loaded with 10 default tournaments; standard with antes, deep stack, turbo, etc. You can also create your own tournament or edit any of these. If anyone has an iPhone and you play poker, I highly recommend that you download this free app.

Online play and Instant Messenger

Another new rule to add to my list...

Don't use instant messenger while playing online poker. This distraction is pointless and can cause one to loss unnecessary bankroll.

OK OK OK I did this. I didn't lose excessive amounts of my small, petite, undersized, miniature, insignificant or rather trivial bankroll but losing 16% of my current online BR because I'm paying more attention to my IM chat than my online tournament is simply stupid.

Stupid is as stupid does.

Freeroll on Poker Stars - a MUST read

I received an email that stated this...


Welcome, PokerStars player, and thanks for supporting National Poker Week! By sending a letter to Congress, you are eligible to participate in a $10,000 freeroll tournament on PokerStars.

Send a letter using the same email you have registered with PokerStars. We will then forward your email address to PokerStars confirming that you have sent a letter. After at least 72 hours, PokerStars will credit your account with a special ticket that you can use in the August 1st freeroll. You will not be eligible for a $10,000 freeroll ticket at multiple poker rooms.

NOTE: You MUST use the same email address for the petition that you have registered with PokerStars. If you use any other email address, PokerStars will be unable to identify you as a player, no exceptions.

Click to continue...

New vs. Returning Users - What can I do better?

My readership of this blog is growing. In the last few days I have had 50% New Readers vs. 50% Returning Readers.

If you are a returning reader of this blog what I can do to make it better to keep you coming back?

If you are reading this for the first time or maybe just a few times, what can I do keep you coming back?

Do you want to read more about my opinions of pot head smoking donkey's, my bad play, my judgements on current live tournaments? Are there any postings that you liked more than others?

There is a comment area, leave your comments, I welcome the feedback and opinions. Feel free to pass this blog on to all your poker playing friends, I know we all have a ton of them.

PEACE!

Saturday on Stars

Cloudy sky's call for PokerStars. Pool was replaced with online poker.

Knowing that I can't deposit anymore money into online poker due to the Republican bull shit on Washington I have to conserve my online bankroll and its very SMALL. Needless to say I play micro stacks.

With that comes donkey's, fish, amatures and others like me. (You decided what category I fall into). The positive twist is there are mostly fish in the tank. I hate online poker, truly. I know it's the only way I'm going to get the experience I need to reach my goal (remember the name of this blog...) I played a $4.40 180 person SNG and came in 16th, doubling my money, horrible finish considering my play. Overall my play was first class until I made a horrible read and donked off 1/2 my chips.

I move to micro limit game and encounter this hand within the first few minutes"



MICRO GAMES ARE THE BOMB!!!

Come join me on PokerStars!!

PEACE!

Trophy Goes To....

Home league event #7 was another successful night. The top leader board is looking interesting. Chris H. and I are tied with 77 points. I have to honestly say I basically gave Chris 2nd place finish. I played pretty loose and stupid toward the end of the game when there were still 4 players and shipping alot of my chips in his direction. I would have rather gave (and I was giving them away) my chips to either Derrick or Erick. Oh well, winning is always a plus, taking home the trophy for the tonight is always the game plan.

After 7 games the score board is interesting with 48 points between last place and first place.



Disclaimer:

If you are one of the members of the home league and do not want my opinion of your play then please stop reading... do not scroll down. Leave. Go to another site!

































At the beginning of the game with all 9 of us still playing and two people in the hand the flop comes A-Q-4. Early player checks and player on button bets, EP raises all in and button thinks for a long time. He makes a comment that made me think he had a AQ, I was sure of it. I can't recall exactly what he said but I felt like he had top two pair and was confident with the hand. After this comment the other player tells him he is behind. Button player does make the call for all his chips and he turns over A 7. I WAS SHOCKED!

Calling all your chips early in a tournament like that with A 7. Wow. This player I know is a better player then he has been doing in this league. I do alot of stupid things in tournaments; I have no problem 3 betting a bluff, playing cards just because of position no matter what they are, even calling when I know I shouldn't just because I hope I can caught that stupid river or try to buy the pot on the next card, BUT calling all your chips with A 7 when you have to know you are behind with almost anything. Other player had pocket 4's and won the pot.

I'm not a good tournament player, I know this. I always say I'm a better cash game player so I have no right in criticizing another players game. It's just I know this guy well. I know his play well. I know he is better then that. I know he knows better then that. I was probably just as disappointed as he was when he was knocked out first. I still can't get that hand out of my mind. With all this said, I'm the poker player I am today because of this guy. We used to talk about poker all day at work. We used to share our hand history's and give each other our evaluation of the other person's play. This helped me be a better player and I hope it helped him also. We played online during our lunch hour, it was truly a eat, drink, play poker mind set from 8am - 5pm. I miss those days. My poker playing as not been the same without this great rapport between two players who had passion for the game. I still do, hope he does also. I miss those days.

I can see right now that Chris H. is going to be my nemesis for the next 11 months. I will conquer.

Complete Hand History

Decided to post my entire hand history for a recent SNG. Any advise on my play be it good, bad, or so-so would be greatly appreicated.

Tunica Update

Arrived in Tunica around 10:30 am on Saturday. Sat down at the casino bar and played some video poker until my friend arrived. Won $21.. good start.

At Harrah's in Tunica they have the Heat Wave Pool Parties which is basically like a Vegas style pool party... MUCHO FUN!! From 1-7pm it's adults only; DJ, beer pong, air hockey, jello shots, water volley ball, and much much more. It truly was a great time. Never expected to have a such a good time at a Tunica pool. We stayed there until around 6pm then we headed back to the room to get ready for some poker.

Thad and I put our name on the $4/$8 LIMIT table. While we wait to be seated, we go back to the video poker machines and I won $400 hitting quad's twice back to back.

They finally start a new table so we get seated. It was a fun table, alot of drunks (including us I am sure) but fun nonetheless. I played like shit but had the best time ever. Lost $100.

We had plans to meet Thad's g/f at the sports bar at 8:30pm and then watch the UFC fight at 9pm. On our way to the sports bar we stopped at a blackjack table. Needless to say, my $400 winnings from video poker went right back to the casino! FUN TIMES!

Sunday we get up and head to Memphis for the day and start out at Beale Street, walked over to Peabody Hotel to see the famous Peabody Ducks.. We just missed the marching of the ducks but they were in the fountain having a good ole' time.

We stayed in Memphis for a few hours then headed over to Sam's Town for poker. Thad and I started out at the Limit table again, then at 6pm I played in the $70 NL Tournament. Couple things about the tournament I didn't like. First they had 37 players but only had 3 tables putting 11 players at each table and having alternates. Why they just didn't have a fourth table I will never know. Thus, when you jam 11 people around a table it's not very comfortable.

On to the tournament... I was playing pretty tight at the beginning trying to learn the players at my table. Young guy directly on my left, typical young want-to-be poker player with his shades and iPod on, another guy who likes to smoke weed (I know this because he told the table) who likes to play every had is sitting three to my right. About an hour in the following hand happens...

Mr. Pot Head is on Big Blind, guy on his left goes all in for 1100, guy on his left goes all in for 1150, I have pocket 10's so I call the 1150, everyone else folds around to Mr. Pot Head. He thinks, and thinks, and thinks and decides to call. I am not happy about the call.

Flop comes A - 3 - A, I bet so I can get a feel is this guy has an Ace in his hand. Mr. Pot Head has about $650 less then I do and he goes all in. Now there is about 6625 in the pot with the blinds, ante's, and all the betting. I think about it and decide that based on Mr. Pot Head previous play for the last hour that he might not have an Ace in his hand so I decide to call. MISTAKE #1. I think to myself before I even made the bet after the flop that I will put a bet out there, if he calls or pushes I'm folding but instead of doing that, I call. STUPID. I actually thought out the play before making a move but then didn't do what I said I was going to do. I played that hand to badly.

Mr. Pot Head had A 3 to flop the full house. That hand knocks out two players and leaves me with $650 going into the first break coming back with $200/$400 blinds and $50 ante's. Not good.

After the break I am on the button so at least I can see a few hands before the blind comes around. Finally I get Big Slick and push my remaining $650 in. I win the pot to triple up. HEY!!

A few hands later, Mr. Pot Head double's me up again... HEY!!!

I continue to push and play pretty aggressively to start building back my stack. Finally we are down to 20 players and combine the tables down to two. I get moved to the 10 seat (which I hate) and ended up doubling one more time. Play continues for the next three hours until we are down to the final 6. Top 6 positions pay. Happy that I made the money but wanted more than just 6th place.

Blinds and ante's are huge at this point and I am short stacked so I raise it $4000 and get one caller, Mr. Pot Head. I hit middle pair on the flop, he checks and I push my chips toward the middle. This act, as I had done it, apparently looks like a string bet and the dealer wouldn't let me go all in as I didn't say "all in". So the bet ended up being $2500 instead of $6725 and Mr. Pot Head calls. He was chasing a straight and needed a 7 to beat my pair. Yep you guessed it, a 7 came on the river. MISTAKE #2.

If I had said "all in" and was able to do that, he would have folded. UGH. Live and learn, I won't make that mistake again, EVER.

I cashed, which is good. But it was a long 4 hours just to get my money back. End of trip I came home with $30 more in the pocket. Overall can't complain, had a great weekend with an old friend, got to play some poker, seen some of Memphis and still came home with more money.

Wednesday we play our home league.

Small Stacks Sit-N-Go

Played (3) $3.00+$0.40 Hold'em No Limit SNG this afternoon finished in second in the first one and third in the second, still playing the third one. Cash in the first two. Below is the last hand of the first game. Hurt he had the 7 of spades, I had the 6 of spades but I played the last hand badly.

Felt good to cash in a tournament though.



Then in second SNG, I get this hand. I can't believe I played this hand at all. I should never have called the $60... I mean what would have to come on the turn for me to call a bet. Unreal! Ended up finishing in third, pushed all in with pocket six's guy calles with J10 off suite, and a J 10 comes on the flop. Overall feel pretty good about my play.






Just had this hand in the third SNG, I think I played it great. I have been noticing that 7sensei7 likes to bet and then fold, so on the river he checks, I bet and he folds, not sure if I have him beat or not but I know if I didn't bet I would lose the hand so I had to bet. It worked!



Just finished the third SNG and didn't cash. Had pocket Ace's twice back to back, both hands lost to two pair! UGH that sucks!

WSOP, Tunica, Reading, Goals

I am trying to keep up with the Main Event and disappointed that some of the top pro's are out of it so quickly. I am excited that my friend Alan (who you can track and Twitter for all his updates) has made it to Day 2b and starts playing today at 12 noon. He told me it's something every poker player has to experience at least once. When he told me that it got me motivated.

See, Alan earned his way to the Main Event the same way I plan on doing it, via the home league. Anyone who reads this blog knows we play once a month and I am currently in 2nd place standings, but it's early.

After Alan's motivational speech I went to the book shelf and pulled out my Dan Harrington books Volume I AND Volume II. These are great books that helped me learn tournament poker and I often referral back to them from time to time.

If I am going to make it to the Main Event this time next year, I have to get better. Getting there is only part of it. My goals are as follows:

Continue to get better at tournament poker and continue to win month after month in the home league.

Make it to the 2010 Main Event

Make it to Day 2 of the Main Event

Cash in the Main Event

Be the 2nd woman only to Barbara Enright to make the final table of the Main Event

Make my teammates proud and some money at the same time (the home league members)

All of these goals can be reached with some hard work and dedication. I have always had a good work ethic, all I have to do is apply that same dedication to this goal, and I will.

Making it there simply isn't enough. Playing tournament poker with the same 8 people once a month isn't going to make these goals come true either, I have to and must do more.

This weekend in Tunica I'm going to play in at least two tournaments, simply for the experience. I'm going to give it everything I have.

I am also going to start playing MTT tournament online at PokerStars. Winning the cash will be the bonus, winning a field of hundreds is the goal.

Some people think I breath, sleep, eat, and drink poker but I don't anymore and that's my problem. I want that high energy love for poker I used to have. Watch out friends, the Poker Star as returned!!!

PEACE!

Tunica in 11 Days...

My best friend from Michigan, Thad, is taking a road trip to Tunica the July 10th weekend so now I have a good reason to go and play some poker.

Not sure if anyone else finds this odd but who in their right mind takes a trip to Tunica? I mean, local people go because it's closer than Atlantic City or Vegas or even Reno but Tunica. Apparently Harrahs's has some package and they are flying from Lansing, MI to Memphis, TN then taking a bus to Tunica for 4 days!! Who stays in Tunica for 4 days!! B-O-R-I-N-G

I haven't seen Thad since last years Poolside Poker Tournament in which he came into town play. (This pictures is of Thad and Dana at last years tournament) So if he is only 4 hours away I'm going to go see him. It's a good reason to play some poker. I promised my better half I would only play poker so that's all I will do.

I'll twitter from the table and update my blog so stay tuned.

11 days until live poker!!