It's been a good long while since the last time I posted anything on this blog.. and just about as long since I played poker on a regular basis.
Here's the deal.. on the same night I last posted on this blog.. I went to a home game.. a cash game and it was robbed at gunpoint by three masked men. Since then, lots of things have happened.. for example, home games aren't exactly common anymore. My side job, where I work as a texas holdem tournament host, changed up their rules and told me I can no longer play while running the games. AND.. I depleted my online roll for a trip to Atlantic City that didn't go so well..
So.. long story short, I took a three month hiatus from the game. It wasn't planned, it wasn't due to a losing streak.. it just happened. I got away from the game for a while. And I think it's done me alot of good. I feel great about poker again.. and I'm looking to get back on the horse.
In December, I put $100 on Full Tilt and turned it into $300 by January 1st, 2008. I withdrew my original donation and now I'm playing with all profit. I built that profit up to about $700 at it's peak four months ago. Since then, it's slowly been whittled away, $20 by $20 and I took out $300 for tournament buyins in A.C. So I'm left with $120 before tonight...
The Brawl
If you want to look up full descriptions on the Bmore's Brawl itself, please visit my buddy's blog.. but here's my side.
Tonight was the 28th Brawl, which is held once a week. I've probably played half of them. Right around the time of my poker hiatus.. I stopped playing this weekly tournament. I had done really well there too, and up until about a week ago I was still the top money winner on a pretty sizeable list of poker talent. I took off 8 straight weeks for one reason or another.. and jmlabrie18 finally took it away from me.
Now, I didn't come back and play just because I saw that. I honestly felt the itch today for the first time in a while. It's a great feeling. I really wanted to play. So, I figured.. it makes sense to play the brawl again.
I won it.
First time back in a new format with several players I'd never seen before. I'm not trying to be cocky.. but I seriously have great results at the Bmore's Brawl. It's my fourth win in 14 or 15 appearances.. and I got 2nd place twice as well.
I really feel like my poker mojo is back... and here to stay. Needed to refuel I guess, we all do at some point.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Thursday, April 24, 2008
3 for 3 and 3 for 5
Wednesday night is my usual online poker night. I'm a regular at Bmore's Brawl and I enjoy playing the Fifty Fifty. I haven't been playing much online poker recently and I got back into the swing of things rather easily tonight.
I played two $14+1 satellites to the Fifty Fifty, and won one of them, getting myself a $55 seat for $30 for the third straight time. Also, I placed 123rd/984 players to win $80 and cash in my third straight Fifty Fifty. I'm averaging a $30 buy-in for that tourney (b/c of satellites) and averaging a $130 cash rate.
Also played Brawl #15 and went heads up for the 5th time in the 13 tourneys I've played. AltronIV took it down. We both played great, and in the end, I picked up JJ and he had QQ. All the money was in obviously.
As for the brawl, I'm still on top of both the moneyboard, knockout board and I've won three titles. I've taken second place twice. The two players I lost to? AltronIV and Kibl.. both of whom are excellent players that i have a lot of respect for.
So, I'm back in the swing of things regarding online poker tournaments. I brought my bankroll back up to over $600 in profits.. and I hope to keep it moving forward.
I played two $14+1 satellites to the Fifty Fifty, and won one of them, getting myself a $55 seat for $30 for the third straight time. Also, I placed 123rd/984 players to win $80 and cash in my third straight Fifty Fifty. I'm averaging a $30 buy-in for that tourney (b/c of satellites) and averaging a $130 cash rate.
Also played Brawl #15 and went heads up for the 5th time in the 13 tourneys I've played. AltronIV took it down. We both played great, and in the end, I picked up JJ and he had QQ. All the money was in obviously.
As for the brawl, I'm still on top of both the moneyboard, knockout board and I've won three titles. I've taken second place twice. The two players I lost to? AltronIV and Kibl.. both of whom are excellent players that i have a lot of respect for.
So, I'm back in the swing of things regarding online poker tournaments. I brought my bankroll back up to over $600 in profits.. and I hope to keep it moving forward.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Kinda Funny Cash Game Story...
Ok, got a light-hearted story to tell right now.
This happened at AltronIV's house while playing a cash game with thebmorekid, my friend George and several other people we play with all the time.
We're playing .25/.50 No Limit, everyone bought in for something between $40-$60. We usually play .50/ $1 with buy-ins anywhere from $40-$300 but the game was meant to be a Saturday hangout and we ordered the UFC fight.
Anyway.. The hand went like this. I bought in for $60, was down to $46 at the time. I'm in the big blind and I have not looked at my cards (I try not to until it's my turn to act).
George raises to $4, thebmorekid re-pops to $14, everyone else has folded to me, I look down at pocket aces. I know I'm raising, I look at my stack and If I raise.. I'm basically pot committed with whatever I do. So I push for $48 total. George folds and thebmorekid takes a good 3 minutes or so debating what to do. My raise was $34 on top of his $14.. the pot had my 14 + his 14 + George's 4.. so it was over $32, not including any limps I can't remember. Basically, he's getting 2-1. But he was taking so long I couldn't put him on a hand.. it didn't feel like AK or JJ b/c he's obviously not taking that long to call. Maybe J10? 87? a hand like that.. some suited bullshit he's probably going to call with. I, of course, want him to call with anything he has.
After a boring 3 minutes of genuinely not knowing what he has or what he's doing.. he finally calls.
Guess what he had. Take a minute and think.. then scroll down..
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7-2 of spades.
Yes, he re-raised to $14 and found himself getting 2-1 with 7-2 sooooooted. Obviously, he had to hope I had AK, and he even told me because of my push, It looked like I didn't want to see a flop.
He blanks, I won the pot.. But here's where it gets interesting.
The table now gets into an open debate of what the preflop percentages were of AA vs 72 of spades. I did have the Ace of spades, by the way.
My first instinct was 88%-12%.. but no lower than 85%-15%. That was my range of thinking. thebmorekid believed it was lower, more like 80%-20% or 82%-18%. So what did we do? Bet on it, of course.
A small, $10 bet for fun. For the Ace of diamonds and Ace of spades versus the 7-2 of spades.. we agreed I would take 85.5% and up, and he would take 84.4% and below. Everything in between, basically 85%, was a wash. We get on www.cardplayer.com and look up the Texas Holdem Odds Calculator.
The percentage was 84.38%. That lucky bastard. I lost the bet by two hundreths of a percentage!! It's ok, at least I got him to double me up with 7-2.
This happened at AltronIV's house while playing a cash game with thebmorekid, my friend George and several other people we play with all the time.
We're playing .25/.50 No Limit, everyone bought in for something between $40-$60. We usually play .50/ $1 with buy-ins anywhere from $40-$300 but the game was meant to be a Saturday hangout and we ordered the UFC fight.
Anyway.. The hand went like this. I bought in for $60, was down to $46 at the time. I'm in the big blind and I have not looked at my cards (I try not to until it's my turn to act).
George raises to $4, thebmorekid re-pops to $14, everyone else has folded to me, I look down at pocket aces. I know I'm raising, I look at my stack and If I raise.. I'm basically pot committed with whatever I do. So I push for $48 total. George folds and thebmorekid takes a good 3 minutes or so debating what to do. My raise was $34 on top of his $14.. the pot had my 14 + his 14 + George's 4.. so it was over $32, not including any limps I can't remember. Basically, he's getting 2-1. But he was taking so long I couldn't put him on a hand.. it didn't feel like AK or JJ b/c he's obviously not taking that long to call. Maybe J10? 87? a hand like that.. some suited bullshit he's probably going to call with. I, of course, want him to call with anything he has.
After a boring 3 minutes of genuinely not knowing what he has or what he's doing.. he finally calls.
Guess what he had. Take a minute and think.. then scroll down..
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
7-2 of spades.
Yes, he re-raised to $14 and found himself getting 2-1 with 7-2 sooooooted. Obviously, he had to hope I had AK, and he even told me because of my push, It looked like I didn't want to see a flop.
He blanks, I won the pot.. But here's where it gets interesting.
The table now gets into an open debate of what the preflop percentages were of AA vs 72 of spades. I did have the Ace of spades, by the way.
My first instinct was 88%-12%.. but no lower than 85%-15%. That was my range of thinking. thebmorekid believed it was lower, more like 80%-20% or 82%-18%. So what did we do? Bet on it, of course.
A small, $10 bet for fun. For the Ace of diamonds and Ace of spades versus the 7-2 of spades.. we agreed I would take 85.5% and up, and he would take 84.4% and below. Everything in between, basically 85%, was a wash. We get on www.cardplayer.com and look up the Texas Holdem Odds Calculator.
The percentage was 84.38%. That lucky bastard. I lost the bet by two hundreths of a percentage!! It's ok, at least I got him to double me up with 7-2.
Golf Prop Bet
My friend George and I have begun a prop bet that, for once, does not involve poker..
We started playing golf together last summer, and both of us are complete novices. We shoot about the same scores, and ironically have the exact same set of golf clubs and shoes, both of which were a complete accident. So, I proposed a bet. We play 10 rounds of golf at 5 different courses and whoever has the lowest total score wins. The bet is $100. But we recently revised the bet down to 5 rounds or 100 holes (depending on if we have to cut short a round for whatever reason.)
Today, we played through the rain and only finished 12 holes because it became ridiculous. So yes, thus far I have shot 90 in 12 holes. I suck, I admit it.. but even today was worse than normal.
Rules to the Bet:
- We may not receive professional golfing instruction until the bet is over.
- Scores only count if we play together.
- When we play, there are no mulligans.. with exception to unplayable lies.. where we move the ball back 5-10 yards to make it playable (but not to improve the shot).
- Everything else is PGA rules.
So after 12 holes, George is holding a 7-stroke lead.. which means nothing because I'm going to crush him from here on out.
We started playing golf together last summer, and both of us are complete novices. We shoot about the same scores, and ironically have the exact same set of golf clubs and shoes, both of which were a complete accident. So, I proposed a bet. We play 10 rounds of golf at 5 different courses and whoever has the lowest total score wins. The bet is $100. But we recently revised the bet down to 5 rounds or 100 holes (depending on if we have to cut short a round for whatever reason.)
Today, we played through the rain and only finished 12 holes because it became ridiculous. So yes, thus far I have shot 90 in 12 holes. I suck, I admit it.. but even today was worse than normal.
Rules to the Bet:
- We may not receive professional golfing instruction until the bet is over.
- Scores only count if we play together.
- When we play, there are no mulligans.. with exception to unplayable lies.. where we move the ball back 5-10 yards to make it playable (but not to improve the shot).
- Everything else is PGA rules.
So after 12 holes, George is holding a 7-stroke lead.. which means nothing because I'm going to crush him from here on out.
Monday, April 7, 2008
Rocco's Rumble Update / Upcoming Borgata Summer Open
For those three or four people who have played or said they would play my Saturday night HA tournament on Full Tilt called "Rocco's Rumble".. I want to apologize for not having a game these last couple of weeks.
I work in television, for a news station in Baltimore. As of right now, I'm still part-time, which means my hours fluctuate and change every week. For the most part, I'm free on Saturday nights and can usually be home to play and run the Rumble. These past two saturdays have been different though. My station has been in a financial crisis due to the bad economy right now.. and has made several cut-backs, firing a few of my co-workers. Because of this, I had to cover a few extra shifts until everything smooths out and the schedule gets back to normal. So, the Rumble will again be MIA this saturday.. but it will be back and in full swing on April 19th. I will be sure to send out an email reminder to everyone, and I hope to see you at the table.
As for the Borgata Open, I have decided to plan a trip to Atlantic City from June 13-15 to play in one or two of weekend's events. I'm considering playing Event 5, the $500+60 No Limit Holdem on Friday at 11am.. but I'm definitely going to enter Event 8, the $200+30 Limit Holdem on Sunday at noon. Two people I play with at a weekly cash game have already won seats into Event 6, the $1000+80 No Limit Holdem on Saturday.. and I will do my best to win a seat before then as well.
I work in television, for a news station in Baltimore. As of right now, I'm still part-time, which means my hours fluctuate and change every week. For the most part, I'm free on Saturday nights and can usually be home to play and run the Rumble. These past two saturdays have been different though. My station has been in a financial crisis due to the bad economy right now.. and has made several cut-backs, firing a few of my co-workers. Because of this, I had to cover a few extra shifts until everything smooths out and the schedule gets back to normal. So, the Rumble will again be MIA this saturday.. but it will be back and in full swing on April 19th. I will be sure to send out an email reminder to everyone, and I hope to see you at the table.
As for the Borgata Open, I have decided to plan a trip to Atlantic City from June 13-15 to play in one or two of weekend's events. I'm considering playing Event 5, the $500+60 No Limit Holdem on Friday at 11am.. but I'm definitely going to enter Event 8, the $200+30 Limit Holdem on Sunday at noon. Two people I play with at a weekly cash game have already won seats into Event 6, the $1000+80 No Limit Holdem on Saturday.. and I will do my best to win a seat before then as well.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Back in the Flow
So, i went to my first live cash game in about 6 weeks. That's a really long stretch for me. I played pretty well. Started gambling a little bit later on when I didn't need to. My table, which was only 6 handed, was overall kind of tight. Good players for the most part, tough to make much profit. I ended up buying in for $80 at the .50/$1 game and cashing out with $90. Better than a loss I guess.
As for online poker, I took down my 3rd Bmore Brawl title on Wednesday. I am now the first to cross the 300/30 threshold... with over $300 dollars in winnings and over 30 knockouts.
As for this week and next week.. my posts are going to be at a minimum. I'm working a crazy amount of hours at my job, most of them weekends. But I'll be trying to get back into the fifty fifty shortly.. take a shot at some real cheeze. I'll keep ya posted.
As for online poker, I took down my 3rd Bmore Brawl title on Wednesday. I am now the first to cross the 300/30 threshold... with over $300 dollars in winnings and over 30 knockouts.
As for this week and next week.. my posts are going to be at a minimum. I'm working a crazy amount of hours at my job, most of them weekends. But I'll be trying to get back into the fifty fifty shortly.. take a shot at some real cheeze. I'll keep ya posted.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Slow Week/Thoughts on Poker
Not much poker to report at this point in the week.
I tend to work heavily on mondays and tuesdays.. not having much of an opportunity to hit the tables on Full Tilt. Tonight though is the highly-accredited Bmore's Brawl.. where I will look to defend my two gold bracelets, all-time money and all-time knockout leads. In the 8 events I've played, I've made 5 final tables and gone heads up 3 times.
Ok, enough gloating...
I have to work late tonight, till 9:00pm so I will probably Hellmuth that tournament. I really wanted to hit the Fifty Fifty again, but I won't have time to satellite in. I could just buy-in straight, but $55 out of a $650 bankroll is a heavy investment. I'm trying to manage my bankroll correctly.. and my doing on a mostly consistent basis that is the only reason I haven't gone bust yet.
It's funny though, I have noticed a weird mental game I seem to play with myself concerning online poker.. and really poker in general. I go through strange ups and downs in terms of my conviction for playing the game.
Some days I feel like I'm playing my A-game and I have this blood-thirsty need to hit the tables and my focus is dead on. Other days, I feel like I'm just playing hands...
Now, none of this has anything to do with my passion for the game. That remains, and will always remain, without question. But the thing is, when I don't get enough sleep.. or my mind is on other things.. I really feel those are the days I shouldn't even log on or sit at a table.
And with online poker, more-so than live, it's harder to get into the poker mindset before playing. Let me explain:
When you know you have a cash game or tournament to go to at your buddies house one night, you have all day.. the drive over and the 20-30 minutes before you actually get the cards in the air to mentally prepare for playing a solid game of poker. Here's another example: An Atlantic City trip. For those of us who don't live in New Jersey, we have several hours worth of mental preparation for entering the war that is the poker felt. When you get online.. you click "log-in", type in a password, scroll down a list, find a game, click open the table, click the blank seat, chose how much you're buying in for and BAMM. You get dealt in almost immediately, playing three times as many hands as would live, nonetheless!!
So I've come to a simple conclusion: I have aspirations to make lots of money online and taking down several big titles.. hopefully land myself seats in tournaments that are televised on ESPN. Anyone who is serious about the game has thought of nothing less. But.. that doesn't mean I have to play every waking moment of my free time online. I may want to, but it's not an optimal way of doing things. If I'm not feeling it or my mind is on something else, why play? I'd rather risk my hard-earned money on a day where I can't wait to play my A-game.
Look, I love poker... but I have a life. And in that life, I really don't think I'll ever become a professional poker player. I will play the game until God makes me physically and/or mentally unable to do so.. but I never want to rely on poker as a source of income. I want it to add to it.. but not syphon from it. You see what I mean? I'm essentially building my future bankroll right now online and live from my winnings, and If I continue to do so... I will basically free roll every game I ever play in my life so long as I never go bust.
Don't get me wrong, I want a gold WSOP bracelet.. but never going bust and buying in with someone else's money for the rest of my career.. Now THAT would be an accomplishment.
I tend to work heavily on mondays and tuesdays.. not having much of an opportunity to hit the tables on Full Tilt. Tonight though is the highly-accredited Bmore's Brawl.. where I will look to defend my two gold bracelets, all-time money and all-time knockout leads. In the 8 events I've played, I've made 5 final tables and gone heads up 3 times.
Ok, enough gloating...
I have to work late tonight, till 9:00pm so I will probably Hellmuth that tournament. I really wanted to hit the Fifty Fifty again, but I won't have time to satellite in. I could just buy-in straight, but $55 out of a $650 bankroll is a heavy investment. I'm trying to manage my bankroll correctly.. and my doing on a mostly consistent basis that is the only reason I haven't gone bust yet.
It's funny though, I have noticed a weird mental game I seem to play with myself concerning online poker.. and really poker in general. I go through strange ups and downs in terms of my conviction for playing the game.
Some days I feel like I'm playing my A-game and I have this blood-thirsty need to hit the tables and my focus is dead on. Other days, I feel like I'm just playing hands...
Now, none of this has anything to do with my passion for the game. That remains, and will always remain, without question. But the thing is, when I don't get enough sleep.. or my mind is on other things.. I really feel those are the days I shouldn't even log on or sit at a table.
And with online poker, more-so than live, it's harder to get into the poker mindset before playing. Let me explain:
When you know you have a cash game or tournament to go to at your buddies house one night, you have all day.. the drive over and the 20-30 minutes before you actually get the cards in the air to mentally prepare for playing a solid game of poker. Here's another example: An Atlantic City trip. For those of us who don't live in New Jersey, we have several hours worth of mental preparation for entering the war that is the poker felt. When you get online.. you click "log-in", type in a password, scroll down a list, find a game, click open the table, click the blank seat, chose how much you're buying in for and BAMM. You get dealt in almost immediately, playing three times as many hands as would live, nonetheless!!
So I've come to a simple conclusion: I have aspirations to make lots of money online and taking down several big titles.. hopefully land myself seats in tournaments that are televised on ESPN. Anyone who is serious about the game has thought of nothing less. But.. that doesn't mean I have to play every waking moment of my free time online. I may want to, but it's not an optimal way of doing things. If I'm not feeling it or my mind is on something else, why play? I'd rather risk my hard-earned money on a day where I can't wait to play my A-game.
Look, I love poker... but I have a life. And in that life, I really don't think I'll ever become a professional poker player. I will play the game until God makes me physically and/or mentally unable to do so.. but I never want to rely on poker as a source of income. I want it to add to it.. but not syphon from it. You see what I mean? I'm essentially building my future bankroll right now online and live from my winnings, and If I continue to do so... I will basically free roll every game I ever play in my life so long as I never go bust.
Don't get me wrong, I want a gold WSOP bracelet.. but never going bust and buying in with someone else's money for the rest of my career.. Now THAT would be an accomplishment.
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