Poker : 2009 roundup

The end of the year is always the time to take stock of how well you did and to plan for the future… so here are my end of year thoughts….

I re-read my end of 2008 reflections and think I stayed roughly on my anticipated path… although my big gains of the year were due to a couple of MTT tournaments that  I was meant to be cutting down on !    Having managed to get a profit on the year for the first time though, I cannot be too hard on myself  :-)     The end of Nov I was around $330 up for the year to date, so just had to avoid having the worse month of the year in my December results.   Unfortunately I was about $100 down YTD by mid-December but a couple of uncommonly good sessions saw me end the year with $202 profit for the year

With the 2nd Poker League victory and a good cash in one of my Casino sessions, seems 2009 was a good year for my Poker !

In the summer I decided to get really serious about Poker as a business.   I first tried Bankroll Supply as a potential backer… although they were rubbish as I never heard a peep out of them!  My attempts to get good results paid off as I ended up with about $350 profit from my playing the Mansion House site, so wasn’t a complete write off.    I them switched my attention to Black Belt Poker (BBP) and the three months of serious play only saw a tiny return of $15 (but a profit is still a profit :-) )    Part of the reason for poor results in BBP was that I was trying to multi-table all the time.   As I was getting a lot of mediocre results, I went back to one table at a time and did find a good improvement in my results… so doesn’t bode well for my future as an Online Poker professional :-)

My BBP Sharkscope graph for STT looks kindof OK I guess….  maybe I need to stick to STT rather than play cash (as I have been doing)

So what about 2010.   My current plan is to have a real go at the BBP grading and try to achieve Purple Belt status.  This will take a lot of hard work, luck and time (and possibly money) so is a little touch and go, but will give it a good try and see what happens.

If the BBP grading doesn’t work out, I will probably go back to PokerStars and build up my bankroll (hopefully) concentrating on STT with the odd MTT thrown in.  Might also have another go at qualifying for an EPT event…

Good luck and happy new year to all…

Poker : Home tournament – end of season reflections

The 2009 season seems to have been a success from an organisation point of view :-)    Everyone seems to enjoy themselves, some new faces have joined us to keep a good dynamic and mix up the play, and the mix of games seems about right.   

The standard of play generally also seems to be increasing so the new rules for next year are coming in at a good time

For me personally, 2009 seems to be a bit of a breakthrough year for my Poker game (at last!) and my second league win in a row showcases my better recent performances.   My average finish of 5th place was significantly dragged down by Sean’s double bad beats on me in March (Yes, I still remember ;-) ) so although being slightly worse than my 4.8 average last year, feel I played a lot better overall this year.   Like Jenson Button, I did most of my good work early in the season so a slightly lacklustre end to the season for me just kept it interesting until the end of the year.

Most people got a cash finish during the year, with Andy being the most experienced exception, despite his 7 points paying finishes! but in the end was not an expensive season for anyone (not for the Poker anyway!)

Our two newbie's Daniel and Janice both made a big splash… Daniel for his two 5th places in 3 games and Janice’s maiden victory which certainly caught our attention !

Other noteworthy performances this year (in my opinion) were Darren for his 4.9 average finish (bettered only by Janice’s 1st place average)  and Lee who had an impressive end to the season, but was let down by a few poor results in the summer after a solid start

Whilst in a mood to look back…. having forgotten the history of our gatherings when asked about it, I just had to look back on the previous years results.   We started the “CamberleyBoyz” in 2002 (16 month season ending Dec ‘02) having been inspired by watching Late Night Poker on TV.  The previous league victors  have been:-

2002 – Bill (5 wins during the season)
2003 – Andy (8 wins)
2004 – Jon (1 win)
2005 – Alex (4 wins)
2006 – Simon W (3 wins)
2007 – Jon (1 win)
2008 – Mike (3 wins)
2009 – Mike (3 wins)

The rules changes for 2010 should shake things up a bit and make things a bit more interesting, so am already looking forward to the first game of the season and my change to make it three in a row :-)

Good luck and see you soon……

Poker : Home tournament – December 2009

The last game of the season and a festive spirit is in the air as well !    With 15 players, both Derek and Alex have both got a chance to take the lead away from me, but will depend very much on them winning and taking out lots of players, and me scoring no more than 4 points (due to the best 8 game results rule)

We also have a new player in Janice so more unknowns to throw into the mix

The “special” games always feel different to the pot limit rebuys, and tonight's is no exception.   Everyone seems more serious and focusing more than normal.   My game starts out fairly poorly and don't get a decent hand to play.   In the third level, I was just doing an Andy (pointing out how poor my cards have been) when I get dealt AT and raise it so everyone folds :-)  Next hand I get AK so raise it again, but everyone folds again… on well you can’t have it all ways I suppose.   Couple of hands later I am on the BB and look down at 7-2o   Unusually, everyone folds to Steve on the SB who just completes, so I decide to steal the blind and as the blinds are already 125/75 make it a 500 raise.   Steve thinks briefly then calls (to my horror!)   The flop of T-4-2 and Steve’s check makes me think he has probably missed so decide to fire at the pot and bet 1000   Steve thinks for a long time then calls, leaving him with 1000 behind to my 650 chips.   The turn is a T and Steve checks again….. convinced he will call a bet I check behind and the river is another low card   As Steve checks again, I am pretty sure I am ahead, so go all in.  Steve calls to show K-Q and my 2 takes a sizeable pot !  Understandably, Steve thought i was bullying him out the pot (which I was of course) so was just unfortunate I out flopped him and he didn’t improve

We were already at the break and I was looking pretty good with around 7000 chips.  Everyone got lucky as Karen and Sean had kindly supplied some lovely cakes for us all to eat – thanks chaps :-)

After that my memory gets a bit vague as there were many significant hands and lots of action.   I remember one hand with against Andy where I had pocket 3’s in the SB and raised Andy’s BB  He flat called but I flopped a 3 and check called all-in   Andy was well behind with a middle pin str8 draw, but the river saw him catch his card and he doubled up.  I still had around 5500 chips which was about average at this stage.   The next hand saw me with K-9s on the button and everyone folded to me.  I raised to 1500 but Andy went all-in.   I decided he must have a middle to high pair and put him on either T’s or 8’s and folded in the end… he showed J-J so I made the right choice !

It took until level 7 with blinds at 1000/500 before we got to the final table.   Janice had made it on her first attempt and the chips were fairly evenly spread, although i had just over average at around 9500 chips

My final table was a roller coaster ride… I remember going up against Janice when I hit top pair and she showed a straight…. later I was all-in against her with A-J against her 9-9 but hit an A on the rover… I limped UTG with KQ and was against Lee in the BB.  He checked the A-3-4 flop but called my bet… so I put him on something like 7-4 and checked behind the turn and river and he had 5-4 and rivered the straight (although the 4 was enough to beat me :-) )

In the end we were down to the last 6 and 3 hands to play.  I was all in with AK, Simon was all-in with 9-8s, Daniel was all-in with K-x  but Janice had pair 9’s   I was pleased to see a K on the flop, but Janice hit another 9 as well and took three of us out !   

The last hand saw Jon and Lee both with 21’500 chips and Janice with 17’000   Jon was in the BB so needed to play to win, which meant Lee also had to play or settle for 2nd and Janice had nothing to loose, so all the chips went in the middle     Janice took the pot and the victory and left an unusual dead heat for 2nd place !

Wow, an unusual game but very exciting and interesting as usual !  There were lots of thrills and spills and for me personally it was a wild rollercoaster ride after a slow start!

I’ll do another post about the end of year League results soon, but was certainly a great game and a fitting end to a thrilling season

Roll on next year !

Merry Xmas and a happy and prosperous new year to all

Poker: Black Belt Poker update

I started playing Black Belt Poker (BBP) as my Poker site of choice back in September.   I chose BBP as they offer a grading system instead of rake back for playing, and also have an active user forum for which you also get benefits for participating in.

The basic idea is to earn points every month to get upgraded through the rankings, really aiming at Blue belt where you get sponsored for live play !

November was my first really serious attempt and managed to get from Yellow belt to the Orange belt level.   The side effect (so far at least) is to have made some money at it as well !!    Despite not liking playing cash so much, I made about £70 on cash games and another £50 on single table tournaments (STT) so a good month for me on the Poker tables :-)

My Sharkscope graph (which only shows the STT) also reflects my success !

December may be a bit more tricky to maintain my current good fortune, but will be giving it a good go and will report progress :-)

General : My first trip to casualty (and hope my only trip !)

Managed to get my finger slammed into Lynn’s car door on Saturday !     I was OK to begin with, but about 15 mins after (I guess when the adrenaline had subsided) I did begin to feel a bit queasy and sweaty and nearly fainted !   Luckily I was able to sit down and get a drink of water so was OK but the finger was a bit sore and bruised !!

On Sunday the fingernail was completely black so called NHS direct who went through some symptoms and in the end recommended me to go to casualty

I duly went and was actually only in there 2 hours, which I thought was pretty good… especially considering they did an X-Ray (luckily nothing fractured) and poked about with a needle (you don't want to know!)

I don't think it will stop me shuffling the cards on Thursday but am sure we can work something out if it does ;-)

Gadgets: New laptop (with Windows 7 !!)

I couldn’t resist :-)    Having had a good run with Poker recently, I decided to invest in a new laptop.     The netbook I previously bought is fine for what I originally wanted it for (and will still be used) but the screen size was bugging me when using it to play Poker, so have gone for the Dell Studio 17 laptop to give me a decent machine to play on in front of the TV :-)

 

The main criteria was screen size and resolution, so have gone for the 17 inch screen.   It also has Intel core 2 Duo processor T6600 (2.2GHz) 4GB RAM and ATI Mobility Radeon graphics with 512 MB dedicated memory (more powerful than my Desktop and about one third the price !!)

There wasn’t a choice of operating system, so had to have Windows 7    It has had a couple of random hangs so far, but the usability seems much better than Vista, although has many similarities.    

Overall I am pleased so far, and most importantly allows me to have 2 Poker tables going simultaneously wherever I am in the house so giving me more playing time :-)

Poker : Home Tournament – November 2009

All players seemed excited and keen to get stuck in today… maybe due to the week delay from the normal date ?  :-)

My table started out pretty steady and passive, but the other table was a bit riotous and they probably had about 2 rebuys every hand !   Karen had been volunteered to do the running and she must’ve been getting worn out !

My game was fairly standard, playing tight and getting a lot of respect for my raises.   After a slow start I had 8-5 on the BB which was un-raised and was pretty happy to see that I had flopped a straight !    I checked to Lee who bet out and the two of us got all in, with Lee showing AA    He was drawing deal on the turn and so I took his chips then berated him for slow playing AA in that situation :-)    This put me up to around 2000 chips where I pretty much stayed until the break

At the break, the average chips were 2700 and that was exactly how much I had !   Lee had a whole load of chips on my table, but on the other table, Bill and Sean seemed to have it all sew up already !

After the break, I managed to fritter away a fair number of chips and so getting 6-6 in late position saw the opportunity to re-raise after Daniel had made a raise… unfortunately for me he had K-K !   As it turned out, a 6 came on the turn and I had knocked him out !     

As the blinds went up and the players diminished, Jock went all in for 1200 and as I was in the BB for 1000 I called, although with 7-7 I probably would have called a bigger bet anyway…. but Jock had J-J   My outrageous fortune held up and a 7 came on the flop, so we are down to 9 players

It wasn't long before we were on the final table but only had a few minutes before the final blind level.    With lots of small stacks and high blinds, it was always going to get messy.   Darren was out first, then after a couple of hands we saw a quick flurry of exits… myself included when my A-4 got turned over by Sean’s T-x on the river !

The last few hands saw Roger go out, then Lee, leaving the three remaining players all went all-in on the last hand (it was that close)    Sean took it down on the chip count, but had a huge chip stack since well before the final table so was a well deserved victory.

See you all next time !

Poker : Casino trip

Due to the addicts not being able to wait another week to play Poker, we decided to go to the Casino for the normal £10 No limit re-buy tournament

My evening didn’t start fantastically well, as seeing a traffic jam on the A329M had a split decision to come off the motorway or stay on…. so decided to come off and go the back street route.  Unfortunately it took me about 30 minutes to work my way round the dark and wet country lanes… mainly due to having to follow a train of cards behind some “Sunday driver” who was obviously trying the same thing !   

Sean ummed and ahhhed about coming, but in the end decided to join myself, Bill, Lee and Alex for the tournament, with the game kicking off around 8:15pm with a total of 37 runners

My table had a mix of talents, some being loose aggressive, tight aggressive, loose weak and tight/weak, which combined with my getting absolutely no promising cards make it very tricky for me to pick a spot to play a hand.   Whenever I thought about making a move with rubbish (as rubbish was all I got dealt) someone would raise or there would be 5 callers….   Finally I did get something like A-7 which I got my first raise in with after about an hour and of course everyone folded so I won the blinds :-)  (OK, so I was really wanting them to all fold…;-) )  

I don’t know what happened to Alex, but saw him walking off just before the rebuy period was over… I guess he didn’t have a great night !

All through the re-buy period my chip stack varied between about 1300 and 1800 (starting stack was 2000) so on the last hand before the add-on, having less than 2000 chips that you can rebuy if you have none, I decided to just stick it all in without looking at my cards.   Two players called and I saw A-6, which was actually slight favorite at this stage.   The A on the flop and 6 on the turn saw me win a huge pot (well, it seemed huge to me!) and we were at the first break

Mike : 5000 chips
Bill : 3800
Lee : 4600
Sean : 3300

With play much tighter after the break, I sat there for a level (20 minutes) without playing a hand, but the next level I looked down at AA in late position.  My heart started racing as the UTG player raised 3x BB.   I min raised and it folded to the UTG player who wet all in with his QQ   My dream hand held up and suddenly I was the table chip lead with just over 10’000 in chips !

I noticed Bill walking away from the table, finishing about 25th ?

When it came to my BB, I got moved to Lee’s table and was immediately to his right.  Unfortunately, everyone on this new table seemed to have a significant amount of chips… especially Lee who had over 20’000 !  I had to sit there and re-assess all the players to get to know them, so didn’t get out of line with any hands.    After a couple of orbits, I looked down at A-A again !   All folded to me and I made a small raise from the SB into Lee’s BB.   With around 5000 in the pot and draws on the flop, decided to push all-in for my remaining 6000 chips, but Lee folded (telling me at the next break he had 7-4 but did consider calling with his straight draw on the flop!)

It all went quiet for me again but was pleasantly surprised when it only took another hour for Lee, Sean and myself to make the final table (10 players)

Mike : 13’700 chips
Lee : 24’000
Sean :19’600

The final table is playing pretty tight, with the blinds now 1600/800   A couple of the short stacks get taken out before Lee gets a bit fruity with K-T (?) against 4-4, taking him down to around 3000 chips.  He soon pushes those in and is out in 8th place

Sean by now has a significant amount of chips, but then gets involved in a three way pot and takes out 2 players !  Not only has he now got a huge chip lead, but we are down to the top 5 players who all get paid !   (Thanks Sean :-) )

The last 5 are playing tough, aggressive Poker, with chips being pushed around the table (normally towards the one who bets first)    The next break sees :-

Mike : 25’000 chips (about average stack size)
Sean : 65’000

After the break I am struggling a bit and am short stack for a long time.   The other fellow who is also short manages to double up so I am a long way behind.    Decided to get more aggressive, but luckily also get a run of about three decent  hands where I can get all-in but no-one calls.   

Eventually a couple of other players get knocked out, with Sean still the huge chip leader and me being the short stack.    After some tense play I get all-in with K-Ts against Q-T and manage to double up.

Sean 51’000
Mike : 46’000
The other chap : 40’000

At this stage we all agree to split the pot equally three ways and the game ended at around 2am with us each taking home £320

A great game, made all the more sweet with some cash to take home :-)  Bet Sean is pleased he decided to come along as well ;-)

Poker: Home Tournament – October 2009

My house move the day prior to the poker certainly didn’t stop me playing but did stop me from being able to immediately report on all the action that happened…. consequently I only vaguely remember what happened now (even less than normally), so will be brief !

I do remember cruising along and being happy with my chip stacks, then with blinds around 200/100 and Steve with around 800 left in the BB, I put him all in with something like QT    He nearly folded, but called in the end with K-9 (?) and doubled up.  After that my chips seemed to slip away and was happy enough just to make the points

The final battle for the top three was also amazing, with Lee as the chip leader he took on Steve with A-J but Steve had A-Q   No-one improved, until Lee hit his J on the river to take out Steve in 3rd, then a couple of hands later took on Derek with A-Q against Derek’s A-K but Lee hit flush on river to win the game!  (I think anyway, but certainly won the hand on the river)

Any players who have better memories than me, then please go ahead and post a comment…. Normal service will be resumed next month

Cars: Bentley Drivers club at Brooklands

It’s been a while since we went to Brooklands Motor Museum, March last year being the last time I blogged about it, but sure we have been since then !

Anyways, yesterday was the Bentley Drivers Club day at Brooklands so we went…. no, I don’t have a Bentley but do like the majesty of the old ones and the looks and sounds of the new ones :-)

It was a lovely day and a good turnout, with plenty of cars on show, Bentleys of all shapes sizes and ages

It is amazing how much they have changed over the years

Both old and new still set the pulses racing, particularly when tacking the Test Hill

In the end, for me it is the old Bentleys which are the most romantic and beautiful

They just don’t make ‘em like they used to ….. :-)

Poker : Mansion Poker challenge – final analysis

Today was my last Mansion Poker session for two main reasons… firstly I am expecting to exchange contracts on my house move this week but perhaps more importantly I want to crack on with my BlackBeltPoker project (although if I get a positive response from Bankroll Supply then everything will change :-) )

My original intention for Mansion Poker was simply to try out for Bankroll Supply.  In the end, it turned into a challenge to see if I can really get in the hours of playing needed every week, and of course get the results needed, in order to move my game to the next level.  

I have no idea what ROI Bankroll Supply would be looking for but here are my final Sharkscope figures (which show a 9% ROI)

The previous ramblings summarised the figures from 10 days ago, but the final analysis from my own manual records show:-

From 4th August to 16th September I managed to play 25 days.   In that time I have played 153 STT games, either 10 or 6 seat (all except 4 games were at the $20 level)    It has taken me 63 hours of playing time and have made profit of £251.03 (which includes £36.38 bonuses)

These results can be broken down as :-

Ten seat table results

For 62 games played:

1st:   8
2nd: 11
3rd: 3
4th: 7
5th: 4
6th: 1
7th: 7
8th: 10
9th: 8
10th:3

Profit : £128.56

Six seat table results

For 91 games played:

1st: 17
2nd: 19
3rd: 13
4th: 18
5th: 13
6th:11

Profit : £86.09

OK, so a profit of £250 for a month doesn’t mean I am ready to turn professional yet, but am happy with any profit in the end :-)

Now I have set myself a nice benchmark, I will just have to try and improve month on month… but nothing will be happening until around mid-October now

Poker : Been working hard

I have been working hard this evenings session… managed 18 STT games !  (playing 2 at a time)

My results are a bit mixed….

10 seat table.   1 first, 1 second, 1 third, 2 eight and 3 ninth places

6 seat table.   1 first, 3 second, 2 third, 3 fourth and 1 sixth places

Total profit for the day…  £2.47 loss !

Wow…. lot of work for no gain…. but am sure the results tell me something about my game….. just not sure what right now as my brain is stewed from playing intensive poker for 4 hours or so…

Maybe I should play 6 seat games more… or maybe I should be less aggressive on the 10 seat games :-)

Poker : WCOOP Event 6 write up

 

Since registering just over a week ago, I have been looking forward to playing my first PokerStars WCOOP event

Having played the SCOOP in April, I had some inkling as to what to expect so had prepared myself and the wife for a long session.  It started at a very reasonable 5:45pm on Saturday so very easy time for me.   

When registering there were over 2000 players so was expecting at least 6000 to be playing.... so was slightly shocked when we started with 12'754 players.... and due to registration not being closed down until an hour of play, there were a total of 15'675 entrants !

The starting stack is only 3000 chips and the levels increase every 10 minutes so the first few levels sees a lot of uncalled for aggression, so I am sitting back waiting for hands and taking it easy.      The end of Level 3 (L3) sees me with 2690 chips when the average stack is 3156 (2690/3156) and am 10'815th place out of 14'004 players who are still left playing 10815/14004)

During level 4 I get my first big hand which is pocket Jacks (J-J)  My raise is called by one player and the flop is a great flop for me, being 9 high.  The other player bets out and I am a bit nervous so just call, he also bets the turn which I call and checks the river   I do think about re-raising as there are no scare cards, but have no read on the player so check behind.  I am pleased to see he has T-T which hadn't improved so I win my first pot !   The end of L4 sees me with 4100/3333 chips and 2672/13561 players

I am playing very steady although have the odd go at the blinds when I have enough information about the other players, but it's tricky as I end up moving tables 4 times so have to keep re-assessing my opponents from scratch.  

L7 sees me having made good progress with 5850/4817 chips and 2729/9823 place.     During this level a key hand develops where I get dealt Q-Q and raise.  A short stack goes all-in and another player calls, which is a bit concerning, but the 9 high flop looks good for my hand and bet out, then call the re-raise all-in.  Luckily for me.. BOTH the other players have T-T and I take out two players and now have a significant amount of chips (12'175)

L9 sees me with 11400/7841 chips and 1139/6072 place and is quite eventful.  I get involved with A-T against Q-Q but luckily hit my A on the flop to take the pot.  Then I get dealt A-A (actually the third time during the game) and get it in against Q-Q and take another big pot, so   L10 sees me with 25499/10426 chips and 138/4604

  L12 was a bad level for me as there is starting to be a lot more aggression and end up dropping significant chips, but getting K-K against Q-Q restores some of my fortune and am back to 20'000 odd chips

L13 has me at 20437/19399 chips and 874/2435   The blinds are now 1600/800 with 160 ante so are starting to hurt all but the big stacks.   It is also interesting as 2250 places are paid, so we are all near the bubble !

I am starting to play more tightly now and people seem to be all0in more or less every hand, so L14  has me pegged back to 16127/20825 chips and 1199/2258 place.  with only 8 people to drop out we play one hand "hand for hand" and the bubble has burst.   This is at 8:30pm so only 2 hours 45mins of play !

After that things go mental and lots of people start getting really aggressive and the number of players is plummeting all the time

L15 sees me at 12567/24277 chips and 1387/1963 place but then get lucky with A-8 against 9-8 and double up

L16 sees me back to a respectable 22324/34859 chips and 593/1355 but by now any hand you play will pretty much guarantee someone being all-in, so end up being blinded away until L17 I am down to 3 big blinds and toss in my chips just before the BB reaches me with 4-3 !  (hoping to have 2 live cards) but get called by T-T and am out !

I have ended up in 959th place at 8:55pm receiving $329.17 for just over three hours of play.

Whilst I am delighted to get a payout, it was a little disappointing not to get a bit further.   It seemed to all slip away in L16 and feel I should have probably pushed a bit earlier rather than hang on waiting for a hand.   

My dilemma is now what to do next... I am very tempted by Event #25, the $320 HORSE, next Saturday :-)

Poker : BlackBelt Poker

In my previous discussion about bankroll/sponsorship, I mentioned that Blackbeltpoker had not got up and running yet, but at last they have opened up their iPoker client by which you can gain points to earn your “belts” and go up the rankings.   The ultimate aim is to get to “Blue Belt” status which gives you a bankroll to play live tournaments !

As I am currently  embroiled in the MansionPoker challenge, I am not going to be able to do anything more than open an account and make a deposit (which takes me up to Orange Belt already :-) ) but hopefully (unless I get a deal with Mansion) will get cracking on this new ”project” in October

The group discussion forums are pretty active and I do join in with those, which will continue to do of course as I intend this to be my primary (and likely only) online Poker community that I actively participate in….!

Will keep you updated, let me know if you also join up and we can be “buddies” :-)

Poker : Mansion Poker challenge - update

My previous update was after only a few days, but have now been going for one month, albeit less one week as we had a well earned holiday.   In that time I have managed to play 105 STT games, either 10 or 6 seater (all except 4 games at the $20 level)

It has taken me 42 hours of playing time and have made profit of £133.20 (which includes £24 bonuses)

As my sharkscope stats shows, there have been good sessions and bad sessions

I have cashed 39 times out of 105 (37%) but my ROI is only 5% (according to sharkscope anyway)  I have also had 14 finishes on the bubble (13%)

Whilst I am not exactly “crushing” the game, I do feel comfortable at these stack levels and overall believe my game is fundamentally sound…. but do need to work a bit more to improve my results.   I just need that bit more focus, which should come by getting more time to play, and perhaps re-visit some of the strategy books and online articles to refresh my thinking… hopefully these steps will improve my overall Poker game

So what's next ?   Well, I will certainly continue with my challenge but may only have one or two more weeks of play before having to shutdown for a couple of weeks (due to the impending house move)  The good news is that Lynn is starting her college course at the end of September, so should be able to find more time to play generally :-)

Poker: Home Tournament – September 2009

There are 12 players for the £10 special tonight, but that doesn’t mean the action is any less frantic !

My game got off to a frustrating start… during the first level I got dealt K-2o twice and both times folded (as you would!) but then the flop brought not only a K but also a 2 !!   In the end I was a bit up and down, but by the break was still around the starting stack.  Andy was the only one on my table who needed his extra chips before the break, but otherwise everyone was fairly even on chips

After the break was when things got interesting , as with the blinds going up the pots were more hotly contested.    I had some good fortune when I got 6-8h and flopped a straight draw.   The straight came on the turn with a second heart and Lee was betting out.   The river gave me the straight draw (to the 8) but Lee checked… so was surprised and delighted when he called my pot sized bet and all of a sudden was table chip leader !!   

Later on, Lee flat called my BB and SB folded… but the flop was a load of old rubbish.   I had something like K-4s and there was one of my suit on the flop.   The two of us checked and the turn came another of my suit, but was checked again.  The river gave me the flush so bet out and Lee called – showing pocket A but loosing to my flush !    That’s the trouble with slow playing I guess :-)  

Lee was in trouble now and got down to 400 chips with the blinds at 300   He hung on to the BB but won that to give a bit of a breather.    Lucky for him, Jon got busted on the other table at the same time I busted Steve W so he sneaked into the top 7 !

The final table did see Lee bust out first quite quickly but the blinds are up so its starting to hurt the short stacks   

There was quite a long time before we saw another casualty and it was when I got dealt pocket A in the BB.  Alex flat called, then it folded round to Karen in the SB who called and I raised.   I was a little surprised when both Alex and Karen called.    The flop came something like K-8-4 and Karen led the betting with 1000 bet.  Despite being a little nervous, I went all-in for about 10’000 chips, but Alex insta-called   Whilst Karen contemplated, I was wondering if Alex had woken up with K-K … but my misery was soon dispelled when Karen folded and Alex showed K-Q !   My A’s held up taking Alex out and giving me a huge amount of chips (probably around half the chips in play!)

By now Darren was low in chips so went up against Bill but Bill took his chips and we are suddenly down to 4 players.

Karen is the short stack and is a little unlucky to push all in when I had A-9   I was always ahead but my 9 came on the flop to take Karen out.

We are now in the last blind levels so the chips are moving around the table very easily now !     I raise from the button with A-7 but Steve re-raises all-in with 4-4  Neither of us improve, but gives Steve the chips lead with around 24’0000 and I’m down to around 10’000 with Bill on around 15’000

Down to the last three hands and I get all in against Bill and double up.    For the very last hand, Steve has around 21’000 and I have about the same, so with Steve folding from the button, if I fold I come second but if I play and double up Bill I still come second, but if I play and take the blinds (or more) then win, so I play :-)    My K-T looks good against Bill’s 7-5 and I hit my K on the flop.  Bill then hits a 7 then 5 to double up and prevent my win, but I still take the 2nd place

Phew what a game…. it seemed quite tight and tense early on but then there was action all the way after the break.  There were several key hands and chips going everywhere so very exciting and several people had places where they can say “if only…”  That's why we love Poker :-)

See you next time

General: Cinema : G I Joe

Got to see GI Joe : The Rise of Cobra on Saturday.   It is definitely aimed at boys, with lots of loud explosions, carnage, gratuitous violence and a couple of hot girls in tight clothing…. what more do you want !

Nothing more to say about it really… the film really is that shallow, but was certainly entertaining.  If you want a more thoughtful comic book character, then something like Batman is deep, thought provoking, stylish and meaningful (compared to this anyway) but if you want a bit of escapism on a wet afternoon you could do worse….

Poker: the EPT dream is dead….. and a new one starts :-)

I was trying to qualify for EPT  Barcelona as described before, but what with everything else going on, I didn’t notice the date for the last qualifiers and missed the opportunity to try again !!

Looking at the EPT London schedule, unfortunately the date for this event is exactly when I am likely to be moving house, so dare not try to qualify for it as I may face the prospect of not being able to play in the final if I get through the two prior satellites !

So that's it then ? …… well yes for the EPT but luckily there is always something going on in the online poker world and as it happens, the Pokerstars WCOOP is starting on September 3rd :-)

I have spun up a starting bankroll of $55 (which I got as a dividend from some shares I own) to $130 from playing Blackjack on UB (tournaments and cash games),  so have got enough to go straight into Event 6 which is the $1 Million Guaranteed No Limit Hold’em event.   Even the timing works well for me as it kicks off at 17:45 on Saturday 5th September, and the wife has agreed to me spending the evening playing poker :-) 

All the stars are aligned and the omens are good, so maybe I will get lucky ;-)

Poker: Lee’s Casino deflowering

It was not that long ago we last went to the Casino, however Lee is now 18 so decide to organise a trip to celebrate

The best Thursday for us co-incides with the Reading Festival so bit concerned about traffic, but actually the roads within Reading are far quieter than normal… so seems all the locals are avoiding the area :-)

Despite Lee’s photo in his passport looking nothing like him, he joins up uneventfully and can enjoy the full range of facilities in the Casino

My evening started with the Roulette wheel being uncommonly unkind and took my money in about 15 minutes, which seemed to set the tone for the night

The poker players were called around 8:30pm so we all took our seats.   There are 45 players in total.  

I had Alex and Karen on my table and the other people were chatty and friendly so very pleasant table to be playing from the social point of view.   Lee had ended up on a table with Bill, so at least he had one familiar player

I played my normal tight style, although did flat call with some marginal cards on a cheap flop but never really hit.  There were a couple of occasions where my folded rubbish hands would have hit trips or something similar on the flop and would have won the pot, and the good hands I played seemed to get busted.  Had Q-Q against A-T but a T came on the flop, followed by an A on the turn.  My A-Ts got called by 3 players, then Alex bet big on the flop which had missed me, so had to fold.  

The best luck I got before the break was folding A-7.. as the flop came Q-7-x and was checked round… then an A came on the turn, so was a bit unhappy… then another 7 came on the river making me the full house !   Luckily for me, the player next to me had Q-Q for the higher full house, so would have lost all my chips !!

At the break, the average chips count was 4400 and our chips counts were:-

Jon   4300
Mike  5200
Lee    3000
Alex  5600
Sean   2500
Karen   4700
Bill  10800
Andy   2700

Prizes are for the top 7 finishers, with 1st getting around £710, 2nd £390

On resuming the game, my best hand was when I flopped an up and down straight draw on the BB.  Only the SB had called, and he bet the pot.  Despite it being a bit of a loose call, decided to and was very happy to make the straight on the turn and also have the SB bet into me.   When he called my all-in bet I guessed it would be a split pot, and sure enough he had 7-7 !

11pm - Sean knocked out

11:20 – Jon knocked out when his A-Js ran into K-K

11:35 – Mike got knocked out when J-J lost the race against K-Q  (about 25th place)

11:40 – Andy out in appx 24th and Bill out in 23rd

11:50 – Lee out in 21st and Karen out in 20th

We left Alex still playing at midnight, so hope he will update us with his progress

To top off the evening, decided to take the roof off the car for the journey home, but that was a poor decision as well as it started raining on the way back so had to stop and put the roof back on!   When it rains it pours…. :-)

UPDATE

Alex just let me know that his last hand came about when he raised with K-Q and got re-raised all-in which he called… only to see K-K !    Ended up finishing 17th just after midnight

General: Cinema – The Time Traveler’s Wife

Went to see The Time Traveler’s Wife last night at the local Vue cinema.

Unsurprisingly perhaps, it was not my choice of film so wasn’t sure if I would enjoy it or not.  In the end I did find it quite interesting and surprisingly engaging…. although this may have been at least partly down to the couple of pints I had before going in to see the film !

The story is one of those where you get drawn into the “what’s going to happen” aspect of the early stages of the film, but then I found I was making up my own subplots towards the end, as it got a bit predictable (especially as you keep getting glimpses of what’s going to happen by the plot and structure of the story itself)

Lynn enjoyed it and although overall I thought it was OK, it does seem to be one for the girls…..  GI Joe next time for me ;-)

Holiday : Hastings – August 2009

At the last minute, we decided to take a UK summer holiday, deciding on Hastings for no other reason that it is on the coast and we haven’t been there for about 20 years !

We went to Cottages4you.co.uk and found a nice looking place at Pelham Crescent

Saturday 15th August

Left at 12:45 and arrived around 3:15pm so not too bad traffic   M3 was the main trouble spot !   Flat is on the 4th floor, up steep windy staircase… need a rest by the time you get to the top !   Flat is small but functional.  Bedroom is at the back and is quiet as it looks out onto a cliff face,  the living room on the front overlooking the sea so can spy on activity on the sea front :-)  Shower room is a bit small and a bit smelly ! 

Walked out to find the supermarket to get our supplied but ended up wandering aimlessly until we found the tourist information.   Once we had our supplies, went for a walk around the old town, where there seemed to be millions of Fish & Chip shops, so inevitably the smell got to us and we had to have a fish and chip supper.   After that we found a pub in which to steel ourselves for the long trek up the stairs to the flat.

Sunday

Laid on beach as was bright, but is very windy.   Sun was out then got cloudy, so at 11’sis went to find a coffee shop (there are loads around :-) )  Came across the Station and theatre so picked up some brochures then went back to beach as Sun is out again now….. just got to think about where to go for Lunch now…..    Ended up having a Sunday lunchtime Carvery at the Royal Albion pub, as amazingly although there were lots of places doing Sunday Roast, none seemed to do Chicken (which is what we fancied)   After lunch had another lay on the beach, but by now is VERY windy, so after an Ice Cream went back to the flat for a rest from the wind and a nice cup of tea.

In the evening, just went for a long walk round town and found Alexandra Park, which was very pleasant, then to the pub for some refreshment

Monday

Not sure if it is going to be Sunny or Cloudy, so prepared ourselves for a Walking Day and planned route through Hastings Country Park   We went from one side to the other along the Coast, which had spectacular views, but hard work up and down the hills… was very sunny and hot !   We came out in Fairlight Cove so found a pub called “The Cove” for a well earned rest and drink.   We then came out along a road and hooked back up into the Country Park and got back to Hasting about 4:15pm covering appx 10 miles in total.   Needed and Ice Cream and rest on the beach to recover.   Although no clouds, is VERY windy so only stayed half hour or so, time enough for a quick paddle and a rest

As feeling a bit worn out, only managed to struggle down the stairs to the Italian Restaurant next door to the flat, but was very nice meal

Tuesday

No wind today, so declared it to be a “Beach Day” especially after our previous days excursions.

Did get a bit windy, but hired a couple of deck chairs and wind break for the day and was perfect.   The clouds cleared and was glorious day (out of the wind)   Even got too hot, so had several dips in the sea to cool off

After lunch it was back to the beak, with our relaxation only interrupted by the need for Ice Cream

For the evening we had a brief walk round the Old Town and ended up at a Pub called “Ye Olde Pump House” which was very Olde Worlde but did decent food, albeit with slow service

Wednesday

Today is our “History and Culture” day.  It’s nice and Sunny with no wind, so going to be a scorcher.   Started out at 10am for Hastings Castle then time for 11ises at the West Cliff Case.  Walked through to the new town to go to the main Museum after which had a sit in a park at the top of the hill for our lunch break.   Our punishing schedule then took our from 2pm until about 5pm to see a selection of small Galleries and museums, but some were not open on Wednesdays and ran out of time to see others, so not entirely successful but certainly got in  a lot of culture and history in the course of our day !    Ended up at the Fisherman's Museum on the beach front after which we had to rest on the beach.  Did take some photos whilst resting so it counted as “culture” :-)

After our mandatory cup of tea at the flat, went out for the evening meal to what was meant to be the oldest pub in Hastings in the new part of town (seemed a bit odd to me but thought it worth a go!)  Unfortunately they stopped doing food at 3pm and didn’t look all that historic, so ended up in the Weatherspoons pub opposite

Thursday

Designated a “Shopping Day” (not sure who came up with that idea!) was bright and Sunny, but very windy again

Hit the pavements around 9:50am (someone woke up early due to the excitement I think)  and went to the new part of town first.   Stopped for lunch around 1pm then hit the Old Town, then back to the new town again as is late night shopping on a Thursday !

Despite some temptations for both of us, we ended up only spending about £25 on the whole day… of which more than half went on food and Ice Creams !

We didn’t fancy going far for our evening meal, so went to the Old Town to “Lathams Brasserie” which was very nice and very filling  !

Friday

Woke up to a grey and heavy rainy day !  Today is our “Rest Day” but doesn’t look like we’re doing much resting on the beach, so ended up going back the Culture we previously missed.   Went to the Shipwreck Museum, then the Aquarium, then a walk up the hill to the Caves…. after which was time for our lunch so decided to have Fish & Chips again

Feeling very full, we then walked round the shops in the new town, then up to St Leonard's.   Was a nice walk, but as a destination was quite disappointing, especially as it’s very windy along the sea front

After couple of hours walking, we are ready for our mid afternoon coffee and cake (or two cakes in my case!)

We finish off with another walk down the beach and take in the Lifeboat station (and shop!) All in all an exhausting “Rest Day” !

We have also decided to leave Hasting this evening rather than early tomorrow, so pack up and leave by 6pm, arriving home around 8:30pm having taken the scenic route (A25 rather than M25)

Overall, we had a lovely restful holiday, where the most we really had to think of was where our next food or drink was coming from :-)

Poker : Mansion Poker progress report

In my previous Bankroll/sponsorship entry, I had been playing 4 days and made good progress.

Unfortunately since then, I have gone a bit backwards in terms of hit rate, but has been quite interesting experience so far.   In 10 days I have managed to play a total of 51 STT games (mix of 6 and 10 seaters), cash in with 19 of them, giving me a profit of £88

I am finding that the $20 level of STT relatively “easy” in that although most games are tough, there are normally at least a couple of “donks” who will play reckless and hopefully give you all their chips :-)   

Last night was quite tough for me though, as I went through what seemed like a huge number of bad beats in several games, all at the bubble stage so ended up going from chip lead to being out on the bubble  (actually, looking back I have finished on the bubble 8 times of the 51 games!) !!!   Still, that’s Poker, as they say….

It is quite tricky to play lots of games, one after another, but most of the time is quite fun and most definitely absorbing all the time

Unfortunately am on holiday next week, so will not be having any more games until Monday 24th at the earliest… just hope I don’t forget how to in the meantime ;-)

Will keep you updated how things go in a few weeks time…..

General: Nice meal out

Went to Clocke Hat Restaurant last Saturday.  The service and ambience was superb, choice and quality of food and drink was marvellous so had a wonderful meal.  (even being the driver didn’t detract from the experience)

Was there any downsides ?   Well, it was a bit pricey, but for a special occasion it is well worth the expense in my opinion

Poker : Bankroll/sponsorship

Want to play poker for free but still have the ability to earn from it ?   

You either need to grind away at the freerolls, or try to get someone to sponsor you

Luckily there are some places that will consider sponsoring you, but you need to be able to prove you’re good enough (and put in quite a few hours of effort on a regular basis of course)

I am currently registered with Black Belt Poker (http://www.blackbeltpoker.com/) but they haven’t opened up the grading process there yet for the sponsorship, but also came across Bankroll Supply (http://www.bankrollsupply.com/) that looks fairly interesting

For the Bankroll Supply, I need to play for a month to prove myself.   So far I have managed to play 21 STT and cash in 10 of them !   Fingers crossed :-)

Poker : Home Tournament – August 2009

Its a typical English August evening… yes, it’s pouring with rain ! but that did not dampen the spirits nor enthusiasm of the Poker players :-)

The evening started out with brisk business for the re-buys as everyone is in the mood for gambling it seems.   I sit back for a while but no cards come my way and find myself drawn into some dodgy draws because of the pot odds.   Soon find myself rebuying as draws don't materialize and am not getting any good hands to raise it up with pre-flop.

As the end of rebuys approaches I am delighted to see pocket A but have just had a rebuy so on 500 chips.   Sean before me goes all-in for 500 so I follow suit and we are called by two others (fairly typical for the night)   The pot gets checked down to the showdown but there are all low cards and a flush possible…. sure enough Sean has has hit his flush and takes a large pot.   In typical Sean style,couple of hands later he is sticking all the chips in the middle but this time looses to Roger, who is on fire tonight !

Sean does show some control by folding to my raise all-in when we are blind on blind, but Derek rabbit hunts the flop cards and Sean's J-7 would have flopped a full house (I was ahead with A-T) 

My big win of the night (I don’t remember winning more than 2 or 3 pots all night) was with 6-4s on the SB   There are about 5 to see the flop, which comes 6 high, so I lump in a pot sized bet and get one caller.   The turn is a K but I only have a few chips left so they go all in and to my surprise win the showdown with my 6 !   That gave me about 2000 chips and is about where I was when rebuys stop.

After the break I am still struggling to get any cards worth playing, especially when calling the BB is 10% of my chips !   I put in a couple of calls to see flops cheaply with mediocre cards, but the flops are never good to me so end up folding.  I do remember winning another hand but that only took me to about 2500 which is probably my peak of the night.   Luckily other people are in worse shape than me, and Derek is the first one out.  It was probably a relief for him as he’d been in pain with his cracked rib all night !   Immediately after, Jon on the other table gets knocked out to continue the reigning champions dire season  (Jon, you must know how Lewis Hamilton feels :-) )

Steve and Sean are the short stacks on my table, both now in the blinds.  Steve makes a move for the pot, but Sean's not great hand is better than Steve’s so another player goes down

More or less the next hand though, Sean is taken out by Simon and Karen gets busted out exactly the same time by Alex on the other table…. slightly spooky ? ;-)

Now with 9 players left, everyone is hanging on for the final table and it looks like I will be the bubble boy… however Bill (on his normal form) helps me out by busting Jock and Alex on the other table, just as I wake up with A-Ks on the BB   Lee has just raised but I am calling but unfortunately his K-K holds up and I am out in 7th

The final table of 6 is unusually early, Bill and Roger have large pile of chips and Steve W, Lee and Simon are under pressure now the blinds are 1000/500  

Steve W and Lee are early casualties and we are already down to 4 with two rounds left to play

It doesn't take long for chips to start flying around, mainly Bill’s but he hits a run of luck to double up against Roger.    He then gets lucky to take out Andy (who had been quiet all night as he was doing well… I am sure this has happened before!)

Roger gets busy as he is the short stack, but despite winning a couple of hands to get into 2nd, he runs into a better hand against Simon and is out in 3rd (receiving all the loose change in prizes , including Sean and Karen's coppers)

The final heads up is interesting but Bill’s luck has finally run out…. he is getting reasonable hands, but Simons are always slightly better….it is all over with 4 hands to play as Simon has enough chips to fold to a win, but even though the hands are played out Bill cannot persuade Simon to take any risks and Bill finishes second with Simon taking another deserved win

Great game, very lively tonight so can’t wait for the next one

General: Cinema “Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince”

Went to see Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince last night at the local Vue cinema

I thought it was a good Harry Potter film, engrossing and following the book (so far as I remember) but Lynn thought it a bit disappointing.   In some ways I do agree, but only in so far as the book on which it is based is slightly weak.    Also the film did not have the climatic ending of the book, so maybe that contributed as well

There were good “scary” moments and some good comedy moments in the film, so I think a bit of something for everyone.   Harry Potter fans will certainly want to see the film, those not familiar with Harry Potter will probably not have a clue what is going on though :-)

Poker: EPT Barcelona again

Last time I did OK, but still not getting the top prize, but this time round there were 18 people in the running, but I finished 13th after 20 minutes !

Just didn't get any good luck.... most pots were raised so only playing a few hands, but one hand I dropped around 400 of my 1500 starting chips when my A-T was re-raised by a really tight player.... my bet on the A-x-x flop got no respect and he went all-in on the river.  I was convinced I was behind so folded...

After that I was always struggling and ended up going all-in with 5-5 and was disappointed to see a call then re-raise all-in which was called.... one player had Q-Q but the other had K-J and hit 2 pair on the flop then full house on the turn so was victim of poor timing !

I don't have enough FPP for another go now... so will have to pay to try next time !

Poker : WCOOP announced

Pokerstars have announced the World Championship Of Online Poker (WCOOP) schedule, starting 3rd September 2009

Like I did before with the Spring event (SCOOP), I am hoping to Satellite my way into one or two of the events, so will update this blog with any activities (particularly if I get lucky !)

Music: Elkie Brooks at Camberley

On Saturday we went to see Elkie Brooks at the Camberley Theatre with Simon and Lil

I know of Elkie, mainly through her Vinegar Joe albums, so wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but within 30 seconds of her starting to sing, I knew we were in for a good night of music !

Elkie was singing brilliantly, with complete disregard for her age… and was also bounding round the stage like a youngster :-)

The first hour of the set was mainly the classics, which were great… the musicians and Elkie singing were fantastic, but after the break they focused mainly on the blues and in my view was even better

Only problem with such a great performance is that I will now have to take a look through her back catalogue and get a couple of albums !

Poker: Last chance for Late Night Poker qualification

After last night's late night and a busy day at work, I was ready for bed by tea time, but this is the last night for qualification to Late Night Poker so decided I had to give it a go.   My last attempt to qualify was not a great success and so playing whilst feeling fatigued and watching Friday night TV doesn't sound like a recipe for a great game either.....

The game kicks off at 7:15pm with 1464 entrants and the top 27 progressing to round 2.    There is a mix of players, some who seem not to have turned up and those who are chucking in their chips at every opportunity.    I am trying to play sensibly, but get some semi-decent hands that I have to call a raise pre-flop, but throw away on the flop to an all-in bet (when I miss) so my starting stack of 1500 is soon down to around 900.     Luckily I get a good run and start hitting flops, so by the first break after 45 min's am in 101st place out of 727 remaining players with 6315 chips (avg 3020)

I have the luxury of being able to bully when an opportunity appears, but mainly just be tight aggressive and push like crazy when I think (or know!) am ahead.   Overall I am doing OK, although get lucky a couple of times when I go in behind, but also find myself throwing away a huge number of rubbish cards that would have been winners... two full houses on the flop, several flushes and straights by the turn - never seen so many monsters thrown away in one game before !

The second break at 9pm sees me 46th from 190 with 16'916 chips (avg 11557) so still doing OK

The game starts to get a bit tighter now, as most of the idiots have been taken out so have to think a bit more, which is a bit tricky for me tonight... but not feeling so tired now after a couple of beers !

The next break is 10pm and I've been a bit up and down... but now in 26th from 70 with 34'671 chips (Avg 31371) so still hanging in there.      It starts to get a bit more loose, aggressive now, as the people in the relatively short stacks have to attack more to move up the rankings.... I manage to stay around the 20th to 30th mark and am 23rd from 49 players at 10:25pm

Down to the last 32 things are very tense.   I limp with T-9 behind 4 other limpers as there is a lot of value and am happy to see a 9 high flop and straight draw for me.    One player min-bets but I decide it's make or break time as think it unlikely he would have an over pair to the flop and go all-in   Unfortunately he had T-T and I don't improve so am out in a gut wrenching 32rd place after 3.5 hours playing time !

I am very disappointed I didn't get through, but on reflection it is OK as had I got through round 1, as then I would have to play round 2 tonight (starting at 8:35pm) and would need to finish in the top 18 out of 390 entrants to go through to the final round.  

The final round is on Sunday night at 7:35pm which only the winner out of 115 players will actually go through to the Late Night Poker TV tables !    They are certainly not making it easy this time round !!   Maybe I won't bother at all next time... it seems more likely I could win the lottery than get to the TV tables :-)

Poker: CamberleyBoyz descend on Casino

At last we managed to get another casino trip organised.  It has been nearly a year since my last trip and very, very nearly a year since the CamberleyBoyz went to the Casino, so about time !

My evening started out with my customary luck on the Roulette but also the Blackjack this time, so unless my Poker night is disastrous, I have won enough to pay for my Poker already :-)

There are 40 runners and the CamberleyBoyz consists of myself, Derek, Jon, Andy, Alex, Sean and Karen so confidence is high that some of will meet on the final table

I can’t remember much about the game overall, but I do remember that I was doing quietly well to begin with and peaked at around 5000 chips but then hit a bad patch when I bottled out with top pair and average kicker and frittered more chips away, suddenly finding myself very low in the last three hands before rebuys ended.   I ended up going all in and loosing the 2nd last hand, then sticking in my 2000 chips blind on the last hand but won it !   So in the end, I spent £50 on the poker and had won £60 before so did have enough winnings to cover my nights entertainment :-)

After the final add-ons, the average stack was around 5000 and the chips standings at the break are:

• Mike 5400
  Jon   4900
  Alex 10’700
  Sean 4000
  Karen 3000
  Derek 2500
  Andy 4100

Things get a bit hazy after that, but with the seat moves I now have Jon and Karen on my table…. and manage to take out Karen when I get dealt A-A !

There is soon more table consolidation and I’m on a table with Sean and Alex.   Things are getting tense and play is tight, then Sean goes on a bender and doubles up… .then soon sticks it in the middle again but gets knocked out this time (in around 15th ?) 

At last we have the final table, with myself, Alex and Jon all making it to the last 10 players.   Only the top 7 should get paid, but the table agrees to pay 8th, 9th and 10th £20

This is just as well as I get a bit too aggressive with pocket 3’s and get called by pocket 9’s   The 9 on the flop and runner-runner to make the other guy a flush was all a bit unnecessary in my view, but I was always behind so take 10th place and £20 prize

Just time to spend my £20 on roulette and get a drink, then Jon is out in 9th.  He has 4-4 against 8-8 (same guy I went out to) but again does not improve and is out in 9th.

By the time we leave Alex playing, there are only 7 players left.    In the end Alex split 1st and 2nd place prize money when they got heads up

Approximate finishes were:

Derek  30th ?
Andy   28th ?
Karen  20th ?
Sean  15th ?
Mike  10th  (£20)
Jon     9th     (£20)
Alex   Joint 1st !  (£590)

Not a bad showing from the CamberleyBoyz overall, and congratulations to Alex on a hard fought and well deserved top place finish

Poke: Late Night Poker qualifier

As there is little time left to qualify, thought I'd better have another go at the Late Night Poker qualification.

Started out OK and got as little above starting stack, then dropped some and then won a few hands, so by the break was 361 out of 978 (1743 players had started) with 1557 chips (avg 2929)

I managed to survive well after the break and had actually got to around 4500 chips when I flopped two pairs when on the BB (8-4-x flop)   Bet out and got two callers but the turn was a 2.   Shoved all my chips in and got a caller from some idiot with a flush draw (which the turn had given him) but of course..... (after all it had to be a bad beat story this time...) another spade came on the river and am out in around 831st place   

Damn shame, but it didn't cost anything so shouldn't be too upset... :-(

Poker: EPT Barcelona - 2nd try

After the first try to qualify for EPT Barcelona, I couldn't wait to try again ... so had another go tonight.

This time there were 18 players for the off.    After a reasonable start, I had got up to 1860 chips and 4th from 17 players by the 2nd level.   I then had a key hand, whereby with A-A I got it all in against two other players, who had Q-Q and J-J would you believe !   Of course a Q came on the flop, but luckily that player had been short stacked and I actually won more chips than he did from the 2nd pot    Even so, by the end of L2 I was in 3rd with 2350 chips (avg=2454)

L3 saw me get a good win and got to 2nd with 4755 chips by the end of this level

L4 was same solid play and we got to the top 9 players    As before, only 1st place gives entry to the next level, but top 9 get their stake back.... so will definitely be able to have another go !     Funnily enough, the 6th place finisher hadn't been at the table all game so you don't even need to turn up to win back your stake !

The end of L4 sees me with 7630 chips and 2nd place from the last 5 runners   Chip leader is 7700 so very close at this stage

The next level sees two more players quickly go, and one player is down to around 3000 chips..... but the key hand saw me with Q-J in the BB... the chip leader min-raised (as normal) so I called.  The flop of Q-J-2 was good for me, so raised the flop and bet the 4 on the turn.   The 5 came to give possible flush and was re-raised when I bet out, but folding now left me with only 2000 chips, so called anyway....  unfortunately this is not even a bad beat story as he had A-Q so was always behind !!    Ended up with 3rd place, so getting closer.

Oh well, try again next week I guess........

Poker : mid year report

Having been reminded about my objectives for this year when writing my previous post, I thought it a good time to review my main objective for this year, which is to break even in my day-to-day online game

On re-reading my end of 2008 musings, I realised  that I am veering off my intended route a little bit, but overall am keeping to my strategy

So far this year, I have managed to be more strict with myself on my Bankroll Management Strategy, but this at least has resulting in less violent swings in my fortunes.  

At the end of May I was down on the year, due to one very poor day in January, which was the only time I really ignored by Bankroll strategy as well….   just goes to show….  Luckily for me, June was an excellent month with a couple of really good results, which has really given me a great chance to achieve my desire of at leave break even this year as I am now up $200   

Whilst I am not really all that worried about it (as it is still a cheap hobby for me) I really believe my game is better than my results and think most of my “leaks” have historically been due to playing at a level over my bankroll and getting involved in too many “new” games, like the HORSE and 8 game.

This year however, I am determined to keep within my bankroll and am now comfortable with the games I play (I often win the 8 game or HORSE games….) so just need to keep my discipline and get lucky :-)

Poker: EPT Barcelona or bust !

In addition to my so far feeble attempts to qualify for Late Night Poker, my other main ambitions this year are to break even for the year. but more importantly to qualify for an live EPT event.   Pokerstars are running satellite qualifiers for EPT Moscow in August, but the one of interest to me is EPT Barcelona in September.  

 

I have just over 1000 Frequent Player Points (FPP) which you accumulate  by playing on the site, so was delighted to see a qualifier game for 1000 FPP with one player going though to the next round for every 10 players.     It was kicking off at 5:30pm so a decent time of day as well, so signed up !

In the end there were 16 players so only the winner goes through and 2nd-7th places get their 1000 FPP back as a prize.   The standard of play seemed pretty good, with most players being Tight Aggressive (TAG) and respectful of the others.    First hand I got K-K ! but wasn't expecting any action to my raise... as it happened someone re-raised me.    I nearly went all-in but decided to just call.... but when there was no A on the flop I bet out and took a good size pot.  The very next hand I got A-Ks so raised and the same player as before re-raised... again I just called but this time there was an A on the flop so bet out and he folded again !    Next hand I got A-5s and decided to raise again (mainly for the comedy value)  This time everyone folded.....

After that it was back to the normal rubbish to mediocre cards, so played it tight and steady.

It only took to just before the first break, before we got to the prizes (7 players) so I was now guaranteed at least another chance as I get back my stake but really needed to win it.   I'm 4th with 2310 chips (Avg 3428) so feel I have a chance

With a couple of short stacks, it doesn't take long before we are down to 5 players  (Avg 4800 chips)  I am now 2nd with 5270 and chip leader has 10'335, so still in there but have to get aggressive     Luckily I soon see pocket T's and re-raise a shorter stack who calls with A-4   The flop and turn are blanks making me about 94% to double up... but of course the river brings the heartbreaking A to take me down to about 690 chips !

Couple of hands later and the blind approaching I stick it in with Q-Ts but the lucky fellow who took my chips calls with Q-J and I'm out in 5th.    Obviously finishing 5th, 7th or 2nd are all the same, so had to go for the win.   Felt I played pretty well and had that A not come on the river would almost certainly have got to down to the final 2 (and who knows after that!)

At least I still have all my FPP intact and will be trying the same again before too long (probably next week!)   Lets hope for better luck next time.....

Poker : Home Tournament – July 2009

It was a hot night in Camberley and the silly season was upon us :-)

A crazy night of poker ensued, from what started out as a fairly typical night for me….

I started out steady but Jon was quickly scooping up the chips and getting a good size stack from the beginning.   I then had a good run of cards and managed to get a load of chips, some from Jon, Alex and Roger (so far as I can remember)  

By the break I was on around 6000 chips and looking strong, Jon had fallen back a bit, as had Alex and Jock who were a bit low on chips.  Roger had the double buy in to keep him going.

I was still going great and was hitting cards, but then Jock got busted out by Jon and Derek came to our table to keep the numbers even and my luck changed !   Derek’s first hand on our table  I had pocket T and raised the pot.  Derek in the SB called and Alex folded.   The flop came K-K-J and as Derek only had around 1000 left and the pot was 2700 I just put him all-in.  Of course he had K-T so immediately called and took a decent pot.   Couple of hands later I was on BB with K-T, Derek called from button and Alex was all-in from SB.   The flop came Ten high, so Derek and I checked, the turn of 9 saw me check call Dereks bet of 1000, and same on the blank river    Derek had pocket 9’s of course, so took out Alex and a load of my chips… leaving me quite short

Later in the game, Derek gave a load of chips to Jon, but Jon gave some of them to Roger… but now Roger was taking my chips as well, but that was my own fault for calling on the SB with 8-3 and getting a straight draw…..

Now dangerously low in chips, I was happy to hear that Lee was knocked out as this meant I had made the final table !   

I was actually the low stack on the final table, but Steve only had a few extra chips and was in the BB !   He didn’t get any luck and was out in 8th…. Derek was next up in the BB with a low stack and also got taken out so I am going up the rankings fast !   In the BB I had 1000 in already and 200 behind, but with 5-2 it isn’t looking good for me… not even the 2 on the flop cheered me up, but Jon, myself and Andy all checked it down to the river and to my surprise and delight… I won the pot !

Giddy with success, (and with the blinds now up to 2000/1000) the very next hand I see an opening when everyone folds to my SB, so go all in against Karen with Q-7s   Unfortunately my timing was a little out, as Karen was sitting in BB with A-A  which held up and I was out in 6th (albeit better finish than I was expecting!)

With the high blinds, Andy has to take a chance and shoves his chips in but doesn’t have enough chips to scare Roger off who called with K-4s   The K on the river is enough to see off Andy and the last 4 players have only 4 hands left to play   

Jon is almost all-in on the SB so automatically calls even though Roger raises…. but his desperate gamble doesn’t pay and Jon is out on the bubble

Sean is last in chip count so goes all-in from the button to win the blinds, next hand sees Roger all=in against Karen but although starting out behind, Roger hits his hand and leaves Karen with around 1400 chips

The last hand is a classic, with Sean all-in from the button, Karen folds to retain a few chips, but Roger calls.     Sean would have won by folding and Roger was guaranteed 2nd by folding, but fair dues they are both up for it and play anyway… Sean having A-A against Rogers Q-Q !!  No-one improves, so Roger takes 3rd, Karen 2nd and Sean wins

It was a lively game tonight and a bit more raucous than normal… must be the heat :-)  Certainly produced some exciting Poker so will have to turn up the heating next time ;-)

Poker : Late Night Poker is back !

I was delighted to discover that the “Late Night Poker” series is coming back and Full Tilt are running freerolls for online qualifiers.  See http://www.fulltiltpoker.com/late-night-poker for full details

I had a go last night (freerolls run at 7:15pm UK time) but only managed about 900th out of 2000 players.  The last hand was a bit annoying as a donkey player went all-in, a short stack called and I had pocket 7’s so decided to call as well.   The donk had T-4 and the short stack had A-J so I was in fairly good shape, especially with the flop of 8-8-Q and a blank turn… but the river of Q gave everyone a higher two pair!!  I would have almost tripled up for the river and been in good shape to get into the top 27 players who go to the next round….    Oh well, at least it didn’t cost me anything.   I expect I will be trying again :-)

Holiday: Weymouth - June 2009

Saturday -3 hours to arrive    Nice apartment.   Hot and sunny.   Went round town & got provisions, unpacked then went out to dinner at Ship Inn on Quayside (nice food large portions)

Sunday - decided to have a beach day, but had to buy me some swimming trunks.   Hot but a little windy at times, Veterans parade in the morning, very busy everywhere.   Evening went to pub 50 yds up road for Carvery (Nothe Tavern), which was large portions and very nice... managed a pudding as I didn't have a starter this time

Monday - nominally a shopping day as expected heavy rain, but morning dawned bright & sunny, albeit a little bit cooler with the stronger wind..... but ended up on Beach again in the morning.   After lunch only had half hour or so as the sun went behind hazy cloud.  So ended up having a nice cream tea and walked round shops.  Went out for Fish & Chip supper on the quayside in the Fish & Chip restaurant

Tuesday - Market day in Portland so get the tourist bus from the square, which took in the Olympic venue and the castle before stopping at the market... the views from the bus and from the top of the hill where the market is were spectacular !   Weather was cold in the wind, but otherwise sunny and warm all day !   Got the bus to Portland Bill, where was spectacular views but not much else, but did have an overpriced lunch at the local pub there before going back on the bus.    Once back, we had a nice cup of tea then decided to go to Nothe Fort   Was good to wander around and take in the spooky "dungeons" and the fantastic views from the top level.   Went to the square for a local pub grub, which was OK then had a nice walk around town ending up at the local pub !

Wednesday - today was forecast to be overcast and showers, so decided to go for a country walk     Of course it was hot and sunny, even the wind seemed warmer than normal.   Had a great walk round the coastal path and then cut back cross country and had a nice cup of tea when we got back to the coast.   Just set off back to town along the coast when it did start raining, pretty hard, especially in the wind.. but were well prepared (lot of people weren't)   After having our ice cream watching the rain, got back to apartment and had a nice cup of tea before deciding where to eat in the evening..... deciding to walk another 50 yds to the local pub as we were worn out !  (and it was Curry night)

Thursday - it's a proper Shopping day today.   Went out at 10am and started at the Brewers Quay shopping centre which took us until coffee time (11;30 !)  by which time it was hot and sunny again.    Went round town and got takeout sandwiches for lunch.  Had lunch on the beach as it was sunny, but still chilly in the wind and ended up with sandy sandwiches.   Did more shopping before mid-afternoon snack time when I had a cream tea    Back at the ranch, we were a bit worn out after over 7 hours shopping, but mustered up the energy to walk into town for evening meal.  After changing our minds several times, ended up at the "Moby Dick" on the front which did house special which was Chicken, Ham and Leak pie... yummy.  Also stopped off at the George Inn on the Quayside to try and complete the set of pubs which we had been in.... not many to go now!

Friday -  Designated our Beach/rest day but despite the good weather forecast it was quite gray and a bit windy but we went on the beach anyway.   Found a sheltered spot from the wind stayed until after lunch.   It was hot when the sun came out, but was all to infrequent and was otherwise a bit cool.    Went for a walk through the town and got a nice ice cream before talking a walk back through Nothe Gardens where it was a bit more sheltered from the wind.    Got back to the apartment a bit earlier than normal, so had a nice cup of tea and a rest.   Decided to go back to the Ship Inn for dinner, but in typical fashion we changed our minds (there is a huge choice! ) and ended up in a pub in town for dinner.   Wasn't fantastic food, but was OK (for the price) and had the bonus of the band doing their sound check which we ate (UB40 tribute band)

Saturday - after breakfast we just came home, taking about 2.5 hours as traffic was OK

Overall we had a lovely holiday and enjoyed doing the different activities.   There are a load of things we could have done but didn't get around to, so would be happy to go back there again