Ezarc's Donkey Hunting

2011-01-13T20:38:00.000-05:00

Started rebuilding roll. Playing mostly 45 man turbos. Go big or die trying. Go me!

2011-01-13T20:37:00.003-05:00

I have registered to play in the PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker! The WBCOOP is a free online Poker tournament open to all Bloggers, so register on WBCOOP to play.

Registration code: XXXXXX 540655

Update

2008-12-05T23:51:00.002-05:00

Have cashed out a bit, run like crap, and then run like a god again. Haven't looked at my sharkscope graph lately but it must look like a yoyo for the past couple weeks. Looked through all my numbers and even when I was down a sick amount for about two weeks straight, I should have been a huge winner, instead, I lost about 1/3 of my bankroll.

Good news is the last week I have gotten back much that I had lost. With my withdrawls lately for bills my BR is still between $750-$800 on PS and $200 on FTP with a little bit at a few other sites that might be about another $50.

Outside poker, I got a job again so I will be dipping into my BR less to make bills. Job sucks, the pay sucks, the commute sucks, but at least it keeps me busy and keeps my BR away from my bills.

2008-11-17T23:33:00.003-05:00

Nov 17 notes.

Played a bunch of MTT SNGS mostly doing crap. Jumped on a 360 person O/8 for $8 during the run. Was really burned out toward the end with how I was running but right at the end, I decide not to add table when I busted out(I run 4 at all times during a session, when I bust one, I load another). Well, took a first in my last SNG and with barely squeeking into the money, I hit enough cards to get to the next pay level when I ran a good hand into a hand that killed me on the river. 15th place. Ending PS BR $832.

Nov 16 notes.

Played a lot of tourneys on PS with my MTT SNGS, ran like heck in them, got in good a lot and couldn't hold up. The MTT SNGs held the bleeding down to a minimum. PS BR $755.

FTP played a couple tourneys and then played against BR management for the 21k. Others I failed miserably, the 21K I got pretty deep. Was just short of ave stack when QQ in the sb, raise late, I push to a call. JJ for him, and he flops the boats, he had me covered by about 4k. GG me. 85th place, solidly ITM. FTP BR $168.

Nov 15 notes.

On to last nights results. Drunken Horse and then Drunken HOE was a BR disaster. Lucky for me I did ok on a $6 matrix and a $3 ko for a night ending at $135 on FTP for a marginal down. Played one of my $26 tickets for the 28k. Did pretty solid and then hit a rough patch where the guys on my left started pushing in on all my raises. Got down to about 300 players paying 168 when got moved to a new table really short, raised 4s, didn't get called, minraised jacks next hand(min raise an accident) two callers 5-8-5 flop bet half flop takes it down, next hand QQ, have some chips so standard raise now, the big stack behind me that was a caller last hand pushes on me. I call, AK suited, he flops two of his suit, brick turn, king river, GG me. Overall I was happy with my tournament play there and only would do a couple things different for the whole tourney.

PS, only played a bit there last night. 2nd in a 45 man and ending BR of $771.
Didn't play with my free money on Absolute since I am still thinking of withdrawing that for this weeks bills.

Later Day Notes

Did a session that was about as rough as you could get, lost a lot of flips and hit some coolers. Bubble boy twice on my 45 man turbos. Lost a good chunk. Couldn't cash but once good news is that it was a second. Overall, HU sucked. Played that pretty bad. Ugh. PS br $761. Lost a lot of opportunities out there.

Bought in on the Absolute 2k guarantee and then cashed out the remaining money minus the check fee. Ran pretty well for most of it, ran into a lagtard two times when he had great hands, out in 27th for $15 and some change left in my AP account. Bills will be paid again with the check. Go me. To tired to play any more poker tonight after that though, so no updates for PS or FTP.

Nov 14 notes from after that last post

Short PS session today. Three 25NL tables and one $6 45 man turbo.

Turbo, had no cards and ended up running eights into jacks. End Game, 19th place.25NL Stacked a semi shorty early with my top set vs his two pair on the turn, river, quads. Other table ran into a shorty that hit some crazy outs on me two hands in a row. Lucky I had chipped up some on that table first. Then hit my set of jacks, another guy hit his flush on the turn, no help on the river for another $8 of damage. Other Table some small wins, nothing special for a small profit. Then a guy hit a flush on me on the river for another short stack double up.

Overall, felt mostly good about my play, it is just happened to hit some guys hitting their chase, so end session at about a bucks short for cash and down the tourney buy in for the session. End PS BR $736

2008-11-14T03:59:00.002-05:00

I am just going to cut and paste some stuff from my BR journal because I can't sleep. I need to keep this going, the job situation sucks since I moved down the Largo, FL. Grind, grind, grind.

"Gods it has been a long time since I wrote in this.

Just to show how weird things are, I still have money online even after a few withdrawls for bills and a bad run. Playing better now, or at least my br is going in the right direction again.

PS, still grinding the $6.50 45 man turbos with some of the $4 180 man tourneys mixed in as well. BR is at $741 and I am back on track and growing there.

FTP, I had traded out some of it but mostly it has been crash and burn there lately. Barely playing there. Just can't seem to go well at the moment so I have a couple $26 tickets and a mostly stagnant BR of $147. Not really sure what I am going to do there at this time.

Absolute, yeah, I know, the antichrist of online companies. Well, the idiots gave me $10 for the fact I hadn't played there in so long. Well, even with some sick beats I have some parleyed that into $208 somehow. Again, another situation that I am not sure what I am going to do with it. I have some bills coming up, and this might cover them if I put in withdrawl right away. Again, not sure."

So that is the state of my br and game right now.

Later all.

Back to Business

2008-04-29T14:31:00.000-04:00

I have been off of serious poker and grinding for a bit. I am putting together some notes for different things that I want to be conscious of and also a few to be working on.

Bankroll Issues and Plan

First, my redeposit will be in the range of $400-$450. That means bankroll wise; I am dealing with mostly a micro limit strategy for building. My game selection will be $25NL tables or less and $6 or less SNGs or MTTs for when I wish to play tourneys. Will want to limit to at most 4 tables at once. Playing beyond that becomes too robotic and predictable in my opinion.

Just because I don’t wish to have a quarter of my bankroll on the table at any one time, I will have to start cheaper than the 25NL tables. I honestly have trouble consistently beating levels that low, so I most likely will start with working on the SNGs to build my bankroll and some MTTs for taking my shot at moving my bankroll up in a hurry. I really want/need my bankroll to be over $750 before I start 4 tabling 25NL and going back to SNGs and MTTs if I drop to the $550 mark. I am going with at least 30 buy in rule for when to move up on SNGs and if I hit 20 buy ins, I will be moving back down.

Habits to Cultivate

You are in the micros buddy, so the biggest thing is practice you’re ABCs. Old habits must go goodbye or you are screwing yourself.

Know your villain. Don’t credit your opponent with any more intelligence than a bug until proven otherwise. Think of what he is thinking (level one or level 0 thinking).

Pot attachment issues; find those that don’t like to fold after putting money in the pot. You want to play a lot of pots (preferably in position) with these players. If they can’t fold, it increases your implied odds for any hand you play against them.

Ask why a lot. Why is the person doing what they are doing? Why are you doing what you are doing? Use that line of questioning to put together a plan of attack.

Plan ahead. You don’t want to get in a situation where a person does something that completely surprises you. Think ahead to possible actions for every circumstance.

Always keep implied odds in your mind. The stack sizes of every individual are at risk every hand. If you are in the hand, think of every risk reward situation and exploit every mistake you can.

Win the battle of mistakes every night. If you do this consistently you cannot be a losing player.

Force players into making mistakes as often as possible. Play aggressive poker and always work to get and exploit any edge you can in each and every situation that you are involved in.

Folding is still your friend. Play to make fewer mistakes. One of the most common mistakes is getting into that mess in the first place. Don’t be afraid of laying down what might be the best hand.

Big pots should only be played with big hands. Don’t freaking risk your stack on a low edge situation. If it is time to play for stacks, play it with a big hand.

Don’t be afraid to take down a big pot in tournaments. Protect your stack, if that means taking down a very strong but vulnerable hand by betting hard, do so.

Don’t be afraid to use up some time clock to reason out a situation.

Listen to what your opponents are telling us with their actions. When bet, call, or raise they are always giving you information. Let that information make sense.

Have a purpose with each and every bet. Don’t spew chips. Betting or calling without a plan or purpose is spewing.

Always bet your good hands strong. These guys will pay you off at this level. If you don’t get paid, then at least you added to your stack.

Metagame and Study

Ask more questions about situations you have had problems with. Don’t be shy, stubborn or prideful. Search out and find the answers you need to be a better player.

Watch and learn from the best. If you aren’t up for playing, don’t waste time, you can learn at times just by watching how better players handle situations.

Don’t play when your mind isn’t in the game. If you fail to be in the right place of mind, you will fail.

Consistent profit is made by consistently making the right decisions. Make the smart choice at all times.

Patients can lead you to profitable situations to exploit. Don’t rush things.

Look not at the results but by how you got there. If you wish to keep being a winning player, screw the results and look to the data to see if you are really playing well.

Review your game. Don’t stop looking at what you have done. Know what mistakes you have been making. Know what sort of situations lead to trouble so that you can improve on those areas.

Always keep working on your game. Be willing to gather inspiration and advice from anywhere if you can usefully apply it to poker. If you stop working on your game, the game will pass and you will end up losing.

Remember, you are playing to earn. You aren’t there to make friends or to be their pal; you are there to add money to your pocket. That is all.

It has been a while

2008-02-04T14:04:00.000-05:00

Haven't posted on here in a very long time. I keep promising myself I will be more active on this. Just never seem to have enough time.

Holidays have come and gone, they were busy as heck. Now that things have slowed down some I am hoping to play more poker and update this more as well.

Current trend is going great. I am playing very solidly at the 50NL cash games on my favorite donk site. My MTT is still going pretty well. I actually haven't been playing SNGs which is normally such a strong part of my game. About a month ago I was on a slow but steady down trend and decided to change things up. I started playing almost no SNGs and mostly cash 20NL. After that I hit some good and bad nights, more good though. A few weeks ago I had one rough night, and then I just started playing around with an article idea, doing some rough research. Two days later when I was playing again, things were just so much easier it seemed. I have been on a small heater since then. Don't know how long it will last but I am solidly bankrolled for 50NL right now and feel extremely comfortable playing at that level as well.

That is all for now. Buhbye.

Our Goals and the Invisible Target

2007-11-28T13:58:00.000-05:00

We all play the game. Making the goals for ourselves. “I want to make ‘X’ amount by ‘Y’ date.” “My Goal is to FT Such and Such a tournament”. Then it happens or it doesn’t. We at times focus so much on the results that we forget that the short term results don’t matter in the long run. This is a long run game. Goals that are fixed and solid often will not help us. We must look beyond that to what is really out there.

I am going to invite a friend to join me in this little rambling right about now. His name is Quality. I have known him for a really long time, but I really started to find him much more interesting after my last read of “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance”.

Now Robert Pirsig really messes with that term until it sings to you like an Aria of the Heavens. Now he states at one point that quality can’t really be defined but it is often just “known”. “Any philosophic explanation of Quality is going to be both false and true precisely because it is a philosophic explanation. The process of philosophic explanation is an analytic process, a process of breaking something down into subjects and predicates. What I mean (and everybody else means) by the word ‘quality’ cannot be broken down into subjects and predicates. This is not because Quality is so mysterious but because Quality is so simple, immediate and direct.”

He also equated quality to the Greek areté, in the following quote from his book. "What moves the Greek warrior to deeds of heroism," Kitto comments, "is not a sense of duty as we understand it... duty towards others: it is rather duty towards himself. He strives after that which we translate 'virtue' but is in Greek areté, 'excellence' — we shall have much to say about areté. It runs through Greek life."

Now think this over. You want to win. Not just now, but in the future as well. Your goal is now the Invisible Target, Quality. Every action you make, should be trying to invoke Quality for it is in that term that you will see your rewards. If you make Quality descisions at all parts of the hand, all parts of the session, and all parts of your career, then it is imposible to fail.

Quality and the Greek areté are here to make it simple. Striving for these, through the time honored aproaches of practice, study, review, and experience will get you to advance your knowledge of Quality. Every action, should be thought over before it is made, every action should be reviewed in hindsight, and every action of the others at the table as well. Learn it all, every time, from every direction.

With a focus on Quality, the long term becomes a smoother road.

“The quality of decision is like the well-timed swoop of a falcon which enables it to strike and destroy its victim.” Sun Tzu quotes

“Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skillful execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives.” William A. Foster quotes

“Quality is not an act, it is a habit.” Aristotle quotes

“Quality means doing it right when no one is looking.” Henry Ford quotes

“I have offended God and mankind because my work didn't reach the quality it should have.” Leonardo da Vinci quotes

“The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.” Vince Lombardi quotes

Follow up discussion on Quality with a buddy.

The discussion Maj and I had following him reading the article. The only editing done here was so it could be easier to read.

Maj: nice article

Maj: and i like the quotes at the end

Ezarc: I thought they fit the theme of the article

Maj: but BECAUSE quality is tough to nail down it's impossible to have as a "goal"

Ezarc: Bingo, now you are thinking

Maj: your point is saying that poker isn't just cards and chips on the table

Ezarc: So, Pirsig left us with the corralation between Quality and areté or excellence!

Maj: but something done before, after, as well as during a session

Ezarc: No, it is about the pursuit of doing things in the best manner you can.

Ezarc: Learning, practicing, and applying everthing you know to play your very best every moment.

Maj: that takes emotion out of the equation

Maj: no annoyance when you lose

Maj: OR glee at your win

Maj: disconnect

Maj: u say something?

Ezarc: No, there will always be a certain satisfaction for doing well, but there also will be an anticipation to try to do better

Maj: and you can't do better than your best?

Ezarc: Perfection in poker is not available.

Ezarc: There are too many variables.

Maj: right Ezarc: But, you keep striving for it.

Maj: you can't control or anticipate everything

Ezarc: Exactly

Maj: u raise with aces, but your opponents don't have to play with you

Maj: therefore the "perfect" result of doubling up is impossible

Ezarc: Sometimes a fold of cards in the bb to a raise is the best move, so you do so.

Ezarc: That move then has Quality.

Ezarc: Think of Quality as a maximizing of expected value.

Maj: looking at each situation unclouded from previous experiences?

Maj: like someone may raise your blind 10 times

Ezarc: You have to from an emotional stand.

Maj: and it is Quality to fold it 10 times

Ezarc: Ahhh, that is where traps, raises with nothing, and psychological factors come in.

Maj: but re-raising with Q taken by itself is a bad move though E

zarc: From a hand stand point, folding the tenth time might make ev sense but from a quality point of view, what is your best option at the moment? Are you playing live? What position is he on steals from?

Maj: so then it's not just correct decisions, you're saying that it's correct TABLE decisions

Ezarc: What is the best play for your long term game.

Maj: not to play weak hands from out of position

Ezarc: That is simple, but if the guy is sitting there all night, I am going to reraise with air about three times in a row.

Maj: but that could turn what is a "correct" play into a monster mistake

Ezarc: I am not going to let anybody at the table hit me in the head that many times without decking him.

Ezarc: If he thinks I am a target, then the target gets to shoot back now.

Maj: that's emotion. You are fighting against a person, not against cards or hand standards Ezarc: It is a purely psychological move, not emotional.

Ezarc: You are changing perception of the table with the reraises. Ezarc: Your table image is the whipped dog under the table.

Ezarc: Now you are biting the hand that is slapping you around. That is not emotional, but table image psychology.

Maj: and that is a "quality" decision?

Ezarc: It can be.

Ezarc: Ok, if the table thinks it can run over you, how can you play effectively?

Maj: let them "run me over" until i get a hand and whack them in the face with it

Ezarc: Then you are a nutpeddler and the table runs over you until you bet and then they run away.

Ezarc: If a table nit raises, or reraises and you have tpmk, you fold right?

Maj: yea

Maj: so then, quality isn't about making +EV decisions?

Maj: you're confusing me now

Ezarc: It is about making long term EV+ decisions.

Maj: but long-term one table one day doesn't matter

Ezarc: Even if you lose those hands from the BB with air, you have made a better winning environment for the session.

Ezarc: I am not saying this move will always have quality, but it can if it changes things to a more suitable playing situation.

Maj: so overall picture from losing a buy-in on a resteal is "this guy can put in his money with anything"

Maj: "so we need to call him down"?

Ezarc: Ok, here are the points made by this move

Ezarc: 1) I can be aggressive

Ezarc: 2) I don't always have to have cards to be aggressive

Ezarc: 3) If you try to push me around, we will tangle

Ezarc: 4) I am not quite the "weak tight" guy you thought

Maj: ok, but this is great and all for the session, or maybe that specific game

Maj: but overall, in the long run, how does this matter

Maj: you don't do this EVERY game you play, right?

Maj: b/c that could get expensive

Ezarc: Profitable decisions have quality.

Ezarc: if you think this decision is profitable, then it holds some degree of Quality.

Maj: and letting them know u aren't a nit is a "quality" decision because it can ultimately be profitable for that game

Ezarc: yes Maj: i think i get it a little better now

Maj: it isn't about one play being the "correct" play in everything

Maj: but each individual play being put together

Ezarc: YES!!!!

Maj: lol, i'm not that hard-headed

Maj: i just like going back and forth

Ezarc: It helps to maintain and clean out your poker thinking then it is all good.

Maj: cool Ezarc: Very cool conversation by the way.

Maj: thank you, i enjoyed it

Logical Vs Intuitive

2007-08-21T18:32:00.001-04:00

We study, we learn, we share, and we grow. New books, tools, and resources become available, we eat them all up. So, where does all this knowledge go? Most of it to waste. Garbage it. Yup, had I, if I, why did I.... those are the starts of what happened to some if not all of our profits.

When you are at the tables, what information you have will always be incomplete. Those theories, simulations, and talks you had, don’t always fill in all the gaps. So what do you do? You throw those hours of hard work down the drain on a feel. Most of the time, those hunches were wrong, but you get lucky at times. Your mind plays tricks on you telling you that you have great intuition. Telling you that the risk is worth it. Telling you that you are beyond all the hard work you have put in.

Yup, you now are in denial. Unless you get the right odds, why play? Unless you are in a position to really take advantage of a situation, why are you in it? You put in the research, now let it pay for itself.

I am not saying to give up work on your intuition. I think that would be grossly wrong. What I am saying is the more you allow yourself the chance to really evaluate the situation, the odds, the texture, and your opponents, the more money you will make. Ask yourself the question of “Why” a bunch of different ways. Make yourself think through the situation at hand. Every time.

As for the growth of your intuition, allow your logical game to grow, and you will find that your intuitive game will get stronger as well. Good luck and more profit.

A few thoughts on some gameplay

2007-07-21T00:35:00.000-04:00

I was reading one of my swords and sorcery fantasy books when I came across an intreging little passage.

"From history and philosophies and religions came an understanding of human motivation, and motivation lay at the heart of tactics and strategy. Just as people moved in patterns, so too did their thoughts....." From the book Memories of Ice by Steven Erikson.

Again, this goes into one of those little know your villain chats I do. When starting at a new table, Ted Forrest goes out of his way to talk to all the people at his table. He wants to know what they do, how they got there, and anything else he can find out in small talk. Even just the act of talking will tell you something of the person in questions demeanor. Use the information you have to make rough theories of how they will act. When you have more information, revise those theories and build a plan of action to them.

Often you will want to first look to the first two to your left and the two to your right as you gather this information. They will often be the ones you will most often need this information on. As it goes on, build on this data and on your plans of action to include more of the table. Revise this as situations change. Short stacked people, big stacks, tilt, and other factors will change the patterns. Be mindful of this and find out the new patterns and motivations for the table. Always be ready to change directions yourself as the table changes its balance.

Bubble time lesson(Lagtard and Turte)

2007-06-30T11:43:00.000-04:00

Situation, you are approaching the money bubble of a good sized tournament. Table is a mix of stack sizes. You are above average in chipstack but there are a few bigger at the table. Changes at your table are, on of the larger stacks is now in chip up mode(I will call him LAGtard), the other big stack is playing his normal game, and two of the medium short stacks have gone into Turtle mode. They just won’t peak the heads out of the shell until the bubble has past, these two are the most common victims of the LAGtards aggress. You have position on the LAGtard on his steals against the Turtles. His steals are like clockwork on these two, 2.5x bb raise-3x bb raise, each and every time they are on the blind. Has folded twice to reraises from other players during these steals.

He is stealing from you buddies. These should be your steals. So, every third or forth steal attempt from him, you should reraise. Doesn’t matter the cards, his don’t, but it is a matter of pressure and chipping up. If you resteal every third or fourth time, you are still chipping up every cycle on average. If your steal fails and at times it might, you are still in the hunt and can steal again later. Now, you only need to succeed on these steals about 40% of the time to keep chipping up. Also, this might get the LAGtard to tighten his requirements as well, which is great. Then our steals become ours again. Win, win.

Having nothing on these steals is actually a bit favorable then having a medium hand as well. Why? If you get reraised, it is such an easy dump after Hollywooding for a bit. Another thing is if you just get smoothcalled and hit the flop hard, he will never know what the fraq hit him. Most important on this whole resteal is position and pressure.

Now, you will need an M high enough to do this successfully or you might get stuck if one of your steals goes foul. This also can not be done against a total donk that can not lay down after he puts money in the pot. This situation is very specific. You need a LAGtard that can lay down, enough stack size to put pressure on him, and enough sense to get away when you don’t have anything(don’t get attached to your chips).

GL and see you at the FT.

Finding the magic button.

2007-06-05T15:28:00.001-04:00

Virtual table or live, there is all sorts of information moving around. Limped, raised, reraised, early, mid, late, slow, fast, talking trash, not saying a word, it is all about information. Find out what sort of man is sitting across the felt from you. Now the man’s priorities can change over the course of the game, but how he thinks will remain constant. If you can curl yourself into his mind, you have already won.

Sounds simple right. Well, think of all the little things that can tick you off. Slow drivers, guys that have that “I am superior” vibe to them, being late, girl friend troubles, ……. Ok, now what does this have to do with poker? Well all can put a different spin on how we are facing a situation. If you are pissed, will you be more aggressive? If you are distracted will you see all the clues to the puzzle? You really want to take that smug look off of that guys face; will you really notice the guy who is setting a trap for him?

What sort of hands does he limp? Is he consistent in his play? Is he observant of position? What situations does he raise or reraise? How often does he limp, and then call a raise? What sort of bets does he make post flop? Does he bet the full pot, half, min after raising it preflop? Does he always bet things in a consistent manner?

There is a lot to this wonderful game. Play a game with yourself. See how long it takes to come up with 10 true statements about each of the guys you are playing with every time. The more you can think of, the easier you will find it to get a good idea of where they are at in any given hand.

Time to stick a fork in me for now.

2007-05-01T11:51:00.000-04:00

Guys, I fucked up. I have become a stupid frigging mess. I will start at the beginning and let you guys all see how I did this to myself.

A couple months ago, life was going well. I had a very good new job, was getting married soon, was killing sngs and cash games and had rolled up to almost 1k from about a hundred. Then as you all know, I got canned. That is when the fit hit the shan.

Within hours of being put on “administrative leave”, I started my crash on poker. In the first 4 days I had tilted off almost ¾ of my bankroll. I stopped playing for a short time and soon started playing only sngs. It was a just a slow bleeding with that. I couldn’t get back on track. I tried to stick to reasonable rates and still wasn’t finding my way out.

During that time, you might have noticed that I no longer was voicing my opinions on 67 threads on theory, gameplay, or anything else that was remotely related to the actual game of poker. I also stopped working on theory and other gameplay articles that I had been working on and submitting. I stopped looking to help others and stopped helping myself as well.

Poker has become more obsessive. I think about it an alarming amount and since my game has more holes then a screen window, it is not productive. My game continues to sink into oblivion with occasional moments of my previous skill. I can touch it and feel it at times but I can’t get it to hold. I have become self destructive to my bankroll. I am not busto yet but I am not that far away either. One more good tilt and I am done.

Also, problems with cash for the coming wedding, child support, and other day to day living has become an another stress builder. I have become more of an annoying asshole then I would have ever believed possible. I am even more short tempered and grumpy. I am often sullen and withdrawn. Rachel and I are having problems with all the extra stress. If she didn’t love me so much(I really don’t know why) she would have already called off the wedding with all the stress we are under.

Even with the new job, the stress is still there. It pays a whole heck of a lot less then the last job and to be honest, the owners really don’t have a solid idea of how and what I am supposed to be doing.

So, the bottom line is I am done. Stick a fork in me. Poker is not a part of my life for the moment. I have to cut it away from me. I am transferring Rachel my remaining funds to hold at the moment. I am not going to play for a while, not going to read about it for a while, and not going to post about it for a while. I need to get healthy again.

Take care for now. Talk with you all later. Bye.

Signed, your fucktard buddy,

Ezarc

Two Bankroll related articles

2007-03-10T14:48:00.000-05:00

Coming Back From a Catastrophic Loss.

I think we all have been there. Either played above your roll, got caught up in the moment, or just played too much when you shouldn't have. Results are that you and your bankroll have been damaged. You are now playing at limits you would have laughed at weeks ago. Here is some humble advice.

First is to take some time away from any game of value. If you really need to play, play for pennies or freerolls. I know this sounds silly, but don't sink any more money into the pit of despair. Playing for anything of consequence is a huge mistake right now. Get your head back on first.

Second, I would review what killed you. Were you outplayed? Bad beat? Or in most cases did you do it to yourself? Look for your holes in your game. Turn up the self analysis and sit through every painful moment and get to the root of your problems. Write yourself a self evaluation if you would find it helpful, with checklist of what mistakes you found common in yourself during that bad run.

Next, look to your books and friends to plug those leaks. If you are overplaying certain situations, ask other or read about how to better identify them so you can improve your game. Remember that it is time to check your ego at the door and work towards playing a better game. Advice might seem harsh at times but remember that your friends are trying to help you. Ignore good advice at your own peril.

Don't be afraid to return to a lower level. Again, your ego can go fuck itself here. You need to do two things here. Start to recover a bankroll and to rebuild your confidence are your current goals. Playing easier games with softer opponents are the best way at this.

Play to your strengths. If your best game is short handed cash, don't go playing MTTs. If you killing the SNG game, why fuck with cash games if your ROI won't be as good in the long run? Just play were you play your best and where you make your most money.

Sounds simple. Hard part is doing it. Don't forget that even after you get back on your feet that this beautiful game we all play is centered about learning. Don't stop analysing your game just because you are starting to move up. Keep studying, keep working to make your game as strong as you can.

Good Luck All.

(The author will not play online cash games until I finish over 100 SNGs)*promise* (Went on tilt after getting laid off)

Some Thoughts on the "Taking Your Shot" Style of BR Management

Taking a shot. Seems so simple. Moving your roll into a higher risk-reward situation. But have you read the fine print? I think the fine print in this situation is that you are doing several things that are detrimental to your poker career.

First item on the agenda is learning about bankroll management skills. I know it sounds odd to list that first but I believe that it is the biggest failure of many want-to-be-great players. If you can't figure out how to fund your buyins, you will be leading towards a busting your roll. This will become habit, climbing it fast, and busting it twice as fast. Once you become responsible in how your treat your bankroll you can work in small risks you can take when you have a cushion to work with.

Second is you are not gaining the skills at your current level to move up. Basics are important, learning your trade is important, the odds, the psychology are all important. Learn each step as it comes, you will better understand the next level and the players who are there.

Last point is the psychological aspects. Playing your way up, building your confidence in the game as you go. You run into bad beats, you are in a safe place bankroll wise so it doesn't tilt you because it doesn't really hurt your overall net value. You learn to deal with bad beats and tilt better because your degree of risk involved is never going to be that bad. You won't run into that almost manic-depressiveness that runs when you are running higher then your bankroll has room for.

If you are a casual player that is playing for fun, do as you wish but if you have any interest in building your poker game and talents, please take your time and build it right.

Common flaw at the lower levels

2007-02-10T21:14:00.000-05:00

Attachment to the money you have invested in the pot is a serious problem for a lot of players. They can't let go from the idea that those chips are still theirs. They raise it up from position after some limpers with the a-k(no spades). Flop comes down a-7-8 with two spades. The limpers that call the raise check to him. He bets out at almost pot size. UTG +2 had a pp of eights and the MP had 9-10 spades. Big pot and the A-K doesn't get away. Why? He thought he was good with tptk? Not really, he knew he was in trouble with all the action. But he had money in the pot and he just couldn't face that he might just have to dump that money and look to the next hand.
Now, two things you should try to be aware of at the table. First, when you are putting too much value into a hand. One pair, no matter how big is still just one pair. There is a lot of ways to lose with that. Just go through the list on what might be beating you and what would fit in your opponents betting of the hand. Yes, I am simplifying things. You could have trips on a strait board or flush board. Be willing to lay down a big pot when there are a good number of hands that can toss yours into the dumpster with the other trash. That might occasionally mean you are tossing a winner but sometimes you have to do that.

Second thing on the to do list for this is identify players with this habit. Overplaying any pair, not laying down on a flushing board, the guy who calls you down with a pair when the turn hits a higher card. You need to know who will pay you off. These are the ones that I will call more with second pairs and draws. Because if it hits, the impied odds are more then good. They don't have the ability to mentally divorce themselves from the money they have added to the pot.

Let's try to describe this in a different way. You all had relationships that didn't work out. They drove you crazy, it was torture, but you walked out the door. Next relationship you see some of the same traits, you leave but it wasn't as crushing. Next time you even see the traits, the door shuts and you are gone. No pain.

Now, you are putting chips in the pot. You have done this plenty of times. The hand goes bad. Simple, right? Walk out the door.

Just one of the many small steps in building yourself into a better player.

Fear

2007-01-13T22:54:00.000-05:00

Ok, I already posted this on a different site but I just feel like sticking a little something here.

Fear. I love the concept of fear. To make someone fear you, to play with there fears, to tap in to their hidden depths and dance. Ahhh, the screams and moans of the defeated are such music to my ears. Ok, so I am a bit of a psychopath but I am your psychopath for the moment so just humor me.

What the heck does this have to do with poker? Yup, there is the bottom line statement for you. EVERYTHING or nothing depending on your game! What is the goal of poker? To make money. What are the restrictions on how you win? Other then no cheating, there are no restrictions. Bang, every person has fears. Every person has desires and wants. Use these simple ideas when you can. Fear is a blocker to reasonable thought.
I am looking to induce fear into their systems like a sickness. I want to be the thing that bumps in the night, the creature hiding under the bed, I want to play in the dark places of their brains and take their fear for a ride. Is there anything really wrong with that?

So everybody, kick in your ideas of what might go bump in the dark for a pokerplayer. What do you think most players fear and/or loath? What makes them squirm? Conversely, what do most players want? What are their needs at the poker table? How do you go about crushing their dreams from a mental aspect?

Now what simple things do people fear, the unknown, the strong, of looking like a fool, of being caught, of being wrong, of being broke and the list goes on. What does everybody have a tendency to want? Money, acceptance, to be right, and so on. You might as well just list the seven deadly sins, we all just want it all for lack of a better term. If you have a decent idea of the opponents wants, you can also add to there lists of fears by presenting obstacles to his wants.

How do I use the idea and concept of fear in the game of poker? Well, let us list a few things. When you raise it, do you fear a reraise or a call? Do you have greater fear for someone who is raising all the time or just a few times? Do you have a fear of postflop play? Do you have a fear of playing out of position? Think through all of your little fears and worries during your next few tournaments, jot them down. Think that your list would be that unique? Probably not.

Ok, let's list a few more types of poker fear.

-Fear of being bluffed(calling stations)

-Fear of the guy on a rush(passive play of good hands)

-Fear of the big stack(don't want to play against the big boy)

-Fear of being sucked out of

-Fear of being crippled(medium stack vs medium stack + a little)

-No fear(donkeys, idiots, morons, or solid players) Having no fear is pretty rare, even harder to have no fear and being a solid player. Also remember fear can also drive people to act, as in flight or FIGHT response from fear. So be ready for the dumb to swing back wildly at wierd times as well. That is not a bad thing as well. Aggression without focus is like trying to fish in your bathtub. It just doesn't work.

Use this information now. How? Play more from position to start with. Nothing is quite as scary as playing a moderate to semi strong hand out of position. Play a bit less hands. Yup, I said that. By playing less hands, you help strengthen the mystery about your play. You don’t have a great deal of fear for something that you are used to. Force your opponents to play flops with you. Most weak players don’t want to play postflop, don’t really know how. Exploit this.

Cardplayer League TOC

2006-12-21T18:21:00.000-05:00

TOC
1st
Wow, I am a freaking luckbox. Was almost down and out. AK suited ran into Hellory's Aces. That was the only time I got in bad thought. Then hit some big hands against other big hands. Darkroller was tough HU. Had a 2-1 chip advantage going in, down to a 2-1 deficit and two straight big hands to close it down.
I am glad that I played in this league. There are some tough players in this league. Making the TOC was a bit lucky with some of the players not always playing every week and my one first I definitely sucked out a few times but I got there. I don't think I am at some of the other players level but I do feel that I am at least still learning and getting there.

Lesson Plans

2006-12-15T00:32:00.000-05:00

Here are my lesson plans. Use them, laugh at them, have fun.

Lesson 1)
Basic Intro to the game(And the traits that make some players great)

Hand rankings. What wins, royal straight flush, straight flush, quads….etc
Basic gameplay. How things happen.
Exercise-Find the winner. Deal flop, ask what the winning hand is. Deal turn, ask what the winning hand is. Deal River, ask what the winning hand is.
Traits of a great player(As told by the best. In this part, I will be using a good deal of quotes and information from these listed books Super Systems, Little Green Book, and Ace on the River, as well as Barry Greenstein's website, Mike Caro’s website as well.)
Ok, this is from a survey that Barry himself ran, Traits that separate the winners from the losers. This was in Ace on the River.
25) Good sense of humor
24) Prideful
23) Generous
22) Outgoing
21) Insensitive
20) Optimistic
19) Independent
1Cool Manipulative
17) Greedy
16) Persistent
15) Self-centered
14) Trustworthy
13) Aggressive
12) Competitive
11) Survivors
10) Empathetic
9) Fearless
Cool Able to think under pressure
7) Attentive to detail
6) Motivated
5) The ones with the best memories
4) In control of their emotions
3) Intelligent
2) Honest with themselves
1) Psychologically tough

Phil Gordon’s top Five List from the Little Green Book.
1) They are invariably aggressive.
2) They are patient
3) They are courageous.
4) They are observant.
5) They are always working on their game and want to be even better players.

Doyle’s own words on being great from the original Super System.
“I’ll be teaching you guidelines and concepts you’ll be able to use with great success, and you’ll quickly become a very good player. But, if your ambition is to become a great poker player, a top flight Pro, a superstar ... you'll need to really understand your poker opponents. You'll need to get inside your opponent's head and be able to estimate with a high degree of certainty what his check, bet or raise really means ... and what hand he's likely to be playing.

Being able to do that accurately isn't easy. But you can do it if you're alert, observant, disciplined and if you concentrate whenever you play (whether or not you're involved in the pot). Using our advice and the advice of our expert collaborators, you'll find that the task of unmasking your poker faced opponents will become easier and easier.

When you're able to put your opponent on exactly the hand he's playing (because you know him almost as well as he knows himself) you can select the best strategy possible for that particular situation. When you reach that level of skill, you'll be a complete player.

That's what poker all about. People...and the strategy you use against them. More than any other poker game, poker depends on your understanding your opponent. You've got to know what makes him tick. More importantly, you've got to know what makes him tick at the moment you're involved in a pot with him, otherwise, your bankroll will suffer. What's his mood ... his feeling? What's his apparent psychological frame of mind right now? Is he in the Mood to gamble ... or is he just sitting there waiting for the nuts? Is he a loser and on tilt (playing far below his normal poker capability) ... or has he screwed down (despite his being loser) and begun playing his best possible full tilt poker game? Is he a cocky winner who's now playing carelessly and throwing off most of his bonus winnings...or is he a winner who's started to play very tight so he can protect his gains?”

Lesson 2)
Objective of the game(I know this sounds weird but I think you need the emphasis up early that the goal is to be as profitable as possible. All this lesson will be about is emphasis on making the right decisions and the profitable ones even though the player doesn’t know them yet.)

Maximizing wins
Maximizing winnings against weak opponents. Mike Caro

Maximizing Profit Against Weak Opponents
The following lecture was the 22nd Tuesday Session, held February 16, 1999, and appeared in Card Player magazine
The Business of Poker Can Be Very Profitable If You Know What to Do.
Maximizing Profit against Weak Opponents
When I was much younger, I'd drive miles to play against the toughest players in the world. I'd leave easy games to seek challenging ones. I enjoyed the combat, and I told myself that I was improving my skills by challenging the best opponents.
Yes, I survived this long erratic period in my career. In fact, before I began to write, lecture, and research about poker, I had no other job. Poker was all there was for 14 years. And during those years, I spent a great deal of time bumping heads with some of the most skillful players the world has ever known.
I teased my mind into thinking I was honing my skills by making it hard on myself. But, in reality, I was doing too much honing and too little capitalizing on the skills I had mastered already. Well, I'm proud to report, I was able to survive these world-class tough opponents and make money. Make that: sort of make money. I say, "sort of make money," because you need to compare the money you actually won with the money you should have won. If it's less, then the difference is a loss in my mind.
And, clearly, I would have won even more money if I'd spent a greater share of my time facing weaker foes. So, lesson learned. We move on. Life gets better. This was the 22nd in my serious of Tuesday Session classroom lectures at Mike Caro University of Poker, Gaming, and Life Strategy. It was delivered earlier this year and is specially enhanced for Card Player. The title was…
Maximizing Profit against Weak Opponents
1. Weak opponents supply all of your profit.
Just keeping this concept in your mind at all times will do wonders toward putting you on the path to poker profit. It's easy to forget this, because so much of your poker activity consists of making tough decisions against tough opponents. But that's not where the profit is. In the long run, the profit always comes from players who are weaker than you. Nothing else is possible. And the weaker your opponents are, the more money you can expect to earn.
Please don't confuse this concept with the reality that you also earn profit by making quality decisions against your strongest foes. This is irrefutable. Also, you may be able to outplay a few opponents who are winners overall. When this happens, these players are weak from your personal perspective, though not in general. For purposes of your personal profit, you should seek them out. Their special weakness relative to you supplies money.
To make the most money, you need to play as correctly as possible against both weak and strong opponents. But, overall, weak opponents are the ones who bring the profit to the poker table. If you're not playing against foes weaker than you are, you cannot expect to win money. Period.
2. What's so great about beating strong opponents?
Beating strong foes wins a lot of respect and a little money. Beating weak foes wins a little respect and a lot of money.
So, unless you're honing your skills on select occasions, you should seek out the weakest possible opponents. There is no excuse to do otherwise. The most successful poker players in the world are not the ones who show a profit against the strongest opponents.
The most successful players are those capable of extracting the most money from their weakest opponents. These most-successful players tend to play fewer hours against strong opposition than they do against weak opposition. Conversely, the strongest opponents often don't know how to extract maximum profit from weak foes. They are doomed to live pitiful lives of poker mediocrity simply because they know how to play well against rational opponents, but they never learned how to extract the most money from the providers of profit.
3. Never compliment weak opponents on good plays or discuss serious strategy with them.
When you compliment weak opponents on correct play, you make them proud. Thereafter, they may struggle to play better in an effort to please you.
Also, it's a very bad idea to discuss serious strategy with weak opponents - at the table or away from it. Doing so makes them self-conscious, and they recognize that there are levels of poker they don't understand. They are apt to play more cautiously - and, worse, they may even learn to play well!
4. Make weak opponents into "legends."
When you boast about the pots won by weak players with horrible hands, you feed their ego. They may try to live up to their legends - especially since you have praised them, rather than criticized them, for their weak play.
Learn to say, in Harvey's presence, "I wish I could play like Harvey! That guy can take 10-9 and win the biggest pots! He knows exactly when to do it. It's not what you play, it's how you play." Then look Harvey directly in the eyes, and say sincerely, "I really mean it. I've seen you do it so many times. It's a joy to watch." Say stuff like that and learn to mean it and your rewards will be much greater than if you make Harvey feel uncomfortable about occasionally winning with weak hands. You want to encourage his poor play, not discourage it
5. Say and do things to make opponents feel comfortable playing poorly.
Tell them you sometimes get lucky with those same hands. Show them an occasional played hand that is as weak as, or weaker than, those they play.
6. Weak opponents don't play equally weak against everyone.
Try to get more "gifts" than your opponents. You will if (1) weak players like you, (2) you're fun to play with, and (3) you don't seem to "hustle" opponents.
It's important to be liked. If you seem to be cheering for your weak opponents more than for yourself, you will be liked by them. You need to make your weakest opponents enjoy having you at the table, and you must never say anything that makes opponents think they're either being taken advantage of or scrutinized.
Some players think their weakest opponents give money away equally to everyone. That's incorrect. Everyone has borderline decisions to make, even weak poker players. Each player, no matter how loose or unskilled, must make decisions to play or not play, to call or not call, with hands that are right on the borderline from his perspective. These will be decided almost at whim. You will profit from more than your fair share of these weak hands and bad calls if your opponent enjoys playing against you and doesn't fear being criticized for poor choices.
Those who believe that encouraging these extra calls ruins your chances of being able to bluff miss the point. You aren't going to be able to bluff these weak players very often anyway. They call too much, so bluffing is almost always a poor choice against them. It's calling too often that is their greatest mistake, and that's what you should encourage.
7. Don't try to trap weak opponents.
Check-raising and tricky plays make them feel targeted and less willing to give you their chips later. Usually just play your best hands aggressively and use a straightforward strategy. You can be playful without seeming mean.
When you make a sophisticated trapping maneuver, you may very well make more money on that specific hand, but you've make your weak opponent uncomfortable and less likely to bestow "gifts" on you in the future.
8. Use diplomacy to stop others from belittling weak opponents.
You should do this away from the table. Take the offenders aside. Unfortunately, this belittling behavior is standard for even some pros. It makes the weak players reluctant to continue their extra-bad play for fear of criticism. And that costs you money. - MC

Minimizing loses
Handling losing. Mike Caro.
What to Do When You're Losing
1. When things go well. It's easy to keep your integrity when you have money. People who can afford to keep their word about paying back debts usually do. But the real test is when you can't easily afford to repay a debt. That's when character and integrity come into play. Well, a similar concept applies to whether you're winning or losing. It's much easier to stick to your game plan when the cards are running your way. Your true test as a player is how you handle losing. This is precisely when many otherwise skillful players fail the test and damage their bankrolls - or even go broke. Repeating, the main reason skillful players go broke is that they don't know what to do when they're losing.
2. Don't forget poker's most important secret. The secret is simply, "Play your best game all the time." It's a secret that's easy to acknowledge, but hard for players to follow, especially when they're losing. I believe that playing your best game all the time is so important that years ago, I created a whole audio cassette tape to drive the point home. Of course, it seems almost silly to make a big deal out of playing your best game. What kind of a secret is that? Everybody understands it already. Sure, but not everybody does it. In fact, almost nobody does it. That's what makes it important.
3. Two types of dangerous losses. There are two types of losses that put otherwise skillful poker players seriously off course: (1) losing sessions, and (2) losing streaks. Losing sessions make some players lose their will to play their best game hand after hand. Frustration takes over. Before long, they're playing as poorly as the opponents they came to conquer - and sometimes more poorly. It's sad, and it happens all the time. But, from now on, I want you to play as perfectly as you can, every hand, every decision. It's those decisions that matter. As I've taught for almost 30 years, your lifetime profit will be the sum of your good decisions minus the sum of your bad decisions, and that truth doesn't change whether those decisions are made while you're in the middle of a winning session or in the middle of a losing session. Perhaps more damaging are losing streaks. Every poker player experiences them. Losses after losses, day after day - I know the feeling. It's as though you expect things to go bad. One of the most destructive things players do during a losing streak is panic. They play worse because they need to win, but that's the wrong attitude. You don't need to think about winning. You need to think only about making good decisions, hand after hand, session after session. The wins will come when they're ready to come. Winning isn't your job. Making good decisions is your job. Winning is the eventual result of making good decisions consistently.
4. Let's not even think of it as a session. You can let a losing session destroy you if you think about it as a session to be won or lost. Whether you win or lose during a session, though, really has no bearing on your lifetime profit. A session is just something with an artificial beginning and ending. If you didn't know what they were, you'd simply weigh your bankroll once in a while to see how you were doing. Sessions don't really enter into the equation, so why even think about them as wins or losses? And remember during any "session" to be careful when you pass "Caro's Threshold of Misery." That's when you've lost so much that any additional damage doesn't feel any worse. But you can encounter this dangerous condition only if you think in terms of sessions. So, don't. The best psychological way to handle losses is to begin every hand fresh. You're neither ahead nor behind. You are where you are when the next deal begins. Your good decisions will give you the best chance of rising from that point. But if you lose that hand, forget it. It's on to the next one. Again, you're neither winning nor losing. You're starting fresh. You are where you are - again and again.
5. Don't think of it as a streak. Streaks - winning or losing - are always something seen in the rear-view mirror. There is never anything in the cards that will dictate that the streak either will or won't continue. So, you're always starting fresh. Just as every hand is a new start, every session is a new start. Never give a streak the importance of something that has influence over your future.
6. Strategic adjustments when you're losing. Here are things you should do when you're losing, not because there's any force causing the cards to be bad, but because your image is damaged and your opponents tend to play better: (1) Be more selective about your starting hands. (2) Don't bluff (at least not very often). (3) Don't raise as often. (4) Don't bet "for value" with the hands that you normally would.
7. Psychological tricks when losing. Try these: (1) Remind yourself that you are exactly even right now. (2) Remember that even though what you do now doesn't seem to matter, there will come a time when it will matter. Things you might try during a losing streak: (A) Take a small win and go home. (B) Play in a smaller game. (C) Look for reasons why you're losing. If you find reasons, adjust. But if you don't find any, stick to your game plan and keep the faith.

Play to make money and be profitable
Mike Caro Article.
Wrong And Right Things To Do In Poker
This article first appeared in Card Player magazine.
Today's "right and wrong" poker list is chosen from among thousands of items that could have been included. These four tips are quite profitable, but, remember, there are others equally profitable that we won't cover today. In other words, this isn't a top-four tip list. It's just a here's-four tips list. Anyway, let's get started.
Wrong attitude:
Entering a poker game hoping to get lucky and win your opponents' money.
Right attitude:
Entering a poker game and realizing that your opponents are holding your money, and they will need to be very lucky to keep it. If you're a skillful poker player, then you should enter a game expecting to win. All those chips and all that cash, all the money hidden in purses and wallets is yours. You want it. You deserve it. It is a crime against nature that those people are fondling your money. They have no right to it. It is yours, and you intend to play the best poker possible in an effort to bring justice to your bankroll.
Wrong image:
Making sure that opponents respect you as a player and that they know you're an analytical, winning competitor whose strategy they should fear.
Right image:
Making sure your opponents think you are error-prone, often on tilt, and unstable. One thing's for sure - people are going to give you their money a lot more willingly if they think you're incompetent than they will if they think you're trying to hustle them. My main goal image wise when I'm in a poker game is to convince opponents that I'm playing much, much worse than I really am. I can't always do this, because too many players know me. So, sometimes I'll try an opposite approach, using good-natured conversation to impress them, explaining what cards they're holding and what options they have. While doing this, I'll play a few hands in a bewildering and seemingly weak way. This is a compromise game plan. The image comes off (when done correctly) as that of a player who has incredible knowledge but who is having too much fun to use it.
If I were coming into a game as a stranger, I would try to act as clueless as possible. I would never try to impress anyone with what I know. I would want to be known as "that idiot who keeps winning." In poker, your hand is your secret. One of the worst things you can do is to inadvertently expose your hand. Well, another one of the worst things you can do is to inadvertently expose your skills.
Wrong tactic:
Check-raising loose, recreational players.
Right tactic:
Betting into or check-calling loose, recreational players. I've played in home games where check-raising (a.k.a., sandbagging) is forbidden. Even in casual games where it is not forbidden, it is often considered bad manners. You and I both know this attitude is pretty silly. Check-raising is a powerful strategy when used wisely. It is a tactic that affords a bit of compensation to a player suffering the positional disadvantage of acting first. But that's not the point.
We need to talk about why this bias against sandbagging survives. I think I know. The bias survives because casual players, especially ones playing loose (i.e., liberally and recklessly), hate the injection of tension to their game. And yes, my friends, "tension" is exactly the right word for it. When you choose to check-raise against a loose and friendly player destined to give you his money, you are increasing the tension. You are making your opponent uncomfortable.
What I'm about to tell you is very important. OK, I know - some of you are of the opinion that I'm an egomaniac who thinks that everything he says is very important. I assure you, nothing could be farther from the truth. It's just that I'm so consistently right about so many things, it gets scary after awhile. Anyway, where was I? Oh, yeah - that very important thing I was going to tell you about. My theory has always been that you never want to make opponents uncomfortable if they are currently comfortable about giving you their money. In that case, they are your most cherished customers, and you want to make their experience pleasant. When you check-raise, you are apt to make them less giddy about gambling. They will possibly begin to play better or more cautiously. They may begin to use sandbagging themselves in ways that will interfere with your strategy. Worst of all they may either quit or not seek you out again as a fun opponent.
Put it all together and it's clear that the small at-that-moment tactical advantage you may gain by sandbagging a loose, recreation opponent is overwhelmed by the long-term cost. Lean toward betting or check-calling most of the time, instead.
Wrong way to treat a bankroll:
Spending pieces of your wins so that you have something to "show for it" even if you go broke.
Right way to treat a bankroll:
Refusing to spend any part of your growing bankroll on your kids, your wife, your rent, your health, yourself, or your dog. The first thing you have to understand is that this advice only applies to skillful players who are capable of winning in the long term. Additionally, they must have not yet acquired a worry-free bankroll (or accessibility to funds).
If you're not yet a winning player, then this advice should be ignored. That's because, no matter how much losing players may wish to manage their money correctly and build a bankroll, they can't. When the odds are against you at anything, the best you can do is quit. In poker, though, you may not want to quit. You may want to improve, or you may be perfectly content to play recreationally forever. But, if you don't have that expectation of profit, managing a bankroll is not a concept that is meaningful to you.
If you are a winner, though, you can easily go broke by spending your bankroll. A middle-limit player (call him Player A) could start with, say, $2,000, win $20,000 over perhaps two months, spend $14,000, lose $8,000 and find himself broke and miserable. He is busted, failed. And you better believe his friends and family will see his poker escapades as a failure, even though he won. In the hypothetical case just described, the player won $12,000. But he is a bustout, a broke, a railbird, a wannabe. A less fortunate player of equal skill may have started with $2,000, won $15,000 over two months, refused to spent anything, lost the same $8,000 when the cards turned bad, and still had a $9,000 bankroll for recovery.
That second player (Player B) could have kept right on playing, building his bankroll. $15,000, $25,000, $50,000, $100,000, $500,000 - never spending a dime (or spending only meagerly, if he had no other income source), moving up to more profitable games as his skill increased. So, there they are my friends, player A and Player B. Same skill. Potentially about the same luck in the long run. Player A, a failure, broke and battered. Player B, a big-name success. How much did spending that $14,000 actually cost Player A? Whatever he bought with it could easily cost him much more that $10 for every $1 he spent. In this case, much more. How can you afford needlessly to spend pieces of a building bankroll? You can't afford it. Yet the majority of potential pros fail for precisely that reason.
It's hard to convince girlfriends, boyfriends, brothers, and mothers that you shouldn't spend gambling money when you win. But winners need to stick to their convictions. If you owned an auto supply shop and were starting to expand the business, they wouldn't say, "Hey, you're doing really good. Let's sell the cash register and a bunch of the inventory so you'll have something to show for it if you go broke." And you wouldn't think of doing that yourself, either.
Well, a growing business and a growing poker bankroll are the same thing. The bankroll is the tool you need to run your business. Trifle with it, if you will. Abuse it, if you must. But don't say I didn't warn you.

A look at aggression as a force at the table(Winning the money with not only the best hand) A review on Super System and Doyle Bronson.
“But the real gem is Brunson's own chapter on no limit Hold'em. It’s extremely interesting and given the greater freedom no limit gives the change in the game structure matters less. No limit is not a war of fine percentages like limit, it is a game of great psychological violence. Brunson's system is VERY aggressive. I think very few people would feel so comfortable playing so many connectors out of position in no limit games so they can stage all-in bluffs. You would need to be up against a very timid rock garden to play just as Brunson says. But it remains, undisputedly, the best guide to no limit cash games.”
Introduction into Table Image(Basics of labeling of players)

Slush420’s intro.
Here are the "names" for the people you are classifying:

Tight - Passive: These people are known as "rocks". Easy to steal pots from but if they raise you, BE CAREFUL!

Tight - Aggressive: These people are known as "sharks". Usually the best thing you can do against these guys is give them a raise somewhere after the flop when they bet if you have top pair or better. This will usually give them enough of a red flag for you to take down the pot.

Loose - Passive: These people are known as "fish". They will continue getting in flops and calling you down. The best thing you can do with these characters is to bet when YOU have the draw hand. Usually they will keep calling so whether you hit your hand or not, you have great odds to either hit your draw or get them to fold on the river.

Loose - Aggressive: These people are known as "maniacs". They will continue looking at flops more often than folding and will bet and raise you until you go mad. The best way to defeat these folks is to let them beat themselves when you flop nuts or run into a good drawing hand. Once you have trapped them, they'll either leave the table because you got a big pot off of them or they will start folding to your own aggressiveness.

I find that the easiest way to identify a player's skill level involves two things: the way they vary between these four styles of play and the way they use their position on the table to their advantage. You'll find that if you can identify who is good and who isn't, you can start putting people on hands that, even if you know theirs is better, you can still get them to fold or know when to fold yourself. Good luck on your poker teachings and hopefully you don't teach him to suck my bankroll dry!

My work here.
Ok, basics. Loose, tight, passive, aggressive, and what the heck it all means. Those are some of the labels you will see and read about. What do they really mean to you? They are just different ways of looking at how someone goes about their way of play, hand selection, willingness to call, raise or fold. Now with these labels that we slap on the other players at our table, they do the same with us. Now, say we have raised the last 3 out of 6 hands with AK, QQ, and 1010, one went to the flop and you caught your set of 10s and bet someone out of the pot. To us it is our usual tight play but our table image at the moment must look like some sort of raising maniac.

Lesson 3)
Position and Starting Hand Selection

Position Description

Position (poker)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Position in poker refers the order in which players are seated around the table and the related poker strategy implications. Players who act first are in "early position"; players who act later are in "late position". A player "has position" on opponents acting before him and is "out of position" to opponents acting after him. Because players act in clockwise order, a player "has position" on opponents seated to his right, except when the opponent has the button and certain cases in the first betting round of games with blinds.
The primary advantage held by a player in late position is that he will have more information with which to make his decisions than players in early position, who will have to act first. Also, as earlier opponents fold, the probability of a hand being the best goes up as the number of opponents goes down.

Dave Carter’s Ramblings here.
Ok, what is position other then some semipornagraphic punchline to joke? Well, when it comes down to poker, position can be a lot of things. Early position, first few after the blind, you want to be folding almost everything that you feel comfortable seeing a reraise on. Middle position, might be able to play a few more speculative hands depending on the action in front of you. Later position, want to push any advantage you have here. This is where you want to play the majority of your hands. This will most of the time be your most profitable area of play.
Why is there such a premium on playing later in the order? First thing that comes to this mind is it allows you a chance to observe what has happened before. That might sound good and fine but what does it mean in terms of how it helps? Simple example for preflop. You are in early position, you look down at pocket nines. That is a solid starting hand, right? You sitting on the button, there has been a raise by a tight player, a reraise by a loose but intelligent player and a call by yet another player, how good do you feel about your nines now?
Intimidation factor is another great reason to love later playing position. This is where everyone looks over to you wondering why you are in the pot and what you are holding. You are the biggest mystery at the table. You can see what people are doing in front of you and exert your will and power here. You see a loose player raise from early position and a few tentative calls, here is where any two cards played with force can be a tremendous play(Do not try this against novice opponents, they rarely are able to see beyond the idea that their two cards look pretty together). Another thing about the above example, even if you call, after the flop you can again ramp up the pressure depending on the action in front of you.

The Power of Position
More Dave Carter’s Ramblings

Power, pure and simple. Position gives you that. It gives you additional knowledge. Knowledge allows you to make better decisions. You are more informed so your decisions are more likely to be correct(remember how much I stressed making the right move and decision all before in lesson two?). It is extremely hard to be trapped in position. More knowledge aids in keeping you out of trouble unless you make a grave mistake.
Why is position so important in poker?
Author: Nick Kisberg
Last updated: Dec 2005
Copyright © 2006 Nick Kisberg
The official and up-to-date version of this answer is here.
Often you hear people preaching about the importance of position, and the reason behind this are lost on many people. Position (definable quite simply as the position you must act in in relation to the rest of your table) is crucial for several reasons.
Firstly, if you are "on the button" (last to act after the flop and last to act apart from the blinds preflop) or in late position (one or two places before the button at a full table), you will have more of an idea if your hand is good in relation to other player's hands preflop. If, for example, you are playing No-Limit Hold’em and hold Ace-Jack suited and everyone has folded to you on the button, you can be reasonably confident that your Ace-Jack suited is the best hand out, as you are only up against two random hands. Contrastingly, if you are in late position with the same hand, and the pot has already been raised and reraised, you can fold without a second thought, as the bettor and/or the raiser will almost always have a better starting hand than you. When you are in early position, you do not have this information available, and the likelihood that you will either folding the best starting hand dealt to the table or raise into someone with a premium hand is greatly increased. From early position, a hand like 22 or 33 is often unplayable, but in late position with a lot of people limping into the pot (calling the big blind but not raising), small pairs can be played for the huge value you will get if you hit a set. Poker is a game of information, and the more information you have before you are forced to make a decision, the more likely you are to make the right decision.
Position is also crucial when it comes to preflop blind stealing, for much the same reason. If you are raising into two players, the likelihood of one of these players having a hand which they can or will call or raise you with is much lower than if you are raising into eight players.
After the flop, position doesn't become any less important. When you are in position, you have the advantage of acting after your opponent and thus being able to see whether he checks or bets (and how much he bets) before you have to act. If a passive player bets into you and you just have middle pair, you invariably have an easy fold, whereas if you were acting first you may well be tempted to bet, and would ultimately lose more chips on the hand - either by getting slowplayed or by being raised on the flop and not being able to call. In heads-up Hold’em you will see many good players raising on the button with almost any two starting cards, primarily because they want to contest larger pots when they have the advantage of position on their opponent.
When considering where to sit at a poker table, position is important too. You want tighter and weaker players to your left, so blind stealing is as easy as possible. Strong, aggressive players are better seated on your right, so you almost always have position on them and can use this to your advantage more often, as they will be involved in more pots.
Position is more important in No-Limit Hold’em than Limit Hold’em, for the simple reason that a far wider range of plays are possible in No Limit. In more mechanical games like Omaha, position is less important, but should never be totally ignored.

Starting hand selection and how it relates to a hand.

Now these charts are confusing as heck, I will talk about these to help you out.

Group 0: AA KK
Group 1: QQ JJ AKs
Group 2: TT AK AQs AJs KQs
Group 3: AQ 99 ATs KJs QJs KTs
Group 4: 88 AJ KQ QTs A9s JTs AT A8s
Group 5: KJ 77 QJ KT QT JT A7s K9s Q9s T9s J9s
Group 6: 66 55 44 33 22 A5s A6s A4s A3s A2s
Group 7: A9 K9 98s 87s 76s Kxs(?) T8s(?) 97s(?) 86s(?) 54s(?)

Total EV stats ordered by value
Cards EV Count
AA 2.32 521,324
KK 1.67 522,652
QQ 1.22 520,663
JJ 0.86 521,866
AK s 0.78 348,364
AQ s 0.59 348,759
TT 0.58 520,705
AK 0.51 1,048,008
AJ s 0.44 348,126
KQ s 0.39 346,772
99 0.38 522,454
AT s 0.32 348,013
AQ 0.31 1,042,962
KJ s 0.29 346,582
88 0.25 521,972
QJ s 0.23 348,870
KT s 0.20 348,774
A9 s 0.19 348,992
AJ 0.19 1,045,857
QT s 0.17 346,115
KQ 0.16 1,045,069
77 0.16 524,345
JT s 0.15 348,235
A8 s 0.10 349,431
K9 s 0.09 348,286
AT 0.08 1,047,289
A5 s 0.08 348,544
A7s 0.08 349,949
KJ 0.08 1,047,098
66 0.07 520,946
T9 s 0.05 348,264
A4 s 0.05 347,862
Q9 s 0.05 348,760
J9 s 0.04 349,965
QJ 0.03 1,044,338
A6 s 0.03 347,677
55 0.02 521,945
A3 s 0.02 347,895
K8 s 0.01 350,401
KT 0.01 1,045,392
98 s 0.00 348,759
T8 s -0.00 347,443
K7 s -0.00 348,341
A2 s 0.00 347,318
87 s -0.02 348,348
QT -0.02 1,047,827
Q8 s -0.02 348,381
44 -0.03 523,398
A9 -0.03 1,047,672
J8 s -0.03 348,046
76 s -0.03 347,540
JT -0.03 1,043,812
97 s -0.04 350,158
K6 s -0.04 347,029
K5 s -0.05 349,320
K4 s -0.05 348,681
T7 s -0.05 347,638

Cards EV Count
Q7 s -0.06 348,073
K9 -0.07 1,045,630
65 s -0.07 348,590
T9 -0.07 1,045,306
86 s -0.07 348,374
A8 -0.07 1,042,209
J7 s -0.07 345,009
33 -0.07 522,632
54 s -0.08 348,260
Q6 s -0.08 349,068
K3 s -0.08 348,865
Q9 -0.08 1,049,468
75 s -0.09 349,781
22 -0.09 524,131
J9 -0.09 1,044,150
64 s -0.09 349,689
Q5 s -0.09 350,110
K2 s -0.09 349,276
96 s -0.09 349,514
Q3 s -0.10 348,009
J8 -0.10 1,046,506
98 -0.10 1,044,759
T8 -0.10 1,048,779
97 -0.10 1,046,152
A7 -0.10 1,046,587
T7 -0.10 1,044,950
Q4 s -0.10 348,979
Q8 -0.11 1,048,251
J5 s -0.11 348,923
T6 -0.11 1,043,014
75 -0.11 1,047,447
J4 s -0.11 347,508
74 s -0.11 350,325
K8 -0.11 1,048,167
86 -0.11 1,047,524
53 s -0.11 346,930
K7 -0.11 1,043,698
63 s -0.11 346,449
J6 s -0.11 347,570
85 -0.11 1,048,159
T6 s -0.11 348,875
76 -0.11 1,046,722
A6 -0.12 1,046,762
T2 -0.12 1,047,032
95 s -0.12 348,477
84 -0.12 1,046,266
62 -0.12 1,049,495
T5 s -0.12 348,928
95 -0.12 1,044,601
A5 - 0.12 1,046,285
Q7 -0.12 1,046,099
T5 -0.12 1,048,428
87 -0.12 1,044,635
83 -0.12 1,048,550
65 -0.12 1,045,971
Q2 s -0.12 348,912
94 -0.12 1,047,422

Cards EV Count
74 -0.12 1,043,278
54 -0.12 1,046,435
A4 -0.12 1,046,931
T4 -0.12 1,047,976
82 -0.12 1,043,638
64 -0.12 1,043,079
42 -0.12 1,043,357
J7 -0.12 1,046,565
93 -0.12 1,045,989
85 s -0.12 347,928
73 -0.12 1,047,020
53 -0.12 1,047,022
T3 -0.12 1,043,908
63 -0.12 1,044,818
K6 -0.12 1,045,039
J6 -0.12 1,045,991
96 -0.12 1,047,156
92 -0.12 1,049,342
72 -0.12 1,046,167
52 -0.12 1,049,213
Q4 -0.13 1,045,087
K5 -0.13 1,047,359
J5 -0.13 1,047,697
43 s -0.13 348,802
Q3 -0.13 1,047,649
43 -0.13 1,047,900
K4 -0.13 1,046,562
J4 -0.13 1,048,129
T4 s -0.13 350,639
Q6 -0.13 1,046,958
Q2 -0.13 1,046,353
J3 s -0.13 349,254
J3 -0.13 1,046,204
T3 s -0.13 349,673
A3 -0.13 1,046,970
Q5 -0.13 1,047,946
J2 -0.13 1,045,715
84 s -0.13 349,390
82 s -0.14 348,622
42 s -0.14 350,591
93 s -0.14 348,835
73 s -0.14 349,007
K3 -0.14 1,045,968
J2 s -0.14 348,259
92 s -0.14 347,868
52 s -0.14 348,401
K2 -0.14 1,048,521
T2 s -0.14 349,612
62 s -0.14 348,033
32 -0.14 1,044,956
A2 -0.15 1,047,979
83 s -0.15 349,355
94 s -0.15 348,259
72 s -0.15 348,368
32 s -0.15 349,794

The statistics are based on 115,591,080 pair of pocket cards dealt at the real money tables. The unit for EV is average profit in big bets.

Lesson 4)
Introduction to Preflop Betting

Standard conventions
Limping vs Raising
Revisit into the power of position as it applies to preflop betting
Aggression as a tool.

By MajinGohan

Ok, this is what I have for a lesson. If you use it, don't change the tone of it please.

-------------------------------------
Lesson Four

Hello, my next prospective student. I go by the name MajinGohan on your friend’s forum, but you can just call me Maj. You’ve had the lessons up to now, and we are going to build on those lessons today. I’ve been told to instruct you in the method of TAG preflop play. Buckle your seatbelt and prepare for takeoff. This is the arena where even your teacher says that I have him out-TAGged. So make sure your chairs are in the upright and locked position, and all baggage has been stored adequately. You’re in my world now. Who knows, you may even learn something.

A quick re-cap: TAG is the style in which you have a selective range of hands which you play preflop, which in the long run stands to be of a higher winning percentage than the range of hands your looser, gung-ho opponents will tend to play. These “overcoming” hands are to be played in an aggressive matter, not only to force players out, but to increase the profitability of your hands, and to add additional money into the pot when you stand to be a favorite. Most of the hands in lesson 3, up to group 4, are “heads up hands”, or hands whose strength in showdown value increases with the fewer amount of players in the hand. So let’s get into the first of many essences of TAG: the preflop arena.

You’re dealt AA. What do you do? Think you have an answer?

You aren’t even close. There are more details to the hand then simply the cards that you are dealt. The TAG style is dependent on playing a certain range of hands, true, but there are a lot more factors in playing a hand than just the cards. The questions that you should ask when you hear that first question should look like:

“How many chips do I have?”
“How many opponents are on the table with me?”
“What position am I in on the table?”
“How many opponents have voluntarily committed money to the pot ahead of me?”
“How many in chips do each of those opponents have?”
“What are the tendencies of the people who have committed money to the pot? Do they call raises liberally, fold to pressure, check raise?”
“What are the tendencies of the people yet to act, do they raise a lot, call a lot?”

If you got two of these questions without having your teacher helping you, then you have true potential. If you didn’t get any, then he hasn’t been doing his job like I’ve been telling him. Some of the finer details to these questions will be dealt with in later lessons, but for the purpose of this lesson, we’ll go through some of the simple decisions that you need to go through in this hand.

The first, and most important phrase in the TAG strategy is the word “aggression”. This relates to the entire way that you play the hand. It is very important to remember that in poker, there are always two ways to win a hand. The first comes from showing down the winning hand on the river. If your hand is better than your opponents on the end of the hand, then you win the pot and all of its yummy, yummy contents. But there is a more devious, deceitful, and fun way to win in poker. This is by making all of your opponents fold their cards into the muck (discard pile) and taking all of those yummy chips without showing anything. In order to do this, you have to put your opponents to a decision, where they have the option of folding.

You can not make your opponents fold by limping in. To limp in is to call the minimum size of the bet that is currently out in the pot. Preflop, this is the size of the big blind in the hand. When you limp in, all of the bets made by your opponents does not increase, and if something doesn’t happen fast, your opponents will see a flop, and you will have lost the first chance to make them all fold out of the hand. Therefore, raising is a wiser choice of action to take when facing a hand that you would like to play. Not only just raising though, but raising an amount larger enough to want your opponents to question whether or not they should bother to play. Also, this raise that you would make should be sized to the amount of chips that you have in your stack as well. Here’s a simple route of thumb to think about when thinking about raising Preflop:

Small Stack (all of these are in relation to the other stacks on the table): Be more willing to raise all or most of your chips into the pot. This is both to make your opponents fold, to tell them that you are committing to the hand, and to make the following decisions of the hand easier to make. Less chips = less decisions.

Medium Stack: Raise the normal amount that you would do, adding in for the presence of limpers. I like a raise somewhere around 4 times the BB, plus 1 BB for every limper in the pot. Remember that with every person who decides to commit money to the pot, the larger the pot becomes and the harder it is to force people out of the pot.

Large Stack: Same as the medium stack, but return to raising slightly larger with the presence of other large stacks in the hand. A larger stack in the hand means that the more decisions you will have to make in the hand. You would prefer in general to play against the medium and shorter stacks in the hand, especially with AA.

Also, you should be more willing to play hands in position than out of position. There are many reasons for this. But before that, a quick summary of position. Position is you’re relation on the table in seats in relation to where the blinds for that hand are dealt. The way position is counted is from the left of the blinds. IE, if the big blind is in the 2nd seat of a nine-handed table, and you are in the fourth seat, then you are in 3rd position, because you are the third seat away from the big blind on that hand.

Also, certain seats on the position chart of the table have nicknames. Ask your coach for questions if you don’t understand some of them. These will go from the small blind (worst position) to the best position on the table.

SB – small blind
BB – big blind
Under the Gun (UtG) – this is the position to the immediate left of the big blind. Known as being poor position due to having no actions from the other players to go on, it is recommended that most players should be more willing to fold marginal hands from this seat. Playing the top 3 sections of hands should be the wisest, plus all pairs 66 and up. Fold most other hands until you get more experience in the game.
Highjack Seat (HJ) – this is the seat to the right of the cutoff seat. It’s called the highjack seat because many experienced players like to change up their games by raising out of this seat often.
Cutoff (CO) – this is the seat to the right of the button. Second best position on the table post-flop.
Button (B) – this is affectionately known as the “office” for most poker players. Most of the hands you are dealt in your range you can play from here, depending on the action ahead of course. Many times however, the button raises position because the other players know that you can be playing more hands from this position, but that is for a later lesson.

At a 9 handed you get AA in 6th position at the table. What seat is that called?(1) You’re Stack is $160 which is a fairly medium stack seeing that most stacks at the table range between $75 and $400. A player that you peg as being solid (good and straightforward) limps in ahead of you for $2, as the blinds for the table are 1 and 2. Afterwards, another 2 players who are somewhat loose limp in behind him. The first player is the short stack with about $75, and the other two have $150and the big stack at $400 respectively. What size do you raise to?(2) After making the raise, it folds to the SB, with a stack of $100, who calls. All the other players fold.

Success! They all folded! Wait, why is the flop being dealt? Oh, we have one caller. What do we do? For the continuation of this lesson, ask your coach to tell me to write up my next essay on flop play.

See, that wasn’t too bad, was it? It was actually a little fun, right? Yea right, since when is learning fun. Anyways, remember to ask plenty of questions and as always, “may your cards be live and your pots be monsters!”

(1) – Cutoff seat
(2) – With three limpers in the hand, you should make a standard raise to about 4x the BB, plus 3 BBs for the limps, so about to $14 to go is a solid raise.

More work from Slush420

ok to add to your teachings, I will give my own personal input about position betting and raising:

In order to put people on a certain class of pre-flop hands, you not only have to analyze the player placing the bet or call out on the table, but also the general state of the table and whether raises come frequently or you have a lot of people calling for a cheap flop.

If you are in early position (UTG or within 2 spots to the left of the UTG player) on a table that likes to see a lot of flops, that doesn't entitle you to put your chips out on any kind of suited connector or weak ace. instead, this is a great time to wait on a quality hand (Ace w/a face or pocket x's) and place a small raise out on the table. On tables that like to see flops, you may get a few callers and if you get raised, just evaluate the tightness/looseness of the player raising you. You will not always hit the flop like you want to, but by putting out this small raise, you give your hittable hand some value in the pot in case you want to bluff at the pot or you do hit the flop. depending on who you are playing, you pretty much know when you're being called by a monster or being raised by someone scared to lose the value of their top pair on the turn card by the position of their call to your pre-flop raise and also their willingness to chase a flush or open-ender. these aren't things you can always figure out right away at a table.. it may take 40+ deals to give someone a particular image. but if you have the willingness, you can force the action on people yourself to see how much they are willing to push and which cards they may have when they do push. This strategy ONLY works in a cash game in which you are bought in for the maximum and you know that your opponent you're trying to get a read on has enough of a chip stack to make the "feeler" hand worth playing against him.
However, this all changes when the table you are on makes frequent raises and certain players are willing to test your limits of hand strengths per dollar needed for a showdown. On these tables, you better only play those quality hands UTG. (AA, KK, QQ, AK, JJ, 10, AQs). And the only two I suggest raising UTG are them pocket rockets and kings. The other hands listed are only suggested as safe calls UTG. The good thing about the UTG position and a tight-aggressive table is the fact that if you have one of these hands and it is raised pre-flop, you are more often than not the last to act on these raises. You either get a value flop with a quality hand to crack your aggressive opponent or you've minimized how much you could possibly lose by playing these quality hands. Remember, to a tight-aggressive opponent, the only raise worth making is the one that evens the pot odds in the favor of the raiser (betting the pot). So the one way to tilt your aggressive foe is to help him believe he is beating you the whole way. Hitting sets on rainbow flops make for great trap hands in your favor (esp. with only 1 face out there). When a good check-call is in order, use it! If you know your opponent, then you know he isn't willing to play that fabled 5 7 for the open ender. However, if your opponent plays weak hands and still maniacs them out to no end, GET HIM IN WITH YOUR BEST HAND. I can't emphasize that enough how good players are cracked when they try to cute play those rockets into the aggressor. The aggressor is your friend when you make a nut flop or 98% unbeatable hand.
The most important thing is to use your analytical skills AT ALL TIMES. No matter how much someone varies their play, if they know you are weak in one aspect and exploit it once, they will use that against you until you are sick of getting nickeled and dimed on hands you believe are better. But if you know they have found a weak point in your game once, let them find it again.. give them that false sense of hope when they believe their money is favored to take yours. After all, cash games are like no other.. you can make 100 great moves and tilt on one move all because you thought someone was weak. Never underestimate, always analyze!

And if what I am saying is considered babbling, I understand, trust me.

Lesson 5)
Flop Study

Flop texture.
What do I mean by flop texture? Well, let us look at the word texture. It means the feel of something. Now, what does that have to do with poker? Well, the feel of the moment can mean a lot more then the reality. Are the cards all random on the board or are some paired? Three different suits, two to a suit and one of another, or all one suit? Are the cards close together in rank or spread very far apart? All that is part of the texture. Now the hard part is using what the flop texture is to your advantage.

Analyzing how this flop helped me?

Ok, how did that flop and the flop texture help me? Well, do you remember what your cards are? Do I have a flush? A Straight? Four of a kind? Three of a kind? Two pairs? A pair? Do I have a draw to a straight of a flush?

Analyzing how this flop may have helped the villain?

What do I think he is holding? How do the likely holdings of him plug into the flop?

What I most likely need to improve?

If I have a pair, what do I need for a three of a kind or two pair? If I am drawing to a flush or a straight, what cards get me there? If I have two of a kind, what cards hit my full house? If I have trips, how do I hit a full or quads?

What the villain needs to improve?

????? Betting will help find out the answers for you.

Basic mentioning to odds and outs.
The number of cards that hit to improve your hand is called an out. These cards can be combined to do a general calculation to figure out some basic odds. The yellow portion of your mousepad lists the odds and equations for some common draws and situations.

Lessons 6-10 will involve a great deal of Laying out cards and showing how things progress with different situations.

Lesson 6)
Post Flop Betting

Aim at making your opponents make mistakes. Your choices of betting, calling, checking, raising, and reraising are all aimed at two things. Finding out information about your opponents hand or hands with multiple opponents or to make them make mistakes. Every action you do at the table needs to have a reason. Don't just do, have a reason to do.

Again, did I hit the flop hard? Am I just trying to build the pot when I have a big hand? Did I get a good piece of it and am trying to keep the pot sized controlled until I complete?(hit a monster draw) Did the flop cripple the betting and you are just making a play at it?(Very good chance the flop didn't help anyone.)

Working with pressure
Fun fact (only 35% of flops hit anybody)*Important when you get heads up or have position*
Using your position to your advantage

Lesson 7)
Turn Study

The make or break card.
What does the board tell you about your opponents hand?
Where do you think you stand right now?

Lesson Cool
Betting the Turn

Why to turn up the pressure?
Where you are heading from now?
Most common mistakes made on the turn.

Lesson 9)
THE FREAKING RIVER!!!!

What sort of mess am I in?(Why you are still playing this hand.)
How do I win this with no cards to come?
What did the board do to help the villain?

Lesson 10)
Betting the River

Where are you at?
Can I win this in a showdown?
Would the villain lay the hand down to a bet and if so, how big?
What do I need to do to get paid? Size is important.
Big river betting mistakes.(Why bet when a reraise will make you puke? Not betting for value from position. Trying to bet for value out of position.)

These are all the classes that I have taught up until this point. I do use a lot of play with the deck and chips from lesson three on. This course is aimed at live play.

Teaching

2006-11-12T14:40:00.000-05:00

Playing a lot less online lately. Finding too many holes in my online game so I have cut way back. Right now I am doing very well in my live game for the most part and doing a lot of reading and research to work on making my game run as smooth as I can.
Also am working on a teaching a fresh player. Almost no knowledge of the game at all. I feel in a lot of ways this is helping me on breaking down what the game is really about and how to play as profitable as possible. My poker writing is coming along well. I just wish that my playing was as consistant as my writing as far as knowing and better yet doing the right thing when faced with a tough hand.

Implied Tilt on a whole table

2006-09-17T14:00:00.000-04:00

Now, making a call for an inside straight is not usually a good call. But, got the whole table playing different because of one hand.

I love this game. Twist them up and let them loose.

$7+$1 (real money), hand #996,815,690
Qualifier to $50+4 Multi Table Tournament, 13 Sep 2006 08:51 PM

View Previous hand for this table.

Seat 1: gatorman44 ($1,110 in chips)
Seat 2: jackedjesse ($9,750 in chips)
Seat 4: deucesonhand ($3,920 in chips)
Seat 5: baNASHed27 ($1,830 in chips)
Seat 7: insanecow ($3,125 in chips)
Seat 9: Ezarc [JS,10D] ($2,800 in chips)
Seat 10: boots_poker ($3,870 in chips)

ANTES/BLINDS
gatorman44 posts blind ($25), jackedjesse posts blind ($50).

PRE-FLOP
deucesonhand folds, baNASHed27 folds, insanecow bets $100, Ezarc calls $100, boots_poker calls $100, gatorman44 calls $75, jackedjesse calls $50.

FLOP [board cards QH,3D,AC ]
gatorman44 checks, jackedjesse checks, insanecow bets $200, Ezarc calls $200, boots_poker folds, gatorman44 folds, jackedjesse folds.

TURN [board cards QH,3D,AC,KS ]
insanecow bets $200, Ezarc calls $200.

RIVER [board cards QH,3D,AC,KS,9H ]
insanecow bets $100, Ezarc bets $500, insanecow calls $400.

SHOWDOWN
Ezarc shows [ JS,10D ]
insanecow mucks cards [ JD,AS ]
Ezarc wins $2,300.

SUMMARY
Dealer: boots_poker
Pot: $2,300
gatorman44, loses $100
jackedjesse, loses $100
deucesonhand, loses $0
baNASHed27, loses $0
insanecow, loses $1,000
Ezarc, bets $1,000, collects $2,300, net $1,300
boots_poker, loses $100

Now for my explaination on the why.

Alcibadies wrote:
"I like the way you think E. Do you think it was possible to sneak more chips in pot on turn and river to make draw good? The table probably won't notice if you squeeze enough implied odds out to justify gutshot draw. All they will see is that you chased a gutshot.

For instance raising to 500 on turn and then raising a little less than the pot on river like 900 chips and your draw is good. I think he would probably call the extra 300 on turn. Not sure if he'd call the river, but if he doesn't you would only lose 200 chips than the way you played it. By taking this chance you'd have a shot at getting enough implied odds for your draw. Is this a good idea or do I need to stop sniffing glue :)."

Ok, this guy whined a bit earlier on the play of another guy. I wanted him mad at me. I wanted to show the whole table that with my big stack, I would be more then willing to go out of my way to lay a hurt on someone. It just happened that my miracle card hits on the turn making it all work out.
He bitched and moaned to high freaking hell after that hand about how bad I played it. It made it all the better. Ever complaint made just strenthened my table image as a big dangerous stack. I loved it.
The whole table either ducked or tried to play back at me. Two dead players later I had complete command of the table and got the ticket to the bigger game with doing nothing more then bullying the table with ease until my ticket.

Coming back after a meltdown

2006-09-09T23:00:00.000-04:00

After a bit of tilt cost me a good sized chunk of change I find myself again grinding it back up on the micro cash games.
Recovery is still continuing. Nickels and dimes. Grinding it out is nasty work but I don't want to lose my cool or my bankroll like I did before. This low level grinding is so taxing at times trying to figure these idiots out. Why are they calling? What is all this mini betting shit? Why are they calling my raise?
I know you do that at the higher levels but then you might have a clue, these idiots might be thinking nothing at all and hit the button when reaching for their asses(not knowing the difference between a button and their ass).

Loving the game

2006-08-15T11:54:00.000-04:00

Ok, so I played like heck last night. Beat myself up a little. And then a post on CP kind of woke me up a little. Not so much the question but how I answered.

"For those of you on this site that play online poker as a profession or as a sure way to get money, what would u change if you were 16 agian? What I'm getting at is what would you have done to help you game so come time when ur 18 your ready to go? I feel like I'm starting relatively early and I have 2 years before I go play live and start depositing my own money online.

Right now I just rented a couple books from the library: Shuffle up and Deal. Harrington on holdem vol 2. Hold'em Poker by david sklansky and mason malmuth Annie Dukes bok

Kind of a stupid question to ask but you guys dont no me so i feel free to type anything. You can look forward to a lot more of these amaturic posts by me.

Any input would be swell, thanks"

Here is my answer.

"Have fun with your math and psychology classes. Knowing the math and the psychology is very important if you would like to go far.
Most import thing of all is remember, you are young and to have a blast doing something you love. If you don't love the game, all the bright lights won't mean squat. If you don't love the game it won't help you to work through busting your bankroll for the 20th time. If you don't love the game, why bother."

Winning is great. Playing like hell suck but the bottom line is I love the game. I play great one day and like heck the other. My consistancy is not good at this point. Bottom line is I love the game and hope I never stop learning about it and never lose that love of the game.

Yeah Baby, build it up!

2006-08-12T14:59:00.000-04:00

Ok, tried babying it up. Doing better at that but ran into a small snag. My last day of my $50+$4 tournamant ticket at Pokerroom. Couldn't find any larger MTT tourney with it today so put it in a SitnGo. First SitnGo at this level. When I had a good bankroll used to play mostly $10s with some $20s thrown in. Well, my feeble bankroll at that site just bumped from $64 to $214 as I took down 2nd.
Played tight as heck as I just tried to figure out who was playing how. Ended up making a bit here and there with some hands and bumping out a short stack with KK vs. a-5. Ended up with a big stack on both sides of me. But worked it down to four without too many worries. At four the guy to the right of me drifted off which he had done at times but this time he didn't hop back on right after his time expired. Both me and the player to my left hit on the small stack and the big player got most of the bbs of the player to my left. Finally the small went in utg with k-q and the big stack woke up to aces. Done and done.
Had trouble towards the end because with the #3 guy sitting out and the big stack kept putting in monster raises and I had nothing to play back at him with. Didn't want to cost myself $50 because some asshole sat out and I tried to take first with a marginal hand.
The three guy came back for a hand or two but I put him down with queens vs. a5. Was too short stacked for any miracle comeback as I took 2nd.
Over all I felt pretty satisfied with my play and just wish that the guy hadn't sat out. That really put me in a terrible position with the big stack. I might have taken third because of it but it would have given me a better chance to take first.

Smile or else.

2006-08-11T17:10:00.001-04:00

I believe in poker the way I believe in the American Dream. Poker is good for you. It enriches the soul, sharpens the intellect, heals the spirit, and - when played well, nourishes the wallet. ~Lou Krieger
*problem with double post*

Back to the game and building the stack back.

2006-08-11T17:10:00.000-04:00

Played some pretty decent poker today at the kiddie tables. Just trying to rebuild a bankroll and get some confidence back. Starting to get used to working with poker office to make better decisions. Had a few small suckouts and setbacks but here is the key hands.

Been playing my usual TAG the two seat to my left throwing some chips around and drawing out a lot. The original better in this pot had already sucked out on me twice. Nice little payback.

PokerStars Game #5879672724: Hold'em No Limit ($0.05/$0.10) - 2006/08/11 - 16:49:19 (ET)
Table 'Sigune' 9-max Seat #8 is the button
Seat 1: btoo ($16.05 in chips)
Seat 2: SnakeFortune ($13.50 in chips)
Seat 3: falwic ($3.15 in chips)
Seat 4: Ezarc ($13.65 in chips)
Seat 5: jakechelsea ($18.20 in chips)
Seat 6: Kobern ($23.50 in chips)
Seat 7: Mister206 ($14.25 in chips)
Seat 8: Inesiite ($5 in chips)
Seat 9: NluvsS ($2.70 in chips)
NluvsS: posts small blind $0.05
btoo: posts big blind $0.10
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Ezarc [8s 8d]
SnakeFortune: calls $0.10
falwic: folds
Ezarc: calls $0.10 *hit my set or fold situation*
jakechelsea: calls $0.10
Kobern: calls $0.10
Mister206: folds
Inesiite: folds
NluvsS: folds
btoo: checks
*** FLOP *** [Td 8c Kc]
btoo: checks
SnakeFortune: bets $0.30
Ezarc: calls $0.30 *smoothcall to see if anyonce behind will raise to iso, if not I will see what the turn has*l
jakechelsea: calls $0.30
Kobern: calls $0.30
btoo: folds
*** TURN *** [Td 8c Kc] [5d] *Sweet turn, so digging this*
SnakeFortune: bets $0.10
Ezarc: calls $0.10 *see if I can't induce the big stacks to make a move*
jakechelsea: raises $2.90 to $3 *:banger: *
Kobern: folds
SnakeFortune: folds
Ezarc: raises $3.50 to $6.50 *Ok, time to build a pot*
jakechelsea: calls $3.50
*** RIVER *** [Td 8c Kc 5d] [Tc]*ok, the ten of clubs is a double edged sword here. K-10 made a better full but with the clubs on the flop and the straight draws, he would have moved more on the flop. Clubs is a great thing.*
Ezarc: bets $5.70
jakechelsea: raises $5.60 to $11.30 and is all-in *I am pretty sure that it is a club flush here*
Ezarc: calls $1.05 and is all-in
*** SHOW DOWN ***
jakechelsea: shows [9c Qc] (a flush, King high)
Ezarc: shows [8s 8d] (a full house, Eights full of Tens)
Ezarc collected $27 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $28.35 | Rake $1.35
Board [Td 8c Kc 5d Tc]
Seat 1: btoo (big blind) folded on the Flop
Seat 2: SnakeFortune folded on the Turn
Seat 3: falwic folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 4: Ezarc showed [8s 8d] and won ($27) with a full house, Eights full of Tens
Seat 5: jakechelsea showed [9c Qc] and lost with a flush, King high
Seat 6: Kobern folded on the Turn
Seat 7: Mister206 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 8: Inesiite (button) folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 9: NluvsS (small blind) folded before Flop

iMix

2006-08-08T20:31:00.000-04:00

Enjoying the video games, made up an iMix, and still have a few days to enjoy before I have to use up the tournament tickets I won. Should have time for another day off from playing before rereading Harrington on Hold'em.

Yup, it is time

2006-08-08T00:47:00.000-04:00

Time for some time off. This is insane. Just up and down poker with insane beats killing me every time I start a run.
Think I am going to play some video games and kill some things for a few.
Take Care and Bless.

I miss bigger limits.

2006-08-03T17:06:00.000-04:00

I know I posted this elsewhere but I need the double vent for this one.
Ok, playing in a $5 MTT and am able to get up double and then a little within the first 2 levels. Not too dang rare.
Well here is some of the crap that hits on level three 25-50. I have been playing tight agressive and only been showing down solid hands. UTG is a loose player and bumps it up to 150, I am in mid and look down on JJ. I Bump it up to 750 and the button, another loose player, calls. The UTG moves in for all his chips. I have only to call about 700 more to call him , so I just smooth call hoping that the button will either melt away or give me a side pot if the UTG actually has a hand. Well, the button just calls as well.
Flop is a wonder full rainbow of low garbage. I have about 1700 left and drop it in. Ok, I understand that it is only 1700 to get in on the pot that will end up at 7900 or so but the donkey button calls it off with AJ unsuited. The UTG had AJ unsuited as well. No jacks left but only two aces as well. The turn pairs the 4 on the board and the river is an ace.
Now I don't know about you, but since when did AJ unsuited become a farging monster hand? I would like to know what either of these freaking morons was thinking? Ugh, I miss playing at higher limits.
Next time I go donkey hunting I am bringing a gun.
*Cleansing breath* Ok, I feel better now.

Thought for the moment.

2006-08-01T15:17:00.000-04:00

Ok, so I am in rough shape on my play lately. Can't seem to do what I need to do. My reads are not as sharp, not laying down when I should at times, and in general not playing solid poker. So, I am not playing as much and just trying out a few things when I do play rather then playing to win as much. Enjoying my play and seeing some interesting things happen time and time again.
Observations that make you go Hmmmmmmmm:
1) Donkeys don't believe in odds. Chase as the feel lucky.
2) Donkeys call to the river with top pair and weak kicker.
3) Don't pay attention to table image and just play what they feel like.
4) Position is rarely considered.
5) Coinflips are always worth calling.

More little thoughts. Thinking of trying the Chris Ferguson buildup project. See if I can make a bankroll just off of freerolls and then go from there. Empire has a bunch of freerolls and I am wondering if I could actually pull that off. Hmmm. Just a thought that has been playing in my head.

WTF?!?!?!

2006-07-24T23:02:00.000-04:00

I am just going to put up this hand history. You all can guess what the heck I am talking about.

Table '28499731 170' 9-max Seat #9 is the button
Seat 1: JustSeven (2425 in chips)
Seat 2: XxGeneralxX (2855 in chips)
Seat 3: enginedan (4835 in chips)
Seat 4: cccollector (6530 in chips)
Seat 5: Maynie (3080 in chips)
Seat 6: Ezarc (2870 in chips)
Seat 7: StakeNEggen (1170 in chips)
Seat 8: Tastedznutts (3535 in chips)
Seat 9: SJTERROR (1265 in chips)
JustSeven: posts small blind 50
XxGeneralxX: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Ezarc [Ah Ad]
enginedan: folds
cccollector: calls 100
Maynie: calls 100
Ezarc: raises 300 to 400
StakeNEggen: folds
Tastedznutts: calls 400
SJTERROR: folds
JustSeven: folds
XxGeneralxX: folds
cccollector: calls 300
Maynie: folds
*** FLOP *** [8d Ks 3s]
cccollector: checks
Ezarc: bets 900
Tastedznutts: calls 900
cccollector: calls 900
*** TURN *** [8d Ks 3s] [4d]
cccollector: checks
Ezarc: bets 1570 and is all-in
Tastedznutts: calls 1570
cccollector: folds
*** RIVER *** [8d Ks 3s 4d] [6h]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Ezarc: shows [Ah Ad] (a pair of Aces)
Tastedznutts: shows [5d 2d] (a straight, Deuce to Six)
Tastedznutts collected 7290 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 7290 | Rake 0
Board [8d Ks 3s 4d 6h]
Seat 1: JustSeven (small blind) folded before Flop
Seat 2: XxGeneralxX (big blind) folded before Flop
Seat 3: enginedan folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 4: cccollector folded on the Turn
Seat 5: Maynie folded before Flop
Seat 6: Ezarc showed [Ah Ad] and lost with a pair of Aces
Seat 7: StakeNEggen folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 8: Tastedznutts showed [5d 2d] and won (7290) with a straight, Deuce to Six
Seat 9: SJTERROR (button) folded before Flop (didn't bet)

July 24,2006

2006-07-24T16:00:00.000-04:00

Ok, haven't posted for a while. Problem, let myself get to medium stack size and it comes down to crunch time. Final push to bubble land and the money. Get into the hand with a stack bigger/or a touch smaller hit two pair, trips and it is push time. Lately all I am seeing is the other guy calling and hitting his flush or straight or some other miracle runner runner to put me out or cripple me.
Not playing as much. Same senarios with different people. No different. All of it is just wearing me the heck out.
And I am out for now, if you have any thoughts about let know.

Entry for July 14, 2006

2006-07-17T15:31:00.000-04:00

Ok, just a short one for today.

"Playing the cards, the players, and the draws available is more important with how I play stud and omaha. With NL holdem, you can control the pot odds to change how the cards, players, and draws fall into play." From a chat with Yo_Bee.

Other thing is I am going through the Hand histories looking for those hidden gems, I have some ideas to work on but the most important thing is that there are some really messed up people playing poker. The chats and some of the play is absolutely some of the funniest stuff around.

Entry for July 13, 2006

2006-07-17T15:30:00.000-04:00

Was just reading a bit on pocket5s.com. People saying how they can't stand all the bad beats. They can't make money with all the donkeys around. (sounds a bit familiar)

Now the point of the article is that if you play long enough you should beat the variance, right? But these guys aren't newbies and are still mostly having trouble.(Again, very familiar) So, you play by the textbooks, by the odds, and you are still getting screwed? Have you looked at just how and why you are getting slammed? Not folding enough, not betting enough, playing out of position, calling when the scare cards hit, not calling often enough when the scare cards hit, and how ever else you are pissing off your chips. Well, it might be time to really look at where you are getting killed most often. Break down your hand histories and see. Hmmmm, bet, bet, bet, check and call when the river was the flush card. Wow, happened again. Get the idea. Time to say the books might not be right for playing donkeys, the numbers are only good for those that believe in them, and we all know donkeys can't count.

So, time to look at some HHs and see if I can find my worst donkey moments. Time to do a bit of cleaning.

Entry for July 11, 2006

2006-07-17T15:29:00.000-04:00

Last night was the cardplayer league tourney. A lot of good players and some really good people as well. I took 5ht out of the 50 some odd people in there and placed solidly in the money. Talked with yo_bee this morning about some of the things with the tournament and how things went, styles, problems, and such. Wow, it feels great to go over some of these things with another player. I think I might cut and past some of the highlights of what happened and what we talked about.

Ezarc: it is like seeing an a-q when short, I know I am dying then

Ezarc: doesn't matter if I am ahead or trailing, always lose with that when I am short.

(If I know it is the kiss of death, why move with it? Just a thought.)

Yo_Bee: when you do raise a nice amount (3x to 4x the BB) 50% of the pot and you get a reraise

Yo_Bee: what do you do

Ezarc: Heh, depends on the hand and who has reraised you.

Yo_Bee: WC or SYN

Yo_Bee: and you are in position on him

Ezarc: You have position and a real hand, ak, tens or better, smooth call

Ezarc: AJ or AQ, pockets 7s-10 you have to either push or fold.

Ezarc: First situation you have position and can read the board texture and see where it takes you. Second situation you need to figure out the chips, the odds, and weither this is the hand you think you might die for.

Ezarc: Never die with an ugly hand unless you are that short you have too.

(Not that I know anymore then Yo_Bee, it is just the situation of being stuck between two very aggressive players had him frustrated. He is actually a better player then me most of the time. Follow this from a little later.)

Ezarc: Always seem to guess wrong when the guys who are making alot of plays raise or reraise me.

Ezarc: last nights I just rolled over in most of those situations.

Ezarc: Took my good cards to the bank when I could.

(I didn't go shooting for a showdown when I held a marginal hand. Let it go, screw the odds and look for a better situation.)

It was a much different tournament for me then most. A lot less aggressive. More patience with so many really aggressive players out there. Just tight weak, which is a style I don't play that often. Much different feel to it. I guess I am just learning to lay down better as well. Need to continue on like this.

Entry for July 09, 2006

2006-07-17T15:28:00.000-04:00

Sucked out, bad beat, donkey squashed is what I feel like right now. Played some really loose low nl games and got my butt handed to me. Get in with the best, they call and suck out. Try to nickle and dime it and can't hit a draw or a set to save myself. Bad play by me for some of it but lost a bunch to people hitting there cards with the money in. Need to make less of the dumbass stupid mistakes and the bad beats will still happen but at least I cut down on losses from my mistakes.

Entry for July 08, 2006

2006-07-17T15:26:00.000-04:00

Ok, I see this at times. Do this at times. Why? Not sure. A few limps into a pot and someone with over 15x bb will go all in. With what? Called and then they show, pp 2s-jack or hands as weak as jack-8 suited. Now I know this is a semibluff of a sort but with how many donkeys are around why bother? You haven't learned anything about the limpers and you might be able to ditch the hand if the board is nasty. It also gives you the chance to flop a monster and have it be quiet and build up the huge pot. Are you really so scared of your post flop play you need to make a move like this?

*I know the dates will look wrong, moving this all over from another site.*