Why do I even pretend that I'm a "good" poker player. I'd like to think I'm better than average... I mean, just being in Ireland for the last 6 months has shown me just how many god awful players there are sitting down at the table. Yes, I'd like to think I'm better than them. Well, I like to think I'm better than most people generally, but this isn't the blog for that. Anyhow...
I went over to the Sporting Emporium to play their single rebuy scalp tournament. I made it about 5 levels and busted out just after the break. On a completely shit hand, so I'll spare you the story. I just feel really unfocused lately. I feel like I'm letting my ego involved too much. I just don't know where to start over from...
This Saturday I think I'm going to try again... hopefully I'll learn some patience.
Friday, April 13, 2007
Sunday, April 8, 2007
Irish Open
So, I think my boyfriend is getting sick of my constant angst centered around my lack-luster poker performance lately... mind you, I've never been all that good.... but I'm really trying this time. I swear. So I thought... well, why not just complain to everyone and no one all at once in a nice tidy little blog... and so we begin.
The Irish Open is being held at the Burlington Hotel about 3 blocks from my apartment, so Saturday evening I walked down there to play in some cash game action. The waiting list for the 50 and 100 euro NL tables were rather lengthy, so I opted for the 250 NL table. Blinds were 2/5 with a 10 euro straddle. I bought in for 400. Here we go...
First hour was really slow and I had shit cards, which was good, since I wanted to observe the table. It was an extremely loose table and it was normally about 25-50 euro to see a flop. I started picking up some hands and started raising and re-raising the pots. This always messes most guys up in the head at the table because the normal image for a female player is tight/passive. Or at least that's my perception of their perception of me. So they're not sure how to play. I think. Anyway... moving on.
For a solid hour I never had to show down a hand and had doubled up to 800. Oh, how the boys at the table knew me so well. They tried to give me some lessons. Like the hand I made a loose call in early position with 7h-8h. The raise was to 50 or 55 with my straddle on, so I called off the additional 40 with my suited connector and picked up another limper along the way. Three in the pot, which was about 200 euro. Flop came Jh 2h 6s. I come out with a bet of 250. It's risky, but I figure I have a flush draw to back me out just in case. First guy folds and the original raiser goes into the tank. Yadda yadda yadda. He's got a flush draw and he really wants to call but he doesn't have a pair yet... yadda yadda. So he folds. Yay, win. And 3 guys sitting next to me are all like "it was so obvious you hit a set of jacks... you should have checked and then had him bet and raise him... you're never going to win any money that way..." Yea boys, you've got me pegged.
But let's get to the part of the story where I leave the table broke. So there's 3 defining hands. These hands are open for opinion and speculation, although please remember I'm playing at a pretty loose table:Middle position with A-10o, I raised to 20 and got about 5 callers (sometimes I like to raise a small amount because I know SOMEONE will raise the pot regardless of what they have and I don't want to call with my hand. Plus I know if I get re-raised I definitely am mega-beat). So the guy in seat 9 says "this is as good as it gets" as he called my raise... so keep that in mind. The flop is A-2-2 and I check (I am first to act). It checks around. Turn is a 7. I bet 75 and everyone folds except for seat 9 who calls. River is a 6 and I bet 125. Seat 9 raises to 275. Practically a min-raise. Fuck. He had A-2 suited... he flopped a boat. Honestly though, let's forget it was A-10, it could have been AK and faired the same... where is the mistake here? I think it was on the flop for not coming out with a bet (thinking I was slow-playing... LOL) because if I got called on the flop, I definitely would know I was either splitting the pot... or very very behind.
Every time there was a 10 euro straddle, the same crazy swede would raise almost every pot. Most pots I would re-raise and he would fold (I always had a hand at least). So this time he raises the pot to 25 euro, I look down at Qs and re-raise to 75 euro to get some more people out of the pot. I noticed when I raised that he shut his eyes, like saying, "i can't believe this bitch is raising me again". It comes back to him, he had about 350/400 euro total and pushes all in. I thought about it... I just didn't think he'd give me that look when I said 'raise' if he had As or Ks so I called. He had A-K. Flopped the King. Oh well. But here's the question... could I have folded there. Meaning, if you know you can win smaller pots... do you really want to put 300 euro on a coin-flip (say if you knew it was a coin-flip) or do you just fold and pick another spot. I mean, the correct play is to call there... but I guess I'm just asking a general question of "what would you do in similar situations?"
The last hand. It was dumb. I limped in first position with As waiting for a raise. There was no raise and there was 5 people in the pot. The flop was 8-9-3 and I bet 25 euro (size of pot). I got 2 callers. Turn is a 2, and I bet all-in for 105 total. So there's 100 in the pot, and I bet 105, and I got one caller. Let's do the math real quick: 100 to win 205. He had a 7-10 for an open ended straight draw... what is that... 18% there to win? So of course the J comes on the river and he scoops the pot and I leave broke and dejected. I'm just being snotty about the last pot there... I slow played Aces... same old cautionary tale.
The Irish Open is being held at the Burlington Hotel about 3 blocks from my apartment, so Saturday evening I walked down there to play in some cash game action. The waiting list for the 50 and 100 euro NL tables were rather lengthy, so I opted for the 250 NL table. Blinds were 2/5 with a 10 euro straddle. I bought in for 400. Here we go...
First hour was really slow and I had shit cards, which was good, since I wanted to observe the table. It was an extremely loose table and it was normally about 25-50 euro to see a flop. I started picking up some hands and started raising and re-raising the pots. This always messes most guys up in the head at the table because the normal image for a female player is tight/passive. Or at least that's my perception of their perception of me. So they're not sure how to play. I think. Anyway... moving on.
For a solid hour I never had to show down a hand and had doubled up to 800. Oh, how the boys at the table knew me so well. They tried to give me some lessons. Like the hand I made a loose call in early position with 7h-8h. The raise was to 50 or 55 with my straddle on, so I called off the additional 40 with my suited connector and picked up another limper along the way. Three in the pot, which was about 200 euro. Flop came Jh 2h 6s. I come out with a bet of 250. It's risky, but I figure I have a flush draw to back me out just in case. First guy folds and the original raiser goes into the tank. Yadda yadda yadda. He's got a flush draw and he really wants to call but he doesn't have a pair yet... yadda yadda. So he folds. Yay, win. And 3 guys sitting next to me are all like "it was so obvious you hit a set of jacks... you should have checked and then had him bet and raise him... you're never going to win any money that way..." Yea boys, you've got me pegged.
But let's get to the part of the story where I leave the table broke. So there's 3 defining hands. These hands are open for opinion and speculation, although please remember I'm playing at a pretty loose table:Middle position with A-10o, I raised to 20 and got about 5 callers (sometimes I like to raise a small amount because I know SOMEONE will raise the pot regardless of what they have and I don't want to call with my hand. Plus I know if I get re-raised I definitely am mega-beat). So the guy in seat 9 says "this is as good as it gets" as he called my raise... so keep that in mind. The flop is A-2-2 and I check (I am first to act). It checks around. Turn is a 7. I bet 75 and everyone folds except for seat 9 who calls. River is a 6 and I bet 125. Seat 9 raises to 275. Practically a min-raise. Fuck. He had A-2 suited... he flopped a boat. Honestly though, let's forget it was A-10, it could have been AK and faired the same... where is the mistake here? I think it was on the flop for not coming out with a bet (thinking I was slow-playing... LOL) because if I got called on the flop, I definitely would know I was either splitting the pot... or very very behind.
Every time there was a 10 euro straddle, the same crazy swede would raise almost every pot. Most pots I would re-raise and he would fold (I always had a hand at least). So this time he raises the pot to 25 euro, I look down at Qs and re-raise to 75 euro to get some more people out of the pot. I noticed when I raised that he shut his eyes, like saying, "i can't believe this bitch is raising me again". It comes back to him, he had about 350/400 euro total and pushes all in. I thought about it... I just didn't think he'd give me that look when I said 'raise' if he had As or Ks so I called. He had A-K. Flopped the King. Oh well. But here's the question... could I have folded there. Meaning, if you know you can win smaller pots... do you really want to put 300 euro on a coin-flip (say if you knew it was a coin-flip) or do you just fold and pick another spot. I mean, the correct play is to call there... but I guess I'm just asking a general question of "what would you do in similar situations?"
The last hand. It was dumb. I limped in first position with As waiting for a raise. There was no raise and there was 5 people in the pot. The flop was 8-9-3 and I bet 25 euro (size of pot). I got 2 callers. Turn is a 2, and I bet all-in for 105 total. So there's 100 in the pot, and I bet 105, and I got one caller. Let's do the math real quick: 100 to win 205. He had a 7-10 for an open ended straight draw... what is that... 18% there to win? So of course the J comes on the river and he scoops the pot and I leave broke and dejected. I'm just being snotty about the last pot there... I slow played Aces... same old cautionary tale.
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