Apockalypse now

Sometimes, poker keeps tapping you on the shoulder, determined to get your attention. This can be good or bad. Last night, it was very good :-) What got my attention was receiving an extremely generous helping of pocks (pocket pairs). Not just random pocks, either; I got an inordinate number of pocket queens and pocket sixes. Here are the numbers:

9 pocket pairs (1.4 times their usual frequency)
4 pocket sixes (8.1 times their usual frequency)
3 pocket queens (6.0 times their usual frequency)

Apockalypse now :-) If you can't make the money getting dealt cards like that, you can't make the money, period.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9   109      56   12     5   928000

delta: $728,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $49,648,000
2019 balance: $16,170,150
balance: $62,754,410

Triple failure

Last night, I accomplished a very rare feat - I failed at three different poker style and flavor combos in a single session. In 2,864 career sessions, I've only done this 4 times. It was a lesson in futility. The only positive I can come up with on short notice is that I lasted longer each succeeding tournament. Cold comfort, but beggars can't be choosy :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands place winnings

MTT-B NLHE    44000  6000       9     4     -        0
MTT   NLHE    43500  6500       9     5     -        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    39    37        0

delta: $-300,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $48,920,000
2019 balance: $15,442,150
balance: $62,026,410

Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said

By my count, this is the fourth time I've used this blog post title. I've decided that an official "Flow My Tears" session has to meet the following criteria:

1. I played one and only one tournament
2. I was never above water
3. I had a high chaparral count of 0
4. I lost over 90% of the hands

Check, check, check, and check :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    29      67   15    49        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $49,120,000
2019 balance: $15,742,150
balance: $62,326,410

150th century

Last night, I achieved another milestone, recording the 150th century of my MTT-R NLHE career. I made it under the lights again, and laddered up 4 spots once I got there. That got me back into the blue, which is where I always want to be :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9   103      54   12     5   621000

delta: $521,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $49,220,000
2019 balance: $15,842,150
balance: $62,426,410

House falls on man

I first used this blog post title on September 13, 2012. Here's an excerpt of what I had to say:

For the title of this post, I thought I'd try something that sounded like a newspaper headline :-) In this case, the house was a full house, and the man was me.

Let me tell you, it hurts when a house falls on you. Last night, that happened to me on my final hand, when I'd been dealt pocket rockets. It was the final loss in a freefall from the peak. I missed the money by a country mile.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    61      60   12    21        0

delta: $-150,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $48,699,000
2019 balance: $15,321,150
balance: $61,905,410

One Hand to rule them all

Last night, I returned to MTT-R NLHE, like a swallow to Capistrano :-) Looking at the bar chart of my stack size over the course of the session, one hand stands head and shoulders above the rest. Its delta is more than twice that of its nearest competitor. Fittingly, my holding was rockets. I only won a single hand after that monster, but made the final table. I even laddered up a spot :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    82      65   15     8   426000

delta: $126,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $48,849,000
2019 balance: $15,471,150
balance: $62,055,410

Deepstack gold

Last night, for the second session in a row, I played a poker style and flavor other than MTT-R NLHE. It was for the same reason  - I joined PokerStars late, and didn't want to wait. The reason I've been joining late is that I've been playing online chess beforehand :-) Last night, I joined another MTT NLHE, but this one was designated as a deepstack - the initial stake was 5,000 chips, instead of 1,500. I just ran the numbers, and found that I hit the cash game golden ratio in deepstacks - I've made the money 6 times, and missed it 3 times. Deepstacks are fun to play, even though the money up top pales in comparison to the money up top in MTT-R NLHEs. I may play another tonight just for fun :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       9    78     138   36    22    99000

delta: $49,000
MTT NLHE balance: $2,443,668
2019 balance: $15,345,150
balance: $61,929,410

Renewing an old acquaintance

Back in the day, I played a fair amount of 6max MTT NLHE, and was quite good at it. When I discovered MTT-R NLHE and it's huge profit potential, I soon stopped playing 6max MTT NLHE. However, I never designated it as a member of my poker graveyard. Last night, for the first time in nearly two years, I played a 6max MTT NLHE again. It wasn't because I was missing it, though; it was because I'd logged onto PokerStars rather late and wanted to jump into the first tournament on offer.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6    19      99   24    32        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $2,394,668
2019 balance: $15,296,150
balance: $61,880,410

The most painful way to exit a tournament

There are several painful ways to exit a tournament, but only one most painful way. Interestingly, but not surprisingly, the most painful way is when both of the less painful ways happen at the same time. Let me enumerate:

1. The first painful way to exit a tournament is on the bubble. That means you finish one place out of the money.
2. The second painful way to exit a tournament is when you were a massive favorite after the turn.
3. The most painful way to exit a tournament is on the bubble, when you were a massive favorite after the turn.

Last night, on the bubble, I was dealt pocket queens. I got all my money in the middle, and had 41 outs after the turn. However, my opponent hit a 3 outer on the river, and pain ensued :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    76      45    9    10        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $48,723,000
2019 balance: $15,346,150
balance: $61,930,410

Freefalling into the money

In speed chess, there's nothing as exhilarating as winning on time when you're getting slaughtered on the board :-) Poker has an analogue of that - freefalling into the money. That's when you can't win a hand to save your life at the end of a tournament, but have just enough chips and luck to eke into the last paying place. That's what happened to me last night. I lost my final 11 hands. I'll take it :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    74      51   12    12   297000

delta: $97,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $48,823,000
2019 balance: $15,446,150
balance: $62,030,410

Up on cripple creek

Poker can be cruel, but poker is also fair. Poker is cruel to every player who plays long enough. Poker is also very kind to every player who plays long enough. All you need to do is take the long view. Last night, I was subjected to poker's cruel side. On the penultimate hand of the night, my stack was crippled when my pocket rockets were cracked by a runner runner flush. To add insult to injury, I hit the rail on the very next hand when my queens up were beaten by aces up. Ouch!

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    65      57   12    20        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $48,726,000
2019 balance: $15,349,150
balance: $61,933,410

Futile century

It's very rare to last at least 100 hands in a tournament and have nothing to show for it. I call such an outcome a futile century. Last night, I had the third of my MTT-R NLHE career. On hand 84, I survived a fall in. On the final hand, I fell in again and wasn't so lucky.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9   101      42    9    16        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $48,826,000
2019 balance: $15,449,150
balance: $62,033,410

Lord High Everything Else

"Lord High Everything Else" is the honorific I've come up with for when you place second in an MTT. I've been Lord High Everything Else 10 times in my MTT-R NLHE career, including last night. It's a great feeling :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    92      54   12     2  1826000

delta: $1,726,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $49,026,000
2019 balance: $15,649,150
balance: $62,233,410

yapb

Last night, I achieved yapb - yet another personal borscht. I tied for the highest high chaparral count in an MTT-R NLHE where I failed to make the money - 4. I played well, but fell in on my final hand. Any time you fall in, you're lucky if you survive, and I wasn't and didn't :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    49      56   12    17        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $47,300,000
2019 balance: $13,923,150
balance: $60,507,410

A stampede of cowboys

Last night, I was dealt cowboys (pocket kings) 4 times in 170 hands, better than five times their expected frequency. It was a veritable stampede :-) I made the final table, and then laddered up five spots, into the really big money. That got my overall balance back into the blue. Once again, all is right in my poker world.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9   170      55   12     3  1717000

delta: $1,617,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $47,400,000
2019 balance: $14,023,150
balance: $60,607,410

First MTT-B NLHE royal flush

A royal flush is the rarest hand in poker. The funny thing about it is that you can defeat that rarity by taking the simple expedient of playing enough hands :-) Play enough, and you guarantee that you'll never stop hitting royal flushes, no matter how many hands may come in between. The first royal flush of my career was in pot limit hold'em. Last night, I achieved my first in MTT-B NLHE. Since I use the four color deck, I saw five beautiful blue diamonds :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-B NLHE    44000  6000       9    42     122   27    11    46900

delta: $-3,100
MTT with bounties NLHE balance: $313,580
2019 balance: $12,406,150
balance: $58,990,410

Eleventh hour late reg

Last night, I joined a tournament at almost the last possible moment. That wasn't by design. I've never purposely waited to join an MTT-R NLHE, though I have done that at times with MTT NLHEs. As I've said before, there's no bad time to join an MTTR-NLHE. As luck would have it, I made the money last night, bubbling the final table.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    63      51   12    10   296000

delta: $196,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $45,783,000
2019 balance: $12,409,250
balance: $58,993,510

The power of pattern recognition

Poker is all about pattern recognition. However, pattern recognition is much bigger than poker; it applies to many other endeavors. Chess is one example. Software engineering is another. That's great news for me, as poker, chess, and software engineering are three of my favorite activities :-) The power of pattern recognition is that it provides you with shortcuts. If you can remember a strategy that worked for you before, you don't need to think it all through again. You can just go with it, knowing its fundamental soundness. That leaves you with more time to think through the things which don't fit any pattern you've seen before. The more experience you get, the less actual thinking you have to do :-)

I don't have a balance update to report, since I haven't played any poker since my last post. I was playing chess instead.

9 hand night

Since I didn't log on to PokerStars last night until it was pretty late, and didn't want to wait for the next available MTT-R NLHE to start, I entered an MTT-B NLHE that was already in progress. I didn't last long - only 9 hands. I decided to call it a night when I busted. How rare is a session under 10 hands long? Mighty rare! It's only happened to me 43 times in 2,848 sessions. The previous time was all the way back on September 21, 2015.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-B NLHE    44000  6000       9     9     139   36    64        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT with bounties NLHE balance: $316,680
2019 balance: $12,213,250
balance: $58,797,510

yaao

Last night, I suffered yaao - yet another aces out. I lost to a player with pocket jacks, who hit a set on the river. Friends and neighbors, that's what's known in the business as a two outer. Some numbers:

- it was the 18th aces out of my MTT-R NLHE career
- I lost the 2nd largest amount of chips of those 18 hands
- it was the 5th time I was beaten by a two outer

Can I just say, ouch?

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    37      40    8    30        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $45,587,000
2019 balance: $12,263,250
balance: $58,847,510

50 50

Last night's session was nothing to write home about. I lasted 50 hands, and ended up in the 50th percentile. I got a little too frisky on the final hand. I probably should have folded when an opponent bet big on the turn, but felt like I was priced in at that point. Either that, or I was just being impatient :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    50      53   12    26        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $45,687,000
2019 balance: $12,363,250
balance: $58,947,510

Visions of sugar-plums

...
The children were nestled all snug in their beds;
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;
...

Clement Clarke Moore, "A Visit From St. Nicholas"

Last night, I had visions of sugar-plums when I rocketed up into third place late in the one tournament I played. I even dared to dream of getting back into the blue, in one fell swoop. Alas, I descended to my demise almost as rapidly as I'd risen. Happily enough, I made the money :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    76      62   15    14   289000

delta: $89,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $45,787,000
2019 balance: $12,463,250
balance: $59,047,510

Double rarity

It took me a while, but I finally discovered something mildly interesting about last night's session :-) There were two rarities:

1. both times I went all in, it was with the same hand - ATo (ace ten offsuit)
2. the second time was just three hands after the first

That's all I've got.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    36      52   12    23        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $45,698,000
2019 balance: $12,374,250
balance: $58,958,510

No oxygen night

There are ten premium hands in hold'em:

AA
KK
QQ
JJ
TT
AKs
AQs
AJs
KQs
AKo

These hands are poker oxygen; go without them too long, and you'll suffocate. That's what happened to me last night. In 55 hands, I didn't receive a single premium hand. Not surprisingly, I failed to make the money. In 100 of the 103 tournaments where I didn't receive a premium hand, that was the result. The silver lining last night was that I only fired two bullets.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    55      63   15    40        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $45,798,000
2019 balance: $12,474,250
balance: $59,058,510

Non-delights of three

Last night, for the second session in a row, I hit the rail on a hand where I went to showdown against two opponents. I had a pair of aces, one opponent had a straight, and the other had a flush. Non-delights of three :-) This was actually the fifth tournament in a row where I went to showdown against two opponents on the final hand. That's a personal worst.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    24      42    9    30        0

delta: $-300,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $45,898,000
2019 balance: $12,574,250
balance: $59,158,510

Dead on the turn

The most memorable hand of Wednesday night's session was the final one. I "got there" on the river,  completing a straight, but was actually "not there". In fact, I'd been drawing dead since the turn, which is a rare thing. Three of us went to showdown. The opponent whose flopped flush had me drawing dead on the turn actually lost as well, when the other opponent filled up his boat on the river. In summary, my straight lost to a flush, which lost to a full house. You just don't see that every day :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    38      50   12    24        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $46,198,000
2019 balance: $12,874,250
balance: $59,458,510

Premium hands considered harmful

Last night, as the night before, I received three premium hands. This time, I didn't win with any of them. Despite that, I managed to make the money. I had to go all in twice along the way, but never fell in. I wonder how much better I might have done had I received no premium hands :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    53      63   15    13   277000

delta: $177,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $46,298,000
2019 balance: $12,974,250
balance: $59,558,510

The other kind of premium hand

No one can be successful at poker without receiving their fair share of premium hands. Thankfully, the only thing you need to do to receive a fair share is keep playing :-) These points are obvious. What's not so obvious is that there are two kinds of premium hand, and you need them both. Looked at in a certain way, the lowliest hand in poker, 72o (seven deuce offsuit, affectionately known as "the hammer") is another kind of premium hand. Why? For the simple reason that it virtually guarantees you won't go broke with it, unless you're being willfully stupid. That's certainly worth something. Looked at in certain way, the best hand in poker, AA (pocket aces, affectionately known as "rockets") is a non-premium hand, since it's the hand you're most likely to go broke with.

Last night, I received premium hands three times, and lost two out of the three. I would have preferred receiving the other kind of premium hand instead :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    50      62   15    26        0

delta: $-300,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $46,121,000
2019 balance: $12,797,250
balance: $59,381,510

Milestone

On Friday night, I played two tournaments and failed to make the money in either one. Nothing really stands out about the session. The most memorable thing abuut it was that I hit a milestone - I've now played 500 MTT-R NLHEs where I chose not to add on. I'm firmly convinced that not adding on has really helped my bottom line this year.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    45      66   15    25        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    10      65   15    45        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $46,421,000
2019 balance: $13,097,250
balance: $59,681,510