A century above water

Last night, in the MTT NLHE I played, I registered another century. Not only that, I registered a century above water - at the end of 103 of the 118 hand I played, my stack was in the black. I thought that was a pretty big deal until I checked the archives - it was the 51st century above water of my MTT NLHE career. Ho hum :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6   118      90   21     5   275000
MTT   8-Game  45000  5000       6    45      33    6    17        0

delta: $175,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,729,668
2019 balance: $12,201,850
balance: $58,736,110

Evermore session

Last night, I had an evermore session - I lasted longer in each succeeding tournament. I made the money in the final tournament, where I registered another century. I had a big laydown on the river near the end of that tournament, losing over half my stack. Big laydowns aren't sexy, but they're essential to your poker health :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6     6     102   24    48        0
MTT   NLHE    87000 13000       6    16      83   18     -        0
MTT   8-Game  45000  5000       6    65      50    9    22        0
MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6   114      98   24    17   101000

delta: $-149,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,504,668
2019 balance: $12,026,850
balance: $58,561,110

A surprising century stat

Running some numbers while searching for an angle to this blog post, I came across a century statistic which really surprised me. The percentage of MTT NLHEs where I achieve a century has been climbing fairly steadily from the time I first started playing them. It reached its current all-time high of 11.66 with the first MTT NLHE I played last night. I don't expect it to go much higher, but I also don't expect it to fall back very far :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6   101     105   30     9   141000
MTT   NLHE    87000 13000       6    34      92   18    51        0

delta: $-9,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,603,668
2019 balance: $12,175,850
balance: $58,710,110

One hand to rule them all

Looking at the bar chart of my stack size over the course of the MTT NLHE I played last night, one hand stands head and shoulders above the rest. I was dealt pocket queens, and ended up raking in a pot worth 4,734 chips, of which 3,196 were o.p. (other people's). I more than tripled up. That was on hand 39, and the following good things ensued:

- I achieved a century
- I made the money
- I made a profit on the night

I plan on more of the same tonight :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6   109      81   21    18   352000
MTT   8-Game  45000  5000       6    36      22    4     -        0

delta: $102,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,612,668
2019 balance: $12,184,850
balance: $58,719,110

Two min cashes

There are at least two very good reasons to play MTT NLHE instead of MTT-R NLHE or MTT-B NLHE:

1. because there are no rebuys, there are no superdonks
2. because there are no bounties, making the money ensures you make a profit

Last night, I played two 6max MTT NLHEs, and min cashed in both. Given my losses of late, I'll take it :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    56      64   18    18   278000
MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6    95     111   30    27    74000

delta: $102,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,460,668
2019 balance: $12,082,850
balance: $58,617,110

yaftb

Last night, I experienced yaftb - yet another final table bubble. It was my second final table bubble of the month. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to make a profit on the night. From now until the end of the year, I'm going to focus on 6-max MTT NLHE primarily, on 9-max MTT-B NLHE secondarily, and will try to avoid rebuys completely. We'll see if I can stick to that :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-B NLHE    87000 13000       9    24     255   54   109        0
MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6   152     117   30     7   221000
MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6     5      42   10     -        0
MTT   8-Game  45000  5000       6    38      43    9    29        0

delta: $-179,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,358,668
2019 balance: $11,980,850
balance: $58,515,110

Superdonk-free

Last night, I enjoyed a superdonk-free session. The only way to do that is to avoid entering any rebuy tournaments. I didn't set out with that intention, but it happened organically. I wanted to double table, and no rebuy tournament was on offer at the time I started playing. It worked out well, as I made the money in both of the tournaments I entered. To be sure, I actually lost money on the bounty tournament, but still made an overall profit on the night. Tonight, I'll stay away from rebuys again, this time on purpose :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-B NLHE   174000 26000       9    99     137   36    21   156000
MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6   138      68   18     8   137000

delta: $43,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,387,668
2019 balance: $12,159,850
balance: $58,694,110

yadr

Last night, in the first tournament I entered, I suffered being on the losing end of yadr - yet another deluxe redraw. As a refresher, here's the definition (from my January 11, 2018 post):

In poker parlance, a redraw is when one player is ahead of another after the flop, the places get reversed on the turn, and then the places get reversed again on the river. In my parlance, a deluxe redraw is when one player is ahead of another before the flop, the places get reversed on the flop, the places get reversed again on the turn, and finally the places get reversed yet again on the river.

Before the flop, I was a 57.15% favorite. After the flop, I was a 20.20% dog. After the turn, I was an 86.36% favorite. Unfortunately for me, my opponent hit a straight on the river, and I lost over half my stack in a New York minute. This was on hand 17, and I went into grinding mode, finally hitting the rail 49 hands later.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    66      74   21    30        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    30      61   15    33        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    68      55   12    15        0

delta: $-400,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $45,572,000
2019 balance: $12,116,850
balance: $58,651,110

Apples coming in

Last night, I achieved the 55th Full Monty of my career. Apples coming in! I'm hoping this is the start of a massive turnaround.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    33      52   12    17        0
MTT-B NLHE    87000 13000       9    17     179   36    52        0
MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6   194      81   21     2  1564000

delta: $1,114,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,500,668
2019 balance: $12,516,850
balance: $59,051,110

Worst 61 bagger ever

I'm now losing play money faster than ever before. My blue distance just topped 8 million, in only 61 sessions. Last year, when I set my career blue distance record, it took me 127 sessions to lose that much. Am I worried? No. Am I a bit bemused? Yes :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    13      40   10     0        0
MTT   8-Game  45000  5000       6    61      52   12    23        0

delta: $-250,000
MTT NLHE balance: $2,136,668
2019 balance: $11,402,850
balance: $57,937,110

Double domination, all for naught

Some hands hurt more than others. The hand that took me to the rail in the MTT NLHE I played last night hurt a lot. I was dealt snowmen (pocket eights), hit a set of eights on the flop, and went all in. I got one caller, but three of us would be going to showdown since one of my opponents had gone all in preflop. I was an 88.1% favorite after the turn, which meant that I dominated both opponents, but it was all for naught. I couldn't beat either one; the river card gave one of them a straight, and the other three of a kind, tens. That's poker :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paidplace winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    38      81   21   38        0
MTT-B NLHE    44000  6000       9    23     168   36   47        0

delta: $-250,000
MTT NLHE balance: $2,336,668
2019 balance: $11,652,850
balance: $58,187,110

Houdini-like escape

My laptop has been acting up for a while now. One if its recurring malfunctions is going through periods where it ignores trackpad input. This poses a deadly danger when I'm playing online poker, for it means there may be stretches of time where it's literally impossible for me to act, causing the PokerStars software to sit me out automatically. This points out a glaring deficiency in the PokerStars software itself - it should provide keyboard equivalents for all trackpad features, but does not.

Last night, near disaster struck. I was double tabling, the trackpad went AWOL, and I got sat out of both tournaments. It's a sickening feeling not to have any control over when you'll be able to make poker decisions again. It was looking increasingly likely that I'd be anted and blinded out of both tournaments before the trackpad came back. At the very last moment, my agency was restored to me. It was too late to salvage the MTT NLHE, but I made a Houdini-like escape in the MTT-R NLHE.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6    67     126   30    31        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    71      59   12    12   375000

delta: $175,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $45,922,000
2019 balance: $11,902,850
balance: $58,437,110

Worstfest

Lately, I've been setting a new personal worst every single session. It's a worstfest :-) The latest is my worst five bagger ever. Here are the top 10:

$-3,023,000 2019-10-14 2019-10-18 (0)
$-2,448,000 2019-10-13 2019-10-17 (1)
$-2,014,000 2019-10-11 2019-10-16 (1)
$-1,850,000 2018-05-22 2018-05-26 (0)
$-1,850,000 2018-02-24 2018-02-28 (0)
$-1,850,000 2018-02-23 2018-02-27 (0)
$-1,800,000 2018-07-28 2018-08-01 (0)
$-1,750,000 2019-09-25 2019-09-29 (0)
$-1,750,000 2018-07-27 2018-07-31 (0)
$-1,750,000 2018-02-25 2018-03-01 (0)

My blue distance is now within conversational distance of 8 million. I'm curious to find out where this freefall will end :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-B NLHE    87000 13000       9    64     237   54    40   127000
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    39      57   12    27        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    59      58   12    19        0
MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6     9      64   18     -        0

delta: $-323,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $45,697,000
2019 balance: $11,727,850
balance: $58,262,110

Third worst 57 bagger

When you're on a massive downswing, as I now am, it helps to know you've survived them before. Truth be told, you start to revel in their massiveness :-) The last time I was in the blue was on August 17th. I've played 57 sessions since then, and have lost an aggregate of 7,544,300 play dollars. As it turns out, that's only the third worst 57 bagger of my career. Here are the top ten:

$-7,707,000 2018-07-28 2018-10-02 (14)
$-7,639,000 2018-07-27 2018-10-01 (14)
$-7,544,300 2019-08-18 2019-10-17 (15)
$-7,143,000 2018-07-29 2018-10-03 (15)
$-7,052,000 2018-07-26 2018-09-30 (15)
$-6,957,000 2018-08-20 2018-10-29 (16)
$-6,862,300 2019-08-17 2019-10-16 (16)
$-6,757,000 2018-08-19 2018-10-28 (16)
$-6,751,000 2018-08-23 2018-11-04 (16)
$-6,657,000 2018-08-17 2018-10-27 (16)

Last night, I played reasonably well; my percentiles were all in the 60s. I know I'll bust out one of these days :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    18      63   18    22        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    53      44    9    16        0
MTT-B NLHE    87000 13000       9    24     190   45    61        0

delta: $-500,000
MTT NLHE balance: $2,636,668
2019 balance: $12,050,850
balance: $58,585,110

Worst three bagger ever

Counting last night, I've now played 2,939 sessions in my online poker career. That translates to 2,937 three baggers. A three bagger is simply three consecutive sessions. Last night, I completed my worst three bagger ever. Here are the top ten:

$-2,200,000 2019-10-14 2019-10-16 (0)
$-1,559,300 2019-08-23 2019-08-25 (0)
$-1,450,000 2018-02-25 2018-02-27 (0)
$-1,438,000 2019-08-24 2019-08-26 (0)
$-1,300,000 2018-07-27 2018-07-29 (0)
$-1,300,000 2018-02-24 2018-02-26 (0)
$-1,255,000 2018-02-02 2018-02-04 (0)
$-1,250,000 2018-07-28 2018-07-30 (0)
$-1,250,000 2018-02-23 2018-02-25 (0)
$-1,247,000 2019-10-08 2019-10-10 (0)

As you can see, I trounced the second place finisher. In related news, my blue distance is now $7,044,300. I appear to be making a serious run at my all time blue distance high of $11,578,000 :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    35      91   24    31        0
MTT-B NLHE   174000 26000       9    30     212   45    92        0
MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    43      72   18    32        0
MTT-B NLHE    87000 13000       9    32     190   45     -        0
MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    40      53   15    23        0

delta: $-900,000
MTT NLHE balance: $2,836,668
2019 balance: $12,550,850
balance: $59,085,110

A tale of three straights

The three most memorable hands of last night's session all featured straights. Unfortunately for me, I lost all three. In the first MTT-R NLHE I played, I lost with a straight two hands in a row - the first time to a better straight, and the second time to a full house. My equity after the turn was 75% for the first straight and 86.36% for the second one. In the second MTT-R NLHE I played, I hit the rail when my two pair lost to a straight. My equity after the turn was 90.91%. I couldn't win with a straight, but I sure could lose to one :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000 13000       6    27      62   12    25        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    52      52   12    28        0
MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    48      64   18    30        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    60      44    9    13        0

delta: $-800,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $46,197,000
2019 balance: $13,450,850
balance: $59,985,110

yaao

Last night, I suffered yaao - yet another aces out - in the only MTT-R NLHE I entered. It was my first aces out in over two months. After the flop, I was an 87.17% favorite, but it wasn't meant to be. I failed to make the money in any of the four tournaments I played. Once again, my blue distance has topped 5 million. I'd like to think there's nowhere to go but up, but that's not strictly true :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6    12      53   15     -        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    33      63   15    51        0
MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    12      13    5     -        0
MTT-B NLHE    87000 13000       9    24     126   27     -        0

delta: $-500,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,736,668
2019 balance: $14,250,850
balance: $60,785,110

Big slick bonanza

Before last night, the most big slicks I'd ever received in a single MTT NLHE tournament was six. Last night, I received seven. Truly, a big slick bonanza! Strangely enough, I only won two of those hands. Despite that, I made it under the lights, enabling me to have a winning session at last. I'll take it :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000 13000       6   146      68   18     4   502000
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    46      54   12    18        0

delta: $252,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,986,668
2019 balance: $14,750,850
balance: $61,285,110

Cold comfort

On Friday night, I had my seventh losing session in a row. The only positive takeaway I can come up with is that my losses are trending smaller. Cold comfort, but there it is.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-B NLHE   174000 26000       9    39     171   36    26   234000
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    31      57   12    31        0

delta: $-66,000
MTT with bounties NLHE balance: $-229,720
2019 balance: $14,498,850
balance: $61,033,110

Lord Jim

It must be nearly 40 years since I read Joseph Conrad's classic novel "Lord Jim". What's stuck with me about it all this time is the miscalculation made by the central character and how it affected the whole course of his life thereafter. There's a little Lord Jim in all of us, with varying severities of consequence. The miscalculation I made about last night's session turned out to be benign. I was convinced my overall balance had fallen below another million dollar boundary, but was mistaken. I remembered I'd wagered 250,000 play dollars, but somehow managed to forget that I made the money in one of the two tournaments I entered. That may have been due to the fact that the money up top in that tournament was negligible. I admit it, I'm getting pretty jaded. If the money up top is less than a million, it's almost feels like it's not worth playing for.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6    83     109   30    17   103000
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    32      53   12    30        0

delta: $-147,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,584,668
2019 balance: $14,564,850
balance: $61,099,110

yafftp

Last night, in the MTT 8-game I played, I suffered yafftp - yet another freefall from the peak. When I reached the peak, I was in fourth place, and in great shape. However, I didn't win a single hand after that. It was painful. To add insult to injury, I didn't outlast the late registration period, so I didn't get an official place. I know things will turn around, just not when :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    27      69   15    35        0
MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6     7      27    8     -        0
MTT   8-Game  45000  5000       6    47      37    9     -        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    53      66   15    31        0

delta: $-550,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $47,297,000
2019 balance: $14,711,850
balance: $61,246,110

A stampede of baby cowboys

This is the third time I've used this blog post title. Eerily, the frequency factor of pocket jacks in the last tournament I played last night exactly matches the frequency factor of pocket jacks in the tournament I played the second time I used this blog post title - namely, 6.597. The similarity between the two tournaments ends there, however. Here are the differences:

- the earlier tournament was an MTT-R NLHE, not an MTT NLHE
- I made the money in the earlier tournament
- in last night's tournament, the only pocket pairs I received were pocket jacks
- in last night's tournament, the only premium holdings I received were pocket jacks

In other news, my blue distance has now ballooned to over 4 million again.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    25      83   21    29        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    43      44    9    25        0
MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    67      70   18    21        0

delta: $-550,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,731,668
2019 balance: $15,261,850
balance: $61,796,110

A two by four to the head

The most memorable hand of last night's session was the final one, when I took a two by four to the head. I got clubbed twice - once on the flop, and the second time on the river. Complete overkill! I was shot in the gut when I was already underwater, in the process of being drowned. I realize I'm mixing my metaphors, but it's the best way to express my feelings of outrage. For the record, I was dealt pocket jacks, and an opponent was dealt A2o (ace deuce offsuit). An ace showed up on the flop, which was the first blow to the head. Another showed up on the river, the second and fatal blow.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000 13000       6    61      74   18     9   209000
MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    51      54   15    18        0

delta: $-91,000
MTT NLHE balance: $4,131,668
2019 balance: $15,811,850
balance: $62,346,110

Three goals, and an implicit fourth

Counting tonight, there are 86 nights left in the year. Looking at my current extrapolated totals, I'm setting my sights on achieving the following goals for this poker year:

       330 sessions (current extrapolation: 328)
75,000,000 play dollars wagered (current extrapolation: 74,700,716)
96,000,000 play dollars won (current extrapolation: 95,505,520)

The implicit fourth goal derives from the second and third:

21,000,000 play dollars profit (current extrapolation: 20,804,803)

What this amounts to is that I simply want to maintain the status quo for the remainder of the year :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6    35      89   21    51        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    19      61   15    53        0
MTT   NLHE    87000 13000       6    33      63   12    17        0

delta: $-350,000
MTT NLHE balance: $4,222,668
2019 balance: $15,902,850
balance: $62,437,110

Three outliers

I found three outliers in last session's data, which is pretty unusual:

1. in the MTT 8-game, I wasn't above water until the end of the 57th hand, which is a personal borscht for this poker variant
2. I hit the rail in the MTT 8-game when my flush ran into an uberflush, a rare occurrence on the final hand of a tournament
3. in the MTT-B NLHE, I had an internal freefall of 27 straight hands, a rare occurrence in a tournament where I make the money

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-B NLHE    87000 13000       9    60     192   45    40    97000
MTT   8-Game  45000  5000       6    60      57   12    33        0

delta: $-53,000
MTT with bounties NLHE balance: $-263,720
2019 balance: $16,252,850
balance: $62,787,110

Double city

Last night's session featured a bunch of doubles. Here are the ones I'm aware of:

- I double-tabled
- I achieved two centuries
- I made the money twice
- in one of the tournaments, I received double the expected number of premium hands

Let's just call it double city :-) In other news, it was the 33rd session this year where I made a profit of at least half a million.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6   104      73   21     7   635000
MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6   143     117   30    13   126000

delta: $511,000
MTT NLHE balance: $4,372,668
2019 balance: $16,305,850
balance: $62,840,110

Two's company

Lately, my poker comfort zone is double tabling. One tournament at a time is not enough, and three at a time is too many. Two at a time is perfect. Last night, I double tabled, and made the money in both tournaments. Double tabling tends to give me a psychological boost; it doesn't feel so bad to get short-stacked in one tournament if you're crushing the other :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6    88      81   21     3   331000
MTT   NLHE    87000 13000       6    74      59   15    14   153000

delta: $334,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,861,668
2019 balance: $15,794,850
balance: $62,329,110

Two unusual exit hands

Last night, I played two tournaments and missed the money in both. The final hand of each tournament was unusual. In the first one, I hit a flush on the river only to lose to a full house which an opponent hit on the river (another instance of a Judas card). In the second, I fell in, was dealt a big slick (a premium hand), made a pair of kings on the river, and lost to a two pair. To get an idea of how rare this latter hand was, of 64,575 career MTT-R NLHE hands, I've only fallen in 196 times. Of those 196, only 5 have been premium hands. Of those 5, I've only lost 2.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000  5000       6    53      85   21    44        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    99      48   12    15        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $47,947,000
2019 balance: $15,460,850
balance: $61,995,110

A long time in the dark

Last night, for the first time in over a month, I got under the lights in an MTT-R NLHE tournament, ending a stretch of 22 straight MTT-R NLHEs where I failed to get under the lights. That's a long time in the dark. Here's hoping there are lighter days ahead :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    55      62   18    16   269000
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9   111      44    9     5   704000

delta: $573,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $48,097,000
2019 balance: $15,660,850
balance: $62,195,110

Photo finish

The MTT 8-game tournament I entered last night ended in a humorous way. I was shedding chips, but the tournament was shedding players at the same time. Would the tournament shed me before the money bubble burst, or would I make the money by the skin of my teeth? I'm happy to say it was the latter :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000 26000       6    11      47   12     -        0
MTT   8-Game  45000  5000       6    85      52   12    12    58000

delta: $-192,000
MTT NLHE balance: $3,508,668
2019 balance: $15,087,850
balance: $61,622,110