Permission to splurge

It's the final night of 2021. I'm about to play my last session of the year. If you can't go a little nuts on New Year's Eve, when can you? Accordingly, I'm giving myself permission to splurge tonight. I'm going to play at least one Orient Express, and possibly two or three. That means I could lose up to 3 million play dollars tonight. Even if I do, I will still have made a profit of more than 13 million on the year. I'm playing with house money :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      91   24    10   122000
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      54   15    11   164000

delta: $136,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,449,268
2021 balance: $16,627,500
blue distance: $568,200
balance: $94,292,953

Another when

One of the poker questions for which I will never have a permanent answer is the question of when is the best time to join an MTT. Sometimes, I'm convinced that the answer is before the tournament has officially started. At other times, I'm convinced that the answer is as late in the late registration period as you possibly can. At still other times, I'm convinced the answer is that it doesn't matter at all when you join. I can make plausible cases for each of these viewpoints.

This is an excerpt from last Thursday's post. I realize I left out an important when - namely, as near to when half of the late registration period has elapsed as you possibly can. That would have come in mighty handily last night. There are two problems with joining before a tournament has started:

1. there's no dead money in the prize pool

2. you have less of a chance of outlasting the late registration period

There are also two problems with joining as late in the late registration period as you possibly can:

1. the antes and blinds will be bigger, but your starting stack size won't be

2. there will be more big stacks, and every big stack at your table has the potential to bully you off your hands

Last night, I joined before the tournament had started. It would have been more prudent for me to wait a while before joining. The thing is, I don't like having to wait to play, so I typically don't :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      47   12     -        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,313,268
2021 balance: $16,491,500
blue distance: $704,200
balance: $94,156,953

Jilted by an old girlfriend

The hand I have the most intense love/hate relationship with is the stealth two pair. That's when you're dealt a non-pair and then pair both your hole cards on the flop. It's hard not to fall in love with a hand like that, but your heart can easily get broken. When you have a stealth two pair and lose, it feels like being jilted by an old girlfriend. On the final hand of last night's tournament, I got jilted once again. I was dealt Q6o (queen six offsuit), and the flop had a queen and a six; I don't remember what the third card was, only that it was less than a queen and wasn't a six. All my chips went into the middle. When my opponent turned over KQo (king queen offsuit), I knew I was a healthy favorite.  As fate would have it, though, the turn and river were both kings, giving my opponent a boat, and me the boot.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      75   21    30        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,513,268
2021 balance: $16,691,500
blue distance: $504,200
balance: $94,356,953

New Year's Eve blue

New Year's Eve is three days away. I have four more poker sessions to play this year, including tonight's. I want to end the year in the blue. In the ten New Year's Eves preceding this one on which I played online poker, I was able to achieve New Year's Eve blue in two of them, 2015 and 2017. I didn't play on New Year's Eve in 2010 and 2012. I plan on playing this New Year's Eve.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     259   72   136        0

delta: $-10,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,713,268
2021 balance: $16,891,500
blue distance: $304,200
balance: $94,556,953

A good bad finish

It goes without saying that if you fail to win a single hand in a tournament, you're virtually guaranteed not to make the money. Not winning a single hand certainly qualifies as a bad finish. It can never be considered a good one. However, can it ever be considered a good bad finish? In other words, can you ever finish high enough to consider that you've beaten the odds, even though you failed? I believe the answer to this is yes. Last night, in the first tournament I entered, I didn't win a single hand. Nevertheless, not only did I outlast the late registration period, I ended up in the 44th percentile.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      68   18    38        0
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      73   21    24        0

delta: $-250,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,723,268
2021 balance: $16,901,500
blue distance: $294,200
balance: $94,566,953

A perfect double-up

I'm always on the lookout for rare events in my poker data. I found another one looking at last night's numbers. For only the fourth time in 1,505 MTT NLHEs, I made a profit exactly equal to the buy in plus the entry free - in other words, a perfect double-up.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      66   18    10   200000

delta: $100,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,973,268
2021 balance: $17,151,500
blue distance: $44,200
balance: $94,816,953

The land of the eights

On Thursday night, I achieved a percentile of 88.888888... In other words, the land of the eights. Fittingly, I finished the tournament in eighth place. I feel confident that's the first time that's ever happened to me :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      72   18     8   563000

delta: $363,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,873,268
2021 balance: $17,051,500
blue distance: $144,200
balance: $94,716,953

An old debate revisited

If I've learned anything about poker, it's that there will always be more to learn. You must be prepared to be a perpetual student. A corollary of this axiom is that you will continually discover that what you thought was true is actually a half-truth at best, and is sometimes downright false. Another corollary is that your poker theories will go in and out of fashion in your own mind. There will be debates you have with yourself that you can never truly resolve. There will be poker questions for which you will never have a permanent answer. Strangely enough, I think this is actually a good thing.

One of the poker questions for which I will never have a permanent answer is the question of when is the best time to join an MTT. Sometimes, I'm convinced that the answer is before the tournament has officially started. At other times, I'm convinced that the answer is as late in the late registration period as you possibly can. At still other times, I'm convinced the answer is that it doesn't matter at all when you join. I can make plausible cases for each of these viewpoints.

Last night, I joined a tournament late in its late registration period. This practically guaranteed that I'd outlast the late registration period, but it didn't guarantee that I'd make the money. However, since the only way to make the money in a tournament is to outlast the late registration period to begin with, it can't be all that bad to increase your chances of doing just that :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      73   21    20   139000

delta: $39,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,510,268
2021 balance: $16,688,500
blue distance: $507,200
balance: $94,353,953

Flight patterns

I have several metaphors I employ to bring poker tournament play to life. They have one thing in common - they all involve travel. My favorite metaphor is a train ride. In this post, however, I've chosen to return to the metaphor of a hot air balloon ride. Imagine being at the summit of a mountain, in the middle of a vast field. At one edge of the field, the mountain drops precipitously away. Colorful hot air balloons are in the process of being inflated throughout the field. A strong breeze is blowing which will push each balloon over the cliff edge as soon as the balloon becomes airborne. Each balloon will describe a different flight pattern. Some will steadily descend, until they land in the valley far below. Others will oscillate between rising and falling, enabling them to travel further before eventually landing. Others will rise high above the rest, enabling them to travel further still. One balloon will never come down at all.

Last night, my balloon took an early rise, then steadily descended toward the valley. I realized well before landing that there was nothing I could do to stop the descent. When I landed, there were three minutes left in the late registration period. C'est la vie.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      41   10     -        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,471,268
2021 balance: $16,649,500
blue distance: $546,200
balance: $94,314,953

The land of the 78s

I always enjoy it when one of the poker statistics I calculate ends in a recurring decimal. This usually gives rise to a blog post with a title of the form "The land of the ___s", where the blank is filled in with the recurring decimal. The very first such blog post, appropriately, was titled "The land of the ones".

This is an excerpt from my April 5, 2019 post.  Last night, I made the money with a percentile of 78.787878... In other words, the land of the 78s :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      66   18    14   344000

delta: $144,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,571,268
2021 balance: $16,749,500
blue distance: $446,200
balance: $94,414,953

McMansioned

Last night I played pretty well for the most part, but not quite well enough. One good thing did come out of the session, though; after being burned twice in the same way, I was inspired to come up with a poker neologism describing how. "McMansioned" is born (or perhaps I should say repurposed)! That's what has been done to you when your full house has lost to a better one.

This is an excerpt from my February 18, 2011 post. Last night, I lost about two thirds of my stack on a hand where I got McMansioned. I was dealt pocket sixes, and hit a set on the flop. The river put two kings on the board, giving me a full house, sixes full of kings. Unfortunately, it gave my opponent a better full house, kings full of tens. That's what you call a cold deck.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      61   18     -        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,427,268
2021 balance: $16,605,500
blue distance: $590,200
balance: $94,270,953

Polarized

On Saturday night, I hit the felt when I called a polarizing bet an opponent made on the river. A polarizing bet is one which indicates that the bettor either has nothing, or has the nuts. There's nothing in between. In such cases, you have to rely primarily on your gut to tell you whether to fold or call.

This is an excerpt from my June 9, 2014 post. That was in my cash game days, but the concept applies equally well to MTTs. Last night, on my final hand of the tournament, I got polarized. I'd been dealt A8o (ace eight offsuit), and paired my ace on the flop. An opponent bet big enough to put me all in if I called. My read was that he had a more ragged ace than mine, so I called. As I discovered to my chagrin, he had the least ragged ace you can have - pocket rockets. I hit the rail with 20 minutes left in the late registration period. Ouch!

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      44   12     -        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,477,268
2021 balance: $16,655,500
blue distance: $540,200
balance: $94,320,953

Doppelplace

It's time for another neo neo. A doppelplace is what I call it when you finish in the same place in two consecutive tournaments in the same session. It's quite a rare occurrence. Counting last night's, I've only had five doppelplaces in my MTT NLHE career.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      97   24    45        0
MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     245   60    45    19800

delta: $-40,200
MTT NLHE balance: $42,577,268
2021 balance: $16,755,500
blue distance: $440,200
balance: $94,420,953

Sometimes, 2.125 < 2

As a reminder, here are my definitions of the important stations on the poker tournament train line:

Station 1: when you've outlasted the late registration period

Station 2: when you've outlasted at least 50% of the field

Station 2.125: when you've registered an official place which is less than double the number of paid places

Station 2.25:  when you've outlasted at least 60% of the field

Station 2.5:  when you've outlasted at least 70% of the field

Station 3: when you've made the money

Station 4: when you've made the final table

Station 5: when you've won the tournament

Last night, I made it to station 2.125, but didn't make it to station 2. How could that be? It was due to a quirk of the numbers. My official place (40) was less than double the number of paid places (21), but I outlasted less than 50% of the field. This type of occurrence is rare enough that I don't feel the need to change my station definitions.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      74   21    40        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,617,468
2021 balance: $16,795,700
blue distance: $400,000
balance: $94,461,153

Giving to get

The first game I ever loved was chess. I still love it. One of the hardest lessons to learn in chess, and one which I still haven't fully learned, is that many times, you must give in order to get. Indeed, "give to get" is a common chess puzzle hint. Over the last nine years, I've learned that in poker, too, you must give to get. In a poker context, giving to get means that you must have a willingness to take temporary losses when your goal is to achieve long-term gains. This willingness must be unconditional. You must be fully prepared to take these losses, and you must not regret them when they happen.

This is an excerpt from my June 3. 2017 post. Last night, I registered another 0th place in a midnight train. It was the 286th time I've missed the money playing a midnight train. That translates to $57,200,000 in losses. That's the giving end of things. As for the getting end, in the 232 midnight trains where I made the money, my aggregate profit was $92,015,000. Therefore, I've made a net profit of $34,815,000. The lesson? It simply doesn't matter how much you lose, as long as you're getting more than you're giving :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      49   15     -        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,817,468
2021 balance: $16,995,700
blue distance: $200,000
balance: $94,661,153

Gaffer in luck again, and yet no Gaffer

'Gaffer's boat, Gaffer in luck again, and yet no Gaffer!' So spake Riderhood, staring disconsolate.

Charles Dickens: Our Mutual Friend
BOOK THE FIRST: THE CUP AND THE LIP
Chapter 14: The Bird of Prey Brought Down

"Our Mutual Friend" is my favorite Dickens novel. Gaffer Hexam is a character who makes his living by finding things lost in the river Thames. Riderhood is his much less successful rival, and is completely bankrupt morally, the antithesis of Gaffer. Gaffer in luck again means that Gaffer has once again found something that was lost in the river. However, Gaffer is lost himself at this juncture of the novel.

Last night, at the end of the session, I was like Gaffer. I was in luck again, since I made a deep run in the tournament. It was deep enough that it should have put me at the final table, aka under the lights, but it did not. So, again like Gaffer, I was missing. What had happened? It's easy enough to explain. When there were only seven players left, of which I was one, there were two active tables remaining, one with four players and the other with three. I hit the rail at my table at the same time one of the players at the other table hit the rail. So I never got under the lights; the final table started with just five players instead of six. Luckily for me, for some reason I finished in sixth, ahead of that other player; I still don't know what criteria PokerStars uses to determine the order in cases like that. Essentially by a fluke, I made an additional $94,000 in profit. Ka-ching :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      60   15     6   699000

delta: $499,000
MTT NLHE balance: $43,017,468
2021 balance: $17,195,700
blue distance: $0
balance: $94,861,153

Cruel and unusual treatment

Over the years, I've picked up a lot of great phrases from people I admire. One such is "cruel and unusual treatment", which I picked up from my father. Last night, the poker gods subjected me to cruel and unusual treatment on hand 35.

This is an excerpt from my September 23, 2015 post. Last night, the poker gods subjected me to cruel and unusual treatment on my final hand. I was short-stacked, so when I looked down and saw pocket tens looking back up at me, I knew all my chips were going into the middle. I was up against an opponent who'd been dealt A2o (ace deuce offsuit). He paired his ace on the flop, hit trips on the turn, and rivered a full house, aces full of deuces. Complete overkill! I was garroted on the flop, shot on the turn, and given cement overshoes and dropped overboard on the river. Cruel and unusual treatment, indeed.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      71   18    25        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,518,468
2021 balance: $16,696,700
blue distance: $250,000
balance: $94,362,153

Ninth player out

I may have set a high water mark for futility last night. I was the ninth player to hit the rail, and there were fourteen minutes left in the late registration period when this occurred. I'm not sure if I've ever fared worse in an MTT NLHE. The silver lining? It was a toy train :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      29    8     -        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,718,468
2021 balance: $16,896,700
blue distance: $50,000
balance: $94,562,153

Two-outed

As is often the case, the hand I remember most strongly from last night's session was the final one. I'd made the money, and was looking to ladder up. I don't remember exactly what hand I had, but do remember the hand that beat me - trip sevens. I had a big pair, and was a heavy favorite to win the hand after the turn. Only a seven could beat me, and there were only two left in the deck. However, one of them materialized on the river, and I was out in a New York minute.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      74   21    19   283000

delta: $83,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,768,468
2021 balance: $16,946,700
blue distance: $0
balance: $94,612,153

Three usual suspects

Last night, I noticed early on that there were two usual suspects playing in the tournament I'd joined. That made three of us, since I'm always a usual suspect :-) I kept track of them all night, hoping to last longer than both. It was amusing to see how often we traded positions. I often think of a poker tournament as a big old washing machine equipped with an agitator, bringing different players temporarily up to the top, then shoving them back down towards the bottom of the pile again. You have to be prepared for the turbulence. It's nothing to take personally; the constant reshuffling of the players is the nature of the tournament beast.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      62   18    10   377000

delta: $177,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,685,468
2021 balance: $16,863,700
blue distance: $0
balance: $94,529,153

Black and blue

When you make the money in a tournament, you generally finish your session in the black. When you not only do that, but take your overall balance to a new all-time high, you finish your session in the blue. All blue sessions are by definition black, but not all black sessions are blue. Last night, on the strength of  a fourth place finish, I had a black and blue session.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      68   18     4   993000

delta: $793,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,508,468
2021 balance: $16,686,700
blue distance: $0
balance: $94,352,153

Autonomic poker

I've played poker long enough for it to have become second nature; I can make poker decisions without consciously thinking about what I need to do. This comes in handy when I get a phone call in the middle of a session, as I did last night. I got a conference call from two friends who'd watched me play online chess earlier in the night, and wanted to chide me for settling for a draw in my final game, which they thought I should easily have won. I talked to them and played poker at the same time. I didn't make the money, but that wasn't due to divided attention. Autonomic poker is actually quite a lot of fun.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     226   60    86        0

delta: $-10,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,715,468
2021 balance: $15,893,700
blue distance: $445,800
balance: $93,559,153

All your chips are belong to me

In a normal MTT, there are no bounties, so there's no direct financial benefit to knocking an opponent out of the tournament. There is a psychological benefit, however; it feels really good to knock someone out :-) I knocked an opponent out fairly early on in last night's tournament, and it set me up in good shape to make the money. I barely got there, but I got there.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      60   15    14   313000

delta: $113,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,725,468
2021 balance: $15,903,700
blue distance: $435,800
balance: $93,569,153

A nice clip

This year, I'm averaging over $61,000 in profit per session. Using that as a yardstick, 2021 is the second best year of my career. The top year was 2017, when I averaged over $112,000 in profit per session. Of course, that was also the year I first discovered MTT-R NLHEs.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     238   60    46    19200

delta: $9,200
MTT NLHE balance: $41,612,468
2021 balance: $15,790,700
blue distance: $548,800
balance: $93,456,153

Good news and bad news

I have good news and bad news to report about last night's session. The bad news: I failed to register an official place. The good news: I only lost $50,000. Actually, the good news is only good in the context of the bad news having happened, so it's not really good news per se. To be strictly truthful, I should have titled this post "Bad news and slightly-less-bad news" :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      85   21     -        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,603,268
2021 balance: $15,781,500
blue distance: $558,000
balance: $93,446,953

The lesser of two evils

When you're short-stacked in a tournament, your options are limited. You can't fold every hand, or else you'll be blinded off. However, if you pay to see the flop, and whiff, you only have two realistic options, and neither one is very palatable.

Option 1: go all in.

Option 2: fold. 

Downside of option 1: you put your tournament life at risk.

Upside of option 1: if you win the hand, you double up.

Downside of option 2: your stack shrinks, putting your future tournament life at risk.

Upside of option 2: you live to play at least one more hand.

You must choose which is the lesser of two evils. Which option you choose will be influenced by factors like the precise size of your stack and how near the money bubble is to bursting. Last night, on my final hand of the tournament, I chose option 1.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      66   18    31        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,653,268
2021 balance: $15,831,500
blue distance: $508,000
balance: $93,496,953

The imp strikes again

Last Sunday, I played an MTT-B NLHE tournament despite the fact that it's my worst poker variant. I attributed my unwise decision to play this tournament to the imp of the perverse. Last night, the imp struck again. When I hit the rail, there were 20 minutes left in the late registration period. When will I ever learn?

style flavor buy_in entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT-B NLHE    87000 13000       9     106   27     -        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT with bounties NLHE balance: $-4,483,820
2021 balance: $16,031,500
blue distance: $308,000
balance: $93,696,953

Disappearing into the year

The deeper you play into a poker year, the more the accumulated data of the year outweighs whatever your current results are. In effect, you disappear into the year, and it takes a search party to find you. 

This is an excerpt from my November 2, 2019 post; I've reused it twice before this. If the shoe fits, wear it. I actually quite like disappearing into a year, when I've already made a decent profit on it. If I'm in the red near the end of a year, however, I try very hard to emerge from hiding :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      54   15    10   328000

delta: $128,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,853,268
2021 balance: $16,131,500
blue distance: $208,000
balance: $93,796,953

The streak is dead. Long live the streak!

When I first heard the phase "The king is dead. Long live the king!" it made no sense to me. How can the king live a single day, let alone a long time, when he's dead? Of course, the answer is that the phrase refers to two different kings. So you'll understand that when I say "The streak is dead. Long live the streak!" I'm referring to two different streaks.

This is an excerpt from my March 31, 2012 post. The streak that died last night was of MTT NLHE tournaments where I registered an official place; it ended at 17. When I hit the rail, fully 18 minutes remained in the late registration period. To add insult to injury, my holding on the last hand was a premium one - AKs (ace king suited). Ouch!

 style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      40   10     -        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,725,268
2021 balance: $16,003,500
blue distance: $336,000
balance: $93,668,953

Two quad night

The title of this post should actually be "Two quads night", but I wanted it to sound more like "Three Dog Night", the name of a rock band from the 70s, so I de-pluralized it :-)

This is an excerpt from my March 21, 2018 post. Last night, I got quads twice again. Getting quads at all is a rare enough event in itself; getting them twice in one tournament is an embarrassment of riches. The first was quad kings, when I had one king in my hand; the second was quad fives, when I had pocket fives. I got paid off on the river both times.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      66   18     7   597000

delta: $397,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,925,268
2021 balance: $16,203,500
blue distance: $136,000
balance: $93,868,953

Station 2.125

Once again, I've decided to add another station. Since it comes after station 2 and before station 2.25, I've decided to name it station 2.125 :-) This station is hit whenever you've registered an official place which is less than double the number of paid places.

This is an excerpt from my October 2 post. Last night, I made it to station 2.125. Not much to crow about, but beggars can't be choosy :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      55   15    27        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,528,268
2021 balance: $15,806,500
blue distance: $533,000
balance: $93,471,953

My worst poker variant

I've talked about the imp of the perverse on this blog many times. However, it was always in the context of an in-progress poker session, referring to a bad decision made during the course of playing a hand. Last night, I suffered the imp of the perverse before I'd even started playing - in other words, when I was selecting a tournament to play. There was no $200,000 buy in MTT NLHE on offer, but I saw that there was a $200,000 buy in MTT-B NLHE. Although I've sworn off bounty tournaments, I just couldn't resist joining it. I did moderately well, nearly outlasting the late registration period, which is much harder to do in bounty tournaments than in regular tournaments. However, nearly doing this wasn't nearly enough :-) MTT-B NLHE is my worst poker variant; I've lost $4,383,820 playing it. That's an outlier; in my second worst poker variant, KO NLHE, I've only lost $234,064.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT-B NLHE   174000  26000       9      80   18     -        0
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      46   12    14        0

delta: $-300,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,628,268
2021 balance: $15,906,500
blue distance: $433,000
balance: $93,571,953

Folding up

The first objective in a tournament is to make the money. Once that's achieved, the next objective is to ladder up. There are many ways to accomplish this. One of the most reliable ways to ladder up a single money jump is to embark upon a foldfest. That's what I did at the end of last night's tournament. When the money bubble burst, I was Caboose Boy. I needed to ladder up three spots to reach the first money jump, and did so by folding early and often :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      73   21    18   317000

delta: $117,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,728,268
2021 balance: $16,206,500
blue distance: $133,000
balance: $93,871,953

Scaling a new height of futility

On Sunday night, as no midnight train was on offer and I didn't feel like playing an NLHE tiny toy train, I opted for an 8-game toy train. By failing to make the money, I scaled a new height of futility - it was the 21st time in the last 24 8-games I've played that I hit the rail empty-handed. That's an 87.5 losing percentage. It's hard to believe, but I still have a decent positive career balance in 8-game, so the right thing to do is to stop playing it. I've made this resolution before, but have never been able to stick to it.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   8-Game  45000   5000       6      56    12   14        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT 8-game balance: $598,170
2021 balance: $16,089,500
blue distance: $250,000
balance: $93,754,953

There is a tide in the affairs of men

Brutus:

There is a tide in the affairs of men.
Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;
Omitted, all the voyage of their life
Is bound in shallows and in miseries.

William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar Act 4, scene 3, 218–221

Last night, I missed the tide. On a hand where I was dealt AKs (ace king suited) and paired my king on the flop, I folded when an opponent bet big enough for me to put him on two pair. He won the hand with KJs (king jack suited), and all he had was a pair of kings; I would have outkicked him had I stayed in the hand. Not only did I miss out on a big pot, I had him pegged as a frisky player, and hit the rail several hands later when I had top pair and he bet big enough to put me all in if I called. Since I knew he was frisky, I did call; this time he actually had two pair. Whatcha gonna do?

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      66   18    37        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,611,268
2021 balance: $16,139,500
blue distance: $200,000
balance: $93,804,953

Over a century under the lights

Last night, I reached the final table of a 6max MTT NLHE for the 101st time. That's over a century under the lights :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      83   21     3   339000

delta: $289,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,811,268
2021 balance: $16,339,500
blue distance: $0
balance: $94,004,953

Blue and gold

Last night, not only did I make the money, I got my overall balance back into the blue. This month, I'm making the money at a great clip (63% of the time), and getting into the blue at another great clip (33% of the time). I've mentioned before that there are different golden ratios for the different poker styles. The golden ratio for cash games is 2 winning sessions for every losing session. The golden ratio for tournaments is much lower, somewhere in the vicinity of 2 tournaments where you make the money for every 5 tournaments where you fail to make the money. This month, although I'm exclusively playing tournaments, I'm nearly hitting the cash game golden ratio :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      61   18     6   636000

delta: $436,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,522,268
2021 balance: $16,050,500
blue distance: $0
balance: $93,715,953

9th highest MTT NLHE percentile

The thing I like the most about toy trains is the number of players they attract. The larger the field, the higher the maximum possible percentile becomes. Last night, playing a toy train, I registered the 9th highest MTT NLHE percentile of my career - 98.62. It was my 2nd highest percentile for a 3rd place finish. Still and all, I'm hoping for a midnight train tonight.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     218   60     3   103900

delta: $93,900
MTT NLHE balance: $41,086,268
2021 balance: $15,614,500
blue distance: $106,100
balance: $93,279,953

Carddeadburgh

Last post, I defined Sanityville and Crazytown. I neglected to mention Carddeadburgh, but that's another place you may find yourself travelling in the course of an MTT. If you're lucky, you go right through it and come out the other side. If you're not, Carddeadburgh will end your tournament in a New York minute.

This is an excerpt from my January 5, 2015 post. Last night, I couldn't get out of Carddeadburgh. I don't think I won a single hand. Hey, it happens :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      61   18    35        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,992,368
2021 balance: $15,520,600
blue distance: $200,000
balance: $93,186,053

A fine blue cadence

I'm having a good poker November so far. Last night, on the strength of making the final table, my overall balance returned to the blue. That's my fifth blue session of the month. I'm aiming to keep this fine blue cadence going :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      61   18     5   192000

delta: $142,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,192,368
2021 balance: $15,720,600
blue distance: $0
balance: $93,386,053

My most usual usual suspect

In my MTT NLHE career, I've run across certain players a multitude of times. I call them the usual suspects. There's one player I've run across more than any other; I call him my most usual usual suspect. Last night, I missed the money by five spots. When I hit the rail, my most usual usual suspect was Caboose Boy. Although I like to last longer than the usual suspects, if I miss the money, I hope any usual suspect still in the tournament makes the money. There's a website where I can look up how any PokerStars player has fared in recent tournaments, so I'm going to find out right now if my most usual usual suspect made the money last night.

Checking ... 

Sweet! My most usual usual suspect did make the money. He finished in 13th place and won $78,000, for a net profit  of $28,000. Good on him :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      58   15    20        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,050,368
2021 balance: $15,578,600
blue distance: $50,000
balance: $93,244,053

Let the chips rain down

The PokerStars client recently added a nice special effect when the money bubble bursts - spinning chips descend the screen from above. Last night, I enjoyed this effect for the fourth straight session. My overall balance returned to the blue. Let the chips rain down :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      77   21    16   334000

delta: $134,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,100,368
2021 balance: $15,628,600
blue distance: $0
balance: $93,294,053

A first for the year

When I first started playing MTTs, fields of 250 or more players were quite common. Of course, I  played lower stakes in those days, and the lower the stakes, the bigger the fields tend to be. These days, at the stakes I like to play, fields of 100 or more are rare, let alone 250. However, every so often I have to settle for a toy train, and then it's much likelier that the field will be 100 or more. Last night, I played in my first MTT of the year with a field of 250 or more. Even though the prize pool was tiny, it was a lot of fun lasting longer than hundreds of other players :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     255   72    17    34600

delta: $24,600
MTT NLHE balance: $40,966,368
2021 balance: $15,494,600
blue distance: $72,400
balance: $93,160,053

Tenliness is next to quadliness

Either last night or the night before, I hit quad tens. I made a mental note to blog about it, but didn't keep track of which session it occurred. That actually makes an odd sort of sense; quads are so unusual that they kind of exist in a dimension beyond space and time. Tenliness is next to quadliness :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   870000 130000       6      37   10    21        0
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      60   15    23        0

delta: $208,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,941,768
2021 balance: $15,470,000
blue distance: $97,000
balance: $93,135,453

Mini massive

Last night, I logged onto PokerStars a bit later than usual, so I missed the midnight train. I had to settle for a toy train. One fun thing about toy trains is that they attract more players than tournaments with bigger buy ins. More players means more fish, and more fish means I have better odds of making the money. There were 193 players in last night's tournament, so I'm categorizing it as a mini massive :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     193   48    24    26000

delta: $16,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,733,768
2021 balance: $15,262,000
blue distance: $305,000
balance: $92,927,453

When to board the midnight train

The midnight train can be boarded too late, but I'm increasingly coming to believe that it can be boarded too early as well. There's a sweet spot somewhere in the middle of the late registration period. The ideal time to board is when a fair number of players have already been thrown off, but there's still enough time left for you to wait patiently for a good hand. I boarded the train a little too early last night. Tonight I'll try not to board until at least 20 minutes of the late registration period have elapsed.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      58   15    23        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,717,768
2021 balance: $15,246,000
blue distance: $321,000
balance: $92,911,453

I love s.p.a.m.

It's high time for a neo neo. s.p.a.m. is my abbreviation for slow playing a monster. I love s.p.a.m. :-) The most memorable hand of last night's session was the one when I was dealt the ace and seven of diamonds and flopped the nut flush. I just called until the river, when I put in a medium-sized bet and got paid off. That set me up nicely for making the money.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      49   15     9   179000

delta: $79,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,917,768
2021 balance: $15,446,000
blue distance: $121,000
balance: $93,111,453

Too frisky

Last night, I played too friskily, and paid the price. I hit the rail with 17 minutes left in the late registration period. A poor performance, to say the least. I can't remember winning a single hand. Tonight, I promise to tighten up my play.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      28    8     -        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,838,768
2021 balance: $15,367,000
blue distance: $200,000
balance: $93,032,453

Two toy trains

Last night, I hit the rail fairly quickly in the first tournament I entered; that peeved me, so I entered a second. Both were toy trains. I got under the lights in the second one, which got my overall balance back into the blue. I'm hoping the midnight train will be running tonight.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      75   21    43        0
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      81   21     4   284000

delta: $184,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,038,768
2021 balance: $15,567,000
blue distance: $0
balance: $93,232,453

Lights out

Last night, I made the money in my third straight 8-game. I'm dubbing the outcome "lights out", since I made it under the lights, but then was the first player at the final table to hit the rail.

This is an excerpt from my January 18, 2019 post. Last night, I had another such outcome. Since I started the final table in fourth place, that means I "laddered down" two rungs, not the right direction to be laddering. I just missed getting back into the blue.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      73   21     6   190000

delta: $140,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,854,768
2021 balance: $15,383,000
blue distance: $150,000
balance: $93,048,453

Bubbling the bubble

I go back on forth on what makes me feel worse - bubbling a tournament or bubbling the bubble. I think I know why this is. How bad I feel has less to do with the number of places I miss the money by, and more to do with how good I thought my chances of making the money were, before I hit the rail. It's possible to bubble and not be too upset, and it's also possible to bubble the bubble and be really bummed out. On Thursday night I bubbled the bubble, and was decently disappointed :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      74   21    23        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,714,768
2021 balance: $15,243,000
blue distance: $150,000
balance: $92,908,453

Poxit

Last night's session ended abruptly. On my final hand, I was dealt pocket fours, and an opponent who had me covered went all in. My brain told me to fold, but my right index finger wasn't listening. I honestly can't say if it was a case of my poker id overruling my poker superego, or if my click on the call button was simply an unfortunate fingerfehler. This happens to me occasionally, and it flummoxes me every time. My opponent's holding was AJo (ace jack offsuit), so I was actually a slight favorite to win the hand, but is was essentially a coin flip. Result? Another 0th place.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      17    6     -        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,764,768
2021 balance: $15,293,000
blue distance: $100,000
balance: $92,958,453

Consecutive blues

Last night, for the first time in five months, I registered consecutive blue sessions. My overall balance topped 93 million for the first time. I'm getting in that dangerous frame of mind again when I feel that I can't lose :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      55   15    13   287000

delta: $87,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,864,768
2021 balance: $15,393,000
blue distance: $0
balance: $93,058,453

In the money, in absentia

As I've mentioned before, sometimes I play online poker and web surf at the same time. When I do, sometimes the PokerStars client fails to thrust itself into the foreground when it's my turn to act. Furthermore, sometimes when that happens I temporarily forget that I was playing poker. Last night and the night before, all of these preconditions occurred. Imagine my surprise when I returned to PokerStars and discovered I'd made the money in absentia both times :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      61   18    15   318000

delta: $118,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,777,768
2021 balance: $15,306,000
blue distance: $0
balance: $92,971,453

How midnight trains go missing

Last night, the midnight train went missing again. I figured out how this happens a while ago, but neglected to write about it. I'll remedy that now. Pokerstars will cancel scheduled tournaments if an insufficient number of players have preregistered. I'm pretty sure that at least four players must preregister; in that case, there will initially be two paid places. Now that I know this, I preregister for tournaments whenever possible. This doesn't guarantee that the tournament won't be cancelled, but at least it slightly reduces the likelihood of that happening.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      61   18    14    82000

delta: $32,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,659,768
2021 balance: $15,188,000
blue distance: $68,000
balance: $92,853,453

IG;WS

IG;WS is my shorthand for "In Good; Went South", which in turn is short for "I got my money in good, but the hand went south on me" :-)

This is an excerpt from my January 13, 2015 post. Last night, I hit the rail on an IG;WS hand. I was dealt K5o (king five offsuit), and paired both my hole cards on the flop. I shoved and got one caller. He turned over rockets, making me a 3 to 1 favorite to win the hand. The turn was a blank, but the river put a pair on the board, and that was all she wrote. To add insult to injury, there were 10 minutes left in the late registration period, so I registered a 0th place.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      20    7     -        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,627,768
2021 balance: $15,156,000
blue distance: $100,000
balance: $92,821,453

A fine blue cadence

Lately I've settled into a fine blue cadence. What I mean by this is that I'm regularly achieving blue sessions, at fairly predictable intervals. 

This is an excerpt from my October 6, 2020 post; it applies equally well to my recent results. Four of my last ten sessions, including last night's, have been blue.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      70   18    15   365000

delta: $165,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,727,768
2021 balance: $15,256,000
blue distance: $0
balance: $92,921,453

Two pieces of bad news, and one good

Last night's session produced two pieces of bad news:

1. the midnight train was cancelled

2. I failed to make the money

It did produce one piece of good news, though: since I played a toy train, I only lost $50,000 :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      72   18    25        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,562,768
2021 balance: $15,091,000
blue distance: $50,000
balance: $92,756,453

5th best month of my career

So far this month, I've made a profit of $5,702,000, which makes it the 5th best month of my career. Since the month isn't quite over, I have the chance to move it up even higher in the standings. Last night, I set a new personal best, registering my 5th Full Monty in MTT NLHE this month. I now have 10 Full Montys in MTT NLHE on the year, another personal best.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      58   15     2  1362000

delta: $1,162,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,612,768
2021 balance: $15,141,000
blue distance: $0
balance: $92,806,453

Not a believer

Whenever I'm at a table where one of my opponents has a huge stack which dwarfs the stacks of everyone else at the table, I have the hardest time believing his bets are not bluffs. Last night, I hit the rail as the money bubble approached, directly as a result of this disbelief. The thing is, often enough the bets are bluffs, so I don't reproach myself for my failure to believe :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      61   18    23        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $39,450,768
2021 balance: $13,979,000
blue distance: $200,000
balance: $91,644,453

Once more into the blue, dear friends

I've said before that winning never gets old. That goes at least quadruple for getting into the blue. It's undeniably a rush to see your balance reach a height it's never reached before. It validates all the hard work you've put into your game. I'm psyched!

This is an excerpt from my November 2, 2012 post. Last night, I got that rush again.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      68   18     6   709000

delta: $509,000
MTT NLHE balance: $39,650,768
2021 balance: $14,179,000
blue distance: $0
balance: $91,844,453

The nuts can't beat the stone cold nuts

Every now and then, you can have an "unbeatable" hand which nonetheless gets beaten. When that happens, it gives you a funny feeling. I got that feeling again on the last hand of last night's session. I was dealt the ace of clubs and another club, and flopped a flush draw. When the king of clubs showed up on the river, I had my "unbeatable" hand. It was certainly the nut flush, but it was not the stone cold nuts. That honor went to the hand my opponent had, which was also made on the river - a full house. I hit the rail in a daze :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      82   21    27        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $39,141,768
2021 balance: $13,670,000
blue distance: $250,000
balance: $91,335,453

Bad read

Last night's session was short, and not at all sweet. On the first hand where I paid to see the flop, I'd been dealt A8o (ace eight offsuit), and hit a pair of aces. After all the betting rounds were over, nearly all my chips were in the middle, and I had only one opponent. He turned over AJo (ace jack offsuit), and my stack was on life support. I somehow managed to last a couple of orbits, but hit the rail with 30 minutes left in the late registration period. Ouch! My read was that my opponent had a more ragged ace than mine. It was a bad read, but I'm proud that I had the guts to go with it.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      22    7     -        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $39,191,768
2021 balance: $13,720,000
blue distance: $200,000
balance: $91,385,453

Anticipatory betting

When you don't have a hand yet, but think you might end up with one, it's a good idea to make a bet. If you make a hand, you'll have that much more money in the pot to win. If you don't make one, you can still win if your opponents interpret your bets as representative of a strong hand. It's important, having led the betting in an earlier betting round, to make continuation bets if no one else decides to bet. Unless someone is sandbagging you, you'll increase your chances of winning the pot by doing so. People are more likely to believe you have something if you're willing to keep betting.

This is an excerpt from my November 4, 2011 post. That was written in my cash game days, but it applies equally well to tournaments. Last night, I did more anticipatory betting than I usually do, and it worked out well. I made the money, and got my overall balance back into the blue. All's well in my poker world :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      75   21    10   417000

delta: $217,000
MTT NLHE balance: $39,391,768
2021 balance: $13,920,000
blue distance: $0
balance: $91,585,453

Full Monty bonanza month

Last night, I achieved another Full Monty. That makes four this month. When I played rebuy tournaments, the most Full Montys I ever achieved in a month was four. I have a feeling I'm going to beat that record before October is over. I came within a whisker of getting back into the blue :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      90   21     2  1738000

delta: $1,538,000
MTT NLHE balance: $39,174,768
2021 balance: $13,703,000
blue distance: $20,000
balance: $91,368,453

Doppeltournament

Last night's tournament was nearly a carbon copy of the one before it. The number of entries was comparable, the number of paid places was the same, and my finishing place was the same. The big difference? Last night's tournament was a midnight train, whereas the one before it was a toy train. That translated to a much larger profit :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      66   18     8   516000

delta: $316,000
MTT NLHE balance: $37,636,768
2021 balance: $12,165,000
blue distance: $1,558,000
balance: $89,830,453

My quadfathers

The title of this post was inspired by something my father's mother used to say. If something struck her as unusual or surprising, she'd say "My godfathers!". It's certainly both unusual and surprising to get four of a kind in poker, so an apt expression for such an occurrence might be "My quadfathers!".

This is an excerpt from my March 14, 2012 post. The most memorable hand of last night's session was the one where I hit quad jacks on the river. Although I went deep in the tournament, it was a toy train, so I didn't make much of a profit. The midnight train has now gone missing for two nights in a row. I want it back :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      69   18     8   139000

delta: $89,000
MTT NLHE balance: $37,320,768
2021 balance: $11,849,000
blue distance: $1,874,000
balance: $89,514,453

Checking in on my Station 2 results

Last night, I made it to Station 1 but failed to make it to Station 2. In MTT NLHE 6max, 87% of the occasions when I make it to Station 1, I go on to make it to Station 2 as well. So I guess you could say that last night's tournament failed to reach even ho-hum status, quite a non-feat in itself :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      71   18    38        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $37,231,768
2021 balance: $11,760,000
blue distance: $1,963,000
balance: $89,425,453

Why small cashes are important

On Sunday night, I made the first money jump. As I've come to realize, all cashes are important, even small ones. Why? For the simple reason that you can't cash big without making the money in the first place. If you're a consistent player, your money finishes will be fairly evenly distributed across the pay table over time. You'll min cash, max cash, and everything in between. Embrace small cashes, as they portend bigger ones in your poker future :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      49   15    12   298000

delta: $98,000
MTT NLHE balance: $37,281,768
2021 balance: $11,810,000
blue distance: $1,913,000
balance: $89,475,453

Half a billion in tournament winnings

Whenever I have a ho-hum session, it's really tough to find anything interesting to say about it. In such cases, it's better to write about something else instead. One angle I often take when looking for something else to write about is to focus on a career statistic. Accordingly, as last night's session was ho-hum, I've decided to sum up my career tournament winnings. The number is surprisingly large - $513,952,014. That's over half a billion, friends and neighbors. Yowza!

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      60   15    31        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $37,183,768
2021 balance: $11,712,000
blue distance: $2,011,000
balance: $89,377,453

That dangerous feeling

Poker is a streaky game. There's nothing better than being on a hot streak, but there is a downside to it - you start feeling invincible. That's a dangerous feeling, and the poker gods will punish you for it more often than not. Last night, I made the money for my fourth straight tournament, and I'm starting to get that dangerous feeling again :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      46   12    10   150000

delta: $50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $37,383,768
2021 balance: $11,912,000
blue distance: $1,811,000
balance: $89,577,453

Lord High Everything Else

Last night, for the third time this month, I achieved a Full Monty. I've said it before and I'll say it again, achieving Full Montys never gets old :-) I ended up as Lord High Everything Else. When heads up play began, my opponent had roughly four times as many chips as I did. I battled back and even took the chip lead at one point, but couldn't seal the deal.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      72   18     2  1540000

delta: $1,340,000
MTT NLHE balance: $37,333,768
2021 balance: $11,862,000
blue distance: $1,861,000
balance: $89,527,453

Another MTT NLHE milestone

On October 6th, I achieved another MTT NLHE milestone - I made the money for the 600th time. Last night, I made the money for the 603rd time. Since I've played 1,438 MTT NLHEs, I'm making the money at a 41.9% clip. Not too shabby :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      65   18    15    87000

delta: $37,000
MTT NLHE balance: $35,993,768
2021 balance: $10,522,000
blue distance: $3,201,000
balance: $88,187,453

MTT NLHE milestone

Last night, I achieved an MTT NLHE milestone - I got under the lights for the 100th time. Since I've played 1,437 MTT NLHEs, I'm making the final table at a 6.9% clip. Not too shabby :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      62   18    24        0
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6       9    3     -        0
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      54   15     6   162000

delta: $-38,000
MTT NLHE balance: $35,956,768
2021 balance: $10,485,000
blue distance: $3,238,000
balance: $88,150,453

Apples and oranges

Back in the days when I played sit and gos, I realized that it made a lot of sense to standardize on a buy in; if you don't, then a loss in a big buy in sit and go can wipe out all the gains you made in a bunch of small buy in sit and gos. That's like mixing apples and oranges, generally not a smart idea. The same is true, to a lesser extent, for MTT NLHEs. Accordingly, I'm going to try playing $200,000 buy in tournaments exclusively for a while, and see how I do.

This is an excerpt from my January 24, 2020 post. I realize I need to take my own advice and stop playing Orient Expresses; I need to stick with the midnight trains, which are my bread and butter.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   870000 130000       6      37   10    21        0
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      60   15    23        0

delta: $-1,100,000
MTT NLHE balance: $35,994,768
2021 balance: $10,523,000
blue distance: $3,200,000
balance: $88,188,453

Two toy trains

On Sunday night, there was no Orient Express I could have taken without breaking my rules, so I settled for two toy trains instead. The first was an 8-game, a variant I hadn't played for more than four months. I've only made the money once in the last 17 8-game tournaments I've played, which is pretty pathetic. I did better in the other toy train, which was NLHE, but still missed the money.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   8-Game  45000   5000       6      62   12    28        0
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      48   12    16        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT NLHE balance: $37,094,768
2021 balance: $11,623,000
blue distance: $2,100,000
balance: $89,288,453

Bogus Orient Expresses

Last night I played two Orient Expresses, but they were bogus ones. I broke several of my own rules in order to play them. Here are the rules I broke:

1. never play a 9max tournament

2. never play a rebuy tournament

3. never play a bounty tournament

I won't do that again in a hurry :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT-B NLHE   870000 130000       9      44    9    22        0
MTT-B NLHE   880000 120000       9     300   55   104        0

delta: $-2,000,000
MTT with bounties NLHE balance: $-4,183,820
2021 balance: $11,723,000
blue distance: $2,000,000
balance: $89,388,453

My blue heaven

Last night, I got back into the blue in a big way. I was Lord High Everything Else on an Orient Express! It was the second highest session delta I've ever recorded. I could get used to this :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   870000 130000       6      36    9     2  5160000

delta: $4,160,000
MTT NLHE balance: $37,144,768
2021 balance: $13,723,000
blue distance: $0
balance: $91,388,453

Orient Expresses

Tournaments with a buy in of $50,000 or less are toy trains. Tournaments with a buy in of $100,000 are plain trains. Tournaments with a buy in of $200,000 are midnight trains. Tournaments with a buy in of $1,000,000 are Orient Expresses. Last night, I took the second Orient Express of my career. I took it because no midnight train was in the offing. I didn't outlast the late registration period, which meant that I didn't record an official place. I hit the rail on a flush draw which didn't pan out. I have to say, however, that I really enjoyed the thrill of being a high roller. I've decided I'm going to keep on taking Orient Expresses as long as my 2021 balance stays in the black :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   870000 130000       6      19    6     -        0

delta: $-1,000,000
MTT NLHE balance: $32,984,768
2021 balance: $9,563,000
blue distance: $1,424,000
balance: $87,228,453

A tale of two ace rags

The two most memorable hands from last night's tournament both featured ace rags. In the earlier one, I was dealt A7o (ace seven offsuit), and paired both of my hole cards on the flop. I got all my chips into the middle and more than doubled up. That set me up nicely to make the money, which I did. I then got all the way to the final table in great shape - I was second in chips at the time. Unfortunately, I was the first of the final six to hit the rail. On my final hand, I was dealt pocket threes, shoved, and got one caller. He turned over A8o (ace eight offsuit), making me a slight favorite to win the hand. However, he paired his eight on the flop and I was drawing thin. The river gave us both a magic flush, but his was better - an ace high. I'd had high hopes of registering another Full Monty, but it wasn't meant to be.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      62   18     6   647000

delta: $447,000
MTT NLHE balance: $33,984,768
2021 balance: $10,563,000
blue distance: $424,000
balance: $88,228,453

999? nein

Last night, I ran into a cooler on the final hand of the session. On the money bubble, I was dealt pocket nines, and hit a set on the flop. I went all in and got one caller. It was a set over set scenario; the caller had been dealt pocket kings, and had hit a set on the flop.

This is an excerpt from my March 4, 2020 post. Last night, nearly the same scenario occurred; the crucial difference was that I'd already made the money. A less significant difference was that this time, the caller had been dealt pocket aces, and had hit a set on the flop. My set of nines still got the "Nein!" treatment :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      71   18    16   308000

delta: $108,000
MTT NLHE balance: $33,537,768
2021 balance: $10,116,000
blue distance: $871,000
balance: $87,781,453

Not a believer

Last night, I made it to station 2.125 again, but no further. The reason? I just wasn't a believer. Specifically, I didn't believe that a big stack who had been bullying the table had hit top pair on a flop where I'd hit middle pair. The top card of the flop was a king, and the middle card was a queen. I had a pair of queens and thought it unlikely that he had a king. I was wrong, but glad that I had the gumption to go with my read :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      73   21    30        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $33,429,768
2021 balance: $10,008,000
blue distance: $979,000
balance: $87,673,453

A presentiment of zero

In poker, whenever no more betting is possible, the hole cards of all the players who are still in the hand are turned face up. There are two ways no more betting is possible:

1. all four betting rounds have already occurred

2. at least one of the four betting rounds has not occurred, but there's only one player left who has chips left to bet with

In the second scenario, the PokerStars software displays the odds each live player has of winning the hand, each time a new community card (or cards, in the case of the flop) shows up. When a bad beat occurs, the player who had the best odds of winning earlier on in the hand sees his percentage drop like a rock to zero. That's what happened to me on my final hand of last night's tournament. I had a presentiment this would happen, and was sorry to be proven right. After the turn I was nearly a 90% favorite with an ace high and four cards to a flush, but my opponent paired his lower hole card (a four) on the river, and that was all she wrote.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      62   18    38        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $33,629,768
2021 balance: $10,208,000
blue distance: $779,000
balance: $87,873,453

19th MTT NLHE Full Monty

Last night, I registered the 19th MTT NLHE Full Monty of my career, and 6th of 2021. That got me wondering what percentage of my MTT NLHE profit is due to Full Montys. The answer? A whopping 72.55. Full Montys don't happen often, but when they do, they make a gigantic splash :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      64   18     2  1369000

delta: $1,169,000
MTT NLHE balance: $33,829,768
2021 balance: $10,408,000
blue distance: $579,000
balance: $88,073,453

Station 2.125

Once again, I've decided to add another station. Since it comes after station 2 and before station 2.5, I've decided to name it station 2.25 :-) This station is hit whenever you've outlasted at least 60% of the field, regardless of whether you make the money.

This is an excerpt from my April 16 post; I'll use it as a template. Once again, I've decided to add another station. Since it comes after station 2 and before station 2.25, I've decided to name it station 2.125 :-) This station is hit whenever you've registered an official place which is less than double the number of paid places. Last night, I made it to station 2.125, but missed the money by twelve spots.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      89   21    33        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $32,660,768
2021 balance: $9,239,000
blue distance: $1,748,000
balance: $86,904,453

A horrendous poker fortnight

A fortnight is 14 days. A poker fortnight is 14 sessions, however long that takes. I've had a horrendous poker fortnight; in the last 14 sessions, I've only had 3 profitable ones, and have lost nearly one and a half million play dollars. I feel like I'm overdue for a bust-out session.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      61   18    44        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $32,860,768
2021 balance: $9,439,000
blue distance: $1,548,000
balance: $87,104,453

Dominated

The most memorable hand of last night's tournament was the final one. I was dealt AJo (ace jack offsuit), shoved, and got one caller. He turned over AQo (ace queen offsuit), and I knew I was in for a world of hurt. His hand dominated mine; I had just a 23.62% chance of winning. To show you how cruel poker can be, the very worst starting hand in poker, 72o (seven deuce offsuit, affectionately known as the hammer) actually fares better against AQo than AJo does; the hammer has a 32.34% chance of winning. Of course, I hit the rail, but at least I registered an official place :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      71   18    36        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $33,060,768
2021 balance: $9,639,000
blue distance: $1,348,000
balance: $87,304,453

Slumping

Last night, I registered my first 0th place since June 15th. There were just three minutes left in the late registration period, but that was much too far to go. I'm definitely in a slump, having lost over a million play dollars in the last nine sessions. On a brighter note, I'm still net positive since resuming poker after my lengthy hiatus.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      60   15     -        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $33,110,768
2021 balance: $9,689,000
blue distance: $1,298,000
balance: $87,354,453

Obligatory folds

My stack went up and down like a yoyo in last night's tournament. I was Caboose Boy for a while, then I won a big pot, but later I was Caboose Boy again. For all that, I didn't miss the money by much. One reason I lasted as long as I did was that I recognized the spots where I was obligated to fold, and folded accordingly. In a tournament, the classic obligatory fold is when an opponent who has you covered bets big enough to put you all in if you call, and the board supports a better hand than yours. You know that probably close to 25% of the time, your opponent is bluffing, but you can't risk your tournament life on a hero call. 

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      60   15    18        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $33,310,768
2021 balance: $9,889,000
blue distance: $1,098,000
balance: $87,554,453

Flushed away

It's a fact of poker life that big stacks have the power to bully small stacks. They can play marginal hands and simply bet big enough to force small stacks to fold unless they have a premium hand. It feels like a raw deal when you're on the receiving end, but it's fair play. Last night, I hit the rail when I wouldn't be bullied. I had top pair with a good kicker, and was a 70% favorite to win the hand after the turn, but the bully hit a flush on the river and that was all she wrote.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      58   15    27        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $33,510,768
2021 balance: $10,089,000
blue distance: $898,000
balance: $87,754,453

A nice streak

It's bad luck to talk about a streak while it's still alive, but I give myself permission to do it occasionally. Last night, for the 28th tournament in a row, I registered an official place. That means that I outlasted the late registration period 28 straight times. That's not a lot to crow about, but it is something :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      76   21    15    95000

delta: $45,000
MTT NLHE balance: $33,710,768
2021 balance: $10,289,000
blue distance: $698,000
balance: $87,954,453

Late to the party

When you join a tournament with only a minute left in its late registration period, the likeliest outcome is that you'll hit the rail early. The second likeliest outcome is that you'll make the money. How could this be? Simply stated, it's because you have no time to waste. Since you don't have the leisure to wait around for a premium hand, you have to gamble it up. You have to go big or go home. When you go big, you either double up or bust; there's no middle ground. Last night, I went big and went home :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      58   15    29        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $33,665,768
2021 balance: $10,244,000
blue distance: $743,000
balance: $87,909,453