Back to guarantees

Unfortunately, it looks like the changes PokerStars recently instituted won't be going away any time soon. Last night, there was again a glut of Bankroll Builder tournaments, and precious little else. I decided to play one of the few non-Bankroll-Builders; it was advertised as a "Hot 50K, 10M Chips Gtd". In other words, a tournament with a $50,000 buy in and a guaranteed prize pool of $10,000,000. It had one feature which I'd never seen before - the table maximum was 8 players, not 6 or 9. I managed a min cash.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       8     558   95    82    79700

delta: $29,700
MTT NLHE balance: $44,478,968
2022 balance: $256,700
blue distance: $0
balance: $95,100,653

Bankroll Builder Hell

On Monday night, the PokerStars client displayed a drastically different menu of tournament offerings from the usual. Gone were the midnight trains. Gone were the 6max tournaments. Gone were any tournaments with a name familiar to me from years of playing on the site. Instead, nearly every tournament was advertised as a "Bankroll Builder", something I'd never seen before. If I wanted to play a tournament, I had no choice but to join one of the bankroll builders, so I gritted my teeth and did so. It was a 9max tournament, which I've sworn off. Moreover, although it didn't call itself a rebuy tournament, it allowed unlimited re-entries during the late registration period, which amounts to the same thing. I've also sworn off rebuys. Therefore, just for the privilege of playing, I'd been forced to abandon my principles. I was in Bankroll Builder Hell! My only hope is that PokerStars gets so many complaints about this change that they'll be forced to return things to the way they used to be. I'm one unhappy camper. Even though I made the money, and even though for some reason the buy in got waived, I want my no rebuy 6max tournaments back, and I want them now.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     283   72    30   130000

delta: $130,000
MTT NLHE balance: $44,449,268
2022 balance: $227,000
blue distance: $0
balance: $95,070,953

Black and blue

Last night, on my 80th session of the year, I got into the black for the first time. Not only that, I got my overall career balance back into the blue. My new goal is to top 100 million before the end of June. Onward :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      67   18    17   291000
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6     104   24    22    91000

delta: $132,000
MTT NLHE balance: $44,319,268
2022 balance: $97,000
blue distance: $0
balance: $94,940,953

Feeling it

Poker is a feel game. You know when you're feeling it, and you know when you're not. You can even feel it before starting to play. I'm feeling it right now :-) In fact, I'm feeling it so strongly, I'll be totally shocked if I don't get back into the blue tonight.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      70   18    12   426000
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      80   21    37        0
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      78   21    48        0

delta: $76,000
MTT NLHE balance: $44,187,268
2022 balance: $-35,000
blue distance: $52,200
balance: $94,808,953

A farewell to toy trains

In neo parlance, a toy train is a tournament with a buy in of $10,000. I've decided to give them up. It's not that I don't make a profit on them, it's just that the prize pool is too small for my liking. If the only way to continue triple tabling is to add toy trains to the mix, I'll just go back to good old double tabling :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      86   21    35        0
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      76   21    50        0
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      66   18     8   258000

delta: $-92,000
MTT NLHE balance: $44,111,268
2022 balance: $-111,000
blue distance: $128,200
balance: $94,732,953

Another threefer

Triple tabling is my new favorite thing. Last night, I registered another threefer. I could get used to this :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      66   18    13   344000
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      77   21     9   254000
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6       5    2     1   279000

delta: $477,000
MTT NLHE balance: $44,203,268
2022 balance: $-19,000
blue distance: $36,200
balance: $94,824,953

Triple tabling

I was triple tabling for a good part of the session; what I like most about that is you almost don't have enough time to make a bad decision :-)

This is an excerpt from my September 6, 2019 post. Last night, I triple tabled for the first time in a very long time. In what I believe to be a personal first, I made the money in all three tournaments. I was even Lord High Everything Else in one of them. I felt like the conductor of an orchestra, and all the instruments were in tune :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     217   60    33    23400
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      80   21     2   399000
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      54   15     8   234000

delta: $496,400
MTT NLHE balance: $43,726,268
2022 balance: $-496,000
blue distance: $513,200
balance: $94,347,953

McMansioned

"McMansioned" is ... 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 got McMansioned. On the hand in question, I hit trip fives on the flop, and made a full house, fives full of queens, on the river. The river card was a queen, which was very unfortunate for me, as it gave my opponent a full house, queens full of fives. Had the river card been any other denomination, my trip fives would have beaten my opponent's two pair of queens and fives. Whatcha gonna do?

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      85   21    37        0
MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     229   60    36    24700
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      39   10     -        0

delta: $-285,300
MTT NLHE balance: $43,229,868
2022 balance: $-992,400
blue distance: $1,009,600
balance: $93,851,553

Nonagon

It's time for another neo neo - nonagon. Although that's an actual word, and means a nine-sided figure, I'm going to assign it a new meaning when used in a poker context. A nonagon in poker is what has befallen you when you were dealt pocket nines, got all your chips in the middle, and hit the rail. I suffered a nonagon on my final hand of last night's session. The reason I shoved was that I hit a set of nines on the flop. The reason I hit the rail was that my opponent rivered a straight. I was more than an 80% favorite after the turn, but it wasn't meant to be. The one bright spot? At least I didn't register another ofer :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      82   21    19    81000
MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      81   21    56        0
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      72   18    46        0

delta: $-269,000
MTT NLHE balance: $43,515,168
2022 balance: $-707,100
blue distance: $724,300
balance: $94,136,853

The good news about MTT NLHE ofers

Last night, I had an MTT NLHE ofer. That is, a session in which I played one or more MTT NLHEs, and failed to make the money in any of them. I was 0 for 3. That got me wondering how many MTT NLHE ofers I've had in my career, so I ran the numbers. The answer is astonishing - 491 out of the 1,100 sessions that qualify. Friends and neighbors, that's 45% of the time. The good news about MTT NLHE ofers is that they don't really matter :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      88   18    62        0
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      90   21    31        0
MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      61   18    26        0

delta: $-350,000
MTT NLHE balance: $43,784,168
2022 balance: $-438,100
blue distance: $455,300
balance: $94,405,853

Wrong and right

My premonition that last night's session would get me into the black for the year was wrong. However, my intuition that I was going to make a decent profit was on the money. So I can claim to being both wrong and right. I don't have a feeling one way or the other for how well I'll fare tonight. Time will tell :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      85   21    15   414000
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      79   21    21    78000

delta: $242,000
MTT NLHE balance: $44,134,168
2022 balance: $-88,100
blue distance: $105,300
balance: $94,755,853

My feet won't touch the ground

Oh oh love, don't let me go
Won't you take me where the streetlights glow
I can hear it coming
Like a serenade of sound
Now my feet won't touch the ground

Life in Technicolor ii, Coldplay

This is the chorus of one of my favorite songs. It perfectly describes how I'm feeling now, poker-wise. I have a wonderful certainty that tonight is the night I get into the black for the year. I can hear it coming :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      86   21    21   329000
MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     237   60   152        0
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      53   15     7   267000

delta: $286,000
MTT NLHE balance: $43,892,168
2022 balance: $-330,100
blue distance: $347,300
balance: $94,513,853

0th place slickout

There are many ways to register a 0th place. One of the most painful is via a slickout. As a refresher, that's when you're dealt a big slick (an ace and a king), get all your chips in the middle, and end up hitting the rail. In the first tournament I played last night, I had a 0th place slickout. Three of us went to showdown, and two of us were gone in a New York minute.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     242   60     -        0
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      67   18    31        0

delta: $-110,000
MTT NLHE balance: $43,606,168
2022 balance: $-616,100
blue distance: $633,300
balance: $94,227,853

James Bond session

Last night, for the first time in months, I played three tournaments in one session. I double tabled the first two, then played the third on its own. I failed to make it to Station 1 in the first two, but had a deep run in the third. Since I count failing to record an official place as a 0th place, the finishing places for the three tournaments, strung together, make a well-known number - 007. My name's Bond - James Bond :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      41   10     -        0
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      60   15     -        0
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      57   15     7   287000

delta: $37,000
MTT NLHE balance: $43,716,168
2022 balance: $-506,100
blue distance: $523,300
balance: $94,337,853

Heading towards 43

For many years, my favorite number has been the number 43. I recognize that it's a lucky number. This is not to say that I understand why it's lucky; it's simply an acknowledgement of its specialness. Long ago, I told my oldest friend about my predilection for this number. Initially, he thought my notion was laughable. However, after seeing the number come up numerous times in auspicious circumstances, I think eventually he was won over to my way of thinking :-)

This is an excerpt from my July 4, 2015 post. Last night, my two money finishes (I was double tabling again, by the way) brought my lifetime MTT NLHE itm percentage up to 42.77. I aim to get it to 43 :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      72   18     9   501000
MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     205   60    60    13800

delta: $304,800
MTT NLHE balance: $43,679,168
2022 balance: $-543,100
blue distance: $560,300
balance: $94,300,853

Milestone

Last night, I achieved another milestone. I recorded the 40th Partial Monty of my MTT NLHE career. As a refresher, a Partial Monty is a tournament in which I received winnings of at least one million play dollars. If the tournament is a midnight train, a Partial Monty results in a profit of at least 800,000 play dollars. If I achieve another Partial Monty tonight, I'll be perilously close to back in the black for the year :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      55   15     3  1081000
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      67   18    39        0

delta: $831,000
MTT NLHE balance: $43,374,368
2022 balance: $-847,900
blue distance: $865,100
balance: $93,996,053

Shaking the money tree

Things have been looking up for me lately, poker-wise. I've been shaking the money tree :-) I've made the money in 6 of the last 8 tournaments. So far this month, I've made a profit of over 2 million. My blue distance is under 2 million. If the second half of March is as good as the first, I'll be back in the black for the year when April begins.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      72   18    14   375000
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      99   24    21    89000

delta: $214,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,543,368
2022 balance: $-1,678,900
blue distance: $1,696,100
balance: $93,165,053

Double tabling drawback

As intended, I double tabled again last night. I played well, but missed the money in both tournaments. Along the way, I discovered a distinct drawback to double tabling - it's much harder to know when a tournament is on the bubble. At least, it is for me, due to the lack of screen real estate on my laptop. When I'm single tabling, I have two non-overlapping windows visible at all times - the window showing the table at which I'm seated, and the window showing the tournament lobby. When I'm double tabling, there are four windows which I need to look at, but I only have enough screen real estate for two of them at a time. I arrange them so that the table windows don't overlap, and the lobby windows don't overlap, but to achieve this I essentially place the lobby windows in the same spots as the table windows. Since the table windows are thrust to the foreground whenever the action is on me, the lobby windows are constantly getting hidden and if I want to look at them I need to bring them to the foreground manually. When the $200,000 tournament I was playing was on the bubble, I didn't realize it, and went all in with ace rag when I was severely short stacked. Had I known the tournament was on the bubble, I would have folded. On the other hand, had I not been double tabling, I might not have gotten as far as I did to begin with. So I'm not second-guessing myself. Double tabling is more fun than single tabling, so I'm going to keep doing it :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      80   21    22        0
MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      81   21    31        0

delta: $-250,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,329,368
2022 balance: $-1,892,900
blue distance: $1,910,100
balance: $92,951,053

Double tabling

When you're double tabling, you're focusing most of your attention on the hand you were dealt, the community cards, and the actions your opponents have taken. It's of secondary importance how many chips you have left, which is just as it should be :-)

This is an excerpt from my November 15, 2016 post. Last night, for the first time in a long time, I double tabled. I wound up making the money in both tournaments. I think I'll try it again tonight :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     264   72    41    23400
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      72   18    15   187000

delta: $100,400
MTT NLHE balance: $42,579,368
2022 balance: $-1,642,900
blue distance: $1,660,100
balance: $93,201,053

Triple whammy

I've been playing well of late, and getting my confidence back. Last night, I bubbled the final table; unfortunately, it was another case of being at the wrong table at the right time. As I mentioned several posts ago, when there are seven players remaining in a 6-max tournament, PokerStars will move players around if necessary, to ensure that four players are at one table and three at another. Unfortunately, that's the extent of their egalitarianism. They won't ensure that the two biggest stacks are at different tables, nor will they move players around once the final two tables are set. This means that if you have a short stack and are seated at the table with only three players, you're in for a world of hurt. That was the position I was in last night. Not only that, the other two players at my table had the biggest stacks of any of the remaining players. I fought valiantly, but there was little I could do to stem the carnage.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      69   18     7   624000

delta: $424,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,478,968
2022 balance: $-1,743,300
blue distance: $1,760,500
balance: $93,100,653

Lighting it up

In the first two months of the year, I only managed to get under the lights twice - once in January and once in February. In the last week, I've gotten under the lights three times. This is a very welcome turn of events :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      54   15     5   751000

delta: $551,000
MTT NLHE balance: $42,054,968
2022 balance: $-2,167,300
blue distance: $2,184,500
balance: $92,676,653

Unlikely bubble boy

The more players that enter a tournament, the less likely it is that any specific player will become the bubble boy. Of course, there's a 100% chance that someone will be the bubble boy :-) Last night, it was me. There was no midnight train on offer when I logged on. Nor was there a $100,000 tournament. Nor was there a $50,000 tournament. I had to settle for a $10,000 toy train. Toy trains attract more players than tournaments with larger buy ins, and last night's attracted 214. That amounted to 60 paid places. The only time I bubbled a tournament with more players was on April 24, 2020; that tournament had 310 players and 63 paid places.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     214   60    61        0

delta: $-10,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,503,968
2022 balance: $-2,718,300
blue distance: $2,735,500
balance: $92,125,653

Under the lights

Last night, like the night before, I played two tournaments. As before, I missed the money in the first, and made it in the second. Also as before, the profit I made on the second didn't cover the loss I incurred on the first. However, that's where the similarities between the two sessions end. The second tournament last night only had a buy in of $100,000. There were so few entrants that the late registration period ended early. The final table came prematurely as a result; consequently, although I was under the lights, I didn't feel I'd done much to deserve it. Be that as it may, I ground it out, outlasting three of the six players at the final table before hitting the rail.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      74   21    26        0
MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      18    6     3   274000

delta: $-26,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,513,968
2022 balance: $-2,708,300
blue distance: $2,725,500
balance: $92,135,653

557 midnight trains

To date, I've played 557 midnight trains, including two on Sunday night. You may be wondering how I could play two in a single session. The answer is simple - the "midnight" part of the name shouldn't be taken too strictly. What I mean by a midnight train is a tournament with a $200,000 buy in. When I first noticed these tournaments, they started at 11:28 pm, and their late registration period ended at 12:12 am. Those trains still run, but there are also trains that start an hour earlier. On Sunday night, I missed the money in the earlier train, but made it in the second one.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      68   18    35        0
MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      62   18    16   269000

delta: $-131,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,539,968
2022 balance: $-2,682,300
blue distance: $2,699,500
balance: $92,161,653

Crybaby

In this blog, I largely avoid "poor me" storylines. Sometimes, however, I allow myself to be a bit of a crybaby. This is one of those times. I have a bone to pick with the way PokerStars handles the situation where a 6-max tournament is on the bubble of the final table. By definition, this means that there are seven players left in the tournament. Also by definition, this means that there will be two tables left; three players must be seated at one of them, and the other four players must be seated at the other. It's a distinct advantage to be seated at the table with four players, since an orbit takes four hands, whereas an orbit at the other table will only take three. That in turn means that the players at the table with three players must pay out more in blinds than the players at the table with four players. That's inherently unfair, and the software should shuffle the players around so everyone gets to sit at the table with four players for some portion of time. However, in my experience, that doesn't happen. The software locks the players in at their tables until one of them is eliminated. Last night, I made it to the final table bubble, but was at the table with only three players. I got no relief, but managed to hold on for a decent amount of time before finishing in seventh place. Poor me :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      72   18     7   651000

delta: $451,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,670,968
2022 balance: $-2,551,300
blue distance: $2,568,500
balance: $92,292,653

Feeling like Conan

The movie "Conan the Barbarian" came out in 1982, thirty-seven years ago. I went to see it when it came out, and one particular montage has stuck with me all these years. Conan begins the movie as a small boy, who has become enslaved after the murder of his parents. He is set to work in a flour mill, which is manned by many slaves who push the spokes of a huge wheel which powers the grindstone. To show the passage of time, and also to show how big and strong Conan becomes, you see less and less slaves pushing the spokes over the years, until finally it's just Conan pushing, powering the mill all by himself.

I find this an apt metaphor for making a deep run in a poker tournament. When it begins, you're just one of many players, with a tiny stack. As time goes by, your stack grows and the number of remaining players shrinks. If you make it all the way, there's only you left, and you have all the chips :-)

This is an excerpt from my June 12, 2019 post.  Last night, I made it all the way. Station 5, baby!

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      64   18     1  1710000

delta: $1,510,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,219,968
2022 balance: $-3,002,300
blue distance: $3,019,500
balance: $91,841,653

Po and Mo

Poker is all about Po and Mo. Position and Momentum. It's hard to win without a liberal dose of both. Last night, I had a severe shortage of Po at a critical time. Just to be clear, no player has any control over Po in a tournament. Players are moved to other tables frequently, completely at the discretion of the software. Last night, in one such maneuver, I was moved to a seat at another table immediately to the right of the largest stack at that table, the worst seat to inhabit. He had position on me five out of the six hands of each orbit. He could put my tournament life at risk virtually any time, and frequently did. I did a lot of folding, but finally got so fed up I called one of his raises. You can guess how that turned out :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      68   18    27        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $39,709,968
2022 balance: $-4,512,300
blue distance: $4,529,500
balance: $90,331,653

Cabooxit

My latest neo neo is shorthand for what has befallen you when you're in the caboose position at the start of the hand where you hit the rail - that's a cabooxit, a portmanteau of caboose and exit.

This is an excerpt from my March 27, 2021 post. Last night, I had a cabooxit, but unfortunately, it was before the money bubble burst.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      59   15    22        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $39,909,968
2022 balance: $-4,312,300
blue distance: $4,329,500
balance: $90,531,653

I hate rockets

I've decided: I hate rockets. Why? Because they make me feel like a wimp when circumstances dictate that I make a disciplined fold. I don't enjoy feeling like a wimp. Last night, early on in the tournament, I was dealt rockets. Two kings showed up in the flop, and an opponent made a big bet on the turn. I knew the right play was to fold, so I did. I lost about a third of my stack on that one hand. I would've lost much less if only I'd been dealt a worse hand :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      64   18    39        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,109,968
2022 balance: $-4,112,300
blue distance: $4,129,500
balance: $90,731,653

A close relative of the dead man's hand

In poker, the dead man's hand consists of the ace of spades, the ace of clubs, the eight of spades, the eight of clubs, and an unknown fifth card. That's reputedly the hand that "Wild Bill" Hickock held when he was murdered at the poker table, shot from behind, in 1876. Last night, an opponent held a close relative of the dead man's hand, and it put me in a world of hurt. I was dealt A5o (ace five offsuit), and paired both my hole cards on the flop. I bet it down the line, but lost to the aces and eights of an opponent who'd been dealt an ace and an eight. Wouldn't you know, he paired his eight on the river. I didn't hit the rail, but my stack took a big hit. I don't remember the suits of the aces and eights, but am fairly certain my opponent didn't have the canonical dead man's hand. There are 36 different combinations of aces and eights, so it would be highly unlikely for my opponent to have had the only combination where all the colors are black.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      85   21    51        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,309,968
2022 balance: $-3,912,300
blue distance: $3,929,500
balance: $90,931,653