Nurturing a tournament

All too often lately, the $200,000 buy in tournaments I love are getting cancelled due to lack of entrants. As near as I can make out, at least four players must pre-register for a tournament in order for it to take place. Therefore, when I saw there was a $200,000 buy in tournament last night that had only two entrants less than five minutes before it was due to start, I knew it was my duty to pre-register, in the hopes that would attract another player. It was the right thing to do, seeing as I'd joined a tournament very late in its late registration period the night before. The poker gods smiled on me for nurturing a tournament in this way, and saw to it that I made the money :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      86   21    15   433000

delta: $233,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,359,968
2022 balance: $-3,862,300
blue distance: $3,879,500
balance: $90,981,653

It felt like cheating

I made the money last night, in part because I waited until there were only 8 minutes left in the 44 minute late registration period. It felt like cheating, but since it's legal, it wasn't cheating. If everyone tried to do this, however, every tournament would be cancelled due to lack of entrants. Luckily for me, there are hordes of players less patient than I am :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      85   21    14   107000

delta: $57,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,126,968
2022 balance: $-4,095,300
blue distance: $4,169,500
balance: $90,748,653

Destined to lose

In one of the poker books I've read, the philosophy is put forth that there are just some hands which you're destined to lose, since you won't be able to stop yourself from backing them all the way down the line. The idea is that this is perfectly fine, since you should be able to back strong hands this strongly. I agree!

This is an excerpt from my June 3, 2012 post. Last night, I was destined to lose the hand where I was dealt king small of spades, and made a king high spade flush on the river. I lost to an opponent who'd made a full house. A full house can only be made when at least one pair is showing on the board. When two pair are showing, it's prudent to fold a flush. When only one pair is showing, however, the right play in hold'em is to call any river bet. That was the situation last night. Losing that hand crippled my stack; I went from near the top of leaderboard to near the bottom. However, I have no regrets.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      69   18    32        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,069,968
2022 balance: $-4,152,300
blue distance: $4,169,500
balance: $90,691,653

Birthday session

Yesterday was my birthday. I had a profitable poker session. Could there be a connection? Sadly, no. So far in my online poker career, I've played on my birthday ten times; five sessions have been winning ones, and five have been losing. Here are the numbers:

   $1,115  2010-02-24
   $9,040  2011-02-24
   $7,833  2012-02-24
  $-5,500  2014-02-24
$-155,500  2016-02-24
$-172,500  2017-02-24
$-250,000  2018-02-24
  $34,000  2020-02-24
$-200,000  2021-02-24
  $65,000  2022-02-24

This record gives me a lot to be modest about :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      99   24    13   115000

delta: $65,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,269,968
2022 balance: $-3,952,300
blue distance: $3,969,500
balance: $90,891,653

Sexit

I like adding to my lexicon of words which encapsulate a particular method of hitting the rail in a tournament. Last post, I introduced rexit. Tonight, I'm introducing sexit. It's an abbreviation for "set exit" - in other words, when you lose to a set on your final hand. That's what happened to me last night, and to add insult to injury, I had another 0th place. Sexits are anything but sexy :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      14    5     -        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,204,968
2022 balance: $-4,017,300
blue distance: $4,034,500
balance: $90,826,653

Rexit

One of the more painful ways to hit the rail in a tournament is when you're a favorite after the turn on your final hand, but the river does you in. You could call that a rivered exit, which I'm going to nickname a rexit. When you're having a good night, a rexit wrecks it :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      75   21    37        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,254,968
2022 balance: $-3,967,300
blue distance: $3,984,500
balance: $90,876,653

The streak is dead. Long live the streak!

The baseline for competence in an MTT NLHE tournament is outlasting the late registration period. If you do that, you're guaranteed to receive an official place at the moment you hit the rail, regardless of whether or not you made the money. If you don't do that, you receive the dreaded double dash instead. I equate that to a 0th place. Pretty shameful. I hate getting 0th places.

This is an excerpt from my April 28, 2020 post. Last night, I received a 0th place. That ended a streak of 29 straight tournaments where I received an official place. The streak is dead. Long live the streak :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6      43   12     -        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,454,968
2022 balance: $-3,767,300
blue distance: $3,784,500
balance: $91,076,653

You just can't make this shit up

Last night, I hit the rail in comical fashion. I was short-stacked, and shoved with two forgettable cards. I can't remember what they were, since I was so thoroughly annihilated by my opponent - before the flop, after the flop, after the turn, and after the river. Since I shoved pre-flop, our hole cards were revealed right away. My opponent had rockets. On the flop, he had a set of aces. On the turn, he had a full house, aces full of queens. Finally, on the river, he had quad aces. You just can't make this shit up :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      72   18    12   438000

delta: $238,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,554,968
2022 balance: $-3,667,300
blue distance: $3,684,500
balance: $91,176,653

Jumping in

As a rule, I post about my previous session before starting a new one. Prior to posting, I update my poker database with the previous session's data. To make sure I didn't screw anything up, I log in to PokerStars and check that what my database thinks is my overall balance and what PokerStars thinks is my overall balance are one and the same. Last night, when I performed this step, I noticed that there was a $200,000 buy in tournament on offer, with only about 12 minutes left in its 44 minute late registration period. That was a great time to join it, so I did. Jumping in turned out to be a good move; I made the money. I then wrote my post about the previous session, and decided to play some more. That turned out to be a good move, too :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      92   24    17   368000
MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      95   24    23   330000

delta: $298,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,316,968
2022 balance: $-3,905,300
blue distance: $3,922,500
balance: $90,938,653

Silver lining

I've found a silver lining to my slump. Lately, when I fail to make the money, at least I'm making it to Station 2 (i.e., outlasting at least half of the field). I've now made it to Station 2 in ten straight tournaments. I'm in decent form, even though my results aren't currently showing that.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6     101   24    34        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,018,968
2022 balance: $-4,203,300
blue distance: $4,220,500
balance: $90,640,653

The winter of my discontent

I'm now 42 sessions into the year, and for just the second time in my career, I'm in the hole after the first 42 sessions of a year. The first time, it was April 23 of 2015, and I was losing an average of $6,600 per session. This year, I'm losing a whopping average of $97,698 per session. If I stay at this pace, I will have lost more that $30,000,000 by the end of the year. That won't happen, but I must say I'm getting tired of my slump.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      80   21    39        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,118,968
2022 balance: $-4,103,300
blue distance: $4,120,500
balance: $90,740,653

Aces down

In poker parlance, "aces up" means two pair, with the top pair being aces. In neostreet parlance, "aces down" means losing an aces up. That's what happened to me on my final hand of the night. I lost to a set of kings. Sets are by far the most disguised hand in poker. Moreover, they're also one of the most disgusting hands in poker, when you're on the losing end :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      65   18    31        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,318,968
2022 balance: $-3,903,300
blue distance: $3,920,500
balance: $90,940,653

A man's reach

When a tournament approaches the money bubble, every remaining player must decide if they want to play like a lion or play like a lamb. Lions are going for the money up top; lambs are just going for a min cash.

This is an excerpt from my July 20, 2020 post. Last night, I was going for the money up top. It didn't work out, but, as Robert Browning wrote:

Ah, but a man's reach should exceed his grasp,
Or what's a heaven for?

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      66   18    22        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,518,968
2022 balance: $-3,703,300
blue distance: $3,720,500
balance: $91,140,653

Heads up marathon

Last night, I had another personal first. I played in a tournament which didn't have enough players to fill up a single table, but had just enough not to be cancelled for lack of players. That magic number appears to be four. In this situation, PokerStars ends the late registration period early and puts the lights up over the table, making it a final table. To me, that's a bug; if they're not going to cancel the tournament, they should let the late registration period run its full course. Be that as it may, two players soon hit the rail, meaning that I'd made the money. At the start of heads up play, my opponent had roughly three times as many chips as I did. After a lot of grinding, I managed to take the chip lead briefly. My undoing was a hand where I had two pair and my opponent had a set of jacks. That restored his 3-to-1 chip advantage, and I couldn't grind my way out of that hole a second time. It was a heads up marathon which lasted over a hundred hands. I really enjoy heads up, but hardly ever get the opportunity, playing tournaments as I do.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    87000  13000       6       4    2     2   125000

delta: $25,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,718,968
2022 balance: $-3,503,300
blue distance: $3,520,500
balance: $91,340,653

An embarrassment of riches

In hold'em, you can expect to receive a specific pocket pair once every 221 hands. Last night, I received an embarrassment of riches. I was dealt rockets (pocket aces) three times, and cowboys (pocket kings) three times. Since I must have played less than 100 hands, I was receiving both rockets and cowboys at 6.63 times their expected frequency, at least. Sad to say, I missed the money, despite all this good luck. I won every time I was dealt rockets, and lost every time I was dealt cowboys. The cowboy hand that hurt the most was the one where the river gave me a set of kings, but also gave an opponent a king high straight. Ouch!

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      61   18    23        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,693,968
2022 balance: $-3,528,300
blue distance: $3,545,500
balance: $91,315,653

Mr. Triska

As you know, I love poker abbreviations. Here are some examples:

"pocks" for a pocket pair
"suities" for suited connectors
"fatty" for a full house
"quads" for four of a kind

I just came up with a new one:

"triska" for finishing 13th in a tournament (from triskaidekaphobia) 

This is an excerpt from my April 3, 2018 post. In both of the last two tournaments, I've finished in 13th place. Just call me Mr. Triska :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      61   18    13    82000

delta: $32,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,743,968
2022 balance: $-3,478,300
blue distance: $3,495,500
balance: $91,365,653

My quadfathers

Last night, for the second time this week, I had a hand where I flopped quads. This time around, I was dealt pocket threes. Poker life is good when you have a virtually unbeatable hand :-) As before, I didn't dare bet until the river.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      89   21    13   433000

delta: $233,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,711,968
2022 balance: $-3,510,300
blue distance: $3,527,500
balance: $91,333,653

The slump continues

So far, February has been almost as bad a poker month as January was. I lost $3,025,000 in January, and if the rest of February is as bad as the start, I will have lost $2,234,711 when February comes to a close. About the best that can be said of that outcome is that at least I'd be trending up :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      65   18    23        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,478,968
2022 balance: $-3,743,300
blue distance: $3,760,500
balance: $91,100,653

Little profit, but big fun

The smaller the buy in of a tournament, the larger the field size tends to be. You won't make a big profit playing small buy in tournaments, but they sure are a lot of fun :-) Last night, the only MTT NLHE on offer when I logged in to PokerStars had a $10,000 buy in. The last time I played such a small buy in tournament was on December 27th.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE     9000   1000       6     256   72    46    19700

delta: $9,700
MTT NLHE balance: $40,678,968
2022 balance: $-3,543,300
blue distance: $3,560,500
balance: $91,300,653

Another photo finish

It was touch and go whether I'd get to Station 1 last night. To tell the truth, I'm still not sure if I made it or not. As soon as a tournament's late registration period ends, all players who hit the rail earlier on receive an official place in the tournament lobby window. The thing is, unless you're watching the tournament lobby window like a hawk, you won't be able to determine whether you outlasted the late registration period or not in the rare cases where you hit the rail mere seconds before the late registration period ended. So I'm going to give myself the benefit of the doubt :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      85   21    53        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,669,268
2022 balance: $-3,553,000
blue distance: $3,570,200
balance: $91,290,953

Flopping the stars

The most memorable hand of last night's session was the final one. I lost a hand I thought was a sure thing. It was so disorienting, I momentarily forgot that I'd made the money. I was dealt QTo (queen ten offsuit), and flopped a king high straight. In other words, I flopped the moon. The problem with flopping the moon is that you'll lose to opponents who turn the stars :-)

This is an excerpt from my October 13, 2018 post. Last night, my most memorable hand was the one where I flopped the stars. I was dealt pocket nines, and the other two nines appeared on the flop. I didn't dare bet my hand until the river, and it was a modest bet at that. I'm happy to report that I got one caller :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      77   21    10   428000

delta: $228,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,719,268
2022 balance: $-3,503,000
blue distance: $3,520,200
balance: $91,340,953

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.

This is an excerpt from my November 15, 2021 post. I had a thoroughly mediocre session last night; the most notable thing about it was that I managed to outlast my most usual usual suspect, by 11 spots.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      80   21    44        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,491,268
2022 balance: $-3,731,000
blue distance: $3,748,200
balance: $91,112,953

The first foot of runway

In an earlier post, I compared making the money in an MTT to landing an airplane. I actually had a particular airport (and runway) in mind when I made the analogy - Logan Airport in Boston. To land on the runway I'm thinking of, planes have to approach over water. This can be disconcerting to the passengers, to say the least :-) It's hard not to get the impression that the plane is coming in too low, and will hit the water first. Last night, in the final MTT NLHE I played, I thought my plane was coming in too low.

This is an excerpt from my November 28, 2016 post. Last night, as before, I thought I was going to hit the water, but luckily landed on the first foot of runway instead.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      77   21    21   294000

delta: $94,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,691,268
2022 balance: $-3,531,000
blue distance: $3,548,200
balance: $91,312,953

The Janus percentile

I remember almost no details of last night's session. The most striking thing about it was that my percentile was exactly 50. In other words, I outlasted precisely half the field. That and a dollar might buy you a small bag of potato chips :-)

This is an excerpt from my July 16, 2020 post. It applies equally well to last night's session. For the record, it was the 10th Janus percentile of my MTT NLHE career.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      88   21    44        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,597,268
2022 balance: $-3,625,000
blue distance: $3,642,200
balance: $91,218,953

Out of cadence

Last October, I was in a fine Full Monty cadence; the longest gap between Full Montys was only ten tournaments. Since then, I haven't managed a single Full Monty; the gap is now 95 tournaments and counting. I'm overdue :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      83   21    24        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,797,268
2022 balance: $-3,425,000
blue distance: $3,442,200
balance: $91,418,953

The perfect storm for a hero call

As a rule, I don't make hero calls. Last night, I made an exception. A hero call is when you have a marginal  hand, a player who acts before you bets huge on the river, and you can't shake the conviction that he's bluffing, so you call. You don't actually have to win the hand for this to qualify as a hero call; some wags, however, might classify it as a zero call :-) I didn't win the hand; instead, I hit the rail, as the call put me all in. Here's how the hand went down, as well as I can remember: I was dealt a pair of nines, and they were overcards to the flop. I bet on both the flop and the turn, and got one opponent to come along. The river put a third spade on the board; the door card of the flop, the turn, and the river were all spades. I was positive that my opponent hadn't backed into a flush. I also believed my opponent was bluffing, since he went all in on the river. If he truly had a winning hand, the best play would be to put out a value bet of some kind, to increase the chances of getting a call and winning a bigger pot. Going all in really doesn't make sense in this scenario. This was the perfect storm for a hero call. The flush draw distracted me from noticing that there was a straight draw out there, too. The big bet convinced me that my opponent was bluffing that he'd hit a flush, since it was a play I wouldn't make if I'd hit a flush. I was only right about one thing: my opponent didn't hit a flush. Instead, he hit a straight :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE   174000  26000       6      61   18    34        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT NLHE balance: $40,997,268
2022 balance: $-3,225,000
blue distance: $3,242,200
balance: $91,618,953

The best thing I can say about January

The best thing I can say about January, poker-wise, is that it's over. It was the third worst month of my career. I'm glad to be starting a new month, with a fresh slate :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    45000   5000       6      85   21    32        0

delta: $-50,000
MTT NLHE balance: $41,197,268
2022 balance: $-3,025,000
blue distance: $3,042,200
balance: $91,818,953