In my recent losing streak, the caliber of the opponents I faced was very high; there wasn't a donk in the bunch (unless you count, at times, me :-) Therefore, when I detected a donk in last night's session, he was a sight for sore eyes. He was going all in way too frequently, and I knew I just needed to wait for the right time to relieve him of his chips. The thing with donks is, you don't even have to bet into them; you just wait for them to make an idiotic bet and then simply call it. That's what happened on the last hand of the night, when I won a pot worth $53,200 with two pair, eights and sixes. It turned out to be my last hand because it was a table ender - at the end of the hand, I was the only remaining player with chips. The donk and I had been playing heads up for several hands.
To be honest, donks mostly annoy me, and I prefer not playing with them; one can always suffer a bad beat at their hands. The only reason I was glad to see a donk last night was that he was a refreshing change from more skillful opponents.
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 49 hands and saw flop:
- 4 out of 11 times while in big blind (36%)
- 9 out of 13 times while in small blind (69%)
- 18 out of 25 times in other positions (72%)
- a total of 31 out of 49 (63%)
Pots won at showdown - 3 of 6 (50%)
Pots won without showdown - 5
delta: $27,900
balance: $3,253,104
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Monday, January 9, 2012
18 again
When you play poker, no matter how old you get, you can always be 18 again. That is, no matter how many sessions you've played, if you play well enough, the amount of chips you win can come in 18th on your all-time list. That's what happened to me on Saturday night. Here are my top twenty deltas:
$126,326 2011-04-27
$119,300 2011-04-29
$115,800 2010-07-14
$114,440 2011-04-15
$111,100 2011-11-05
$107,100 2011-05-06
$105,798 2011-10-22
$104,200 2011-05-18
$101,200 2010-05-28
$98,200 2010-03-26
$95,150 2011-07-02
$91,900 2011-08-19
$82,405 2011-06-07
$81,200 2010-10-01
$80,600 2011-05-10
$80,250 2009-05-20
$78,900 2011-06-08
$78,885 2012-01-07
$77,900 2011-11-02
$75,700 2010-07-28
On the penultimate hand of the night, I won a pot worth $83,200 with a six high straight.
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 83 hands and saw flop:
- 13 out of 14 times while in big blind (92%)
- 11 out of 15 times while in small blind (73%)
- 35 out of 54 times in other positions (64%)
- a total of 59 out of 83 (71%)
Pots won at showdown - 10 of 12 (83%)
Pots won without showdown - 8
delta: $78,885
balance: $3,225,204
$126,326 2011-04-27
$119,300 2011-04-29
$115,800 2010-07-14
$114,440 2011-04-15
$111,100 2011-11-05
$107,100 2011-05-06
$105,798 2011-10-22
$104,200 2011-05-18
$101,200 2010-05-28
$98,200 2010-03-26
$95,150 2011-07-02
$91,900 2011-08-19
$82,405 2011-06-07
$81,200 2010-10-01
$80,600 2011-05-10
$80,250 2009-05-20
$78,900 2011-06-08
$78,885 2012-01-07
$77,900 2011-11-02
$75,700 2010-07-28
On the penultimate hand of the night, I won a pot worth $83,200 with a six high straight.
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 83 hands and saw flop:
- 13 out of 14 times while in big blind (92%)
- 11 out of 15 times while in small blind (73%)
- 35 out of 54 times in other positions (64%)
- a total of 59 out of 83 (71%)
Pots won at showdown - 10 of 12 (83%)
Pots won without showdown - 8
delta: $78,885
balance: $3,225,204
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Bad news and good news
I have both bad news and good news to report. First, the bad news: I had another losing session last night, extending my current losing streak to six (a new personal worst). Now the good news:
1. I didn't lose a ton of chips
2. I'm still a ways off from my maximum aggregate loss
I hit the felt when I was dealt pocket aces, couldn't bring myself to fold them, and lost to a two pair. I reupped for the max, and actually got back into the black; however, I stayed too long at the fair, and ended up giving back over half the chips I'd reclaimed.
Here are the details of my maximum aggregate loss:
$1,874,272 Sat Jun 11 01:00:00 2011
$1,493,210 Tue Jun 28 01:00:00 2011
$-381,062 11
In the first line, the first column contains my balance at the start of that session; in the second line, the first column contains my balance at the end of that session. The third line contains the aggregate loss for that series of sessions, and the number of sessions in the series.
Here are the details of the aggregate loss in my current losing streak:
$3,446,119 Fri Dec 30 00:00:00 2011
$3,146,319 Fri Jan 06 00:00:00 2012
$-299,800 6
Looking on the bright side, I'd have to lose over $81,262 more to set a new maximum aggregate loss.
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 201 hands and saw flop:
- 21 out of 27 times while in big blind (77%)
- 19 out of 24 times while in small blind (79%)
- 85 out of 150 times in other positions (56%)
- a total of 125 out of 201 (62%)
Pots won at showdown - 13 of 26 (50%)
Pots won without showdown - 15
delta: $-23,650
balance: $3,146,319
1. I didn't lose a ton of chips
2. I'm still a ways off from my maximum aggregate loss
I hit the felt when I was dealt pocket aces, couldn't bring myself to fold them, and lost to a two pair. I reupped for the max, and actually got back into the black; however, I stayed too long at the fair, and ended up giving back over half the chips I'd reclaimed.
Here are the details of my maximum aggregate loss:
$1,874,272 Sat Jun 11 01:00:00 2011
$1,493,210 Tue Jun 28 01:00:00 2011
$-381,062 11
In the first line, the first column contains my balance at the start of that session; in the second line, the first column contains my balance at the end of that session. The third line contains the aggregate loss for that series of sessions, and the number of sessions in the series.
Here are the details of the aggregate loss in my current losing streak:
$3,446,119 Fri Dec 30 00:00:00 2011
$3,146,319 Fri Jan 06 00:00:00 2012
$-299,800 6
Looking on the bright side, I'd have to lose over $81,262 more to set a new maximum aggregate loss.
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 201 hands and saw flop:
- 21 out of 27 times while in big blind (77%)
- 19 out of 24 times while in small blind (79%)
- 85 out of 150 times in other positions (56%)
- a total of 125 out of 201 (62%)
Pots won at showdown - 13 of 26 (50%)
Pots won without showdown - 15
delta: $-23,650
balance: $3,146,319
Friday, January 6, 2012
Two personal worsts
Last night, I tied one personal worst and set another. By losing my fifth session in a row, I tied my worst losing streak. In 593 sessions, I've only lost five sessions in a row twice; the first time was on September 28, 2010. The other personal worst was the most chips I've ever lost in a five session stretch - $276,150. That broke my previous record of $269,400, set on June 23, 2011.
Believe it or not, I'm not downhearted; I know I'm going to turn things around soon.
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 90 hands and saw flop:
- 10 out of 13 times while in big blind (76%)
- 10 out of 10 times while in small blind (100%)
- 45 out of 67 times in other positions (67%)
- a total of 65 out of 90 (72%)
Pots won at showdown - 3 of 8 (37%)
Pots won without showdown - 7
delta: $-20,000
balance: $3,169,969
Believe it or not, I'm not downhearted; I know I'm going to turn things around soon.
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 90 hands and saw flop:
- 10 out of 13 times while in big blind (76%)
- 10 out of 10 times while in small blind (100%)
- 45 out of 67 times in other positions (67%)
- a total of 65 out of 90 (72%)
Pots won at showdown - 3 of 8 (37%)
Pots won without showdown - 7
delta: $-20,000
balance: $3,169,969
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Rocketing earthward
Last June, when I lost $240,000 over 3 sessions, I felt like I was in freefall. With last night's double felting, I've now lost $256,150 in my last 4 sessions. Right now, I don't feel like I'm in freefall; I feel like I'm actively rocketing myself earthward. This has to stop!
The funny thing is, absent the first hand that took me to the felt last night, I played quite well. On that hand, I should have folded on the river; my opponent went all in when the river card was a third community heart. Embarrassing to admit, I didn't do the due diligence to see if there was a flush draw; if I had, I would have realized that my three of a kind was very likely second best. That bad decision (or more accurately, non-decision) cost me an additional $13,800.
The second time I went to the felt, I was plain unlucky. I'd flopped a queen high club flush, and went all in with it. I got one caller; he had the ace of clubs and a non-club. I was a 75% favorite after the flop and an 86% favorite after the turn, but the river was the jack of clubs, and I was done for the night.
One good takeaway from this slump is that I'm noticing a pattern that I can take steps to avoid - I'm doing myself in with both all in calls and all in bets. If I can severely cut down on the number of times I go all in, I think I'll be able to right the ship.
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 73 hands and saw flop:
- 8 out of 11 times while in big blind (72%)
- 7 out of 10 times while in small blind (70%)
- 34 out of 52 times in other positions (65%)
- a total of 49 out of 73 (67%)
Pots won at showdown - 3 of 10 (30%)
Pots won without showdown - 8
delta: $-80,000
balance: $3,189,969
The funny thing is, absent the first hand that took me to the felt last night, I played quite well. On that hand, I should have folded on the river; my opponent went all in when the river card was a third community heart. Embarrassing to admit, I didn't do the due diligence to see if there was a flush draw; if I had, I would have realized that my three of a kind was very likely second best. That bad decision (or more accurately, non-decision) cost me an additional $13,800.
The second time I went to the felt, I was plain unlucky. I'd flopped a queen high club flush, and went all in with it. I got one caller; he had the ace of clubs and a non-club. I was a 75% favorite after the flop and an 86% favorite after the turn, but the river was the jack of clubs, and I was done for the night.
One good takeaway from this slump is that I'm noticing a pattern that I can take steps to avoid - I'm doing myself in with both all in calls and all in bets. If I can severely cut down on the number of times I go all in, I think I'll be able to right the ship.
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 73 hands and saw flop:
- 8 out of 11 times while in big blind (72%)
- 7 out of 10 times while in small blind (70%)
- 34 out of 52 times in other positions (65%)
- a total of 49 out of 73 (67%)
Pots won at showdown - 3 of 10 (30%)
Pots won without showdown - 8
delta: $-80,000
balance: $3,189,969
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Felt in four
Last night, I hit the felt in four hands. I'm sure that's a record for me in no limit hold'em. On hand 4, I was dealt 3h 2h, and the flop came 3c 2s Qh. The turn was the king of hearts, and an opponent went all in at that point. I couldn't stop myself from calling. The river was the nine of clubs, so I missed both my flush and my full house. My two pair lost to three of a kind, threes. I reupped for the max, and just two hands later, got back into the black when my ace high flush won a pot worth $82,000. I'm sure that's my fastest $40,000 turnaround ever as well.
I checked the records and found that my worst ever 3 session loss is a whopping $240,000, which happened last June; I'd forgotten all about it. Here's hoping I'll soon have reason to forget my current 3 session loss of $176,150!
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 79 hands and saw flop:
- 4 out of 9 times while in big blind (44%)
- 7 out of 10 times while in small blind (70%)
- 33 out of 60 times in other positions (55%)
- a total of 44 out of 79 (55%)
Pots won at showdown - 5 of 9 (55%)
Pots won without showdown - 1
delta: $-16,150
balance: $3,269,969
I checked the records and found that my worst ever 3 session loss is a whopping $240,000, which happened last June; I'd forgotten all about it. Here's hoping I'll soon have reason to forget my current 3 session loss of $176,150!
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 79 hands and saw flop:
- 4 out of 9 times while in big blind (44%)
- 7 out of 10 times while in small blind (70%)
- 33 out of 60 times in other positions (55%)
- a total of 44 out of 79 (55%)
Pots won at showdown - 5 of 9 (55%)
Pots won without showdown - 1
delta: $-16,150
balance: $3,269,969
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Too many rockets
On New Year's Eve, I played pretty well for 87 hands. Unfortunately for me, I played 88. On the final hand, I was convinced I was best, went all in, and hit the felt. My "percent at flop" utility tells me that my starting hand (Kd As) in combination with the flop (2s 7s Kh) beats 89% of all other possible starting hands with that flop, so I had good reason to be convinced. I've mentioned before that one of my poker weaknesses is an inability to imagine an opponent having pocket rockets. That's what my opponent had on hand 88, but I think my lack of imagination in this case was understandable. The very same player had had pocket rockets on hand 87, and you just don't expect them to pop up back to back like that. In all, fully 5 of the 88 hands featured pocket rockets; that's too many rockets!
My two session loss of $160,000 ties my worst ever. Both other times I achieved this dubious record, I lost $80,000 each session; the best spin I can put on my current woeful double is that for once the second session shows some improvement over the first :-)
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 88 hands and saw flop:
- 9 out of 14 times while in big blind (64%)
- 10 out of 15 times while in small blind (66%)
- 35 out of 59 times in other positions (59%)
- a total of 54 out of 88 (61%)
Pots won at showdown - 5 of 14 (35%)
Pots won without showdown - 8
delta: $-40,000
balance: $3,286,119
My two session loss of $160,000 ties my worst ever. Both other times I achieved this dubious record, I lost $80,000 each session; the best spin I can put on my current woeful double is that for once the second session shows some improvement over the first :-)
During current Hold'em session you were dealt 88 hands and saw flop:
- 9 out of 14 times while in big blind (64%)
- 10 out of 15 times while in small blind (66%)
- 35 out of 59 times in other positions (59%)
- a total of 54 out of 88 (61%)
Pots won at showdown - 5 of 14 (35%)
Pots won without showdown - 8
delta: $-40,000
balance: $3,286,119
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