Knowing enough not to complain

It always surprises me a little when poker players complain about bad luck. If you play long enough, and don't play like a donk, you're essentially guaranteed to receive as much good luck as bad. That's just how poker rolls. I know enough not to complain, or at least, not to complain much :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     242   63   192        0
MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     307   81    67    81000

delta: $-19,000
2024 balance: $3,057,000
2024 blue distance: $238,000
balance: $15,866,303
MTT NLHE ITM pct: 41.59 (1254 of 3015)

2k the hard way

The hard way to make a profit for a session is to lose your first buy in. You're playing catch up at that point.

This is an excerpt from my March 16, 2020 post. Yesterday I made 2k the hard way. This tied for my lowest profit session of the year. Be that as it may, a profit is a profit :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     322   81   158        0
MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     275   72    51   102000

delta: $2,000
2024 balance: $3,076,000
2024 blue distance: $219,000
balance: $15,885,303
MTT NLHE ITM pct: 41.59 (1253 of 3013)

A set of fours

Yesterday, I only played one tournament. The most memorable hand was the one where I was dealt a pair of fours, hit a set on the flop, went to showdown against two opponents, and tripled up. That set me up (pun intended) to have a good shot at making the money, and I did.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     252   63    58    83000

delta: $33,000
2024 balance: $3,074,000
2024 blue distance: $221,000
balance: $15,883,303
MTT NLHE ITM pct: 41.58 (1252 of 3011)

Divided attention

Divided attention is bad for most pursuits, but turns out to be just fine for poker. Indeed, more than just fine - actively good. Last night, I played two tournaments simultaneously, and made the money in both. I've noted before that I seem to play better when I'm double tabling. I've come up with some theories about why this might be so. One of the simplest is that it's good not to spend too long on poker decisions, and you're forced not to spend too long on them when you have twice as many to make :-)

This is an excerpt from my February 14, 2019 post. In yesterday's session, though I wasn't double tabling, I did have divided attention - I was web surfing while playing. I made the money in all three tournaments I entered. I think I'll divide my attention again today :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     293   72    25   148000
MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     358   99    44   129000
MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     305   72    30   140000

delta: $267,000
2024 balance: $3,041,000
2024 blue distance: $254,000
balance: $15,850,303
MTT NLHE ITM pct: 41.56 (1251 of 3010)

DVexit

DVexit is my latest neo neo, and is shorthand for Deja Vu exit. Yesterday, for the second day in a row, I hit the rail on my last hand by losing to a magic flush. I'd been dealt AJo (ace jack offsuit), and paired my jack on the flop. I got all my chips into the middle, and was an 80% favorite after the turn, but it wasn't meant to be. The river put a fourth heart on the board, and I lost to an opponent who had a heart in his hand. I left with a hand to my heart :-)

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     495  117    78   106000
MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     389   72   113        0

delta: $6,000
2024 balance: $2,774,000
2024 blue distance: $521,000
balance: $15,583,303
MTT NLHE ITM pct: 41.50 (1248 of 3007)

Broadway and a wheel

The two most memorable hands from yesterday's session came in the second tournament I entered. In the first, I flopped Broadway (an ace high straight); in the second, I hit a wheel (a five high straight) on the river. I won nice pots both times, and was on my way to making the money. I finished two pay jumps higher than a min cash, and likely would have done even better had I not been magic flushed out of the tournament.

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     327   81   151        0
MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     311   81    58    95000

delta: $-5,000
2024 balance: $2,768,000
2024 blue distance: $527,000
balance: $15,577,303
MTT NLHE ITM pct: 41.50 (1247 of 3005)

A multitasking fingerfehler

There are many different varieties of fingerfehler. One of the most pernicious is the double-tabling fingerfehler. That is what happens when you're playing two tournaments at once, and just about to click on a button in one of the tournaments, but end up clicking a button in the other tournament instead because the PokerStars software has thrust the other tournament to the forefront of the screen at the very last second.

This is an excerpt from my July 31, 2018 post. The double-tabling fingerfehler is a subtype of a more general type, the multitasking fingerfehler. That is what happens when you have two apps running, and are just about to click on a button in one of them, but end up clicking a button in the other app instead because the input focus changed from one to the other at the very last second. I fell prey to a multitasking fingerfehler in the second tournament I entered yesterday. I was playing online poker and online chess at the same time, and an attempted button click in the chess app became an unwanted click in the poker app instead; the result was that I inadvertently called a bet I would have folded. I lost 300 chips I shouldn't have, and thereby harmed my chances of making the money. I didn't make it. Ouch!

style flavor buy_in  entry players entries paid place winnings

MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     246   63   121        0
MTT   NLHE    44000   6000       9     283   72    89        0

delta: $-100,000
2024 balance: $2,773,000
2024 blue distance: $522,000
balance: $15,582,303
MTT NLHE ITM pct: 41.49 (1246 of 3003)