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October 21, 2012
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KB,
I'll tell you what man. I have much respect for people like you who are good fathers to teenagers. That is probably the second hardest job on the planet (only behind being the mother of a teenager). And that probably goes double if the kid is a girl. I would have gray hair if I was this girl's dad. Not because of her, but because of the boys that are like I was at that age. They prey on passive girls like her. I am tempted to let her listen to some 2pac or something to bring the assertiveness out of her. She'll need that to deal with these lil smooth talking suckas.
October 21, 2012
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September Week 1 ending 9/8/13 MTD
17 games -$494 ABI $20
Volume
Weak. This may continue until Poker Maximus is over plus the fact that I play a live tournament 2 nights a week now and I have decreased the number of tables.
Study
I am going back through vids by Rivermen123 and Andrew Brokos.
Good
The best thing that has happened recently is that I have an article in Two Plus Two Magazine this month. Check it out.
Let's see, I mincashed two Poker Maximus events.
Bad
Running bad and playing worse. I dont even know where to start so I dont even wanna talk about it. Just gonna watch some vids, drop down in stakes, and keep playing. I plan to run this thing out until the end of the year and then start looking at some options in January.
Live
Haven't been able to cash in any of the local games in a while. I'll keep at it. I was going to go out for the Main Event final table, but that may not happen now. I will definitely go on the annual TPE trip to the WSOP Circuit event in Atlantic City. Andrew said he didnt plan on going but if I do, he will. That's awesome.
Life
The NFL season is starting back up. I'd planned to move to Norcross, but instead decided to move to Marietta in about 2 weeks. The Atlanta poker scene seems strongest there. Hit my lowest weight in recorded history. Down 28 lbs since leaving Vegas. Everything is awesome. Cant complain.
I saw a lot of TPE patches all over Poker Maximus this weekend. Good work guys. Keep it up.
Take one down for the good guys.
October 21, 2012
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September Week 2 ending 9/15/13 MTD
35 games -$860 ABI $24
Volume
Still weak. I am only playing a few days a week and focusing on no more than 4 tables at a time until I come out of this downswing.
Study
I am continuing to go back through Andrew's vids and railing his WCOOP tournaments as well.
Good
I am definitely playing a more solid game. Before, I was trying too hard to exploit players when I had around 40-50 bbs. Now I am tightening up there and only opening up my game with closer to 100 bbs. Now I am losing from more flips, coolers, and suck outs and less from bad reads. I'll take that because I know it has to hold up eventually.
Bad
One thing I noticed this week is that, I was more willing to call off in spots where I thought I had a good read that a guy was light when I had a big stack. I think I need to allow myself to be bluffed in these spots so that I can keep my big stack. Guard and protect baby. In these online games, the other players arent my main enemies as much as the blind increases are.
Live
I am playing my first local game in a while tonight. Took some time off for Poker Maximus and NFL games. Hopefully, tonight goes well.
Life
I went to the One Music Fest this weekend and saw Erykah Badu, Goodie Mob, and Snoop Dogg. It was great. i really miss going to concerts and seeing all my old music friends. It's like a family reunion. October will be packed with shows. Cant wait.
Check out What's New at TPE this week. You guys absolutely crushed Poker Maximus this week. Let's do it again in 6 days, shall we? Finish the series strong and…
Take one down for the good guys.
October 21, 2012
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Update.
My second appearance on the Thinking Poker podcast is out now.
The notion that I am one of the audience's favorite guests is both humbling and baffling. All the love the poker community has shown me is highly motivating…and apparently being on with Andrew and Nate leads to some run good because I chopped my local league tournament heads up tonight for $1200. This gives me some points in a race for a 2014 WSOP Main Event seat as well. Now what a story that would be.
November 10, 2012
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Nice Carlos!
Keep up the good spirit. I’m still behind in listening to the Thinking Poker Podcast, so your episodes still are something I look out for. I just began reading Ed Millers “Playing the Player” where he explains how to exploit different kinds of players (I do this because I want to read the parts before they are reviewed in the Thinking Poker Podcast). It is highly interesting and could give me an edge on the stakes I play but reading your previous post about trying too hard to exploit… is making me less confident. So I’ll try it one step at a time and I’ll see.
GL at the tables!
Filip
June 8, 2012
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good stuff. keep it going.
October 21, 2012
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thanks guys
October 21, 2012
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September Week 3 ending 9/22/13 MTD
63 games -$689 ABI $30
Volume
Got in about 30 games thanks to Maximus. I may play less online this week due to being busy with moving and playing more live games.
Study
Mike Leah's old vids, podcasts, book study with my local crew, HH study with my Skype crew (thanks for the invite Ian), and posting hands.
Good
Cashed several Poker Maximus events but no final tables. Playing more solidly and patiently. Allowing myself to blind down and wait for spots instead of getting desperate and forcing things.
Bad
In my efforts to play more solidly, I am shutting down when I get a good player on my left (screw you Sprangled, lol!) instead of playing my normal LAG game and trying to re-adjust when they inevitably play back at my aggression. Eventually, I will fully regain my confidence and go to war with these guys like I know I am capable of.
Live
I moved closer to my local spots and I will be playing tournaments 3 days this week as well as trying cash afterwards for the first time. Hopefully, I am prepared for that after studying my Ed Miller materials. I am also only 3 hours away from Harrah's Cherokee now, so I may make some weekend trips up there in the future.
Life
Moved to Marietta today. This place is a little more run down than my last one (which is not saying much) so I will see how this first week goes before I commit to staying here. When you move to a new hood, you cant judge it fully until you see it at night. I am excited for my first midnight adventure aka The Walking Dead Live. Not for the feint of heart, but it's a small price to pay for a small price to pay ($650 a month all inclusive) lol. I dont expect it to be much worse than the places I grew up in and if not, I will stay. Otherwise, I'll go back to the southside.
(Literally, I was born and raised in the town where a lot of the Walking Dead episodes were filmed.
The top pic in this link is just walking distance from my old house and the shopping center below it used to have a store called Save-A-Lot where I worked when I was 15.)
Hopefully, the police up here in Marietta get enough tax money that they dont have to write bogus tickets like they do in Forest Park. Thursday, I got one for making a left turn into the right lane. Apparently, you can only legally turn into the left lane. There were no other cars around because it was midnight so it's not like I put anyone in danger. I understand that they pull people over for stuff like this to check for drugs and all, but how do I not get a warning when he realizes I was cool? At least he made sure to tell me he was doing me a favor and only writing one ticket as opposed to the three he could have written because the address on my license is not current (no sir, I basically live in a hotel for truckers so why would I change my address?) and because I couldnt find the paper copy of my insurance card (wrong again sir, the Geico app on my Droid works just as well).
Of course, I didnt say any of this to him for fear of getting my face placed on the concrete. I just smiled, nodded, and thanked him for being so kind. Then I DDT'ed his fat ass in my mind. I plan to go to traffic court for the first time and ask the judge if I can take a driving class instead to learn about what other friviolous laws they have in the Georgia Code. Maybe he wont show up and they will throw it out. If he does, I'll mentally Stone Cold Stunner him in that reverse fanny pack he calls a gut.
The kicker was when he asked me what I did for a living and I stuttered because I didnt want to snap get the death penalty for making immoral wages online. After like 3 seconds, I spit out math tutor which technically I still am even though I haven't had a session since May.
In a perfect world, I would have been able to tell him “Oh, I spend my Sundays peacefully grinding and trying to take one down for the good guys.”
Sigh, maybe one day soon we wont be lepers.
October 6, 2010
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maybe i shouldnt have, but i laughed quite a lot at your last post. you write well and are a good story teller. i think thats why we all like you 😀
please bink something though. i want you to win at poker
TPE Management
April 6, 2010
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haha, great post despite it involving you getting a ticket. If it makes you feel better, I would have let you off with a warning. 
October 21, 2012
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Thanks guys.
It's all good Benny. I meant for it to be funny, but seriously have y'all ever heard of that law? I asked Pie Farmer tonight and he learned about it during his driver's license test. Where I am from, they didnt even make us leave the parking lot so I'd never heard of this. I really hope that story helps someone avoid a ticket. Next time you're driving, look around. I guarantee you at least 40% of the people on the road make left turns into right lanes and right turns into left lanes all day every day.
In poker news, I played the tourney tonight and couldnt get anything going. Busted in a standard spot.
I played cash afterwards and it was a gold mine because I already had reads on the players from the tournament. Last week, I trapped a crazy aggro guy in the tournament for all the chips and ended up chopping it heads up. Tonight, this guy sat in the 1-3 cash game and I dove across the table to get the seat on his left.
$200 stacks all around the table. Seems like the standard for this game.
First hand I played, he straddles the button to 6 and I raise to 20 out of the small blind with KQo.
Flop comes Qxx. I bet 30 and he calls.
The turn is a J which completes the rainbow. I check and he bets 50. I shove. He calls.
Greenstein on the river. I show, he mucks, and snap buys back in. This is very similar to what happened in the tournament last week, but he may never adjust.
Few hands later, a few people limp around the table. Tight old lady (TOL) limps BTN and I check my option in the BB with 72o.
Flop comes 726cc. Im first and lead out 2/3 pot to 10. UTG calls. TOL minraises me to 20.
I call her TOL because she “told” me exactly what she had when she started looking at the ceiling like she was trying to estimate the square footage of it. I saw her do this with pocket aces in the tournament like a month ago and I saw her do this with KK on a Kxx flop like 5 hands ago.
I think for like 30 seconds and fold. There is ZERO doubt in my mind that I am beating exactly one hand there and I doubt she would have limped the button with it.
I played for like 2 hours and left due to being tired, but thanks to Andrew and Nate over at Thinking Poker who suggested I stay and play the cash game, my Mondays just got that much more profitable. I'll get more rest beforehand next time.
Drove home at midnight and saw zero police cars. That's unheard of where I moved from. I dont think I've ever lived in a place that wasn't constantly under survellience. I didnt see any crackheads either, but it is 1 AM on a Tuesday and I hear people talking loudly in the room next to me. That's not so bad. Overall this place seems quieter and I'll probably end up staying.
October 21, 2012
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September Week 4 ending 9/29/13 MTD
84 games -$495 ABI $30
Volume
Still losing so this will remain low until that changes. I'll at least try for 100 games in October.
Study
Vids, podcasts, books, and I have a ton of hands to post that I havent gotten around to doing yet.
Good
Im back to building big stacks and losing them in respectable ways. Yesterday it was…
QQ < AQs that flopped a flush (40bb)
77 < 99 (20bb)
44 < AKo bvb (20bb)
Bad
The problem with all these spots is I dont know if I should even be going broke in them despite them being +EV. I had a live hand where I shoved A9s for 20bb from the HJ because I didnt want to raise and c-bet down to 15bbs with the blinds taking a mega jump that would leave me with 10bbs in 3 minutes. Im still unsure about that spot.
However, I am sure that the 77 hand is not great (probably -EV). I shoved it from EP with 20bbs and ran into 99. I would probably have raised called any way, but that's no excuse. I am just playing to double or bust 20bb stacks unnecessarily.
The last hand was in the money with like 8 tables left. I had 20bb in the BB with 44 and the SB raised with AKo and called my shove. He won the flip. I ended up in like 65th place for $140 and he went on to take 3rd for $3100. I really felt like it was my turn to FT something but I guess not. Maybe next time.
The spot seems standard and in fact Annette_15 busted the Main in a similar spot. Afterwards, Phil Helmuth did a segment where he said he thought she could have waited for a better spot although this one was +EV.
I am questioning whether or not I should be busting in these spots or not with 20bbs. I still dont know.
Live
I am headed over to my local spot for the big once a month tournament where everything is doubled. If I am going to have a shot at winning the WSOP seat, I have to take this down because I am far behind right now. If I bust early, I'll play cash again.
Life
I am enjoying my time in Marietta so far. They have a nice little area up here. I lost that flip in my deep run and tilted over to the Dairy Queen across the street last night. I made up for it today with a 1 hour planned hike up and down Kennessaw Mountain and an additional 1 hour unplanned walked back to my car after I got lost. On the way back, I walked past somebody's house who had a pet llama that looked like he was about to spit some chewing tobacco in my face. I thought Griffin was country, but I aint never seen a pet llama until today. This is definitely a different scene for me but I like it. I just gotta get used to the traffic. Anyway, my tourney starts in an hour so let me go and TID for the good guys.
October 21, 2012
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Update: Please dont read this if you have a problem with bad beat stories. I am about to complain about my horrible live tournament last night.
1. Middle aged guy raises in EP in level 1. I flat JJ in the BB. Flop 643rb. Goes check check. Turn 3. I bet he calls. River 9. I check he bets small I call. He shows 52s. Lost 30% of my stack there. Maybe the river is a fold? At leaste my “tight guy” stereotype updated to “loose aggro guy”.
2. Two limps in EP. I raise CO with QQ. BTN flats. Tight old lady in the BB 3bets. Folds to me and I fold QQ. Then BTN sighs folds and then berated me for not calling because that would have given him odds to call behind. This is the same old lady I folded two pair to in the cash game last week. Maybe she is owning me?
3. Folds around. I raise AKo in the SB and get called by BB. Flop is QJx I think but I know it was all clubs. Goes bet call. Turn is a club giving me a K high flush draw. Goes bet call. River is A diamonds. I bet, he shoves I call he shows ATcc.
I rebuy during the break and about 5 hands into the next level…
4. UTG raises. I 3bet the BTN with KK. Tight old guy cold 4bet shoves out of the BB. Effective stacks are 50bb. Folds to me. I wanna tank fold but decided to act quickly so I wouldnt get accused of slow rolling. After like 10 seconds, I sigh call and he shows AA. In hindsight, I think this is actually more of a fold than the QQ hand due to the action and my blockers to KK and AK. I knew I was supposed to lay that down but I couldnt let this go after already letting go the QQ.
Losing in this game has basically killed my chances at winning the WSOP seat. If I dont go on a tear in October, I wont play in that game any more because the seat was the biggest draw. I will keep playing cash there though. I bought in after the game last night for $200 and cashed out $580 2.5 hours later. This cash thing makes a lot of sense the more I think about it because it is filled by the players that bust out early which I guess means worse players on average.
At least my friend Pie Farmer chopped the tournament. Way to TID for the good guys.
January 27, 2013
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loxxii said:
Bad
The problem with all these spots is I dont know if I should even be going broke in them despite them being +EV. I had a live hand where I shoved A9s for 20bb from the HJ because I didnt want to raise and c-bet down to 15bbs with the blinds taking a mega jump that would leave me with 10bbs in 3 minutes. Im still unsure about that spot.
However, I am sure that the 77 hand is not great (probably -EV). I shoved it from EP with 20bbs and ran into 99. I would probably have raised called any way, but that's no excuse. I am just playing to double or bust 20bb stacks unnecessarily.
The last hand was in the money with like 8 tables left. I had 20bb in the BB with 44 and the SB raised with AKo and called my shove. He won the flip. I ended up in like 65th place for $140 and he went on to take 3rd for $3100. I really felt like it was my turn to FT something but I guess not. Maybe next time.
The spot seems standard and in fact Annette_15 busted the Main in a similar spot. Afterwards, Phil Helmuth did a segment where he said he thought she could have waited for a better spot although this one was +EV.
I am questioning whether or not I should be busting in these spots or not with 20bbs. I still dont know.
Life
I am enjoying my time in Marietta so far. They have a nice little area up here. I lost that flip in my deep run and tilted over to the Dairy Queen across the street last night. I made up for it today with a 1 hour planned hike up and down Kennessaw Mountain and an additional 1 hour unplanned walked back to my car after I got lost. On the way back, I walked past somebody's house who had a pet llama that looked like he was about to spit some chewing tobacco in my face. I thought Griffin was country, but I aint never seen a pet llama until today. This is definitely a different scene for me but I like it. I just gotta get used to the traffic. Anyway, my tourney starts in an hour so let me go and TID for the good guys.
Loxxii,
Glad you are enjoying Marietta. Kennessaw Mountain is great, and there is lots there for you to explore. However, that llama isn't a pet. Folks raise them for money.
We need to talk about the shoves you mention above. The goal should be to run some numbers. You should be able to answer your question about whether it was correct, or at least redefine the question as being good as long as your hand range estimate for villain is good (which you will refine through experience).
January 27, 2013
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I witnessed hands 3 and 4. I thought you played them fine. On #3, I think you have a typo, as the fourth club on the turn gave you the king high flush (not draw) but I could be wrong. Top two would have been enough to call his bet, blind vs. blind, against that guy.
On the KK vs. AA, I think you should focus on the stack size, more than your read of the villain as a tight old man. He actually made it to the final four and chopped with us. He was tight when you saw him, at 50bb (about as deep as that tourney gets) but I saw lots of loose play from him later. So your decision to fold the Kings should be based on stacks, I think, as well as the action, and your read.
Regarding the cash game, it could also be that these regs aren't adjusting to deeper stacks (just guessing, I haven't seen enough to say).
It is fun and helpful to me to have a friend in the room. Thanks for being there. You are a great ambassador for TPE.
TPE Management
April 6, 2010
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loxxii said:
KB,
I'll tell you what man. I have much respect for people like you who are good fathers to teenagers. That is probably the second hardest job on the planet (only behind being the mother of a teenager). And that probably goes double if the kid is a girl. I would have gray hair if I was this girl's dad. Not because of her, but because of the boys that are like I was at that age. They prey on passive girls like her. I am tempted to let her listen to some 2pac or something to bring the assertiveness out of her. She'll need that to deal with these lil smooth talking suckas.
Missed this somehow originally, but thank you for the kind words! Being a good father is something I work hard at and is certainly the thing I take the most pride in!
October 21, 2012
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Thanks guys.
Yeah I need to run some numbers on those hands. I used to use SNG Wizard back when I played SNGs but I dont have that any more. I could use some help in that area. I feel like they are all +EV except the 77 hand which I am unsure of. It would be nice to use math to see whats best between shoving, raise/folding, and raise/calling them.
On hand 3, yeah your right. There were 3 clubs on the flop and the turn was a 4th club. I had the K of clubs in my hand. The word draw there is a typo.
I agree that stack size plays a big part in the KK v AA hand, but I think it only makes it worse. I feel like the people there think 50bb is a ton of chips so I'm not sure what other hand he is shoving there facing that kind of action. Maybe his range is KK, AA and AK. I do have 47% equity vs that range and there was some overlay so that would be ok. If there is any chance he is just calling with QQ and AK there, then his shoving range is just KK and AA which makes KK a fold. This is certainly possible given how deep he probably felt combined with his general tightness. I think calling is fine, but I think a fold could be ok too.
In the cash game, everyone buys in for $200 (67bbs) and straddles to $6-$10 so much that it doesnt even play like a deep stacked game.
Yeah, I agree that having someone to discuss spots with makes it a lot more fun. See you Monday.
October 21, 2012
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October Week 1 ending 10/06/13 MTD
5 games -$86 ABI $25
Volume
Whatever man.
Study
Mostly TPE vids, Thinking Poker podcasts and posts, and Ed Miller books.
Good
Im am continuing to build big stacks as usual. The early stages of online tournaments are going great. Also, I am learning to play some 6-max 25nl cash. No good results yet but I am playing well and enjoying it so far.
Bad
The lesson for this week is the 5 second rule. I was deep in a tournament with a huge stack and ****ed it up because I am ****ing stupid. I was paying attention and taking notes as usual. I noticed a guy sitting 2 to my right minraise iso a short stack who was all in with 96s. Later, he did it again with a slightly stronger hand I cant remember now. K6s maybe? I dont know, but I “plus oned” the note. Several hands past and I see a short stack go in. I look down at KQo and decide to call him, but before I can the guy 2 to my right minraises. Im like YES! Oh not this time sucka. I have the table covered (I think I was 5/45 players left and the chip leader at my table). I ship on him and he calls with AQo.
Im not tripping off the fact that I ran into the top of his range. I go to note that he can also do this with strong hands and that's when I realize this is not even the same player. That guy either busted or switched tables a few hands prior. At this point, I go on “smile at the screen for 10 minutes like it's somebody else's fault” tilt and actively keep from punching anything until break time. I snap fold my last hand and go on “find some junk food to eat” tilt. We get 5 minute breaks and I live 2.5 minutes from Krispy Kreme.
This was meant to be. GG glazed dozen. Later.
Live
Im basically out of the WSOP race now. I'll play this month to see if I can make a sick comeback. If not, I'll just come for the cash games afterwards from now on.
Life
**** mine.
Hope you guys take something down for the good guys because I dont even care if I do or not at this point. I'd rather be playing cash or writing something funny. Speaking of which, my second 2+2 magazine article is out this week. Check it out…
TPE Management
April 6, 2010
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hang in there buddy!! Also, really enjoying the 2+2 series…great writing.
October 21, 2012
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Lol. I will.
Thanks. I enjoy writing more than I thought I would. I've even decided to start proofreading which is big for me. I have been the worst with typos for so long that I just accepted them as a quirk of my backwards brain. I would read them later and it'd literally feel like they wrote themselves.
July 12, 2013
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Really enjoyed your 2+2 series. Totally hilarious. your a good writer keeping readers interested with your good humor. Thanks for sharing as I will take this approach for sure and feel like a cast member of Rounders.
Good Job Loxxii !
Grow some Balls and get it in
October 21, 2012
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October Week 2 ending 10/13/13 MTD
7 games -$85 ABI $25
Volume
Im done. That's it. I'm done. I played exactly 2 online MTTs this week and made a $1 profit. I'm over online tournaments for now and I probably won't have a volume goal going forward.
Study
Mostly TPE vids and podcasts, Thinking Poker podcasts and posts, and Ed Miller books. Also, practicing deep stack play in cash microstakes.
Good
I know that sounded harsh as well as last week's post that I apologize for, but the reason I am done with online MTTs is that the live ones are soooo much better. I see that Daryl Jace has returned to Merge in addition to all you other sickos who are enjoying my hard won money. Why should I even bother? I know my place and for now it's in deez donkaments.
I got 4th for $400 on Saturday and 6th for $1400 on Sunday in my local games. It was fairly easy. Just nit sweaters, nut peddle, rinse, repeat. I rarely got a big stack, but if I ever did I'd play some speculative hands and just value bet them hard if I hit. The key is being willing to patiently sit on a short stack for hours and not punt. And I don't mind nursing a sick runt back to health. I'll still play some online MTTs, but they'll be much smaller and only 1 or 2 days a week when there are no live ones or live cash games. So Sundays are out. 🙁
Bad
The only bad thing about playing TAG is forcing yourself to give up the chance to play those oh so pretty speculative hands and not getting paid off on your big hands at times. I have to fold hands like 76s from EP with medium stacks because I know if I play, I'll have 11 callers with hands that have me dominated and out flushed like J6s.
Also, if you raise hands like AJo+ you'll either have to bomb it like 6-10x to maybe get heads up or raise standard and get a bunch of callers which makes cbetting from OOP futile. We forget that a cbet is essentially a bluff and we all know you cant bluff an idiot. Well, maybe you can for all your chips on the river, but NEVER for a small cbet. To them, 72o on a AK2 flop is a “two pair draw”.
Hell with that many callers, you're not even safe on a J64 two suit board because they have all the two pairs and all the OESD and gutshots in their calling ranges. I tried bombing those hands and it didnt work so I'll try another idea I have going forward and report back.
Live
I already covered this. I will add that I over heard people talking about how good the cash games were at Cherokee. I gotta try and get up there a few times a month. I also over heard that they have a series planned there for December which will be PURE GOLD. Unfortunately, I'll be in AC at that time.
Life
Got the weight back under control after a week or two of full blown crackhead mode tilt binge. I tell you what man, eating like a raw vegan is like free liposuction. The fat is just melting off.
The only thing as strong as tilt binge for me is free food binge. These cash games I play have rake deals that come with food. It's like I already paid for it so I kinda have to eat it because of my inner nitcaster and outer fat kid. I'll be ok though because it's only like twice a week when I am out of the house for cash games or entertainment events. I am 100% in compliance at home.
Speaking of which, I've got the India.Arie concert with my niece this weekend. I am really looking forward to it.
Kinda bummed about not playing the online Sunday grind any more but it's for the best. So in my absence, here's hoping you…
Take one down for the good guys.
TPE Management
April 6, 2010
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I think breaking up your routine can be good. and if the live grind is working for you, I say go for it!
That being said, I hope you find your way back to online MTTs as well, as Im confident you have what it takes. I agree with you though that Merge is getting tougher. Expecially the bigger tourneys on Sundays. Lots of regs who play well. Still tons of soft spots obv, but you just really have to bec focused and play at your best.
At the end of the day though, it is about getting that money! And right now the live thhing is working for you, so roll with it. Take all those old guys money, and then come give it to me at the Merge tables! 
October 21, 2012
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Hell, that's part of the problem. All those dang gone 
logos at the tables! 🙂
July 12, 2013
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loxxii said:
Hell, that's part of the problem. All those dang gone
Your guys really crack me up ! Hope all goes well in your live game. I’m not that ventures yet, but soon I hope.
Grow some Balls and get it in
January 15, 2013
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loxxii said:
Hell, that's part of the problem. All those dang gone
I agree that merge has gotten a lot tougher, but you should get back on Winning Netwrok (BlackChip, ACR, True). They've increased the guarantees and added new levels to make for some reasonably deep play. And, aside from Mr. Lambert, KB (both of whom have been absolutely crushing Winning, btw) and a few other TPE'rs the fields are full of terribad players– even many of the regs cannot spell poker if spotted everything but the “r”!
October 21, 2012
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Thanks. I'll try it out.
October 21, 2012
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Damn, that didn't last long.
My cash game got canceled so I'm playing some Merge tournies tonight. Nothing else to do so I might as well take one down for the good guys.
October 21, 2012
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October Week 3 ending 10/20/13 MTD
14 games -$485 ABI $30
Volume
I played another 7 games this week.
Study
Mostly TPE vids and podcasts, Thinking Poker podcasts and posts, and Ed Miller books. Also, practicing deep stack play in cash microstakes.
Good
I played a few Merge tournaments this week and beat 90% and 95% of the field in 2 of them. These things barely cover the buy in if you dont get top 5. Haven't made it to the last 2-3 tables online in a while.
I continue to play well and get to final tables live. The problem with these is that they rarely pay more than 4-5 spots and I've busted 10th, 6th, and 8th the last few times. These are mostly just MTSNGs so you just gotta wait for hands and ride the swings.
Bad
Not sure why I split the good and bad up. Seems like I covered both already. Maybe I will just go with Online and Live for next time.
Live
Played a big tournament Sunday and got 8th which didint pay. I played very well though and it was a great experience. They players that made the final table were pretty good. The big stack was hella aggro raising at least 60% of the time when it folded to him. I got my last 28bb vs him with JJ<AA which he got a lot. That's how you win these things. 1. Double up with AA, raise every hands, and double up with AA again. Easy game. Just gotta get the AA and have it hold up one time. Got a chance to play with 2 time ring winner Tripp Kirk for a while, but he busted early with AA<KK for a 500bb pot.
The best part was when this chick got in with JJ and was called by a shorter stack with KK. She rivered a J and yelled “Yes! You deserve it too!” I was like DAMN! I assume there is some history there because they seemed to be friends but still…I think I heard the guy from Mortal Kombat say…
or maybe that was just the TD on the mic saying “Player Down?”
Whatever. Same thing.
Life
Wow! The India.Arie concert was absolutely perfect. My niece enjoyed it a lot. She told her friends she was going and they were all like “Who is India.Arie?” Kids dont know her because she doesnt make crap music and so she doesnt get radio play. I was afraid her lack of popularity with other 15 year olds would turn my niece off from her but it didnt. I must have done a great job brainwashing her into liking the music all those years ago.
I absolutely murdered the buffet at Golden Corral before the concert on Friday, fasted Saturday, ate very light Sunday, and will eat very light today. That should bring me back to my pre-massacre weight and set me up for more progress the rest of the week. Easy game.
I joined ACR and plan to play online on Thursdays and Fridays. Besides the cash games, I'm more or less done with Merge for a while. Next week, I'll let you know how it goes. Until then,…
Take one down for the good guys.
Oh yeah, and please include more detail when you report your scores so I can put them in What's New at TPE. I need the tourney name, site, finish position, and prize. You can tweet it to #TPEdge or make a Sweat or BBV thread.
October 21, 2012
Offline
October Week 4 ending 10/27/13 MTD
14 games -$485 ABI $30 (no Merge games this week so I am not sure how this changed. still deep in the red though)
Volume
Not sure, but I know it wasn't much. I played a few games on WPN but I am used to letting Scope and OPR keep records for me. They dont work for WPN so I have to start a spreadsheet to keep up with the stats from now on.
Study
Mostly TPE vids and podcasts, Thinking Poker podcasts and posts, and Ed Miller books. Also, practicing deep stack play in cash microstakes. Started watching some Bart hanson live at the bike stuff as I prepare to switch to cash.
Online
Played a few WPN tournaments. Probably broke even or lost a little there. The games are much more enjoyable though. I final tabled a $10 timby and took 8th for pretty much nothing. Maybe $80? I remember there was like $750 up top.
Live
Lost MTTs on Monday and Wednesday. I'm out of the WSOP race so I wont play Mondays any more. I will play Wednesday because it's a little deeper and cheaper. I also had my first losing cash session.
Took 3rd Saturday for $250 which was a $50 profit. Three handed there was a big stack and I was tied for 3rd with like 15bb. Big stack limps SB and I have JTo in BB. He has been limping ATC and is generally loose passive. I raise to 3x and he calls. The flop is something like 74xfd. I cbet he calls. Turn is a 4. It goes check check. The river is an A. He checks, I shove. He calls with 42o. I could have made a smaller bet on that river and I consider that a punt.
Sunday my opening range was maybe the top 30% of hands and I picked up one maybe 6 times in 4 hours. Missed the flop on most of those. The others were…
1. QQ heads up OOP. I open EP, he 3bets from the BTN, I flat. Flop Axx goes check check. I lead turn enough to set up a river shove and he folds JJ face up.
2. AA 4way. Flop Axxfd, I bet and got 2 callers. Turn small flush card hits, I bet got one caller. River small straight card hits, I bet, get shoved on and fold.
Last hand. Aggro big stack opens and gets flatted by 2 loose guys. Im in the BB with 12bb and A7o. I shove. OR calls with a small pair, middle guy calls with 86s, the last guy shoved with AKo, OR folds, middle guy calls and wins I believe. My thoughts were I'd seen these guys open and call with hands as weak as 74o. My guess is they were playing top 50% from any position regardless or the action ahead. I expected 2 of them to fold and was willing to play from behind for the dead money. This would have been much better with like T9s. A7o is clearly a punt.
Life
Ok, this is the last time I am going to talk about her I promise. After the India Aire concert, I was invited to meet her at Walmart at an in-store. I made sure to wear my TPE hoodie because they said the pic would be put on Walmart's facebook page (#subscriberhunting). There has to be a 0.01% chance somebody will see it and google Tournament Poker Edge.
Here's her nitcast anthem. These are words I live by.
Yesterday, I was down to 189.5 which is one pound above my all time low as an adult. I'll probably go to 180 before I start to bulk. My all time high was 248 and I was 221 when I left Vegas. I should be in pretty good shape by the end of the year.
My bankroll on hand is on it's last legs. I'm going to Canada in December to get the rest of it off Tilt and use that for live cash games. Either I suck at MTTs or they are too high variance for my roll. I'm down to $20 online games and $200 live ones and still cant hack it. Might try $15 and $150 for a while. In January when school starts back, replenish my roll with some tutoring sessions, substitute teaching days, and possibly learn to deal. Poker may not work for me, but it gave me a taste of freedom and something to be passionate about. I dont think I can ever go back to teaching FT again. Ha. I'd rather be broke and happy tutoring and punting tourneys.
3 weeks til I hit Atlantic City for the first time. For those of you coming out, here's hoping you…
Take one down for the good guys.
August 21, 2012
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keep it up man. great reading. enjoy Atlantic City. saw on thinking poker website and I might swing by for the meetup although I might only be in town the next weekend for those $365 WSOPC tournies. either way I love that little food spot. so many hungover morning there.
gonna be in Vegas this week and think I might head over to Binions at least once cause of your stories and what appears to be a lighter bankroll than expected.
October 21, 2012
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Good to hear that I am having some sort of an impact. Glad something good is coming out of this crazy experiment I embarked upon. I know a crazy Brazilian lady if you need a cheap place to stay. (She called me yesterday for help with a computer problem. Probably wanted help with printing youtube videos again.)
I was supposed to go back out to watch the main but my downswing killed that dream. My BR cant take the hit. KB will be out there as well. I think he is hitting PT's Pub one day. You should go.
You guys have fun.
August 21, 2012
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its all about the journey my friend. just know you are not alone and you seem to have a pretty strong moral foundation which is rare in this world. i also like the non-conformist attitude you have. it will serve you better in the end (me too i hope).
i've been doing well lately on Bovada. obviously some drawbacks but some lolbad play there and given its sportbetting branding and the fact its the biggest US site according to some places like pokerscout you might find yourself doing well there.
shit kb or anyone else if you out in vegas earliar that the nov 9 let me know. i'll be solo and would love some beers with some poker people. i think i leave on the 5th.
October 21, 2012
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Thanks Chuck.
Wow. Wow. Wow. I had to write this tonight. Couldn't wait for Monday.
Thank you Thinking Poker for suggesting I try cash and thank you Breyer for bringing me to the local cash game. Tonight was awesome. I now have cash games 4 nights a week where I can get in like 16 hours and they come with tons of food and sweets. My diet is essentially over. I have like 10 lbs of fat left to lose but it aint gonna happen now. I may as well start bulking and fasting twice a week to counter all the calories I pound at these games. So my new schedule is…
Mon – cash with free dessert and lift
Tues – cash with free everything
Wed – $100 tourney then cash with free dessert and lift
Thurs – WPN and fast
Fri – WPN and salad
Sat – cash with free everything and lift
Sun – $200 tourney and fast
The games are good. People cant fold a hand. I won a huge pot with 77 on 755xK by checking 2 streets and check raising the river. Im never doing this with one K but the guy couldnt fold. I thought he would puke when I showed my hand but he was cool like 30 seconds later. I would have tilted hard but I think these guys are pretty well off. Several doctors in the group. Very cool people and I am glad to have the opportunity to become friends with them. We had some good laughs over steaks and cakes and pies and fries. I was in heaven.
Unfortunately I bluffed it all back to them. One hand, I checked raised a 642 board with 97s flush draw. Got called it 2 spots. Turn 5. I bet again in position. River Q. I miss, but bluff the river and get called by Q6o. The odds gods saved him. I dont mind that spot because I knew he wasnt too strong. Just unlucky.
My bad spot was AKs flush draw on Jxx two suit. I bet flop in position. Turn J. He checks, I bet, and he raises (probably should have taken the free card here). I call. River blank and he bets what little he has left on the river and I fold. Had I checked that turn back I would have been up almost $200 at the end of the night. Might could even fold to his raise. Instead I end up $42 and probably 42 lbs.
Oh yeah! This was cool. On one of the first few hands I played. I limp behind in a family pot with 54o on the button. Flop comes 678 with a flush draw. A guy leads 10, I make it 40, and a guy cold 3bets to 160 with probably 140 behind. I tank fold because he seemed tight and even worse because it was early and I only brought 2 buy ins. That might have been a bad fold or a great one. I'll never know. I would have called if I had a proper bankroll…maybe. That sizing looks like he's scared of the flush draw and it was a limped pot and he was in the SB getting like 9 to 1. Naw, he probably had T9 or even 95. I like the fold.
Going forward, I am going to bluff a little less often when the top card pairs and more often when an overcard hits the board like that Q6o hand. I think that was a good spot. If I can win at least $20 an hour in these games and eliminate my eating expenses I'll be golden.
I also moved to Kennesaw which is a much nicer town. If I can transfer my Full Tilt roll to someone for cash when I go up to Canada in December, I should be able to keep playing for a living. If not, when I get back to Atlanta I can make $80-100 a day substitute teaching once or twice a week and $25-50 a day tutoring once or twice a week to cover my living expenses. At night, I'll keep playing live cash games to grow my roll. Who knows? Maybe I'll even drive up to the casino 3 hours away on Thursdays and Fridays to play cash there…sleeping in my truck for $free.99 of course.
What ever happens, the most important thing is that I am free to do as I please. How ironic is it that I am broker, but happier than I have been in several years. Thanks poker community. I'm really glad to be down with yall.
December 7, 2012
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So happy that you’re taking everything you can out of the experience mate. You call it ironic that you’re broke but happy, but that’s analysing the experience by conventional standards (ie, money is the direct measure of success). Your journey is about stepping outside of convention and, without getting too mushy, finding yourself. It sounds like you are well on your way.
I have no doubt you’ll get back into the black, but regardless of the final monetary tally you’ll remember this experience for the rest of your life. Enjoy it my friend, you are living the dream.
Take one down for yourself.
October 21, 2012
Offline
November Week 1 ending 11/3/13 MTD
No idea of my results, but I know I'm not up. I am not motivated enough by the small stakes and volume to consistently keep up with the records. I'll just report the balances from now on and use an app to record live cash results for next week.
Online MTT Balance $132
Cash Profit +$300
Volume
Few games on WPN. 2 games on Merge. Under 10 total MTTs for sure. 3 cash games last week.
Study
Currently watching Chris Moon's latest series, listened to Episode 53 of the Thinking Poker Podcast, Ed Miller & Bart Hanson interview, re-reading NLHE Theory and Practice.
Online
Winning small flips to build a stack and then losing the big flips later for a chance to win. That's 90% of MTTs in a nutshell in my opinion.
Live
No live MTT this Sunday. I may play the one coming up this weekend. We'll see.
The cash games have been going well. I was up roughly $65, $125, and then $110 in the 3 games I played this week. I will actually record this stuff starting tonight for more accurate records.
Big hands from Saturday…
I have $300 in the 1/2 game. In a 3 way pot, I flop a set of 77 on K87 flush draw. Tight BB player open shoves his last like $170. I tank call to let the lady behind me in as well. She was sitting on a bunch of chips and had been putting money in with weak holdings. She just calls. The turn is an offsuit T. I shove my last $130 and she calls with AA. The BB has 87s no flush draw. Greenstein on the river. Damn, damn, damn. I really could have used that pot. Oh well.
A few hands later, I flop another set of 77 on Q7x flush draw and get led into for like $150 which was maybe 3x pot. I shove for $120 more and he calls. I dont usually look when all my decisions are done so I dont know if he had a made hand or a draw, but my set held up this time. This got me back to even and I ended up like +$110 on the night from what easily could have been a bankroll disaster after that first hand. Sigh, that pot would have been oh so lovely but I know there will be plenty more in the future.
Life
Like the idiot I am, I didnt do a good job of weight management after last Tuesday's food fest. I tried a new salad buffet on Wednesday and found out they also have soup, bread, pizza, sweets, etc… I wont be going back there again. I fasted on Thursday. I went out on Friday and Saturday to my usual salad buffet and stuffed myself on fruit, nuts, and veggies and hiked up a mountain between those 2 trips. I was so full of veggies Saturday that I couldnt eat much junk food at the game that night plus I was afraid I would puke it all up when that A hit the river, lol.
Hiked again Sunday morning and ate about 2000 calories in fruit and veggies. This morning, I was shocked to see I was still up like 8 pounds. I have been doing my squats, push ups, chin ups, and dips but this is probably just more water weight. I'll cut out the buffets and possibly add another fast day. I wont give up my junk food days unless I hit 210 again.
So the new plan is…
fast/rest on Mon/Thurs
junk food/calisthenics on Tues/Sat
salad/calisthenics/hiking on Wed/Sun
salad/rest on Fri
It's pretty cool to have no gym costs by working out at parks and very little food costs by fasting and eating off of rake or cheaply at home. Gotta rep for the #nitcast crew.
October 21, 2012
Offline
November Week 2 ending 11/10/13 MTD
WPN Balance $200
Live Cash Profit $720
Live MTT Profit -$420
Volume
1 online MTT. 1 live MTT. 2 cash games.
Study
Andrew Brokos's latest series, re-reading NLHE Theory and Practice.
Online
Same old same old. AA < TT. Nothing to see here.
Live
Had some success in the cash games so I decided to give the Sunday tourney a shot. I played 11 hands and lost every one of them. Had QQ 3 times, AJ once, AK twice, and a few small pairs and medium suited connectors and broadways. I was card racking and losing small to medium pots early.
I had 15K at 300/600/50 when my last hand came up.
I get AA on the button, 3 limpers, I raise 2K and get 2 callers. There's 7350 in the pot.
The flop comes T72 two suited. First guy donks 4000. Second guy shoves 16000. I call of my last 12000.
Before limp calling my preflop raise, the first guys verbally acknowledges that I am the tightest player in the room. Somehow he finds it from within the vast haystack that is his brain to tank fold on the flop. The second guy snap shows T9o as if he's ever ahead. x on the turn. 9 on the river. gg, later. And then the first guy gets upset and says to the second guy “I knew I should have called. We would have chopped!”
And this is why I play these games regardless of my bankroll. Stupid? Yes, but it may be stupiderer not to get in these games. I dont know. Oh well, I'll just make it up in cash and/or get a part time job to rebuild.
The cash games are still great. I won $300 and $420 this week.
Big hands I can remember are.
1. 300 stacks. Guy opens like 20 (this is 1/2 mind you). I call with AKo. Short stack shoves 70 with QQ. OR calls, I shove, OR folds AKo face up. I get lucky and win the flip. I call it a flip even though I lost 2 outs because I was getting 2 to 1 with the dead money and that's all I needed according to Slice.
2. 250 effective stacks. I have the guy covered. I raise KK. Guy calls on BTN. The flop is dry like T62rb or something.
I check. He bets which he would with 100% of his super wide range because he is a blaster. Turn brings a flush draw.
I check. He bets which he would with 100% of his super wide range because he is a barrel blaster. River brings the flush.
I check. He shoves which he would do with 100% of his super wide range because he is a river blaster. I call. He has the flush.
3. 300 effective stacks. Same guy same situation. I raise QJo. He calls on the BTN. The flop is QQ9rb.
I c-bet because he knows I didnt bet the overpair a few hands ago. He calls. Turn brings nothing.
I check. He bets which he would with 100% of his super wide range because he is a blaster. River brings nothing.
I check. He shoves which he would do with 100% of his super wide range because he is a river blaster. I call.
He mucks and says “I figured you had that KK again.”
Then he says “I had JJ and figured I could get you off it.”… which he would say with 100% of his super wide range because he is full of more BS than a constipated Longhorn.
Life
Damn near hit that 210 lb point again. Got up to 205 but this was after getting back down to 197 a few days after the food frenzy. It's mostly water weight. I was 204 this morning, but I expect to be back down to at least 199-200 tomorrow. I dont mind the new weight, but I need it to creep up slightly slower and to pack on some muscle along with that extra water and fat. I wasnt getting enough protein for this so once again, I revised the plan.
So the new plan is…
junk food/calisthenics on Tues/Sat
salad/calisthenics/hiking on Wed/Thurs/Sun
salad/rest on Mon/Fri
The main change is that I cut out the fasting days and added beans and chicken breast (sorry Nate and Ed) for protein. I'll also focus more on the peanuts and steaks at the game and shy away from the Lil Debbie's a tad. But I'm not making any promises just in case my good friend Breyer decides to snitch on me to the whole world again. I may even start doing push ups between hands occassionally to let my muscles soak up some of this caloric deluge before my gut can.
So that bumps my food costs up to $30 a week for the salads. We shall see how this goes.
This time next week, I will be landing in Pittsburgh to roll with Andrew Brokos to the Borgata for a week. I am really looking forward to this trip. My plans to go to Canada got nixed due to Tim finding a great WSOPC event in Quebec to go to instead of the AC one. Plus I haven't been able to sell my Full Tilt funds. My last resort will be to make that trip to Jamaica to withdraw, but I am going to try 2+2 first. I was really hoping someone I'd met in person could take them because I am worried about getting scammed by strangers. But, I can at least give it a shot and only commit if everything feels right. If not, I'll reluctantly have to spend a chunk of it on a cruise to Jamrock. Rough life.
October 21, 2012
Offline
November Week 3 ending 11/17/13 MTD
WPN Balance $166
Live Cash Profit $90
Volume
1 online MTT. 3 cash games.
Study
Andrew Brokos's latest series, re-reading NLHE Theory and Practice.
Online
Lost a flip. Played well.
Live
Had my biggest cash win last week of $420 which was just enough to get me into the live MTT which I lost AA < T9o. Followed that up Tuesday with my new biggest cash win of $640 and my biggest cash lost $600 on Saturday. I basically print money when I value bet good hands and rarely bluff. I realize that this is not optimal so I tried to open up my game a little, bluffing in a few good spots unsuccessfully. Also, I picked up a ton of small pocket pairs which does more harm than good when you dont flop sets.
Life
I am very very very excited to be taking a flight to Pittsburgh today to hang out with Andrew Brokos. I am in awe of this dude and feel very fortunate to be able to count him as a friend and a mentor. I think he is one of the best poker coaches on the planet. It crazy how clearly he is able to explain things. I hope I am able to just STFU and be a sponge. This is gonna be a trip of a lifetime.
We are taking a road trip to Atlantic City for the Borgata Fall Open. I will play cash and possibly a couple of events. I also get to meet some of you guys at the Thinking Poker meet up on Saturday. Looking forward to that.
I have meet a ton of great guys through TPE and Thinking Poker that have had a profound impact on my life in the past 6 months. I really want to make you guys proud one day soon. There are only a few days left in this crazy experiment I started at the beginning of 2013. Financially, it has not turned out the way I would have liked, but I would not trade the friendships I have made for any amount of money. I am much broker and happier than I was when I started. Im keeping my fingers crossed on the broker part, but I expect my happiness to increase on this trip.
October 21, 2012
Offline
November Week 4 ending 12/1/13 MTD
WPN Balance $508
Live Cash Profit -$1000
Last week was actually my first week missing an update due to my trip to AC with Andrew so this will be a twofer provided I can remember back that far.
Volume
About 5 online MTT. 3 cash games.
Study
Andrew Brokos's vids and conversations. TPE vids.
Online
Had a little Brokos rungood when I hung out with Andrew. I got 3rd in a WPN 12.5K Gtd I played in his guestroom for $1125. Then I got 15th in it for like $150 a few nights later while he played the Borgata Main Event. Also had a mincash in something that night.
Havent done so hot in it since I've been home. He must have flipped the doomswitch on me. I did get 12th in a 4K Gtd. last night for like $95. Seems like I ALWAYS build a top 10 stack in these at some point. I feel like I should be able to close out much more than I do but I usually end up leveling myself out of the game vs some aggro guy.
Live
Which is the exact opposite what I did in the tourney I played at the Borgata. I tried a $660 event and played for the entire day with Ari Engel (bodogAri) raising my big blind literally like 80% of the time. I always had like 25-40bb which was too much to shove on him and not enough to flat light given that he had position and a significant skill edge. That said, if I had something decent, I would call but I mostly didnt. The most common hand I got in the big blind was something like K2o, Q4o, J3s (I affectionally coined these Biggie Smalls). I did reship A4o on him one time for like 13bb but that was kinda standard and even then Andrew had to reassure me into doing it because I figured he would be priced in to call me and my hand doesnt dominate anything. In his own “Common Sense for Dummies” way, Andrew reminded me that I shouldnt worry about being called by a hand I was ahead of. (duh Carlos!)
Ari kicked my punk ass all day but I did get the better of him twice.
1. I opened with AA when he was on the button. Obviously he 3bet me. Knowing he doesnt this anytime someone opens his button, I just flat. The flop was 9xx. I check, he bets, I call. The turn is a blank. I check, he bets, I call. The river is a 9. DAMN! That was probably the worst card in the deck for me. I check, he tanks and then checks back with air. I would have gotten a HUGE river bluff out of him had any other card come. Sigh.
2. He opens my bb. I flat with TT. The flop is like Q96 with a flush draw. I check, he bets, I raise, and he calls. The turn is a blank. I shove and he tank folds. I think he had something he wanted to call with.
Even though he played great and very aggressively, I outlasted him when he blew his big stack by bluffing like 60% of it off. This was his second bullet by the way. He also fired 4, yes 4 $2700 bullets in the main event and never even made day 2. He went out like 40-45th, I went out in 31st, and they paid 27th. FML! I think I did the best I could though in retrospect. I didnt play much postflop because I didnt have the chips to. I got away from some big cooler situations early, reshoved probably a little too tightly, and open shoved correctly. Kill Phil style. I tried to the best of my currect ability and learned from it. I guess that's a win. Plus I shipped a $10 food voucher (aka The Fat Kid's bracelet).
The analogy I used to describe how Ari held over me is that I was playing a freezeout and he was playing a rebuy so that gave him a huge advantage. I learned from this and now I use a toned down version of his style in my small online games where I can afford to. (If I ever fired 4 $2700 bullets and didnt even cash I would probably follow it up with a real one.)
The cash games were a disaster. First I lost 600 the night before my trip after getting a ton of starting hands and missing every board for 5 hours. Finally lost a flip and left before I had nothing to take to AC. Then I get to Pittsburgh and on the 3rd hand I play I lose $200 of the $1000 I had with me holding KK vs 66 on K66. The sickest part is that I had 4% equity to hit the case K and win a $50,000 bad beat jackpot. ****!
In AC, I met Sean Lango who coined the phrase “Carloose” for my alter ego that gets too splashy in cash games when he sees the 7 limpers and raises J6s on the button. That idiot came out and dwindled me down then I lost with 75o in the BB on T75rb when I lead, got raised, and had my 3bet shoved called by KTo. Couldn't hold. Got in another couple of spots like this with no luck and it busted my roll.
The last hand I played was one where I just got owned by a chick. I raise KK. She flats and the button flats. The flop was 984rb. I bet they both call. The turn was a Q. I bet they both call. The river was a blank. I check, she checks, and the button bombs it for $75. I know him to be a bluffer so I tank call. He had air and stormed out. To my surprise, she calls as well and shows a set of 8s. Nice hand.
Life
I completely enjoyed this trip. Andrew is an awesome person and has an amazing family. Everyone I met was incredible. This includes the TPE members I met including joesmoe and tazzjazz (who shipped the event I bubbled). Due to this tourney, my stupidity in changing my return flight too late which cost me an extra $200, and the run bad I experienced in cash, I blew my entire roll that I had on hand. So now I have to wait until the middle of December when I get my FT funds before I can start back playing live cash games. I'll use this time to play small MTTs online and study harder than ever. I'll start substitute teaching and maybe tutoring to rebuild my roll pretty soon. I may even learn to deal and see if I can do that part time occassionally.
I also gained a good deal of weight on this trip and Thanksgiving so I will go hard in December to lose it. I am a world renown expert on fat gain and fat loss so it's all good.
October 21, 2012
Offline
December Week 1 ending 12/8/13 MTD
WPN Balance $252
Live Cash Profit $470
IE has crashed on me 4 times while trying to write this so you guys have to get the Cliff's Notes now.
Volume
About 5 online MTT. 4 cash games.
Study
Andrew Brokos's vids and posts. Old TPE vids from 2010 as I tag them.
Online
Nothing special has happened on WPN as of late.
Live
Broke from Borgata so played backed in my local cash game and had my best night ever. In for 300 out with 1200. Split profits with backer.
Played cash at Cherokee yesterday. Made $185 then Carloose got bored and sleepy and bluffed most of it back off but was still up for the trip.
Life
Sold my FTP funds. Will have the cash this time next week. Needed that bankroll boost. Only playing small online MTTs and 1/2 live cash with whats left of my roll. Life roll is about gone too so I start working again in the next few weeks but only on occassion. I kinda miss tutoring. Hopefully I can find a few students in my new location. If not, I'll sub like this guy…
Under $300 in my bank account, but gave $50 of it when I learned that one of my old hip hop mentors was fighting stage 3 breast cancer. She was always the life of the party and watching what that shit has done to her really pisses me off. …..ly/rqvp1
She introduced me to 2pac's mama. I got a chance to hug her and thank her for how much her son meant to me. That was one of the best days of my life.
Tough to see her down but Dee Dee is a feisty chick so I expect her to keep kickin ass. **** Cancer and **** Internet Explorer.
October 21, 2012
Offline
December Week 2 ending 12/15/13 MTD
WPN Balance $2001
Live Cash Profit -$220
Volume
About 10 online MTT. 2 cash games.
Study
Andrew Brokos's vids and posts. Old TPE vids from 2010 as I tag them.
Online
Man I have been crushing on WPN the past couple of days. 2nd for 1500 in the 12.5K Gtd. 4th in the 4k Gtd. 6-max for $450 and several other smaller cashes. I have been experimenting with playing a lot more aggressive and crazy early and it has been paying off. Granted I bust and re-enter like 3-4 times but once I finally get a big stack, I tighten up a lot but by then no one believes me so I get paid off. I'm like Ari Engel divided by 100. It's fun, but I dont know how good it is. The experiment continues…
Live
Had a rare losing session in cash. Lost 280.
1. $300. I raised a limp to $40 with TT from the CO. Got called by BTN and limper. Flop Axx. Checked through. Turn Q. I checked folded. BTN shows QQ.
2. $225. I raises 2 limpers to $30 with TT. 2 callers. Flop 653 rainbow. I cbet $90. Got a caller. Turn 2. He shoves. I call. he shows 44. My bad. I should have shoved flop.
The other hands were not interesting at all. I reloaded for $200. Got down to $120 at one point planning to quit at $100. Ran it up to $400 and back down to $220 and quit.
Life
Things are going really well. A friend surprised me with a 1000 loan until my FTP funds come in which will be any day now. That helped a lot. I cant even tell you. Needed that breathing room. The next day I won 1500 on WPN which was awesome too.
I taught 8th grade math for 6 years and I had a kid in 7th grade who is know a 12th grader and star of my hometown football team. They played for the state championship at the Georgia Dome and won! I got to go see them. I had 10 former students on that field who were all in remedial math back in middle school. I like to think that having a teacher that looked and talked like them helped, but more importantly sports saved these boys. I hope they play at the next level and have much success. I felt like a proud papa. I dont ever want to be responsible for a classroom again, but I cannot wait to find some kids to tutor on this side of town. That game re-lit my fire.
I am now about 36 hours into a fast and I havent been really hungry at all. It's kinda scary how long you can go without eating once you get used to it. I pig out like 2-3 times a week, fast twice, and eat only a spinach, lentil, chicken salad the other days (sometimes pineapples too). Weight seems to be under control at this point but still 15 pounds above my lowest. I'll be back there some time in January no doubt.
Well in 2 days, I have my traffic court date. I am hoping the guy doesnt show up. I got a bad feeling I'm gonna lose. That wont bother me, but I expect them to be assholes about it and basically embarass me. I have to prepare myself for that possibility so that I dont lash out without thinking. Even if I win, I heard I have to pay court cost. I cant go down there, lose, and go on embarassment tilt and have to pay bail on top of that. My margins are too slim and I heard the wifi in jail sucks. Naw, I'll be fine. I'll just smile and deliver a mental choke slam to whomever they send to take my money.
August 21, 2012
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glad to here things are on an upward trend. keep it up been following the thread regardless of lack of posts. great to here about seeing some kids you taught doing well. success in anything is huge for a young person's life.congrats on the score as well but my favorite part of the post was that life was going well. always helps when poker is too but life is way more important.
watch the fasting in my opinion. a steady, healthy diet and exercise is what i believe to be the best way to achieve fitness goals. one guy i really got alot of information from in Mike Dolce. He is a trainer to tons of UFC fighters and helps fighters cut weight the right way, without straving. i'd consider looking into some of his books and articles. great stuff.
October 21, 2012
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thanks chuck. i just got the ftp funds in my hands. feels great. waited 2 and a half years for this day.
you definitely have to know what you're doing for long fasts, but the research on the health benefits are amazing. i generally stick to 24 hours. anything much longer than that requires easing back into eating which im not a fan of.
as far as i know, i've only missed updating one week this year due to the AC trip. glad you are still reading. it's been a long, awesome year. in a few weeks i get to put 2013 in the history books.
TPE Management
April 6, 2010
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feel like I have been seeing you at my tables alot lately deep in WPN MTTs. must be doing something right! keep grinding.
October 21, 2012
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Killingbird said:
feel like I have been seeing you at my tables alot lately deep in WPN MTTs. must be doing something right! keep grinding.
fa sho. i've noticed that too. i final tabled one with Ryan this week. wont be long before we get to one together too.
August 21, 2012
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loxxii said:
thanks chuck. i just got the ftp funds in my hands. feels great. waited 2 and a half years for this day.
you definitely have to know what you're doing for long fasts, but the research on the health benefits are amazing. i generally stick to 24 hours. anything much longer than that requires easing back into eating which im not a fan of.
as far as i know, i've only missed updating one week this year due to the AC trip. glad you are still reading. it's been a long, awesome year. in a few weeks i get to put 2013 in the history books.
sorry. i reread my post and it came out wrong. i met regardless of my lack of posts.
TPE Pro
December 6, 2012
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Hey man. Sorry I've been so slow in responding to the many kind things you've said about me! I'm really glad that you enjoyed our trip, I did as well. I only wish it had gone better for you financially and that you hadn't gotten binked for that extra $200 on your flight. I was really pulling for you to make it up with some overbooked flight equity!
I didn't remember that AA hand against Ari but it is really one to be proud of, like the 96s or whatever it was bluff from the cash game. Keep picking out and studying instances where you do something a little unconventional based on a read that you have, these are far and away the best learning tools you have. At your best you already play really really well, you just need to figure out what you're doing when you're at your best and learn how to do it more often.
You should know that you've been an inspiration to me as well. Before spending money I am trying to ask myself WWCD? One of my resolutions for the new year is to bring a large water bottle with me when I play poker so that I can refill at the water fountain or bathroom sink rather than ~$2/hour to the waitresses. I do think staying hydrated is really important and worth paying for if there isn't an alternative, but I figure I can save a couple hundred dollars this way, which when I think about it like that makes me shudder to think I haven't been doing it all along.
Sorry to hear about your friend's cancer. FWIW that story inspired me as well, as it's nearly time for my annual gift to the BDL, and I've been debating how much to give as this hasn't been the most profitable year of my career.
It was really cool to hear about your experience at the football game. I had a similar experience over the weekend at a BDL tournament. I didn't know any of the current debaters, which was a weird feeling, but a couple of the kids from my days had come back as judges so it was great to see them and hear what they have been up to and especially to see that debate had enough of an impact on their lives that they want to do what they can to share it with others, which is the same goal I had in founding the league.
Actually though the coolest thing was seeing the parents of these two kids who had been in the BDL during my tenure but were not graduated. Their parents were always at the tournaments but I hadn't talked to them too much so I didn't know how well they knew me. But the mother came right over and hugged me when she saw me. She said that now that the kids were in college she and her husband didn't know what to do with themselves and that debate had done so much for their kids that they wanted to keep volunteering with the league. So they were there all day managing the volunteer judges and also supervising the food to make sure nobody took too much (you do NOT want to **** with this woman, if she tells you only take two slices of pizza, you better not try to grab a third). She also told me their son was at Harvard, which I hadn't heard and which is a huge freaking achievement considering I don't think either she or her husband went to college at all.
It felt a little funny knowing so few people and not really having that much to do – there were a ton of staff and volunteers so I mostly just got to act like a visiting dignitary – but it was still really great to get back. I'd love to take you up to Boston with me for a tournament some time, but the next one I'm going to is in January, and if you didn't like New Jersey in November…
Just keep plugging away. Nothing wrong with doing a little work on the side. I was doing contract work for the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues for the first 3-4 years of my career. Stable income is nice, especially if it's something you enjoy. In fact the worst part of the weekend for me was having to answer “So what are you up to these days?” and really not being able to talk about anything except poker. I gotta find something more worthwhile to do with at least a bit of my time. Sounds like you could manage a nice balance, make a little money on the side doing something you find personally rewarding while you keep studying and practicing. Look back on how far you've come in this year, and realize how impossible it is to imagine where you could be this time next year!
October 6, 2010
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fwiw, i would almost be as excited to meet loxxii as i would brokos too, if i ever made it to a thinking poker meetup
October 21, 2012
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Thanks guys.
Andrew I remember some parents like the pizza lady. I have seen more than one woman in my life that I wouldnt feel 100% confidence I could beat in a fist fight. I'd love to go see the kids debate like right before they get out of school for the summer though. I love kids that remind me of myself when I was younger. Sounds like this would be the case.
The water bottle is a great idea. I did this at the WSOP. They have a little filtered water thing in the STT area where you can get your own refills. I had a Powerade bottle and killed on tips all summer.
I do feel like I am getting better at poker. Thanks for the many votes of confidence. I can tell that my strategy posts are more thoughtful for sure. I'll keep chopping wood and maybe I can build a nice roll over the next 6 months.
October 21, 2012
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December Week 3 ending 12/22/13 MTD
WPN Balance $1544
Live Cash Profit $220
Volume
About 5 online MTT. 1 cash game.
Study
Kill Everyone, PTP, vids
Online
I removed the smallest MTTs from my schedule because the value isnt there. I just play the 12.5K 4 nights a week and occassionally, I'll play the 4K on Sunday. I may start playing some online 50NL.
Live
In my cash game, I bought in for 200 (later added on another 100), ran it up to 700, back down to 300, up to 600, and finally cashed out at 520.
I posted a couple of hands from the night over in Carlos's Cashtastrophes.
I know KB likes the 2 for 1 forum click. (Yeah you like that dont cha?)
Life
If you follow me on Twitter, you know I lost that court case quick, fast, and in a hrry with no explanation. Just basically “**** you, pay me!” Whatever.
” At your best you already play really really well, you just need to figure out what you're doing when you're at your best and learn how to do it more often.”
That's a quote from Andrew ****in Brokos! Im talkin bout mothafuckin Foucault (pron phuck off) 82! That did a lot for my confidence. I mean he used 2 reallies so it's kind of a big deal. But 80% of the time, I am just that nit basket where fish dump their money occassionally. 10% I am Carloose and the other 10% of the time I am that guy he was talking about. I am getting better every day, but I have to do a better job of just letting my hands go when the fight is on. Paralysis of analysis is real.
At least I am getting bored less in the live games because I am using the idea he gave me of taking copious notes on my phone. I always have something to do when I am in what Ttwist calls the fun zone (BB to HJ). At least for that half of the time, I am always playing a hand or getting a note.
I have a trip to Biloxi planned for next week. After that, I will start making myself available to tutor math or sub in some classrooms. I also need to take some continuing education courses in the next 6 months so that my teaching certificate does not expire. I really want to go to dealer school as well and try doing that on a temporary basis. If nothing else, it may help with my poker game.
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