Good luck darn sarf Julian! And well done for making yet another Sky FT!
Was nice to meet you, albeit briefly, at DTD at the weekend. I know its a long day so didn't wanna keep you, and tbh there was a guy at the cash table happy to get K high all in pre for 100 of the Queens finest, so I couldn't stay away from him for too long
i played the tuesday 80 at the vic & the 100 win the button at the connaught rooms - didn't get going in either but what a venue for the ukipt, in a great part of town & i dunno, it's just refreshing to be away from the edgeware road area.
the main event went better, jumped in at the end of level 2, nothing happened for a level or 2 then hit a nice little patch;
defended my BB w A8 v middle aged euro, he barreled K55xx board for 1k, 2k, 5k & ace-high was good v his Q10 to get me out of the blocks.
i then got the rest of his stack when i binked with KK v his AA - from 20k starting i prob got up to 80 before i lost all traction & ended the day on 46k.
i had two huge stacks on my left later on which didn't help & lost a fair chunk raising AQ, the big stack flatted & i check called three streets on an ace high board but he had AK - i like the way he played that.
also lost some defending my BB w 910 - opponent had AA & made a nice check on the 344 flop, i then turned a nine, bet turn & river & paid off his river raise.
average was 60 so was happy enough to return for day 2 with 30 bigs.
new table was better, chipped up to 65k then got QQ in v AKdd & lost to a flush.
i entered the 550 satellite for the ept, it was my sort of structure lol, 5k chips/20 min clock - it made 12x5250 seats with 50 for 13th, ouch.
after about 2hrs average stack was 12-15bb for the rest of the evening & after getting AJ in v AA & getting there i had a 20-25bb stack which i managed to cruise home.
on the bubble one guy kept on asking everyone to pull up 370 each to make 13 seats, an optimistic request given the variety of stack sizes...he ended up bubbling in an unforunate manner (wasn't me).
i hadn't played a live satellite for yonks & it was very exciting, such a big bubble!
anyways i'm back down tomorrow for day 1b, ryan plays today & we've swapped 3%...how can i not make £££ on this venture?
got the 10am train down & in true reggie perrin style we were 50 mins late due to an earlier derailment & works of somesort or another so by the time i checked into my hotel & wandered down it was midway thru level 2...w 8x75 min levels i was happy enough to shave some time off the day.
table looked good intially but within 30 mins they'd moved 3 people & the 3 replacements all seemed decent.
i had benny spindler on my left & tbh i just played super tight, folding stuff like A10/JQ unless i was in the c/o or on the button or defending my blinds.
prob didn't help that i was very card dead, i got one premium, aces, which my 3bet took down...was tempting to flat as there were 2 squeezers behind me but i just didn't want to take too many risks.
so given how nitty & unimaginatively i was playing i was v happy to bag up 61k, double starting stack.
two interesting hands, the first got me from 30-36k, always sweet to start of well:
min raise, call, SB called, i called with 2s4s in the BB & the flop falls QsJs9s.
checks round to the button (older italian guy who won ept prague a few years back, wears a pork pie hat), anyway he bets, i call, bets turn & river (both blanks) & tbh when he fires the river i'm really not loving it but station him off & i'm good vs a set of nines.
about an hour later there's a raise to 500, call, i call with black tens & benny makes it 2k on the button.
one call, one fold, i call & we see a KcQc9c flop - chk/chk, benny bets 2k, i call.
turn is a Q, chk/chk, river is a Q, i check & he bets 9k.
i've seen him blast people off pots on tv & know enough of his rep that for me, i just not gonna forgive myself if i fold there, i called fairly quickly & tens were good - he showed AJ,can't remember if he had a club.
was nice to see some old faces from the circuit & i actually got cornered for interviews with stars & pokernews.
need to book another room for tonight, in fact all this last minute dashing around is pretty stressful; i got a nice (small) single room near kings cross for £100 last night but looking on the net at the moment the prices are ridiculous, even the flea pits are nearing £200!
had a wobbly kind of day, ok table to start, with high roller ole shemion & chaz chatta to my right.
raise, bet/folded AQ within the first orbit & the stack dribbled down to 50k when i took on a 15k shove; the pot had been opened, he shipped & i found 99 in the hijack...bit of an iffy spot as the opener had 120k but i just felt the need to get involved/gamble, so i flatted, the opener folded & i sucked out on his queens when i flopped a nine...eek.
i said it was wobbly & this kind of sums up the first half of the day, i was still very card dead & playing very tight - i opened K10s in the cut-off, button flatted; i checked & he bet 3k on the 458 flop - i raised to 9k - he flatted - i turned a 10 & led for 13k - he flatted; i had 35k back, bingo'd a king on the river & somehow decided a check was the best line - he checked back jacks & i really think i brain-**** myself out of a double up there.
table eventually broke & i moved 90k to a new tougher looking table with lots of moody big stacks all to my left...noah boeken was on my right, we used to play together a lot back in the day, anyway he'd been grinding a 20k stack, doubled up to 40k then opened the cut-off to 4k...i found AJs & made it 11k, he paused & shipped.
i'm pretty sure this is a fold given that we effectively swap stacks if i lose but once again i felt the need to try & make sh#t happen; when your card dead for what seems like ever it's very easy to upgrade the middling hands so yes, again, i gambled & again, got very lucky vs his AQ on a 891079 run out.
that got to me 130k, a tad above average & i was feeling good; even better when i found aces; i bet flop & turn on a Qd10dx,x board but didn't feel so great when another 10 hit the river & my opponent led for 3/4 pot - anyways, he had 200+, there were many missed draws so i called & he showed me J10.
back to 70k & at 1200/2400/300 that soon became 50k; i opened J-J, fabian quoss flatted & mike watson shipped AQ - i called but didn't hold.
was pretty devastating but i'm feeling better about it this morning...no doubt i learnt a thing or two, was good to play with some of the leading lights & def feel with a few adjustments here & there i could have given myself a slightly better chance.
the structure is excellent, when i used to play epts it was 60 min levels throughout, now it's 75 on days 1 & 2 & (apparently) 90 from day 3 on; this definitely gives a player lots of flexibility as to how they want to approach & play the tournament, & it's interesting, i talked to a couple of excellent players & they pretty much just played solid ABC, there's certainly no need to be going ballistic on day 1 & that's probably why someone like carlo is set to cash again in this event, altho (& i'm sure he won't mind me saying this) i wouldn't back him to close it out.
probably going to head up to edinburgh tomorrow for the gps
Certainly a couple of lucky hands in there but also unfortunate with the aces and the jacks - thats poker I guess!
General question - do you find it easier to play live or online? For instance are there advantages to playing live such as tells etc that can make you take a slightly bigger risk for the DU, or incidentally get away from hands when you actually have time to think about the situation? Or is it just player dependant on betting tendancies that can just as easily be interpreted online, if not easier, than playing live?
I've only played live once you see (and cashed- thin brag) but i was thinking of sticking a few more live games into my planning and was wondering if there was any advice you could offer about possibly altering your game for the live tables where dynamics can be a lot more interesting than online.
Interesting in a few of your recent hands you talk about defending the BB.
Is that for long term image or is it important at any time - I.e. even early stages of a good structured tourney against random opponents?
I really don't bother about defending at levels 1-3, means I am not playing oop with a marginal hand and I am developing a tight image. Once blinds increase really don't want to be seen as the stealing opportunity though. Equally don't want to be the stubborn defender either.
What factors your thoughts on whether and how to defend the BB?
I know you asked Julian but I wanted to say that in general a lot of players play too tight in the blinds. In most tournaments where ante's are involved you always get really good odds on defending your BB with any 2 and if someone is opening a wide range from late position you can't afford to be folding playable hands. Obviously if we're facing an early position opener though and have a hand like QTo even though we might still be getting a really good price, defending is just so much worse because we don't realise our equity and have a lot of RIO with a hand like this. Will let Julian add any more if he wants on this!
Anyway just like to add how good a read this thread's been!
Interesting in a few of your recent hands you talk about defending the BB. Is that for long term image or is it important at any time - I.e. even early stages of a good structured tourney against random opponents? I really don't bother about defending at levels 1-3, means I am not playing oop with a marginal hand and I am developing a tight image. Once blinds increase really don't want to be seen as the stealing opportunity though. Equally don't want to be the stubborn defender either. What factors your thoughts on whether and how to defend the BB? Posted by Phantom66
Was popping in to wish Mr Thew good luck should he be heading up to Edinburgh (what a life, sigh).
Regards to you Phantom, it gets trickier to defend your blinds the longer a tournament goes on. If it's a decent structured tournament (Roller or similar) and we pick up a reasonable blind holding (5 7s for eg), then we can certainly peel in these spots, or raise of course, in the first few levels. As the tournament progresses, we should try and avoid flatting in the blinds I feel. We just won't have a stack to play down the streets when the blinds start to get big. When the average is like 20bb, I don't think we should ever really be calling a raise in the BB, unless for deception with premium. Around the 20bb mark is where decisive poker comes into play, so we should never look to set mine with a small PP in the blinds (unless getting ridic odds like one raise and 4 callers, even then a squeeze shove would be better probably!).
I know you asked Julian. In most tournaments where ante's are involved you always get really good odds on defending your BB with any 2 and if someone is opening a wide range from late position you can't afford to be folding playable hands. Obviously if we're facing an early position opener though and have a hand like QTo even though we might still be getting a really good price, defending is just so much worse because we don't realise our equity and have a lot of RIO with a hand like this. Will let Julian add any more if he wants on this! Anyway just like to add how good a read this thread's been! Posted by F_Ivanovic
No worries - it is a community forum and happy to take feedback from anyone
Hadn't factored the antes although some descriptions were earlyish day 1 - presumably no antes yet?
"just like to add how good a read this thread's been" big + 1
i've always considered myself a live player, to me the games are very different, live you just get so much more of a feel for individual players & the overall flow of the game.
online i often feel i'm guessing a lot more although that's probably down to me not being able to focus on one table as well as i can in a live setting.
advice-wise, the best way to improve as a live player is to put some hours in on the tables, engage in conversation & try to engross yourself in the game - oftentimes the information is out there, just be observant & you should become fairly comfortable within a few sessions regardless of results.
i'm definitely more peel-happy in the blinds of late - i mean i know we're out of position but the price is always good, especially so vs a min raise &, by policing your blinds you at least let folk know that you're not an easy target.
i'm binning off-suited trash but given the right line-up & if it's going to go 3 or 4 way i'm likely to call pretty wide - i'm never really thinking that a flopped top pair will ever be good in these spots, the value is in trashy two-pair hands & draws.
tbh i'll go often against the 'standard 20bb playbook'; why not give your game a little more flexibility & peel one every now again, it's probably going to cost you what, 1.5bbs? obviously discipline & a keen nose are required when for instance you hit a queen high flop with Q-10 - the way i look at it is that you're getting a helluv@ discount to see a flop from the blinds & flops aren't always easy to see from that stack size.
at this point i should probably point out that i'm far from a technically correct player, so please don't be thinking it's tried, tested & a 100% ready to go...the waters are often murky & call/check/folding doesn't feel at all dynamic the majority of the time!
back home for half term after a pretty hectic couple of weeks,
shot up to edinburgh two weekends back for the GPS; ended up firing 2 bullets & still couldn't get through the day...didn't feel like i played particularly well, was pretty card dead & after the grind in london i just couldn't seem to muster the same levels of patience & discipline.
i faired a little better in luton, felt fresher & ready to go; i played the 300, the 200 6max & the 1k main event, twice, eek.
the 300 went well in that i came back for day 2 with a shortish stack but ran it up to an average one for the final table - it started well & i really thought i was gonna make a run at it but i lost a AQ v JJ flip & then called off KJ in the SB vs a button shove who had me pipped with KQ; end result 8th for £1200.
did i mention it was my birthday? i turned 46; it's always nice to make a FT on your birthday, especially when the casino really look after you - complimentary food & beverages were relentlessly thrown at me & wouldn't you know the 6max kicked off just as i busted the 300 so armed with never less than 2 pints of guinness at any one time i jumped right in.
it didn't work out so good but i had fun & still managed to retire to my bed before midnight as it was the main event the following day.
it was never my intention to play 1a & 1b but 1a was a pretty frustrating plod that ended up in a big flip for a decent stack in level 8, this time JJ not holding v AK.
day 1b wasn't very dissimilar in fairness, plodsville central for 8 hours, double up with QQ v A10 on a AQ4 flop then promptly do 90% of that new stack back to the same player when he ships 107dd on a KJd6d flop v my AK.
i shoved my last 15bb with A10 & ran into AK & KK behind...that's when you know it's time to go home lol.
we're on half term now, my mum's over for the week & it hasn't stopped raining since she arrived - i predict lots of welly-based activities...marvellous.
right, i'm off, hope to see some of you at the weekend for the big grand final!
A10 into AK and KK? Who said those kind of hands only happened online, eh?
Enjoy the time with your ma, and I'll say hello at the Grand Final You can even buy me a drink with some of that £1200 you won in Luton... if you want.
yes i'm afraid i can report that £1200 can go in the blink of an eye on the live circuit; def more bang for your buck online! & sure brian, come nudge me at some point & i'll get us a drink, if you're sporting that shirt again i'll find you ;o) Posted by yoyo
enjoyed the SPT weekend altho the main event didn't really pan out like i'd hoped.
unfortunately the majority of the UKOPS festival clashed with my trip to the isle of man ukipt - the internet was pretty iffy in the hotel so i didn't chance it.
i made day 2 in the main event with 30bb, survived almost 2 levels before 4b shoving JJ into what was, in hindsight, a pretty transparent KK....pretty disappointing.
the side events were all well attended & most tables had 2 or 3 PS employers on them which definitely helped boost the numbers.
i played a 300 & a 100 turbo...got chips in both, made a pretty spewy hero call in the 300 for a massive pot when really i could have cruised into day 2 & in the turbo at one point i must have had 600k when the average was 100k & only managed a min cash.
so a few adjustments required; i'm off to blackpool tonight for the gukpt festival then a week or two off from the live scene until the next ukipt at dtd...aiming to get some volume in on here from next week!
Comments
Was nice to meet you, albeit briefly, at DTD at the weekend. I know its a long day so didn't wanna keep you, and tbh there was a guy at the cash table happy to get K high all in pre for 100 of the Queens finest, so I couldn't stay away from him for too long
If I make the Grand Final, I'll buy you a drink*
*water. Not sparkling.
I agree: I don't think I'd be too keen on my four high flush in that spot either!
Good luck.
Brian
tx brian ))
had a wobbly kind of day, ok table to start, with high roller ole shemion & chaz chatta to my right.
raise, bet/folded AQ within the first orbit & the stack dribbled down to 50k when i took on a 15k shove; the pot had been opened, he shipped & i found 99 in the hijack...bit of an iffy spot as the opener had 120k but i just felt the need to get involved/gamble, so i flatted, the opener folded & i sucked out on his queens when i flopped a nine...eek.
i said it was wobbly & this kind of sums up the first half of the day, i was still very card dead & playing very tight - i opened K10s in the cut-off, button flatted; i checked & he bet 3k on the 458 flop - i raised to 9k - he flatted - i turned a 10 & led for 13k - he flatted; i had 35k back, bingo'd a king on the river & somehow decided a check was the best line - he checked back jacks & i really think i brain-**** myself out of a double up there.
table eventually broke & i moved 90k to a new tougher looking table with lots of moody big stacks all to my left...noah boeken was on my right, we used to play together a lot back in the day, anyway he'd been grinding a 20k stack, doubled up to 40k then opened the cut-off to 4k...i found AJs & made it 11k, he paused & shipped.
i'm pretty sure this is a fold given that we effectively swap stacks if i lose but once again i felt the need to try & make sh#t happen; when your card dead for what seems like ever it's very easy to upgrade the middling hands so yes, again, i gambled & again, got very lucky vs his AQ on a 891079 run out.
that got to me 130k, a tad above average & i was feeling good; even better when i found aces; i bet flop & turn on a Qd10dx,x board but didn't feel so great when another 10 hit the river & my opponent led for 3/4 pot - anyways, he had 200+, there were many missed draws so i called & he showed me J10.
back to 70k & at 1200/2400/300 that soon became 50k; i opened J-J, fabian quoss flatted & mike watson shipped AQ - i called but didn't hold.
was pretty devastating but i'm feeling better about it this morning...no doubt i learnt a thing or two, was good to play with some of the leading lights & def feel with a few adjustments here & there i could have given myself a slightly better chance.
the structure is excellent, when i used to play epts it was 60 min levels throughout, now it's 75 on days 1 & 2 & (apparently) 90 from day 3 on; this definitely gives a player lots of flexibility as to how they want to approach & play the tournament, & it's interesting, i talked to a couple of excellent players & they pretty much just played solid ABC, there's certainly no need to be going ballistic on day 1 & that's probably why someone like carlo is set to cash again in this event, altho (& i'm sure he won't mind me saying this) i wouldn't back him to close it out.
probably going to head up to edinburgh tomorrow for the gps
Certainly a couple of lucky hands in there but also unfortunate with the aces and the jacks - thats poker I guess!
General question - do you find it easier to play live or online? For instance are there advantages to playing live such as tells etc that can make you take a slightly bigger risk for the DU, or incidentally get away from hands when you actually have time to think about the situation? Or is it just player dependant on betting tendancies that can just as easily be interpreted online, if not easier, than playing live?
I've only played live once you see (and cashed- thin brag) but i was thinking of sticking a few more live games into my planning and was wondering if there was any advice you could offer about possibly altering your game for the live tables where dynamics can be a lot more interesting than online.
Cheers
Gazza: not that you asked me, but playing live is fantastic. It is almost a different game. You really should get yourself out there.
Brian
Is that for long term image or is it important at any time - I.e. even early stages of a good structured tourney against random opponents?
I really don't bother about defending at levels 1-3, means I am not playing oop with a marginal hand and I am developing a tight image. Once blinds increase really don't want to be seen as the stealing opportunity though. Equally don't want to be the stubborn defender either.
What factors your thoughts on whether and how to defend the BB?
Hadn't factored the antes although some descriptions were earlyish day 1 - presumably no antes yet?
"just like to add how good a read this thread's been" big + 1
thanks for all the replies guys
i've always considered myself a live player, to me the games are very different, live you just get so much more of a feel for individual players & the overall flow of the game.
online i often feel i'm guessing a lot more although that's probably down to me not being able to focus on one table as well as i can in a live setting.
advice-wise, the best way to improve as a live player is to put some hours in on the tables, engage in conversation & try to engross yourself in the game - oftentimes the information is out there, just be observant & you should become fairly comfortable within a few sessions regardless of results.
i'm definitely more peel-happy in the blinds of late - i mean i know we're out of position but the price is always good, especially so vs a min raise &, by policing your blinds you at least let folk know that you're not an easy target.
i'm binning off-suited trash but given the right line-up & if it's going to go 3 or 4 way i'm likely to call pretty wide - i'm never really thinking that a flopped top pair will ever be good in these spots, the value is in trashy two-pair hands & draws.
tbh i'll go often against the 'standard 20bb playbook'; why not give your game a little more flexibility & peel one every now again, it's probably going to cost you what, 1.5bbs? obviously discipline & a keen nose are required when for instance you hit a queen high flop with Q-10 - the way i look at it is that you're getting a helluv@ discount to see a flop from the blinds & flops aren't always easy to see from that stack size.
at this point i should probably point out that i'm far from a technically correct player, so please don't be thinking it's tried, tested & a 100% ready to go...the waters are often murky & call/check/folding doesn't feel at all dynamic the majority of the time!
gl in Edinburgh
Enjoy the time with your ma, and I'll say hello at the Grand Final You can even buy me a drink with some of that £1200 you won in Luton... if you want.
Brian
Another good read Julian, see you on the weekend.
Great read Julian see you at weekend. should be emotional