Well its 4am in the morning in Vegas. Ive got a flight to catch soon and thought id update whilst i wait for a good time to leave.
So I started off with a few days in Vegas, then travelled to Hoover Dam, Grand Canyon, drove through Death Valley and Yosemite before staying a week in San Francisco... and then ended the trip with a few more days in Vegas.
Grand Canyon really is quite impressive, as was the drive through Death Valley and Yosemite. That coupled with the fact that San Francisco is probably the nicest city ive ever been to has made the trip well worthwhile and id definitely recommend it.
Vegas however... bleurgh.
The place is great, but the poker has been just terrible.
The first couple of days I was down a fair bit after running bad (sets over sets) and the like. I cant really remember many hands from then as its now almost 3 weeks later but it wasnt great.
I came back to Vegas thinking positive but the first night I lost another $500 after pilling in chips with an open ended straight flush draw (and royal flush draw) only to be called by an underpair and I missed the lot. Queue going out and getting drunk instead.
Last night I ran OK. I wouldnt say great as my Aces were cracked twice, but I did a 12 hour stint and gradually worked my way up to +$700 for the night. Queue getting drunk to celebrate a winning session.
Tonight started well as I found myself $500 up after about 4 hours. Then all **** breaks loose. In the space of two hands I lost my $700 stack.
First hand was this:
I have QJo in big blind. We get a raise to $8 and 4 callers. Sometimes id repop it up here but the table didnt like to fold much and even say a 15bb raise would have got called by someone. I call. The flop is JJ4 no flush draw. I check and it gets checked around. Turn is a K. I check again. Loose aggro guy bets $25. Another guy calls. Now its time to pile the pressure on. I raise to $125. Loose aggro guy calls and the other guy folds. River is a 9. Q10 got there but the flush missed. Ive seen this guy pay off with rubbish so I have to bet/fold if raised. I lead for around $160 and he snaps.
He shows J9. Ouch. Nice little three outer there. Meh... onto the next hand.
I get dealt AA. Great. If theres ever a time to get AA its right after a bad beat when everyone thinks youre on tilt. A guy raises to $15 after a straddle. He gets 2 calls before me. I repop to $65 which looks like a nice squeeze from where im sat. He then reraises to to $140, I move all in and he dwells before calling. "I hope im flipping" he says. He's got JJ. First card out is a Jack and ive lost the lot.
Meh... i'll reload for another $200. Its not every day you get to play in Vegas. I pick up QQ. Long story short, he has AA. GG me.
Yuk Yuk Yuk Yuk.
Would have been nice to have a winning trip to Vegas but alas what can I do when the cards come like that? Suppose i'll save my run good for when I come back... whenever that is.
So I get my plane in a couple of hours... then have two days to move to Stoke before starting my new job.
Connecting flight was delayed. Just landed in England but confused what day it is and what time it is. Been trying to workout how long since I've been to sleep (as I can't sleep on planes) but my mind can't deal with the math. Ahhh.
Can't go to bed yet... still a couple of hours from home and I need to adjust to British time anyway.
What's going on today? Any sport or anything to keep my mind barely functional so I don't fall asleep as soon as I get home?
Connecting flight was delayed. Just landed in England but confused what day it is and what time it is. Been trying to workout how long since I've been to sleep (as I can't sleep on planes) but my mind can't deal with the math. Ahhh. Can't go to bed yet... still a couple of hours from home and I need to adjust to British time anyway. What's going on today? Any sport or anything to keep my mind barely functional so I don't fall asleep as soon as I get home? Posted by gazza127
It's a sunday French open final is on today! Nadal vs Djokovic starts in half an hour.
Nice one. Will check it out. Serb to win in straight sets? Might stick a cheeky tenner on. Or is the jetlag clouding all rational thought? Posted by gazza127
Meh. Close . He had his chance at the end of the second set and didnt take it. On a completely unrelated note and complete subject change... how dissapointing was the Dexter finale? I mean what the **** was that load of cr*p? Posted by gazza127
To be fair it went downhill after season 4. Season 1 was v good but took a while to get into it, season 2 was amazing. And season 4 was brilliant too. Was never expecting much from the ending.
Meh. Close . He had his chance at the end of the second set and didnt take it. On a completely unrelated note and complete subject change... how dissapointing was the Dexter finale? I mean what the **** was that load of cr*p? Posted by gazza127
Yeah, Seasons 1 - 4 were excellent. Had it finished at that point I'd have said it was one of the best shows ever made, but alas...
Been a very good read this, espec the vegas posts. Keep it up Posted by Matt237
Thanks for this.
Im thinking of playing a lot more live when I finalise my move to Stoke this week. Stoke has a Grosvenor casino and depending when im working I should be able to take advantage of having this casino in walking distance on a regular basis.
Although Vegas wasnt successful in terms of making money, it did boost my confidence a great deal in how to play live. I just need the cards to be a bit kinder and feel like it could be very profitable for me.
Plus, I can say without doubt that live poker is much more enjoyable than online poker. Although its very slow, depending on who you have on your table it can be a good laugh.
We shall see in the coming days. I move up tomorrow (to a pretty bare flat) and start my job on Wednesday. I have a lot to do but its a pretty exciting and challenging time but one I feel ready for.
Been a while. But in my defence I've been incredibly busy.
Things have been so hectic since coming back from Vegas. I've moved house and started a new job would be the short story. The long story would involve stories of lots of calls with furniture stores, lots of complaints, lots of delivery times rescheduled and of course getting to grips with my new job at the same time. Honestly I could write a book on it all. Not a very interesting book; but a massive, gigantic, enormous book that would rival the depth of even the biggest of Harry Potter books.
In amongst it all i've had approxiamately no time to play online poker. The fact that I only got internet today is besides the point - but thats another story.
I have however managed to venture to the local Genting Casino in Stoke. Its actually quite nice in there. Not quite on the same level as those in Vegas, but decent none-the-less. I have played a couple of tournaments and played a bit of cash. None of it has been successful as of yet. My run bad has continued by the looks of it. I just bust a rebuy JJ v KK and there was no way I could get away from it cause of stack sizes and the fact that my opposition was a bit of a loose cannon. I shall venture back soon enough though. I really do think I can make some money playing live. I seem to have a better grasp of the game than most there. I just need that little bit of luck on my side to make the difference.
I've been pondering over a few hands from Vegas in the past couple of weeks, wondering if I could have played a few differently. Here are a couple. Opinions would be greatly appreciated.
1) Im in the BB with AQo. 5 people limp into the pot. I decide not to squeeze. "why?" I hear you ask. Well it would have definitely been called in 5 spots, regardless of the amount of money I stick in the middle. I had squeezed a few times before, even up to 25BB but never got a fold. I decided not to squeeze cause id just end up being OOP in a huge pot with a vunerable hand.
Flop comes down KQ3 rainbow. It gets checked around to button who bets. I flat and everyone else folds. The turn is a K. I check. Button checks. River is an Ace. I bet out and he raises. I end up folding.
2) I have QJs in the BB. It gets raised mid position and 2 other people call. I flat and play the pot 4 way. The flop is JJ4. It gets checked around. Turn is a K. I decide to check/raise as there is an aggro guy behind me. He bets and I raise. He calls.
River comes a 9. I bet out and he flats. He has J9 - think i was just really unlucky there, but could have lost a lot more.
3) I have QJ on the button. UTG aggro guy raises pre flop and I flat and BB calls. flop is 10 10 9. He bets out the flop. I flat and BB folds. Turn is a 4o. UTG checks and I bet out. River is a 7. Back door flush came in. He bets out for about 1/4 of the pot. I put him on an overpair - one that can be folded if I raise. So I raise. I make his $80 bet $290. He ponders over it and shows Aces and ends up calling.
4) I have J9dd in BB. 3 others in the pot. Flop comes Qd8d4. I check/call. Turn is a diamond and I bet out. Aggro guy calls. River is a another 4 and I bet out again. Aggro guy calls with the second nut flush which was well out of character! Not sure I can play that any different either.
5) I have K10s mid postion. I raise and get called on the button and big blind. Flop is K106 rainbow. I bet. Button calls. BB folds. Turn is an 8. I bet and button calls again. River is an Ace. I bet out again and he raises. I end up folding.
Believe it or not all these hands happened within about 40 minutes. I pick up AA soon after the 5th hand, 4 bet shove pre flop, get called by JJ and a Jack pops up on the flop .
Opinions more than welcome. It was a very difficult night for me and I lost a fair bit so have been thinking about it a lot.
ANYWAY MY JOB....
Its great. Going on Bet365's website or SkyBets website you don't really think about how much work goes behind the scenes. There is loads. LOADS. Im starting out of the football season so its likely to get a lot more busy during the football season. Settling some of the world cup matches has been a bit nerve-wracking though. Settling a market with tens of thousands of bets on it makes you very cautious as to what button you're pressing! Its good stuff though. Im getting trained for the first 6 weeks so not right into the deep end.
Still getting to grips with it all, but looking forward to what the jobs got in store for me.
Anyway, hopeful of getting back on Sky soon when I find the time.
Well its been a while since ive been online but it looks like im back to a reasonable start. One that completely contradicts the downswing ive had live.
I was ill at home today from work, as I was yesterday. But come 6 o'clock i found myself a little bored of staring at the ceiing feeling sorry for myself and decided id make use of my illness to try and make some money.
I reg a quarter final sat for the super roller for a fiver. I got through that and was into the LR Semi... and after another hour I was into the main. After a rather uneventful couple of hours I was short stacking with around 18 left. After a couple of successful double ups I found myself chip leader with 3 left against Divs and Jamie Burland. After a rather depressing 1010 v AA moment I was short again... and my exit hand was:
2Guys1Acct
Small blind
6000.00
6000.00
1082874.00
gazza127
Big blind
12000.00
18000.00
163918.00
Your hole cards
A
Q
DivsDreams
Raise
24000.00
42000.00
161208.00
2Guys1Acct
Fold
gazza127
All-in
163918.00
205918.00
0.00
DivsDreams
All-in
161208.00
367126.00
0.00
DivsDreams
Unmatched bet
9290.00
357836.00
9290.00
gazza127
Show
A
Q
DivsDreams
Show
Q
K
Flop
2
3
Q
Turn
J
River
K
DivsDreams
Win
Two Pairs, Kings and Queens
357836.00
367126.00
Oh well. I'll just have to win it another time. Still got a pretty penny from a fiver so not all bad. Heres hoping its the start of a few decent scores to counteract my live swing!
I have AQ in BB with 14BB. Button min raises. SB calls. I pick up my entire stack in one hand move it forward in one motion and one drops off the bottom as I drop the rest. Im talking about 0.2 seconds between the first one touched the felt and the rest of them... no joke. Dealer says its a call. Floor called. Floor agrees with dealer. Table is a bit bewildered as no one thought i was string betting.
And now im angry cause I ended up going out that very hand due to a K8os hand that never would have called the all in pre. Do I have the right to be?
Good to see you back, and nice score in the Roller!
Seems like you were hard done by for sure. Suppose my only advice in order to avoid this situation again would be to just verbally declare your intention first, then it doesn't matter how your chips go over the line.
Now you're living in Stoke, I assume you'll be growing an extra finger soon....that 'bonus' digit should mean an end to fumbling the chips
Good to see you back, and nice score in the Roller! Seems like you were hard done by for sure. Suppose my only advice in order to avoid this situation again would be to just verbally declare your intention first, then it doesn't matter how your chips go over the line. Now you're living in Stoke, I assume you'll be growing an extra finger soon....that 'bonus' digit should mean an end to fumbling the chips Posted by hhyftrftdr
You already made that joke mate a month or so back. Get some new material
I knew I should have verbally said but I was genuinely flabbergasted (good word) at the ruling. I couldnt believe it.
There's always some guy who wants to call it. I'm yet to see anyone angleshoot with a string bet.
I noticed in the recent EPT in London a string bet claim was ignored. The fkoor guy who is a former DTD dealer said that it was clear what the intention was and allowed the all in to stand.
I'm flabbergasted that I've used that joke before.
Let me guess.....it's ruled a call and the steam is coming out your ears. In that moment, you vow to donk shove any flop. It comes down K 8 8 and true to your word, in your chips go as you glare at the dealer. Guy snaps with the old flopped FH and it's gg Gazza.
I'm flabbergasted that I've used that joke before. Let me guess.....it's ruled a call and the steam is coming out your ears. In that moment, you vow to donk shove any flop. It comes down K 8 8 and true to your word, in your chips go as you glare at the dealer. Guy snaps with the old flopped FH and it's gg Gazza. This happened yes? Posted by hhyftrftdr
Yep almost exactly correct. Flop was just K62 (2 clubs) - I had AQcc. - I was donk shoving any flop though. I just happend to have decent equity. Missed of course.
String betting decisions are toss. There's always some guy who wants to call it. I'm yet to see anyone angleshoot with a string bet. I noticed in the recent EPT in London a string bet claim was ignored. The fkoor guy who is a former DTD dealer said that it was clear what the intention was and allowed the all in to stand. Posted by Jac35
Had to refrain from calling the dealer a rather repulsive word. It was beyond clear what my action was. The whole table thought I had gone all in.
Was 7/1 dog HU. Managed to wiggle my way into the chip lead then lose AJ v A7 AIP. To be honest I had demolished him HU. Absolutely crushed him without trying to sound too arrogant (LOL). But to be 7/1 dog then come back to be ahead winning lots of little pots show I had him beat in overall play. He started open shoving 40bb just to avoid post flop play. If it wasnt for a 7 on a river it would be the win. Sigh.
Oh well. Good signs though. Cant fault my play which is all you can do.
Comments
So I started off with a few days in Vegas, then travelled to Hoover Dam, Grand Canyon, drove through Death Valley and Yosemite before staying a week in San Francisco... and then ended the trip with a few more days in Vegas.
Grand Canyon really is quite impressive, as was the drive through Death Valley and Yosemite. That coupled with the fact that San Francisco is probably the nicest city ive ever been to has made the trip well worthwhile and id definitely recommend it.
Vegas however... bleurgh.
The place is great, but the poker has been just terrible.
The first couple of days I was down a fair bit after running bad (sets over sets) and the like. I cant really remember many hands from then as its now almost 3 weeks later but it wasnt great.
I came back to Vegas thinking positive but the first night I lost another $500 after pilling in chips with an open ended straight flush draw (and royal flush draw) only to be called by an underpair and I missed the lot. Queue going out and getting drunk instead.
Last night I ran OK. I wouldnt say great as my Aces were cracked twice, but I did a 12 hour stint and gradually worked my way up to +$700 for the night. Queue getting drunk to celebrate a winning session.
Tonight started well as I found myself $500 up after about 4 hours. Then all **** breaks loose. In the space of two hands I lost my $700 stack.
First hand was this:
I have QJo in big blind. We get a raise to $8 and 4 callers. Sometimes id repop it up here but the table didnt like to fold much and even say a 15bb raise would have got called by someone. I call. The flop is JJ4 no flush draw. I check and it gets checked around. Turn is a K. I check again. Loose aggro guy bets $25. Another guy calls. Now its time to pile the pressure on. I raise to $125. Loose aggro guy calls and the other guy folds. River is a 9. Q10 got there but the flush missed. Ive seen this guy pay off with rubbish so I have to bet/fold if raised. I lead for around $160 and he snaps.
He shows J9. Ouch. Nice little three outer there. Meh... onto the next hand.
I get dealt AA. Great. If theres ever a time to get AA its right after a bad beat when everyone thinks youre on tilt. A guy raises to $15 after a straddle. He gets 2 calls before me. I repop to $65 which looks like a nice squeeze from where im sat. He then reraises to to $140, I move all in and he dwells before calling. "I hope im flipping" he says. He's got JJ. First card out is a Jack and ive lost the lot.
Meh... i'll reload for another $200. Its not every day you get to play in Vegas. I pick up QQ. Long story short, he has AA. GG me.
Yuk Yuk Yuk Yuk.
Would have been nice to have a winning trip to Vegas but alas what can I do when the cards come like that? Suppose i'll save my run good for when I come back... whenever that is.
So I get my plane in a couple of hours... then have two days to move to Stoke before starting my new job.
Fun times.
Yes it is.
On a completely unrelated note and complete subject change... how dissapointing was the Dexter finale? I mean what the **** was that load of cr*p?
Season 6 was terrible.
Im thinking of playing a lot more live when I finalise my move to Stoke this week. Stoke has a Grosvenor casino and depending when im working I should be able to take advantage of having this casino in walking distance on a regular basis.
Although Vegas wasnt successful in terms of making money, it did boost my confidence a great deal in how to play live. I just need the cards to be a bit kinder and feel like it could be very profitable for me.
Plus, I can say without doubt that live poker is much more enjoyable than online poker. Although its very slow, depending on who you have on your table it can be a good laugh.
We shall see in the coming days. I move up tomorrow (to a pretty bare flat) and start my job on Wednesday. I have a lot to do but its a pretty exciting and challenging time but one I feel ready for.
Things have been so hectic since coming back from Vegas. I've moved house and started a new job would be the short story. The long story would involve stories of lots of calls with furniture stores, lots of complaints, lots of delivery times rescheduled and of course getting to grips with my new job at the same time. Honestly I could write a book on it all. Not a very interesting book; but a massive, gigantic, enormous book that would rival the depth of even the biggest of Harry Potter books.
In amongst it all i've had approxiamately no time to play online poker. The fact that I only got internet today is besides the point - but thats another story.
I have however managed to venture to the local Genting Casino in Stoke. Its actually quite nice in there. Not quite on the same level as those in Vegas, but decent none-the-less. I have played a couple of tournaments and played a bit of cash. None of it has been successful as of yet. My run bad has continued by the looks of it. I just bust a rebuy JJ v KK and there was no way I could get away from it cause of stack sizes and the fact that my opposition was a bit of a loose cannon. I shall venture back soon enough though. I really do think I can make some money playing live. I seem to have a better grasp of the game than most there. I just need that little bit of luck on my side to make the difference.
I've been pondering over a few hands from Vegas in the past couple of weeks, wondering if I could have played a few differently. Here are a couple. Opinions would be greatly appreciated.
1) Im in the BB with AQo. 5 people limp into the pot. I decide not to squeeze. "why?" I hear you ask. Well it would have definitely been called in 5 spots, regardless of the amount of money I stick in the middle. I had squeezed a few times before, even up to 25BB but never got a fold. I decided not to squeeze cause id just end up being OOP in a huge pot with a vunerable hand.
Flop comes down KQ3 rainbow. It gets checked around to button who bets. I flat and everyone else folds. The turn is a K. I check. Button checks. River is an Ace. I bet out and he raises. I end up folding.
2) I have QJs in the BB. It gets raised mid position and 2 other people call. I flat and play the pot 4 way. The flop is JJ4. It gets checked around. Turn is a K. I decide to check/raise as there is an aggro guy behind me. He bets and I raise. He calls.
River comes a 9. I bet out and he flats. He has J9 - think i was just really unlucky there, but could have lost a lot more.
3) I have QJ on the button. UTG aggro guy raises pre flop and I flat and BB calls. flop is 10 10 9. He bets out the flop. I flat and BB folds. Turn is a 4o. UTG checks and I bet out. River is a 7. Back door flush came in. He bets out for about 1/4 of the pot. I put him on an overpair - one that can be folded if I raise. So I raise. I make his $80 bet $290. He ponders over it and shows Aces and ends up calling.
4) I have J9dd in BB. 3 others in the pot. Flop comes Qd8d4. I check/call. Turn is a diamond and I bet out. Aggro guy calls. River is a another 4 and I bet out again. Aggro guy calls with the second nut flush which was well out of character! Not sure I can play that any different either.
5) I have K10s mid postion. I raise and get called on the button and big blind. Flop is K106 rainbow. I bet. Button calls. BB folds. Turn is an 8. I bet and button calls again. River is an Ace. I bet out again and he raises. I end up folding.
Believe it or not all these hands happened within about 40 minutes. I pick up AA soon after the 5th hand, 4 bet shove pre flop, get called by JJ and a Jack pops up on the flop
Opinions more than welcome. It was a very difficult night for me and I lost a fair bit so have been thinking about it a lot.
ANYWAY MY JOB....
Its great. Going on Bet365's website or SkyBets website you don't really think about how much work goes behind the scenes. There is loads. LOADS. Im starting out of the football season so its likely to get a lot more busy during the football season. Settling some of the world cup matches has been a bit nerve-wracking though. Settling a market with tens of thousands of bets on it makes you very cautious as to what button you're pressing! Its good stuff though. Im getting trained for the first 6 weeks so not right into the deep end.
Still getting to grips with it all, but looking forward to what the jobs got in store for me.
Anyway, hopeful of getting back on Sky soon when I find the time.
Oops. Bit of a long post. Apologies.
I was ill at home today from work, as I was yesterday. But come 6 o'clock i found myself a little bored of staring at the ceiing feeling sorry for myself and decided id make use of my illness to try and make some money.
I reg a quarter final sat for the super roller for a fiver. I got through that and was into the LR Semi... and after another hour I was into the main. After a rather uneventful couple of hours I was short stacking with around 18 left. After a couple of successful double ups I found myself chip leader with 3 left against Divs and Jamie Burland. After a rather depressing 1010 v AA moment I was short again... and my exit hand was:
Ruling please on this play:
I have AQ in BB with 14BB. Button min raises. SB calls. I pick up my entire stack in one hand move it forward in one motion and one drops off the bottom as I drop the rest. Im talking about 0.2 seconds between the first one touched the felt and the rest of them... no joke. Dealer says its a call. Floor called. Floor agrees with dealer. Table is a bit bewildered as no one thought i was string betting.
And now im angry cause I ended up going out that very hand due to a K8os hand that never would have called the all in pre. Do I have the right to be?
Seems like you were hard done by for sure. Suppose my only advice in order to avoid this situation again would be to just verbally declare your intention first, then it doesn't matter how your chips go over the line.
Now you're living in Stoke, I assume you'll be growing an extra finger soon....that 'bonus' digit should mean an end to fumbling the chips
I knew I should have verbally said but I was genuinely flabbergasted (good word) at the ruling. I couldnt believe it.
Let me guess.....it's ruled a call and the steam is coming out your ears. In that moment, you vow to donk shove any flop. It comes down K 8 8 and true to your word, in your chips go as you glare at the dealer. Guy snaps with the old flopped FH and it's gg Gazza.
This happened yes?
Was 7/1 dog HU. Managed to wiggle my way into the chip lead then lose AJ v A7 AIP. To be honest I had demolished him HU. Absolutely crushed him without trying to sound too arrogant (LOL). But to be 7/1 dog then come back to be ahead winning lots of little pots show I had him beat in overall play. He started open shoving 40bb just to avoid post flop play. If it wasnt for a 7 on a river it would be the win. Sigh.
Oh well. Good signs though. Cant fault my play which is all you can do.