Disrespectful call with Jacks to my shove last night i felt
Oh yes, I remember that hand. I am prone to being a bit of a nit sometimes, but even I can't fold Jacks in that scenario. For once, I had a good chip stack so still would've had plenty left if I'd lost the hand.
Thanks @waller02 & @coo1-um - I have used Google Sheets once or twice before, so if I do choose to report on all my results then that's probably my best bet. Daft question, but would I have to post a screenshot to get the spreadsheet to post on here? Or is there a better way of doing it? Bit of a technophobe myself.
Thanks @waller02 & @coo1-um - I have used Google Sheets once or twice before, so if I do choose to report on all my results then that's probably my best bet. Daft question, but would I have to post a screenshot to get the spreadsheet to post on here? Or is there a better way of doing it? Bit of a technophobe myself.
I screenshot but there might be a better way.
I find screenshot easier. It often throws the tables and figures out of line when you copy and paste. Meaning that you have to reformat within the comment box to make it more legible.
Another week has gone, so time to ramble on for several paragraphs once again.
Has been a good, consistent week of poker overall with over £150 being added to the bankroll. Been running well, playing well (at least for me) and making a decent number of final tables. Still can't quite get 1st places at the moment, but this week has been a good confidence-booster.
The focus still remains on MTTs, specifically those ones that make up the MML schedule. Despite not finishing in the prize positions, I made 10 MML final tables over the course of the week and churned out some good profit. Sadly, I seem to be suffering from 'clinchers disease' at the moment and just can't seem to get over the line for a victory. Yesterday's session saw us come the closest, with 2nd place finishes in the 5:30pm £300 BH and 6:05pm £200 BH. In the £300BH, I only made it past the bubble with a few big blinds and manage to ladder up to finish 2nd place, so certainly made the best of that situation. However, in the 6:05pm BH, I managed to seize the chip advantage heads up but fluffed my lines towards the end - should definitely have taken this one down. The other FTs that I made throughout the week were a compilation of 3rd-6th places finishes. Some of those saw one player have a massive chip advantage over the rest of the table which subsequently meant that coming first was near impossible, and there were others where I simply didn't get the cards or win the necessary flips to push on to victory. I also cocked up on a couple of occasions, but it's nice to be making FTs with a good level of frequency once again.
Elsewhere, despite a good number of bronze tickets in the September promotion, I did not win £20 in Friday's draw. I therefore took matters into my own hands later that evening and won £20 in the daily rewards freeroll for a 19th place finish. Realistically, silver tickets (100 points per day) aren't feasible for me unless I play a large amount of cash games, but I'm happy and comfortable with sticking to tournaments for the time being. I also came 2nd in the Monday Takedown competition for last week, so I have £10 of tokens to utilise this week. Not sure whether I will play two £5.50 games or one £11 game with those.
So all seems well with poker once again. Just need to start being a bit more clinical and converting more of these final tables into wins. Part of me thinks that I'm not being aggressive enough with my playing style, but when you're making a good number of FTs, why would you want to change the way you play? Anyway, I'm certainly back on track for making it to the 2k mark, although that's still some way off at the moment.
As for posting a spreadsheet of my weekly scores/finishes which I suggested last week, in hindsight there probably isn't a huge need for me to do that, as most of the MTTs I play are MML games and the results of those get listed on a daily basis anyway. So for now I'll shelve the idea of using a spreadsheet and just stick to the same way of weekly reporting.
Last week was quite a low-volume one, with my hunger to play MTTs not quite being the same as it has been in previous weeks. Still turned out to be an eventful one though, although the bankroll has only gone up by exactly £15 since the last update.
Kicked off the week by bubbling the Major Seat Freeroll on Monday. Was the third time over the past few months where I had finished 4th so was quite frustrating to fall short once again. However, I managed redeem myself in last night's freeroll and won a seat for finishing 2nd - was the first time I recall winning a seat for several months, perhaps even the first one of this year. I used my £10 free token from last week towards playing the mini major, so last night I got to play the main and mini for the cost of just £1. Sadly, my adventure in the major came to an early and abrupt end after I was on the the wrong end of a cooler when flopping a set. Made it to the middle stages of the mini but was never able to build a decent stack and eventually shoved a pocket pair into a higher pocket pair. I did at least run deep in the 6:30pm BH last night and was chip leader with 40 or so left, but lost a few big pots and then exited in 13th with a £20 profit after ramming AK in against KK.
The rest of the week's tournaments didn't yield any eye-catching results. Made a few deep runs but as with previous weeks, I ran well in the early stages but things went wrong towards the end. Also won a couple of tenners on the weekday freerolls and managed to play a few micro-stakes cash sessions over the course of the week, although they were all more or less break-even ones. With my working schedule changing I may opt to play more cash sessions instead of tournaments, particularly during the weekday evenings where I may have less time to play poker. That said, I seem to be doing relatively well on tournaments right now so still want those to be the main focus.
Those in the Discord will have already seen my major exit hand from last night, as we've discussed it a fair bit. Was a bit gutted to be honest because it's not often I get to play an £110 game, and to be on the end of a cooler like that so early on is a bit grim. That's the way it goes sometimes, hand played itself from both sides and I got my chips in ahead. Hopefully my next opportunity to play the Sunday Major won't be too far away.
The weeks seem to be flying by at the moment. Due to the changes with my working schedule, I was only able to manage 3 sessions (Friday, Saturday & Sunday). Despite this, it turned out to be another good week and the bankroll continues to go in the right direction.
After falling short multiple times in recent weeks, I finally ended my winless run by taking down the 7:15pm deepstack on Friday. Has always been one of my favourite micros to play due to its good structure, but it was the first time that I had won it. Was only a £60 or so win but always happy to win a tournament, regardless of prize money. I almost won it on consecutives nights but had to settle for 2nd on Saturday after getting a bit unlucky heads-up.
Over the three sessions, I made 5 FTs including the 2 mentioned above. There was a 3rd place in a £300 BH, a 4th place in the £500 Mega Stack and another 3rd place in a £1 Rebuy tournament. Could have won 1 or 2 of them on another day but wasn't to be. I only had a few big blinds left at one point in the £300 BH and managed to claw it back to make the FT - have had a few tournaments like that recently where I've been all but out but managed to make a comeback.
I also enjoyed a deep run in the mini major last night. Never really managed to build up a decent stack throughout the tournament and spent a lot of it with 20BBs or fewer. However, I kept picking my spots well for double ups and stayed afloat. I also managed to crack aces with pocket 6s just after the bubble when AIP . Eventually, I ran out of lives and shoved into a dominating hand, but 9th wasn't a bad result all things considered.
Despite only playing 3 sessions this week, I almost won the MML after some decent results, however ended up missing out on top spot on number of games played (there was a 2-way tie). So no £33 main event ticket, but I still get free entry into the Sunday Mini Major. And given that's the highest buy-in game of the week for me at the moment, I'm still happy with that. No £2.30 token to utilise this week, amusingly - I had planned all my Sunday tournaments out so that I would be on 100 points after their completion. However, I failed to bust the mini major by midnight, so the weekly token was forfeited. I have a good record of returns from that £2.30 token, but somehow I think I'll survive without it for one week...
With MTTs going so well, the plan is still to stick with them until things start going wrong. Happy enough with the bankroll now - 2k is within reach which I would never have imagined when I started this challenge in February. Certainly need to start pushing myself now and taking a few shots. There are still a few confidence issues and some doubts over my game, but with the bankroll in good-shape it may well be time to push the boat out a bit and throw in a few more £11 games. But overall, really happy with how things are going at the moment. Still getting a little frustrated at times, but am enjoying my poker more than ever. Hopefully it will stay that way.
Just a very brief update - I have only played one tournament session and a few small cash sessions since the start of last week. Work commitments have meant less time to play in the evenings, and when I have had the time I've not had the energy or enthusiasm to fire up some tables. So it's been a mini hiatus for me over the past 10 days or so.
All being well, I aim to play a couple of tournament sessions over the weekend. Would also be nice to get back to playing on a few weekday evenings, whether that be tournaments or cash games, but we'll have to see how things go.
As I mentioned in the previous post, I had hoped to play a couple of full tournament sessions this weekend, however in the end I played a couple of half-sessions and one or two 10NL cash tables on the side. Just don't seem to have the energy to play a full tournament session at the moment. Nonetheless, it was still a profitable weekend and the bankroll continues to climb.
Friday evening's session wasn't particularly exciting and there weren't any results of note. Yesterday's session, however, was decent enough. I got free entry into the mini major using an MML ticket that I won a couple of weeks back and managed to finish 8th. Didn't play a single hand before the first break, but things clicked soon after and I ended up as one of the chip-leaders. Once the bubble went though, things started to go awry - I picked the wrong times to exert aggression and starting trying to play too many pots against better players, and the chips began to slip away. Managed to hang in there until there was 8 left but then lost A 10 to K 10 AIP and was eliminated. I wasn't happy with how I played post-bubble and I failed to push on from being in a strong position. There were multiple hands that I looked back on at the end and knew that I had played imperfectly or messed up altogether, one in particular with pocket Ks was especially bad. Still, a £40 or so return from a free entry isn't too shoddy. There were also a few small cashes in a couple of the micro tourneys I played, so a reasonable enough session overall. Just need to cut out the mistakes late on in MTTs.
The 10NL cash games I've played went pretty well and managed to make several buy-ins worth of profit. Over the past few months I haven't been particularly interested in playing cash games, especially with tournaments going well, but have certainly got a bit more hunger to play them now. With my work commitments recently changing, I can see myself playing more cash games going forward.
The bankroll continues to inch towards the 2k mark. If I had been able to ladder up a few more places in the mini major, the milestone could have been reached last night. Alas, I did not and the champagne remains on ice for now. Hopefully we can make it to the 2k mark this week, although I'm due a bit of a downswing so we'll have to see.
A few people have asked me at the tables this week whether or not I will be at SPT Manchester. Have never played live poker before so there would be a degree of anxiety in me and would probably feel like a rabbit in the headlights. £220 is also an almighty punt for me, not to mention the other costs that would be involved for the weekend. Think it will be a decision I make closer to the time - definitely want to get my first taste of live poker and put some names to faces, but will depend how I feel about the whole thing.
So the 2k mark has been passed now, which I'm delighted about. Despite losing several buy-ins during a disappointing 10NL session on Thursday, a win last night in the 5:30pm BH for £95 plus a few other small cashes has helped me make it to the milestone.
The win last night was a nice confidence-booster, especially as I've messed up or got unlucky on quite a few final tables in recent-times. Despite being 1st of 4, I lost two bounty spots with pocket pairs in against K 2 suited twice, and it looked like it was going to be more final table disappointment. However, I managed to claw it back and with a bit of luck heads-up, was able to claim the victory. There were plenty of deep runs in other tournaments last night, but ran of steam in the latter stages and had to settle for small cashes. A nice, enjoyable session overall.
I have been thinking over the past week that this diary/challenge may now have run its purpose. When I started this challenge in February, it was mainly aimed to improve my discipline and to find some enjoyment from poker after a tough few months at the tables, which I feel I have done during this. I'm still not perfect and go through spells of frustration, but things have improved massively and this has been reflected in some of my results. Some of my weekly posts are becoming a bit repetitive and dreary now, so it may well be that making the 2k mark is the perfect way to sign off for this challenge.
I still want to have a way of contributing to the forum, so it may well be that I start something new. I did think of doing a £11 tournaments challenge - given that the micros are going well for me I think playing more £11 games is the next step up for me, so that's a possible idea going forward. Some sort of cash game challenge might be fun as well, but for now I'm just going to keep playing as much as I can in preparation for UKOPS at the end of the month - I will hopefully be playing some of the £22 and lower games during the series. If anyone has any ideas for a future challenge then please feel free to suggest them.
Enjoy the weekend, and thanks for all the support and feedback that I've had during this challenge. Very much appreciated.
Congratulations on breaking that 2k milestone. It's a great feeling.
Winning any MTT is pleasing, and hopefully you can go from strength to strength now. The best players all go through tough spells. I have my fingers crossed that this is the end of yours.
Regarding your new challenge, I'm not too sure, however, an idea to throw at you. Since we have had similar journeys and current bankrolls, we could perhaps do some sort of challenge in tandem down the line? Just something to mull over.
"Regarding your new challenge, I'm not too sure, however, an idea to throw at you. Since we have had similar journeys and current bankrolls, we could perhaps do some sort of challenge in tandem down the line? Just something to mull over."
@thedazzman - that would be something different! I'd certainly be up for something like that, as long as it doesn't involve £11 DYMs...
"Regarding your new challenge, I'm not too sure, however, an idea to throw at you. Since we have had similar journeys and current bankrolls, we could perhaps do some sort of challenge in tandem down the line? Just something to mull over."
@thedazzman - that would be something different! I'd certainly be up for something like that, as long as it doesn't involve £11 DYMs...
Good stuff. There's no rush to get anything going. Gives us time to put an idea together, even with a possibility for it being an open challenge for anyone to get involved, if interested.
Don't worry, my run good in those certainly came at the perfect time. They're only good for point building, so I'll likely be abandoning them soon and back to MTTs. They're far more fun.
Comments
But yes, I suppose it was disrespectful of me.
Another week has gone, so time to ramble on for several paragraphs once again.
Has been a good, consistent week of poker overall with over £150 being added to the bankroll. Been running well, playing well (at least for me) and making a decent number of final tables. Still can't quite get 1st places at the moment, but this week has been a good confidence-booster.
The focus still remains on MTTs, specifically those ones that make up the MML schedule. Despite not finishing in the prize positions, I made 10 MML final tables over the course of the week and churned out some good profit. Sadly, I seem to be suffering from 'clinchers disease' at the moment and just can't seem to get over the line for a victory. Yesterday's session saw us come the closest, with 2nd place finishes in the 5:30pm £300 BH and 6:05pm £200 BH. In the £300BH, I only made it past the bubble with a few big blinds and manage to ladder up to finish 2nd place, so certainly made the best of that situation. However, in the 6:05pm BH, I managed to seize the chip advantage heads up but fluffed my lines towards the end - should definitely have taken this one down.
The other FTs that I made throughout the week were a compilation of 3rd-6th places finishes. Some of those saw one player have a massive chip advantage over the rest of the table which subsequently meant that coming first was near impossible, and there were others where I simply didn't get the cards or win the necessary flips to push on to victory. I also cocked up on a couple of occasions, but it's nice to be making FTs with a good level of frequency once again.
Elsewhere, despite a good number of bronze tickets in the September promotion, I did not win £20 in Friday's draw. I therefore took matters into my own hands later that evening and won £20 in the daily rewards freeroll for a 19th place finish. Realistically, silver tickets (100 points per day) aren't feasible for me unless I play a large amount of cash games, but I'm happy and comfortable with sticking to tournaments for the time being.
I also came 2nd in the Monday Takedown competition for last week, so I have £10 of tokens to utilise this week. Not sure whether I will play two £5.50 games or one £11 game with those.
So all seems well with poker once again. Just need to start being a bit more clinical and converting more of these final tables into wins. Part of me thinks that I'm not being aggressive enough with my playing style, but when you're making a good number of FTs, why would you want to change the way you play? Anyway, I'm certainly back on track for making it to the 2k mark, although that's still some way off at the moment.
As for posting a spreadsheet of my weekly scores/finishes which I suggested last week, in hindsight there probably isn't a huge need for me to do that, as most of the MTTs I play are MML games and the results of those get listed on a daily basis anyway. So for now I'll shelve the idea of using a spreadsheet and just stick to the same way of weekly reporting.
Have a good week all!
Last week was quite a low-volume one, with my hunger to play MTTs not quite being the same as it has been in previous weeks. Still turned out to be an eventful one though, although the bankroll has only gone up by exactly £15 since the last update.
Kicked off the week by bubbling the Major Seat Freeroll on Monday. Was the third time over the past few months where I had finished 4th so was quite frustrating to fall short once again. However, I managed redeem myself in last night's freeroll and won a seat for finishing 2nd - was the first time I recall winning a seat for several months, perhaps even the first one of this year.
I used my £10 free token from last week towards playing the mini major, so last night I got to play the main and mini for the cost of just £1. Sadly, my adventure in the major came to an early and abrupt end after I was on the the wrong end of a cooler when flopping a set. Made it to the middle stages of the mini but was never able to build a decent stack and eventually shoved a pocket pair into a higher pocket pair. I did at least run deep in the 6:30pm BH last night and was chip leader with 40 or so left, but lost a few big pots and then exited in 13th with a £20 profit after ramming AK in against KK.
The rest of the week's tournaments didn't yield any eye-catching results. Made a few deep runs but as with previous weeks, I ran well in the early stages but things went wrong towards the end. Also won a couple of tenners on the weekday freerolls and managed to play a few micro-stakes cash sessions over the course of the week, although they were all more or less break-even ones. With my working schedule changing I may opt to play more cash sessions instead of tournaments, particularly during the weekday evenings where I may have less time to play poker. That said, I seem to be doing relatively well on tournaments right now so still want those to be the main focus.
Those in the Discord will have already seen my major exit hand from last night, as we've discussed it a fair bit. Was a bit gutted to be honest because it's not often I get to play an £110 game, and to be on the end of a cooler like that so early on is a bit grim. That's the way it goes sometimes, hand played itself from both sides and I got my chips in ahead. Hopefully my next opportunity to play the Sunday Major won't be too far away.
Have a good week all!
The weeks seem to be flying by at the moment. Due to the changes with my working schedule, I was only able to manage 3 sessions (Friday, Saturday & Sunday). Despite this, it turned out to be another good week and the bankroll continues to go in the right direction.
After falling short multiple times in recent weeks, I finally ended my winless run by taking down the 7:15pm deepstack on Friday. Has always been one of my favourite micros to play due to its good structure, but it was the first time that I had won it. Was only a £60 or so win but always happy to win a tournament, regardless of prize money. I almost won it on consecutives nights but had to settle for 2nd on Saturday after getting a bit unlucky heads-up.
Over the three sessions, I made 5 FTs including the 2 mentioned above. There was a 3rd place in a £300 BH, a 4th place in the £500 Mega Stack and another 3rd place in a £1 Rebuy tournament. Could have won 1 or 2 of them on another day but wasn't to be. I only had a few big blinds left at one point in the £300 BH and managed to claw it back to make the FT - have had a few tournaments like that recently where I've been all but out but managed to make a comeback.
I also enjoyed a deep run in the mini major last night. Never really managed to build up a decent stack throughout the tournament and spent a lot of it with 20BBs or fewer. However, I kept picking my spots well for double ups and stayed afloat. I also managed to crack aces with pocket 6s just after the bubble when AIP . Eventually, I ran out of lives and shoved into a dominating hand, but 9th wasn't a bad result all things considered.
Despite only playing 3 sessions this week, I almost won the MML after some decent results, however ended up missing out on top spot on number of games played (there was a 2-way tie). So no £33 main event ticket, but I still get free entry into the Sunday Mini Major. And given that's the highest buy-in game of the week for me at the moment, I'm still happy with that.
No £2.30 token to utilise this week, amusingly - I had planned all my Sunday tournaments out so that I would be on 100 points after their completion. However, I failed to bust the mini major by midnight, so the weekly token was forfeited. I have a good record of returns from that £2.30 token, but somehow I think I'll survive without it for one week...
With MTTs going so well, the plan is still to stick with them until things start going wrong. Happy enough with the bankroll now - 2k is within reach which I would never have imagined when I started this challenge in February. Certainly need to start pushing myself now and taking a few shots. There are still a few confidence issues and some doubts over my game, but with the bankroll in good-shape it may well be time to push the boat out a bit and throw in a few more £11 games. But overall, really happy with how things are going at the moment. Still getting a little frustrated at times, but am enjoying my poker more than ever. Hopefully it will stay that way.
Thanks for reading, and have a good week all.
----
Just a very brief update - I have only played one tournament session and a few small cash sessions since the start of last week. Work commitments have meant less time to play in the evenings, and when I have had the time I've not had the energy or enthusiasm to fire up some tables. So it's been a mini hiatus for me over the past 10 days or so.
All being well, I aim to play a couple of tournament sessions over the weekend. Would also be nice to get back to playing on a few weekday evenings, whether that be tournaments or cash games, but we'll have to see how things go.
Bankroll currently at £1,883.09
As I mentioned in the previous post, I had hoped to play a couple of full tournament sessions this weekend, however in the end I played a couple of half-sessions and one or two 10NL cash tables on the side. Just don't seem to have the energy to play a full tournament session at the moment. Nonetheless, it was still a profitable weekend and the bankroll continues to climb.
Friday evening's session wasn't particularly exciting and there weren't any results of note. Yesterday's session, however, was decent enough. I got free entry into the mini major using an MML ticket that I won a couple of weeks back and managed to finish 8th. Didn't play a single hand before the first break, but things clicked soon after and I ended up as one of the chip-leaders. Once the bubble went though, things started to go awry - I picked the wrong times to exert aggression and starting trying to play too many pots against better players, and the chips began to slip away. Managed to hang in there until there was 8 left but then lost A 10 to K 10 AIP and was eliminated.
I wasn't happy with how I played post-bubble and I failed to push on from being in a strong position. There were multiple hands that I looked back on at the end and knew that I had played imperfectly or messed up altogether, one in particular with pocket Ks was especially bad. Still, a £40 or so return from a free entry isn't too shoddy. There were also a few small cashes in a couple of the micro tourneys I played, so a reasonable enough session overall. Just need to cut out the mistakes late on in MTTs.
The 10NL cash games I've played went pretty well and managed to make several buy-ins worth of profit. Over the past few months I haven't been particularly interested in playing cash games, especially with tournaments going well, but have certainly got a bit more hunger to play them now. With my work commitments recently changing, I can see myself playing more cash games going forward.
The bankroll continues to inch towards the 2k mark. If I had been able to ladder up a few more places in the mini major, the milestone could have been reached last night. Alas, I did not and the champagne remains on ice for now. Hopefully we can make it to the 2k mark this week, although I'm due a bit of a downswing so we'll have to see.
A few people have asked me at the tables this week whether or not I will be at SPT Manchester. Have never played live poker before so there would be a degree of anxiety in me and would probably feel like a rabbit in the headlights. £220 is also an almighty punt for me, not to mention the other costs that would be involved for the weekend. Think it will be a decision I make closer to the time - definitely want to get my first taste of live poker and put some names to faces, but will depend how I feel about the whole thing.
Have a good week all.
So the 2k mark has been passed now, which I'm delighted about. Despite losing several buy-ins during a disappointing 10NL session on Thursday, a win last night in the 5:30pm BH for £95 plus a few other small cashes has helped me make it to the milestone.
The win last night was a nice confidence-booster, especially as I've messed up or got unlucky on quite a few final tables in recent-times. Despite being 1st of 4, I lost two bounty spots with pocket pairs in against K 2 suited twice, and it looked like it was going to be more final table disappointment. However, I managed to claw it back and with a bit of luck heads-up, was able to claim the victory.
There were plenty of deep runs in other tournaments last night, but ran of steam in the latter stages and had to settle for small cashes. A nice, enjoyable session overall.
I have been thinking over the past week that this diary/challenge may now have run its purpose. When I started this challenge in February, it was mainly aimed to improve my discipline and to find some enjoyment from poker after a tough few months at the tables, which I feel I have done during this. I'm still not perfect and go through spells of frustration, but things have improved massively and this has been reflected in some of my results. Some of my weekly posts are becoming a bit repetitive and dreary now, so it may well be that making the 2k mark is the perfect way to sign off for this challenge.
I still want to have a way of contributing to the forum, so it may well be that I start something new. I did think of doing a £11 tournaments challenge - given that the micros are going well for me I think playing more £11 games is the next step up for me, so that's a possible idea going forward. Some sort of cash game challenge might be fun as well, but for now I'm just going to keep playing as much as I can in preparation for UKOPS at the end of the month - I will hopefully be playing some of the £22 and lower games during the series. If anyone has any ideas for a future challenge then please feel free to suggest them.
Enjoy the weekend, and thanks for all the support and feedback that I've had during this challenge. Very much appreciated.
Keep up the good work.
Winning any MTT is pleasing, and hopefully you can go from strength to strength now. The best players all go through tough spells. I have my fingers crossed that this is the end of yours.
Regarding your new challenge, I'm not too sure, however, an idea to throw at you. Since we have had similar journeys and current bankrolls, we could perhaps do some sort of challenge in tandem down the line? Just something to mull over.
Keep up the good work!
@thedazzman - that would be something different! I'd certainly be up for something like that, as long as it doesn't involve £11 DYMs...
Don't worry, my run good in those certainly came at the perfect time. They're only good for point building, so I'll likely be abandoning them soon and back to MTTs. They're far more fun.