Laak's Crack Eyes

I was watching last weeks Poker After Dark The Cash Game. WTF is up with Phil Laak's eyes?! The dude looked fucking scary.

I Have No Idea Why I Tilt

I think my poor play tilts me the most. I've been on a downward spiral since my last post. Loss after loss. Tilting my small balance away. I make a few bad plays, a few set up hands and I can't get out of the funk.

I started the night around $35. I played a SnG and a couple of cash games tables. Started off OK, took a few beats and bad plays. I had my starting buy-in at one cash game, and had doubled my buy-in at another. Next thing I knew, the wheels fell off and I was felted on both, and out of my SnG.

Next thing I knew, I had $20 bucks in my account. I said 'FUCK IT' and jumped into a short handed, $6.50 SnG. I knew I was tilting, but thought I could offset my tilt with a .01/.02 cash game. Just playing how I wanted with $1. The table didn't go well, lost my buy-in. I focused on the SnG. I started off slow, losing a few chips on hands that didn't pan out. I stayed patient, and I got a few hands. One big hand, I raised 3x on the button with A7 when it folded to me. The BB called. The flop comes AA5. I decided to lead out with a pot sized bet. Figuring it would look weak. It worked. BB went all-in. I called and he had just 77. From there, I had 2nd biggest stack. I had 88 on the button. A smaller stack pushed all in (he had just under 10x) ahead of me. The blinds were getting high, so I called. I was surprised to see the BB also call. I had both of them covered. I didn't really mind seeing AK vs AQ. My eights held up and I busted two players. At that point it was smooth sailing. I took the SnG and managed a small profit for the night.

So the moral of the story? Patience pays off? Variance works itself out? No. Even the sun shines on a dog's ass some times.

-My name is Unimpressed, and I'm an donkaholic.

Spoke To Soon?

Had a cash game net win of a whopping $1.00. Lost two buy-ins at one table but made up for it at another table.

I played 2 SnGs at the same time. A six-handed turbo and a 18 person turbo. I won the 6 handed turbo. In the 18 player game, I enter the final table the 2nd shortest stack... less than the starting stack. The short stack and another went busto. I had about my starting stack. Then a big hand among the 2 big stacks and a middle stack, with the biggest stack knocking out both players when he made his flush.

I made the top 4, still the lowest. The 2nd smallest chip stack went busto and now I had 3rd place, which is just about the same for winning the 6 handed. I ended up getting even with the big stack, but made a HORRIBLE call on the river. I had bottom pair (3's) and a flush came on the river. The guy went all in (a HUGE over bet) on the river and I insta-called with just my lowly pairs. He shows the flush. I'm crippled and can't make another comeback. Even though I went all in, (with AJ) got both calls. River a straight. They checked down to the river. The big stack tanks when it's his turn to act. He bets out and of course he has the 6. Other guy folds and he has T6.

All in all a successful night (with the exception of that horrible call at the end). My bankroll jumped up, from the measly $.60 I had, to just under $60.

-My name is Unimpressed, and I'm an donkaholic.

The Sinkhole that is Microlevel SnGs.

Still "grinding." I'm not jumping up in levels, still playing low, but I'm not playing as often.

While before, I could count on the low stakes SnGs to increase, now it's been the short handed ring game. A few nights where my cash game profits went directly into losing SnGs. I stopped getting hands, and it's hard to do much. I get a little low and the blinds are high, I push with JJ and of course someone wakes up with KK.

Their kings hold up, whereas, the other night, looking at my hands, you'd think I got slapped in the face with the deck. KK 3 times in 10 hands. Results... 1) Chopped pot with a straight on board to the J. 2) Lost to KQ- though I played it poorly. 3) Won the blinds.

Here's how the KQ hand went. I raised from mid position with KK and get 3 callers. Button, SB and BB. The flop came, x-Q-Q. Checked around. The turn is a blank and I bet about 1/2 pot. It checks around again and the Button bets about 1/2 pot. SB calls, and I decide to pop it. I don't think a raise in the mistake, it's just that I hit POT and made the pot too big to fold. A min raise would have worked just as good. I get the button to fold, but the SB pushes all in. I have him covered and his raise is probably about 20% of pot. I pretty much have to call and he shows KQ. The downside to using the POT button and not controlling the size of the pot.

-My name is Unimpressed, and I'm an donkaholic.