Posted by Johnnymac 11:09 AM


As I predicted earlier this morning, there have been a couple of cancellations for tomorrow night's game and a couple more for Saturday. I have one, maybe two, seats available tomorrow night and at least two for Saturday.

I've already gone through the waiting list (the cancellations listed above are "net" of the waiting list), so if you want to play email me. Specifically, there have been a whole lot of guys lately who have emailed about playing but who didn't want to get onto the waiting list for whatever reason. If you're one of them, here's your chance.


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Posted by Johnnymac 7:56 AM


We have entered the final week of the WSOP satellite tournament. By this time next Monday there will be a picture in this space of some guy (or girl) smiling and sitting behind a large pile of money. But before then, there are a few points that we need to touch on, so I'll just go through the list right now. To review:

Wednesday June 1 - Satellite #8 (7:00pm)
Saturday June 4 - Satellites #9 (2:00pm) & #10 (4:30pm)
Sunday June 5 - Final Table (1:00pm)

Other notes and info:

1.) As Fro mentioned in his email on Friday, I think I have a location scoped out for the final table on Sunday. It's on the north side of town, not actually in Aldine but towards that direction (more like Gallery Furniture), and I am going to check it out this afternoon. Once I do that I will be sending directions and instructions to all of the final table participants.

1A.) As with all of the tables in this tournament, I'm not really planning on making the final table location public knowledge for anyone other than the players. This is primarily because of space concerns but also because I just don't want to draw any unnecessary attention to ourselves. That said, if you are not playing at the final table but would like to come watch or to play in some side games, feel free to email me and I will get you some directions. I'm not going to just post the location onto the blog, though... you will have to ask me or find out from someone else who already knows.

2.) I am looking for some volunteers to deal at the final table. We can't necessarily pay you for your services (the whole "legality" thing and all) but we can feed you and possibly compensate you in some other way. If you are interested, or if you know someone who is a competent dealer and may be willing to help us out, please email me. Trust me, we will come up with a way to make it worth your while.

3.) The game this Wednesday is all set. I sent directions to the players last night. If you did not get this email and were planning on playing, please email me ASAP so we can discuss. Also, if do not have a seat but might want to get on the waiting list (we're about at the point where 1-2 people always drop out) let me know because there is a good chance you will get to play.

4.) I will be sending the information for Saturday's tables sometime tomorrow. Some of you are playing in the first table, some of you are playing in the second table, and some of you are playing in both tables.

I think that's it for now.

Good luck!


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Posted by Dr Fro 6:43 PM
As you know my lucky chip was kidnapped and held for ransom. I met the evil perpetrator and gave him his demands. He went all Paul Giamatti on the forty. He grabbed the money and whispered through his mask, "play the low limit Sit and Gos on Party Poker...that's where all the money is." He then drew out on my set and took off.

So I took his advice and played 2 on Monday. I got 2nd and 1st in the $20 + $2 tournaments. Much better than my break even 8 hours at the $1-$2 NL table. Maybe that is what I will do from now on - bottom dwell on the SnG's.


(1) comments

Posted by Dr Fro 2:53 PM
Our brick and mortar tournament has been such a success, I was wanting to organize a private online tournament for our readers (and writers). Based on my research, Pokerstars is the best place for private online tournaments. Few of us currently play there, so another bonus (no pun intended) is that we will all get sign up bonuses for signing up new accounts and making our first deposit. It will be a $50 NL Holdem and I was thinking a Saturday afternoon would be best. I am interested in people's suggestions:

- Is pokerstars a good place to do it?
- If so, what is the best way to maximize the sign up / deposit bonuses?
- Saturday June 18 at 3:00 good? Maybe a later date?
- Interested?


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Posted by Dr Fro 12:23 PM

I was absolutely shocked to get this under my windshield wiper:

I'll let you know how this all shakes out...who could be so cruel to steal a man's prized lucky chip? There are some sick, sick people in this world.

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Posted by Dr Fro 12:34 PM


05/27/2005 12:33 PM -----
From: Dr Fro
To: Satellite winners
Subject: IAG tournament


We have discussed the blind structure for the final table and that we have decided to keep the current levels and just adjust the time. The first two levels will last an hour apiece and then every level after that will be 30 minutes. We'll take a planned 10 minute break after the 2nd hour and then mutually agreeable breaks as the tournament goes on.

John will be sending the final table location next week. It might be in Aldine.


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Posted by Junelli 11:48 AM
Greetings from the Virgin Islands! Dabney & I are checking out of Little Dix Bay, and taking a boat to Caneel Bay. We'll be there for 3 nights, and be back in town on Monday.

I'm going through poker withdrawals (even though I've read 2 poker books since I arrived).

I (and Dabney) agree with Fro about the toasts. They definitely take the cake. Too bad there aren't any cheetos down here!

See you soon.

MJ


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Posted by Dr Fro 9:19 AM
Roy Cooke tells us that It ain't gambling. I, of course, have to agree.


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Posted by Dr Fro 3:13 PM
As always, Jackpot Jay has a great article.

I also concur that Harrington on Holdem is better than Super System. To me, the biggest difference is that year it was written. Harrington's book better reflects the blind structures and player behaviors in 2005 than S/S does. Of course, S/S still has excellent advice on games other than NL HE.

That being said, I still follow Doyle and not Dan when it comes to QQ. I generally call and only raise to vary play.


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Posted by Dr Fro 8:58 PM
From the mailbag:

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Dr. Fro, I want to run my experience from yesterday by you to see if you can pick apart my surely flawed strategies. As you know, Saturday's poker tournament was honoring a colleague of ours who is becoming a father in a few weeks. The tournament had an entry fee of $30 and a box of diapers.... the money would be returned to the winners. The honoree kept the diapers (does that sort of house rake make this tournament illegal???????). We had 21 players seated at 3 tables of 7.

We were given 250TC and the blinds escalated relatively slowly to make for an all day affair. It seemed that everyone played a pretty tight for a while. While I didn't pull down a single pot, my afternoon revolved around two hands:

1) Around 45 minutes into the tournament, I hadn't been dealt any great cards and didn't hit any flops on the moderate hands. I was sitting at around 210TC. I was dealt AKs in the big blind. I thought it was time to make some sort of small move. Betting checked around to me and I raised 30TC. 1 caller so we were heads-up. Flop comes very nicely --> AJ8 rainbow. I figured I'm in pretty good shape so I bet 30TC. After a moment, he calls. Turn is a blank. Still thinking I'm in good shape, I bet 50TC. A slight delay before he calls. At this point I put him on an A and not a draw (I like my kicker) The river comes a 5. At this point I'm thinking we both had paired As, but I get a little worried that he may have 5 so I check. He checks. He flips J5. His 2 pair beats my paired As. I'm not real happy about this hand and the fact that I'm down to ~100TC, but I figur! e I win that situation more times than not. I was basically screaming out loud that I had an A, but for some reason he just kept calling. I'm annoyed, but not pissed since I think he got very lucky on the river. Note that this guy was the chip leader at the final table when I left... not sure who won.

2) The second hand came not more than a half hour later. I'm down to ~70TC. I get dealt KK just to the left of the BB. I check (figuring someone else would raise). Adam raised 10TC on the button and I re-raise 10TC (Adam absolutely loves it when I check-raise his ass!!!!!). Adam stares me down for a moment and announces to the table that I don't have AA. Finally he raises to put me all in. I smooth call -- all or nothing here. Adam turns over AKo. I know I'm ahead, but I don't feel overly confident. First card on the flop was an A and the remaining four cards are blanks. I stand and determine that I am the first one out of the tournament. I mention that I thought the first out always gets their money back (or something). I am reminded that that argument has more pull before the tournament begins. I proceed to spend the next hour (a) making runs to the keg for players and (b) dealing.

While I'm not happy about the outcome, I'm really not upset about the way I played. Everything I have read about tournaments says that you have to get a little lucky to win. I think I played my cards right and the luck just didn't go my way. It all turned out OK when we pulled together a cash game at a 'loser's table' and I won back most of my entry fee (I finally pulled down a pot about 2.5 hours after the tournament started).

All in all it was a good day.... met a bunch of good guys (even some aggies) that have some connection to Liner and I drank off a keg for the first time in probably a year (somethings never get old).

Any thoughts -- should I have played these hands differently?

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

1) AK is a wonderful hand because when you flop either pair, you know you have the nut kicker. Whenever you flop a set, you worry about somebody drawing out on you (most often with a flush). When you flop top pair – top kicker, you worry about somebody drawing a better kicker than you. You know how to play the set afraid of the flush right? Bet the bejeezus out of the pot. Same applies to top pair top kicker, especially when the A is on the board. People will play A-anything and they will call when that A hits even though their kicker stinks. You absolutely cannot allow them to draw cheaply at their 12% chance of pairing up their kicker. Bet the pot. Methinks you got greedy and wanted him to call. You should try to run him off. By the way, I think you made an excellent read of his hand – I also thought he had A5. Calling with J5 on every street was stupid. Bet so much that they will be less likely to play stupid (or that their call pays off even more when you win)

2) Your goal is to be heads-up and all-in pre-flop. That is what you did. I may have approached it differently (no check raise attempt) but you clearly knew your opponent and decided on a different tactic as part of the same strategy. That is just bad luck that you lost, you were a big favorite.

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Posted by Dr Fro 8:49 PM
Huge sent me this one. Antonio the Magician has his own website with words of wisdom such as:

"Don't let your first limo ride be in a hearse."

There's living and then there's living large. You don't have to have a ton of money to live well-though of course it doesn't hurt!-but you do need the essential attitude that says, I deserve the best. Recall the dying words of Lord John Maynard Keynes: "I wish I'd drunk more champagne."

Don't hate the player, hate the....oh nevermind, go ahead and hate the player this time.


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Posted by Dr Fro 6:26 PM
I just stumbled across this article about playing poker in Dallas in the 70's and 80's. When you read articles like this and when you see successful poker playing Texans (native or implant) such as Doyle, Farha, Cloutier, Amarillo Slim, heck even David Williams, you can easily forget that the poker they play(ed) here is in fact illegal. The state that gave the name to the greatest form of poker and the state where there is so much poker history actually has always outlawed raked poker games.

Unlike JG, I would very much like to see that change. Whether I want it to or not, I think the change is inevitable. The state legislature has about 4 more weeks and my source in Austin says it is 50/50 that something could happen.


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Posted by Dr Fro 6:15 PM
Junell's wedding was a lot of fun. Worst toast award goes to the guy that said Junell's penis was orange from eating Cheetos and watching porn. He then said Dabney had "acute angina" and she also had "nice boobs." It was the worst toast ever.


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Posted by Dr Fro 12:15 PM
Jeez, I'm glad Cameron convinced me to get the wireless router so I can carry the PC into the bathroom. Otherwise, I would be like these guys.

--------------------

Party Poker's monthly reload bonus for May is about to expire. If you transfer funds today via Neteller for free, it takes about 5 days to show up, which gets you to May 25.

Reload Bonus for all users:
20% up to $100 ($500 deposit required for max bonus)
Must enter code "BONUSMAY"
Must play 7 raked hands for every $1 in bonus money within 30 days
Valid through 11:59 PM ET on
May 25th

--------------------

I played poker for 60 minutes last night and didn't win a single hand. As a matter of fact, I don't think I even threw away a winning hand. Best hand all night was 99, which saw a flop of AKQ. Fold. That was one of maybe 5 flops I saw.

This new place I go to, J's, is nutty. Casey raised preflop and called a re-raise. He won with 97o. Ten minutes later, He raised a $100 bet all-in with a draw to a 7-high flush. The original better had a draw to the A-high flush. He got runner runner to make trip 5's.

--------------------

Pokerati plays at J's, but I ain't seem them there yet.

--------------------

I met the guy that runs this site.

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Posted by Dr Fro 9:29 AM
"If you're gonna play the game, you gotta learn to play it right..."

Well it finally got the attention we were hoping it would get.

There are still a few days left in the legislative session and there are a lot of bills out there that in one way or another would further legalize gambling. At least one would make charity tournaments legal.


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Posted by Johnnymac 7:56 AM


Table #7 of the tournment went off without a hitch tonight and Sal Garcia came out on top of a very active three-handed and then heads-up game at the end. Rob Aspinall, Todd Graham, and Sal each at one time or another controlled more than two-thirds of all of the chips on the table, but it was Sal who ended up being able to hold on for the win. The game ended when Sal's King outkicked Rob's Jack and was very well played all around by all the players.

Incidentally, Sal also finished in the money (4th place) in our big tournament back in November and he is the first qualifier at the final table to be able to claim that. Congratulations!

Also thanks to Canonico for letting us use his house and for starting the game as I had an obligation with Mrs Johnnymac that precluded me from being able to be there at the beginning. Now Mrs Johnnymac has her bathroom tile picked out, but Sal has a chair at the final table.

Table #7 (start time 05/18/05 7:11pm - 139 minutes)

1. Sal Garcia
2. Rob Aspinall
3. Todd "Chief" Graham
4. Juan Miranda
5. Justin Haworth
6. Jeff Johnston
7. Chris Morris
8. Russell Harris
9. Pablo Brito
10. Tom Gibson

The next game in the tournament is scheduled for Wednesday June 1st. It is currently full, but as we have learned before, the game isn't really full until it's played! If you want to get on the waiting list, there is a good chance you might get to play. There are also a handful of seats left for the final Saturday, June 4th. Get yours today.

I will also soon be releasing an updated version of the rules and the blind structure for the final table, hopefully by Monday morning. Be on the lookout.

UPDATE: I forgot to mention that a bunch of Canadians showed up last night too. They were fun, but they drank all of Canonico's beer and only bought into the game for $76.80!




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Posted by Junelli 8:48 AM
Last night I was playing $1-$2 NL at Northside. I initially bought in for $400. The game was extremely loose and aggressive and 2 very weak players were on huge rushes. Each had approx. $1,000-$1,200 in front of them and were catching hands like you wouldn't believe. At one point the dealer whispered to me that, "neither of these guys has ever left with chips." I licked my lips and waited for my opportunity.

Unfortunately I couldn't win anything at the beginning. My chip stack was shrinking and I was forced to reload for $300 more (putting me into the game for $700). I gradually bled that down to where I only had $120 left (and was stuck $580).

Several players had busted out, and the game was now 7 handed. Worse yet, 2 players said they were leaving shortly, and it looked like the game was going to break up soon (leaving me in a very tight spot). I contemplated leaving, but repeatedly made little comments hoping to induce those player into staying longer ("Man, you're hot! You can't quit! You never leave in the middle of a rush!"). Luckily 2 new fish arrived at the door shortly thereafter, and the game survived.

The moment they sat down I realized that $120 just wasn't going to cut it at this table (I was on the life-line, and couldn't play my normal game). If I was going to play I needed more ammo.

I reloaded for $300 more (putting me into the game for an even dime). "This had better work," I told myself.

No joke...within 3 hands, I was dealt KK against the chip leader's QQ. I doubled my stack up from $420 to $840. The very next hand I was dealt AK against the other chip leader's AQ. I took $520 off him.

I now had $1,360, and was back in the money. All of this happened within 5 minutes of reloading for the additional $300.

For those that don't understand the value of your chip stack, consider this: if I didn't reload, my first hand would've doubled me up to $220. My second hand would've doubled me up to $440. I would've had a mere $440 instead of a whopping $1,360. That's a big difference.

More importantly, I had cracked both of the chip leaders and was now way ahead of them in stack size. It was funny how their entire demeanor/mood/style did a 180. They went from raising ($20-$40 preflop) EVERY single time, to merely limping in and check-folding to any strength. Within 2 hours, both of them left busted.

Unfortunately I ended up giving some of it back and left the night with a small loss. But it could've been much worse.

Moral: "Don't go to war without ammunition."


(5) comments

Posted by Johnnymac 5:14 AM


There is an open seat in tonight's satellite game. Someone had to drop out late last night and no one on the waitlist could take the seat. Email me if you want it.


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Posted by Junelli 6:26 PM
Since my wedding is in 4 days, I thought this joke would be appropriate for the occassion:

A woman woke in the middle of the night to find her husband missing from their bed. In the stillness of the house, she could hear a muffled sound downstairs. She went downstairs and looked around, still not finding her husband.

Listening again, she could definitely hear moaning. She went down to the basement where she finally found her husband crouched in the corner facing the wall, sobbing.

"What's wrong with you?" she asked him.

"Remember when your father caught us having sex when you were sixteen?" he replied. "And remember he said I had two choices: I could either marry you, or spend the next twenty years in prison."

Baffled, she said, "Yes, I remember, so what?"

The husband sobbed, "I would have gotten out today."


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Posted by Junelli 6:22 PM
I just checked my poker table website and was surprised to see that I had almost 40,000 hits. Not bad for a little site that's only been up for 2 months!




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Posted by Johnnymac 1:03 PM
I noticed this weekend that there was some building going on off of I-10 and Taylor street. Some of the warehouses and factories there had been knocked down and cleared and a new shopping center was going in. So I did some research and it seems that they are building a new Target as an anchor to a shopping center right there, not far from downtown. Impressive. When I read the article, I found this:

Concerns were voiced with increased traffic through the Woodland Heights neighborhood. Helen reported that the retailers control their vendor truck routes. Further, traffic studies predict that 75% of the traffic will come from South, East and West of I-10. 25% will come from the area north of I-10. Therefore, there should be no traffic impact on our neighborhood.

No kidding. Three quarters of the traffic will come from three sides and the other quarter will come from the other side. Really? That study must have cost a lot of money!

UPDATE: Here's a plan of the development if you are interested. This is a major change for that area that has been so industrial for a long time and a big gamble for the developer. I think I played cards at a house on Shearn street once... nice house, but not a nice neighborhood. At least for now.




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Posted by Johnnymac 8:34 AM
Man, I am a pathetic old married man. A buddy of mine got engaged this weekend and the first thing I thought was, "Great! Now I have a legitimate excuse for my wife to let me go to Vegas for his bachelor party!" I don't know if I was happier for him getting engaged or for me getting to go to Vegas.

Best wishes to Jordan Jalbert, the buddy who got engaged to the lovely Jillian on Saturday. This is especially nice because Canonico and I introduced them to one another a couple of years ago at one of our parties and then after a few false starts they finally hooked up for good at my wedding in September. It's been birds chirping and hand-holding ever since and Mrs Johnnymac feels particularly smug because she feels she had something to do with it.

Jordan, as a matter of fact, has also become something of a decent poker player. He used to be a little intimidated but he kept reading the blog and finally got his feet wet about a year ago. Now he goes to Louisiana about once a month and plays more often than I do.

Congratulations to both of them - they both read IAG, so I know they'll see this.

Vegas Baby!


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Posted by Dr Fro 9:28 AM
Not so fast...

No sooner did I write my last post that I ran into this. Evidently, the authorities have put the kabosh on ACH's tournament.

Contrast this with the KDGE Dallas tournament where:

Each player pays zero dollars ($0.00) to play in the tournament. At no time will any player be asked for money to play in the tournament (before, during, or after the tournament.) First place wins 2 Round Trip Tickets to Las Vegas / 1 Week Hotel Room / 1 Entry ($10,000 max) into the World Series of Poker.

Now that's legal, but it is really hard to rasie money for charity with a $0 entry fee, even with 1,000 players. Well, maybe - MAYBE if you get just an absolute ton of volume of players, you could raise some money.


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Posted by Dr Fro 9:17 AM
Phil Hellmuth is coming to Houston.

The event begins at 12:00PM with Phil's workshop. Competition begins at 1:00 - players can join in until 2:30PM - at tables of 10, with professional dealers. Phil will work the room, roviding commentary and guidance; he'll announce all hands at the final two tables. The day wraps up at approximately 10:00PM with the awarding of trophies and such prizes as 4 prized seats at the World Series of Poker tournament in Las Vegas.

The even benefits the breast cancer research. Charity poker tournaments are a bad deal poker-wise (too little of the pot goes toward prizes), but if you are happy to donate to the particular good cause, then it is a good way to have fun and give to a cause you believe in.

Kim and David Hock intend to play. Unfortunately for Kim, Phil has been reading our blog (and leaving comments) so he now knows how to make her fold AA.

We've discussed this before, but poker tournaments such as ours are legal (among other criteria met, there is no benefit to a house), but charity tournaments are illegal in Texas as they benefit a house (the charity). I don't know how Ass Clown Hellmuth is pulling this off.


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Posted by Junelli 2:20 PM
Play Hours Not Results
by Daniel Negreanu

Most of my ideas on how to actually make a living playing poker successfully were formed in my teens back in Toronto. I fiddled with many thoughts, and basically came to what I thought was right through trial and error. Of course reading poker material helped me make educated guesses as well. One of the things that I came up with that appeared to be very important was when to quit?

Should I quit when I hit my goal for the day? Or quit when I'd lost too much? Or how about when I'd lost a certain amount of my win back? I finally came to the realization that rather than think about all that, I should spend all that energy playing every hand well in every situation.

When I was in my teens you could say I was pretty anal. No make that VERY anal. I wrote down everything from my mood during a session to how many smokers there were in the game! I know, I know, pretty anal. I guess I was just a stats freak too.

Anyway, I started to think about how I could balance a 'normal' life while playing poker for a living. How can I REALLY make this a job. The charity casinos I used to play at were open from noon till 4am every day. If you didn't get there by noon, you'd be out of luck as far as getting a seat goes. I didn't think sleeping all day and being up all night was what you call a 'normal' life. So that left me with this,"I'll play the day shift."

So it's noon and I'm at work. I've had a nice little rush and I'm beating the 10-20 game for $1200 by 2pm. Then I'd get this,"How much are you trying to win?" "Why don't you just take a win? Why would you want to give it all back?" Yada-yada-yada! Then someone would ask me,"How much are you winnin' kid?" I would reply,"Well what time is it? 2pm? Let's see, $86.44." Nobody every understood what I was talking about, but that's the way I 'trained' myself to see it.

After all, we all know by now that wins and losses aren't how you measure your profits at poker, it's your hourly rate. My hourly rate in that game was $43.33. Multiply that by two and you get $86.44. Simple right? OK.

Understanding the difference between playing for results rather than EV brought me to my next step. How hard do I want to work? I came up with the number 40 hours a week, since that's what felt 'normal' to me. Since I was the boss, I also decided I'd get weekends off, cool! That left me with 5 days to get 40 hours of play in. Well, that's simple enough, I'd play 8 hours a day, five days a week, done!

So for years that's what I did, I showed up at noon, and when they collected time for 8pm I was out of there. Of course this isn't neccessarily the best way to make the most money, it was just a way for me to have some sort of routine in my life. Something I desperately needed at the time. There were some pros and cons to this, but overall I liked the pros so much I could live with the cons.

As far as pros go, I NEVER had to worry about when to quit, I already knew! I didn't have to play mind games with my self. Am I running bad? should I quit winner? etc. I was left with playing the game and trying to make good decisions.

Of course I sometimes played in bad, tight games for a while, and also missed out on some good action after 8pm, but big deal! I was lucky enough to be in a game that was good enough for the most part. Optimally you'd only play poker when you are getting way the best of it, but that's just not a reality for most professionals.

There were occasions where I played some overtime, but NEVER when I was loser. Only when the game was extremely good, or if I'd given myself some early outs earlier in the week. After all, I was the boss right? If I was sick or just tired of playing, I allowed my self a sick day here and there. Not too many of course, my boss was pretty anal:)

This system helped me avoid one of the pitfalls that are the downfall of the majority of poker players. Playing long hours when you are stuck, and hitting and running with small wins. Everyone knows it's silly, but they can't control themself. They are obssessed with putting a W in their records. Well I've looked at some of those record books, they look like this: 2h +340, 3h +285, 2.5 +540, 5h +145, 6h +90, 1.5h +335. Not bad for a 10-20 game right. 20 hours for a profit of $1735 dollars. That's an hour $86.75! But wait, you didn't see day seven, 15 h -2135. Hmmm, not so good after all. Hey six out of seven wins is pretty impressive, but what good is that?

Now this may or may not work for you, but if you are having that big problem of playing all night to get even, it's something to think about.

I taught myself that there was always tomorrow. If I got the hours in, the results would follow, and they did. Amazingly, almost all of my friends, also professionals, got on the same schedule. It was great, we really felt like co-workers and had a lot of fun together all day, and then again at nights. I miss those days. At 8pm there was a huge turnover. All the tough players went home, and a new cast came in. I know what you're thinking, man, seems like 8pm was the time to play! Well it was, but that's the sacrifice I made to try to balance a 'normal' life with playing poker for a living. Now that I look back, it was well worth it.


(2) comments

Posted by Dr Fro 10:35 AM
Junell's karma post kinda beat me to the punch. Often my posts develop in my mind for a few days before they get typed. This particular post has been bouncing around in different forms for months, but what happened on Monday sorta cemented the focus of the post.

What's going on in your life affects your mood/confidence, which directly affects the quality of your game. This is a commonly accepted fact in the world of sports; we see it all the time. For some reason, there is less focus on this in the realm of poker. Since poker is a competition of the mind, not of the body, we should expect that having too much on your mind to affect your poker game more than, say, your basketball game.

A bit of history in case you aren't a religious reader of the blog:

From birth until mid-2004, I had an incredible run at poker. Playing small limits, I consistently won every year of my life. I made thousands of dollars. Starting mid-2004, the results started to level off. I was absolutely tanking in November and a nice score in Vegas over Christmas only had the effect of reducing my overall loss in 2004, the first year to ever come out in the red. Early 2005 was largely marked by online beatings and the big Vegas trip where performance was below average.

Work has been really tough during the timeframe described above. In April-June of 2004, I was commuting back and forth between Houston and Dallas and trying to perform my old job and my new job at the same time. We moved in July. They say that the 3 most stressful changes in life are death of a family member, getting married and moving. I used to laugh at the third item on the list, but I now understand. The second half of 2004 was the most difficult time in the history of my profession. Add that to a new position in a new city and it was a tough time. While all this is going on with my main client, there were a few other things happening at work that are probably inappropriate to discuss in this forum (but I would be happy to discuss over a beer.) And when I wasn't at work, I was dealing with a wife that was not having success finding a job, two family members that got diagnosed with cancer, and a grandmother that now has Alzheimer’s (which is tearing one of my biggest hero's apart.)

Too much information? Sorry, but let's just say that 90% of the above has been solved (or at least improved) recently. Some of the most difficult stuff at work only went away last week.

If you were to make a graph plotting my stress level over time and then plot my poker success over time, the two lines would be virtually overlapping over the past 12 months. My sole success came during a very relaxing Christmas vacation.

So, Monday was my first day at work that wasn't stressful in a very long time. I stopped by a local cardroom we'll call J's. I was dealt average to above average hands in a $1-$2 NL HE game and won $330. One can't say that it was all due to the cards, because I manufactured some of those wins through well timed bluffs and well laid traps. I also avoided a few traps because I was paying attention. With my mind free and clear from everything outside of poker, my ability to focus on the game was amazing. In addition to the focus, the confidence was through the roof.

I have always known there was a lot of value in these intangibles. My friend, we’ll call him “R”, has never had a lot of confidence. He enters poker games with a resignation to losses. Even though he plays well on 95% of the hands, at some point in the night he inevitable makes a stupid call and says “oh well, I am going to lose anyway”. Once stuck, he usually pisses away the rest of his stake “since he is losing anyway.”

I never thought about how this related to me. I am typically bubbling over with confidence, focus, and a general winner’s attitude. I got beat down pretty hard and was surprised to find out that even I was susceptible to self-destructive, negative behavior.

Not anymore.

It’s not that I don’t think I will ever have stressful times in my life again. Rather, I am certain I will. The difference is that since I now know what effect it has, I can be more cognizant of it. I can make decisions to avoid playing when distracted. Or, I can play, but I can watch carefully for signs and address them. Either way, I won’t blindly assume that I always have my “A Game” on.

It felt good to win again. I look forward to playing the next time…


(3) comments

Posted by Junelli 6:31 PM
Last night was great example of how your ultimate success at the table is a direct function of whether or not you're "in touch with the rythm of the game" or whether or not you're "in the zone." When you're out of the zone (and just not getting any cards), it's very easy to just sit in the rut for hours on end. You stop playing your normal style and wait impatiently for the bad streak to end. Bad cards breed bad play. Bad play breeds losses.

I've played in games where I was on top of the world and it seemed like nothing could stop me: Where I'm constantly raising and pushing the table around, and it seems like everyone's play is based on what they think I'm going to do. But I've also been on the flip side of that coin: Playing in games where no one even notices I am at the table. Folding hand after hand. Missing flops and getting pushed out of pots. And generally, not enjoying the game at all. These hot/cold streaks are all part of poker, and as players, we had better get used to them, recognize when they occur, and realize that all streaks (good or bad) come to an end.

But a bad streak can't only be blamed on bad cards. Cards are indeed important, but there's more to it: Confidence is a huge factor in how successful you are at the table. When the cards are bad and your confidence is down, it sometimes takes a miracle to reverse the situation. However, with high confidence a player can put together a winning session despite not having the cards to back it up. This is primarily what separates the men from the boys at the poker table. It affects everything from your quality of play, to the decisions that you make, to how you are perceived by others.

Last night was a perfect example of how easy it is to fall in and out of the zone (and play with and without confidence in the same session).

I played $2-$5 Pot Limit at a brand new social club opening up in the Galleria area (about 300 yds from my house). This was my 2nd time to play at this location, and last week was very profitable ($820 in 3 hours). I bought in for $300 last night and expected the same results.

I played much tighter than normal (as this game is very fast and loose), and didn't play many hands in the first 90 minutes. I did however manage to lose every hand I played during that time, knocking my stack down from $300 to about $75.

I was pissed. I wasn't getting dealt any good starting hands. I was missing flops. My pocket pairs were always lower than the board. I was folding preflop much more than usual, and I had the distinct feeling that no one else at the table even knew I was there. I was a non-factor in the game. Those of you that know my style, will attest that this isn't usually the case.

I reloaded for an additional $200 and proceeded to piss away another $140 or so. After 4 hours I was stuck $380 and only had about $120 left in front of me. I didn't bring any more cash, and had all but accepted the fact that this just "wasn't my night."

Then came the defining hand which turned it all around...

In the Big Blind I called a $15 raise with Q4 (**I know this call was bad, but that's a different subject). The flop came Q46 giving me two pair (Q4). I am first to act with about $140 left and decide, (1) to slowplay the hand, and (2) that all my chips are going into the pot no matter what happens (not too wise, I know). I check and the cutoff seat (original raiser) leads out for $35. I'm the only caller. The turn is another disastrous 6, counterfeiting my hand because now I only have queens and sixes (fours are no longer good). Worse yet, I have queens and sixes with a four kicker. Definitely not the card I wanted to see.

"Oh well fuck it." I lead out and move all-in for my last $105. The cutoff calls with AA. His two pair (AA66) is way ahead of my two pair (QQ66). "Oh well. Good hand." I stand up ready to go home. But wait...the river is a 4 giving me a full house (QQ444)! What an unbelievable suckout!!

I can't count how many ways I misplayed this hand. But what's important here, is that I won, and now have some chips to play. More importantly however, I now have my confidence back. I can play "my" game now.

I then proceed to win 3 out of the next 6 pots, eventually running my stack up to $700 or so. The cards were pretty good, but several of the wins were well timed bluffs (which I cannot pull off when I'm not in the zone). In the end, I gave a little bit back, but still finish the night with a profit. That's much better than losing $500.

The point of this article is not to describe that particular hand, but rather how important confidence is to your game. Sometimes it just takes one hand (or in my case, one little 'ole 4) to get it back and turn a losing session into a winning one.


(11) comments

Posted by Dr Fro 11:11 AM
As usually, Paul Phillips has an excellent post. The math alone makes it worth reading. The underlying point of effective collusion when participants ping in a tournament is not new. What Paul does here is mathematically prove what the issue is.


(0) comments

Posted by Johnnymac 11:25 AM


Guys, in the interest of full disclosure, I need to tell everyone involved with the tourney that I have purchased a seat at the final table. I am buying Kirk Belch's seat. We have been talking for a few days now and I finally agreed to his price this morning.

Not that it makes a difference - most of you are probably licking your chops right now at the thought of getting a piece of the most predictable playing low-roller on the internet - but if it were anyone else I would be relaying the information right away and I wanted to make sure I do this the fair way and be consistent among all circumstances. So there you go.

I guess this also means that the two spots I have reserved on the final day are now empty. If anyone wants those seats, email me, because I don't need them anymore.

Shuffle up and deal!


(4) comments

Posted by Johnnymac 9:28 AM


Well, technically, the tournament is completely full now and every last seat has been claimed. Experience has shown me though, that some guys are going to flake. It has happened every week so far and it's going to happen again. I have two guys on the waitlist for May 18, and I doubt that we'll get further down the list than that, but if you want to play one of the other dates I would guess that you have a better than 50% chance of getting in.

If anyone is interested, send me an email and I will discuss the respective waitlists with you.


(2) comments

Posted by Junelli 4:46 PM
Ahhhh, the joy of getting married...

About 6 months ago, I started keeping a poker "bankroll". This separate stash of cash is used mostly for playing and is not deposited into my bank account. It's been great, because the gambling never affects my accounts, and I've always had cash on hand if needed. It's paid for many nights of playing, my recent Vegas trip, several good XBox games, and plenty Chinese take-out.

Unfortunately, I just had to deposit the entire bankroll into my checking account (thereby abolishing it completely). It seems that my money could be better utilized paying for expenses associated with my upcoming wedding: wedding rings/bands, groomsman/usher gifts, donation to church, limo after reception, honeymoon, home inspection, home appraisal, home termite inspection, home leak detection test, home survey, as well as a host of other misc. wedding gifts, etc.

Whoever said that, "Guys don't have to pay for anything at the wedding," was completely full of shit! I'm freakin' broke, Mr. Bigglesworth!!

After May 21, I'm gonna be a regular at JohnnyMac's $.10/$.25 games!! :)


(9) comments

Posted by Dr Fro 4:21 PM

From the mailbag:

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

To: Dr Fro
From: KK
Subject: Holland Casino

I played in a Euro 60 buyin NL tournament at the Holland Casino in Amsterdam last week. I enjoyed the game and had some success. Each player started with 500 in chips. In the first half hour, I tripled my stack. The game was really loose pre-flop during the unlimited rebuy period. I was catching good starting hands and frequently making a legitimate hand on the flop. My preflop raises would get multiple callers and I could usually buy the pot with a raise post flop. I felt my play was pretty solid, but honestly did not have many tough decisions.

In the second half hour, I didn't get many playable hands, at the end of the first hour when the rebuy period ended, I was still around 1500 in chips. I was chip leader for most of the first hour. Unfortunately, a few people passed me in the chip standings and I was probable 3rd or 4th at the table and it was obvious that I needed to make a move.

Blinds are 30/60. I was dealt A7 offsuit. A preflop raise to 200 reduces to 3 players including me. Flop is As5s2s. I bet 300 having hit my A but scared of a flush/flush draw. At this point, I think you would tell me that my raise was too small (should have been at least the pot?). I get raised all-in by the second player and the third player calls. At this point I don't believe my hand to be the best hand. I figure one player to be on a draw and the other the have made a hand. At this point, I am almost certainly beaten as A7 would only beat A3, A4 and A6 and the straight draw gives outs to A3 and A4.
I don't remember Slansky's position on this but…

I call anyway, mainly content with my play to that point, convinced I was unlikely to finish in the money and in consideration of my 2 coworkers that had reluctantly come to the casino and opted not to play.

I am of course beaten. The first raiser shows 4 flush with the Ks and the second shows A5. At least I had the read right. The spade draw hits. I had each player covered and am now down to 400 in chips.

Next hand I am dealt a pair of 6s in early position. I raise all-in. Some jackass* asks me if I am on tilt. I wasn't on tilt if that is reserved for playing poorly out of frustration (I had played poorly intentionally, that may be stupid but its not tilt). The prior hand was a bad call made with the right read and for reasons unrelated to poker. With short stack, I think my only choice was to go all-in with the pair pre-flop. Would you agree? I get called by Jacks and my night is over (at least at the poker tables).

*Unfortunately, my most satisfying hand of the evening came against the same player that eventually busted me. I was dealt a pair of 2s. I think a couple of players had limped in and he certainly had. I raised the 4X the blind from late position. He stared at me for a while and played with his cards as if he had a hard decision. When he finally folded, it was all I could do not to show one of the 2s. I regretted that I did not until he busted me later.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

From: Dr Fro
To: KK

This is the exact situation that I have described here before. You are in a tournament faced with a tough decision. In a ring game, you muck, no problem. But you gotta make a move and fast. What to do...

The 2 questions you have to ask yourself AT THE TIME YOU MAKE THE RAISE are

1) If I get re-raised all-in on this street or a later street, will I call?
2) Is it extremely likely that I will get raised on this street or a later street before the hand is done?

If the answer is yes (and here we know it is yes) then you may as well get all those chips in now. That way, your EV goes up due to the possibility that a better hand folds. Your only other alternative is to check/fold. The "tweener" area that is a small bet with an all-in call is not the way to go.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

(8) comments

Posted by Dr Fro 9:52 PM
John - how did our hit counter go from 50k to 3k?

Did you forget to pay the hit counter bill? I left it on the kitchen table with the check for your NRA dues...


(5) comments

Posted by Dr Fro 3:03 PM
I always find this situation annoying:

You know there is a decent chance that he doesn't have that good of a hand. This is Party Poker. But it is really tempting. If he doesn't have an over pair (say he holds AK, AQ, 88) you are the favorite. I see people bet hands like that all the time. But I think the better long term play is to fold. If they were on a steal, I think it encourages them to try to steal again. Next time you call with a better hand. If they were betting AA, KK, etc, then it teaches them to slow down and the next time it is cheaper for you to see if you can flop trips.

You know that it is a bad play on their part. It is a -EV play. Anytime EV is given up by a player, an equaly and opposite amount of EV is picked up by the remaining players. It is hard to see in this situation how I am better off, but I think it must come down to the (rare) situation that somebody overbets the pot and you happen to be holding AA.

Thoughts?

(3) comments

Posted by Dr Fro 10:28 AM
Not poker related, but a lot of guys that read this have followed Jorge's career. Looks like he hit a speed bump yesterday, but I think Lamar will do well under him over the next several years.

(0) comments

Posted by Dr Fro 4:05 PM
"It's a luscious mix of words and tricks that let us bet when you know we should fold" - The Shins

We played cards at my house last weekend. It was the usual group. My odds of winning are typically pretty high, as I count on Kleckner & Higdon to make large donations, Cameron to get drunk / loose and my lucky chip to carry me to victory. Higdon no-showed, Kleckner went on a tear, Cameron was sober due to spending most of the evening at a first communion and my lucky chip was nowhere to be found. That was a recipe for disaster.

Actually, it was a recipe for a break-even night, assuming no poor decision making on my part. Being the liberal Democrat that I am I prefer to not take responsiblity for my decisions. So rather than saying I played poorly, I will say that I was the victim of several green bottles that forced me to make bad decisions.

I started out good enough, but kinda lost it when Kleckner's 22 hit a 2 on the river to beat my 2-pair. I started to tilt. Then, I made a call that I later realized I completely miscalculated the pot odds (basically I counted my outs to hitting the nut low in O/8 and multiplied the percentage by the expected TOTAL pot, not by the 1/2 pot that I stood to win) I actually won that hand (or the low end of it at least) but when I figured out my mistake a few minutes later I put myself on a little more tilt. I shouldn't be so hard on myself.

When I tilt, it usually isnt that bad. I typically play the same but semi-bluff more (a bet before the river that represents a made hand, but needs a fold or to hit outs on later streets to win). Of course, when the bluff works you win a small pot. When you get called and lose, you lose a medium sized bet. If you get called an make your draw, you can win a monster pot. Problem was, I never won that monster pot.

At one point I asked the table if they could remember showing down and losing on the river to me at all. I think we came up with 2 instances. When you play shorthanded and only win a couple showdowns over 6 hours, you can't have a good night. When you get drunk and play stupid, you have a horrible night.

Anyway, I never sweat a loss (especially at those stakes) for too long. So when everyone left, I sat down at Party Poker. I bought in for a little more than I lost at the game in the $2-$4 NL HE game. First hand I get AKo. I saw 4 hands prior to being dealt in and noticed one guy playing like a maniac. I raise, he re-raises. Usually, I would consider that I may be up against AA or KK and slow down a bit, but this guy would play 92o like the nuts. So, we have a raising war and I end up getting 75% of my stack in pre-flop. When the flop comes up undercards, I had no choice but putting my remaining chips in. He of course calls. His J9s hit a straight freaking flush. Oh God.

I tell you, if you want a piece of me, this is the time to do it. Without my lucky chip, I am easy pickings.


(2) comments

Posted by Junelli 11:43 AM


Donny: They posted the next round of the tournament--

Walter: Donny, shut the fuck---when do we play?


(0) comments

Posted by Johnnymac 9:30 PM


It took a little bit of work, but we managed to get the game off tonight and play tonight super satellite table. I literally had made the decision and written the cancellation email this afternoon when I decided to check my inbox one last time. Luckily, there was an email from David Denenburg asking for not one, but two seats, and the game was on. 5 minutes later and there would have been no game tonight.

Unfortunately for David, his good luck didn't rub off on the poker game as he didn't make it through to the final round. John Robertson did though, and now he will be joining the rest of the players at the final table playing for a shot at Vegas. John played very aggressively tonight and caught a couple of big hands when he needed them. In the end he outlasted Steven Radack, who himself had taken a tighter and more patient route to get to the final two. They both had different styles, but they both played very well. Congratulations and a sincere 'Thank You' to everyone who played tonight. Everyone played well - 9 players were left in the game after the first hour!

Table #6 (start time 05/05/05 7:04pm - 128 minutes)

1. John Robertson
2. Steven Radack
3. Tony Ford
4. Hunter Cameron
5. Chris Morris
6. Dan Carpenter
7. Kelby Dennard
8. John McGill
9. David Denenburg
10. Charles Dunshie

We are now more than half the way through the tournament. The next game will be held in two weeks on Wednesday May 18. It is currently full, but as we have learned today, the game isn't really full until it's played! If you want to get on the waiting list, there is a good chance you might get to play. After May 18, the next games are June 1 and June 4. Chances are running out if you're still waiting!


(4) comments

Posted by Junelli 5:14 PM
Today's quote from The Big Lebowski...



Police Chief: "Mr. Treehorn tells us that he had to eject you from his garden party, that you were drunk and abusive."

Dude: "That guy treats women like objects, man."


(0) comments

Posted by Johnnymac 2:37 PM
This has nothing to do with poker aside from the fact that we often play in my garage (which is along the left side of the pictures below).

Centerpoint called last week and said that they were sending someone to trim the large live oak tree in our backyard because it had grown into the power lines. Apparently no one had been to the neighborhood in at least 10-15 years, because it's a big tree and judging by its shape, it had never been trimmed. Someone just planted it under the line and it had grown straight up 25 feet to where it was brushing the bottom of the high voltage lines at the top of the utility poles.

So we called and set an appointment and the guy came out and told us what he was going to do:



Which, really didn't seem that bad until we saw what he did to a similar tree in our neighbor's yard. It looked bad. So Mrs Johnny Mac and I decided that rather than risking having an ugly tree and having to pay someone to remove it later if we didn't like it after the trim job , that we would just go ahead and ask them to completely remove it.

The tree crew came this morning and was wrapping up when I came by the house at lunch to check on their progress:



So it looks like crap now, but our we have an appointment with our landscaper tomorrow afternoon to give us a better idea what we can plant away from the lines and along the fence. It was a pretty tree, but maybe we can make the yard better. Hmmm... And now at least I have some firewood for my chiminea and for my smoker, too.


(2) comments

Posted by Johnnymac 8:56 AM


I have had a rash of cancellations in the tournament over the past 4 days and am on the verge of cancelling the game tonight. I am setting a noon deadline for finding at least two more players, preferably three.


(0) comments

Posted by Junelli 8:29 AM
Paying Attention

Last night I had an expensive lesson on the importance of paying attention. I was dealt AA in late position a $1-$2 Pot Limit game. Obviously when the action came to me, I planned to raise. However, I didn't see that someone had posted a $5 live straddle.

In this pot limit game, the live straddle allowed me to raise up to $25 (while normally I would only be allowed to raise up to $10. Without the straddle, the first raise is almost always capped at $10 preflop.

When the action got to me, I looked up and saw that the player UTG had thrown in a $5 chip. This was very common for people to simply call the $2 blind by tossing in their $5 chip, and then getting change. I wasn't paying attention, and incorrectly assumed that he had merely called $2.

So I raised to what I thought was the maximum $10 (I could've actually raised to $25 since it was a straddle).

You know the rest of the story. A player calls the $10 with a 10-3 and catches 2 pair on the flop. I get all my money in, but end up taking insurance and getting some back. It was a $180 fine for not paying attention.


(3) comments

Posted by Johnnymac 8:04 AM


I had a last minute cancellation for tomorrow night's game, so there is another seat available. If no one claims it, I'll play myself to keep the table full, but if any of you reading this still want in just email me and you can have the seat.


(0) comments

Posted by Junelli 5:47 PM
"Guidelines on playing multiway pots when a flush or straight draw is present."
Tip 27 from "52 Tips for Texas Hold 'Em" by Barry Shulman

The presence of some draws on the board somewhat complicates the reading of hands. When no legitimate draws are present, bets and raises signify made hands. With two to a straight or flush on the board, however, bets and raises occasionally are come bets, in which a player is pushing a drawing hand rather than a made one.

As in the examples given in the previous tips, you should bet if you hold top pair or an overpair to the board, both to help protect your hand and for value. If there is a bet to you, you should raise with top pair-top kicker or better. Just calling with top pair-lesser kicker is often best, unless a raise might narrow the field. You should have a good idea whether a raise will accomplish this objective based on your position relative to the bettor. If the bettor is to your immediate right, your raise forces all the other players in the pot to call double bets. However, if a player bets and several opponents have already called, all raising accomplishes is to build a bigger pot. You need a very strong hand to do this.

One hand you can raise with in this case is the nut flush draw. You have close to a 40 percent chance of completing your flush by the river, and if several players are “trapped” between the original bettor and you, you don’t mind building a larger pot with a quality draw such as this. A side benefit of raising here is that the other players are likely to check to the raiser (you, in this case) on the turn. This way, if the turn card does not provide improvement, you can check as well. So, you save half a big bet those times the turn card doesn’t help your hand, but you gain several small bets when it does.

For the most part, call with quality draws to flushes and open-ended straights. You won’t win the pot unless you hit the draw, and you don’t want to raise out any of your opponents. You gain nothing by narrowing the field down to you and the best hand. Your chances of winning the pot are virtually the same, but you won’t win as much money when you do.

There is one notable exception to this, however. Sometimes it is good to raise with a drawing hand when simply making a pair might win the pot for you. Here is an example:

EXAMPLE:
You hold: Qs Js
Board: 3s 5s 7d

It is a five-way pot, and the first player bets. Although you won’t raise out anyone holding a better flush draw, and your queen high is surely not the best hand right now, a raise might be the right play for another reason. Suppose your raise causes a player holding A-J or K-Q to fold. Now, you might win the pot not only if you make a flush, but also if you make a pair. In this case, you have created extra outs for yourself. However, don’t take this idea overboard. It is best to make this play with two cards in the T-Q range, as they are most likely to be in kicker trouble* should they pair up. That is, you want to drive anyone out of the pot who will have a higher kicker than yours if he pairs.


(1) comments

Posted by Johnnymac 1:14 PM
Canonico just called and claims that he met Jack Binion this morning at a meeting for completely non-poker related business. Seems that Jack is part of a group investing in some real estate in Fort Bend County. Cool. Not that important, but at least a brush with poker celebrity, yes?

Here is an artists rendition of the meeting:






(1) comments

Posted by Johnnymac 8:26 AM


The May 5 game, this Thursday, is full. Send me email if you want to get onto the waiting list.

May 18 is also full. Waiting list there, too, if you want to get on it.

Otherwise, there are just seven seats in all left among the remaining dates.

June 1: 3
June 4 A: 1
June 4 B: 3


(4) comments

Posted by Junelli 1:58 PM
Hot or Not?



While surfing the web this morning, I was surprised to learn that one of our own contributors, Chris Morris, had voluntarily posted his picture on "HotOrNot.com".

The votes are less than stellar so far, as Morry has only garnered a rating of 3.2. However, the site still says he's "hotter than 24% of the men on the site." Way to go Morris!!

Morris wanted me to campaign a little for him. And he asked me to request that all of you click on the link below and give him a strong vote. He really wants to have a good showing!!

You can view (and vote on) the picture here.


(13) comments

Posted by Johnnymac 8:29 PM


As of this writing, there are 13 spots left in the tournament:

May 5th - 4 seats left
May 18th - 0 seats left
June 1st - 3 seats left
June 4th A - 2 seats left
June 4th B - 4 seats left


We are filling up fast. My last mailing went out late Friday afternoon and I suspect that when a lot of guys get to work tomorrow and check their mail, the remaining seats will again start disappearing. If you want one and don't have one, you will need to speak up soon.


(3) comments