My friend Dr. Phil brought up some good points about cheap tournaments, including the fact that quantity isn't as important as quality, and the fact that more players are apt to gamble in cheap tournaments.
I thought about his input for quite a while and came to the conclusion that he is right and he is wrong. I think one of the most important things about playing poker is learning to "read" all types of players. This includes the ones that don't know what they're doing, the ones that will gamble with anything because "it only cost $15", and the good players.
With no offense to Dr. Phil, I firmly believe that if we stick to only "quality" tournaments or higher buy-ins, we are missing a lot of important learning experiences. At the same time, I still believe he has some very valid points and his input will just make me all that more careful if I do play in "cheap" tournaments. Thanks, Phil!
Friday, March 20, 2009
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Cheap Tournaments
I have discovered two super cheap tournaments at the Cable Bridge. One is on Mondays at 7:00 for $15 and the other is on Tuesdays at 7:00 for only $11. What a deal! Both tournaments start with 2,000 chips. Monday has 15-minute blinds and Tuesday has 10-minute blinds, which I absolutely HATE, so I probably won't participate in that one too often, but both tournaments have a $600 guarantee.
Last Monday's first place prize was $312, 2nd place was $200+ and 3rd was $112, which is almost 10 times the buy-in. This is not bad for a $15 tournament. If you take 3rd, deduct the buy-in and 10% tip, you can still make almost six times the buy-in - a fairly good investment. I went out before the final table, but I just got unlucky with the best hand.
I still like $15 tournaments better than free tournaments because even a little bit of an investment makes me play better - ha! I also like the fact that there are always one or two people at my table who have no clue what they are doing and sometimes I can get LOTS of chips from them. This happened to me three times last week. Anyway, I am on a super-cheap poker budget this year, as I want to save money for the Worlds Series of Poker and/or a poker cruise to Alaska next year, so these cheap tournaments might be the way to go! Any profit can be saved for my Las Vegas and/or Alaskan excursions. Wish me luck!!
Last Monday's first place prize was $312, 2nd place was $200+ and 3rd was $112, which is almost 10 times the buy-in. This is not bad for a $15 tournament. If you take 3rd, deduct the buy-in and 10% tip, you can still make almost six times the buy-in - a fairly good investment. I went out before the final table, but I just got unlucky with the best hand.
I still like $15 tournaments better than free tournaments because even a little bit of an investment makes me play better - ha! I also like the fact that there are always one or two people at my table who have no clue what they are doing and sometimes I can get LOTS of chips from them. This happened to me three times last week. Anyway, I am on a super-cheap poker budget this year, as I want to save money for the Worlds Series of Poker and/or a poker cruise to Alaska next year, so these cheap tournaments might be the way to go! Any profit can be saved for my Las Vegas and/or Alaskan excursions. Wish me luck!!
Monday, March 16, 2009
Getting Back on Track
I played in 4 tournaments this past weekend and although I only cashed in one of them, I feel pretty good about my play.
Friday night at the Cable Bridge I made it to the final table only to be knocked out two before the money, holding AQ in the big blind. A guy raised on the button and I think it was perfectly fine to go all-in with AQ in my position with the shortest stack at the table. He could have been trying to steal the blinds. Unfortunately, he had KK. Oh, well. I suppose I could have laid it down, but I don't think anyone else would have played it any differently.
Saturday morning at the Crazy Moose, I went out on the bubble. Boo hoo. Again, however, I felt good about my play and really can't think of any big (or small) mistakes that I made. Sunday morning ($25 tournament) was a different story, however. I played mostly OK, but got unlucky and the blinds go up so fast (every 10 minutes) that it's just impossible if you don't catch some cards now and then. I raised once with AK suited under the gun and got SIX callers because everyone is trying to catch a big hand and get chips early because of the stupid 10-minute rounds. I think I'll quit playing those.
I stayed to play the 10:00 at the Moose on Sunday and ended up making a tiny profit, coming in fifth for $100. I had A-10 in the big blind and my situation was very similar to Friday night, having no chips and not seeing any cards. Unfortunately the monster chip leader had QQ and they held up.
I did have a fun hand earlier in the tournament. A player (don't know his name) raised to $400 under the gun when the blinds were only 25-50. I was in the big blind and already invested for 50. Two other players called before it got to me. I looked down and had pocket fives. Now, this isn't the best hand in the world and I'd already folded pocket twos and fours earlier in the tournament to large raises. However it was only 350 more for me to maybe win almost 1600 (with my 350 in there), so I said to myself, "What the heck. It's early and if I don't hit the five I can fold and still have tons of chips." I called.
The flop was 5-5-8. WOW! I was my usual stone-faced self and prayed that the original raiser would do something crazy, which he did. He went all-in (over 3,500 chips) and I really couldn't blame him with that board. Now I let out a sigh and picked up my cards and fiddled with them, hoping the other two players would think I was folding and maybe one of them would call too, but they obviously had nothing and it was up to me. I almost felt sorry for the guy, but his chips (and a few other nice hands) helped me make it to the final table, so I really didn't feel too bad. I flopped quads on another guy a couple of weeks ago and had the same result. Gotta love it! For only 350, I got over 5,000 in chips!
All-in-all it was fun weekend, even if not profitable at all. I was actually down about $65 with all the buy-ins and only one small win, but that's OK. I felt really good about the way I played all weekend. I just have to keep it up. I'm going to try a couple of small tournaments at the Cable this week. We'll see how it goes!
Friday night at the Cable Bridge I made it to the final table only to be knocked out two before the money, holding AQ in the big blind. A guy raised on the button and I think it was perfectly fine to go all-in with AQ in my position with the shortest stack at the table. He could have been trying to steal the blinds. Unfortunately, he had KK. Oh, well. I suppose I could have laid it down, but I don't think anyone else would have played it any differently.
Saturday morning at the Crazy Moose, I went out on the bubble. Boo hoo. Again, however, I felt good about my play and really can't think of any big (or small) mistakes that I made. Sunday morning ($25 tournament) was a different story, however. I played mostly OK, but got unlucky and the blinds go up so fast (every 10 minutes) that it's just impossible if you don't catch some cards now and then. I raised once with AK suited under the gun and got SIX callers because everyone is trying to catch a big hand and get chips early because of the stupid 10-minute rounds. I think I'll quit playing those.
I stayed to play the 10:00 at the Moose on Sunday and ended up making a tiny profit, coming in fifth for $100. I had A-10 in the big blind and my situation was very similar to Friday night, having no chips and not seeing any cards. Unfortunately the monster chip leader had QQ and they held up.
I did have a fun hand earlier in the tournament. A player (don't know his name) raised to $400 under the gun when the blinds were only 25-50. I was in the big blind and already invested for 50. Two other players called before it got to me. I looked down and had pocket fives. Now, this isn't the best hand in the world and I'd already folded pocket twos and fours earlier in the tournament to large raises. However it was only 350 more for me to maybe win almost 1600 (with my 350 in there), so I said to myself, "What the heck. It's early and if I don't hit the five I can fold and still have tons of chips." I called.
The flop was 5-5-8. WOW! I was my usual stone-faced self and prayed that the original raiser would do something crazy, which he did. He went all-in (over 3,500 chips) and I really couldn't blame him with that board. Now I let out a sigh and picked up my cards and fiddled with them, hoping the other two players would think I was folding and maybe one of them would call too, but they obviously had nothing and it was up to me. I almost felt sorry for the guy, but his chips (and a few other nice hands) helped me make it to the final table, so I really didn't feel too bad. I flopped quads on another guy a couple of weeks ago and had the same result. Gotta love it! For only 350, I got over 5,000 in chips!
All-in-all it was fun weekend, even if not profitable at all. I was actually down about $65 with all the buy-ins and only one small win, but that's OK. I felt really good about the way I played all weekend. I just have to keep it up. I'm going to try a couple of small tournaments at the Cable this week. We'll see how it goes!
Monday, March 9, 2009
Back To Normal
Well, it couldn't last forever, could it? Last Friday, I played the $40 tournament at the Cable Bridge. I started out quite well, improving my starting stack of 3000 chips to well over 7000 chips in the first two rounds. Then I got stupid. I began the evening with very good cards and very good flops, not to mention a few good calls, but then my cards started getting ugly and I pushed too hard with very marginal hands. I knew it while I was doing it, which makes it doubly bad.
During the third round, I pushed too hard in early position with a weak ace (A8 off) and a lady went all-in with AQ, so I got beat on that one. The only thing in my defense was that she barely had any chips left, so it wasn't entirely terrible of me to call, but I also could have easily gotten away from it and didn't. Shortly thereafter, I made a bad call that must have been really bad because I've completely forgotten what it was. Trauma!! Anyway, pretty soon, I was down to my last 2000 chips and went all in with QJ suited. I flopped a straight and got healthy again and got stupid again on the very next hand.
I was in the small blind with Q6 off and five people in the pot. It was only 200 for me to call to win 2000, so I guess it wasn't a totally terrible call, but then I flopped the top pair (6) with Q kicker and that was the end of me. I went all-in and got called in two spots. One guy had A6, so my kicker killed me. The other lady, who was brand new to tournaments and had no clue what she was doing, simply called with an ace (A7) and hit her 7 on the river, which irritated A6 to no end. Anyway, that was the end of my Friday.
Saturday, I played the $40 tournament at the Crazy Moose. Very shortly into the tournament, I called a raise with pocket tens. The flop was Q-8-3 rainbow. Unless the original raiser specifically had AQ, QQ, 88 or 33, I didn't think I was in bad shape. He bet about one-half the pot and I called. The turn brought another queen. This is where I completely screwed up. I thought he couldn't possibly have a queen when there were two of them on the board. Wrong. He bet 700 and I called. The river was a blank. He bet 700 again. Again I called. At least I didn't do something really stupid. He had quad queens!! Good grief. I still had about half my chips, so it could have been much worse.
I soon won a small pot with A-10 and felt better. About three hands later, I raised in early position with AQ off. I got SIX callers. No one EVER believes me when I raise in early position. The flop was 9-10-J rainbow, so I flopped an open-ended straight draw and also thought I might be able to win with a queen or an ace. I decided to go for broke and went all-in. This play only got rid of three of my original callers, however and I never did hit anything. Phooey. An A-J beat me and I was gone.
Oh, well. Back to the drawing board.
During the third round, I pushed too hard in early position with a weak ace (A8 off) and a lady went all-in with AQ, so I got beat on that one. The only thing in my defense was that she barely had any chips left, so it wasn't entirely terrible of me to call, but I also could have easily gotten away from it and didn't. Shortly thereafter, I made a bad call that must have been really bad because I've completely forgotten what it was. Trauma!! Anyway, pretty soon, I was down to my last 2000 chips and went all in with QJ suited. I flopped a straight and got healthy again and got stupid again on the very next hand.
I was in the small blind with Q6 off and five people in the pot. It was only 200 for me to call to win 2000, so I guess it wasn't a totally terrible call, but then I flopped the top pair (6) with Q kicker and that was the end of me. I went all-in and got called in two spots. One guy had A6, so my kicker killed me. The other lady, who was brand new to tournaments and had no clue what she was doing, simply called with an ace (A7) and hit her 7 on the river, which irritated A6 to no end. Anyway, that was the end of my Friday.
Saturday, I played the $40 tournament at the Crazy Moose. Very shortly into the tournament, I called a raise with pocket tens. The flop was Q-8-3 rainbow. Unless the original raiser specifically had AQ, QQ, 88 or 33, I didn't think I was in bad shape. He bet about one-half the pot and I called. The turn brought another queen. This is where I completely screwed up. I thought he couldn't possibly have a queen when there were two of them on the board. Wrong. He bet 700 and I called. The river was a blank. He bet 700 again. Again I called. At least I didn't do something really stupid. He had quad queens!! Good grief. I still had about half my chips, so it could have been much worse.
I soon won a small pot with A-10 and felt better. About three hands later, I raised in early position with AQ off. I got SIX callers. No one EVER believes me when I raise in early position. The flop was 9-10-J rainbow, so I flopped an open-ended straight draw and also thought I might be able to win with a queen or an ace. I decided to go for broke and went all-in. This play only got rid of three of my original callers, however and I never did hit anything. Phooey. An A-J beat me and I was gone.
Oh, well. Back to the drawing board.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
This Can't Possibly Last
Wow. I don't have any clue what I'm doing right, or maybe it's all just sheer luck, but I have now cashed in five of my last six tournaments. That's an 83 percent winning percentage. Crazy! Four of the five have been 3-way splits of first place. The last one was a fifth place finish at the Cable Bridge and was only an actual net profit of $20, but it still counts. I was probably happier with this one than some of the others because I never play at the Cable and am not familiar with how everyone plays. It was terribly loud in there (Friday night) and I almost made one huge mistake because I couldn't hear and I thought a player was all-in when he wasn't and I turned my cards face up. As it was, all I got was a warning and I checked the flop and lost no more money, but I did lose a few unnecessary chips on that one. I would not have called an all-in with the cards I was holding with his chip stack because I would have been the one all-in. Oh, well. It worked out. At the Moose, I'm pretty sure my hand would have been called dead and I wouldn't have seen a flop at all. Ultimately, it is up to the player to know what is going on and I admit that it was totally my fault. Being aware of every action at all times is so important in poker. I wish more players realized that.
Naturally, after my winning ways, I was feeling frisky and wanted to play live, but first I went to do my laundry and left one-half of my money at home while I was at it so I wouldn't spend it. Good thing, too. My luck at live is simply atrocious lately and I really think I just need to stick to a $50 limit - for a while anyway.
Pet peeve: players who are annoying and dealers who do nothing about it. Case in point: last weekend I was playing in the 4-8 game and one of the players ALWAYS flung his chips onto the table so that most of the time one or two of them rolled away and/or splashed the pot. On the one hand, it turned out to be a little bit of a tell as to how hard he threw the chips when he did this, but on the other hand it was very annoying most of the time and it was commented on by other players on at least three occasions and the dealer(s) said nothing. Luckily, he went broke early. He was getting on my last poker nerve!
Naturally, after my winning ways, I was feeling frisky and wanted to play live, but first I went to do my laundry and left one-half of my money at home while I was at it so I wouldn't spend it. Good thing, too. My luck at live is simply atrocious lately and I really think I just need to stick to a $50 limit - for a while anyway.
Pet peeve: players who are annoying and dealers who do nothing about it. Case in point: last weekend I was playing in the 4-8 game and one of the players ALWAYS flung his chips onto the table so that most of the time one or two of them rolled away and/or splashed the pot. On the one hand, it turned out to be a little bit of a tell as to how hard he threw the chips when he did this, but on the other hand it was very annoying most of the time and it was commented on by other players on at least three occasions and the dealer(s) said nothing. Luckily, he went broke early. He was getting on my last poker nerve!
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