#1, now that I'm out of school, I actually have something resembling this glorious "free time" some people have told me about.
Also, I'm heading down to Vegas for the second trip down there of my life in 2 weeks time. I went down years ago with Bruno, Sonny and company, and we had a good time, and I was pretty successful over the course of the trip. Over the years that followed my father's health prevented me from going, and then broadcasting from the Rogers Cup last year prevented me from going. This year, school is over, and the coast is clear so I'm off June 14th to 23rd.
The last reason is I'm getting back into poker much more heavily now. I am fortunate enough to have the luxury of regularily talking to and being friends with some of the top poker players online, and it's really helped take my tournament game from "cash player doing decent in tournies because people suck", to an actual tournament poker player.
For a state of reference, the friends I speak of are Shyam "S_Dot111" Srinivasan, the #10 ranked player in the world on pocketfives, with over $3,750,000 in cashes to his name online.
Griffin "Flush_Entity" Benger is my best friend, we've been known each other for over 10 years now. He's currently ranked #7 on pocketfives, just a hair under $1,500,000 in cashes, most of which has come since January 1st sickly enough.
Ontop of that Andrew "Drewfus81" St.Jean, also just under $1,500,000 in cashes is one of the smartest players I've spoken to about poker.
In any event, there are a few others, but I'm not writing this to run a resume of players, I'm just emphasizing my fortune to live in Toronto right now, and have met all of them and have a healthy friendship with all of them(some of whom I met merely through Griffin), and be able to talk poker. If there's one thing that helps more than anything else(besides practice) in becoming a better poker player, it's knowing people that are significantly better than you are at the game. Fortunately for me, I know several.
So on the backs of that, I've started to get back into online tournament poker, pretty heavily now that I'm done school and have the time to dedicate to the game again.
My first day post school playing poker I made the final table of the $100 rebuy on Pokerstars, and finished 4th for $2700. Ran pretty bad at the final table in one key hand where in a limped pot(me in the BB), I check called a bet on a Kc/Qd/7c flop holding 9c/4c, and turned gin with the 3c, but ran into Ac/6c to cripple me. After that I lost AQ to 66 for my last 17 BB.
The same night I also final tabled the $75 buyin 7:00 on Full Tilt, finishing 2nd, also for $2700. This I felt was more fair, I ran the tournament from about 30 players left, never losing chip lead until we got 4 handed and the player I lost to heads up went on an insane run knocking out the other 2 in the span of 3 hands to hold a huge chip lead. I worked my way back to almost even, then had AQ vs A6 for almost all the chips, wound up having the board counterfiet me with 2 pair to chop, lost a big pot with top pair to 2 pair, and could never recover.
Which brings me to tonight, where I made deep runs in a few things again. The $30 1r1a on FTP, which I was 6th in chips in with 15 left, when these two hands happened in the span of 5 minutes(both were for the chip lead in the tourney)...
Full Tilt Poker Game #30852645590: $5,000 Guarantee (1r+1a) (239381202), Table 10 - 300/600 Ante 75 - No Limit Hold'em - 05:07:55 ET - 2011/06/03
Seat 1: Igi1979 (10,869)
Seat 2: Wilenius (8,973)
Seat 4: DIMJR (18,510)
Seat 5: ShowMeTheMouni (37,072)
Seat 7: tomy gyula (30,134)
Seat 9: crystal_donkey (23,276)
Igi1979 antes 75
Wilenius antes 75
DIMJR antes 75
ShowMeTheMouni antes 75
tomy gyula antes 75
crystal_donkey antes 75
Wilenius posts the small blind of 300
DIMJR posts the big blind of 600
The button is in seat #1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to crystal_donkey [Kh Ah]
ShowMeTheMouni folds
tomy gyula folds
crystal_donkey raises to 1,350
Igi1979 folds
Wilenius folds
DIMJR raises to 4,800
ShowMeTheMouni is feeling normal
crystal_donkey raises to 23,201, and is all in
DIMJR calls 13,635, and is all in
crystal_donkey shows [Kh Ah]
DIMJR shows [Ac Jh]
Uncalled bet of 4,766 returned to crystal_donkey
*** FLOP *** [6d 4s Qd]
*** TURN *** [6d 4s Qd] [4h]
*** RIVER *** [6d 4s Qd 4h] [6h]
crystal_donkey shows two pair, Sixes and Fours
DIMJR shows two pair, Sixes and Fours
DIMJR ties for the pot (18,810) with two pair, Sixes and Fours
crystal_donkey ties for the pot (18,810) with two pair, Sixes and Fours
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 37,620 | Rake 0
Board: [6d 4s Qd 4h 6h]
Seat 1: Igi1979 (button) folded before the Flop
Seat 2: Wilenius (small blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 4: DIMJR (big blind) showed [Ac Jh] and won (18,810) with two pair, Sixes and Fours
Seat 5: ShowMeTheMouni folded before the Flop
Seat 7: tomy gyula folded before the Flop
Seat 9: crystal_donkey showed [Kh Ah] and won (18,810) with two pair, Sixes and Fours
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Full Tilt Poker Game #30852688300: $5,000 Guarantee (1r+1a) (239381202), Table 10 - 300/600 Ante 75 - No Limit Hold'em - 05:13:04 ET - 2011/06/03
Seat 1: Igi1979 (9,444)
Seat 2: Wilenius (13,398)
Seat 4: DIMJR (26,280)
Seat 5: ShowMeTheMouni (30,397)
Seat 7: tomy gyula (26,939)
Seat 9: crystal_donkey (22,376)
Igi1979 antes 75
Wilenius antes 75
DIMJR antes 75
ShowMeTheMouni antes 75
tomy gyula antes 75
crystal_donkey antes 75
DIMJR posts the small blind of 300
ShowMeTheMouni posts the big blind of 600
The button is in seat #2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to crystal_donkey [Ac Ts]
tomy gyula folds
crystal_donkey raises to 1,350
Igi1979 folds
Wilenius folds
DIMJR calls 1,050
ShowMeTheMouni calls 750
*** FLOP *** [Ah 7d Td]
DIMJR checks
ShowMeTheMouni checks
crystal_donkey bets 1,980
DIMJR folds
ShowMeTheMouni raises to 28,972, and is all in
crystal_donkey calls 18,971, and is all in
ShowMeTheMouni shows [7c As]
crystal_donkey shows [Ac Ts]
Uncalled bet of 8,021 returned to ShowMeTheMouni
*** TURN *** [Ah 7d Td] [7s]
*** RIVER *** [Ah 7d Td 7s] [2s]
ShowMeTheMouni shows a full house, Sevens full of Aces
crystal_donkey shows two pair, Aces and Tens
ShowMeTheMouni wins the pot (46,402) with a full house, Sevens full of Aces
Wilenius: wow
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 46,402 | Rake 0
Board: [Ah 7d Td 7s 2s]
Seat 1: Igi1979 folded before the Flop
Seat 2: Wilenius (button) folded before the Flop
Seat 4: DIMJR (small blind) folded on the Flop
Seat 5: ShowMeTheMouni (big blind) showed [7c As] and won (46,402) with a full house, Sevens full of Aces
Seat 7: tomy gyula folded before the Flop
Seat 9: crystal_donkey showed [Ac Ts] and lost with two pair, Aces and Tens
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Oh well...
The other tournament I made a deep run in was the $75 Multi Entry on FTP(despite the horrible start time of 2:00am, I cannot stress enough to anyone who doesn't work and can find the ability to play, how easy this tournament is. Especially being able to enter 4x, it is a license to print money.) The player field is abysmal, the prizes are decent($9,500 gtd, it usually goes over, usually somewhere near $3k for first), and again, the field is abysmal beyond words that have been invented in the english language.
This tournament again, I was chip leader, or close to it, for a large chunk of the tournament, made final table 2nd out of the 9 in chips.
First significant hand of final table for me happened 7 handed. I'm thinking upon reflection maybe this can be a fold, I'm not really sure. It looks super standard, but Villain in the hand had been super, super snug so far since I had sat with him, so maybe on reflection it's foldable. Still not sure because it's so small, think I just had to go with it...
Full Tilt Poker Game #30853420082: $9,500 Guarantee (239382577), Table 5 - 800/1600 Ante 200 - No Limit Hold'em - 06:34:43 ET - 2011/06/03
Seat 3: FexAA (85,219)
Seat 4: Nanys (87,123)
Seat 5: oOspidiOo (32,976)
Seat 6: crystal_donkey (85,495)
Seat 7: politiano (40,744)
Seat 8: PapaRundle (105,050)
Seat 9: Lord Scratch (19,393)
FexAA antes 200
Nanys antes 200
oOspidiOo antes 200
crystal_donkey antes 200
politiano antes 200
PapaRundle antes 200
Lord Scratch antes 200
FexAA posts the small blind of 800
Nanys posts the big blind of 1,600
The button is in seat #9
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to crystal_donkey [Td As]
oOspidiOo folds
crystal_donkey raises to 3,350
politiano folds
PapaRundle folds
Lord Scratch raises to 19,193, and is all in
FexAA folds
Nanys folds
crystal_donkey calls 15,843
Lord Scratch shows [Ad Ah]
crystal_donkey shows [Td As]
*** FLOP *** [Tc 8h Kh]
*** TURN *** [Tc 8h Kh] [Ac]
*** RIVER *** [Tc 8h Kh Ac] [2c]
Lord Scratch shows three of a kind, Aces
crystal_donkey shows two pair, Aces and Tens
Lord Scratch wins the pot (42,186) with three of a kind, Aces
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 42,186 | Rake 0
Board: [Tc 8h Kh Ac 2c]
Seat 3: FexAA (small blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 4: Nanys (big blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 5: oOspidiOo folded before the Flop
Seat 6: crystal_donkey showed [Td As] and lost with two pair, Aces and Tens
Seat 7: politiano folded before the Flop
Seat 8: PapaRundle folded before the Flop
Seat 9: Lord Scratch (button) showed [Ad Ah] and won (42,186) with three of a kind, Aces
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
The next significant hand I played was a while later, had kind of hovered around for a bit, struggled to find alot of good steal spots with a cannon with a massive stack two to my left, but was finding a way to survive until this hand. I might not flat here against more competent players, but I don't hate flatting here in tournaments where people won't understand that I'm only ever flatting with this stack as a trap. Turns out it wouldn't have mattered either way, just as a point of interest I prefer flatting here. This guy had been relatively agressively opening, so I want to give him a chance to give me it all rather than take 5k from him by 3-betting.
Full Tilt Poker Game #30853593909: $9,500 Guarantee (239382577), Table 5 - 1000/2000 Ante 250 - No Limit Hold'em - 06:51:22 ET - 2011/06/03
Seat 3: FexAA (128,395)
Seat 6: crystal_donkey (46,002)
Seat 7: politiano (91,094)
Seat 8: PapaRundle (156,673)
Seat 9: Lord Scratch (33,836)
FexAA antes 250
crystal_donkey antes 250
politiano antes 250
PapaRundle antes 250
Lord Scratch antes 250
PapaRundle posts the small blind of 1,000
Lord Scratch posts the big blind of 2,000
The button is in seat #7
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to crystal_donkey [Ks Kd]
FexAA raises to 5,000
crystal_donkey calls 5,000
politiano folds
PapaRundle folds
Lord Scratch has 15 seconds left to act
Lord Scratch folds
*** FLOP *** [7s Ts 3h]
FexAA checks
crystal_donkey bets 6,800
FexAA raises to 44,000
crystal_donkey calls 33,952, and is all in
FexAA shows [Qh Qc]
crystal_donkey shows [Ks Kd]
Uncalled bet of 3,248 returned to FexAA
*** TURN *** [7s Ts 3h] [8d]
*** RIVER *** [7s Ts 3h 8d] [Jh]
FexAA shows a pair of Queens
crystal_donkey shows a pair of Kings
crystal_donkey wins the pot (95,754) with a pair of Kings
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 95,754 | Rake 0
Board: [7s Ts 3h 8d Jh]
Seat 3: FexAA showed [Qh Qc] and lost with a pair of Queens
Seat 6: crystal_donkey showed [Ks Kd] and won (95,754) with a pair of Kings
Seat 7: politiano (button) folded before the Flop
Seat 8: PapaRundle (small blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 9: Lord Scratch (big blind) folded before the Flop
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
After that, things kind of took some time and evened out among everyone chip wise, the next significant pot I played was this one. In this hand the starting hand was irrelevant, I had been really quiet for a bit while some pretty insane action had been going, so I felt it was a good time to open, so I did basically ignoring my cards. On the flop I make a standard c-bet, he flats again and the turn isn't great completing a flush draw, but it does add outs to my hand as well, when he checks again I'm basically done with the hand, but still hoping to get involved again if the river completes my draw which it did. At that point it was just about finding value. Felt like the size of the bet was really good.
Full Tilt Poker Game #30853757946: $9,500 Guarantee (239382577), Table 5 - 1200/2400 Ante 300 - No Limit Hold'em - 07:07:32 ET - 2011/06/03
Seat 3: FexAA (84,043)
Seat 6: crystal_donkey (77,954)
Seat 7: politiano (90,744)
Seat 8: PapaRundle (105,587)
Seat 9: Lord Scratch (97,672)
FexAA antes 300
crystal_donkey antes 300
politiano antes 300
PapaRundle antes 300
Lord Scratch antes 300
PapaRundle posts the small blind of 1,200
Lord Scratch posts the big blind of 2,400
The button is in seat #7
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to crystal_donkey [3s 8s]
FexAA folds
crystal_donkey raises to 4,950
politiano folds
PapaRundle folds
Lord Scratch calls 2,550
*** FLOP *** [6c 9c Ad]
Lord Scratch checks
crystal_donkey bets 5,890
Lord Scratch calls 5,890
*** TURN *** [6c 9c Ad] [7c]
Lord Scratch checks
apocaliptul (Observer): fex da dove sei?
apocaliptul (Observer): fratelo
crystal_donkey checks
*** RIVER *** [6c 9c Ad 7c] [5h]
Lord Scratch checks
PapaRundle: come on guys...
crystal_donkey bets 14,890
Lord Scratch has 15 seconds left to act
Lord Scratch has requested TIME
apocaliptul (Observer): e tu politiano?
PapaRundle: lets not get fu.cking rediculous here
Lord Scratch calls 14,890
*** SHOW DOWN ***
crystal_donkey shows [3s 8s] a straight, Nine high
Lord Scratch mucks
crystal_donkey wins the pot (54,160) with a straight, Nine high
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 54,160 | Rake 0
Board: [6c 9c Ad 7c 5h]
Seat 3: FexAA folded before the Flop
Seat 6: crystal_donkey showed [3s 8s] and won (54,160) with a straight, Nine high
Seat 7: politiano (button) folded before the Flop
Seat 8: PapaRundle (small blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 9: Lord Scratch (big blind) mucked [As Js] - a pair of Aces
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
A short while later a standard scam hand for the unfortunate BB happens and I'm in good shape.
Full Tilt Poker Game #30853817429: $9,500 Guarantee (239382577), Table 5 - 1200/2400 Ante 300 - No Limit Hold'em - 07:12:49 ET - 2011/06/03
Seat 3: FexAA (72,733)
Seat 6: crystal_donkey (97,984)
Seat 7: politiano (72,744)
Seat 8: PapaRundle (123,287)
Seat 9: Lord Scratch (89,252)
FexAA antes 300
crystal_donkey antes 300
politiano antes 300
PapaRundle antes 300
Lord Scratch antes 300
crystal_donkey posts the small blind of 1,200
politiano posts the big blind of 2,400
The button is in seat #3
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to crystal_donkey [Qs Qh]
nic-lorrrr (Observer): puntando col progetto..
PapaRundle folds
Lord Scratch folds
apocaliptul (Observer): dai fex
FexAA raises to 5,400
apocaliptul (Observer): non fa niente
crystal_donkey raises to 13,600
politiano raises to 72,444, and is all in
FexAA folds
crystal_donkey calls 58,844
politiano shows [9s 9d]
crystal_donkey shows [Qs Qh]
*** FLOP *** [Jh Ts 3d]
*** TURN *** [Jh Ts 3d] [4h]
*** RIVER *** [Jh Ts 3d 4h] [4d]
politiano shows two pair, Nines and Fours
crystal_donkey shows two pair, Queens and Fours
crystal_donkey wins the pot (151,788) with two pair, Queens and Fours
apocaliptul (Observer): NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 151,788 | Rake 0
Board: [Jh Ts 3d 4h 4d]
Seat 3: FexAA (button) folded before the Flop
Seat 6: crystal_donkey (small blind) showed [Qs Qh] and won (151,788) with two pair, Queens and Fours
Seat 7: politiano (big blind) showed [9s 9d] and lost with two pair, Nines and Fours
Seat 8: PapaRundle folded before the Flop
Seat 9: Lord Scratch folded before the Flop
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Eventually we ended up heads up from there, the last hand of heads up, I closed the window before I copy and pasted the hand history, I cracked QQ with 3c/4c on a 2/5/9 flop to win the tournament and the $3,000 first prize.
So check back with some regularity, the blog will be getting updated more regularily from here on out.
Friday, June 3, 2011
Saturday, June 26, 2010
What's this....a poker blog you say?
I actually was reminded of this fairly recently by a friend of mine who brought it up and spoke pretty glowingly of it, so I figured I'd update it. Once again this doesn't necessarily contain specific poker stuff(although I do promise I'm going to try and start updating this with specific poker hands and results soon). It will be an overview of where I'm at now, and what's been going on in my life, and my poker "career".
Let's start with the obvious. I finished Year 1 at my school, and just had my year end review interview where I spoke at length with my teachers about where I think I see myself going, and what they see me doing, as well as getting back my "marks"(although marks aren't really super important at this particular school, it's more about impressing the teachers so they think of you when opportunities present themselves) back. That said, brag time, my marks were basically across the board fantastic, and the meeting went as well as I could hope(it's always nice when the people who hold the key to your future and all the contacts you need and opportunities you'll be presented in their hands tell you they think you're doing great and you're a pleasure to be around). Ironically one of my highest marks came in writing, so let me be the first to tell you all how incredibly blessed you are to be reading my genious poured out before you ;)
Right now I have a summer job, paid surprisingly, in the industry editing together a ton of stock footage for a new website that's being launched, which occupies a fair bit of time but ultimately nothing too serious(~30 hours a week, a nice, fairly light work week with decent pay). I also have a couple internships on the go, and a couple more potentially starting.
So so far, the future looks so bright I gotta wear shades. If only I owned a pair....
As for poker, I'm trying to make the transition from SNG grinder to MTT player, and it's naturally been a bit of a process, but with the aid of some friends who are way more comfortable than I at tournament poker, it's coming along fairly quickly.
I'd like to give a shout out to one of those friends here, my old roommate Griffin, who has had a brilliant month of June :
1st in the FTP $100k guarantee for $24,000
1st in the FTP $25k guarantee for $8,200
1st in the Pokerstars $33k guarantee for $6,500
Won a FTP $12k WSOP seat package
3rd in the FTP $25k guarantee for $3,300
Obviously an enviable month, hopefully soon I'll have some results like that to share. I've learned alot lately, and I'm starting to get real comfortable playing tournament poker, so I feel like that time is coming relatively soon.
Since I'm on a roll, one more thing I feel like talking about, and that's the G20 summit in Toronto. Although I'm not in the designated "red zone" where all the fences are up, I'm about 3 blocks from it...and this morning I woke up to the sounds of sirens, which basically haven't stopped all day...the sounds of army helicopters flying over head, the visual of black smoke clouds from cop cars on fire, and reports that the city is being smashed apart by protestors.
I will never understand how smashing the hell out of a store is helping prove a point. I will never understand why people can't behave in a civil manner when protesting(or when they win, if you haven't seen the video of the cab being smashed in LA after the Lakers win, see if you can find it, it's deeply disturbing that people call that celebrating), but more to the point, I will never understand why this city did such a terrible job organizing this, or why it's even here.
First of all, if you're holding something like this, there is a perfectly great area to hold it just outside of the city, it's photo friendly, and it's much easier to shut down and contain(I'm talking about the area around Molson Ampitheatre and The Ex.
Secondly, are you telling me there was no way to alert people inside the red zone exactly what protocol was going to be heading into the event? The event started and suddenly they started arresting anyone who was within 5 meters of the fences that didn't have ID. Nice work. A word of warning would have been nice next time.
This whole thing has been so rediculous, and such a drain on this city in so many ways. I don't even understand why the thing needs to be in a major city, take it somewhere where this chaos may not happen and shut down major sections of the city. Honestly, this shit happens every year with the protestors, why don't you stop plopping it in the center of major cities?
Oh, and not to mention I had my fun when on Friday I was stopped by 8 cops on bikes who circled me while they made me empty my schoolbag(nowhere near the red zone walking through a park).
So ya, good for the G20.
That's about it, hope you enjoyed the read, maybe next time I'll come bearing stories of glorious triumphs....
But probably not. I run really bad.
Let's start with the obvious. I finished Year 1 at my school, and just had my year end review interview where I spoke at length with my teachers about where I think I see myself going, and what they see me doing, as well as getting back my "marks"(although marks aren't really super important at this particular school, it's more about impressing the teachers so they think of you when opportunities present themselves) back. That said, brag time, my marks were basically across the board fantastic, and the meeting went as well as I could hope(it's always nice when the people who hold the key to your future and all the contacts you need and opportunities you'll be presented in their hands tell you they think you're doing great and you're a pleasure to be around). Ironically one of my highest marks came in writing, so let me be the first to tell you all how incredibly blessed you are to be reading my genious poured out before you ;)
Right now I have a summer job, paid surprisingly, in the industry editing together a ton of stock footage for a new website that's being launched, which occupies a fair bit of time but ultimately nothing too serious(~30 hours a week, a nice, fairly light work week with decent pay). I also have a couple internships on the go, and a couple more potentially starting.
So so far, the future looks so bright I gotta wear shades. If only I owned a pair....
As for poker, I'm trying to make the transition from SNG grinder to MTT player, and it's naturally been a bit of a process, but with the aid of some friends who are way more comfortable than I at tournament poker, it's coming along fairly quickly.
I'd like to give a shout out to one of those friends here, my old roommate Griffin, who has had a brilliant month of June :
1st in the FTP $100k guarantee for $24,000
1st in the FTP $25k guarantee for $8,200
1st in the Pokerstars $33k guarantee for $6,500
Won a FTP $12k WSOP seat package
3rd in the FTP $25k guarantee for $3,300
Obviously an enviable month, hopefully soon I'll have some results like that to share. I've learned alot lately, and I'm starting to get real comfortable playing tournament poker, so I feel like that time is coming relatively soon.
Since I'm on a roll, one more thing I feel like talking about, and that's the G20 summit in Toronto. Although I'm not in the designated "red zone" where all the fences are up, I'm about 3 blocks from it...and this morning I woke up to the sounds of sirens, which basically haven't stopped all day...the sounds of army helicopters flying over head, the visual of black smoke clouds from cop cars on fire, and reports that the city is being smashed apart by protestors.
I will never understand how smashing the hell out of a store is helping prove a point. I will never understand why people can't behave in a civil manner when protesting(or when they win, if you haven't seen the video of the cab being smashed in LA after the Lakers win, see if you can find it, it's deeply disturbing that people call that celebrating), but more to the point, I will never understand why this city did such a terrible job organizing this, or why it's even here.
First of all, if you're holding something like this, there is a perfectly great area to hold it just outside of the city, it's photo friendly, and it's much easier to shut down and contain(I'm talking about the area around Molson Ampitheatre and The Ex.
Secondly, are you telling me there was no way to alert people inside the red zone exactly what protocol was going to be heading into the event? The event started and suddenly they started arresting anyone who was within 5 meters of the fences that didn't have ID. Nice work. A word of warning would have been nice next time.
This whole thing has been so rediculous, and such a drain on this city in so many ways. I don't even understand why the thing needs to be in a major city, take it somewhere where this chaos may not happen and shut down major sections of the city. Honestly, this shit happens every year with the protestors, why don't you stop plopping it in the center of major cities?
Oh, and not to mention I had my fun when on Friday I was stopped by 8 cops on bikes who circled me while they made me empty my schoolbag(nowhere near the red zone walking through a park).
So ya, good for the G20.
That's about it, hope you enjoyed the read, maybe next time I'll come bearing stories of glorious triumphs....
But probably not. I run really bad.
Monday, October 12, 2009
What's this feeling of happiness?
Well, this summer was rough to say the least, I wrote a couple blogs that expressed what was happening in my life this summer so I won't rehash it now. Suffice it to say, summer was long and not as much fun as most people try and have during a summer.
With that said, there's this odd sensation sweeping over me. I think I remember it as "happiness", from well before the summer began.
Life is good for me right now, I got into the school I wanted to go to, a private school for Sports Broadcasting. The resumes of the teachers that I have in this semester alone is astonishing...
TV Writing - Jim Van Horne(worked at TSN forever)
TV Presentation - Jim Van Horne
Radio Writing - Elliotte Friedman(worked at Fan 590 and The Score before his current job on Hockey Night in Canada)
Radio Presentation - David Amber(worked at TSN for a number of years, then got hired onto ESPN)
Camera Operation - Dawn Landis(director of Off The Record and CFL on TSN)
Radio Editing - Ray Williams(has worked on the radio for almost 40 years)
New Media - Roger Lajoie(Fan 590 as well as about 14 other jobs)
TV Editing - Graham Holmes(lead editor at The Score)
School's been a blast, and after one month(ironically as I write this), I've been told I have a knack for writing, and I've already gotten an internship from the school working for www.rotoworld.com
So that's been going great, it's alot of fun, learning alot, getting cool contacts and opportunities presented like crazy.
As for the focus on the blog, which is poker, well, that's been going pretty damn well lately also actually.
I've been steadily dominating the mid-teirs of SNG's on FTP for a little while. My ROI in $50+5 9 man SNG's is a steady 10%, and my ROI at the $69+6 45 man SNG's is a pretty zany 123%. So money is good too right now.
Have money to spend, awesome school life, and happiness with what I'm doing right now in poker because I feel like I'm one of the very best SNG players in the mid levels on the site right now, have absolute confidence sitting down at any table now, and am getting results to go in line with my feelings.
My SNG style is adapting slowly. I've gone almost completely away from the math based "SNG Wizard" approach to the games, and I'm actually playing a tighter style, I hate to draw this comparison because it's a real sore spot for alot of players, but I guess you could kind of compare it to the "Phil Hellmuth" approach. I just feel like I'm better than making marginal shoves with weak hands that SNG Wizard thinks turns a small profit. While the play may be profitable, it may not be the best path to winning...and I think a ton of players look at plays in a bubble now("is this unexploitably profitable?") and forget that there's a finish line we're working towards, and that the particular hand isn't the end of the SNG. As I play more, I find myself getting more comfortable around SNG play, and developing a style I feel is somewhat unique for the SNG's which have become oh-so robotic lately.
I know it's early to give out a New Years Resolution because it's not New Years, but I already know what mine is for poker.
This year a close friend of mine made a run at, and still sits somewhere(not sure where exactly) on the Sharkscope leaderboard for the $30-100 level.
It is my goal next year to finish top 5 on that leadboard.
Also since I have next summer off, I fully plan to make a return to Las Vegas next summer, and get back into tourney life down there. I've missed it the last 2 years.
With that said, there's this odd sensation sweeping over me. I think I remember it as "happiness", from well before the summer began.
Life is good for me right now, I got into the school I wanted to go to, a private school for Sports Broadcasting. The resumes of the teachers that I have in this semester alone is astonishing...
TV Writing - Jim Van Horne(worked at TSN forever)
TV Presentation - Jim Van Horne
Radio Writing - Elliotte Friedman(worked at Fan 590 and The Score before his current job on Hockey Night in Canada)
Radio Presentation - David Amber(worked at TSN for a number of years, then got hired onto ESPN)
Camera Operation - Dawn Landis(director of Off The Record and CFL on TSN)
Radio Editing - Ray Williams(has worked on the radio for almost 40 years)
New Media - Roger Lajoie(Fan 590 as well as about 14 other jobs)
TV Editing - Graham Holmes(lead editor at The Score)
School's been a blast, and after one month(ironically as I write this), I've been told I have a knack for writing, and I've already gotten an internship from the school working for www.rotoworld.com
So that's been going great, it's alot of fun, learning alot, getting cool contacts and opportunities presented like crazy.
As for the focus on the blog, which is poker, well, that's been going pretty damn well lately also actually.
I've been steadily dominating the mid-teirs of SNG's on FTP for a little while. My ROI in $50+5 9 man SNG's is a steady 10%, and my ROI at the $69+6 45 man SNG's is a pretty zany 123%. So money is good too right now.
Have money to spend, awesome school life, and happiness with what I'm doing right now in poker because I feel like I'm one of the very best SNG players in the mid levels on the site right now, have absolute confidence sitting down at any table now, and am getting results to go in line with my feelings.
My SNG style is adapting slowly. I've gone almost completely away from the math based "SNG Wizard" approach to the games, and I'm actually playing a tighter style, I hate to draw this comparison because it's a real sore spot for alot of players, but I guess you could kind of compare it to the "Phil Hellmuth" approach. I just feel like I'm better than making marginal shoves with weak hands that SNG Wizard thinks turns a small profit. While the play may be profitable, it may not be the best path to winning...and I think a ton of players look at plays in a bubble now("is this unexploitably profitable?") and forget that there's a finish line we're working towards, and that the particular hand isn't the end of the SNG. As I play more, I find myself getting more comfortable around SNG play, and developing a style I feel is somewhat unique for the SNG's which have become oh-so robotic lately.
I know it's early to give out a New Years Resolution because it's not New Years, but I already know what mine is for poker.
This year a close friend of mine made a run at, and still sits somewhere(not sure where exactly) on the Sharkscope leaderboard for the $30-100 level.
It is my goal next year to finish top 5 on that leadboard.
Also since I have next summer off, I fully plan to make a return to Las Vegas next summer, and get back into tourney life down there. I've missed it the last 2 years.
Monday, July 27, 2009
A little thing called perspective...
No one's ever said poker players as a group are the most rationally thinking people in the world. Anyone who plays a card game for a living has to have just a little bit of weird in them, of that I am convinced.
With that said, most players are kind, normal people who are fun to be around. Except at one key time. The dreaded bad beat.
I recently starting playing MTT's online, en masse. I've been playing them alot, and one thing I noticed, outside of the complete lack of any level of skill or comprehension of poker in the slightest by about 99.99% of players, is "how bad I run" in them.
In fairness(and this is where perspective comes in), I've only been at it for a week, and I've gotten deep in 3 MTT's so far, making final two tables 3 times and final table twice.
In the latest one, I lost with 77 vs JJ on a 5/5/6/J/7 board early in the MTT(1200 players), and was down to 180 chips with blinds at 50/100. Fast forward a pretty amazing 4 hours, and we're final 13 and I'm 2nd in chips. That's when I get all in with the CL preflop, AA vs QQ, and he spikes a Q on the turn. Shit happens.
It's funny to me looking back now, at the perspective I've gained. At the time that happened, I was pretty pissed, complaining at how bad I run at key moments in MTT's like that.
So with that said, let me present the real definition of running bad :
In my last update, I talked about my dad going into the hospital for what would be the last time. That ended last Sunday, when he passed away. It sucked, clearly. It tore a hole through me, but with that said, I "dealt" with it, it was somewhat of a relief to see him put out of the agony he was in the last week or so of his life...so in that I found something I could take solace in, and things were okay.
Monday, the day after he passed away, we received a phone call from Orillia where my grandmother(mom's side) lives, she had suffered a severe stroke and was in the hospital. Well...isn't that fucking fun. So, naturally, we went up there to visit and we tended to that, mom, while dealing with losing dad, was now dealing with that.
Tuesday, the day after that, we got a call back from the hospital, from my grandmother, who was speaking, so that was amazing since on Monday when we went up she couldn't speak. Things were looking up.
Wednesday, on the dad of the visitation for my dad, we got a call back from the hospital again, saying they were transporting grandma to the hospital in Barrie because she needed emergency surgery. Oh, that sucks alot.
Thursday, we had the funeral for dad. We heard back from the hospital that things were okay with grandma, but the operation hadn't fully taken, they were going to have to do another one in a few days once she built up the strength again.
Skip ahead a few days...and we come to the latest in a string of "Fuck You"'s directed right at me and my family.
Today(Sunday), I am writing this in a notepad file on my computer...instead of in the blogger site like I normally do? Why? Because I can't log on the internet.
Why? Well, today we had a really bad storm and my house was hit by lightning. So far the losses are 3 TV's, 2 cable boxes and my modem/home phone(although those'll be replaced by the cable company), a portable air conditioner, a microwave, our dryer, a freezer and the garage door(electronically opened and closed).
So ya, looking back now at AA vs QQ, for what was a collosal chip lead with 12 left in a tourney with $6k for first place...seems so petty.
It's all a matter of perspective. Next time a bad beat twists you up, keep in mind : It could be alot worse.
Trust me.
With that said, most players are kind, normal people who are fun to be around. Except at one key time. The dreaded bad beat.
I recently starting playing MTT's online, en masse. I've been playing them alot, and one thing I noticed, outside of the complete lack of any level of skill or comprehension of poker in the slightest by about 99.99% of players, is "how bad I run" in them.
In fairness(and this is where perspective comes in), I've only been at it for a week, and I've gotten deep in 3 MTT's so far, making final two tables 3 times and final table twice.
In the latest one, I lost with 77 vs JJ on a 5/5/6/J/7 board early in the MTT(1200 players), and was down to 180 chips with blinds at 50/100. Fast forward a pretty amazing 4 hours, and we're final 13 and I'm 2nd in chips. That's when I get all in with the CL preflop, AA vs QQ, and he spikes a Q on the turn. Shit happens.
It's funny to me looking back now, at the perspective I've gained. At the time that happened, I was pretty pissed, complaining at how bad I run at key moments in MTT's like that.
So with that said, let me present the real definition of running bad :
In my last update, I talked about my dad going into the hospital for what would be the last time. That ended last Sunday, when he passed away. It sucked, clearly. It tore a hole through me, but with that said, I "dealt" with it, it was somewhat of a relief to see him put out of the agony he was in the last week or so of his life...so in that I found something I could take solace in, and things were okay.
Monday, the day after he passed away, we received a phone call from Orillia where my grandmother(mom's side) lives, she had suffered a severe stroke and was in the hospital. Well...isn't that fucking fun. So, naturally, we went up there to visit and we tended to that, mom, while dealing with losing dad, was now dealing with that.
Tuesday, the day after that, we got a call back from the hospital, from my grandmother, who was speaking, so that was amazing since on Monday when we went up she couldn't speak. Things were looking up.
Wednesday, on the dad of the visitation for my dad, we got a call back from the hospital again, saying they were transporting grandma to the hospital in Barrie because she needed emergency surgery. Oh, that sucks alot.
Thursday, we had the funeral for dad. We heard back from the hospital that things were okay with grandma, but the operation hadn't fully taken, they were going to have to do another one in a few days once she built up the strength again.
Skip ahead a few days...and we come to the latest in a string of "Fuck You"'s directed right at me and my family.
Today(Sunday), I am writing this in a notepad file on my computer...instead of in the blogger site like I normally do? Why? Because I can't log on the internet.
Why? Well, today we had a really bad storm and my house was hit by lightning. So far the losses are 3 TV's, 2 cable boxes and my modem/home phone(although those'll be replaced by the cable company), a portable air conditioner, a microwave, our dryer, a freezer and the garage door(electronically opened and closed).
So ya, looking back now at AA vs QQ, for what was a collosal chip lead with 12 left in a tourney with $6k for first place...seems so petty.
It's all a matter of perspective. Next time a bad beat twists you up, keep in mind : It could be alot worse.
Trust me.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Life : What really matters?
I've been asked alot lately, but alot of friends that went down, be it co-workers at the casino I work at or one of the many, many friends I have that play poker if I'm going to Vegas, and why I'm not.
The answer is simple, and granted somewhat tragic. My father's health is very, very bad. Infact, he's in the hospital right now, and it doesn't look likely that he'll ever be checking out.
I say somewhat tragic because it's something I've had ample time to prepare for. My father was diagnosed with cancer 13 years ago now, and the day he was diagnosed, he was given 6 months to live. I still remember that day, more than any other day of my entire life on this earth. I was in Grade 10, and suddenly was dealing with this bombshell.
However, thankfully, my dad endured. Can't say I'm entirely surprised, he was always(this is somewhat cliched because everyone says this it seems) a tough man, and always stubborn, so it seemed natural that he'd piss on the 6 month diagnosis.
In truth, the doctors here in Hamilton have done absolute miracles with him, Dr.Davis specifically who was assigned his cancer doctor way back when, has since written several papers on the treatments he's given dad to keep him alive since that diagnosis...because it "shouldn't" be possible. So, I guess there's what the kids call a "shout-out" to him.
Now, why am I mentioning this/pissing on your day by letting you read this?
Well, as I said, his health is terrible now, his liver has completely failed, he's hooked up to a pump that's supplementing his liver and keeping him alive right now.
Seeing him in that state, kind of put life into perspective.
And this is where we take a plot twist...
Normally when someone in poker writes something like this, they make a long speech about how family is important, etc etc, and talk about how they're quitting the game to focus on what's important.
Fuck that.
Here's what the perspective I got was. Not just do what makes you happy...that's simplistic.
Instead, find what you were meant to do, and never leave it.
If that's waiting bars, working at McDonalds, or being spun out on crystal meth, don't shy away. Do what you love to do, do what you were meant to do.
I read back through this blog's history and old posts and I wonder how I managed to fuck this up so thoroughly. I read back to 2007, when I was playing poker full time, and I read the blog from that year and it's me having the time of my life, travelling like crazy, playing poker, making great money at it. I read about my Vegas trip, where I went down to Vegas for the first(and sadly only time so far) that year, and cashed in a WSOP event(my first one...obviously), and ended up coming back up nearly $10k for the 2 week trip.
And what happened next? What happened in 2008 and 2009? I took a job at a casino, and granted I still play poker, I kind of paused my "career" for the most part, to make safe money, and to take care of my father. It's not something I regret necessarily, but I do wish I had been more active in poker over the last year and a half now. I may even have had enough spare money to have taken him on a few more trips he wanted. I did get him out for one or two, but there were more I wish I had the opportunity to take him on.
Anyway, the basic gist of the post I wanted to get across is. If poker's important to you, if it's something you love to do, and you're good at...fuck "real life", poker is real life, and if it makes you happy, do it.
I regret not doing it, but mine eyes are clear now. It's time to get back into the saddle, as they say. I've already been starting, putting in huge volumes of sit-n-goes for a little bit now on FTP, and that will be continuing...and obviously not right now because of his health, but soon I'll be starting to travel and playing live again, because I loved it, and I miss it. It's kind of pathetic that it took this to wake me up to that fact, but such is life.
I leave you with something going back to the reasoning behind the article...and something inspiring/moving I read(or heard as the case may be) recently.
One of, if not flat out my favourite band in the world, Dream Theater, has a new album coming out next month, which I've already listened to for a little while now. Track 5 of the album is entitled "The Best Of Times", written by the drummer Mike Portnoy about his father dying of cancer while the album was being written. It's a beautiful song, and can be found here for anyone that wants to listen to it(the song cuts off at the final 2 minutes or so, which is a guitar solo out-tro) :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYc6kJqX99M
And since Mike Portnoy is a much better poet than I shall ever be, I'll leave you with his words instead of my own :
The answer is simple, and granted somewhat tragic. My father's health is very, very bad. Infact, he's in the hospital right now, and it doesn't look likely that he'll ever be checking out.
I say somewhat tragic because it's something I've had ample time to prepare for. My father was diagnosed with cancer 13 years ago now, and the day he was diagnosed, he was given 6 months to live. I still remember that day, more than any other day of my entire life on this earth. I was in Grade 10, and suddenly was dealing with this bombshell.
However, thankfully, my dad endured. Can't say I'm entirely surprised, he was always(this is somewhat cliched because everyone says this it seems) a tough man, and always stubborn, so it seemed natural that he'd piss on the 6 month diagnosis.
In truth, the doctors here in Hamilton have done absolute miracles with him, Dr.Davis specifically who was assigned his cancer doctor way back when, has since written several papers on the treatments he's given dad to keep him alive since that diagnosis...because it "shouldn't" be possible. So, I guess there's what the kids call a "shout-out" to him.
Now, why am I mentioning this/pissing on your day by letting you read this?
Well, as I said, his health is terrible now, his liver has completely failed, he's hooked up to a pump that's supplementing his liver and keeping him alive right now.
Seeing him in that state, kind of put life into perspective.
And this is where we take a plot twist...
Normally when someone in poker writes something like this, they make a long speech about how family is important, etc etc, and talk about how they're quitting the game to focus on what's important.
Fuck that.
Here's what the perspective I got was. Not just do what makes you happy...that's simplistic.
Instead, find what you were meant to do, and never leave it.
If that's waiting bars, working at McDonalds, or being spun out on crystal meth, don't shy away. Do what you love to do, do what you were meant to do.
I read back through this blog's history and old posts and I wonder how I managed to fuck this up so thoroughly. I read back to 2007, when I was playing poker full time, and I read the blog from that year and it's me having the time of my life, travelling like crazy, playing poker, making great money at it. I read about my Vegas trip, where I went down to Vegas for the first(and sadly only time so far) that year, and cashed in a WSOP event(my first one...obviously), and ended up coming back up nearly $10k for the 2 week trip.
And what happened next? What happened in 2008 and 2009? I took a job at a casino, and granted I still play poker, I kind of paused my "career" for the most part, to make safe money, and to take care of my father. It's not something I regret necessarily, but I do wish I had been more active in poker over the last year and a half now. I may even have had enough spare money to have taken him on a few more trips he wanted. I did get him out for one or two, but there were more I wish I had the opportunity to take him on.
Anyway, the basic gist of the post I wanted to get across is. If poker's important to you, if it's something you love to do, and you're good at...fuck "real life", poker is real life, and if it makes you happy, do it.
I regret not doing it, but mine eyes are clear now. It's time to get back into the saddle, as they say. I've already been starting, putting in huge volumes of sit-n-goes for a little bit now on FTP, and that will be continuing...and obviously not right now because of his health, but soon I'll be starting to travel and playing live again, because I loved it, and I miss it. It's kind of pathetic that it took this to wake me up to that fact, but such is life.
I leave you with something going back to the reasoning behind the article...and something inspiring/moving I read(or heard as the case may be) recently.
One of, if not flat out my favourite band in the world, Dream Theater, has a new album coming out next month, which I've already listened to for a little while now. Track 5 of the album is entitled "The Best Of Times", written by the drummer Mike Portnoy about his father dying of cancer while the album was being written. It's a beautiful song, and can be found here for anyone that wants to listen to it(the song cuts off at the final 2 minutes or so, which is a guitar solo out-tro) :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYc6kJqX99M
And since Mike Portnoy is a much better poet than I shall ever be, I'll leave you with his words instead of my own :
Dream Theater's "The Best of Times"
Remember days of yesterday
And how it flew so fast
The two score and a year we had,
I thought would always last
The summer days and west coast dreams,
I wished would never end
A young boy and his father,
Idol and best friend
I'll always remember
Those were the best of times
A lifetime together
I'll never forget
Morning shows on the radio
The case of the missing dog
Lying on the fields at the only twelve
Watching Harold and Maude
Record shops, the stick-ball fields
My home away from home
When we weren't together
The hours on the phone
I'll always remember
Those were the best of times
I'll cherish them forever
The best of times
But then came the call
Our lives changed forever more
You can pray for a change
But prepare for the end
The fleeting winds of time
Flying through each day
All the things I should have done
But time just slipped away
Remember "seize the day"
Life goes by in the blink of an eye
There's so much left to say
These were the best of times
I'll miss these days
Your spirit led my life each day
Thank you for the inspiration
Thank you for the smiles
All the unconditional love
That carried me for miles
It carried me for miles
But most of all thank you for my life
These were the best of times
I'll miss these days
Your spirit led my life each day
My heart is bleeding bad
But I'll be okay
Your spirit guides my life each day
Remember days of yesterday
And how it flew so fast
The two score and a year we had,
I thought would always last
The summer days and west coast dreams,
I wished would never end
A young boy and his father,
Idol and best friend
I'll always remember
Those were the best of times
A lifetime together
I'll never forget
Morning shows on the radio
The case of the missing dog
Lying on the fields at the only twelve
Watching Harold and Maude
Record shops, the stick-ball fields
My home away from home
When we weren't together
The hours on the phone
I'll always remember
Those were the best of times
I'll cherish them forever
The best of times
But then came the call
Our lives changed forever more
You can pray for a change
But prepare for the end
The fleeting winds of time
Flying through each day
All the things I should have done
But time just slipped away
Remember "seize the day"
Life goes by in the blink of an eye
There's so much left to say
These were the best of times
I'll miss these days
Your spirit led my life each day
Thank you for the inspiration
Thank you for the smiles
All the unconditional love
That carried me for miles
It carried me for miles
But most of all thank you for my life
These were the best of times
I'll miss these days
Your spirit led my life each day
My heart is bleeding bad
But I'll be okay
Your spirit guides my life each day
Thursday, April 16, 2009
I present Fallsview Casino's new slogan : "Where bullshit happens!"
Okay, so, I've been going to Fallsview every once in a while now, still waiting to liquidize my full bankroll and start going several days a week. But after today, I'm honestly not sure. Buckle your seatbelt kiddies, this ride's about to get bumpy :
So, I call up to Fallsview Casino and ask to be put on 2/5 and 5/5 NL lists. I made that call around 2:30pm, I arrive at 3:30pm and find my name isn't on the list. So, after having to argue with the pit boss for a minute that I called(actually resorting to pulling out the trusty iPhone and showing him the exact call log of me calling them at 2:34pm, I'm put back on the list..."somewhere in the middle".
So, about 5:15, I finally get onto a table. So no real inconvenience, only nearly 2 hours of waiting. I'm put on table 8, and right away we have a problem. First hand I sit down some guy spills a glass of beer across the table. So now we have play halted at our table because of beer being all over it, and the dealer starts calling the pit boss over(by the way, I'd never forget this after today, he's got long blonde hair, his name is Michael), who ignores that situation that is holding up a mother fucking live game that has just paid session and now can't play a hand so he can open new tables. He's chillin' over at the opening tables, checking cards and stuff, rather than tending to slightly more pressing issues at hand. Good for him, prioritizing like a champ.
After we get up and running, a full session of 0 hands(not refunded) later, I ask the pit if he can put me on a seat change list to go to table 6 since I have a friend there and I wanna sit with him(he's a Bruins fan, I'm a Habs fan, there needed to be trash talking). As they do that, whenever I ask for that, I make sure to check for my name on the list, ensure they have the seat change put down correctly. I also, always, take stock of where my name is on that list, and in this case, I'm the 2nd table change on the list(there is one player on table 6 that wants to move to table 14). So, I sit back down.
About a half hour later, a seat opens on table 6, and I wait for a minute or two, and suddenly, some girl is picking up her chips and moving over to that table. So I go ask the pit boss what's going on, and I'll breifly summarize our conversation :
Me : "Why is that girl moving to table 6? I was top of the seat change chart..."
Pit : "She was on the seat change chart too."
Me : "She may very well have been, but I was higher on it, hence, priority. Dibs."
Pit : "Relax, you'll get the next one."
Me : "What?!?"
Pit : "Just don't worry about it, you're next!"
Me : "No. She is next."
Pit : "Dude you'll be next after her, don't worry about it."
Me : "Stop telling me to 'not worry about it', she's taking my seat, that's the long and short of it."
Pit : "Just relax and go play dude."
So, frustrated...I go to sit back down. Luckily, the girl doesn't feel like taking all the chips she had on her previous table to the new table, so she can't sit down and I'm now called over. Yay for me. Which the pit boss promptly shoves in my face with a "told you it wouldn't take long", as if that was somehow the issue...
And so time passes. I win almost a buyin with Kd/Jd vs I don't know what on a J/10/6 flop when I raised preflop and got 2 callers, then bet the flop and got raised all in and called the super-fish, board ran 9, Ace and I somehow stayed good. Not sure what he had.
After this, me and my buddy are die hard fans of baseball, and there's an interesting game in St.Louis in the 8th inning(that they get because they have the MLB Extra Innings preview for free), so my buddy goes up and asks the pit if he can change some of the stations we're watching PrimeTime Sports with Bob McCowan on(fine show, just not on mute), to that baseball game, and is promptly told that poor Michael is busy, and then ignored. Great.
So, a while later, we decide to go on meal break, and this is where all hell really breaks loose. I decide to simplify things, I'll take a table change now, play a session, then we'll grab meal buttons at the same time and go eat. And so that plan goes into effect. Surprisingly, the table change goes off without a hitch.
I get to the new table and play a session. Towards the end of the session, this young black kid whose a regular in the game(I've seen him a few times before and other regulars I recognized new him), has left the table a while ago. He's missed a big blind, and is quickly coming up to a 2nd BB missed. At that time, when he misses his 2nd Big Blind...for anyone not familiar with poker room rules, his chips are to be racked up and moved off the table, and replaced with an active player on the 36 person waiting list.
Instead, nothing happens. So a few hands later I call the pit(good old Michael) over, and alert him to the double blind since the dealer had not. Michael asks if anyone knows who the player is(commonplace since I work in a poker room I know how this works), one of his buddies says it's so and so, and immediately, the hunt is on. Rather than picking up his chips, Michael starts walking around the poker room asking if anyone has the kid's phone number. Eventually he finds someone who has it, and tells him to call the kid. By now I'm a little steamed, but fuck it I'll play along. During this time, I lose a buyin with KQ on a K/6/4 flop when someone leads, I raise, he calls, turn is a 2, he checks, I bet a ton, committing us both, and he calls, and the river is a 5, and he checks, I ship and he calls with K/3 off for a straight. So, I ask for a meal break(since it's my BB next), and the dealer starts to set the meal button up.
One problem, good old Michael has an idea. He decides, we're going to give the kid that's not here the meal button I just asked for and was having set for me. Naturally, I flip the hell out. The kid's not even supposed to be on the table anymore, he ISN'T THERE, NO ONE CAN CONTACT HIM, and yet he's now getting the meal button I FUCKING WANT, because I'm starving(hadn't eaten yet that day, woke up at 11:00am, it was now after 8:00pm). So...Michael sets the clock to a half hour(instead of the full hour, this is in his eyes, compromising with me, customer service and what not), and then thinks that's that.
Naturally that's not that, after all the previous indescretions, this one isn't going to slide. I stand up and run right over to Michael and we really go to war. He starts telling me I need to relax again, in the most condescending manner I could ever imagine(which is really what's driving my anger, because normally I'm very civil about disagreements, but just the manner he was talking to me was driving me insane and made me want to punch him in, or about the face). At this point I've lost my mind, I'm yelling at him, there are other players at the table yelling at him, and he just again in a smug voice "Jeez, you guys need to relax!", "If you worry about stuff like this now, when you're 50, you'll be 80!"
So ya, suffice it to say we have, many, many, many, many more words, and eventually I go on a meal break...come back and decide I'm just to pissed to actually play any more poker, and leave the room(while complaining to the CSM on site at the time before I go about my dear friend Michael).
So ya, good times.
Fallsview, nice action, but I don't recommend it. That place is beyond hopeless, the staff doesn't have a clue, or worse, are just down right belligerent, rude and don't care about proper rulings.
So, I call up to Fallsview Casino and ask to be put on 2/5 and 5/5 NL lists. I made that call around 2:30pm, I arrive at 3:30pm and find my name isn't on the list. So, after having to argue with the pit boss for a minute that I called(actually resorting to pulling out the trusty iPhone and showing him the exact call log of me calling them at 2:34pm, I'm put back on the list..."somewhere in the middle".
So, about 5:15, I finally get onto a table. So no real inconvenience, only nearly 2 hours of waiting. I'm put on table 8, and right away we have a problem. First hand I sit down some guy spills a glass of beer across the table. So now we have play halted at our table because of beer being all over it, and the dealer starts calling the pit boss over(by the way, I'd never forget this after today, he's got long blonde hair, his name is Michael), who ignores that situation that is holding up a mother fucking live game that has just paid session and now can't play a hand so he can open new tables. He's chillin' over at the opening tables, checking cards and stuff, rather than tending to slightly more pressing issues at hand. Good for him, prioritizing like a champ.
After we get up and running, a full session of 0 hands(not refunded) later, I ask the pit if he can put me on a seat change list to go to table 6 since I have a friend there and I wanna sit with him(he's a Bruins fan, I'm a Habs fan, there needed to be trash talking). As they do that, whenever I ask for that, I make sure to check for my name on the list, ensure they have the seat change put down correctly. I also, always, take stock of where my name is on that list, and in this case, I'm the 2nd table change on the list(there is one player on table 6 that wants to move to table 14). So, I sit back down.
About a half hour later, a seat opens on table 6, and I wait for a minute or two, and suddenly, some girl is picking up her chips and moving over to that table. So I go ask the pit boss what's going on, and I'll breifly summarize our conversation :
Me : "Why is that girl moving to table 6? I was top of the seat change chart..."
Pit : "She was on the seat change chart too."
Me : "She may very well have been, but I was higher on it, hence, priority. Dibs."
Pit : "Relax, you'll get the next one."
Me : "What?!?"
Pit : "Just don't worry about it, you're next!"
Me : "No. She is next."
Pit : "Dude you'll be next after her, don't worry about it."
Me : "Stop telling me to 'not worry about it', she's taking my seat, that's the long and short of it."
Pit : "Just relax and go play dude."
So, frustrated...I go to sit back down. Luckily, the girl doesn't feel like taking all the chips she had on her previous table to the new table, so she can't sit down and I'm now called over. Yay for me. Which the pit boss promptly shoves in my face with a "told you it wouldn't take long", as if that was somehow the issue...
And so time passes. I win almost a buyin with Kd/Jd vs I don't know what on a J/10/6 flop when I raised preflop and got 2 callers, then bet the flop and got raised all in and called the super-fish, board ran 9, Ace and I somehow stayed good. Not sure what he had.
After this, me and my buddy are die hard fans of baseball, and there's an interesting game in St.Louis in the 8th inning(that they get because they have the MLB Extra Innings preview for free), so my buddy goes up and asks the pit if he can change some of the stations we're watching PrimeTime Sports with Bob McCowan on(fine show, just not on mute), to that baseball game, and is promptly told that poor Michael is busy, and then ignored. Great.
So, a while later, we decide to go on meal break, and this is where all hell really breaks loose. I decide to simplify things, I'll take a table change now, play a session, then we'll grab meal buttons at the same time and go eat. And so that plan goes into effect. Surprisingly, the table change goes off without a hitch.
I get to the new table and play a session. Towards the end of the session, this young black kid whose a regular in the game(I've seen him a few times before and other regulars I recognized new him), has left the table a while ago. He's missed a big blind, and is quickly coming up to a 2nd BB missed. At that time, when he misses his 2nd Big Blind...for anyone not familiar with poker room rules, his chips are to be racked up and moved off the table, and replaced with an active player on the 36 person waiting list.
Instead, nothing happens. So a few hands later I call the pit(good old Michael) over, and alert him to the double blind since the dealer had not. Michael asks if anyone knows who the player is(commonplace since I work in a poker room I know how this works), one of his buddies says it's so and so, and immediately, the hunt is on. Rather than picking up his chips, Michael starts walking around the poker room asking if anyone has the kid's phone number. Eventually he finds someone who has it, and tells him to call the kid. By now I'm a little steamed, but fuck it I'll play along. During this time, I lose a buyin with KQ on a K/6/4 flop when someone leads, I raise, he calls, turn is a 2, he checks, I bet a ton, committing us both, and he calls, and the river is a 5, and he checks, I ship and he calls with K/3 off for a straight. So, I ask for a meal break(since it's my BB next), and the dealer starts to set the meal button up.
One problem, good old Michael has an idea. He decides, we're going to give the kid that's not here the meal button I just asked for and was having set for me. Naturally, I flip the hell out. The kid's not even supposed to be on the table anymore, he ISN'T THERE, NO ONE CAN CONTACT HIM, and yet he's now getting the meal button I FUCKING WANT, because I'm starving(hadn't eaten yet that day, woke up at 11:00am, it was now after 8:00pm). So...Michael sets the clock to a half hour(instead of the full hour, this is in his eyes, compromising with me, customer service and what not), and then thinks that's that.
Naturally that's not that, after all the previous indescretions, this one isn't going to slide. I stand up and run right over to Michael and we really go to war. He starts telling me I need to relax again, in the most condescending manner I could ever imagine(which is really what's driving my anger, because normally I'm very civil about disagreements, but just the manner he was talking to me was driving me insane and made me want to punch him in, or about the face). At this point I've lost my mind, I'm yelling at him, there are other players at the table yelling at him, and he just again in a smug voice "Jeez, you guys need to relax!", "If you worry about stuff like this now, when you're 50, you'll be 80!"
So ya, suffice it to say we have, many, many, many, many more words, and eventually I go on a meal break...come back and decide I'm just to pissed to actually play any more poker, and leave the room(while complaining to the CSM on site at the time before I go about my dear friend Michael).
So ya, good times.
Fallsview, nice action, but I don't recommend it. That place is beyond hopeless, the staff doesn't have a clue, or worse, are just down right belligerent, rude and don't care about proper rulings.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Finally back in the saddle again...
Wowie, this thing hasn't been updated in a while. Truth is for those who know me closely you know why for the most part.
Since this is a poker blog I won't go into incredible detail about everything, but suffice it to say, I've had a hard start to 2009, and frankly 2009 sucks. I've had some real bad family news regarding my dad's ongoing battle with cancer which has become a real drain on the house. Without getting too in detail, suffice it to say, he went up North for a few weeks to visit family, because he is concerned he may never be able to see them again. That's how bad that's gotten.
On a slight up note for me, I did get accepted to the College Of Sports Media in down-town Toronto, a private school run by Jim Van Horne, Elliote Friedman, David Lanys and other people from in the industry. However I'm not sure I'll even be enrolling this fall, or asking Dave for a year extension on coming because of how bad dad's health has gotten.
With all that going on, the family issues and saving for the school(which is not cheap, $35,000 in tuition for a 2 year course, plus living expenses in Toronto) I haven't been able to dedicate much time to poker.
I am glad to say that is ready to change however, I'm eagerly finally at a place personally where I'm ready to get back at poker and make it work. I remember the last time I updated I listed a bunch of personal goals for myself, things like "be making a living playing by the end of this year" and "play at least one major buyin tournament" this year, unfortunately that looks like it won't be happening, but that's fine, when life hands you lemons you make lemonade...and since lemonade is delicious that phrase always appealed to me.
So, I started my grind back up by heading on down to Fallsview Casino(which I will be frequenting now no less than 3 times a week so you can expect semi-frequent updates starting in a few weeks when this all goes into action) to play some 2/5 NL. I used to play 5/5 and even 5/10 there, but again with having to set aside like $50,000 for school, the old bankroll ain't what she used to be, so we're back to the 2/5 grind.
So finally, onto some hands on my poker blog! Yay! Oh wait, they didn't go good...bummer.
First big pot I play is shortly after sitting at the table, so I'm still $300 deep. It's a limped pot around to me in the BB and I have 88, so with 7 limps infront I give breif thought to raising, but considering how easy it is to take money off the average 2/5 player, I decide to just check instead and play fairly fit or fold against them for the session, especially with no reads. That works nicely when the flop peels A/8/2 rainbow. SB checks, I check, and it eventually checks right around to the button who bets $25 at the $40 pot. SB flats, and I decide to make a small raise to get everyone comitted relatively early, so I make it $60 to go. I know the min-raise(or basically min-raise) isn't the best play ever, but it's only exploitable against players that aren't garbage, here I can do all sorts of transparant bet sizing because the average player won't notice or think about why. Both players call. $220 in the pot. Turn is a 9. SB checks and I bet out $80. Button shoves, SB calls and I obviously call. Pot is ~$900. The SB has AQ, the button has A8. The river is an ace to fill up the A8. Presto, one buyin down.
So, after a quick rebuy there's only a few more smaller hands of note, there was alot of general bad fortune during the session. Alot of spots where I would raise with a hand like AK, AQ, and not only wiff flops but find myself OOP in multiway pots holding those cards and the flop would be too terrible to even c-bet or try and run a bluff on(K/10/8 with 2 diamonds or something).
I did win one coin flip with AK vs QQ to restore some of the loss, then wound up bluffing off alot of that restored loss in what was a great spot for me, just more bad fortune.
The hand was, I had 3s/4s on the button, there was a big fish(bad player but not necessarily a calling station, just a generally bad player) in the BB. I raised to $20, he called. Flop was Jd/7h/5d. He checked, I bet $35, he called. Turn was a great card to barrel, Ac. He checked, I bet $80, he called. The river wasn't the best card, an 8d completing a flush and a few goofy straight draws. However, he checked once again, which I knew meant he didn't have any of those hands, he was deffinitely not the type of player that would be checking back a made hand he drew to. At this point I figured my read of him being weak(a 7 or a 5) or drawing was alot more complete, because I could rule out any draw that got there on the river, and I was left with just a 7 or a 5 as his potential holdings. My only concern as I decided to bluff the river was there was an outside chance he had a hand like 8/7 which would now have to call after spiking a 2nd pair on the river(or at least probably would call given his general fishiness). So I barrelled $150 at him, and he called with 8/5. Like I said, I think my read was strong and I think it's a great spot to be barelling as the board kept running worse and worse, unfortunately he improved his hand on the river without hitting a draw to lead at me, but hit the river enough to be in check call mode instead of check fold.
All told I dumped $500, but I actually got a real motivation to get going at the live play again and get back into the swing of poker. I've been neglecting it for quite a while now, I can't wait to get back into it more fully in a few weeks. Look forward to regularily updating this blog when I start.
Since this is a poker blog I won't go into incredible detail about everything, but suffice it to say, I've had a hard start to 2009, and frankly 2009 sucks. I've had some real bad family news regarding my dad's ongoing battle with cancer which has become a real drain on the house. Without getting too in detail, suffice it to say, he went up North for a few weeks to visit family, because he is concerned he may never be able to see them again. That's how bad that's gotten.
On a slight up note for me, I did get accepted to the College Of Sports Media in down-town Toronto, a private school run by Jim Van Horne, Elliote Friedman, David Lanys and other people from in the industry. However I'm not sure I'll even be enrolling this fall, or asking Dave for a year extension on coming because of how bad dad's health has gotten.
With all that going on, the family issues and saving for the school(which is not cheap, $35,000 in tuition for a 2 year course, plus living expenses in Toronto) I haven't been able to dedicate much time to poker.
I am glad to say that is ready to change however, I'm eagerly finally at a place personally where I'm ready to get back at poker and make it work. I remember the last time I updated I listed a bunch of personal goals for myself, things like "be making a living playing by the end of this year" and "play at least one major buyin tournament" this year, unfortunately that looks like it won't be happening, but that's fine, when life hands you lemons you make lemonade...and since lemonade is delicious that phrase always appealed to me.
So, I started my grind back up by heading on down to Fallsview Casino(which I will be frequenting now no less than 3 times a week so you can expect semi-frequent updates starting in a few weeks when this all goes into action) to play some 2/5 NL. I used to play 5/5 and even 5/10 there, but again with having to set aside like $50,000 for school, the old bankroll ain't what she used to be, so we're back to the 2/5 grind.
So finally, onto some hands on my poker blog! Yay! Oh wait, they didn't go good...bummer.
First big pot I play is shortly after sitting at the table, so I'm still $300 deep. It's a limped pot around to me in the BB and I have 88, so with 7 limps infront I give breif thought to raising, but considering how easy it is to take money off the average 2/5 player, I decide to just check instead and play fairly fit or fold against them for the session, especially with no reads. That works nicely when the flop peels A/8/2 rainbow. SB checks, I check, and it eventually checks right around to the button who bets $25 at the $40 pot. SB flats, and I decide to make a small raise to get everyone comitted relatively early, so I make it $60 to go. I know the min-raise(or basically min-raise) isn't the best play ever, but it's only exploitable against players that aren't garbage, here I can do all sorts of transparant bet sizing because the average player won't notice or think about why. Both players call. $220 in the pot. Turn is a 9. SB checks and I bet out $80. Button shoves, SB calls and I obviously call. Pot is ~$900. The SB has AQ, the button has A8. The river is an ace to fill up the A8. Presto, one buyin down.
So, after a quick rebuy there's only a few more smaller hands of note, there was alot of general bad fortune during the session. Alot of spots where I would raise with a hand like AK, AQ, and not only wiff flops but find myself OOP in multiway pots holding those cards and the flop would be too terrible to even c-bet or try and run a bluff on(K/10/8 with 2 diamonds or something).
I did win one coin flip with AK vs QQ to restore some of the loss, then wound up bluffing off alot of that restored loss in what was a great spot for me, just more bad fortune.
The hand was, I had 3s/4s on the button, there was a big fish(bad player but not necessarily a calling station, just a generally bad player) in the BB. I raised to $20, he called. Flop was Jd/7h/5d. He checked, I bet $35, he called. Turn was a great card to barrel, Ac. He checked, I bet $80, he called. The river wasn't the best card, an 8d completing a flush and a few goofy straight draws. However, he checked once again, which I knew meant he didn't have any of those hands, he was deffinitely not the type of player that would be checking back a made hand he drew to. At this point I figured my read of him being weak(a 7 or a 5) or drawing was alot more complete, because I could rule out any draw that got there on the river, and I was left with just a 7 or a 5 as his potential holdings. My only concern as I decided to bluff the river was there was an outside chance he had a hand like 8/7 which would now have to call after spiking a 2nd pair on the river(or at least probably would call given his general fishiness). So I barrelled $150 at him, and he called with 8/5. Like I said, I think my read was strong and I think it's a great spot to be barelling as the board kept running worse and worse, unfortunately he improved his hand on the river without hitting a draw to lead at me, but hit the river enough to be in check call mode instead of check fold.
All told I dumped $500, but I actually got a real motivation to get going at the live play again and get back into the swing of poker. I've been neglecting it for quite a while now, I can't wait to get back into it more fully in a few weeks. Look forward to regularily updating this blog when I start.
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