Eurolinx reload

Well, after a week off poker, I decided to reload on Eurolinx. I deposited $500.

I played Monday afternoon, sitting down with $250 at a 2/4 NL, six handed table. I played cautiously at the beginning, trying to get a feel for the table. But the cards were great all afternoon. I also didn't play too agressive. If I limped to see a flop, but someone raised, I folded every time - I didn't get stubborn.

The first big hand I was involved in went like this:
I'm dealt KdKc in middle position, and I raise it to $16. I get three callers. Flop is Qc 5h 8d. The SB and BB check, I bet $40. The dealer calls, and the SB calls. Turn is a 10c. SB checks, I check, Dealer bets $50. The SB then raises all-in for over $250. The dealer was an agressive player, so I didn't give him credit for much. I decided to call, thinking that I can't always be beaten when I have a good hand. The dealer folded. SB shows Ac7c - flush draw and an overcard to my KK. River was the 10h, so I picked up a very nice pot and got up to over $550.

I played solid for a while, and then this hand came up about an hour later:

***** Hand History for Game 140806127 *****
$2.00/$4.00 NL Texas Hold'em - Mon, Aug 28, 19:32:45 2006
Table One Crazy Summer (Real Money)
Seat 2 is the button
Total number of players : 6
Seat 1: _myst_ ($808.00)
Seat 2: ralfonzteri ($823.85)
Seat 3: RockHD ($757.50)
Seat 4: populi ($440.70)
Seat 5: Face_OFF ($418.80)
Seat 6: mrkymarc ($649.70)
RockHD posts small blind [$2.00]
populi posts big blind [$4.00]
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to RockHD [ 4s 7d ]
Face_OFF folds
mrkymarc folds
_myst_ folds
ralfonzteri folds
RockHD calls [$2.00]
populi checks
** Dealing Flop ** [ 4c 9s 7s ]
RockHD bets [$8.00]
populi raises [$16.00]
RockHD calls [$8.00]
** Dealing Turn ** [ 2d ]
RockHD checks
populi bets [$32.00]
RockHD calls [$32.00]
** Dealing River ** [ Jd ]
RockHD checks
populi bets [$68.00]
RockHD calls [$68.00]
populi shows [ 5d 7h ] a Pair, Sevens
RockHD shows [ 4s 7d ] Two Pair, Sevens and Fours
RockHD wins $237.00 from the main pot

Nice pot for a blind vs blind hand!

A few minutes later, this next hand came up. Note that I really overbet the flop, since I knew I had the best hand and if he was on a flush draw, I wanted it to be for all his chips. When he bet $40 on the flop, my thoughts were he either had the K, or a flush draw. Either way, I was happy with the pot size right there, and didn't want him to outdraw me.

#Game No : 140810795
***** Hand History for Game 140810795 *****
$2.00/$4.00 NL Texas Hold'em - Mon, Aug 28, 19:39:25 2006
Table One Crazy Summer (Real Money)
Seat 3 is the button
Total number of players : 6
Seat 1: _myst_ ($786.00)
Seat 2: ralfonzteri ($809.85)
Seat 3: RockHD ($830.50)
Seat 4: populi ($264.70)
Seat 5: Face_OFF ($449.70)
Seat 6: mrkymarc ($745.70)
populi posts small blind [$2.00]
Face_OFF posts big blind [$4.00]
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to RockHD [ 9d 9c ]
mrkymarc folds
_myst_ calls [$4.00]
ralfonzteri folds
RockHD raises [$16.00]
populi folds
Face_OFF calls [$12.00]
_myst_ calls [$12.00]
** Dealing Flop ** [ 9h Kh 5d ]
Face_OFF bets [$40.00]
_myst_ folds
RockHD is all-In [$814.50]
Face_OFF folds
RockHD is refunded uncalled bet $774.50
RockHD does not show cards.
RockHD wins $127.00 from the main pot

10 minutes later, this beauty came up. I wish I had checked the river. I put him on a draw all the way, either flush or straight. If I check the river, it gives him an opportunity to bluff at the pot since it's the only way he could win it, not having hit his hand. Inducing the bluff (as Dan Harrington calls it) is a play I need to think about in this situation:

#Game No : 140816051
***** Hand History for Game 140816051 *****
$2.00/$4.00 NL Texas Hold'em - Mon, Aug 28, 19:47:21 2006
Table One Crazy Summer (Real Money)
Seat 2 is the button
Total number of players : 6
Seat 1: _myst_ ($709.50)
Seat 2: ralfonzteri ($793.85)
Seat 3: RockHD ($896.50)
Seat 4: populi ($321.70)
Seat 5: Face_OFF ($417.90)
Seat 6: mrkymarc ($731.30)
RockHD posts small blind [$2.00]
populi posts big blind [$4.00]
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to RockHD [ 5d 5s ]
Face_OFF raises [$20.00]
mrkymarc calls [$20.00]
_myst_ folds
ralfonzteri folds
RockHD calls [$18.00]
populi folds
** Dealing Flop ** [ 5c 6d 7c ]
RockHD bets [$50.00]
Face_OFF folds
mrkymarc calls [$50.00]
** Dealing Turn ** [ 6h ]
RockHD bets [$50.00]
mrkymarc calls [$50.00]
** Dealing River ** [ Jd ]
RockHD bets [$100.00]
mrkymarc folds
RockHD is refunded uncalled bet $100.00
RockHD shows [ 5d 5s ] a Full House, Fives full of Sixes
RockHD wins $261.00 from the main pot

Still a good pot, but I'll try inducing the bluff next time.

Here's the last big hand of the afternoon. This new player sat at our table, and I'm in the SB he's BB.

#Game No : 140840408
***** Hand History for Game 140840408 *****
$2.00/$4.00 NL Texas Hold'em - Mon, Aug 28, 20:23:18 2006
Table One Crazy Summer (Real Money)
Seat 2 is the button
Total number of players : 6
Seat 1: kirran ($252.00)
Seat 2: ralfonzteri ($649.35)
Seat 3: RockHD ($922.00)
Seat 4: wazupdude ($378.60)
Seat 5: Trickyfish ($569.70)
Seat 6: mrkymarc ($606.80)
RockHD posts small blind [$2.00]
wazupdude posts big blind [$4.00]
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to RockHD [ Qh Qd ]
mrkymarc folds
kirran folds
ralfonzteri folds
RockHD raises [$14.00]
wazupdude calls [$12.00]
** Dealing Flop ** [ 5d Tc 7c ]
RockHD bets [$30.00]
wazupdude raises [$60.00]
RockHD raises [$100.00]
wazupdude is all-In [$302.60]
RockHD calls [$232.60]
wazupdude shows [ Ts 2s ] a Pair, Tens
** Dealing Turn ** [ Kc ]
** Dealing River ** [ 6c ]
RockHD shows [ Qh Qd ] a Pair, Queens
wazupdude shows [ Ts 2s ] a Pair, Tens
RockHD wins $755.20 from main pot

If he had been there longer, he would have known that I fold my SB when I have nothing, and I raise it when I have good cards. I'll sometimes flat call with medium hands, but I never flat call with premium hands because of my fear of being outdrawn. I thought he had the flush draw, and I was very lucky that he didn't since the turn and river were both clubs.

All in all a great afternoon - the cards were hitting me and I took advantage. I ended the day up $1050.

Eurolinx Freeroll

On Sunday, our buddy myst got Eurolinx to hold another freeroll. This time with $1000 in purse, and a $100 bounty on myst himself.

127 players signed up.

Things went well early on... in the first two hours, I lost only one pot that I was involved in, and my stack got up to close to 10,000 from the starting 2,500 in chips.

Here are the key hands from early on:

I'm dealt 34 clubs. Blinds are 15/30, UTG raises to $90. I'm on the button, so I call. Flop comes J 2 5. UTG checks, so I check to get a free card. The turn is an Ace, giving me the nuts (so far). He bets $200. I flat call. River is a 4. I still have the straight, but it's now more obvious. He bets another $200, and I raise to $700. He flat calls, and shows AA for trip aces. If I had known he was that strong, I would have put him all-in on the turn and he would have called. But still a good start.

About 6 hands later, blinds are the same. I'm dealt 99. I flat call in middle position. The same player whose Aces I cracked raises to $90 again, and I call. Flop comes 9 K 5. He leads out $150, and I flat call again. Turn 4. He bets $250, I put him all-in and he calls with KQ. He's drawing dead, and I'm up to $5500.

One hand where I slow played AK instead of raising: Blinds are 25/50. UTG raises to $200. I decided to flat call. A middle position player goes all-in for $3000. UTG thinks long and hard, and calls. I decide my hand is no good, and fold. MP had AA, UTG had AJ. AA wins, and I escape unscathed.

In the last moments, when we were down to about 30, I had to go into all-in mode to pick up the blinds since I was low stacked. I pushed any Ace, and any two face cards, and didn't get called. I folded pocket fives in early position... I'd rather go all-in with two face cards than a small pair... why? I never win the races when I have the small pair!

ZachJackDad, a local player, got switched to our table. Everyone folds around, and he raises to $4000. I have A4 in the BB, and I go all-in for $8000 total. He has no choice but to call, since he priced himself in. He shows K4. Flop is 4 3 3, turn 7. It's looking good... but a 4 on the river makes it a split pot. That $8000 I should have won would have made a big difference.

After pushing all-in about 7 times, I finally got in a race. I went all-in with 66... I had no choice, being low-stacked. I got called by AK, and of course the flop was AKJ. I didn't catch one of my two outs and I was eliminated in 13th place (the tourney paid the top 10).

It was fun to play a tournament like that, where most people take it seriously even though it didn't cost anything.

Sunday afternoon

I decided to host a 1/2 NL game on Sunday afternoon. Perfect day for it too, as it rained all afternoon and evening.

We started at about 2:30 pm, and played until 7:30 pm. There weren't very memorable hands on my end... I lost about $65 when I got impatient, and went all-in with a flush draw that didn't catch. I re-bought another $100, got it up to about $300.

With about half an hour left, I was dealt AK under the gun. I just limped in, everyone limped until finally the small blind raises it to $12. I make it $50 to go, and he goes all-in for $25 more. He shows KdQd. And as things have been going lately, the first card off was a Q giving him the win with this 3 outer.

The very next hand, I was still pissed off and I re-raised all-in with KQ myself, got called by AQ, and didn't improve. So that was it for the day, $200 loss.

Lately, it seems I raise my big hands too much because I'm afraid to lose with them... so I don't make money with my good cards. And when I do get some callers, they actually do outdraw me. I'm not playing any poker, online or live, this week. I need to change that losing frame of mind. 1/2 is a trapping game, and I'll actually start trying to trap a bit more. Not letting 4 guys in cheap when I have a big hand, but not re-raising so high that I scare the original raiser too.

Friday night poker

The bad beats continue to slap me around...

I played in a $55 tourney on Friday, with 18 people in. Things started off ok, I was up to $4000 from $2000. 10 people left, and I get AK in the small blind. Everyone folds, and I raise it up to $200, blinds are $25/50. The player to my left, in the Big Blind, is VERY loose, and overall a bad player. He raises it another $150, and I know he's got crap, so I go all-in. He calls with his crap, and shows QJ offsuit. The first card off is a J, and I don't catch so I lose $3400 chips.

Next hand, on the button, I'm dealt AK again. This time there are 2 callers, so I go all-in. Someone calls with 4d5d, and they proceed to kick me in the nuts when the cards come out 5 3 9 Q 5.

So I go to the cash table, playing 1/2 NL.

I buy-in for $100. I tried to bluff someone who was holding the small end of a full house (I thought he had just Ace high), so I lost the $100.

I buy-in again for $100. I'm in the big blind, there is a $12 raise, two callers. I have 88. The original raiser is brutal, he raises A rag, K rag, anything. The other two I don't think are that strong since they just called, so I re-raise all-in for $70. First raiser folds, but one of the callers (another brutal player) calls. He shows AJ offsuit. The first card off is an 8, so I'm looking great. But the next four cards are all clubs, and he makes an Ace high flush to beat my set.

I buy-in again for $100. There is a $10 raise, I hold Q 10 hearts, I call, another player calls. Flop is 8 9 J... rainbow. I flop the nuts. First guy bets $25, I go all-in for $80, first raiser folds, and the other guy calls. He shows 88 for a set of eights. Turn 3, river 9, pairing the board to give him a full house.

I was going to leave, cutting my loses at $355, but I decided to buy-in again for $100. I managed to build my stack up to $500 with a combination of good hands that actually held up (KK vs JJ, AK vs K9 and K8). And I also took advantage of my reputation as a very tight player when I've won back chips I had earlier lost, and bluffed 3 big pots away from a maniac of a player that gives me too much respect.

So the final tally was a profit of $45... not much, but it made me very happy since I was in for $455.

Eurolinx run over

The bad beats at Eurolinx finally got the best of me. After starting with $250 on this site, I withdrew $1260 and $1000 in the first month. I got my balance up to over $2100, and I was anticipating withdrawing another $1000 when I hit $2500. But I never got there. In July, I played 8 times, and I only came out on the winning end once. My account is now down to zero.

As you read in my previous posts, the bad beats were terrible. So I've quit this site... maybe I'll come back to it later. After all, I did net over $2000 USD in 2.5 months. It just pisses me off that I got raped for another $2000 in a series of bad beats by people who can't play.

Last night I played a $55 tourney in Plantagenet. There were only 14 players. You start with 2000 in chips, and blinds at 5/10. So you can see a lot of flops early. After about an hour, I was back to my starting stack after going up and down. Blinds are 25/50, I pick up 10s6s in the big blind, there are two callers, I check. Flop is 10 6 Q rainbow. SB checks, I bet $150. Big stack raises to $650, SB folds (he showed KQ later), I go all-in for $1500 more. She insta-calls, she has QJ for top pair. Turn is a 9, giving her lots of outs (straight possibilities), and river is a J giving her a higher two pair. Another bad beat!

We played 1/2 NL later in the evening, maxing out at 8 players, but playing most of the night only 6. I bought in for $60, lost it. I bought in again for $100, got that up to $300. Then I'm dealt AA in the BB, everyone folds, SB completes. I raise $10. He calls. Flop Q 6 8. He checks, I bet $20. Turn 7. He checks, I check. River 3, he bets $50. I reluctantly call - he has Q7 for two pair. Another bad beat...

Fifteen minutes later, I'm dealt JJ on the button. UTG raises to $17, he has $50 behind, so I raise him all-in. He thinks about it, and calls with QQ. I don't suck out.

Last hand, I'm down to $160. I'm dealt 10 J offsuit on the button. There are only 4 players left at the table. Everyone calls the $2, I raise it $5 more. Everyone calls. Flop is J 9 7 with two diamonds. First one to talk goes all-in for $123. 2nd guy is thinking about calling... The player who is all-in tells us we can look at one card, he shows the 8 of diamonds. That confirms in my mind that he's on the flush draw. 2nd guy finally folds, and I call. He shows 6d8d for a gut-shot straight + flush draw. Two blanks came on the turn and river, and I pick it up. The 2nd player had Kd4d and folded his flush draw.

So I ended the night up $90. Not very much, but still better than losing.