Last night I inserted the changes to my game that I picked up from reading a few comments from Doyle Brunson, and Daniel Negraneu (sp?). I try to scour the internet for information to help me figure out what I was doing wrong, so that I could break out of this losing streak I was in. After most of the articles I found I really wasn't playing as bad as I thought I was; there were a few things I picked up on from my research that I was doing wrong:
- I was going all in during situations when it wasn't neccesary even though I felt I had the nuts, and as a result I would run into the bad luck of someone catching an unbelievable hand like the 3 games in a row I was eliminated by 4 of a kind when I had a full house.
- If someone is determined to chase a flush draw there isn't much you can do about it except bet, and if they hit it just get away from the hand if you put them on the flush.
- Going all-in is a last resort, your not going to win the tournament or table during the first two rounds of blinds, try not to go all in if you don't have too.
All those tips were right on, and it made me realize I wasn't playing badly I was running into monsters and getting eliminated, instead if I bet big and just lost a big pot, I was still in it and had a chance to come back.
On to last nights action I started out playing disciplined and being patient, I folded a lot getting a read on everyone at the table and luckily some of the more aggressive players were acting before me, so it was the perfect position for me. After folding and winning one or two modest sized pots with my new found aggressive play, I hit a run of cards never before seen in the history of poker, I received all the hands in a row:
QQ, KK, AJ, AQ, QQ, AJ, AA, 22
Needless to say I played the first pair of Queens aggressively and won a nice sized pot, I raised 3 times the big blind with the kings and stole the blinds plus one person's call. The AJ I limped in with it, and my pair of jacks lost to a pair of kings, I stole the blinds with the AQ by betting double the big blind. This next hand I misplayed, I was on the button and everyone folded before me I figured at most the big blind and small blind would play, so it would be 3-handed. Well, they both came into the pot, the flop came 6, 4, 9 and Daniel (The Bat) puts out a bet double the big blind of $300, so I am thinking this guy is either bluffing or over betting his small pair (a typical practice of The Bat), so I raise to $600, and he goes all-in which was only $125 more for him, so of course I call. He flips his cards over and he has two pair 6 4, I didn't catch a queen and he won the pot. I was a little pissed at myself because I didn't raise but I was hoping one of them had a pair smaller than a queen and would go all int, I just didn't count on two pair. The AJ hand I raised and was called by 3 people, we all checked it down to the river then, one of the sisters bets $300, I have a jack which 2nd pair at the time and I am looking at the board and there is a straight draw out there if someone has AQ or Q9 then they would have made their straight. I look over at her and she is trying to keep a straight face and bursts out laughing, then she says "I hate when I get busted on the river.", so I take out enough chips to double her bet and I stare her down, and I just thought through the hand and I put her on the AQ and I figured she had the straight, so I fold, and the Bat's girl called the bet (I put her on a K early in the hand because she bet 300 when the flop was K J 7, she doesn't usually bluff from my experience). Well Barb did hit the straight with Q9, I put her on the wrong hand, but I knews I was beat anyway.
The next hand AA, the holy grail of poker starting hands, I raise the pot so to eliminate any draws, and Christina calls me quickly, so I start thinking she must have a nice hand to call a decent sized raise with the blinds this big. The flop comes 3 6 8 all hearts, so she acts first and bets $300, now I am perplexed a little she called a raise and then all low cards came out, but she doesn't really bluff, so I am thinking pockets, but what size, so I just call because of the potential flush and maybe a set is out there. The turn is an 8 of clubs, she just checks, so I check behind her then the river is another heart and she bets $700, I knew she had made her hand but I just had to call to see what she hand and it was Pocket Q's one of them a heart. I realized then there was nothing I could do to take that hand from her, she was going to be the Queens and she probably would have called any all in, the only thing I could have done was fold and save some chips, but you will never learn if you don't try. I was eliminated with the pocket 2's because I was stinging from the last 2 hands and I went all in, Christina called with Q7 and hit a Queen on the turn.
Overall I don't think I played that bad, but I ran into a little bit of bad luck and I misplayed my hands in a few spots, but overall it's not bad. I went home and got 2nd place in a $5.00 sit 'n' go on Party Poker, so it was an ok day. I am just ready for Vegas.
No comments:
Post a Comment